Yes, you’re reading that headline correctly. Vivitar is slinging a brand new all-manual 35mm film SLR and it’s not half bad. In fact, I’ve had more fun shooting with this than I have with any of my DSLRs. What’s most impressive about the V3800N are its specs compared to what it costs, which is only $170. That price includes a 50mm f/1.7 lens.
Before we get to the specs, here’s what you… → Read More
Gather ’round the water cooler, provided your place of business still has a water cooler (get it, recession joke), for there’s a hot new Canon rumor flying about. It seems Canon may be readying the new Rebel, the EOS Rebel 500D, for a March 25 announcement. It may have a jog wheel, which would make it the first Rebel to do so. → Read More
Remember the sock monkey? I mean, everyone had one of these right? Normally made by your grandma, if was a monkey made from grey and white socks, and stuffed with cotton batting. Usually had buttons for eyes, and the red material was positioned to form the mouth and butt of the monkey. Well, sock art has evolved over the years, and now people are being even more creative. → Read More
This, my friends, is a camera. Jim Janard over at Red has begun telling the world about his new modular camera system with its Mysterium-X sensor. There are a few upgrade paths for those who already own a RED ONE, the older generation including upgrading to the new sensor, trade in RED ONE for the price of an EPIC, or receive a sensor upgrade some time in the future. If the RED ONE costs $17,000… → Read More
One month and change after DP Review gave the Sigma DP1 a so-so review, David Pogue now offers his two cents. Like DP Review, Pogue likes the SLR-in-a-point-and-shoot’s body, but says it’s not the end-all, be-all for the concept. The Sigma DP1, in case you don’t remember, essentially puts an SLR sensor inside a point-and-shoot’s body, to mixed results. While Pogue admits… → Read More
If you are a camera fan with a penchant for exclusivity, here is your chance: Sony announced the release of a special version of its α350 digital SLR camera and DT 18-70mm F3.5-5.6 lens. Priced at $960, the kit is on sale in the Japanese Sony Style online store. The new camera is technically identical to the α350 in black which is available in Japan for two months now. This means you get… → Read More
[photopress:endorse030508.jpg,full,right] There wasn’t an endorsement last week—frowny face—because head whip cracker Biggs had me write that cute Usenet primer. As a result, one of you wants me thrown off the Internet for good, which I wouldn’t be altogether opposed to. But we’re back to basics today; another plain jane, vanilla otherredundantword endorsement for… → Read More
I like it, but really now, six thousand dollars? Canon has released the successor to the previous (and excellent) 200mm F1.8 L lens. It seems a little strange that they’d replace a F1.8 with a F2, but consider that they have added Optical Image Stabilization while at the same time lightening it and making it more weather-resistant. And that’s why it costs $6,000. I’m not… → Read More
Canon has quite a bit to celebrate this year. Not only is it Canon’s 70th birthday and 20th anniversary of the launch of the EOS line of SLR cameras, but they’ve reached a rather remarkable milestone. The whole of the EOS line (film and DSLR) has passed the 30-million mark in terms of production. That’s a pretty big deal if you ask me. Keep it up, Canon. You’ve got some… → Read More
Santa will be making the rounds soon and you, American Consumer, are going to need a couple of smaller gifts to stick in your relatives’ stockings. You know, things like salt shakers, sticks of RAM, SLR protectors, etc. SLR protectors, really? They’re not cheap, either. Take this protector, whimsically dubbed “Camera Armor.” It’s made of silicon and protects your… → Read More
The recently announced Nikon D3, I’ve been told, should do a decent job of shaking up the professional camera market in Nikon’s favor when it comes out in November, a topic I’ll address in a separate post a bit later. During the press conference, Nikon revealed that the digital SLR (rangefinder?) was designed by the one and only Giorgetto Giugiaro, a crazy old Italian mainly… → Read More
Behold the D300, which Nikon is positioning for prosumers not quite ready to dive into the complexities of the D3, but who are ready to step up from the D40s and D80s of the world. Again, Nikon’s got all the specs for you to pick at online, so I’ll just give you a little pictorial. I’ll have impressions up after I use the cameras for a little bit longer. (Nikon has men armed with… → Read More
So that super-duper, top secret reason why I’m here in Japan—the Nikon D3 and D300, two digital SLRs that should help the Japanese company reclaim some lost ground in its Tolkienian battle against Canon. The D3, which is aimed at professional photographers, is Nikon’s first to make use of the FX format, a fancy term for what amounts to a full 35mm sensing area. (Photographers… → Read More
Gizmodo found some leaked photos of the unannounced 5D Mark II on some crazy German forum. No details are known yet other than it will replace the current 5D, so a similar feature set is assumed. Make of it what you will, but this SLR sure is purdy. Update: Alright so this is definitely fake. Oh well, there’s always hope. Canon EOS 5D Mark II Gets Spotted Bigfoot Style [Giz] → Read More
You see this Sony digital SLR? Its designation is a complete and total MYSTERY to us all. (Yes, we’re conveniently ignoring the giant Alpha logo. But so is everyone else so that makes it OK.) We do have the raw stats, which is all you really care about anyway. How does a 12.8-megapixel image sensor rub you? Or what about its 3,200 ISO rating? Sounds good, don’it? An announcement is… → Read More
What’s underneath the veil, Olympus? Could it be the successor to your E-1s, which are now some four years old? I know you showed a prototype SLR back at PMA, but we want the real thing, baby. We want it so bad. Or not, whatever. It better do well to compete against the heavy hitters from Nikon and Canon. “Product Page” [Olympus via fareastgizmos.com] → Read More
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