The LEICA-M adds rangefinder technology to class precision photography.

But in announcing the new range M – Dr. Andreas Kaufmann announced a special collaboration with Sir Jonathan Ive, celebrated designer of Apple products to create a new Limited edition Leica M

Since the purpose is publicity and all of the edition will be auctioned off for charity, I suspect the Price will such that the only ones who can afford it will be those be to whom price does not matter!

Read more at http://www.petapixel.com/2012/09/18/apples-jonathan-ive-to-design-a-single-uber-limited-edition-leica-m/#hS8QE7b570dWWeuI.99

First, a heartfelt thanks to those who have for long periods monitored and moderated the forum, and I hope the site will become valuable again. Rest assured that life members will be given access to the new premium levels when released. More of that later.

Next to say, in moving the site, the latest forum backups contained problems, so I have had to go back a long way!

So I have finally moved the site onto new servers.   That is, I have at last switched over to them, even though the site is far from ready.

In truth the new site has been on new servers for months:  Sure I have been let down somewhat by a couple of people along the way and promised effort which did not materialize.  But in reality the delay has been my own indecision on what to do for the best.

The problem was to find a new role and a new form for the website. What may have been relevant ten years ago is not really relevant now. And I had to try to build that  new future without losing the traffic and good content.

The constraints  make it hard to do a rebuild.

The technical problem is not easy. The site had three parts.  A forum for professional photographers, which had long fallen into disuse, and indeed had been a target for spammers but with many indexed posts. There was an original content site more or less hidden from view in drupal but some posts getting serious traffic and even more serious attention from spammers. A news site and home page  that really was not updated. All three were getting traffic, and there was indeed a lot of good content too.

My  problem has been to meld the sites, to keep the good and release the bad :  the problem is to do that whilst all the while preserving the URLs from google perspective, whilst creating a maintainable future.  I kept looking for the best way to do this before realizing it did not exist!

So in the end after a lot of agonising and not much action, I have converted all of the sites into wordpress (including the forum, but not yet enabled that part of it)  and I have flipped the switch, to force myself into rebuilding from here. Publish and be damned!

The conversation on the web is now to a large extent is happening out on social media, twitter and Facebook, and more and more on mobile. So presence on mobile  is also important. Forums are not as well used as they were.

There are three sites still, although the joins will become invisible,  all wordpress blogs on a similar theme. The news site will kept for news. The home site made a content site and membership site, the first of the articles appearing this week.

I have decided to archive the current forum which is already converted in wordpress form, and provide a new one local to the membership site with links, but will only do that after notice.

I will aim to announce the changes to old members who will be invited to join up on the new site. So all I can say is watch this space. Please do sign up on twitter or like on Facebook to keep informed of progress!

Found on PhotoRumors.com – Read more. There is a video and some pictures for you to play with. The interview with founder Ren Ng of Lytro is quite interesting.

This infospot brought to you by Peter Gregg
www.PeterGregg.com / www.ZippyBounceCard.com

Isn’t “Close Enough” good enough? Who needs to mess with color in their photos anyway?

A lot of photographers I know live in a mindset I like to call “close enough.”

They think something like this: “My friends and clients probably won’t really notice if the colors in my photos are off. If it’s close enough, it should be good enough.”

Really? Are you sure?

A Pro White Balance Tool is a Ruler (Measuring Tape)

A white balance tool is basically a fancy ruler. The function of any and all white balance / color balance tools is to provide a known reference for your camera. What kind of reference? A reference that tells the camera what the color “white” looks like under any and all different kinds of light. It should work under regular incandescent lights, fluorescent lights, leds, halogen bulbs, etc.

ColorRight tools are painstakingly manufactured to provide you the best color reference tools available on the planet, bar none. We spare no expense when choosing the parts that go into our white balance tools.

Let’s think about the ruler example a little more. Let’s suppose you hire a builder to construct your dream home. Wouldn’t you want to know that their tools were of professional grade and accuracy? Why is that?

Well, because you know that if their ruler isn’t accurate then you may wind up with a sloppy home. Suppose you ask them to install a 12 inch doggy door in your expensive new back door, and their ruler (the one they trust for pro work) isn’t exactly 12 inches. Suppose the contractor’s ruler is actually 12.7 inches. What happens then? The doggy door you want only comes in a 12 inch width, but the gaping hole in your brand new door has been cut much too big.

Can it be fixed? Maybe, but one thing is for sure, it will cost you in terms of time and money. In some cases, you can never get back what what has been lost. Doing things right in the first place carries many obvious advantages. ColorRight offers the best Color “Ruler” on the market. And ColorRight has the data to back it up.

Why should I Buy ColorRight and not some other White Balance Product?

We believe, there are many reasons. Here are a few:

ColorRight Classic is:

• thinner
• lighter
• durable/ “practically unbreakable”
• includes a “super gray card”
• more accurate
• transmits more light

The first 4 are practical reasons and are addressed elsewhere. On this page we would like to concentrate on the things that determine the accuracy of the colors in the final photograph. These two things are Color Accuracy of the white balance diffuser device and the amount of Light Transmission of the color balance diffuser device.

ColorRight Classic vs. BaLens vs. Lally Cap vs. ExpoDisc White Balance Tools

The ColorRight Classic is much more accurate than the closest competitor in all visible light sources. As an example, please see the representative chart below. This chart shows the ColorRight Classic produces a color reading that is only 3 degrees K (Kelvin), different from what an expensive color tool (spectrophotometer) showed was the actual color of the light.



As you can see in the chart above, the ColorRight Classic has almost zero error. In fact, it has 21 times less error, in its color reading, than the closest competitor (BRNO BaLens). The Lally Cap was next at 28 times more error, and finally, the current Expodisc product shows 74 times more error than the ColorRight Classic. This isn’t just some technical nitpicking, you will be able to see the difference that 200 degrees Kelvin of error make in your images.

Prior to publishing this data we looked high and low for any white balance diffuser that could come close to, or beat, the ColorRight Classic. We just could not find it. In fact, you are looking at the best we could find. So, kudos to these other manufacturers for caring enough to try and get their white balance diffusion products right. Some of the unlisted manufacturers we tested had scores showing over 700k of error in daylight (D50), with much higher error under fluorescent lighting. But, the fact remains that the best of these worthy products still shows much too much error for our liking.

If you care about the color of your photographs and the quality of your photography, wouldn’t you want to know you were using the best tools available for the job. We know we would.

Better Light Transmission = Better Photos in Low Light Conditions

It may seem obvious, but the more light that comes through the white balance device, the better. As long as the light is fully and neutrally diffused. Let’s see how the same color balance products performed on a light transmission test.

The ColorRight Classic is over 2 times better at light transmission than the nearest competitor (Lally Cap). It is over three times better than the ExpoDisc, and almost 4 times better at letting the light through than the BRNO BaLens.

In low light environments the ColorRight Classic has the signifcant advantage of being able to take a color reading that is quicker, has less noise, and does not need to be adjusted when using a manual exposure setting.

Where do all of these technical advantages come from?

They come from our exclusive MAXLight technology. This is grounbreaking technology that diffuses light more evenly and more neutrally than any other white balance diffuser product we have knowledge of.

Summary

In summary, ColorRight MAXLight technology provides a significant improvement in the results you will get when you use a color balance diffuser to fix the color in your photos. The ColorRight Classic is 21 times better than the nearest competitor in accuracy and 2 times better in amount of light transmission. We know of no other white balance diffuser device on the planet that will provide a more accurate color reading.

Full Spectral Transmission Data Available for Download

Download our Kelvin color reading data.

Download includes three different Kelvin color readings, charts with corresponding spectral curves and much more technical data. All data sets were averaged to arrive at the data illustrated in the charts above. All readings were taken using a transmission spectrophotometer using diffused Daylight as the source.

Support this site by purchasing ColorRight Color Tools at the following sites:

ColorRight Main Website

B&H Photo

Adorama Photo

Amazon

All trademarks mentioned on this page and website are copyright of their respective owners.

New Touch SDK Kick-Starts the Development of Interactive Tablet Apps that Communicate Directly with Photoshop CS5

SAN JOSE, Calif. — April 11, 2011 — Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today announced the Photoshop® Touch Software Development Kit (SDK) inviting developers worldwide to create mobile and tablet applications that interact with Adobe® Photoshop CS5 and Photoshop CS5 Extended software, uniting the fun and interactive experience of touch devices with the power and precision of Photoshop. The Photoshop Touch SDK and a new scripting engine in Photoshop CS5 now opens the door for Android™, BlackBerry Tablet OS and iOS apps to drive and interact with Photoshop on the desktop. Adobe today also launched Creative Suite® 5.5, a significant mid-cycle release to the industry-leading design and development software for virtually every creative workflow across print, video, mobile and online media (see separate press releases).

Using the Touch SDK, Adobe has developed three initial Photoshop CS5 companion apps for Apple iPad: Adobe Color Lava for Photoshop, Adobe Eazel for Photoshop and Adobe Nav for Photoshop. The apps are designed to enable users to create custom color swatches, paint and drive popular Photoshop tools from tablet devices.

“Our research shows that creatives are adopting tablets faster than any other group and we heard loud and clear that they want to use their devices to interact with Photoshop, the tool they depend on most of all,” said John Loiacono, senior vice president and general manager, Digital Media Solutions, Adobe. “The apps that we announced today show some of the creative ways tablets can work with Photoshop and over the next few months Photoshop’s vibrant developer community is going to dazzle us with innovative apps that further integrate tablet devices into creative workflows.”

Photoshop SDK Encourages Creative Development
Adobe has developed three initial Photoshop Touch apps: Adobe Color Lava, Adobe Eazel and Adobe Nav. Adobe Color Lava, allows creative professionals to use their fingertips to mix colors on the iPad, creating custom color swatches and themes to transfer back into Photoshop. Adobe Eazel, which takes advantage of cutting-edge painting technology, lets digital artists create rich realistic paintings with their fingertips and introduces a new kind of interaction between “wet” and “dry” paints. These paintings can then be sent directly to Photoshop CS5 for compositing or for taking the artwork further. Lastly, Adobe Nav increases workflow efficiency by letting users select and control Photoshop tools using the iPad as the input surface, customize the toolbar, browse and zoom in on up to 200 open Photoshop files or easily create new files. All three applications take advantage of the iPad tablet’s touch screen for a truly immersive, tactile, on-the-go experience. While the first applications available are for the Apple iPad and the iOS, the Photoshop Touch SDK makes development possible on other devices, including Android and BlackBerry PlayBook.

Utilizing the Touch SDK, developers will have wide access to Photoshop functionality with the freedom to innovate and create new apps or add capabilities to existing ones. Adobe has already engaged with a number of developers across the industry to incorporate tablets and other devices into creative workflows that empower Photoshop users in new and groundbreaking ways.

Pricing and Availability
Developers can access the free Adobe Photoshop Touch SDK today for Windows and Mac OS platforms on the Adobe Application Manager at www.adobe.com/devnet/photoshop. Current Photoshop CS5 customers can experience the value of the connection to devices by downloading and installing a free patch available on www.adobe.com or via the Adobe Application Manager, beginning May 3, 2011. The Adobe Color Lava, Adobe Eazel and Adobe Nav applications for Photoshop are also expected to be available in early May 2011, ranging in price from US$1.99-$4.99, on the iTunes App Store. For more information or to sign up to be notified when the apps become available for purchase, visit www.photoshop.com.

Adobe Photoshop CS5 and CS5 Extended are available through Adobe Authorized Resellers, the Adobe Store and Adobe Direct Sales. Estimated street price for Adobe Photoshop CS5 is US$699 and US$999 for Photoshop CS5 Extended.

Today, with the launch of Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 product family, Adobe also announced a new flexible subscription-based pricing plan. With subscription pricing customers can use Adobe Photoshop for as little as US$35 per month. For more information about Subscription Editions, visit www.adobe.com/go/cssubscription.

Education pricing for students, faculty and staff in K-12 and higher education is available from Adobe Authorized Education Resellers and the Adobe Education Store at www.adobe.com/education/purchasing/education_pricing.html. More information regarding education volume licensing for higher education and K-12 institutions can be viewed at www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/volumelicensing/education.

For more detailed information about features, OS support, upgrade policies, pricing and international versions please visit: www.adobe.com/go/photoshop. Join the Photoshop community on Facebook (www.facebook.com/photoshop) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/photoshop).

Adobe Photoshop Family
Building upon the history of Photoshop innovation and leadership, Adobe offers a line of Photoshop solutions for every level of user. Photoshop CS5 and Photoshop CS5 Extended software are at the heart of the Photoshop family, providing unrivaled power and editing freedom. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom® addresses the workflow needs of serious, amateur and professional photographers, helping them find, manage, enhance and showcase images in powerful ways. Adobe Photoshop Elements software provides accessible tools and sharing options for photo enthusiasts. Snap-shooters can quickly and easily share and edit photos with simple gestures using the free Adobe Photoshop Express mobile application on their iPhone or Android devices. Photoshop.com completes the Photoshop line providing easy access to learning resources, product information and online Photoshop Express tools.

About Adobe Systems Incorporated
Adobe is changing the world through digital experiences. For more information, visit www.adobe.com.

In lieu of all that’s happened in Japan of late it seems Nikon is one of the first to raise prices.

Nikon patents, many of them a bit strange, have been really going through the roof. Now it seems that the company is for a hybrid viewfinder.

Almost 12 months later the Leica V-Lux 20 may be on the extinct list.

New DXO Mark points to not-yet-released Nikon D5100 pointing to rumor becoming reality.

There’s one wedding videographer over in the U.K. that sounds like he destined to get another job. And, it all points to his doing.

Here’s an ingenious way to convert film footage as in “8mm” to a Canon DSLR.

Imagine a digital camera as small as a grain of salt. While the idea is a boon to medicine it’s one step closer to invasion of privacy. Of course, the later is a story that will certainly be taken up at a later time.

Have you ever wondered what an “aperture” is? Well, it’s also known as an f/stop and this controls the amount of light that comes through the lens depending upon your setting…

Pinta, a free pixel-based graphics editor. It runs on Mac OS X and has a lot of features for something that doesn’t cost money…

Nikon to hammer away with silly “I Am” campaign that they used at Photokina 2010.

The Consumer Electronics Association claim that one in four photographers will buy a 3D camera in the next year. And, we believe that if this claim proved to be accurate that 50% of those consumers that purchased a 3D camera would at some point regret it after 6 months.

Here are a few tips on how to get some such as a stranger to take your photo. Of course there isn’t one for how to handle the situation when he/she runs off with it and you can’t catch them.