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Rangefinder
Magazine Digital Photography: by John Rettie The annual PMA (Photo Marketing Association) show will be over by the time you read this, but due to magazine deadlines I’m writing this column a couple of weeks before the event. Fortunately, most new cameras were actually announced just before the show (or at least details were confidentially revealed to the media ahead of time).
Last year there were no new professional level digital SLR cameras unveiled at the show as the Canon EOS-1Ds and the Kodak DCS Pro 14n had been announced the year before at Photokina. This year it was these two companies that grabbed the limelight at PMA with a replacement for the EOS-1D and the 14n respectively. Nobody was surprised at Canon’s announcement of the EOS-1D Mark II since it had been rumored for several weeks prior to the show. Details were actually announced in time for the Super Bowl, even though it will not be on sale until April. What was a surprise are the specs—a camera just as fast as the 1D (8.5 fps compared to 8.0 fps) but with twice the resolution (8.2-megapixels, for a 3504x2336 image) and twice the buffer (40 JPEG or 20 Raw frames). Based on the same body as the 1D and 1Ds, the new Mark II is a natural upgrade, with several improvements beyond the sensor such as zoom capability on the LCD screen, auto image rotation and faster processing from the Digic II image processor. It also now sports two storage card slots, one for CompactFlash and the other for SD (Secure Digital). Surprisingly though, there is one area where it has diminished specs—the flash sync speed is only 1/250 second compared to 1/500 on the old 1D. All told, the Mark II will continue to be an ideal solution for photojournalists and sports photographers who need the speed. In addition it should also now appeal to wedding and portrait photographers looking for increased resolution. In many ways it almost makes the $7999 1Ds with its 11-megapixel full frame sensor, redundant. Based on that premise, the $4995 price tag for the 1D Mark II seems reasonable.
Sadly many, myself included, had been expecting a much lower price tag on the Mark II. As the ID had dropped to less than $3000 before it went off the market, the general feeling was that the replacement would be priced under $3000. Considering the 6-megapixel 10D costs $1500, double that price for the ID Mark II seemed reasonable. Canon also had a track record of introducing new models at lower prices than preceding models, which is in line with normal pricing trends for electronic items. Instead the Mark II is hitting the market at much the same price as the original 1D when it was introduced over two years ago. One cannot really blame Canon since it would appear there are plenty of buyers out there who can easily justify the price. However, it does leave an extremely a large price gap in the Canon range of digital SLR models between $1500 and $4500 that begs to be filled. Let’s hope Canon will announce a camera to fit in between these two at Photokina in the fall. After all, Canon has promised it will introduce 20 new digital cameras this year, so chances are good the range will be filled out.
Canon has also introduced two interesting new zoom lenses. The EF 70–300mm f/4.5–.6 DO IS USM lens is the first zoom to feature a triple-layered diffractive optical (DO) element, which enables the lens to be much smaller and lighter than the 75–300mm lens it replaces. What’s more, Canon claims the quality of the IS-enabled zoom is up to L lens standards. The other zoom is the EF 28–300mm f/3.5–5.6L IS USM lens with an 11X zoom range. It also offers image stabilization, which is just as well since it tips the scales at a hefty 3.7 lbs. The bigger surprise at PMA was the Kodak announcement of a major new successor to the DCS Pro14n, called the DCS Pro SLR/n. Although the 14n has only been on the market for a year, the new model provides an all-new 14-megapixel CMOS image sensor. Yes, that’s right—the new camera uses the same unique Nikon-based body, and the image-capturing sensor is the same size (full-size 36x24mm) and resolution, as well as being the same type (CMOS vs. CCD). The same Belgium fabricator FillFactory rather than Kodak itself is still making the new sensor. According to Kodak officials, the opportunity to upgrade the camera with this new chip came earlier than expected, and they took the opportunity. Kodak claims one of the key areas of improvement is in image quality at higher resolutions. What’s more, it is also possible to extend the ISO rating at the slow end down to as low as 6 ISO.
Even more significantly, it is possible to upgrade the sensor of a 14n for only $1500. Such an upgrade has not been possible on other cameras, but Kodak has taken the view that offering an upgrade path is beneficial to professionals. The price of the new Pro SLR/n is $4995, so it was possible to buy one of the last 14n models for around $2500 and then upgrade it for less than buying a new camera. Kodak does point out that an upgraded camera does not get all the new electronic guts, so an upgraded version is not quite as fast in operation as an SLR/n, even though the image quality will be identical. I have been fortunate enough to have a Pro SLR/n on loan, and I plan to bring readers a more in-depth look at this new camera in the near future. Astute readers will also observe that the name of the camera has a small lower case n, which stands for Nikon. This naturally begs the question: When will there be a Pro SLR/c model? Kodak officials will not answer the question directly, but it would appear we might see a version for Canon lenses in the future. On another note, it has been fascinating to witness the incredible amount of press coverage when Kodak announced it would no longer be making APS film cameras for sale in North America and Europe. Headlines even went as far to say Kodak was exiting the film market. At the same time Kodak also announced it was not going to make any more digital film backs under its own brand name. Instead it would provide its image sensors to third party camera back manufacturers. Even this announcement got misinterpreted by some news organizations that said Kodak was exiting the digital camera market as well. In reality Kodak looks as though it has finally realized the company’s future has to be tied to digital imaging, and it has to be more aggressive with more widespread offerings. In the meantime, it will continue to make film (pro and amateur) and produce disposable film cameras. Unless it pulled a last minute surprise, Nikon did not plan to introduce a new professional camera at PMA this year as the D2H has only been on the market for a few months. However, the company did unveil details on the D70 camera it first announced at the end of last year. This prosumer-level digital SLR with a 6-megapixel CCD has better specs than the D100 but will sell for about $500 less at $999. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the camera is the flash sync speed, which has been boosted to 1/500 from 1/180 on the D100, making it a more attractive and usable backup camera for the much more expensive D2H and D1X cameras. On the point and shoot side, Nikon joined Sony with the introduction of an 8-megapixel camera, the Coolpix 8700, which on the surface also offers the potential to be a backup camera to a high-end Digital SLR, although it is not as fast or versatile. It is a direct replacement for the Coolpix 5700 and comes with a non-interchangeable 8X zoom, equivalent to a 35–280mm zoom on a 35mm camera. It also goes on sale in March for $999.
David Pogue is the author of an extremely useful book appropriately called Mac OS X: The Missing Manual. The latest version has been updated to include plenty of tips and advice on the 150 new features included in Panther. The book is over 782 pages long and yet it only costs $29.95 making it pretty good value for anyone using a Mac with the latest OS. I have already referred to the book several times to learn about things such as repairing permissions and cleaning up the Entourage email database. The book is also ideal for anyone moving up from OS 9 as it includes mini manuals on all aspects of Mac OS X. Although it’s a techie book, it’s written in a lively fashion. O’Reilly, the publisher of this book, also produces several other technical books for the Mac, including one called Mac OS X Hacks ($24.95) and another on Learning Unix for Mac OS X, which is intriguing reading for those users who really want to delve into the Unix-based OS X. It’s actually pretty easy to get to the so-called terminal and enter commands line by line, just like the old days. Geeks appreciate this ability, but I have even done it myself a couple of times when I wanted to tweak settings or use a Unix-based program that has not been fully adapted for the Mac. For more information, call (800) 998-9938 or visit: www.oreilly.com/. John
Rettie is a photojournalist who resides in Santa Barbara, CA. He has
been using a camera as a professional for 34 years, a computer for
24 years, and has combined his knowledge of both for the past 11 years.
Readers can contact him by email at john@johnrettie.com or by snail-mail
c/o Rangefinder. |
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Quick Book Review: Mac OS X: The Missing Manual