Rangefinder Magazine
September 2005

Click Here for printable version of this article.

Industry News

Leica Camera Recognizes Sebastião Salgado
Leica Camera (www.leicacamerausa.com) has presented a Leica M7 range­finder camera made of solid titanium and bearing the serial number three million to Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado. The unique camera was created to honor Salgado’s extensive humanistic work, particularly his large-scale “Workers” and “Migration” exhibits. Salgado is well known for his photographic work, which depicts the human reaction to war, poverty, suppression and the spirit of survival. In addition to the camera, Leica also awarded Salgado with the prestigious Leica Oskar-Barnack Award. Salgado will donate the all-titanium camera to the Westlicht auction in the Leica shop in Vienna, Austria, on November 27. All proceeds will go to a trust set up to save the tropical rainforests. Additionally, on November 29 the Leica Gallery in Vienna will hold a photo exhibition of children’s portraits from Salgado’s “Migration” project. Information: www.westlicht.com/.

Salgado’s unique Leica is part of a special 50-camera series designed to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Leica rangefinder system. Leica is also offering collectors the anniversary set of the titanium Leica M7 together with the high-speed universal Leica Summilux-M f/4, 50mm ASPH lens. The titanium cameras in this set also each bear the anniversary engraving and have a special serial number from 3,000,050 to 3,000,550.

Schneider, Dykinga and Seiling Team in Large Format Seminar
On October 21, 2005, at PhotoPlus Expo in New York City, Schneider Optics will sponsor a seminar that will explore the unprecedented image quality now possible through the synergy between the ultra-high resolution of 4x5 film and the versatility of the latest digital imaging technologies. The seminar will be led by Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Jack Dykinga, in concert with Richard Seiling, founder of West Coast Imaging, one of the world’s foremost fine art digital printing studios. “Forget about the battle for megapixel superiority,” said Schneider Optics senior vice president, Ron Leven. “Jack and Richard will discuss the quantum leap in fine art digital image quality made possible by the combination of superior optics, large-format film and expert fine art digital scanning and printing capabilities… we’re talking about mind-blowing digital quality results in the gigapixel stratosphere.”

The seminar will be open to attendees of PhotoPlus Expo in New York City on October 21 from 3:45–5:45 p.m.

Buckeye Ultimate Studio Makeover Addendum
The list of sponsors in Buckeye’s Ultimate Studio Makeover contest (August Rangefinder, page 48) did not include Collages.net, a significant sponsor of the event. Our apologies for the omission.

Tom Siemers Joins PCL West Imaging
PCL West Imaging (Gardena, CA, 310/769-0107, www.pclwest.com), a professional photo lab, recently welcomed Tom Siemers to the professional lab’s sales team. Siemers, the lab’s new account manager in Petaluma, California, has managed a photo lab and worked as a professional photographer, besides being a sales manager for 27 years. He expects to be a key player in the company’s initiative to increase its client base throughout the Western states.

2005 Fall Portfolio Building Workshop
Pete and Liliana Wright will host this workshop in Richmond, VA, October 10–11. Spend the first day shooting various models (brides, families, couples, infants and children) in three complete onsite studios and multiple outdoor locations with the helpful instruction of Pete, Liliana and a staff of other experienced professional photographers. Canon, Westcott and other companies will be on hand so you can actually try all of the equipment to help decide on lenses, cameras and lights that you may be interested in. Art Leather, Collages.net, Digital Media Design, Kodak, and many more companies will be on hand for a power marketing luncheon (food provided) on day one. The second day is devoted to Photoshop. The workshop will cover color correction, file management, layers, tips and techniques, artistic applications and much more. Cost: $85; contact: (804) 560-8800, pete@pw-photo.com, liliana@pw-photo.com or www.pwphotography.com/.

Lynn Radeka Workshops
Lynn Radeka’s Contrast Masking Workshop will take place October 21–23 in Placentia, California. The three-day, hands-on seminar will cover a variety of contrast-masking techniques for optimizing and fine-tuning black-and-white prints. During the workshops noted photographer Lynn Radeka will explain the different and powerful contrast masks he will be using to optimize participants’ negatives.

Participants will then make prints from the masked negatives and discuss the improvements in print quality. The Precision Pin-Registration Carrier System in Radeka’s enlarger will be used for all masking and printing demonstrations. Radeka will cover the highlight-brightener mask in addition to Unsharp Masks, Contrast Reduction Masks, Shadow Contrast Increase Masks, Highlight Masks, Dodge Masks and Fog Masks. Additional info is available at www.radekaphotography.com or by contacting Lynn Radeka at lynn@radekaphotography.com.

ExpressDigital Darkroom Wins Award
ExpressDigital (Englewood, CO, www.expressdigital.com), a leading manufacturer of digital workflow software, Internet storefronts, and lab solutions, has won the American PHOTO Editor’s Choice Award for its innovative ExpressDigital Darkroom software.

ExpressDigital Darkroom was released earlier this year to help professional photographers manage their daily workflow. It gives them the ability to capture, manage, enhance, proof, sell and print their work, and to publish it via a www.PhotoReflect.com storefront. It also has built-in connectivity to Labtricity-enabled labs, allowing photographers to send their prints and packages electronically to their fulfillment partners.

Japanese Company Buys Ilford Imaging of Switzerland
Oki Paper of Tokyo, a leading Japanese manufacturer of paper for over 130 years, has taken over Ilford Imaging of Switzerland. The change in ownership reflects the breakup of the original Ilford Group member companies, which have been individually sold or replaced. The good news for photographers is that the newly independent companies that used to make up the original Ilford Group are still distributing Ilford Photo products around the world. Information about Ilford Photo products and services is available at www.ilfordphoto.com/.

PhotoPlus Expo 2005
PhotoPlus Expo 2005 (www.photoplusexpo.com) will take place October 20–22, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City. The three-day convention will include over 100 photography and design seminars as well as hands-on workshops in 11 different tracks and a panel discussion on the issues of privacy in photography. It will also feature a close-up look at the 2005 Oscar-winning Born Into Brothels. Participating professional photographers will include Mike Colón, Lyn Goldsmith, Greg Gorman, Michael Grecco, John Isaac, Jay Maisel, Steve McCurry and Joel Meyerowitz, among others.

Epson Builds New Distribution Center
Epson America (Long Beach, CA, www.epson.com) plans to construct a new distribution facility in Plainfield, Indiana. The new 750,000-square-foot facility is expected to generate more than 130 additional jobs and expand the company’s capacity to meet a growing demand for its digital imaging products. Construction of the facility, which will handle warehousing and distribution, a repair depot and sales of parts and accessories, is scheduled for completion on April 1, 2006. All current employees will relocate from the existing 462,000-square-foot Indianapolis facility to the new location in June 2006.

ASPP Sets Fourth Education Conference
The American Society of Picture Professionals (ASPP) (Alexandria, VA, www.aspp.com) will hold its Fourth Education Conference March 23–26, 2006, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in San Francisco. The four-day conference is designed to give professional photographers the chance to network and introduce themselves and their services to others in the industry. It will also feature Portfolio Reviews (members only). Registration forms for the conference are found on the ASPP web site. Registration fees are $400 for ASPP Members, $525 for photographers belonging to sister organizations and $575 for non-members.

Eugène Atget Exhibit in Philadelphia
An exhibition of the photographs of noted French photographer Eugène Atget will be held September 10–November 27 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The 120-print exhibit, originally part of The Julien Levy Collection, looks at Atget’s work from three perspectives. Atget (1857–1927) is credited with generating one of the most influential bodies of photography in the 20th century.

Berenice Abbott Photo Contest
The Julia Dean Photo Workshops is sponsoring the Berenice Abbott contest for emerging photographers. The winner will receive an all-expenses-paid, one-person exhibition at the Julia Dean Gallery in Los Angeles, as well as all matting and framing of prints, invitations and postage, and an opening reception. The winner will also receive airfare to Los Angeles for the exhibit opening, a hotel room for two nights, rental car for two days and a Canon 20D digital camera. Deadline for entries is December 9. The winner will be announced January 9, 2006. Additional details and registration form can be downloaded from www.juliadean.com/emergingcontest.html.

New Products

New Durst Photographic Laser Printer
Durst Image Technology U.S. (Rochester, NY, www.durstus.com), is marketing improved versions of its well known Lambda Digital Laser Imagers that increases output 63 percent over the Lambda Plus. The improved performance takes place at the 400ppi res-olution setting and for any width photographic media the printer han- dles, from 20 to 50 inches.

Lambda HS pho- tographic imagers are rated at 13 linear inches per minute, while maintaining the printer’s image quality and versatility. When they’re set to 200ppi resolution, their linear speed jumps to 26 inches per minute for any width media. The Lambda HS’s improved performance makes them an ideal choice for both high-volume print jobs and long queues of low-volume jobs. They support print sizes from 5x7 inches to hall-sized panoramics.

Durst increased the Lambda’s performance by using Linux software and hardware, with its higher data-transfer speeds, and improved solid-state lasers in the Lambda’s exposing engine. Lambda HS capabilities are available in all new Lambda 130, 131 and pi50 units, and through in-the-field upgrades to existing Lambda units.

New Affordable Pixma Printers From Canon
Canon U.S.A. (Lake Success, NY, www.usa.canon.com) is marketing the new Canon Pixma iP1600 and iP4200 printers for anyone who wants to make great inkjet prints without making a huge investment. The new inkjets use Canon’s breakthrough Canon ChromaLife100 system, which can produce prints on select genuine Canon photo papers that resist fading for up to 100 years when stored in an archival quality photo album. That rivals the lifespan of many traditional film-based photos, long considered by consumers to be the benchmark for image permanence.

Unlike other printer and ink manufacturers, Canon has tested the ChromaLife100 system against three types of gases to simulate realistic conditions. They are ozone, nitrogen oxide and sulfur oxide. Prints generated on Canon Photo Paper Pro with the other elements of the ChromaLife100 system had an up to 10-year gas fastness when exposed to open air. ChromaLife100 prints, when created on Canon Photo Paper Pro or Photo Paper Plus Glossy had up to 30-year light fastness when displayed under glass.

The PIXMA iP4200 printer features ink droplets as small as one picoliter and resolutions up to 9600x2400 dpi. Using the company’s FINE (Full-Photolithography Inkjet Nozzle Engineering) printhead system and ContrastPLUS technology—a system that includes a dye-based black ink for sharper contrast—the iP4200 produces borderless 4x6-inch photos in approximately 51 seconds.

The PIXMA iP1600 Printer uses inkjet droplets as small as two picoliters to generate 4800x1200 dpi resolution output. It also uses the company’s FINE print head system and can generate 4x6-inch borderless photos in about 70 seconds. Both printers can produce prints up to 8.5x11 inches. The Pixma iP1600 lists for $49.99 while the Pixma iP4200 is priced at $129.99.

Tenba’s D-Series Provide Quick Access and Protection
Tenba Professional, a division of Mamiya America Corporation (Elmsford, NY) recently introduced the D-Series MetroPaks for photojournalist and photographer on the go. D-Series packs were created for photographers who need carry gear that both protects their equipment and provides quick access. Metro-Paks are sized to fit modern digital camera gear and laptop computers with 15- or 17-inch screens. They include Tenba’s exclusive Shock Protection Wall and Quick Access Top, and they can be easily converted into a hip-hugging street-shooter’s bag. Media-Safe pockets are also included.
The Tenba ProDigital MetroPak P-859C, for example, can carry a 15-inch laptop, two motorized camera bodies, three lenses, flash and up to 12 media cards. It has a street price of $184.95. The P-899C MetroPak, which can accommodate 17-inch laptops, two motorized camera bodies, four lenses, flash and up to 12 media cards, has a street price of $199.95.

Taprell Loomis Presentation Black Bags
Taprell Loomis (Cleveland, OH, 800/827-5679, www.tap-usa.com) a leading manufacturer of photographic packaging products, including folios, photo mounts and albums, is marketing a black, matte-finish delivery bag that gives photographers a professional edge to their work. Designed to be the perfect vehicle for delivering photos in style, the new bags look like high-end shopping bags with cord handles. They measure 13x10x5 inches. Taprell Loomis also offers coordinating black tissue paper as an option.

nik Sharpener Pro 2.0 Plug-in
nik Multimedia’s (San Diego, CA, 619/725-3150, www.nikmultimedia.com) Sharpener Pro 2.0, a Photoshop compatible plug-in, provides an easy way to sharpen digital images based on their intended output. It does this by taking into consideration a number of different output factors, including the printer’s resolution, paper type and the expected viewing distance. nik Sharpener Pro 2.0 also takes into consideration the image rendering characteristics of different printing processes, including traditional halftone, dye sublimation, inkjet, and digital photographic, as well as the difference in technology between different inkjet printer manufacturers.

Sharpener Pro 2.0 accepts 16-bit images and has a large preview area, user-friendly tools and a RAW Presharpening filter. It is available in two versions: nik Sharpener Pro 2.0 Inkjet Edition and nik Sharpener Pro 2.0 Complete Edition. The Inkjet Edition supports inkjet printers only; the Complete Edition is designed for dye sublimation printers, halftone printers, Fuji’s Pictrography printer and inkjets. The nik Sharpener Pro 2.0 Inkjet Edition carries a list price of $169.95; the nik Sharpener Pro 2.0 Complete Edition costs $329.95.

Konica Minolta User-friendly 6-megapixel DSLR
Konica Minolta Photo Imaging U.S.A. (Mahwah, NJ, 800/285-6422, konicaminolta.us) is marketing the Maxxum 5D, a 6-megapixel (3008x2000 pixels) digital SLR (single lens reflex) camera that includes the company’s anti-shake technology. The 5D, which is compatible with all Maxxum autofocus (AF) and Digital Technology “DT” lenses, is an ideal choice for both beginner and advanced photographers.
The new camera features anti-shake technology, which employs a CCD-Shift mechanism to compensate for blurring caused by camera shake. The 5D also includes CxProcess III image processing technology. It support ISO sensitivities from 100 to 3200, three kinds of white balance, a (TTL) phase-detection autofocus system, three types of metering and shutter speeds from 1/4000 second to 30 seconds.

It includes a 2.5-inch color LCS viewing screen and a built-in flash that syncs at 1/160 second with anti-shake off, 1/125 second with it on. It records images in the JPEG and RAW formats and has a continuous-advance rate of three frames per second for a maximum of five frames in the RAW mode, three frames in the RAW+JPEG mode. It accepts type I and type II CompactFlash cards, Microdrives, SD memory cards and MultiMediaCards with the optional SD-CF1 adapter. The Maxxum 5D has a list price of $899.

New Photographic Printer From Mitsubishi
Mitsubishi Digital Electronics America, Photo Imaging Division (Irvine, CA, www.mitsubishi-imaging.com/photo) is marketing the new dye-sublimation CP-9550DW digital photo printer. Designed to give professional photographers exceptional color brightness, accuracy and operating efficiency, the CP-9550DW offers high photographic quality output in a matter of seconds.

The CP-9550DW supports five different output sizes—3.5x5, 4x6, 5x7, 6x8, 6x9 inches— with edge-to-edge printing. It features 16-bit internal processing, a unique dual-line head technology and an adaptive thermal heat management engine and all-new 346dpi resolution thermal head that improves resolution and ensures longer service life. The CP-9550DW has a convenient front access paper catch tray that holds up to 20 prints and a new feed mechanism and simplified paper path. It ships with two 32MB memory frames so images can be stored in memory while printing. The CP-9550DW carries a MSLP of $2395.

Lowepro Introduces Slingshot Camera Bags
Lowepro (Santa Rosa, CA, www.lowe pro.com), a worldwide manufacturer and distributor of protective cases and backpacks for imaging products, recently introduced a new line of camera bags that were created for anyone who needs quick and easy access to their cameras and accessories. The new line includes SlingShot 100 AW and 200 AW camera bags, each capable of changing from “carry mode” to “ready mode” in seconds.

Without removing the bag, photographers can rotate or sling the bag toward the front of the body. Once rotated, the SlingShot AW bags provide complete access to cameras, lenses, memory cards and other accessories. The full access lid lets photographers safely and easily work out of the bag, while providing a built-in memory card pouch. It also has a micro fiber LCD cloth to protect camera LCD screens and two large accessory pockets, which provide quick access to cables, adapters, small accessories or personal items. An all weather cover protects the bags from rain, sand and dust. The SlingShot 100 and 200 camera bags are priced at $79.99 and $99.99 respectively.