Rangefinder Magazine
April 2005

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Focus

Industry News…

Tamron Introduces New Online Learning Center
Tamron (Commack, NY, 800/827-8880, www.tamron.com), a leading manufacturer of lenses, is expanding its web site to include a special learning center geared toward professional photographers. Simply called The PROfessional Learning Center, the site includes instructive articles by leading professional photographers that will help serious photographers take better images. It features shooting tips and techniques by specialists in virtually every field, from formal portraits to wildlife. Downloadable mini-courses cover lighting, lens selection, filters, Photoshop programs and color management.

Stewart Powers of Gainesville, Florida, and Terry Livingstone of Franklin, Tennessee, are two featured PROfessional Learning Center photographers. Powers, a top Florida wedding and portrait photographer, uses a straightforward, no-nonsense approach to photography and photographic education. Livingstone, a nature photographer and lecturer, conducts numerous workshops, seminars and nature tours. Other participants include Will Crockett, Don Gale, John Langford, Rita Loy, Bart Stevens and Ellie Vayo.

ACD Systems and Ipswitch Develop File Transfer Software
ACD Systems International (Victoria, British Columbia, www.ACDSYSTEMS. com), a leading photo-management software manufacturer, and Ipswitch, Inc. (Lexington, MA, www.ipswitch.com), a developer of network management, messaging and file-transfer solutions for small and medium businesses, have entered into an agreement to develop the WS_FTP PhotoMover plug-in.

The new plug-in will allow ACDSee users to distribute digital photos, upload large image files, archive photos and transfer web content over the Internet without any file size restrictions. The plug-in also lets users seamlessly view, organize, and transfer digital photos using drag and drop functionality. WS_FTP PhotoMover carries a $39.99 price tag. It costs $79.99 when sold with ACDSee.

Santa Fe Workshops Honors Craig Aurness
The Santa Fe Workshops (www.santafe workshops.com) recently announced it will be offering scholarships in memory of Craig Aurness, the Westlight stock agency co-founder. Aurness, a former National Geographic magazine photographer, died December 14, after spending several months in a Panorama City, California, hospital for the treatment of lung and anemia ailments. He was 58.

Aurness, who grew up in Hollywood as the adopted son of actor James Arness, learned his craft by apprenticing with Look magazine photographer Earl Tyson in the 1970s. After that, he worked as an editorial and industrial photographer and eventually on assignment with the National Geographic. He founded Westlight in 1980 and was one of the first stock agents to distribute images successfully on a large international scale. Aurness taught at the Santa Fe Workshops in the early 1990s before selling Westlight to Corbis in 1998.

The Craig Aurness Memorial scholarship, funded by Corbis, will give away two $1250 Santa Fe Workshops scholarships to talented and emerging professional photographers. Currently, Santa Fe Workshops offers more that 130 workshops annually, including sessions by David Julian, Laurie Kratochvil, Jay Maisel, Joe McNally, George Schaub, Matthew Jordan Smith, Art Streiber, Jock Sturges, Karen Tenenbaum, Joyce Tenneson and Dan Winters, among others.

Larry Levin Is ASPP’s Picture Professional of the Year
The American Society of Picture Professionals’ (www.aspp.com) second annual Picture Professional of the Year award went to Larry Levin at the society’s Picturehouse in New York City. The award is given to a member who has made significant contributions to photography or a single outstanding achievement.

Long-time ASPP members also qualify for the award. Levin, who served as the ASPP national president, communications director and advertising manager, was also involved in creating the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) Flying Short course, besides serving as the business manager of the White House News Photographers Association.

In other ASPP news, Christopher Beauchamp, a regional account manager with OnRequest Images, has been elected to the board of the Midwest chapter of ASPP. OnRequest Images is known for its revolutionary custom photography model, which enables creative professionals to shoot all-new custom images for every project in two to three days, at prices competitive with traditional stock photography.
The American Society of Picture Professionals is a nonprofit, nonpartisan business league that brings together the different groups that comprise the photography industry.

Wilhelm Imaging Research Offers Image Permanence Testing
Wilhelm Imaging Research, Inc. (Grinnell, IA, www.wilhelm-research.com), in response to the growing need to accurately measure the permanence of digitally cre-ated prints, has created the WIR Image Permanence Testing Program. Part of the program includes issuing WIR Test Certification Seals to qualified papers, inks and printers.

WIR Test Certification Seals mean that a product has a minimum WIR Display Permanence Rating of 25 years and a WIR Album/Dark Storage Rating that’s at least equal to the display rating. WIR will feature updated information on it web site, including ratings for ozone resistance, resistance to high humidity during display and storage, and water resistance. Printer manufacturers Epson, HP and Lexmark have already been awarded certification seals for their products.

Wilhelm Imaging Research, Inc. has spent more than 35 years studying the stability and preservation of traditional and digitally printed color and black-and-white photographs and motion pictures. That includes developing accelerated image-permanence tests and advanced, full tonal scale, colorimetric analysis methods for quantifying the fading and staining that occurs with color and black-and-white photographic images.

Corel Painter Software Training
Karen Sperling’s Artistry Tips and Tricks newsletter offers a new concept and approach in computer software training. Sperling, whose article, “Corel Painter Inside and Out,” appeared in the April 2004 Rangefinder, charges $10 a month to answer questions about virtually every aspect of Painter. Her answers are posted in the form of written instructions accompanied by interim images in the Artistry Tips and Tricks newsletter.

Sperling says that, although she will field questions covering a wide range of topics, including fine art and cartooning, most of the questions so far have been concerning the Painter techniques involved in turning photos into paintings. Artistry Tips and Tricks is an Adobe Acrobat-formatted (PDF) newsletter, downloadable from www.artist rymag.com. In addition to subscriptions, the newsletter is available one issue at a time for $14.

Quantum Moves Headquarters
Quantum Instruments Inc. (www.qtm. com), manufacturer of Quantum Batteries, Qflash, FreeXwire and Radio Slave 4I, has moved to new production facilities. All mail and repairs should be sent to Quantum Instruments Inc., 10 Commerce Dr., Hauppauge, NY 11788-3968.

Joe Leach of Noritsu America Retires
Noritsu America’s executive vice president, Joe Leach, will be retiring in April after 22 years with the company. Leach, whose career in the photographic industry spanned more than 40 years, joined Noritsu in 1983. His responsibilities have included wholesale photo processing sales and a management position in the operations and sales departments. He became vice president of sales in 1985 and senior vice president of sales in 1986. He has been a member of the Noritsu Board of Directors since 1986, and a recipient of the Photo Marketing Association International Distinguished Service Award.

Eastman Kodak and TÜV Rheinland Form Alliance
Eastman Kodak Company (Rochester, NY, www.kodak.com) has selected TÜV Rheinland of North America, Inc. (www. tuv.com) to be its regulatory, compliance and testing agent worldwide. The arrangement calls for TÜV Rheinland to facilitate product commercialization and compliance for all Kodak products, and to assist in increasing the use of Kodak’s Rochester, NY, equipment product safety and electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) testing laboratories.

The new alliance is expected to decrease the time it takes to market and simultaneously launch new Kodak products in multiple worldwide regions. Kodak chose TÜV Rheinland, which operates in 40 countries, because it needed a comprehensive, consistent approach to worldwide product safety and EMC compliance.

In other Kodak news, Lark Books, a division of Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. has reached a licensing agreement with Eastman Kodak Company for the publication of instructional books and related products for digital and traditional photographers. The agreement calls for Lark Books to originate and publish eight to twelve Kodak books a year, beginning with four titles in fall 2005. Topics will include digital photography, digital printmaking, traditional photography and scrapbooking.

Freestyle Renews Exclusive Distributorship Agreement With Holga
Freestyle Photographic Supplies (Hollywood, CA, www.freestylephoto.biz) reports that Holga Manufacturing Company of China has renewed Freestyle’s exclusive arrangement to distributor of Holga brand cameras and photographic equipment. The Holga camera line, which has nine models and numerous accessories, continues to increase in popularity with photographers who share an interest in supporting traditional creative photography.

Freestyle recently introduced a new line of Holga filters and lens attachments, along with the Holga N, FN and CFN model cameras, which use 120 film. Freestyle also expects to market and distribute two new Holga 35mm cameras, which will be available in April.

Product News...

Rollei Unveils Five New Pro Cameras
Rollei (570/629-4391, www.Rollei.com.), manufacturer of the classic twin-lens 6x6 Rolleiflex that has been a workhorse and a work of art for 85 years is back in the U.S. Rollei introduced five new cameras for professional photographers and digital camera enthusiasts at PMA 2005 in Orlando, FL.

Of particular interest to professional photographers will be the new Rolleiflex 6008 AF with a db20p PhaseOne digital back and 16 megapixels. In addition to unveiling its new cameras, Rollei will announce a restructuring of its U.S. subsidiary, Rollei USA LLC. It will be headed by Bernd Franke. The 6008 AF is targeted to studio and on-location professionals and is compatible with the extensive line of Rollei-6000 lenses.

Epson Stylus Photo R1800 Delivers Archival Output
The Epson (Long Beach, CA, www. epson.com) Stylus Photo R1800 inkjet printer is an ideal solution for photographers who need archival quality, glossy and matte prints in sizes up to 13x44 inches. It features the company’s UltraChrome Hi-Gloss eight-color pigment inks, which include red and blue inks. The additional colors expand the color gamut of the three primary colors.

The printer’s eight-channel printhead also supports Gloss Optimizer and Photo Black and Matte Black ink cartridges. It features the company’s Advanced Micro Piezo inkjet technology (1.5-picoliter ink droplets) and output resolutions up to 5760x 1440dpi.

The R1800 supports a wide range of archival papers, including Premium Glossy Photo Paper, Premium Semigloss Photo Paper, Premium Luster Photo Paper, Enhanced Matte Paper, Watercolor Paper Radiant White, and PremierArt Matte Scrapbook Photo Paper. The Watercolor Paper Radian White resists fading for up to 200 years; the Premium Glossy Photo Paper, 300 years.

The Stylus Photo R1800 prints directly onto inkjet printable CDs or DVDs and supports Macintosh and Windows computers with USB 2.0 and FireWire connectivity. It has a suggested list price of $549.

ExpressDigital Introduces New Software
ExpressDigital (Englewood, CO, 888/584-0089, www.expressdigital.com), a provider of digital workflow software, Internet storefronts, and lab solutions, recently launched the ExpressDigital Darkroom product line, which consists of three software applications that manage the daily photography workflow.

The new line includes Core, Professional, and Assembly Editions. The Core Edition, designed for the emerging professional, advanced amateur or digital enthusiast, features tools that create print packages, apply graphic templates, edit and enhance photos, and manage images.

The Professional Edition is ideal for portrait, wedding, sports or event photography. It includes all the features of the Core Edition, in addition to a template builder, green screen shooting, on-screen presentation modes, direct capture and color management. The Assembly Edition works well for school, team sports and group photography. It supports up to eight different group photography workflows, while offering database management, bar coding and the automatic creation of yearbook CDs.
Express Digital Darkroom, the Core Edition lists for $495. The Professional Edition costs $1395, while the Assembly Edition has a price tag of $3995.

Helen Yancy’s “Faces, Flowers and Fun Stuff” Tutorials in Painter IX
Helen Yancy Studio (www.helenyancy studio.com/private/index.php) has introduced a new set of DVD tutorials. The tutorials are for Painter lX, although Helen’s tutorials are about style and technique rather than software.

The first DVD shows how to do a face and hair in dry media—charcoals, etc. The next tutorial is a quick and easy little painting of a youngster playing baseball, giving you the opportunity to earn money with Painter when you photograph kids’ sports.

The second DVD tutorial demonstrates in great detail how to create an elegant lower key oil painting in an “Old Master” style. Painter lX’s new brushes and artist’s oils are among the tools and techniques discussed.

Fujifilm Introduces Fujicolor Crystal Archive Paper
Fuji Photo Film USA, Inc., (Valhalla, NY, www.fujifilm.com), a leading provider of imaging products and services, recently introduced Fujicolor Crystal Archive Professional Paper Super Type C, and Fujicolor Crystal Archive Professional Paper Super Type PD, which are intended for use with RA-4-based laser printers and other digital exposure systems.

The new Fujicolor Crystal Archive Professional Paper Super Type C is the successor to Fujicolor Crystal Archive Professional Paper Type CDII. It provides improved and more accurate color reproduction, brilliant whites and improved highlight detail and sharper text quality.

The new Fujicolor Crystal Archive Professional Paper Super Type PD is the successor to Fujicolor Crystal Archive Professional Paper Type PDII. It has excellent natural skin tone gradations, brilliant whites and improved highlight details.

Both paper types support accurate color reproduction with cleaner uncontaminated colors with higher saturation. They feature more accurate whites and improved highlight detail, while offering excellent light storage and high image stability, during long-term dark storage. Their improved latent image stability and tolerance for processing unevenness and pressure-induced density variations, makes them easier to handle. The new Crystal Archive Photo Paper represents the latest application of Fujifilm’s advanced thin-layer coating manufacturing technology.

UMAX Introduces New Flatbed Scanner
UMAX Technologies, Inc. (Dallas, TX, www.umax.com) recently introduced the new Astra 6700 flatbed scanner. The new professional-quality scanner features 48-bit color and optical resolutions up to 2400x4800dpi. It includes a built-in transparency cover that can be used to scan negatives up to 4x5.

The Astra 6700 offers professional-quality features, yet simplifies the scanning process with one-touch email and Scan and Copy buttons on the front panel, which enable users to instantly scan pictures directly to an image-editing program or local printer, or attach them to an email message. The Astra 6700 ships with a complete suite of imaging software, including PC-based applications such as ScanSoft’s Textbridge Classic 2.0 OCR software and ABBYY FineReader Sprint. It can be used with Macintosh and Windows operating systems and has a MSRP of $149.95.