World’s Smallest 4K USB 3.0 Camera About the Size of an Ice Cube.

World’s Smallest 4K USB 3.0 Camera About the Size of an Ice Cube.


For Hollywood, the hottest new imaging format is 4K, or 4,096 by 2,160 pixels. While this offers high fidelity and stunning detail, for most purposes, it’s overkill not to mention expensive.

Canon’s latest 4K camera costs an eye-gouging $15,000, and this offers a huge leap in resolution that only some TV sets can handle. But one camera manufacturer has debuted a device that’s not only affordable but also incredibly cute.

Point Grey’s FL3-U3-882C is the world’s smallest 4K USB 3.0 camera, measuring roughly the size of an ice cube and retailing for $945. In addition to 4K video at 21 frames per second, the bite-size camera also shoots stills at 8.8 megapixels. The 29-by-29-by-30 mm cam also includes in-field updatable firmware and provides color interpolation, gama correction, among other features. No word on availability yet.


(source: Times Photo Journal)

Phottix announces Battery Grip BG-D800 for nikon D800

Phottix is proud to announce its Premium Series BG-D800 Battery Grip for Nikon D800 cameras. The BG-D800 features AF/On button, command dials, vertical shutter button and multifunction controller. The BG-D800 holds 8 AA batteries or 1 EL-EL15 battery in the included trays.

The BG-D800  also provides a comfortable vertical grip with an additional shutter release and scroll wheel for easy access to the camera functions when shooting in the vertical orientation. The grip also has a tripod socket.

Included with the BG-D800 are:
BG-D800 Grip
Battery Holder for 1x EN-EL15 Battery.
Battery Holder for 8x AA batteries.
User’s guide

(source: phottix.com)

Canon EOS M

The Canon EOS M, which will be announced tomorrow, 23 rd July 2012, will match other Micro Four-Thirds cameras like the Olympus E-M5 and Panasonic Lumix G. The image above might give an insight to what the camera looks like, but it could a Photoshop exercise. The Japanese site Digicame-info reports that it will be named EOS M. From the illustration, and it is quite a thin, mirrorless camera. It is expected to come with an entirely new mount, the EF-M, which could mean that the sensor would be closer to a full APS-C than to the one used in the PowerShot G1 X. This could mean that the sensors would be bigger than other Micro Four-Thrid cameras, which would be good news.

Canon EOS M SpecificationsThe Canon EOS M that launches tomorrow will have the following specifications. Beyond the camera, the system will launch with 2 lenses, the EF-M 22 f/2 STM & EF-M 18-55 IS. It will also launch with a new flash, the EX 90 and an EF lens adaptor.

• 18mp APS-C
• DIGIC V
• ISO 100-12800 (25,600 Expansion)
• 3″ Touchscreen 1.04million pixels
• Phase & Contrast AF
• Video Servo AF
• 1920×1080 Video 30p/25p/24p
• 1280×720 Video 60p/50p
• MPEG-4, AVC/H.264
• SD Card
• Adaptor at launch for EF lenses

“RODE ROCKUMENTARY!” Film Competition Announced!

So here it is, a chance for videographers all over the world to shine! Another International competition by RØDE called ROCKUMENTARY. To find out more about the competition you can check it here.

The competition is announced July 2nd at the competition ends at 31st  August 2012. There's plenty of time for you to prepare a 2 minute video length. A whooping $25000 of RODE merchandise are up for grabs!!

2nd Prize

3rd Prize

The Judging Panel

As you can see, there's a lot of big names that will be judging your work so this means that this is a big time oppurtunity to show your talent to the world!

I do hope that some of our local videographers especially in Kuching to enter the competition and I wish and pray for their success InsyaAllah.

How do you enter the competition? 

Here's a short video by Phillip Bloom. He involves heavily in making this competition as a success.

D4 vs D800 vs 5DmkIII Comparison by Phillip Bloom

This is a comparison video between the D4 vs D800 vs 5DMIII by Phillip Bloom. So for those who doesn't know who is Phillip Bloom, he is a London based DP and Director specialising in Depth of Field Adaptors and Video DSLRs.

You can check more of his work at his website.   .

From the video, clearly that he's a bit dissapointed with the performance of the D4 in terms of the lack of sharpness of the video mode. He also mentioned that the 5dMIII and the D800 is pretty much closer but in terms of low light performance the 5DMIII because of lower active megapixels. Not to forget to mention that  the D800 has quite a noticeable aliasing but the problem is solved by the anti-aliasing filter that he brought. But still, who wants to spend more money to fix it?

In terms of audio quality, the 5DMIII wins as it boasts of a 90 megabits of audio compression compared to the 20 megabits of the D800. But if you can get a far better external audio you should invest in it as it improves the overall audio quality of both cameras. 

The on thing that I want top point out here as well is the 5DMIII also lacks of sharpness but it is still by far the best HDSLR video period as they have a faster frames per second at 1080p although it suffers a bit in terms of sensor shaprness.

Here's another great review by Dave. Dave is an advanced amateur who often shoots video for corporate videos. You can check more about Dave through his website. 

I hope this post helps if you wanted to find just the right information if you were deciding to get yourself a Full Frame camera by Canon and Nikon.

Tips Membersihkan Sensor DSLR

Kebiasaannya, semua digital photographer akan ada keperluan untuk mencuci sensor kamera dlsr mereka. Ada banyak faktor yang boleh menyebabkan bintik-bintik atau partikel di dialam imej yg telah diambil dan antaranya adalah partikel habuk yg ada di sekeliling semasa kita menukar lens ataupun dari internal kamera dslr anda sendiri.

Partikel atau habuk yang lebih halus adalah dikira senang untuk dibuang akan tetapi ia akan menimbulkan masalah bila habuk atau partikel tersebut terbasah sebab pelu atau air liur ketika anda sedang mencuci sensor atau semasa anda menukar lens. Ini juga boleh terjadi jika anda pernah mengambil foto semasa dalam hujan.

Habuk- dan partikel ini amatlah menjengkelkan bagi semua fotografer kerana ia akan menghasilkan bintik hitam di dalam image yang kamu ambil lebih-lebih lagi apabila imej di ambil dari wide-angle atau dengan menggunakan lens yg mempunyai aperture yg kecil ( high f-stop).

Jadi, macam mana nak hilangkan partikel atau habuk-habuk ni? Di sini ada 4 cara yang terbaik untuk mencapai matlamat anda iaitu:

1. Air Cleaning:  atau dalam bahasa kita, bersih menggunakan angin.

• Kaedah Air Cleaning adalah amat mudah. Dengan menggunakan air blower, anda boleh membuang habuk dan partikel yg kering dan mudah untuk di buang. Cara atau step pertama adalah kuncikan atau  masuk mode shutter lock open( lihat dalam menu kamera anda). Peringatan! : Jangan sekali-kali meniup senor anda menggunakan udara dari mulut kerana nafas kita mempunyai humidity yg akan bolehmembawa masalah lain ke atas kamera anda. Hanya gunakan angi yang kering iaitu dari Air Blower sahaja!

2. Brushing : dalam bahasa kita menyapu. hahah. jangan gelak ye. 

• Jadi kalau guna kaedah menyapu ni kita nak guna alat yang mana? Ok. Anda mernah mendengar alat yang di panggil Lens Pen? Untuk kaedah Brushing, kita akan gunakan alat ni. Alat ni amat mudah tetapi anda harus berhati-hati ketika menggunakannya kerana takut sensor anda akan scratch di sebabkan oleh kekasaran anda semasa menyapu sensor tersebut untuk membuang habuk. Anda juga perlu berhati-hati seupaya berus tersebut tidak terkena minyak yg berada di hujung penjuru sensor anda. Tips di sini ialah apabla menyapu, sapu hanya pada satu arah sahaja. jika anda bermula dari kiri ke kanan, maka buat dari kiri ke kanan sahaja. Jangan pula tangan anda gatal nak rotate atau sapu dari kanan ke kiri pula.

3. Liquid cleaning : dalam bahasa kita guna pembersihan menggunakan cecair.

• Kaedah ni macam mana pulak? Kaedah ni, kita akan gunakan Sensor Swab yang telah di celup dengan ethanol ke atas sensor. Kaedah ni sesuai untuk menghilangkan habuk-habuk kecil dan partikel yang amat halus dan degil untuk dihilangkans setelah kita melakukan 3 step di atas. 

4. Stamp sensor: kaedah stamp khas untuk sensor.

• Kaedah ini pula menggunakan stamp sensor. Stamp Sensor ni pun boleh menghilangkan habuk dan partikel yang degil. Nanti kamu boleh lihat video di bawah tentang bagaimana nak mencuci lens kamu sendiri.

Peringatan: Jika kamu tidak yakin untuk membuat sendiri, sila hantar ke kedai kamera untuk mendaoatkan servis dari profesional. Kaedah ini adalah berisiko tinggi namun ada saya tahu ada sesetengah dari kamu yang malas untuk menghantar kamera untuk di servis kerana proses ini selalunya mengambil masa yang lama kerana perlu menghantar kamera anda ke servis centre yang jauh dari rumah kamu padahal proses mencuci sensor ini boleh dibuat sendiri dengan keselasaan di dirumah sahaja. Cuma perlu menggunakan tools dan kaedah yang betul. 

Lihat video di bawah untuk lebih senang faham apa yang saya nak sampaikan tadi.

Cleaning kit ini boleh didapati di website kami dengan hanya RM 35.

Link produk: Cleaning Kit JJC

Nikon Nikkor 800mm f/5.6 lens Super Telephoto announced

Update: Here is the official press release. Nikon basically announced the development of the new lens, but sadly there are no further details given:

TOKYO - Nikon Corporation will add the super-telephoto 800-mm, fixed local length lens to its lineup of NIKKOR lenses. This lens will offer a fixed focal length of 800 mm, a maximum aperture of f/5.6, and will be fully compatible with Nikon FX-format cameras.

This lens has been developed in order to strengthen the NIKKOR lineup of super-telephoto lenses. It will boast the longest focal length of any NIKKOR autofocus lens, and will be best suited to capture of a wide variety of decisive outdoor scenes, from sporting events to wildlife. In addition to its superior optical performance, the lens will offer dust and water resistance.

In 2012, Nikon released three new FX-format digital-SLR cameras—the D4, the new flagship digital SLR, and the D800 and D800E, which offer incredible resolution and image quality. In addition to reinforcing its lineup of FX-format digital-SLR cameras, Nikon has also been working to expand the lineup of NIKKOR lenses.

Nikon has been providing service and support to professional photographers for roughly fifty years through the activities of its Nikon Professional Services (NPS). In addition to providing maintenance and repairs for the equipment professional photographers use every day, NPS service depots are set up at a variety of international sporting and cultural events. At these service depots, photographers can have their equipment inspected and repaired, and they can also borrow equipment.

Nikon has been also an official sponsor of The Open Championship since 1993. The Open Championship is the oldest of the world's four major tournaments* in professional golf (the next Open Championship will be held at Royal Lytham & St. Annes Golf Club in Lancashire, England between July 19 and 22, 2012). This lens is scheduled to be on display at the Nikon service depot that will be set up for professional photographers working at the event.
Furthermore, this lens is scheduled to be on display at Photokina 2012, one of the world's largest photo and imaging exhibitions, to be held in Cologne, Germany from September 18–23, 2012.

*World's four major golf tournaments: Masters Tournament, U.S. Open Championship, The Open Championship, PGA Championship

As a leader in the professional imaging market, Nikon will continue to develop and release products offering superior performance and functionality based on the optical technologies it has cultivated over its long history. Nikon will also continue to strive to strengthen and improve the service and support it offers to its professional customers.

Release date and suggested retail price for this product have not yet been determined.

*Specification and equipment are subject to change without any notice or obligation on the part of manufacturer. Exterior finishing and design are not final.

Source: Nikon.