Kodak had its glorious Kodak Moment days but now it is struggling to survive. Obviously that means it will go after any possible revenue source. Even though Kodak falls behind in today’s digital camera market, it did invest quite a lot in digital photography technology and accumulated a large portfolio of more than 1000 patents, which is generating hundreds of million dollars royalties annually.
One of the patents at the center of the dispute covers the function that almost all digital cameras have: a real time preview of the scene before the shutter is pressed (US patent 6,292,218). Apparently many other companies have paid Kodak to use the technology but Apple and RIM refused.
Kodak probably isn’t one of the hated patent trolls. The patent seems obvious now but it most likely wasn’t when Kodak started to develop digital photography technology. First digital camera was invented by Steven Sasson of Kodak in 1975, which looked more like a toaster than a modern digital camera.
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Posted in
News on January 16th, 2010.
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Photography is about image quality but not just pixel quality. The quality of the image content is also important. The camera on the iPhone doesn’t produce noise-free images like a PRO DSLR camera but it still offers endless ways of creative photography, especially with the help of more than two thousand photography-related Apps you can find in the App Store.
If you are an aspiring iPhone photographer, this contest offered by Adorama is a great opportunity to display your talent and win some cool prizes. It is easy to get started, just follow the simple steps:
- Take a photo with your iPhone
- Use the apps of your choice to edit your photo
- Submit your photo here, or email it to adorama@strutta.com
- Describe how you created your photos and what apps were used, and earn a chance at winning one of many exciting prizes!
A panel of celebrity judges (big names in photography such as Scott Kelby, Joe McNally, Syl Arena, Moose Peterson, etc) will pick the winners but it is you who will select the best iPhone Apps.
Check out the details at contest.adorama.com.
Source: PRWeb
Here is a list of new photography related gadgets from CES 2010 since yesterday.
Posted in
News,
Photography gadgets on January 7th, 2010.
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Nikon School is bring a Capture NX 2 seminar to Atlanta, GA on Saturday February 6, 2010. If you just haven’t got a handle on Capture NX 2 even after reading all the tutorials I have collected for you, this four and half hour butt-numbing sit-and-listen seminar may finally untangle the mess in your brain. According to the announcement, Nikon Technical Sales Representative, Terrence Campbell, will teach you everything from the tools and basic operation of the program to advanced photographic editing. You will learn how to turn your good shots into incredible ones. All for just $79.
For details, check out the following:
Posted in
News,
Other on January 6th, 2010.
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We are now seeing a flood of new electronics being announced at CES 2010 and I have decided to pull the list of photography related gadgets announced at CES or just happened around the same time from Engadget. So here we go…
- Pandigital Photo Mail LED frame lets you email snaps over AT&T’s wireless network – You can email your photos to the frame using AT&T’s wireless network. The frame gets own email address. First 300 photos are free but additional emails will cost an undisclosed amount. Cool idea! Just don’t let spammers get their hands on the email address. 4:3 aspect ratio, 800×600 resolution, and 1GB built-in memory.
- Rollei rolls out Flexline 100 inTouch digital camera – How does 30 frames per second sound to you?
- Canon’s EOS-1D Mark IV gets unboxed, high ISO modes tested – How does it compare against the new Nikon 3Ds? Find our yourself.
- Kodak deals Slice touchscreen camera, Pulse digiframe and Playsport camcorder – Kodak’s first tough screen P&S, a Wi-Fi connected digital frame, and the latest pocket camcorder.
- Canon debuts A3100 IS, A3000 IS, A495 and A490 low-end shooters – Low end P&S cameras.
- Samsung flirts coyly with 7-inch AMOLED Digital Photo Frame – 1 million to 1 contrast ratio, 4GB built-in memory, Bluetooth.
- Omnivision illuminates the dark side with new 14.6 megapixel CMOS sensor – Back side illumination is the future of CMOS sensors. The light illuminates the sensor pixel from the backside of the Si substrate, avoiding the front side interconnect layers, which means higher sensitivity and larger effective sensing area.
Source: Engadget
Posted in
News,
Photography gadgets on January 6th, 2010.
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Eye-Fi announced the next generation Wi-Fi enabled SD memory card at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, NV. The new class-6 card has 8GB memory and is capable of 802.11n Wi-Fi connection. One interesting new feature is the so-called Endless Memory Mode, which automatically deletes photos and videos as they’re uploaded. Basically it means you have virtually unlimited storage if you have a wireless connection. It also comes with a new Eye-Fi Center software for viewing and sharing management. The new card is bundked with unlimited geotagging.
The great features of the “Pro” line of Eye-Fi cards are: 1) RAW format support, 2) Ad-hoc networking support so you can wirelessly transfer photos and videos to your laptop computer directly without a Wi-Fi access point. You can even setup auto slideshow using Adobe Lightroom2.
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Happy New Year to all DPTnT readers! My deepest appreciation goes to all the visitors of this site that have made the last year’s blogging journey a great joy for me. You can expect great new stuff to come in the New Year of 2010. One of my new year’s resolutions is to grow this site by 5x in terms of page views and visitors. I know this cannot happen without better contents and your continued support.
If you’d like to offer any suggestions on how best I can help you to help me, please kindly use the comment area below or use the contact form.
Thank you and have a joyful and productive New Year!
Posted in
Site Update on January 1st, 2010.
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According to this Financial Times article titled Camera makers focus on functionality, camera makers are no longer engaged in pixel wars but rather focusing on functionality.
Even though the market is reaching maturity, the digital camera technology is still far from perfection. Camera makers are offering various new things and consumers are showing interests in upgrades. New technology will continuously expand the existing limits and make what was impossible possible.
Currently one of the biggest trends is the transition from digital compact cameras to DSLR cameras, which offer changeable lenses, much better image quality due to larger image sensors and quicker responses. Many people I know have bought DSLR cameras even though quite a few of them use their DSLRs as an expensive point-and-shoot by leaving the mode dial in Auto.
DSLR camera likely isn’t the end of digital camera revolution. Jin Nakayama, head of Casio’s camera business, predicted that new technology will eventually make SLR camera disappear because “… digital camera will have an image sensor so precise and processing so powerful that optical zoom lenses and flash will become unnecessary.”
Posted in
News on December 22nd, 2009.
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