November 18, 2009
Shoot yourself -- win a Nikon and $100K
Well, you don't really have to shoot yourself literally. All you need to do is submit a video of 140 seconds or less with the theme "Your Day" and you can win.
Nikonians in the USA 50 states and the District of Columbia age 18 or above are invited to enter Nikon's "A Day through your Lens" video contest with a deadline of December 15th at midnight.
Nikon's contest announcement explains the theme:
So what's it like to be you? Capture the essence of your day in a video of 140 seconds or less. It can be funny, touching or profound. It can be about everything you did, everything you didn't do, the day's biggest dilemma or its most telling detail.
The contest promotes Nikon's HD-video capable D5000 camera, but the neat part is you can shoot your entry with any video-capturing device that can produce videos in one of the following formats: flv, avi, mpg, mpeg, mpe, dat, vob, wmv, asf, mp4, mov, 3gp, 3gp2, 3gpp, dv, qt, rm, or rmvb.
The grand prize is $100,000 and a Nikon D5000 D-SLR kit. This contest has an audience viewed popularity feature, which means if your video gets a pile of audience reaction you could win $25,000 and a Nikon D5000 D-SLR kit.
You can find the rules and submission guidelines here, and follow the contest at the Nikon Festival site.
As a heads up -- If you have thoughts of sweetening your video submission with a favorite track from your favorite iPod collection, you could be disqualifying yourself immediately:
"Note: Please do not use music, brand images or talent that you do not have permission to use in your video. If you're going to put music on your video it's best to use music that is in the public domain or music that you have created."
Posted by flashdeadline at 6:50 PM | Comments | TrackBack
7-Week New Members Photo Contest has started
Our recently completed photo contest which awarded prizes to new members was so popular that we're launching an extended seven-week Phase V which will last for the rest of this year.
In this fifth edition of the New Members Welcoming Photo Contest We are giving out one Photo Mechanic by Camera Bits (currently valued at $150 USD, with a media price of $160), once every week for a series of four weeks.
Then, the following three weeks we are giving out a GPS unit courtesy of buyGPSnow.
Each week we will select a winner.
The first winner will be announced Monday November 23, 2009
The final winner in this series will be announced January 4, 2010.
Announcements
Winners will be announced at the Nikonians Photo Contests Forum.
Posted by flashdeadline at 3:33 PM | Comments | TrackBack
November 16, 2009
Carl Zeiss Announces Semi-Pro Lens Line for Nikon
Carl Zeiss has announced a line of lenses for "the semi-professional" market. Labelled ZF.2, this family of manual-focus lenses will mount and meter with Nikon F-Mount 35mm camera bodies.
While no samples were available at press time, the optics line-up covers popular focal ranges from 18mm to 100mm. The CPU now reports EXIF information to the mounted body such as exposure based on selected aperture; which eases the photographer's workload in managing settings. Overall, the price and maximum aperture reflects the targeted enthusiast market. Zeiss quotes an MSRP of approximately USD800 to USD2100 depending upon the model making the threshold somewhat more accessible to the prosumer.
Posted by covey22 at 9:06 PM | Comments | TrackBack
Forum updates in the coming days
We are updating the forums and the reviews sections on Nikonians in the coming days.
More details will be posted as the updates are rolled out.
Posted by bgs at 2:59 PM | Comments | TrackBack
Berger Brothers Nikonians Deal
Berger Brothers is offering a great deal for Nikonians Members on the hot selling Nikon D3s and the latest Nikkor lenses like the 85mm f3.5 VR and the revised models of the 70-200mm f2.8 VR II and 18-200mm VR DX II. With every purchase of any of these items, you get the Joby GorillaPod Tripod free - a USD50 value. All these items ship free, so get started on your holiday shopping today!
Posted by covey22 at 1:58 PM | Comments | TrackBack
Nikonians News Flash #136
This week Ray passes along the latest photographic news pertaining to Nikon:
-It's coming-The D4
-Canadian prices decline
-D3S orders starting to ship, 70-200 VRII lenses also
-D3 no longer available everywhere
-EyeFi adds FTP support
-Nikon announces DSLR Video contest
-Nikonians eZine 43 ready for download
-Get a free Nikonians cap
Download Nikonians News Flash #136 (NPC-NF-2009-11-15.mp3; 4:26; 4.06MB; MP3 format)
Program notes
D 4 Rumors
D3 fades to black
Bibble 5
Nikon DSLR video contest
Nikonians eZine 43
FREE CAPS UPDATE
The caps have been won!
Ron Batchelder and Jay Horsley are the winners.
Contact Nikonians News Flash: newsflash@nikonians.org
Thank you for joining me.
Your Nikonians podcaster Ray Valdovinos
Posted by rayvaldovinos at 2:42 AM | Comments | TrackBack
November 15, 2009
Kids capture photog's eye and contest win
Congratulations to Nikonians Gold Member Voltaire Malazarte (Alaz), of New York, USA, winner of the Best of Nikonians - 2009 Images Photo Contest October segment with his image "Children of lesser God."
Voltaire's photo is a Black and White conversion of street children jockeying for better positions at the famous Magellan's Cross historical site, in Cebu, Philippines.
He used his Nikon D700 and AF-S Zoom-NIKKOR 28-70mm f/2.8D IF-ED lens at 52mm. The exposure was 1/60 sec at f/8, using ISO 200. The Black and White conversion was made using Adobe Creative Suite 4 and Silver Efex Pro from Nik Software.
Voltaire's prize for making it into the semi-finals is a StreetWalker camera backpack from Think Tank Photo.
Night shooters next in line
The contest, open to all Silver, Gold and Platinum Nikonians Members, results in monthly winners being announced, with each moving on to the finals at the end of the year.
Our November segment is currently under way (and the deadline is Tuesday, Nov. 30). Please remember that the main subject for this segment is "Night Sky." The December theme will be "My Best Shot."
For detailed information on entering, check our contest rules.
Posted by flashdeadline at 8:52 PM | Comments | TrackBack
November 14, 2009
Nikon Film Festival - 100K for 140 seconds!
Now who wouldn't want to get paid big bucks for 140 seconds of work? The Nikon Film Festival celebrates outstanding media created using the latest hybrid cameras like the D300s, D90, D5000 and the D3s flagship. The winning video will garner USD100K (the audience favorite gets a consolation USD25K), but you've only got until 15-December, so get your best clips together and mind the time limit!
Posted by covey22 at 6:05 PM | Comments | TrackBack
November 13, 2009
Nikonians eZine 43 features ANPAT
Our latest edition of THE NIKONIAN is available for free download and it focuses on the biggest event of the Nikonians year, the Annual Photo Adventure Trip (ANPAT).
The 9th ANPAT was held in Alaska in Early September and some of the members who participated were kind enough to submit images and impressions of their adventure.
We round out this ANPAT edition with a preview of a Nikonians Academy workshop next April which will enable Nikonians to experience the unique specialty of the Triple D Game Farm in Kalispell, Montana, USA. They will be photographing Triple D's wildlife models just outside of Mariposa, California. The Triple D Game Farm is a must-visit site for photographers seeking to capture images of wildlife from all corners of the Globe.
Posted by flashdeadline at 7:05 PM | Comments | TrackBack
November 12, 2009
ID#104: The Image Doctors
It's time for Rick and Jason's annual Holiday Gift Ideas episode! Sit back and relax as the "doctors" fill your head with photographic pleasantries.
Download The Image Doctors #104 (NPC-ID-2009-11-12.m4a; 52:47; 12.9 MB; MP4 format)
| Show Notes: November 12, 2009 | |
| 1:14 | Holiday Gift Ideas 2009 |
| 39:55 | Ideas for a rainy day |
For the MP3 version of this podcast (audio only) click here (15.3MB).
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Image Doctors directly in iTunes.
[RSS] Add the Image Doctors feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically to you.
[Vote] Vote for us on Podcast Alley!
Posted by drjay32 at 6:00 AM | Comments | TrackBack
November 10, 2009
Nikonians News Flash Extra #2
In this second Nikonians News Flash Extra, Ray interviews Nikonians Academy faculty member Michael Mariant:
Download Nikonians News Flash Extra #2 (NPC-NF-2009-11-11.mp3;
16:33; 15.1MB; MP3 format)
His interview includes:
• Following Michael's ladder to the top
• Staying relevant
• Equipment obsolescence
• Skill requirements
• 2010 Nikonians Academy Workshop rundown
Contact Nikonians News Flash: newsflash@nikonians.org
Thank you for joining me.
Your Nikonians podcaster Ray Valdovinos
Posted by rayvaldovinos at 2:55 AM | Comments | TrackBack
November 9, 2009
Nikonians News Flash #135
This week Ray passes along the latest photographic news pertaining to Nikon:
-Coolpix S100PJ in top 10 products of 2009
-D300S prices take a dip
-Photoshop releases mobile app
-New ThinkTank bag released
-Epson announces four new fine art papers
-Free shipping from Blurb
-PhotoProShop Thanksgiving Sale continues
-Ray models his Nikonians attaire
-Michael Mariant announces an extraordinary Nikonians Workshop experiance
Download Nikonians News Flash #135 (NPC-NF-2009-11-08.mp3;
6:27; 5.91MB; MP3 format)
Accolades for S1000PJ
Adobe Photoshop Mobile
New Think Tank bag
Think Tank free gift with Nikonians purchase
New Fine Art paper from Epson
Blurb Free Shipping
Nikonians PhotoProShop Thanksgiving Sale
Ray the happy and well dressed podcaster
Nikonians Academy and Michael Mariant
Contact Nikonians News Flash: newsflash@nikonians.org
Thank you for joining me.
Your Nikonians podcaster Ray Valdovinos
Posted by rayvaldovinos at 1:20 AM | Comments | TrackBack
November 4, 2009
Epson adds new range of fine art papers
Epson has announced four new fine art papers. The new papers are described as photo and museum grade and will be available in cut sheets this month and rolls in early 2010.
They are all acid free, 100% cotton rag media, with extremely-high color gamut and black density in your choice of four fine art finishes:
►Cold Press Natural — Natural textured.
►Cold Press Bright — Bright textured.
►Hot Press Natural — Natural smooth.
►Hot Press Bright — Bright smooth.
The Epson announcement includes sizes and prices in British Pounds (£).
U.S. Dollar ($) prices are also available (click the "Fine Art" Tab near the top and the new papers will be the first ones listed) .
Posted by flashdeadline at 8:26 AM | Comments | TrackBack
November 3, 2009
DxO Labs unveils New DxO Optics Pro 6
DxO Labs has added to their automatic digital imaging enhancement software line-up with the introduction of DxO Optics Pro 6.
The DxO software, designed for enthusiastic amateur and professional photographers shooting in JPEG or RAW format, is recognized for its unique automated optical corrections (distortion, vignetting, chromatic aberrations, lens softness) and its state-of-the-art RAW conversion.
The new version announcement includes links for downloading free trials of the software, which can tackle such issues as noise removal, exposure optimization, keystoning correction, color control and dust removal.
The software includes support for a long list of Nikon Cameras.
According to the DxO Press Release (Nov 3):
New features in DxO Optics Pro 6 include, among others:
► Workspace customization for easier access to the photographer’s preferred tools;
►Detachable and multi-line “Project” window for multi-monitor display and full-screen image preview;
►Correction comparison between several candidates (for selecting preferred photo rendering);
►Streamlined access to DxO Presets for increased productivity;
►Automatic detection and download of missing DxO Optics Modules;
►More ergonomic user interface for better accessibility.
Availability and exceptional introductory price For Windows:
DxO Optics Pro 6 for Windows Standard and Elite editions are scheduled for release in early November 2009 from both DxO Labs’ e-store and selected resellers, and will be available at an exceptional 33 % discount until December 31, 2009:
►Standard edition: $ 109 instead of $ 169 (or a savings of $ 60)
►Elite edition: $ 199 instead of $ 299 (or a savings of $ 100)
All customers who purchased DxO Optics Pro 5 after June 1st, 2009 are entitled to a free upgrade to version 6. All other users benefit from the following 40% discounts until December 31, 2009.
►DxO Optics Pro Standard (any version) to DxO Optics Pro 6 Standard: $ 44 instead of $79.
►DxO Optics Pro Elite (any version) to DxO Optics Pro 6 Elite: $ 69 instead of $119.
Prices exclude sales taxes and VAT.
For Mac:
DxO Optics Pro 6 for Macintosh is scheduled for release in early 2010. A Macintosh intermediate release,
DxO Optics Pro 5.3.6, fully compatible with Snow Leopard, is scheduled for end of November. It will also include support for additional camera bodies.
Posted by flashdeadline at 3:36 PM | Comments | TrackBack
November 2, 2009
Think Tank Photo boosts Urban Disguise capacity
Think Tank Photo has just released a major addition to their Urban Disguise line. The Urban Disguise® 70 Pro is a huge shoulder bag that can carry up to a 70-200 f2.8 lens attached to any camera body.
Think Tank's Press Release describes the new bag: For the photographer carrying two regular or pro size DSLRs with lenses attached to each camera body – or even a 70-200 f2.8 lens attached to any camera body – Think Tank Photo announces the release of the cavernous Urban Disguise ® 70 Pro. This is a briefcase style gear bag for traveling in style and protecting camera equipment without attracting attention as an obvious camera bag. The interior accommodates a host of camera configurations that enable photographers to keep all their gear secure in one bag.
It features:
● Secret pocket -- On the inside of the front pocket is a “secret” zipped pocket. It is designed to hold airline tickets, passports, and other irreplaceable items.
● Attaches to Rolling Bags -- The Urban Disguise 70 features a slot that allows it to be secured to a roller. A tab on the bottom prevents it from accidentally unzipping.
● Stretch pockets -- The pockets on either side of the bag stretch to hold items like cell phones, strobes, and even smaller water bottles.
● Business card slot -- The back of the bag has a slot big enough to hold many business cards so you can give them away to clients and friends.
● Rear zippered pocket – Ready access to magazines, notebooks, plane tickets, and other essential items.
● Shoulder Harness -- With Think Tank’s Shoulder Harness (sold separately) the shoulder bag converts into a backpack.
“This design concept is the culmination of years of observation of photojournalists and other photographers who have jury-rigged their bags to decrease their public exposure,” said Think Tank Photo founder and lead designer Doug Murdoch. “Whether it is a professional who wishes to maintain a subtle presence in potentially dangerous situations or a serious amateur who wishes to lessen the risk of having their gear ripped off, the Urban Disguise’s design allows the right gear to be carried with less fear.” Nikonians Special Reminder
Posted by flashdeadline at 5:34 PM
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This week Ray passes along the latest photographic news pertaining to Nikon: Download Nikonians News Flash #134 (NPC-NF-2009-11-01.mp3;
5:58; 5.46MB; MP3 format)
OnOne Plug-in Suite 5 Annotate 1.05 Nikonians PhotoProShop Thanksgiving Sale September photo contest winner Contact Nikonians News Flash: newsflash@nikonians.org
Don't forget that if you use our special order form for Nikonian members Think Tank Photo will send you a free gift with your order.
November 1, 2009
Nikonians News Flash #134
— WiFi on board Nikon's next generation DSLRs?
— Nikon Instant Rebates
— Nikon releases iPhone app
— Phase One releases Capture One5 Pro
— Inventor of the first digital camera honored
— OnOne launches Plug-in Suite 5
— Nikonians Annotate V1.05 released
— Nikonians Thanksgiving Sale ends November 29th
— Tammy McBrien wins Nikonians photo contest for September
Thank you for joining me.
Your Nikonians podcaster Ray Valdovinos
