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The New Fujifilm X10 Compact Camera

by Dan Bailey on November 2, 2011 · 8 comments

The age of true high-end point and shoot cameras has finally arrived.

If you’re like me, you keep waiting for the next level of compact cameras that don’t cost a fortune, that produce great imagery, and that don’t have horrible shutter lag. You keep waiting, all the while just keep shooting with your iPhone.

This year at PhotoPlus Expo, we saw a new generation of compact cameras from every manufacturer, including the new Fujifilm X10. I only got a brief look at the very end of the day, but I really liked what I saw.

First of all, this camera looks and feels awesome in your hands. It reminds me of a small, classic rangefinder. All the dials and controls are laid-out in a really obvious and ergonomic way. You turn it on by rotating the zoom barrel on the lens, and adjust things like shutter speed and aperture with a small thumb dial on the back.

Image quality is pretty standard for what we’re seeing lately: 12MP, with a 4x zoom and a lens that effectively covers a range of 28-112mm. It shoots Jpeg, RAW and H.264 video with stereo sound. And it has impressive macro capabilities, focusing down to about 1cm away from your subject.

And the best part; virtually no shutter lag, which means you won’t miss the moment. Oh, and just to make sure you don’t miss it, the X10 will fire at continuous high speed mode ar 10 fps (M and S file size) and 7 fps at full resolution. That’s faster than my D700!

This is what we’ve all been waiting for, right?

The Fujifilm X10 costs $600, and in my quick look, I’d say it’s worth every penny. For $1,200, you can pick up its big brother, the new X100, which has many of the same specs, all packed into a beautiful, rugged chrome chassis that will make you think you’re carrying a fifty year old classic.

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Senior contributor Dan Bailey is a professional adventure, outdoor and travel photographer based in Anchorage, Alaska.

 

 

New From Lowepro: Lens Exchange 200 Lens Case

by Dan Bailey on October 28, 2011 · 11 comments

In many ways, PhotoPlus Expo is all about the gear. We all want to see the coolest new toys from the manufacturers: gear that inspires us or solves problems. Or that makes us feel really cool.

Here’s one from Lowepro: the brand new, innovative Lens Exchange 200 lens case. It addresses the problem of… well, let’s just put it this way — How many times have you almost dropped a lens while changing them? Yeah, me too.

I could try to explain how it works, but why don’t you just watch this video and see for yourself.

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Senior contributor Dan Bailey is a professional adventure, outdoor and travel photographer based in Anchorage, Alaska.

 

 

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Quick Take: A 150W In-Line Dimmer System That Costs $20

by Jared Abrams on May 9, 2011 · 6 comments

Controlling household or “practical” lighting within a scene is something we deal with all the time in the film industry.

To really set a scene appropriately, a cinematographer needs to be able to use light like a paintbrush. That’s why you need dimmer switches, which are the subject of this week’s Quick Take. [click to continue…]

NAB 2011 Video Recap: Vincent Laforet, Carl Zeiss Lenses, Ikan and Lens Baby

by Jared Abrams on April 20, 2011 · 17 comments

Every year, the National Association of Broadcasters holds the NAB Show, one of the year’s most important events for people in the film industry.

Even though film makers technically don’t qualify as broadcasters, this is the event where many manufacturers debut the newest technology and support equipment. And now that video-enabled still cameras have penetrated the market, this year really featured something for everybody.

NAB Shows offer a mix of notable personalities and very intriguing pieces of kit, and NAB 2011 was no exception. Here’s a quick run-down of the things I saw last week. [click to continue…]

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Which Digital Camera Should I Buy?

by Dan Bailey on March 15, 2011 · 9 comments

Which camera you should buy depends largely on how you define yourself as a photographer.

A few months ago, we ran a post called “Which Lens Should I Buy?”

Today we ask the question on the other side of this equation: which camera should you buy? [click to continue…]

10 Tips For Adding Video BTS to Your Still Shoot

by Jared Abrams on January 31, 2011 · 17 comments

Sandy Puc and Mike Long BTS Before Upcoming Tour

Trying to shoot video and stills at the same time is enough to make anyone’s head explode. I have a few recommendations for how you can keep it together while doing both. [click to continue…]

Photographers — Be Human, Be Humble

by Dan Bailey on December 15, 2010 · 19 comments

As a professional photographer, self-confidence goes a long way. However, so does humility.

There are times when you need to clearly demonstrate the mastery of your skills, your enthusiasm for using said skills, and your immense creativity to get the job done. However, there are also times when you need to suck it up and admit that you screwed up.

To err is human. Of course, few of us actually use the word err in common conversation, so I’ll put it another way. Completely blowing the exposure is human. So is using the wrong shutter speed, forgetting to set the proper ISO, putting the lights in the wrong place, screwing up the focus (although that’s the camera’s fault!) grabbing the wrong lens, forgetting to format the memory card or using the wrong sync speed with the flash or missing the shot because you were distracted or because you were trying to set that custom function on your LCD panel.

And that’s just the goof ups that I made in the past week! [click to continue…]

3 Things to Remember When Shopping for Photography Gear

by Dan Bailey on December 6, 2010 · 17 comments

Which piece of gear should you buy?

Trying to decide which piece of gear to buy is often one of the most agonizing decisions that we photographers make.

Whatever it is we’re buying, whether it’s a new camera body, new lens, imaging software title or computer display, we do our research and usually narrow it down to two choices. Then, we hem and haw for days or weeks over which item to get. One might be lighter, but the other might have this feature or that feature, or it might cost less. We cruise the forums, lurk on message boards and ask other photographers which one they’d recommend.

Even then, the decisions don’t always come easy. After all, the stuff that we buy is usually pretty expensive, and so we want to get as much from our dollar as we can and get the gear that is optimal for our photographic needs.

You can only wait so long to pull the trigger, though, and every day that goes by could be another day that you’re not implementing a better workflow, shooting photos, or getting the job done as efficiently as you could.

At some point, you just have to make a decision and throw down your credit card. However, before you do that, consider the following points that might help you reach your decision more quickly.

1. You, not your gear, makes the difference in your photography. Sure, great gear can help you be a better photographer, but truly great shooters have made jaw dropping images with minimal equipment. Just keep in perspective that no single piece of gear will be the end-all-be-all in your photography. Whatever item you end up getting, in the end, you’ll make it work for you and your style. [click to continue…]

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