Courtesy Nikon

Full HD movies with everything it seems. HD movie capability now seems to be mandatory for entry level DSLRs.

Nikon’s latest baby, the D3100, is the latest model to offer full 1080p HD movie shooting at 24 fps, albeit for up to 10 mins and with monaural sound. Shooting movie clips has been simplified with the D-movie function being accessed with the movie record button. A full time, servo mode AF mode avoids having to shoot clips with the shutter release held half way in. Some basic editing can be done in-camera.

The new 14.2 megapixel (effective) DX format, CMOS  sensor is the core of this, Nikon’s lightest DSLR (only 505 gms with battery and memory card). It provides a significant step up from it’s popular predecessor, as the D3000 offered a 10.2 megapixel(effective) CCD sensor.

As well as live view shooting via the much used 230K, 3 inch LCD screen, users will get a large ISO range of 100-3200 (expandable up to 12800) – up from 100-1600 on the D3000. They will also get a new Expeed 2 processor, which it is claimed, provides improved noise handling and more vivid colours.

Nikon have sought to make the upgrade from compact cameras easier in a number of ways for their core market. Users are provided with a guide mode providing tips aimed at helping them master the camera’s functions. This is somewhat similar to Sony’s attempts to do the same with the NEX cameras and was first introduced by Nikon into their DSLR range on the D3000, the D3100′s immediate predecessor. Nikon goes further with a scene auto selector function in which the camera automatically detects certain types of scene being presented to it and adjusts the shooting parameters accordingly for Portrait, Landscape, Night portrait or Close-up shots. The face detection software has also been upgraded to detect up to 35 faces (30 more than the D3000). I understand that there is no truth in the rumour that Nikon will soon release the cup of tea mode as a new feature.

All in all, this looks like a capable camera, which will surely resonate with the target audience, though the entry level costs may well be an issue in this hyper-saturated area of the wider DSLR market – especially with the mirror-less, changeable lens manufacturers targeting their efforts into essentially the same segment.

The camera is expected to be available for purchase from the end of September 2010. The camera body only will cost approx. £500 or £580 with a kit lens.

You’re way ahead of me. Photoshop has a shortcut for that.

To replace your current cursor with a pin sharp crosshair, all you have to do is press: -

Caps Lock (Mac and PC)

This (commendably brief) shortcut toggles between the standard tool cursor and the cross hair. You can switch to the more accurate cursor for as long as you like, even changing between tools, then return to the standard cursor when you want. It works with the majority of the tool cursors. When you have a spare 30 seconds, you can experiment to see which ones change and which ones don’t.

Why not try it?

Courtesy Sony

Sony’s foray into the mirrorless, interchangeable lens market with the NEX range has attracted a lot of interest, with the new cameras offering a number of interesting options to the market.

Range – The range currently comes in two models, the NEX-3 and the NEX-5. The NEX-5 is the more expensive variant (currently around £530 with the 18-55mm lens) with a magnesium alloy body that differs significantly in detail to its cheaper (currently around £470 with the 18-55mm lens) polycarbonate bodied sibling. It is also slightly smaller (111 x 59 x 38 mm versus 117 x 63 x 33mm) and lighter (287 gm versus 297 gm) than the NEX-3. Apart from these size and body variations and a difference in their video shooting abilities, the two cameras are otherwise virtually identical.

Sensor – Both cameras offer a new CMOS APS sensor with 14.2 megapixels. The sensor is large relative to the body but offers excellent picture quality and high ISO noise performance. A high burst speed of up to 7fps can be obtained with still images.

Sweep Panorama – The new sweep panorama option gives users a very simple method of getting more out of each location by simply sweeping around a scene with the shutter release pressed. All the stitching is done automatically. A firmware upgrade allows a 3D panorama to be generated that can be viewed on a suitable 3D television and incidentally improves the 2D panorama operation. These are great options for point and clickers.

Video – Users can take HD quality video with both cameras, although the NEX-3 offers only 720p in MP3 format while the NEX-5 can take 1920x1080i video in AVDHC files. Each cameras has stereo microphones.

Lenses/Accessories – The cameras come with a modest but increasing range of accessories, including an optical viewfinder, screw-in flash unit, microphone and 3 new E-mount lenses. The lenses offered are a 16mm F2.8 wide angle prime lens, an 18mm-55mm F3.5-5.6 standard zoom lens and an 18mm-200mm F3.5-6.3 high magnification zoom lens. They are not directly compatible with the existing Alpha mount.

Unfortunately, with a very small distance between the rear lens elements and the focal plane of the camera, there is no room for Sony’s successful in-camera shake reduction system as used in the ‘real’ Alpha cameras. Sony has replaced this with an optical steady shot inside some of the lenses. The cameras need a substantial (LA-EA1) adapter to use the existing Alpha/Minolta lenses, which does not provide autofocus.

Screen - User feedback and control is provided through the rear, 3 inch, 921k pixel, tilting LCD display. The display tilts vertically only and allows most high and low level shots to be seen comfortably. It also provides good outdoor visibility. Unfortunately it is not a touchscreen and operates with a scroll wheel. The menu system is designed with the target market of point and shooters in mind and delivers tips with many of the settings. It is very different from that offered in the ‘real’ Alpha cameras. The number of buttons has also been minimised and three that remain are context sensitive with nothing to mark what they do on the body of the camera.

Battery - Power is provided through a lithium ion battery that is not compatible with the Alpha camera range. Sony quote 330 shots per charge under the CIPA standard that assumes 50% flash shots with the detachable flash unit.

Summary – All in all, the NEX cameras are pricey but interesting and well constructed additions to the mirror-less, interchangeable, lens market. Is it going to successfully attract point and shoot up graders or DSLR owners looking for a point and shoot alternative? I have some doubts.

The cameras have a number of key selling points. One is size and undoubtedly Sony has achieved that with the new bodies. The lenses are however a different proposition. The ultra slim body size is compromised somewhat by the size of some of the lenses. Any attempt to utilise the existing Alpha lens range will reduce the significance of the size factor considerably, especially given the need to add a cumbersome connector in order to use the generally bigger lenses. You might be able to pocket the camera body without a second thought but will you do the same with the lenses?

The cameras are being  sold under the Alpha brand, presumably to try and get an initial sales boost and some rub-off gloss from that successful line of cameras. The differences are however, much more evident than the similarities. The inability to use the existing Alpha lenses without a non-included adapter is going to be a significant barrier – especially with the lack of autofocus if you do buy one and the approximately £150 extra cost. No other Alpha specific accessory works with the NEX-3/5, so any existing Alpha investments will be of little use.

Sony has clearly invested a significant development effort in producing the new range and their background in electronics is very much to the fore with the camera bodies, connectors and e-mount system. This investment is reflected in the current price levels and these may come down significantly for the bodies, as we saw with the Alpha range. The rate of decrease will presumably depend upon the number of units sold.  Potential customers will probably think carefully about investing at this stage though, as an early Alpha range investor (Alpha 100/700) I was very happy with the subsequent development of the range and Sony’s evident commitment to the DSLR market.

In short, the NEX range is stand alone for all intents and purposes in my opinion. It will undoubtedly attract a loyal following, who will probably stick to the offered lenses and get good images with them. I doubt that there will be much crossover from point and shooters or DSLR users looking for a point and shoot. If I was thinking of upgrading from a point and shoot to a replaceable lens system I would personally go the whole hog and get an excellent beginners DSLR costing less than a fully equipped NEX-3/5 – but that may just be me.

We award the new range a B -. This score would increase with the introduction of a touchscreen, accessory range improvement and a significant price reduction.

CMD+h (Mac) CTRL + h (PC)

Voila; an ant free image. Press the same shortcut to get them back.

Unfortunately, this tip doesn’t work in the rain forest – sorry.

It is an interesting fact that some of the default keyboard shortcuts within Photoshop CS4 do more than one thing depending upon the context. Here is one example.

The simple Backspace/Delete key can do many things including: -

1/ When using the magnetic lasso tool it will delete the last anchor point in sequence

2/ In the Layers panel it will delete the selected layer/layer groups

3/ In the Curves panel it will delete the selected point on the curve. If no points are selected, it will delete the entire Curves adjustment layer

Why not try it?

© Improved Images Ltd

Things are moving fast here at Improved Images, as we go through our most exciting phase of growth.

We are pleased to announce that we will shortly be rolling out a new Photo Scanning Service. This will use state of the art scanning techniques and hardware to allow customers to get their digital images out of the shoebox and into digital form, with all the wonderful range of options that allows.

We will offer a cost effective and quick service. As part of that service we will collect and deliver photographs free of charge within an area around Ayr, on the beautiful west coast of Scotland. Those living further afield will still be able to receive the benefits of our professional service that incorporates our own proprietary processing workflow to enhance the images.

Further details will be announced in the near future.

© Improved Images Ltd

We are pleased to announce that we will shortly be introducing a new range of training courses. These will cover a wide range of topics covering both software and hardware related topics.

The first one we will be introducing will be our Hands-On DSLR Camera Sensor Cleaning course.

Not only will the course consider all the current sensor cleaning options and provide instructions on how to minimise dust getting into your cameras but we are so confident of our teaching and our methodology that we will provide our own DSLR cameras for all participants to get hands on practice cleaning digital sensors. This will give participants a risk free opportunity to practise the techniques we discuss before trying them on your own camera.

Over the life time of your DSLR camera doing your own cleaning could save you hundreds of pounds.

Further details will be published in the near future.

They can be contacted on http://www.fsb.org.uk/info.

Courtesy Apple

Apple has released an update for Aperture 3. The release is available through the update section on the website, the automatic update feature or the update option under the apple menu on your computer.

The update targets stability in general and a variety of issues, namely: -

Applying adjustments such as Retouch or Chromatic Aberration

Creating and using Raw Fine Tuning presets

Viewing, adding and removing detected faces

Switching target printers and paper sizes when printing

Duplicating Smart Albums

Repairing and rebuilding Aperture libraries

Reconnecting referenced files

Working with GPS track files in Places

Searching for keywords in the Query HUD or Keyword Controls

The full list of changes is substantial and can be found here: – http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2518. One of the main improvements seems to have been in the chromatic aberration correction, which has been significantly beefed up. Occasional slow performance when updating vaults has been addressed and seconds have been added to GPS tracks to allow more accurate positioning of photographs.

My own experience with Aperture 3 has been seamless and the program has been very stable and much faster than Aperture 2. Many issues were reported soon after its release into the wild so hopefully the latest updates will clear the field of all remaining glitches.

Apple has done a remarkably good job as usual, integrating the improvements available through version 3 into the body of the software. Faces is much improved over its initial implementation in iPhoto and while many odd features are suggested as possible faces it has been staggering to see how the software deals successfully with people as they age.

Places is a great addition now that more and more images arrive geotagged. The post capture method of assigning images to places has a slightly left field logical flow and is very un-Apple like in its implementation, but once you have the measure of it, the allocation of photographs to specific locations is very easy.

Brushes takes image correction into the premier league and will markedly reduce the need to move images out of Aperture 3 into external editing software, such as Photoshop. The implementation of layers and masks is an interesting variation on what is available in Photoshop. I have not got anywhere near getting the full potential out of this tool set yet.

There are so many significant improvements it will take some time to get around the total range of options. In the meantime Aperture 3 just keeps getting better and better.

© Improved Images Ltd

We are very pleased to announce that an important step in the development of Improved Images has recently taken place.

Improved Images Ltd has been incorporated as a Scottish company.

This lays the foundation for a number of significant advances in the area of improving images.

We will be introducing a number of important services over the next few weeks. These will be focussed on allowing our users to improve their images in a variety of different ways.

Keep watching for further updates.