PMA 2010

LAS VEGAS--Sigma announced its delayed DP1 camera Thursday, a high-end compact model whose unusually large image sensor is matched by an unusually large price tag.

The 14-megapixel camera likely will ship this spring for a retail price of $999, said a Sigma representative, Desiree Gaige, at the Photo Marketing Association trade show here.

The camera uses the same Foveon X3 sensor as Sigma's SD14 SLR camera. In comparison, compact cameras almost invariably have sensors that are much smaller and cheaper, but that are at least theoretically responsive for a given megapixel count.

The camera uses a 16.6mm f/… Read more

LAS VEGAS--Sigma, a third-party maker of lenses for SLR (single-lens reflex) cameras, has expanded the range of Optical Stabilization (OS) lenses, those with a moving lens element that can compensate for camera shake.

Of eight mainstream lenses the Japanese company announced at the Photo Marketing Association trade show here, three new telephoto lenses include OS. (I'm not counting Sigma's 200-500mm f/2.8 super-telephoto behemoth as mainsream.)

The three stabilized lenses are the 18-125mm F3.8-5.6 DC OS HSM, the APO 120-400mm F4.5-5.6 DG OS HSM, and the APO 150-500mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM. … Read more

PMA 2008 is finally winding down, but not after revealing dozens of new cameras to the world. Here's a look back at some of the major announcements made over the past two weeks.

Canon

Fujifilm

Nikon

Correction 10:00 a.m. PST: This blog initially misstated the speed at which SanDisk's top-end Extreme Ducati cards can write data. It is 45MB/sec.

LAS VEGAS--SanDisk, one of the best known makers of flash memory cards, has started making the jump to 32GB capacity.

The company announced its 32GB Ultra II SDHC card Thursday at the Photo Marketing Association trade show here, a model designed with the needs of flash-based video cameras.

It will cost about $350 when it goes on sale in April, the company said. A $180 16GB Ultra II card will be available in … Read more

Correction 7:50 a.m. PST: The lower-end model is the Stylus 850 SW.

LAS VEGAS--I can't speak for their optical quality or performance, but I like the idea behind Olympus' shockproof and waterproof compact cameras--and I liked the publicity stunts the Japanese camera maker used to show them off at the Photo Marketing Association trade show here.

In one demonstration, the camera drops down a pegboard, banging off several on the way down before splashing into a tray of water.

On another, a handful of cameras were frozen in a large block of ice.

And several cameras were … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Riddle me this: What's green, is 28.6 inches long, weighs 34.6 pounds, and wears a custom-fitted hood?

The answer: a mammoth supertelephoto zoom that Sigma announced this week at the Photo Marketing Association trade show here. The product is geared for photographing wildlife, sports, and astronomical objects.

The lens, called the APO 200-500mm F2.8/400-1,000mm F5.6 EX DG, has a 200-500mm zoom range and an f/2.8 aperture that's very wide for this class of lens. It also comes with an extender that pushes the range to 400-1,000mm but reduces … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Tessera Technologies has agreed to acquire FotoNation, a start-up that sells software cameras can use for tasks such as detecting and tracking faces, fixing flash-induced red-eye, and triggering the shutter only when subjects are smiling and not blinking.

Tessera, a San Jose, Calif.-based electronics miniaturization company, will pay $29 million in net cash and another $10 million if specific milestones within the next year are met.

The companies announced the deal Thursday during the Photo Marketing Association trade show here.

FotoNation, based in Burlingame, Calif., has 80 employees. Its software is used in more than two-thirds of digital … Read more

LAS VEGAS--The heyday of 35mm film SLR cameras is long past, but one foundation of the technology is staging something of a comeback with new help from Sony.

The vast majority of digital single-lens reflex cameras today use an image sensor that's smaller than a full frame of 35mm film, which means lenses behave somewhat differently than on a film camera. For years, only Canon sold SLRs with a full-frame sensor, but Nikon entered the market with its top-end D3 late in 2007. At the Photo Marketing Association trade show Thursday, Sony announced its forthcoming "flagship" Alpha-branded SLR will follow suit. … Read more

As expected, Sony quickly followed its 24-megapixel full-frame sensor announcement by revealing that its previously alluded-to pro model will use the new chip. Since there's a Super SteadyShot housing for the new chip, we can also expect the camera to have in-body image stabilization. The camera is scheduled to "launch" by the end of this year.

Sony also said it will address "the full spectrum" of Alpha products this year, which to me foreshadows a few more product announcements. That's all Sony shared today, but we can expect more details around Photokina this fall. … Read more