DIGITAL CAMERA – Page 44 – The Imaging Buffet

Adobe posts updates to Photoshop Lightroom and the Photoshop Camera Raw plug-in

I just received this news and I’m especially interested in seeing the new Raw conversions using the updates. According to Adobe, Lightroom 1.2 and the new Camera Raw 4.2 plug-in include “improved noise reduction for Bayer patterned sensors.” Leaf Aptus 17, 54s and 75s users should also be happy that those cameras are now supported.

Full press release text from Adobe follows:
Adobe has posted updates to PhotoshopÂ® Lightroomâ„¢ and the Photoshop Camera Raw plug-in, both available immediately for download on Adobe.com. The updates provide raw file support for 14 additional camera models and camera backs within Lightroom and Camera Raw, including the popular Canon EOS 40D.

The camera raw functionality in the Adobe Photoshop software, including Photoshop Lightroom, Photoshop CS3 and Photoshop Elements, provides fast and easy access to the raw image formats produced by many leading professional and midrange digital cameras. Working with these digital negatives allows greater artistic control and flexibility while still maintaining the original raw files. Lightroom and the Camera Raw plug-in also support the same functionality for TIFF and JPEG files. Professional photographers can now quickly and easily import and manipulate raw data from the latest DSLR cameras, producing the highest quality results while saving time.

Lightroom 1.2 and the new Camera Raw 4.2 plug-in support 14 additional digital cameras including the Canon EOS 40D; Fuji FinePix IS-1; Leaf Aptus 17, 54s and 75s; Olympus EVOLT E-510; Panasonic DMC-FZ18; Pentax K100D Super; Phase One P 20+, P 21+, P 25+, P 30+ and P 45+; and Sony A700. Both updates also include improved noise reduction for Bayer patterned sensors, providing better image detail at default noise reduction values. The Lightroom update includes corrections to MicrosoftÂ® WindowsÂ® Vistaâ„¢ grid display errors and XMP auto-write performance.

Availability

The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 1.2 update is available as a free download for existing customers on www.adobe.com. Photoshop Lightroom can be purchased in the United States and Canada through the Adobe Store at www.adobe.com/store and at major photo and software retailers for a price of US $299.

The Adobe Camera Raw 4.2 plug-in is available with the purchase of Photoshop CS3 and as a free download for users of Photoshop CS3, Photoshop CS3 Extended, Photoshop Elements 4.0 (MacintoshÂ®) and Photoshop Elements 5.0 (Windows) by going to the Adobe Web site at www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/cameraraw.html. The Adobe DNG Converter is available as a free download at www.adobe.com/dng.

Free lecture by Derrick Story at the Stanford/Palo Alto Macintosh Users Group

I just learned from ImagingInsider.com that photographer and author Derrick Story will be giving a free lecture at the Stanford/Palo Alto Macintosh Users Group (SMUG) on Monday evening, Aug. 6. He will cover iPhoto 6, as well as techniques for making great pictures.

Derrick has shared a tremendous amount of information over the years through his books, podcasts and various blogs on many topics including: digital photography; Apple Aperture; Adobe Photoshop Lightroom; Adobe Photoshop; Apple iPhoto; and iPod and iTunes.

In this post from about a year ago, I recommended a specific travel photo-related podcast by Derrick, on his very informative blog and podcast, The Digital Story. I found the show to be packed full of good advice for anyone who plans to travel with a camera.

Derrick is also co-host of one of my favorite podcasts, The iLifeZone.

For more information on this event, visit The Digital Story.

Review of the Waterproof Sanyo Xacti E1 on Freevlog.com

I just came across a video review of the new Sanyo Xacti E1 waterproof SD card camcorder (VPC-E1) on the website freevlog.com. I found the video to be entertaining, well produced, and the host was very honest with her criticisms and praise compared with other Xacti models and other camcorders in general. I learned about the review from one of my favorite newsgroups that focuses on online video production, blogging and the business side of online video: Videoblogging on Yahoo!Groups.

It is the world’s first waterproof camcorder, and by looking at a few sample videos, still images and reviews, the most impressive features in my opinion are the quality of the movies it can produce, which look very good, the weight (approx. 8.3 oz with battery and SD card), ability to fully submerse it, ability to directly import MPEG-4 files into Apple iTunes and the fact that you can get up to 5 hours of video with a 4GB SDHC memory card.

The still image quality of the sample photos posted on Sanyo’s site are also very impressive, however, I wonder how good the 10 megapixel captures look, if that’s not a typo. According to the info on this page, it produces “6-megapixel digital still images,” but on the full specs page, it lists 10 megapixel stills as one of the options. I like the colors as well (blue, yellow and white). It seems to me like yellow would be easiest to see at the bottom of a pool if it fell out of your hand (hopefully in the shallow end!). About a week ago, Dick DeBartolo, on the very entertaining and informative podcast, Daily GizWiz (co-hosted with Leo Laporte), also reviewed the camera. That specific episode can be found here.

The main negatives I see with the camera are the fact that the manufacturer recommends the camera not be used more than five feet under the surface of the water. That rules out snorkeling at depths that would be considered very common (10-15 feet). I actually wonder what happens to the camera at 6-15 feet below water, and I look forward to seeing some tests that show the power of the built-in light. I also read here that the Sanyo Xacti E1 does not float, which could make it $500 fish food if you’re not careful!

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Archive

Adobe posts updates to Photoshop Lightroom and the Photoshop Camera Raw plug-in

Free lecture by Derrick Story at the Stanford/Palo Alto Macintosh Users Group

Review of the Waterproof Sanyo Xacti E1 on Freevlog.com