Are you putting all of your back-ups in the Optical Storage basket?
I read an interesting article the other day at ZD-Net that basically was predicting the coming demise of optical storage. This was in reference to the newly displayed 320GB, 10-layer Blue-ray disc that was being showcased by TDK. It was a very interesting article that took me back to my days as a Zip Disk and Jaz Drive user. I can remember how psyched I was when I used my first 1GB Jaz Drive and thought to myself “I will never run out of storage again!”. So here I sit with a small stack of Jaz Drives that will never be accessed again. That’s the problem with new and better storage solutions, they never seem to be viable for that long. I think this is the problem with new optical storage solutions. People don’t want to invest in a storage medium that will not make it into the next decade, at least not for the price it would command. And who can blame them when a 500GB external drive can be had for less than $80. I know that I wouldn’t want to sink $250 into a Blue-ray burner just so I could get 20GB of optical storage. I think the lessen here is to plan ahead for your storage needs and be prepared to move your archival images before your present method is obsolete. Here’s the link to the ZD-Net story .
Nikon releases another camera make-over with video
Maybe it’s just me but is anyone really that excited about the new D3s? I mean we all saw it coming, right? Sure, there are some very cool enhancements to an already great camera like improved ISO performance (ISO 102,400, are you kidding me?), then there is the much needed built in sensor cleaner that just missed getting into the D3. And then there are the old standards like the full frame FX sensor, the magnesium alloy body, the long lasting shutter, and the dual card slot (a personal favorite of mine). So I guess if they wanted to beef up the camera the least they could do was to throw in some 720P video capture. I mean it is the logical next step… that is unless you are a photographer.
Let’s face it, how many of you out there are going to be making the jump to cinematographer? I mean, I like to capture some video segments from time to time, and yes, they do look better when shot with professional lenses that can control the depth of field. But is that going to be my deciding factor in buying a $5000 camera? Here’s what I want. Give me a camera that will shoot three frames and internally process the images for an expanded dynamic range image. That’s right, I want HDR in my camera! If they can make a point-and-shoot that will combine three images into a seamless pano, why can’t I get better dynamic range in my “out-of-camera” images? By the way, has anyone seen how long the video capture sequence limit is? Seriously, I couldn’t find it in any of the literature so I’m not sure if they have expanded it beyond the 5 minute HD barrier that is the norm for the D5000 and the D90. Not that it matters because who has an attention span longer than 30 seconds anymore.
A New Trek-Pod Hits the Streets
Here’s another new item that was announced yesterday. My friends over at Trek-Tech have just released an all new TrekPod II. It’s kind of like the Swiss army knife for outdoor photographers. It’s part walking staff, part monopod, and part tripod. You may remember a few months ago I reviewed the Trek-Tech TrekPod Go! Pro. Well now there is a more economical version with many of the same features that made the TrekPod Go such a great device. For the low cost of $99, you get the TrekPod along with the MagMount Star-ball head (which is just awesome) and the travel case. It looks like the folks at Trek-Tech have another winner on their hands. You can find out more info at the official Trek-Tech web page or click here to see the official press release along with more photos and a video demonstration.
Sporadic Blogging
I am going to be really busy for the next few days so my blogging may be a bit more sporadic that you are used to. I don’t want to give anything away at the moment but I will share with you the reason a little later down the road. I will however post whenever I am able, which might include some rare weekend blog appearances so stay tuned.
That’s it for today, have a great Thursday!
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Honestly Jeff, in-camera HDR is a pretty pointless thing. Yes, it may save a few seconds of computer work, but at what cost? I’ll attempt to elaborate:
1) File size – I assume you want creation of an HDR in addition to the raw files. If you are bracketing all shots as HDR, you’ve just halved your memory card capacity
2) Battery – creation of an HDR file requires processing power. Your battery life takes an unknown hit.
3) Settings are “Baked-In” to HDR. Creation of the HDR is governed by several parameters (6 profiles are available in Qtpsfgui) including a weighting function and response curve; your software may vary
4) Different HDR file formats are capable of achieving different compression factors and dynamic ranges – sporadic bloggers will howl in protest if their pet format is not implemented
5) No ghosting or offset controls; there is no way you could effectively do this in-camera either, even on a VGA screen
Jeepers! I’m not a software engineer; I’m sure one of those could come up with at least a half-dozen other reasons that it is a truly terrible idea. Pentax K-7 uses some Mickey Mouse tone-mapping to make images look “HDR”, but does not output an actual HDR file.