Welcome to the redesigned website of Sigma Corporation of America. Over the past several month, our team has been hard at work to redesign, refresh, upgrade, and refine the overall look, feel, and user experience on our website.
Take a look around and you’ll see our focus is on ease of navigation, with a very image-forward design. Photography is our business–our only business, and that focus shows in our redesign philosophy.
We’re especially excited about the redesigned Product Finder, which now includes the full Sigma line including cameras, strobes, and accessories, in addition to lenses. This has always been one of the most popular features on our website, and we hope you appreciate the upgrades.
We focused on creating a more visually appealing website, and there are more than 2,000 photos currently on the site–and each one was captured with Sigma products.
We’ve added several new photo galleries to the website to inspire and educate. And all the shots–from the product images, to our Fan Photo of the Week and X3 Gallery, it is all shot with Sigma. And of course, we’d also love to showcase your amazing photos in our Photoshare and Fan Photo of the Week galleries!
And be sure to check out “Video Tips from a Pro” with Sigma Pro Lindsay Adler, our new series of informative videos by this inspirational member of the Sigma team. Her expert advice should help many photographers make smart purchase decisions.
We are very excited about the look and feel of our new website, and we’d love to hear your feedback!
98 new lens / camera combinations have been added to the DxO Optics Modules library, providing supports for Canon, Panasonic, Sigma and Sony lenses, for Canon, Nikon, Olympus and Sony cameras.
To see supported and planned combinations, click on the link bellow then select the second tab.
RØDE Announces the smartLav Lavalier Microphone for iOS Devices
From RØDE:
RØDE Microphones is announcing the release of the smartLav, a new lapel microphone that connects directly to the headset jack of Apple iOS devices. Compatible with the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, smartLav delivers premium quality audio capture in a compact and accessible form factor.
The smartLav is a professional-grade wearable microphone designed for use in a wide range of film, television and broadcast scenarios, or wherever professional quality audio is required in a discreet, portable format without the complication and expense of additional wireless equipment, particularly where multiple talent is involved. With the smartLav the user simply mounts the microphone on the talent, connects it to the iOS device’s headset jack and records via the RØDE Rec or RØDE Rec LE apps.
By employing a high quality omni-directional condenser capsule the smartLav captures sound in a forgiving 360 degrees, allowing for versatility when mounting and ensuring a high degree of user-friendly operation .
“The smartLav is an exciting solution that makes professional quality audio available to anyone with access to an Apple iOS device,” explained Damien Wilson, RØDE’s Marketing and Sales Director. “For filmmakers or wedding videographers that have struggled to simultaneously record multiple talent this product truly is an incredibly simple and cost effective solution.”
A foam pop shield is included to minimise wind noise and vocal plosives (hard ‘b’, ‘t’ and ‘p’ sounds), as well as a durable mounting clip with in-built cable management. The smartLav has been designed to pair perfectly with the RØDE Rec app for Apple iOS devices, and is also compatible with any iOS audio app that accepts input from the headset connection. RØDE Rec turns the user’s iOS device into a fully-featured field recorder, with a wide range of equalisation pre-sets to suit various recording situations, in addition to professional editing functions and the ability to publish to SoundCloud and Dropbox directly from the app.
“Both the smartLav and the recently announced RØDE iXY stereo microphone showcase the possibilities of the RØDE Rec app as more than an isolated piece of software,” Mr Wilson explained, “but also as a platform and hub for a range of professional grade audio devices. This platform leverages the portability and popularity of Apple’s iOS devices to make content creation easier than ever.”
The smartLav is shipping to authorised RØDE retailers worldwide this month, at a suggested retail price of US$60.
PocketWizard G-Wiz Vault gadget bag perfect for the safe and convenient storage of multiple radios, cameras and accessories
LPA Design, manufacturers of PocketWizard Photo Products, the world leader in wireless control of cameras, flash lighting and light meters, announces today the new G-Wiz Vault bag. Designed for use with the PocketWizard MultiMAX®, Plus® II or FlexTT5® Transceivers and accessories, this padded gear bag is also the perfect size to protect a full-sized DSLR camera.
“Many photographers own several PocketWizard radios and the new G-Wiz Vault bag offers them a storage solution that keeps them safe when not in use.” said Dave Schmidt, LPA Design’s VP of Marketing. “We’ve also designed the G-Wiz line as a convenient storage solution for other photo gear and the G-Wiz Vault is sized to fit any full size DSLR camera body or other accessories.”
The new PocketWizard G-Wiz Vault bag holds up to six MultiMAX or Plus II radios with connector cables, ten FlexTT5’s, or one full-size DSLR camera body. The Vault features three movable or removable hook-n-loop padded dividers allowing photographers to customize this bag to fit their gear-packing needs. Available in three colors, the G-Wiz Vault opens from the top allowing photographers to ensure at a glance that all their PocketWizard gear is neatly and safely packed away.
Features include: three movable hook-n-loop padded dividers, zippered inside pocket, Super-Snap closure attachment straps with grab handle and durable rip-stop nylon construction.
The new Cokin PURE Harmonie filters are available in variable neutral density, circular polarizer and multi-coated UV filter types and feature highly slim, lightweight designs.
They all feature the EVERCLEAR 5 Coating Technology, which offers protection from water, oil, dust, soil and scratches. The variable ND filter is available in sizes from 52-82mm, and the circular polarizer and UV filters are available in sizes from 37-82mm."
Nikon Capture NX 2.4.0 Update Available for Download
Nikon has released the Capture NX 2.4.0 software update.
Modifications enabled with Ver. 2.4.0
Modifications that apply to both the Windows and Macintosh versions
Support for RAW images captured with the Nikon 1 J3 and Nikon 1 S1 has been added.
The following modifications have been made to White Balance in the Camera Settings portion of the Develop section in the Edit List palette.
Underwater can now be selected from New WB. However, Underwater can only be selected for RAW images captured with a camera that supports Underwater white balance.
Resulting colors have been corrected when Flash was selected from New WB for RAW images captured with the Nikon 1 V2.
An issue that, in some rare cases, prevented display of some JPEG images has been resolved.
Additional modifications to the Windows version
Compatibility with 64- and 32-bit Windows 8, Windows 8 Pro, and Windows 8 Enterprise has been added.
Proper operation has been confirmed with use in desktop mode. Touch screen operations are not supported.
Additional modifications to the Macintosh version
Support for high-resolution display on Macintosh computers with a built-in Retina display has been added. However, this applies only to image display in the image window.
Installation Windows
Create a new folder with an appropriate name on your computer's hard disk.
Download S-CNX2__-020400WU-___EN-ALL___.exe to the folder created in step 1.
Run S-CNX2__-020400WU-___EN-ALL___.exe to launch the software installer.
Follow the on-screen instructions to accurately complete the installation.
Macintosh
Download S-CNX2__-020400MU-___EN-ALL___.dmg.
Once S-CNX2__-020400MU-___EN-ALL___.dmg has finished downloading, a Capture NX 2 Setup disk image will be mounted. A file titled Capture NX 2 Setup will be created inside the disk image.
Double-click Capture NX 2 Setup to launch the software installer.
Follow the on-screen instructions to accurately complete the installation.
Download the Capture NX 2.4.0 software update: Windows | Macintosh
Nikon has released firmware version A:1.21/B:1.21 for Nikon 1 V1 digital cameras.
Modifications enabled with this firmware upgrade
Immediately after the camera was turned on after attaching a lens, shooting display in the camera monitor or electronic viewfinder (view through the lens) sometimes appeared to move. This issue has been resolved.
AdoramaTV Presents Softening, Diffusing and Managing Hard Light with Joe McNally
In this episode of Photo on the Go by AdoramaTV, internationally acclaimed photographer Joe McNally demonstrates how to create flattering outdoor portraits using speedlights, reflectors, and a Lastolite Ezybox.
This is The-Digital-Picture.com's Weekend Recap for the week ending February 2nd, 2013
In the news...
On Tuesday, Nikon announced two new Nikkor full-frame lenses, the AF-S 18-35mm f/3.5-4.5G ED and the AF-S 800mm f/5.6E FL ED VR lens. The 800mm lens is especially interesting as it ships with its own teleconverter which will extend the lens’s focal length to 1000mm.
Nikon also announced seven new COOLPIX digital cameras. Notable announcements included the P520 with its 42x optical zoom and built-in GPS and the AW110 that is waterproof to a depth of 59 feet and shoots up to 8 frames per second.
Canon had a few announcements of its own, introducing three new PowerShot cameras: the ELPH 330 HS, ELPH 115 IS, and the A2500. In particular, the ELPH 330 HS gains advanced wireless capabilities such as connectivity with iOS and Android devices, Facebook upload integration, and the ability to comment on uploaded photos directly from the camera.
Sigma announced the redesign of its 30mm f/1.4 DC HSM lens for APS-C sensor cameras. Now a part of the “Art Line,” the updated lens features a new optical configuration of nine elements in eight groups, rounded aperture blades, and design cues taken from its popular full-frame big brother, the 35mm f/1.4.
In reviews…
On Wednesday, Bryan posted his comparison notes regarding the Canon EF 35mm f/2 IS USM and the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM lens. In short, at f/2 the Sigma lens produced noticeably better center sharpness than the Canon, while the Canon lens performs better in the full frame corner. Past f/2.8, both lenses are excellently sharp in the center while the Canon holds a slight lead in corner sharpness.
On Friday, The-Digital-Picture.com announced free usage of its product images for personal and non-competing commercial websites, social media, and personal eBay auctions. For full details, click on the “Free Use of Product Images” link in the site’s help menu.
And, for our deal of the week…
We published a deal for our UK visitors – a Canon 7D for less than 690 pounds at DigitalRev. That’s a savings of more than 350 pounds over most UK retailers.
This has been the The-Digital-Picture.com’s Weekend Recap. Thanks for listening, and as always, happy shooting!
The-Digital-Picture.com Allows Free Use of Its Product Images
The-Digital-Picture.com's product images are now available for free use on your website, social network page (Facebook, Google+, etc.), or eBay auction. Just one little catch - a requested link.