photography

Sony, trying to bring digital technology to a market that's remained stubbornly analog, has upgraded its digital binocular with the announcement today of the $2,000 DEV-50V.

The binoculars, due to ship in June, are vastly more expensive than even high-end binoculars from rivals such as Canon and Nikon. But Sony's digital binoculars -- which capture a scene with image sensors then display it with small electronic viewfinder (EVF) -- can do something ordinary binoculars can't.

Namely, they'll help you remember what you saw by taking a video or photo. And, if you like, it'll … Read more

Apple has updated its raw-photo support so software like iPhoto and Aperture can handle images from several higher-end new Fujifilm cameras.

The update to OS X 10.8, aka Mountain Lion, lets Apple's software handle files from the Fujifilm X20, X100S, X-E1, and X-Pro1. The update arrived last week and only works if a person has iPhoto 9.4 or Aperture 3.4 installed, Apple said.

All these models use the unusual X-Trans sensor technology, which handles colors differently than traditional sensors with Bayer-pattern color filter arrays, so supporting them has been more difficult than conventional cameras. Adobe Systems' … Read more

I feel kind of sorry for any geek looking to propose to a partner these days. The bar keeps getting set higher and higher. We've had a 4-hour video game proposal, an elaborate "Harry Potter" Quidditch proposal, and a physics paper proposal. Now a romantic guy figured out how to have the engagement ring flown in for his proposal, adding a bit of "Air Wolf" excitement to the proceedings.

As do many successful proposals, Jason's proposal to Christina began with a ruse. He lured her to Alamo Square park in San Francisco under the pretense of doing a photo shoot. He got her to talk to the camera and share her wishes for the baby they'll be having together. All was perfectly normal until a strange whirring noise came from the sky.… Read more

It seems so obvious now, but taking pictures of models outside of a studio was something of a revolution in the 1940s and 50s.

For Norman Parkinson, the British photographer who would have been 100 years old today, it offered an opportunity for an additional elegance and simplicity.

"I never work in studios if I can help it, because working in a studio is such hard work," he told one interviewer.

A studio is merely an attempt to simulate daylight. Why not just plump for daylight in the first place?

Many think of Sir Norman (as he became) … Read more

Adobe Systems is building technology into Photoshop to take the blur out of photos.

The company demonstrated the upcoming Photoshop deblurring filter in a video today to promote its upcoming Adobe Max conference in May, where the company no doubt will announce the feature and others.

"Camera shake reduction is a tool that allows one to deblur an image that would have been otherwise lost," said Zorana Gee, senior Photoshop product manager, in the video. "It works really great for shots taken under low-light conditions or slow shutter speeds," she added, conditions where camera shake is … Read more

There's something beautiful and futuristic about bright neon lights against a natural background.

In a stunning series of images called "Neon Luminance," San Francisco multimedia group From the Lenz used long-exposure photography to capture glow sticks traveling down a waterfall. The resulting pictures look straight out of a science fiction movie featuring a strange new world unlike our own. … Read more

Editors' note: This guest post is part of a five-part series on Photojojo's best photography tips. Check out the rest of Photojojo's tips here.

Maybe your phone has a built-in panorama feature, or perhaps you downloaded a panorama app on the recommendation of a friend. You've tried it once or twice, but after the initial excitement, it just hasn't stuck.

Well, there's more to squeeze out of your phone's pano-capturing chops. With a little thinking outside the box (as panoramas do so well), even places you pass everyday suddenly look so much more interesting.… Read more

Higher-end video producers anxious to adapt to the new realities of online video will be pleased to know that Sorenson Squeeze 9 (Windows trial; Mac trial), released today, is trying to ease development of streaming-media Web sites.

Web video is a flagship feature of the newer HTML5 incarnation of Hypertext Markup Language. Adding the support is intended to make video as easy to use on Web pages as JPEG is for images. But it's not always so simple to use in the real world, so Squeeze 9 now generates video files and accompanying code quickly so Web developers can … Read more

Smartphones can take great photos, but we all know the on-board flash can produce harsh and ugly shadows.

Well, the Pocket Spotlight is an accessory that not only provides a softer and more flattering quality of light, but also lets you adjust how the light falls on your subjects before image capture.

The Pocket Spotlight consists of a bank of LEDs that's capable of generating a continuous stream of light for up to one hour on a fully charged battery. … Read more