It is a 12.1 megapixel camera that features a composite DSLR body with 3 inch LCD outback, but the biggest surprise for me is it’s zoom capacity. It has a 24x zoom capability which is equivalent to 35mm camera’s 26-624mm.

The camera is expected to be available in March with an estimated price of $399.95.

The newest addition to Fujifilm’s A-Team was launched in May of 2008, it’s an 8.1 megapixel camera powered by 2 AA batteries. It uses an SD Card (support SDHC), ISO sensitivity up to 800 (but useable at 400). It has a 2.5″ LCD, 3x zoom (not good) & movie mode (30 frames/ second with monaural sound ).

It’s cheap, selling for PhP3,950.00 (approximately 80USD), owners will agree that it’s not as beautiful as the Canon PowerShot G10 or the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3, but with it’s performance, you’ll get more than what you paid for.

* New 14.8 megapixel DX format CMOS sensor effective 14.3 megapixel
* Self-cleaning sensor unit (low-pass filter vibration)
* ISO 100 – 6400 (with boost up to ISO 25600 and down to ISO 50)
* 14-bit A/D conversion
* Movie capture at up to 1080p 24 fps with stereo sound
* Nikon EXPEED Plus image processor 30% faster than previous EXPEED image processor
* Super fast operation (power-up 13 ms, shutter lag 40 ms, black-out 90 ms)
* Kevlar / carbon fibre composite shutter with 200,000 exposure durability
* Multi-CAM3500DX Auto Focus sensor (51-point, 15 cross-type, more vertical coverage)
* Auto-focus tracking by color (using information from 1005-pixel AE sensor)
* Auto-focus calibration (fine-tuning) now available (fixed body or up to 20 separate lens settings)
* Vignetting control in-camera
* Automatic chromatic aberration correction
* Custom image parameters now support brightness as well as contrast
* Seven frames per second continuous shooting (nine frames per second with battery pack)
* 3.0? 922,000 pixel LCD monitor
* Live View with either phase detect (mirror up/down) or contrast-detect AF, face detection
* ‘Active D-Lighting’ (adjusts metering as well as applying D-Lighting curve)
* Detailed ‘Control Panel’ type display on LCD monitor, changes color in darkness
* Buttons sealed against moisture
* Same ultra-fast startup and shutter lag as D700
* Scene Recognition System (uses AE sensor, AF sensor)
* Picture Control image parameter presets
* UDMA compatible single CF card slot
* Virtual horizon indicates if camera is level (like an aircraft cockpit display)
* Extensive in-camera retouching
* HDMI HD video output
* Magnesium alloy body with connections and buttons sealed against moisture

If this is true, I believe that the SRP of US$1,999.00 is to much.

Released in July 2008, this is the “improved” version of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX2, the LX3’s main features:

• 24mm wide 2.5x optical LEICA DC lens
• F2.0-2.8 maximum aperture range
• MEGA O.I.S.(Optical Image Stabilizer)
• Venus Engine IV
• Joystick-operated manual control
• Large 3.0” 460k dot LCD monitor
• Raw and JPEG recording modes
• Up to ISO 3200 sensitivity
• Up to 1280×720 (30 fps) pixel movie capture
• Manual exposure and focus options
• 1/2000th to 60 sec shutter speeds
• Available in black or silver

I saw some cool photos using this camera & frankly speaking, I’m impressed, this is a great competition against Canon PowerShot G10.

The G10 is the continuation of the incremental upgrade to Canon’s G series & will take the limelight from its predecessor, the Canon PowerShot G9. G10’s key upgrade (vis-a-vis G9) are as follows:

• Higher resolution (14.7MP vs 12MP)
• New wider coverage Lens (starts at 28mm)
• Redesigned front grip with textured cover
• Improved Face Detection technology
• DIGIC 4 for improved image processing
• New higher capacity battery (1050 mAh up from 720mAh)
• Improved LCD screen resolution (461K vs 230K)
• Exposure compensation dial
• New flat and tilted buttons

It’s lightweight at 350g (without the battery) and slim (109 x 78 x 46 mm) that you can carry around.

The owner (Labs) & I went to AWM (American War Memorial) last Maundy Thursday to test the Nikon D60, here are the sample shots, no PP was done on the images except resizing.

One of the new feature of the Nikon D60 is the Active D-Lighting (which you can also find in a D300 & D3 units), Active D-Lighting when activated makes a backlighted subject a little brighter.

Here are two images taken using the same camera & same setting (Manual 1/1600″, f3.8, ISO100 @ 18mm) , the first photo was taken with the Active D-Lighting feature activated.

The next image was taken with a deactivated D-Lighting.

Notice that the walls of the latter image was a little bit dark compared to the first, I know that the scene was not a good one to test the feature, I hope to have it tested thoroughly in the future. Meanwhile, I believe that the camera is a good entry level camera & worth investing on.

While in University of the Philippines in Los Baños field, I experimented on shooting panorama. I took this 5 photos using my new Giotto’s tripod.

Then I used Photoshop CS3’s Photo Merging function to merge the 5 photos into 1 panoramic image.


From what I’ve the key to taking good panoramic image is a sturdy tripod & a panoramic tripod head, this will keep the images aligned & easy to stitch. I put my Giotto’s MT970 Tripod to a test, it’s quite heavy at 2.5kgs., but it’s sturdy enough for a panorama shot. The only problem is, I don’t have a panoramic tripod head.

The answer is my new Giotto’s MH7302 Ballhead, it equipped with a 360° dial for panoramic shooting.

The weather was not that good for panoramic shooting yesterday, I’m waiting for a better weather to once again experiment on shooting panorama.

As you may recall, my set-up was a little crude, I was using a tripod then, I decided to purchase (1) a 6′ light stand, a shoot through umbrella & a umbrella adapter with hot-shoe connection.


The current set-up has given me extra flexibility, the extra height of the stand & the diffusing capability of the umbrella to soften the shadow.

I did some test shot using the current set-up & I’m quite satisfied with it’s result.

This shot of the bear was taken without the help of the shoot through umbrella. Notice the shadow of the right side?

As you can see the on the next photo, the shadow is more detailed, which is not good in shooting still life or even in portraiture.

So what else is missing?

1. Another speedlight (flash), probably an SB800 or SB600
2. Another light stand
3. Another umbrella or a soft box
4. Umbrella adapter

Good thing that I can take advantage of Nikon’s Creative Lighting System (CLS), this makes the flash (IR/RF) commander optional.

The newest Nikon consumer level DSLR camera was announced today, the D60 is what I believe to be the replacement of the 10 month old Nikon D40x.

The Nikon D60 is designed to simplify camera operation and allow the photographer to concentrate on taking pictures. The camera’s simple, user-friendly design includes a reduced number of buttons and a combined monitor and information display.

Honestly, I didn’t see much of an improvement of this model compared to the D40x, not even the new kit lens impresses me. I don’t think that you need a VR (Vibration Reduction) for such a short lens (18-55mm).

I can say that these are the new features that impresses me:

1. The camera was built on Nikon EXPEED® processor;
2. The two-pronged method for combating dust accumulation on the sensor;
3. The active d-lighting that helps maximize dynamic range

Like the D40/x, this new camera doesn’t have the built-in auto-focus motor, only with AF-S lenses that you will enjoy the auto-focus feature. The D60 retails at about €749.00 (around PhP 44,900) about PhP 10,000.00 higher than the D40x.