More Megapixels

Posted on February 15, 2012 by Chuck_Maas

By now no doubt at least some of you have taken the time to familiarize yourself with details of Nikon’s new D800 which offers the highest megapixel count of any 35mm format DSLR so far, and the resultant web chatter as to whether this is a good thing or just one more ridiculous marketing ploy.  On the one hand it rather pours cold water on the idea that the megapixel race is dead; on the other, it’s kind of curious from a company that has, with the one exception of the D3X, pretty much made a habit of being very conservative about packing sensors with photosites.  That’s still the case with their new flagship model, the D4, though that body is arguably aimed more narrowly at a niche market whose highest priorities are speed, ruggedness, and world-class low-noise/high-ISO performance.  The D3X engendered similar debate about how many megapixels were enough when it came out in late 2008, but even with its stratospheric $8,000 cost it gained a very significant following and high praise for superb image quality.  Whether the D800 will measure up as well remains to be seen, but at a much reduced cost of just under $3,000 and far more built-in flexibility the prospects are pretty good.

So what about the megapixel argument itself?  Whether it even matters to you will depend on many things of course—your favorite photographic subjects, what you do with your images once you capture them, your budget, and whether tool discussions interest you in the first place, to name a few.  And as in all these matters, one size doesn’t fit all and every tool is a compromise of one sort or another, so there are no easy answers regardless.  One astute thread of this discussion is on Mike Johnston’s “The Online Photographer” by the contributing author Ctein (who legally has only the one name, pronounced “kuh-TINE”).  In it he addresses myths about megapixels that may or may not be of help to someone grappling with the issue; at any rate, it’s very informative for the technically inclined.

Will I be considering a Nikon D-800?  Not really, because I have far too much invested in a Canon system.  But I happily used Nikon equipment for many decades and have the highest regard for their top-end gear, and if I were looking for a mid-range pro-level Nikon body to cover a lot of bases in relatively good light (i.e. not semi-dark, candlelight environments demanding superior ISO performance) I’d see the D800 as a stellar option.  And I hope it turns out to be just as good as is expected; we’ll likely all be better off for it.

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Data Loss

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Chuck_Maas

If you’ve been shooting for any length of time you’ve probably had the extremely unsettling experience of having something go wrong with image files somewhere along the chain.  It can ruin your whole day!  Sometimes you can recover from the glitch, and sometimes the data is gone forever.  Either way, it’s a reminder of how fragile that little dose of electricity from sensor to memory card to computer can be and how complex the underlying processes are that we pretty much take for granted.  While both hardware and software have been much improved over the last decade, there are still a few “best practices” that will help avoid most of the problems.  While some of these steps seem awfully basic, it doesn’t hurt now and then to review the principles.

Start with memory cards.  There are many brands out there, most of which work just fine most of the time.  I like to stick with Lexar and SanDisk, partly because of my positive personal experience with them and partly because they’ve been in the business for so long.  Any card should be handled carefully and formatted in-camera before use; avoid formatting the card in your computer as there’s a chance you may not apply the proper formatting protocol.  When shooting, let the camera finish writing all the data to the card before you start reviewing images, and whatever you do, avoid opening the card bay and removing the card before the camera has finished writing to it—this is almost a guaranteed way to corrupt files.  Additional tips on care and feeding of memory cards can be found here and here.

If you do experience a problem with a card, such as having images show up on the back of the camera but not on your computer, don’t panic.  Put that card aside and use one of the many image rescue tools to see if you can’t recover images from the card.  Among the well-regarded is PhotoRescue.  This is a relatively low cost program for both Mac and Windows that has a high success rate, recently corroborated by a friend of mine locally.  Lexar, SanDisk, and others also make image rescue programs and some companies supply the programs along with certain versions of their cards.

Of course the other big potential for data loss is in your computer.  Everyone preaches data backup and most practice it to some degree, but it’s very easy to get lazy and backslide and only your personal work ethic and discipline will determine your degree of success in this arena.  Cloud services also now offer to protect you, though transmitting thousands of high-resolution image files to and from cloud-based data centers is still a serious bottleneck, and the whole idea is only as good as your faith in the concept.  Anyone remember Digital Railroad?  I know I wouldn’t sleep very well at night without maintaining multiple local copies of my most important image files.

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Memory Cards

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Chuck_Maas

For many years the most complete collection of comparative data on memory cards and card readers I know of has been Rob Galbraith’s “CF/SD Performance Database.”  This was the place you could find out which card would yield the best performance in a particular camera body and what reader would give you the shortest download times.  As the card market matured (more brands, higher capacity, faster speeds, lower prices), updates to the database happened less often.  There comes a point for most users where the differences are less important.  But cards continue to evolve.

A short while ago Lexar announced their latest high-end CF card, the Lexar Professional 1000X, and now Rob has put it to the test; in  a nutshell, it’s far faster than any other memory card they’ve ever tested.  The numbers are laid out in tables for in-camera write values with Canon 1D Mark IV and Nikon D3S bodies, and for card-to-computer transfer rates using top-end readers in four different connection protocols.  An interesting note is that the quickest download speed was achieved using a USB 3.0 card reader.

If you use a camera that’s UDMA 7 capable (currently the fastest data timing protocol in the CompactFlash specification) and you actually need the fastest CF card on the market, right now this is it.  In addition, Lexar’s USB 3.0 Dual-Slot Reader (the one with the latest firmware available in March) will give you the fastest download times possible (until someone comes up with a Thunderbolt card reader).  For Mac Pro users, CalDigit can supply a USB 3.0 PCIe Card and drivers to provide a USB 3.0 interface.  This card will also work in a Windows computer, and in addition they build a USB 3.0 SuperSpeed ExpressCard for any laptop with an ExpressCard/34 interface (such as the Apple 17” MacBook Pro).

Memory cards are not the bottleneck in the digital imaging process they used to be.  Capacities are now sufficient for nearly any purpose, and prices have plummeted to the point that having several cards no longer is a serious crimp on most budgets.  While in day to day practice few need the incredible speed the fastest cards now provide, it’s nice to know they’re available.

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Trends

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Chuck_Maas

As a glaring underscore to the brutal effects of change, the former photo industry giant Kodak has now filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.  Nothing is ever simple and this certainly doesn’t mean Kodak will completely disappear, but it is unlikely the company will be able to reinvent itself in a manner allowing it to recapture its former stature.

For those following the financial fiasco within Olympus, the turmoil continues with multiple lawsuits and persistent rumors of a possible buyout or friendly minority investment to keep the company going.  But all this seems not to have halted progress and by all accounts we will very soon see a new Olympus high-end m4/3 body based on the vaunted OM lineage.  Expect formal announcement on February 8.

Pentax too may soon be accelerating their mirrorless offerings.  Recall that a while back they were acquired by Ricoh, and product development within Pentax ground to a near halt during internal integration considerations.   Just before the acquisition the Pentax Q had been released—their mirrorless ILC offering with a very small sensor and tiny overall dimensions—which though unusual has been viewed largely as a novelty camera.

On the computer end of the creativity chain, many are trying to be patient while waiting for the release of Intel’s “Ivy Bridge” processors in the second quarter.  The first commercial chips to use a 22nm engraving process, they will also be the first to use 3D tri-gate transistors.  The emphasis this time is not vast performance increases but lower power consumption.  New chipsets and motherboards also will provide faster connectivity and throughput via PCIe 3.0 and USB 3.0 at the chip level.  While Apple continues to focus on mobile and portable devices and lauds Thunderbolt as the preferred connection interface, adoption of TB by peripheral manufacturers has been very slow and questions continue to circulate as to whether Apple will even bother to update their Mac Pro workstation.  The latter question will no doubt be answered in the next few months.

All things considered, this looks to be a banner year for new offerings and delivery of major products announced in late 2011.  Photokina, the huge bi-annual show in Germany, is a major catalyst, and the slight uptick in the economy combined with pent-up enthusiasm after so much natural disaster-caused  turmoil suggests several very busy months ahead.

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More News

Posted on January 11, 2012 by Chuck_Maas

Canon. It’s official—within a month or so you’ll be able to add a PowerShot G1 X to your photo tool kit and have a fairly small but serious “go almost anywhere” camera with a sensor more than 6 times larger than the one in the G12.  Will it satisfy everyone?  Not likely, but it looks to have enough desirable features to do a pretty good job in many circumstances when it’s just not practical to lug a big camera.  I’ve used a G9 for some time and have made some nice images with it, but conditions had to be just right and technique close to perfect.  Features that are appealing to me in the G1 X are the much more capable sensor (Canon claims it will have better noise characteristics than the 7D or 60D), 4-stop image stabilization, an optical viewfinder (even if it isn’t as accurate or useful as many of the electronic or hybrid viewfinders in a number of other brands now), and the fact it will work with several other Canon accessories.  Every camera is a compromise, but I believe the G1 X hits enough essential priorities that it will be very popular as a serious compact.  Previews available here, here, and here.

Adobe. Software companies make money by selling you product.  When new versions improve your capability to create and produce you’re enticed to shell out for upgrades.  You know it’s going to happen, whether you’ve really learned to maximize the current version or not, and it’s one of those loop experiences we all go through.  So here comes Lightroom 4…in public beta, which means you can download it and use it for a while to experiment with new features even though the product has not been finalized and no doubt may have small bugs or other unusual ways of operating.  While it’s fun to get on the bandwagon ahead of time, a certain amount of caution is warranted.  For a rundown of what’s expected to be in the new version and for the download links see Adobe’s page here.  You can also view a 22 minute streaming video by Michael Reichmann describing the new features here.

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Coming Attractions

Posted on January 8, 2012 by Chuck_Maas

This year’s combined Consumer Electronics Show / Photo Marketing Association extravaganza in Las Vegas kicks off today with numerous conferences and the exhibits open Tuesday.  In the run-up frenzy there have been several big announcements of new tools and near-confirmation of rumored trend-setters that should get the attention of anyone interested in the craft of photography.

Last Friday Nikon formally announced the D4, the long-anticipated update to their professional line of camera bodies.  This is an evolution to the vaunted D3S, the reigning king of low light performance.  Nikon has had two top-end pro bodies in the line-up—the D3S and the D3X with a 24.5 MP sensor optimized for high resolution and fine detail at low ISOs.  The D4 with full frame sensor now at 16.2 MP is still aimed at best-possible low light performance, not maximum resolution, and there’s no word yet on what may be in store for updated bodies with larger sensors other than persistent rumors of a 36 MP D800.  Time will tell.

On the rumor side, one of the most interesting is the Fuji X Pro 1.  While we have known that a new system of this nature was coming, Fuji has chosen to wait for its formal announcement tomorrow.   Many specs and photos are making the rounds, however, and if they pan out the X-Pro 1 looks it will be something to really delight traditionalists.  Fuji’s X100 made a big splash and while having some quirks has delivered excellent image quality from its 12 MP sensor.  The X Pro 1 will have interchangeable lenses, a 16 MP sensor, gorgeous styling, and even purports to have a lens adapter in the works to use Leica (and other brand) M-mount lenses.  If you ever enjoyed using a rangefinder film camera, it will be hard to image not being enthusiastic about this new entry to the field.

Of course there are other players as well.  Among the big guns, Canon so far has chosen not to enter the mirrorless interchangeable lens camera competition.  Now the tune is changing, and Canon has declared that they will release a mirrorless system in 2012.  In the meantime, they are releasing a new PowerShot G1X with a somewhat larger sensor than previous G models (size not yet determined).  Whether this will satisfy the appetite of Canon shooters for smaller cameras with extensive capability and flexibility that produce acceptably high image quality remains to be seen.

In memory cards, the recently announced XQD CompactFlash format is first reaching market reality from Sony, just in time to pop into one of the card slots on the new Nikon D4.  And on the more traditional front, Lexar will soon have a UDMA7 card capable of 1000X (150 MB/s) transfer speed, and a somewhat slower card with a capacity of 256 GB.  Hmmm; could this be another option for backing up images in the field?

There will be much more to come in the next few days, and in the year ahead ramping up to Photokina in September.

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Elegant Visitors

Posted on December 22, 2011 by Chuck_Maas

December is an opportune month to observe some of our most elegant avian visitors around the Anchorage area as large flocks of Bohemian Waxwings rove about prospecting for edible fruit.  They especially enjoy bright red mountain ash berries, though they’re not really picky and will take advantage of most anything left hanging, including chokecherries and crabapples.  Their cheerful demeanor bolsters the holiday atmosphere.

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Competing Incentives

Posted on December 19, 2011 by Chuck_Maas

It’s the holiday season and the push for you to buy things right now is intense.  The slight improvement in overall outlook for the economy has provided a glimmer of hope, and retailers in general are doing pretty well so far this year.  But there’s always give and take in the process—in this case the attempt to balance convincing you to buy now versus waiting for exciting new products right around the corner.

Here are some examples.  In the last couple of days special deals have popped up for Canon’s 5D Mark II for $1,999.  That’s an outstanding price for an unquestionably fine body even though it’s been on the market nearly three years.  On the other hand, the new Canon  1D X flagship was announced a couple months ago and expectations continue to build for a 5D2 replacement in the not too distant future.  And there’s much more to come early next month at (or just prior to) PMA in Las Vegas, like the Nikon press conference scheduled now for January 6th.  Other companies are adding to the spin as well with Olympus touting a new “revolutionary” m4/3 camera soon (nice to see some hopeful news from Olympus for a change), and Pentax working on a mirrorless full frame body and maybe even a mirrorless medium format camera!  Fuji is on the march too, promising a mockup of a large-sensor mirrorless camera with image quality surpassing full frame.

So if you’re a bargain hunter there are lots of very enticing offers at the moment.  Otherwise, 2012 looks to be a very interesting year.

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Memory Cards

Posted on December 11, 2011 by Chuck_Maas

Most digital cameras use removable memory cards to temporarily store the images you record with them.  There have been a number of sizes and types, the most popular in the last several years being CompactFlash (CF— both Type I and Type II), and Secure Digital (SD).  A Most digital cameras use removable memory cards to temporarily store the images you record with them.  There have been a number of sizes and types, the most popular in the last several years being CompactFlash (CF— both Type I and Type II), and Secure Digital (SD).  A few other formats (like Sony’s Memory Stick and xD) have fallen out of favor.  Of the lot, CF has stood the test of time better than any of the others and continues to be the format used in the camera bodies with highest transfer rate requirements.

CF cards have not been without a few difficulties.  While generally robust (there are plenty of stories around about folks leaving cards in their pockets and sending them through the wash with no ill effects), the one delicate feature is the pin structure of the device the card is inserted into; a misalignment often results in a bent pin and a big, often expensive, problem.  Then too, capabilities change over time, and while the latest top-end CF cards can write at up to 103 MB/s and store up to 128 GB of data, we’re reaching the upper limits for the underlying card specifications.

Not too surprising then that another memory card format has been announced.  The new card is to be called “XQD” and will replace CF cards sometime down the road.  The physical size of the XQD card will be somewhere between current CF and SD cards, and the memory architecture will be based on the PCI Express interface, much faster than the previous ATA standard.  In theory they will not only transfer large files much more quickly but will also be more rugged.

While photographers usually don’t have much choice in terms of card formats (you use the one your camera takes), a few bodies (like Canon’s 1D Mark IV) will accept either CF or SD cards.  All of us have preferences, and if I have a choice I usually choose a CF card because for me they’re easier to handle and offer higher throughput.  Regarding handling, it’s a good idea to treat all memory cards as carefully as you can, avoiding static electricity and damage from a fall or rough handling, and formatting them in-camera after downloading files.

Hard to tell how quickly we’ll see this new format incorporated into hardware like camera bodies and card readers, but it could be pretty quickly.  More anticipated specs for the long-rumored Nikon D4 are now indicating one of the card slots will be for XQD.  Since the annual (now combined) industry trade show of CES + PMA will be held January 10-13 in Las Vegas, you can expect a number of formal announcements in the days just prior to that event.

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How Long Will Your Files Last?

Posted on December 3, 2011 by Chuck_Maas

One of the continuing concerns for digital photographers is the question of how long digital files will last.  Not just image files of course…anything saved to some sort of memory device in digital form.  Unfortunately, the quick answer is that nobody really knows.

An “archive” is a collection of records, documents, or other materials (often original and unique) kept in an environment where they will last as long as possible.   While nothing physical is truly permanent, (if you question that premise, have a read of Alan Weisman’s “The World Without Us”), no medium currently available for electronic data storage has yet been proven to last forever, though each has its own characteristics and susceptibilities and a few are expected to do much better than others.  Realize too, there’s a hierarchy of threats including limitations of the materials themselves (ferric-oxide on tape, magnetic platters inside a hard drive, plastic CD/DVD discs, dyes used to record CD/DVDs, etc.), as well as currency of programs and devices needed to interpret stored electronic data.  Common environmental hazards include heat, humidity, static electricity, acidity, and dirt, some of which when taken to extremes (like fire or flood) can be more immediately destructive than others.

One of the best discussions of the care and protection of your photographic digital assets is Peter Krogh’s “The DAM Book, Second Edition.”  In it he stresses the limitations of various media and lays out a thoughtful, thorough plan for managing and future-proofing your assets.  Understand this is a moving target—one can’t simply set it up and forget it— and new options continue to arrive that address one or more threats to your files.

One recent example is M-DISC, by Millenniata.  While optical discs (CD-R, DVD-R, DVD+R) have been in wide use for many years, how well they protect files varies widely.  Several manufacturers have increased their product’s potential longevity by using special metals (especially gold) and coatings.  The M-DISC uses different, harder materials and what amounts to an engraving process to achieve what they claim to be a much longer life.  There is a downside; you have to use a special disc drive to burn M-DISCs (though they can be played back in most standard DVD drives), and they are somewhat expensive (about $3 each).  In addition, they are still limited in capacity to approximately 4.7 GB of data.  Is this a good solution?  Maybe.  Shutterbug’s David Brooks has given it a pretty strong endorsement in his test report in the December issue of the magazine, and he has a pretty good track record on stuff like this.  So for protecting your “family jewels” (as Arthur Morris refers to the best of the best of your images), making a commitment to M-DISC is probably worthwhile.

Another set of devices designed to address particular hazards are from ioSafe.  These are hard drives in special cases that are advertised to withstand both fire (1550 degrees F for a half hour) and flood/submersion (up to 10 feet for 72 hours).  In addition, they come with a one year data recovery service that claims it will cover any loss for any reason (service period can be extended to as much as 5 years).   Desktop and portable versions—even a “rugged portable SSD” model—are available.  [If you’d truly like to make a fashion statement, they can set you up with a 600 GB SSD with titanium enclosure for $3,000.  Pretty steep for a field backup device, but I’ll bet it would sure look nice and keep your data safe too.]

Last but not least, SanDisk offers their Memory Vault.  Essentially a USB thumb drive in a hardened case, it’s available in 8 GB or 16 GB sizes…maybe not the largest capacity device of the lot, but one could still store at least a few of your most important images in one of these.

Whatever route you take, it’s worth reminding oneself now and then how important a good backup plan is.  You never know how or when something bad might happen, and losing all your precious digital image files is a life-altering experience.  Try not to let it happen to you.

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