‘Cameras’ Category

Leica WWII Rangefinder on eBay

Wednesday, April 15, 2009 10:00AM - By

leicarangefinder1 Leica WWII Rangefinder on eBay

Do you trust eBay sellers who abuse the caps lock and butcher the English language? Have an affinity for Nazi battle tools and $27,999 to spare? You sicko. Anyway, someone is selling a Leica rangefinder, apparently used on the Russian front in 1942. The seller says it came from the estate of a military collector. “100%  WORKS, NO CRUCKS ON THE LENZES,” the description reads. That’s great, because you never know when you’ll need to spot the Luftwaffe. The original case is included, and there’s free shipping if you buy it now. No returns, so I tried to figure out if this is a fake. A Photo.net forum post from 2007 has one photo with a similar emblem in the corner, and commenters suggest it’s is not the real deal. As if you were seriously considering anyway. [eBay via CrunchGear]

Nikon Swivel D5000 DSLR, For Real

Tuesday, April 14, 2009 10:00AM - By

nikond5000 Nikon Swivel D5000 DSLR, For Real

Last week, hazy photos emerged of a new Nikon DSLR with a swivel screen. Now, the camera has made the leap from rumor to fact, materializing as the Nikon D5000. Hovering near the entry level, the D5000 sports a 12.3-megapixel DX-format sensor, max ISO of 3200, 4 frames per second in burst mode, 11-point auto focus with 3D tracking and one-button Live View, plus all the usual stuff like image stabilization and face detection. There’s also a 24 frames per second movie mode in 720p and, of course, the 2.7-inch articulating screen. The body alone will cost $729 when it reaches retail later this month. For $849, Nikon will throw in an 18-55mm VR kit lens. See? Rumors can come true after all. [via Engadget]

Rumor: Nikon’s First DSLR With Swivel Screen

Tuesday, April 7, 2009 10:00AM - By

nikonrumor5 Rumor: Nikons First DSLR With Swivel Screen

This much we know for sure: Nikon is readying a big press event for April 14 in Austria, and they circulated the announcement to all the in-the-know photog press. Add fuzzy pictures from an apparent shoot in eastern Europe, combine with speculation, and now we’re looking at Nikon’s first-ever DSLR wih a swiveling screen. Maybe it’s an entry-level follow-up to the D60 with 720p video, or perhaps its a 16-megapixel D400 with CMOS sensor. It’s hard to know for sure — that’s why they have these press events after all — but at least we’ve got these pictures to gawk at. Apparently, they’re from the commercial Nikon will use to promote the product. We’ll find out soon enough. [Photography Bay and Engadget]

Sanyo Dual Cameras Ready to Roll

Friday, April 3, 2009 10:00AM - By

sanyoxacti Sanyo Dual Cameras Ready to Roll

The Xacti series from Sanyo may look like regular camcorders, but they’re actually still/video hybrids, and they’re shipping right now. The flagship FH1 ($500) shoots 1080p video in H.264, and includes an 8-megapixel sensor for stills with a 10x lens and large memory buffers for better slow motion capture and burst mode. The waterproof WH1 (pictured, $400) only reaches 780p, but shoots 9-megapixel stills. At the same video resolution, the TH1 ($300) has an 8-megapixel camera, but a staggering 30x optical zoom. The CG1 ($200) rounds out the line looking different than others, with a skinny handle and vertical form. The models come in a variety of colors, which is either good or bad depending on how much you like that wicked shade of yellow seen above. [Sanyo via Electronista]

Canon Adds HD Video in T1i Rebel

Wednesday, March 25, 2009 2:00PM - By

canonrebelt1i Canon Adds HD Video in T1i Rebel

Dubbed an “entry-level juggernaut” by its maker, Canon’s EOS Rebel T1i is the first from the company to feature full HD video capture. Videos in 1080p can be recorded at 20 frames per second, and in 720p are captured at 30 frames per second. As for still imagery, there’s a 15.1-megapixel CMOS sensor and Canon’s DIGIC 4 image processor. Other features include nine-point auto focus with Live View, Auto Lighting Optimizer and an integrated cleaning system. For the real rookies, Creative Auto Mode allows for some on-the-fly adjustments and tricks without the need for technical know-how. The T1i body alone will cost $800 when it’s released in May, or $900 with an EF-S18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS zoom lens. [Canon via BB Gadgets]

Big Touch Screen Graces Mamiya DL33

Thursday, March 19, 2009 10:00AM - By

mamiyadl33 Big Touch Screen Graces Mamiya DL33

Hooray for medium-format cameras, with their monsterious pixel counts, huge sensors and epic price tags. Mamiya’s latest, the DL33, is a big brother to the their DL28, sporting a 33-megapixel image sensor that measures 36×48 mm — about twice the size of a standard full-frame DSLR. For records, Mimiya is claiming that the DL33′s touch screen is the largest “in the industry,” but they must be referring to DSLRs only, because we’ve seen screens of that size on digicams before. The camera uses a digital back from Leaf and has a coreless motor for fast and precise autofocus. Other features include 16-bit capture from 67 MB RAW images, 12-stop dynamic range and an ISO range of 50-800. Like any pro medium-format camera, it’ll cost you; the DL33 will sell for $19,999 when it’s available in April. [PhotograpyBLOG via Electronista]

Nikon Coolpix eXtreme, Perfect For All Weather

Friday, March 13, 2009 4:00PM - By

nikon coolpix extreme 1 Nikon Coolpix eXtreme, Perfect For All Weather

Uber cool, ultra sleek and adored with sexy curves, Nikon Coolpix eXtreme is a concept design by Camillo Vanacore that plans to steal the heart of every shutterbug across the globe. Equipped with an ability to overcome, dust, snow, rain and everything else that nature can hurl at it, the Coolpix eXtreme oozes with overwhelming class. However, keep in mind that the camera is extreme, and you’ll still need to run for cover. Anyone from Nikon reading this? [via Yanko]

More Megapixels Ain’t Better, Olympus Head Says

Wednesday, March 11, 2009 2:45PM - By

e30 1454 More Megapixels Aint Better, Olympus Head Says

If the megapixel wars rage on, Olympus will have no part of it. Akira Watanabe, manager of the company’s SLR planning department, said 12 megapixels is “enough for covering most applications most customers need.” Olympus’ E-System of SLR cameras will focus on potentially less-sexy selling points, such as dynamic range, ISO range and color reproduction. As ZDNet points out, a high pixel count can actually be detrimental to the picture, adding more noise, washing out brights and blackening darks. More pixels also results in bigger file sizes. For those who really want loads of pixels in their pictures, Watanabe suggests getting a full-frame camera instead of trying to pack it all into a smaller sensor. Kudos to Olympus for committing to withdrawal. [ZDNet via Wired]

RED Gets Crazy With Modular Cam

Friday, March 6, 2009 2:01PM - By

redmod RED Gets Crazy With Modular Cam

Some pictures are emerging in RED’s official forums of its anticipated modular camera in action. Recall that this is the ridiculously-spec’ed (think 168 x 56 mm sensor and 350 frames per second in some models) still image and video camera that’s configurable in quadrillions of combinations, the company claims, albeit jokingly. The pictures show just a handful of these possibilities. There’s no word on availability date, but we do know the setups will be mucho expensivo, reaching $55,000 for the professional “Epic” model and $12,000 for the not-too-shabby “Scarlet” version. [Forum Posts via Engadget]