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April 30, 2009

ID#90: The Image Doctors

This week on the Image Doctors: Nikon Coolpix P6000 hands-on review, image diagnosis, and announcing a photo workshop for 2009!

Download The Image Doctors #90 (NPC-ID-2009-04-30.m4a; 58:24; 14.7MB; MP4 format)

 

  Show Notes: April 30, 2009
2:24

Jason and Rick are emerging from hiatus to bring you a photography workshop in Rocky Mountain National Park.  Email us to get more information.  More details to come.

5:45

Listener Image Diagnosis

14:30

Nikon Coolpix P6000 hands-on review

27:46

What we like (and dislike) about photography in the 21st century.

55:39

Photo Prescription: Set your camera's time zone when you travel.

For the MP3 version of this podcast (audio only) click here (20.1MB).

[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

Nikon: Building a Better Battery Meter

Nikon has filed for a battery meter patent that changes the game in terms of estimating battery life and efficiency - instead of just measuring shots taken over the life of the charge, the camera will actually report back what different functions were being conducted. The patent reads "different operating modes," presumably meaning actions as zooming in and out (in a compact digital), Menu and LCD use, card formatting, etc. It then presumably applies values to those actions and applies it against the expected battery life to give a more accurate estimation of remaining power.

Posted by covey22 at 2:12 AM

April 29, 2009

Nikon Camera Control Pro 2.5 Now Available

Nikon has updated their remote camera control suite to Version 2.5. Changes include:

  • Support for the new D5000 digital SLR
  • No backwards compatibility for OSX 10.3.9
  • Fixes to AutoDX Crop settings and File Transfer behavior

The update is available on Nikon's Knowledgebase Portal for Windows and Macintosh.

Posted by covey22 at 6:25 PM

April 27, 2009

Nikonians News Flash #118

Newsflash_75px.jpg Tune in to your weekly edition of the Nikonians News Flash Podcast for all the very latest news from our friendly Nikonians Community.

Download Nikonians News Flash #118
(NPC-NF-2009-04-27.mp3; 20:00; 6.9MB; MP3 format)

In the News Flash podcast this week:

Winner! New Member Welcome Photo Contest

D5000 Out From Today

Online Assignment Forum

Nikonians Rewards

Jason Odell's Blog

Do you have some News Flash podcast feedback or perhaps some ideas for content? It would be great to hear from you - please email me at: newsflash@nikonians.org

Thanks for listening,

James Davies
Nikonians Team Member & News Flash Podcaster

Posted by garglon at 7:07 PM

April 25, 2009

Nikon D5000 Available Starting April 27th

As noted on several major retailer sites, the newly announced Nikon D5000 will be available for purchase starting Monday, April 27th.

Posted by covey22 at 1:31 AM

April 23, 2009

Miami skyline photo earns free software

Congratulations to new member Kosta Pavlakos (dj master blaster), of Montreal, Quebec, Canada for providing the winning image in the third week of our Welcoming Photo Contest II 2009.

Miami-at-Night_300.jpgKosta traveled to Miami, Florida, USA and captured his winning entry entitled "Miami at Night" with his Nikon D300 and AF-S DX Zoom-NIKKOR 17-55mm f/2.8G IF-ED lens.
He had his D300 mounted on a tripod and used an ISO of 200, shutter speed at 1.3 seconds, and the lens aperture wide open at f/2.8. He used Program AE for exposuring and had his white balance set to Auto. The lens was close to its long limit, registering at 50mm.
As his prize, Kosta will receive a personal license code for Silver Efex Pro software by Nik Software (valued at $199.95 USD).

Week Four of the contest has begun.
If you register between now and May 5, no matter on which level (from Basic to Platinum), you can participate in this contest. Complete details and a guide on how to prepare your entries for our Welcoming Photo Contest II are available here.

Posted by flashdeadline at 4:14 PM

April 20, 2009

Nikonians News Flash #117

Newsflash_75px.jpg Tune in to your weekly edition of the Nikonians News Flash Podcast for all the very latest news from our friendly Nikonians Community.

Download Nikonians News Flash #117
(NPC-NF-2009-04-20.mp3; 20:00; 6.9MB; MP3 format)

In the News Flash podcast this week:

New Nikon D5000 User Group at Nikonians

Edition 89 of The Image Doctors - D5000 Discussion (amongst other things)

Rocky Nook ask Nikonians to get involved

D40/D40X Firmware Announcement

Competition Winners - New Members & Best of Nikonians 2009 Contests

Do you have some News Flash podcast feedback or perhaps some ideas for content? It would be great to hear from you - please email me at: newsflash@nikonians.org

Thanks for listening,

James Davies
Nikonians Team Member & News Flash Podcaster

Posted by garglon at 8:57 PM

Canoes capture contest finalist slot

Congratulations to Silver Nikonians member Igor Voljc (IgorV), winner of the March segment of our Best of Nikonians - 2009 Images Photo Contest.

BoN-PC-April_300.jpgIgor is from Ljubljana, Slovenia and his winning entry in theme of "Transportation" was a group of canoes on the river Ljubljanica.

Igor used his Nikon D300 and Nikkor 20mm f/2.8 AI-s lens, shooting at ISO 200, with the lens aperture at f/8 and the shutter speed at 1/400s. His image drew praise from the panel of judges as an excellent example of composition techniques.

As his prize, Igor will receive from Think Tank Photo a Modular Set (valued at $169.95 USD). His image is now in the running for the title of Best of Nikonians - 2009 Images

The current segment of the contest is now under way and the theme is "Water." Check the Contest Guidelines for details-- grab your camera-- and good luck!


Posted by flashdeadline at 1:25 AM

Welcoming Photo Contest adds more winners

Congratulations to Nikonian Hans Zitler (Hans Ztz), winner for the second week of our Welcoming Photo Contest II 2009.

Hans is currently a Silver Member from Germany, and he is a key account manager for a company which produces airbrush tools.

WC2-Week2_300.jpgHans captured his image, entitled “Welcome Sunrays” in Bavaria, Germany with his Nikon D300 set to ISO 200 and his lens aperture at f/16. Hans tells us he got the D300 in January of this year, and he prefers to shoot landscapes. Photography is just one of his many interests. Hans is a Harley Davidson owner and he collects traditional knives.
As his prize, Hans will receive a personal license code for Silver Efex Pro software by Nik Software (valued at $199.95 USD).

WC2-Week1_300.jpgOur First week winner in the latest Welcoming Photo Contest was Jim Hammond (hamjam) of California, USA. His photo was also a landscape image.
Jim tells us:
“I took it at the South Tufa location of Mono Lake, California at 0630 in the morning to capture the warm morning sunlight. Initial processing, cropping, etc., was done using Lightroom 2.3. Final processing was done in PS CS4.The image was taken using my Nikon D80 and an 18-200mm AF-S Nikkor 3.5-5.6 G ED Lens. I used a shutter speed of 1/6 @ f22 at 29mm ISO 100, with the camera on a tripod. The image was among many I took on that morning for a Digital Photo class photo assignment I'm taking at a local junior college.”

Week Three of the contest has begun.
If you register between now and May 5, no matter on which level (from Basic to Platinum), you can participate in this contest. Complete details and a guide on how to prepare your entries for our Welcoming Photo Contest II are available here.

Posted by flashdeadline at 12:45 AM

April 17, 2009

Nikon D40 and D40X Firmware Updates

Nikon updates the firmware for the popular D40 and D40X digital SLRs to improve compatibility with the EN-EL9a battery, thereby increasing the theoretical number of shots per battery charge. (link to Nikon USA firmware page).

Posted by covey22 at 1:47 AM

April 16, 2009

Nikonians invited to participate in Wild Side project

Rocky Nook's publishing team is preparing a new book project called The Wild Side of Photography, and they have extended an invitation to our Nikonians members to participate.

Rocky-Nook-Logo_200.jpg
The Wild Side of Photography project is one of many in the works over at Rocky Nook and their editors have extended an invitation to our Nikonians members who may have interesting tips and tricks to share.
Rocky Nook Production Editor Joan Dixon tells us they are in the early stages of preparing this "somewhat different" book project and they have put out a call for contributors.

She shares the following specifications:
We are compiling a collection of interesting, unusual, inspiring little photographic projects. We would like to invite photographers to contribute a short chapter (5-8 pages) in one of the following categories:
• Do-it-yourself solutions for photo gear
• Unusual camera applications
• Camera hacks and tricks
• Innovative ways to work with light and cameras

D2x_Macro-Rig.jpgA good example of the type of material being compiled can be found in our recent eZine-39, The Nikonians Official magazine (starting on page 13).
Nikonians Gold Member Steven Shepard delivered an article with illustrations and a clear-cut description on how he has been able to accomplish macro shooting images in the field by mounting lenses backwards on his camera. He not only showed us the results, but also the somewhat ugly looking rig that made it all possible. You can download his article here.

The "wild side" of this project is going to be the variety of interesting, clearly written and well illustrated segments, and the only limitations are your imagination and ingenuity.

Not every article needs to be about technical fixes and patches. Interesting approaches to creative photography are also to be included. As an example, have you ever heard about the old trick of using a small glass aquarium like a glass bottom boat to shoot images in a swimming pool? Or perhaps -- remote triggering your camera while it is suspended on a balloon?

Selected contributions will be published under the author's name along with a short bio and image of the author. And the author is entitled to 20 free copies of the book and a 30% discount on all Rocky Nook titles. Check out their large catalogs of titles here.

Send your proposal to contact@rockynook.com and make sure you mention your Nikonians username. (We want to see how many of our members can make the "final cut").

-----------------------------------

d700_cover_sm.jpgThe joint collaboration of Rocky Nook and our own NikoniansPress publications team has already resulted in three books.

Our members are already enjoying their copies of Mastering the Nikon D300 by Darrell Young and The Nikon Creative Lighting System: Using the SB-600, SB-800, SB-900, and R1C1 flashes by Mike Hagen and the new Mastering the Nikon D700, by Darrell Young and James Johnson will soon be available.

All three books include a special Nikonians 50%-off voucher discount for a one year Gold Membership in the Nikonians community. This will save you $37.50.

Posted by flashdeadline at 5:35 PM

ID#89: The Image Doctors

The Image Doctors discuss new product announcements from Nikon and offer quick fixes for common image problems.

Download The Image Doctors #89 (NPC-ID-2009-04-16.m4a; 1:00:10; 14.8MB; MP4 format)

Show Notes: April 16, 2009

0:56  New Product Announcements:  Nikon D5000 DSLR, Nikkor 10-24mm AFS DX lens, Nikon Capture NX 2.2, Nik Plug-ins for Lightroom

25:02  Listener Mail: 14-24 vs. 17-35

31:14 Let the Image Doctors help you with your images!

34:50  Quick Fixes for Common Problems

54:24 Photo Prescription: It's the light, stupid!

For the MP3 version of this podcast (audio only) click here (20.8MB).

[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 8:00 AM

April 15, 2009

Nikonians Nikon D5000 Users Group is now active

D5000_75.jpg
Active may be an understatement, -- the new D5000 Users Group is heating up with quick observations on the relative placement of this new DSLR in the overall Nikon line-up. Check it out.

Posted by flashdeadline at 5:41 PM

April 14, 2009

Nikonians News Flash #116

Newsflash_75px.jpg Tune in to your weekly edition of the Nikonians News Flash Podcast for all the very latest news from our friendly Nikonians Community.

Download Nikonians News Flash #116
(NPC-NF-2009-04-14.mp3; 17:30; 4.4MB; MP3 format)

In the News Flash podcast this week:

Nikon unveils new DSLR camera & Lens!

Do you have some News Flash podcast feedback or perhaps some ideas for content? It would be great to hear from you - please email me at: newsflash@nikonians.org

Thanks for listening,

James Davies
Nikonians Team Member & News Flash Podcaster

Posted by garglon at 6:23 PM

Nikon unveils new D5000 DSLR and new DX-wide angle lens

D5000_75.jpgNikonians who expected to see the new Nikon D5000 unveiled at the recent PMA in Las Vegas can now relax. The D5000, featuring a swiveling LCD monitor and taking its place as the second Nikon with High Definition movie modes has been announced.

D5000_LCD_250.jpgThe most immediately noticable outward physical appearance of the new camera is what Nikon calls a Vari-angle monitor. Old-time Coolpix users may fondly remember that functionality in the Coolpix 5000, but that model's swiveling screen was only 1.8 inches (compared to the D5000's 2.7 inches).

The new D5000 is a DX-Format model featuring an image sensor with 12.3 effective megapixels and the proven Multi-CAM 1000 autofocus sensor module found in the Nikon D90. The D90 now has a Nikon junior partner in the "D-SLR with movie function category" and the price difference between the two is an appealing $200 to $250 USD (body only) depending on where you are shopping.

Those who predicted the D5000 to be a mid-range choice between the Nikon D60 and the D90 pretty much nailed it. In this comparison shot below we used the only fixed variable (the contacts spread between the flash hot-shoe) to illustrate the size differences looking from the front.D60-D90-D5000_Comparison.jpg

UPDATE: We have a new Nikonians D5000 Users Group Forum prepared for our members who will be interested in this camera.

You can check out the features on the new D5000 with a downloadable pdf brochure.

For a look at the official Press Release, check out the Nikon USA Press Center D5000 announcement.

While you are there, make sure you check out the new AF-S DX-NIKKOR 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED lens. This new lens gives you the FX-format equivalent of 15-36mm making it ideal for a variety of applications including restrictive interiors, architecture and sweeping landscapes.

The D5000 should be on the shelves later this month at an estimated Manufacturer's List Price (MSRP) of $729.95 USD.

The AF-S DX-NIKKOR 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED lens should be available in May at an MSRP of $899.95 USD.

Posted by flashdeadline at 7:11 AM

April 6, 2009

Nikonians News Flash #115

Newsflash_75px.jpg Tune in to your weekly edition of the Nikonians News Flash Podcast for all the very latest news from our friendly Nikonians Community.

Download Nikonians News Flash #115
(NPC-NF-2009-04-06.mp3; 18:30; 5.4MB; MP3 format)

In the News Flash podcast this week:

Nikonians EZine 41 ready for download

"Here comes the skins" - Nikonians Skin Creation Competition

Edition 88 of Image Doctors - People & Travel

Latest edition of Phase One's Capture One software announced

D60 Cake...!

Do you have some News Flash podcast feedback or perhaps some ideas for content? It would be great to hear from you - please email me at: newsflash@nikonians.org

Thanks for listening,

James Davies
Nikonians Team Member & News Flash Podcaster

Posted by garglon at 7:17 PM

April 4, 2009

Nikon D60 Sweetness

Chef Duff Goldman, otherwise known as the Food Network's Ace of Cakes, whipped up a delicious and appropos treat for his dad's recent birthday - a large-scale cake recreation of a Nikon D60 complete with an 18-55mm AF-S DX lens. Yummm....(via Engadget)

Posted by covey22 at 4:21 PM

April 3, 2009

Ritz Camera to Close 300 Stores

As a follow-up to our earlier story on Ritz Camera's restructuring, the photo retailer chain has announced today that they will close 300 stores with a liquidation sale starting 4-April and continuing until all inventory is sold. A detailed list of stores affected is available here (Adobe Acrobat Reader required).

Posted by covey22 at 4:41 PM

Capture One 4.7 Now with Nikon D3X Support

Nikonians Corporate Partner Phase One has released their latest iteration of the Capture One 4.7 photo-processing workflow.

Capture One 4.7 new features include:

  • Newly designed EIP file format that packages Phase One RAW files and settings together but leaves the original file untouched.
  • JPEG and TIFF Files are now accepted as input and can be manipulated using the tools within Capture One, with the exception of the Lens Correction module.
  • Added Tethered Capture support for the Nikon D3X and the Canon 5D Mark II.

A Free 30-Day Trial is available.

Capt-One--5-PRO_120.jpg
Update:

Capture One 5 PRO is now available:

Posted by covey22 at 4:21 PM

April 2, 2009

Here comes the Skins Competition

Choose_75.jpgNikonians co-founder J. Ramón Palacios (jrp) has launched a Nikonians Skins competition, opening the door for our computer savvy members to add new options to our choice of Nikonians skins.

Choose_125.jpgThe current choices for your viewing choices include Nikonians Classic and Nikonians V2.0. Recognizing the insatiable appetite for customized skins shared by many of our members, the call is now out for those of you with a good knowledge of HTML and css sheets to participate in a re-design competition.
Designers of the three best alternate skins will receive a Nikonians merchandise gift pack as a token of our appreciation.
Check your formal invitation to participate (and deadlines/guidelines) here.

Posted by flashdeadline at 4:33 PM

ID#88: The Image Doctors

This week, learn about people/travel photography from Nikonians Academy instructor Michael Mariant.

Download The Image Doctors #88 (NPC-ID-2009-04-02.m4a; 1:02:17; 19.1MB; MP4 format)

Show Notes: April 2, 2009

1:12  Interview with Nikonians Academy Instructor Michael Mariant (www.mariantphotography.com)

59:54 Photo Prescription: Time to check your monitor calibration!

For the MP3 version of this podcast (audio only) click here (21.4MB).

[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 7:00 AM

Nikonians 41 features International perspective

eZine-41-Cover-85.jpgThe latest edition of our eZine THE NIKONIAN #41 is now available for download.

TheNikonian41-Cover_369.jpg
Featured in this edition of our official Nikonians publication are photos and articles originating from all parts of the globe, including Italy, India, Germany, Mexico, Romania, Canada and the USA ((to name just a few).
You can right-click here for the free download (6,580 KByte PDF file).
You need Adobe's Acrobat® Reader to view in your computer or print it (and it would be best if you used "Save As..."

Highlights in this latest edition of THE NIKONIAN include:
  • Editorial (with a re-cap of the annual co-founder's meeting)
  • Membership Levels Update
  • Best of Nikonians 2008 winners
  • Imaging USA Convention by Rick Paul (rickpaul)
  • PMA-2009 Images and quick brief by Steven Lieber
  • Precautions for Photographers on the Road by Steven Shepard (sshepard)
  • Conflict Zone Photography by Ryan Lobo
  • Eye of the Photographer (Italy) by Marco Barraco
  • Photo Perfect Express review by Tom Boné (flashdeadline)
  • Spotlight on our NikoniansPress Books
  • “Must Read” Nikonians Bloggers (Martin Turner and Rick Paul)
  • New from Nikon
  • Calendar of Events

    Posted by flashdeadline at 4:14 AM

    April 1, 2009

    Capture NX2 Version 2.2 Now Available

    As reported earlier here, Capture NX 2 Version 2.2 with Coolpix P6000 NRW support is now available for download (Nikon USA links).

    Posted by covey22 at 3:43 PM