4 days ago
Remotes
I have had this fascination with remotes lately. Remote devices for triggering your camera, that is. I purchased the Camera Axe, which is a cool device that I keep eluding to in past posts. It takes the input from several different types of sensors and will trigger the flash or camera based on their input. I’ll do a post soon with more info about this. The second acquisition (that hasn’t arrived yet) is the Timelapse+. This device is a small intervalometer that will do bulb ramping (determine how long to open your shutter for as time goes on), HDR shutter release (multiple exposures) and has blue-tooth built in. It was a Kickstarter funded project. The latest in the series is the Trigger Happy camera remote. This is almost the same as the Timelapse+ but using your iPhone or Android device to trigger your camera. It’s a pretty worthwhile project and I would suggest that if you want one at the reduced price, I’d head over and support the Kickstarter project soon before it ends.
Tis the upgrade season
So many upgrade / release announcements lately.
- Nikon D800/D800E
- Nikon D4
- Canon 5D Mark III
- Wacom Intuos 5
- Projected: Lightroom 4
- Projected: Apple iPad
- Alien Skin Exposure 4
- Snapseed for Desktop
- Adobe Photoshop Touch
- Projected: Adobe Photoshop CS6
- Canon Speedlight 600EX-RT
Seriously, I’m not made of money. I certainly will upgrade to Lightroom 4, lust after a new Wacom tablet and most likely get the new iPad. Everything else is going to have to wait until I can find a billionaire who wants to sleep with my wife *just kidding sweetie*.
Think Tank Airport Airstream
Every photographer I know is on the constant look out for a new gear bag. One that is portable, handy, rugged and will pack as much as they can cram into it. Photographers have a lot of gear. I am no exception. Even though I don’t always need all of it, I have a bunch. I have a Tenba Shootout rolling bag, that I really do like a lot. However, the last trip I took to New England I was on a puddle jumper (small prop airplane) to Maine and the bag would not fit in the overhead, so I had to gate check it. Everything came out o.k., but my worst fear as a shooter is getting off the plane to find out either 1) the bag was left behind or worse 2) I pick it up and hear rattling of broken glass.
My buddies Chuck Barnes and Matt Kloskowski both were sporting the Think Tank Airport Airstream roller bags. I flew with Chuck and his fit neatly under the seat and overhead. I had to have one. I called up the folks at Adorama and ordered one for the holidays. With the NAPP discount I got it at a little less than the current MSRP of $299.75.
It doesn’t quite have everything I am looking for in a bag. The space inside is roomy enough for most of my travel gear. I’ll still need to pack my vest and tripod in my bag, but I can overlook that. It’s rugged and handles really well. It also comes equipped with 3 locks, so I can secure it in several different ways. I am looking forward to traveling with it to see how it handles. I must say that I’ll also have to mark it so I know it’s mine. One of the things that happened with Matt and Chuck is they switched bags at one point and didn’t realize it.
PlugBug Charger
The PlugBug is a pretty cool charger design. I have my MacBook Pro which I take with me when I travel. This little contraption will allow you to plug your laptop charger into it. You have a USB port to charge your iPad / iPhone / etc and still be able to charge your laptop. Saves having a second outlet in use when in the hotel or classroom. I can see a use, but I’m not sure I can justify the expense.
Tamarac ZipShot Small Tripod
The new Tamarac Zipshot looks like an interesting new tripod. Weighing in at 11 oz and a short 15 inches while folded (44″ setup), looks like the prefect small tripod for backpacking. It will only hold up to 3 pounds of weight, so my full 5D with battery extension and 100-400 lens is out, but for a small DSLR or point and shoot, this would be great. I wish I had something like this on my trips to Boston (taking a tripod on a plane is impossible) or even hiking through the mountains would have been nice. Only $50 from Adorama.
Canon EOS-1D X
Canon just announced the new Canon EOS-1D X camera. What a lineup of features.
18.1 mp sensor
two DIGIC 5+ processor & 1 DIGIC 4 processor
12 to 14 fps burst mode
ISO 50 – 204,800
61 pt autofocus
Multiple exposure mode – HDR-ish in camera
larger LCD screen
Dual CF cards
Wired LAN
GPS Add on option
Wireless Add On option
Check out more at Canon.
USB focus controller for Canon
A Chinese company called Cinematics has released a focus controller for the Canon cameras. Mainly for video production, it looks pretty cool.
It controls allows you to manually focus an autofocus Canon EF lens by using the lenses own built in focus motor. To do this it communicates with the camera using Canon’s own USB protocols which are normally used when the camera is communicating with Canon’s EOS Utility software on a computer.
