Photography News498 articles

Very sad news in the photography world today. Tim Hetherington, the war photographer and Oscar nominee who was a director and producer of the film “Restrepo,” was killed in Libya Wednesday, and three photographers working beside him were critically wounded. It is reported that they were struck by a rocket-propelled grenade while working in the war-torn Libyan city of Misrata. Chris Hondros, a photographer working for Getty Images, sustained a head wound in the incident and remains in extremely critical condition. Guy Martin, a British citizen working for the Panos photo agency, had shrapnel wounds and underwent vascular surgery which improved his prospects.

Fujifilm announced the FinePix Z900 EXR digital camera, the latest addition to the fashion-forward line of Z-series compact cameras. The FinePix Z900 EXR delivers a powerful new 16-MegaPixel EXR CMOS sensor, a FUJINON 5x wide angle refractive optical zoom lens (28-140mm equivalent) and a large widescreen (16:9) 3.5” High Resolution Touch screen LCD with an easy-to-use Multi Touch user interface. The FinePix Z900 EXR also offers a series of impressive features that include a new EXR Auto mode that recognizes 27 scenes, one-touch access to full 1080p HD movie capture, an intuitive Dual Direction GUI with beautiful vector font that allows for smooth and easy navigation with an improved Flash animation user interface with “tap and shoot” capabilities and fast image tagging with automatic upload functions to YouTube and Facebook.

Nikon announced the new 16.2-megapixel Nikon D5100 Digital SLR designed for those ready to artistically express themselves and need a versatile camera that can keep pace creatively. The Nikon D5100 D-SLR houses a host of new and innovative features aimed at giving photographers the tools to shatter creative constraints and tell stories with amazing image quality and stunning HD movies. The Nikon D5100 includes features designed to enhance the shooting experience, including an impressive new 3-inch, super sharp 921,000-dot Vari-angle LCD screen and full HD (1080p) movie recording with full-time autofocus. The 16.2-megapixel D5100 is also the first Nikon D-SLR to provide in-camera effects that can be applied to both photos and movies to deliver even more creative expression.

Olympus reveals an ultimate value with the introduction of the Olympus VG-120, the first in a new line of pocket-friendly, creativity-enabling, and budget-conscious cameras aimed at photographers of all ages and experience levels. This smart, portable point-and-shoot camera offers incredible new features that let you capture it all. The value begins with an impressive feature set that includes: 14 MP, 5x wide-angle optical zoom lens, 720p HD video capture, and a large 3.0-inch LCD to capture and review your images. Add pocketable portability, Digital Image Stabilization, AF Tracking, and the shot-enhancing Magic Art Filters.

If you have an SLR camera and are looking for a flashlight attachment to take better, more professional looking shots, you should look no further than the Canon Speedlite 580EX II. The 580EX offers the highest quality in a flashlight, while remaining affordable for consumer camera. Most complaints about built-in flashlights in SLR cameras are that they aren’t bright enough, that the timing on the flash cannot be controlled, or that the placement of the flashlight in relation to the lens is too close – giving a glaring bright spot or washed-out area where your subject matter should be.

With the new CX5 model, AF focusing times are decreased to as low as 0.2 sec. for both wide-angle 28 mm and telephoto 300 mm, up to half as short compared to the CX4, using Ricoh’s unique new hybrid AF system. This ensures that you reliably capture the image you were waiting for, never to miss another good shot again. Using super-resolution technology, the CX5 also allows (1) recording of images with improved resolution using the “Super-resolution” setting and (2) telephoto shooting at up to 600 mm equivalent with minimal degradation in image quality using “Super-resolution Zoom.

Fujifilm announced the FinePix HS20EXR, a high quality, advanced function SLR-styled long-zoom camera, built for the professional or enthusiast photographer, but also easy enough for even a first time user. Improving on the excellence of its predecessor, the FinePix HS10EXR, the new FinePix HS20EXR features a new 16 MegaPixel EXR-CMOS sensor, a powerful FUJINON 30x manual optical zoom (24mm-720mm equivalent), a tilting 3.0” high contrast LCD with a electronic viewfinder featuring a “heads up” sensor that automatically changes from LCD to EVF, and countless features serious photographers seek for versatility and performance.

Samsung announced the launch of the new SH100, a compact Wi-Fi enabled camera that delivers great shots that you can share over the internet and social networks with your friends and family, from wherever you are in the world. The SH100 is set to be Samsung’s leading fully connected camera in 2011, building on the success of the company’s wirelessly connected cameras to date and allowing Samsung to take a dominant position within this growing market.

Olympus unveils the full-featured SP-610UZ, a lightweight, 22x wide-angle ultra-zoom camera with HD Video capability, delivering the celebrated strengths of this pioneering family of cameras: sophisticated long-zoom, go-anywhere photography. The SP-610UZ packs fun features and superb image quality in a user-friendly camera, providing further proof that Olympus lets you capture it all.

The WB210 boasts a long 12x optical super zoom lens set in a slim-line 22.4mm body, to make capturing distant subjects in perfect detail easier than ever. The new camera also includes the option of a 21mm wide angle setting, through its super wide shot mode, to get deeper shots at close range – perfect for capturing landscape scenes or big groups of friends when on the move. The WB210 also includes 14 Megapixel photo quality, for crystal clear pictures, and a large 3.5” touch screen with Samsung’s new Smart Access UI system to deliver unprecedented usability.