Canon and Sony News for Jul 2014 (Page 2)

From Canon USA:

Canon Follows Up on Their Strong Showing at February's Big Game in New Jersey With Widespread Use by Imaging Professionals at the Soccer Tournament in Brazil

MELVILLE, N.Y., July 24, 2014 - Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, is proud to announce that Canon broadcast lenses were the most widely used broadcast lenses covering the matches of the recent Soccer Tournament in Brazil. Furthermore, the professional photographers tasked with capturing the riveting goals, ravenous fans, colorful scenery and nail-biting moments of the soccer matches utilized Canon DSLR cameras and lenses more than any other brand.

This outstanding show of support for Canon equipment in Brazil follows Canon broadcast lenses being used extensively to broadcast The Big Game in New Jersey on February 2, 2014, as well as being the number one camera and lens choice for imaging professionals shooting from the sidelines of the game between Denver and Seattle. In support of professionals on the ground, the Canon Professional Services (CPS) team was on location at each of these sporting events, among countless others, to provide support to photographers, broadcasters and all imaging professionals.

"Canon is honored to help broadcast companies and news services bring the action of these high-profile sporting events to devoted fans across the world. It is a testament to our products and professional service and support that so many image makers at the pinnacle of their profession rely on Canon," said Yuichi Ishizuka, president and COO, Canon U.S.A., Inc.

Throughout the soccer matches in Brazil, Canon broadcast field lenses were utilized to deliver footage of the thrilling tournament. Canon broadcast field lenses represented approximately 90 percent share of all broadcast lenses used. Additionally, Canon broadcast lenses were used extensively to deliver The Big Game to more than 111 million television viewers.

A look to the sidelines in Brazil revealed a familiar sight to many sporting event fans — Canon EOS Digital SLR cameras, equipped with iconic white Canon telephoto EF lenses. Throughout the tournament, approximately 70 percent of imaging professionals chose Canon DSLRs and lenses to capture and share the memorable moments of these passionate and prideful soccer matches. Much like The Big Game, in which 75 percent of imaging professionals on the sideline of that gridiron matchup chose Canon equipment.

At each of the 12 stadiums that hosted Soccer matches in Brazil, CPS had teams of technical and professional representatives providing imaging professionals with convenient access to product support, equipment maintenance, and product loans.

From RODE:

RØDE is excited to announce its newest microphone, the NT-USB -- a studio-grade microphone with the convenience of a digital USB interface. The NT-USB is fully compatible with MacOS, Windows and iPad.

While RØDE’s Podcaster USB microphone was released in 2007, its primary focus is to provide broadcast-quality voice recording, with its end-address configuration. The NT-USB on the other hand is a highly versatile side-address microphone that is ideal for recording musical performances in addition to spoken applications such as podcasting and voice-over.

The microphone is fully compatible with all mainstream recording applications on both Windows and Mac OS based computers, as well as the Apple iPad using RØDE Rec, GarageBand, or any other recording app that accepts an external microphone. Use on the Apple iPad requires a suitable USB connection adaptor, such as the Apple Camera Connection Kit.

The body of the NT-USB features a zero-latency stereo headphone monitoring (3.5mm) jack, which allows users to monitor the microphone input in realtime, along with dials to adjust the monitoring level and mix between the computer/iPad audio and the microphone input.

A premium pop-filter is included, which fits onto the base of the mic, positioning the filter the ideal distance from the capsule to minimise plosives (hard ‘B’, ‘T’ or ‘P’ sounds that produce a harsh sound) during singing or speech. Also provided is a high-quality stand mount with industry standard 3/8” thread, desktop tripod stand that allows the NT-USB to sit at a comfortable height on a tabletop, and a pouch for storage of the microphone when not in use.

The NT-USB is supplied with an extended 24 month warranty, which is free of charge to customers that register their microphone.

B&H has the Rode NT-USB USB Microphone available for preorder.

Canon has released its financial results for the second quarter of 2014. We suggest checking out the easy-to-understand, graphically-enhanced Presentation Material.

• Presentation Material for 2Q 2014
• Results for 2Q 2014

From the Canon USA YouTube Channel:

In this video you'll see how shutter speed affects various frame rates and the appearance of motion in your footage.

Current List of HD Video Tutorials

• Using Prime Lenses
• Full Frame & Crop Sensor Cameras
• External Monitoring Options
• Building Cinema Rigs
• Using Zoom Lenses
• Using Filters
• Tripod Systems
• Shutter Speeds & Frames Rates

B&H carries DSLR video gear.

From Kingston:

Features:

• New V310 Solid-State Drive Joins SSDNow V Series Family
• Boosts System Responsiveness and Speed
• Large 960GB Capacity Allows To Migrate Entire Hard Drive

Fountain Valley, CA – July 21, 2014 – Kingston Digital, Inc., the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, today announced its latest addition to the SSDNow V300 series, the V310. The Kingston SSDNow V310 solid-state drive dramatically boosts system responsiveness while also offering 960GB capacity to store all movies, music, games, files and applications.

The new SSDNow V310 is 10x faster than a 7200RPM hard-disk drive1. Powered by a Phison 3108 ccontroller, the drive achieves 450MB/s read and write speeds2. With no moving mechanical parts, SSDNow V310 is shock-proof, uses less energy and stays cool making it more reliable and less likely to fail than standard hard-disk drives. The large capacity of the SSDNow V310 allows enough space for a true HDD replacement so users can migrate their entire hard drive over with storage to spare.

“Since 2009, our V ‘Value’ series solid-state drives have delivered the best price to performance ratio as possible to enable consumers on a budget or entry-level users to experience the benefits of SSD technology. Our new V310 continues that along with providing the biggest capacity ever in a Kingston SSD," said Ariel Perez, SSD business manager, Kingston." SSDNow V310 with its large 960GB capacity is the perfect upgrade to an existing system as it improves boot speeds and application load times helping maximize one’s computer investment.”

SSDNow V310 is available in 960GB as a stand-alone drive or as all-in-one kits that include all the accessories needed plus software to clone files and OS to make for an easy install. SSDNow V310 is backed by a three-year warranty, free technical support and legendary Kingston reliability.

B&H carries Kingston Solid State Drives.

From the B&H YouTube Channel:

In this episode of Prospectives, Tim Cooper visits the B&H studio to discuss some realistic uses for HDR photography. He takes us through a few HDR composite examples and outlines the reasons for shooting high dynamic range images.

Just posted: Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 DG II HSM Lens Review

The 12mm extreme-wide-angle rectilinear focal length makes this lens unique and gives the photographer the ability to capture very unique images.

B&H has the Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 DG II HSM Lens in stock.

From THK:

JULY 22, 2014 – Huntington Beach, CA. - (July 22, 2014) - Kenko Tokina USA, Inc. is proud to introduce the new Hoya EVO ANTISTATIC series of professional photographic filters.

Hoya engineers have developed a new ANTISTATIC coating that acts like a force field around the filter to repel dust. Perfect for environments where dust is common, these filters require less frequent cleaning and maintenance than traditional filters. Additionally, the hardened, antistatic top-layer is water repellent, stain and scratch resistant, and cleans easily when smudges or fingerprints are introduced to the surface.

The new EVO ANTISTATIC professional filters are made in Japan using hand selected silicates that are carefully smelted and blended to yield high performance optical glass. Hoya then uses extreme care and precision to apply the Improved 16-layer Super Multi-coating formula which greatly reduces or eliminates reflections on the surface of the glass and yields a 99.8% light transmission rate. This means the filter has virtually no effect on the color balance, contrast, or clarity of the final image.

The filters in the new EVO ANTISTATIC series* utilize a lightweight, one-piece, low-profile aluminum frame to house the glass. This one-piece design allows the filter to maintain perfect parallel alignment to the sensor plane for maximum sharpness, while the low-profile frame eliminates vignetting when used on ultra-wide-angle lenses.

The new EVO ANTISTATIC series of filters consist of a Protector, UV, and Circular Polarizer in common sizes ranging from 37mm to 82mm.

Hoya EVO ANTISTATIC filters were developed in conjunction with Kenko Tokina USA, Inc. and intended solely for the USA distribution.

For a video introducing the EVO ANTISTATIC filters please go to: http://youtu.be/TwAYU0JlWP0

The EVO ANTISTATIC filter will be available in mid-August.

B&H carries Hoya filters.

This is an older video that slipped under my radar late last year. But it begs the question – what would you do with 50 EOS 1D X DSLR cameras?

From Canon Suisse:

With the support of Canon Switzerland, the Swiss Radio and TV SRF produced two elaborate Bullet Time Shots for the programme "Sommer-Challenge". 50 Canon EOS-1D X cameras were used in one indoor and one outdoor shooting.

B&H carries the Canon EOS-1D X.

Walk Through a Wedding is a year long video series in which Profoto follows wedding photographers Justin & Mary as they set out to capture a young couple's most special day.

In this episode, the couple describes how to create an iconic bridal party image when the originally scheduled outdoor plan falls through because of rain.

Gear Used:

• Profoto B1 500 AirTTL Battery Powered Flash
• Profoto Air Remote TTL-C
• Profoto 5.0' RFi Octa Softbox
• Profoto Deep White Umbrella XL
• Profoto Zoom Reflector
• Profoto Collapsible Reflector - Silver/White
• Profoto RFi Speedring for Profoto Flash Heads
• Canon EOS 5D Mark III
• Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L USM

You can find all of the Justin and Mary Wedding Walkthough videos here.

From Adobe:

Adobe Camera RAW RC 8.6 Modifications

Features

• Improve performance when batch processing images (via the Save button in Camera Raw) and when converting images to DNG (via DNG Converter). This performance improvement is only available on 64-bit systems.

New Camera Support

• Nikon D810
• Panasonic LUMIX AG-GH4
• Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FZ1000

New Lens Profile Support

Download:
Adobe Camera RAW 8.6 RC for Photoshop CC & CC 2014
Adobe Camera RAW 8.6 for RC Photoshop CS6

From Canon Professional Network:

"Modern action movies are generally packed with computer-generated imagery (CGI), resulting in production budgets that have soared into the stratosphere. But when director Scott Waugh enlisted Shane Hurlbut as Director of Photography on the movie spin-off from the ‘Need For Speed’ game franchise he wanted to buck the trend and shoot the action as close to live as possible, which called for a special camera. CPN writer James Morris spoke to Shane Hurlbut to discover how and why Canon’s EOS C500 Digital Cinema Camera satisfied all the important requirements for shooting live action at 150 miles per hour."

Check out the entire article on the Canon Professional Network.

B&H carries the Canon EOS C500 Cinema Camera.

From PocketWizard:

South Burlington, VT - July 17, 2014 - The PocketWizard MultiMAX, our venerable flagship radio product, is being retired effective immediately.

The MultiMAX was born in early 2001 and is just a little older than Windows XP. One of the first digital transceivers in the photo industry, the MultiMAX became the professional choice for over a dozen basketball seasons, seven Olympics, and countless portraits and weddings. Its special mix of technology enabled it to survive the industry’s transition from film to digital. Some of its features, like Custom IDs, True Trigger Confirmation, and Equalization, have never been duplicated. Certainly, the MultiMAX has earned its place in the history of photography.

Today, key parts are no longer being manufactured. Case in point is the LCD which was based on an early flip phone (the Motorola StarTac of the late 1990’s). So, regrettably, we can no longer market the MultiMAX.

Fortunately, the PocketWizard Plus III radio carries on the primary features of the MultiMAX, like 32 channels, Quad-Zone Triggering, Long Range Mode, and Auto-Relay and is fully compatible with the MultiMAX and the entire PocketWizard line.

Stock:
Final orders have shipped. Check with your dealer or distributor for retail availability.

Warranty Repairs:
PocketWizard will honor warranties and perform customer repairs for the next few years. If warranty repairs are unable to be performed due to parts depletion, we will make reasonable efforts to help photographers maintain PocketWizard compatibility by offering alternative product at a special value.

Custom IDs:
The Custom ID service for the MultiMAX will remain available for MultiMAX owners. We will investigate the possibility of implementing Custom IDs in the Plus III or a future radio.

Special Accessories:
All PocketWizard remote camera and flash cables will remain in the product line. MultiMAX specific accessories like PW-CC (Confirmation Cable) and PW-AC-MX (AC Adapter for older 6-pin radios) will no longer be produced, but may still be available at retailers.

If you have a moment, please share your MultiMAX stories on our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pocketwizards

B&H carries PocketWizard products.

The Canon Digital Learning Center has published a lengthy Quick Tips page for Underwater Photography.

"With its richly colored landscapes and fascinating sea creatures, there are few places more beautiful to photograph than the underwater world. Whether you’re scuba diving among sharks or snorkeling along a reef, the photographic possibilities are endless and intriguing.

Of course, underwater photography can be a little intimidating since it presents unique photographic challenges. But you’ll get immediate feedback with your digital SLR, so you can make adjustments when necessary and it won’t be long before you’ll be showing off images of your underwater adventures to fellow divers, snorkelers and land-locked shutterbugs. To help you gear up and grab those once-in-a lifetime shots, here are some guidelines and tips to get you started."

Check out the Underwater Photography Tips on CDLC for a tidal wave of information. :-)

From Nikon:

Camera Control Pro - 2.18.0 Update

Precautions

• This updater software updates Camera Control Pro 2.13.0 -2.17.0 to 2.18.0.
• Camera Control Pro 2.13.0 - 2.17.0 must be installed before running this software.
• When this updater software is run, it may be necessary to enter the product key again to confirm ownership of a previous version of the software.
• On a Macintosh running Mac OS X version 10.7-10.9, run this updater software and then enter the application’s product key.
• Turn off all virus-scanning software and exit Camera Control Pro 2, or any other application that may be running, before proceeding with this installation.
• You must have Administrator authority to run this updater software on a Windows computer. You must enter the Admin password to run this updater software on a Macintosh computer.
• This updater software cannot be used to install a different language version, or to modify the language version, of the application currently installed.

Updates included with this release, 2.18.0

Modifications that apply to both the Windows and Macintosh versions

• Support for the D810 has been added.
• Highlight-weighted has been added to Metering options in the Exposure 2 tab (available only when the D810 is used).
• Metering options have been added to the Movie tab (available only when the D810 is used).
• Flat has been added to Picture Control options in the Image Processing tab. (available only when the D810 is used).
• A Clarity setting has been added to the adjustment dialog displayed when the Edit... button in the Image Processing tab is clicked. (available only when the D810 is used).
• A Show Capture NX-D option has been added to the Tools menu.

Additional modifications to the Windows version

• Windows XP is no longer supported.

Additional modifications to the Macintosh version

• Mac OS X version 10.6 is no longer supported.

Download Camera Control Pro - 2.18.0 Update – Windows | Macintosh

Wireless Transmitter Utility 1.5.1

Precautions

Modifications enabled with version 1.5.1

Modifications that apply to both the Windows and Macintosh versions

• Support for the D810 has been added.
• Support for the Communication Unit UT-1 Firmware Ver. 2.1 has been added.

Additional modifications to the Windows version

• Windows XP is no longer supported.

Download Wireless Transmitter Utility 1.5.1 – Windows| Macintosh

B&H has the Nikon D810 DSLR Camera available for preorder.