The New Entry Level DSLR Nikon D3100

The Nikon D3100 is a new, 14.2-megapixel digital SLR camera with 11 AF sensors, Full HD video and full-time AF in Live View and D-movie modes. Using contrast based AF, the D3100 automatically focuses on subjects when Live View is activated to aid shooting when using the LCD. Live View is activated at a single flick of a dedicated switch, and HD video recording is achieved by a simple press of a button. In comparison to the Nikon D3000, the new Nikon D3100 also gains a Quiet Shutter Release mode, which substantially reduces the sound of the mirror return, and an enhanced Guide Mode that now features sample assist images that change with camera settings to inspire consumers to achieve a desired look and feel to their images. Unusually for an entry-level camera, the Nikon D3100’s shutter is rated for 100,000 actuations. The Nikon D3100 DSLR camera will be available from mid-September, at an estimated selling price of £579.99/€687.00/$699.95 including a kit zoom. The body-only prices are £499.99/€593.00.

Nikon Press Release

AF-S Nikkor 85mm f/1.4G ED

Nikon today announced the much-anticipated AF-S version of its 85mm f/1.4 lens. Covering the full 24x36mm frame on 35mm film, the AF-S Nikkor 85mm f/1.4G ED is compatible with FX and DX digital SLR bodies as well as most modern Nikon film SLRs such as the Nikon F6 (though being a G series lens, it lacks an aperture ring, and is therefore not suitable for use on older Nikon film cameras). Being an AF-S lens means two things: ultra-quiet auto-focus and full-time manual focus override. Additional features include Internal Focus (IF) that allows the lens to focus without changing the barrel length, Nano Crystal Coat to reduce instances of ghosting and flare, and a rugged construction build to endure aggressive field use. The ultra-fast AF-S NIKKOR 85mm f/1.4G has an estimated selling price of $1699.95 in the US. The recommended UK/EU prices are £1499.99/€1776.00.

Nikon Press Release

AF-S Nikkor 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR

Timed to coincide with the announcement of the Nikon D3100 digital SLR camera, Nikon also unveiled today a new DX format telezoom called the AF-S Nikkor 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR. This lens has a 35mm-equivalent focal range of 82.5-450mm, and features a Silent Wave Motor for fast, accurate and quiet autofocus with full-time manual focus override, 9 rounded diaphragm blades for pleasing bokeh, 2 extra-low dispersion lens elements for minimising chromatic aberrations, Super Integrated Coating for enhanced light transmission efficiency and superior colour consistency, plus Nikon’s VR II image stabilisation system with a Tripod Detection Mode. The Nikon AF-S Nikkor DX 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6 VR lens is scheduled to hit the shelves in mid-September at the recommended/estimated selling prices of £369.99/€438.00/$399.95.

Nikon Press Release

AF-S Nikkor 24-120mm f/4 G ED VR

The AF-S Nikkor 24-120mm f/4 G ED VR is a versatile 5x zoom lens designed for use on both FX and DX digital SLR bodies. Featuring two ED and three aspherical lens elements, Nano Crystal Coat and a fixed maximum aperture throughout its zoom range, the AF-S Nikkor 24-120mm f/4 G ED VR promises to be an improvement over the existing AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED (at nearly twice the price). Constructed of 17 lens elements arranged in 13 groups, the new 24-120mm f/4 G ED VR from Nikon also features an iris diaphragm with 9 blades for improved bokeh, and the manufacturer’s VR II image stabilisation system for shake-free hand-held shooting. Through extensive use of magnesium and Super Engineering Plastic components the lens is built to handle the knocks of everyday use, and rubber sealing around switches and lens mount mean moist or dusty conditions are not a problem. The AF-S Nikkor 24-120mm f/4 G ED VR will be available from mid-September at an estimated selling price of $1049.95 in the US. The recommended UK/EU prices are £1049.99/€1243.00.

Nikon Press Release

AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR

The new AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR is Nikon’s first FX lens with a 10.7X zoom range. Its optical formula includes two ED glass elements that effectively minimise chromatic aberration, even at the widest aperture settings, and three Aspherical Lens Elements that virtually eliminate coma and other aberrations at wide aperture settings as well. Being an AF-S lens, the Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR provides fast and quiet autofocus, and also incorporates an M/A Focus Mode Switch that enables quick changes between manual and autofocus operation. A Zoom Lock Switch secures the lens barrel at its minimum focal length preventing the lens from extending during transport. Nikon’s Super Integrated Coating (SIC) enhances light transmission efficiency and offers superior colour consistency and reduced flare, while the 9 rounded diaphragm blades promise a nice natural look to the out-of-focus highlights. The Nikon AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR ultrazoom lens will become available in mid-September, at an estimated selling price of $1299.95 in the US. In the UK and the euro zone, the recommended retail prices are £869.99/€1030.00 respectively.

Nikon Press Release

Nikon D3100 Hands-On

Want to see exactly what the new Nikon D3100 DSLR camera looks like in the flesh?

Here are 20 hands-on product shots of the entry-level Nikon D3100, including the HD video mode in action - click through to view the gallery.

A gallery of images of the Nikon D3100 camera.

Nikon 85mm, 24-120mm, 28-300mm and 55-300mm Lenses Hands-On

Want to see exactly what the new 85mm f/1.4, 24-120mm f/4, 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 and 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6 Nikon lenses look like in the flesh?

Here are 16 hands-on product shots, including a side-by-side comparison of the 24-120mm f/4 with the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 - click through to view the gallery.

Best Photos & Contest Winners of the 3rd Scott Kelby Worldwide Photowalk

Winning Photos & Prizes

by bmoore

Winners & Voting

Congratulations to the eleven lucky (and talented) people who have been selected by Scott Kelby as the Grand Prize and Honorable Mention winners of the Worldwide Photo Walk!

You can see the gallery here – http://worldwidephotowalk.com/bestphotos

You can also start voting for the People’s Choice Award here –http://worldwidephotowalk.com/peoples-choice

Prizes

If you’re a leader or winner of a local Photo Walk, you know that you’ll be getting your choice of Scott Kelby’s Photoshop CS5 Book for Digital Photographers or Lightroom 3 Book for Digital Photographers.  Next month, we’ll be sending out coupon codes via email for the Kelby Training Bookstore. This will let you choose which book you want and order it completely free of charge (no shipping charges or anything from us).  You should receive your code somewhere around the second or third week of the month.

Best Photos & Contest Winners:

2010 Best in Show & Grand Prize Winner

Photo By Rhys
South Wharf, VIC Australia – July 24, 2010

Pentax K-x Now Available in 12 Colours in the US

Pentax Imaging has announced the launch of beige, chocolate, olive green and pink versions of the Pentax K-x digital SLR camera to the US market. After this move, the number of available body colours will be increased to 12, as the new options join the existing black, white, red, navy blue, bright blue, orange, green and purple offerings. The multicoloured Pentax K-x cameras are available via the Pentax Web Store priced at $649.95 including a kit zoom. 

source:

Submission Deadline Extension of Worldwide Photowalk Contest

by moore

Because we had so many people still trying to get their images in by the deadline on Saturday, we’ve decided to extend the deadline to the end of Tuesday, August 3rd!  We’ll post a countdown on the front page so everyone knows, down to the second, how much time is left before the entries are closed.

We’re working on making these changes right now, so you may not see the correct deadline immediately. But, rest assured, we’ll have everything changed as quickly as we can  

source: http://worldwidephotowalk.com/

 

Making Photographic History For The 3rd Year in a Row!

by Scott Kelby


Another amazing walk is in the record books. Over one thousands cities around the world coming together as one big community to share our passion for photography and people. What an incredibly fun day!
I still am amazed after I return from leading my walk (this year, in Tarpon Springs, Florida at their famous Sponge Docks, part of a wonderful Greek community that has blossomed in the Tarpon Springs area), when I sit back and watch all the reports and photos coming in from every part of the world. It just simply boggles my mind, and puts a huge smile on my face to know that we all shared in something really special on Saturday. Millions of photos were made that day that never would have been made, and lots of new friends were made along the way, which is what it’s really all about. (Photo below, taken during the walk, by Jose Ramos).


Catch My Free Online Class Just For Photo Walk Participants
I’m doing a FREE online class about photography and my Lightroom 3 editing workflow, and everyone that participated in the walk is invited (look for the details in your email by tomorrow).
Don’t worry; if you can’t make the workshop at 10:00 am, we’ll repost the entire session for free so you can watch it when you want (but we’ll be taking your questions live during the live webcast).

Here are some of the shots (above) I took during the walk, and I’ll be going over my editing of those very images during the Webcast on Wednesday. Hope you can make it.
This, I Didn’t See Coming
I was blessed with a really great group of people, and the heat didn’t totally kill us because we had a decent cloud cover most of the time. The people of Tarpon Springs couldn’t have been more accommodating—leading us to points of interest, posing for us, inviting us in their historical buildings and shops to take photos—-it really was a wonderful experience. But this, I didn’t see coming.

Yup, that’s about a 10 foot Albino Boa Constrictor snake my photo walkers are photographing above. There was a small aquarium near the end of my walk route, and one of the snake handlers at the aquarium had this puppy outside in the back parking lot sunning himself, and he invited us to take some shots.

Here he is again (above), thinking he’s found a mate in a coiled up water hose.

Here’s one of my walkers above using a Gorilla Pod rig to shoot some HDR shots during the walk. The area we shot in had lots of rusty old boats, and old buildings and such, so it was an HDR shooter’s paradise.

I have no idea what she was shooting (above), but it must have been worth it. Maybe it was a baby Albino snake.

That’s one of our many tables at the incredible Hellas Greek Restaurant, our walk ending spot, where we had authentic Greek food that totally rocked! (photo above by Jose Ramos).
Send Me Your Group Shots and Video Links
Tomorrow I’ll be posting group shots and videos from all around the world, so if you haven’t already sent me your group shot (or video link), just post it here on the blog, and I’ll download the image and post it tomorrow.
Link to the Group flickr Pool
Want to see some of the amazing photos pouring in from all over the world—check out the flickr group pool right here. (Also, if you were a part of walk, don’t forget to post some of your shots to your local flickr group page).
On Twitter search for Hashtag #WWPW
It’s wild to see all the comments posted during live photo walks from every corner of the globe.

• My thanks to everyone who attended my walk in Tarpon Springs, and who participated in other walks around the world. I really had a lot of fun, and I hope you did, too!
• A big, big thanks to all the volunteers who organized and led walks around the world (We couldn’t have done it without you). A special thanks to the walk leaders in China (last year, we didn’t have a single walk in China).
• Also, a thanks to my book Publisher Peachpit Press, for their major support of this event, also to Adorama, our Platinum Sponsor, and to all the sponsors who pitched in to make this a very special day for photographers around the globe.

Only One More Day!

Only One More Day!

by bmoore

 

Tomorrow is the last day to submit contest images! If you haven’t already, log in to the Worldwide Photo Walk website, and you’ll see instructions on uploading your best image from the photo walk. If you haven’t made your pick yet, be sure to check out these Lightroom tutorial videos from RC that will help you narrow it down to your best shot.

After that, leaders will have one week to choose the winning image from their walk. All of those winning images will then be posted in the People’s Choice gallery where you can vote for the shot you think is the best. The People’s Choice winner will receive a $750 Adorama gift card and a 1-year Kelby Training Online subscription.

While that’s going on, Scott will also be narrowing all of the winning images down to the best of the best to select the top 11 images from the whole event. Those will be the 10 Honorable Mentions (who will receive a $250 Adorama gift card) and the Grand Prize Winner (who will receive a $1000 Adorama gift card and a 1-year Kelby Training Online subscription).

PiPho 5th Year Anniversary Exhibit

 

Celebrating five years of sharing,
learning and enlivening the passion.

Pinoy Photography Organization - the photo club behind the country's largest online community of photographers, presents

twenty magnificent travel and landscape depicting all aspects,

types and techniques of travel-scape genres,

photographed and mastered by members of the organization.

The Annual Photo Exhibit is held yearly by the club in celebration of

the Pinoy Photography Organization's anniversary.

See the prints on large 20" X 30" Giclee prints on canvass and acid-free media.

July 27 - Aug 1, 2010, Eastwood Mall, Libis Quezon City
Ribbon cutting and cocktails shall commence on July 27 at 7:00pm

 source

Uploading Contest Images (Scott Kelby Worldwide Photowalk)

by bmoore

 

Photo Walk contest submissions will open on Sunday, July 25 and close July 31.
Here’s a short two-step walkthrough for submitting your best image to the Photo Walk contest.
Step 1) Go to WorldwidePhotoWalk.com and log in (look at the top right corner of the page)

Once you’re logged in, you’ll automatically go to your Photo Walk page.
Step 2) Once there, you’ll see a section called “Upload Your Photo” below the Meeting Location & Time (not today or tomorrow, but it’ll show up on Sunday):

Just follow the on-screen instructions and you’ll be good to go!

Each walker is allowed to submit one image to the contest.  The deadline to submit is July 31.  If you change your mind on which image you want to enter, you can change it up until the deadline.

After that, walk leaders will have till August 7 to choose the winning image from their walk.  They won’t be able to make a selection until after the submission process is finished.

All of those winning images will then be posted in the People’s Choice gallery where everyone can vote for their favorite shot during the following week.

Then, on August 14, we’ll announce the Grand Prize, Honorable Mentions, and People’s Choice winners.

So where does Flickr play into all of this?  Since this is a social event, we want you all to be able to share your images with the world! The contest we do here doesn’t really lend itself to that, so we’re suggesting that you share your shots on Flickr.

We’ve set up an official Worldwide Photo Walk Flickr group where anyone who takes part in the Photo Walk can share up to five images per day.  Your leader may have set up a Flickr group just for your location too.

Are you required to submit an image to the contest, or to share photos on Flickr? Absolutely not. If you just want to have fun taking pictures with fellow photographers and making new friends, then we’re all for that!

Hope that answers the questions a number of you had about this.  Happy Shooting!  

source: worldwidephotowalk.com

How To Leave A Walk

by bmoore

 

If you can’t make it to the Photo Walk you’ve signed up for, it’s very quick and easy to un-signup.

Step 1) Go to WorldwidePhotoWalk.com and log in

Once you’re logged in, you’ll see your Photo Walk page.

Step 2) Just above the map, you’ll see a button that says “Leave This Walk.” Just click that, and it will un-register you for that walk. If there’s a waiting list, the next person on it will automatically be moved up to the main list.

If you see the Join This Walk button instead, you’re either not logged in or are on the wrong Photo Walk page.

Your leader can not remove you from the walk.  It’s something you have to do yourself.  If you’re unable to participate, please take a minute (literally) to unregister yourself so someone else can have the chance to participate.

If you wish to change walks, you’ll need to leave the walk you’re currently registered for, then you can join a different one.nbb

souce:http://worldwidephotowalk.com/

Post-Walk Goodness!

by bmoore

 

There are a couple of great things happening after the walk I wanted to tell you all about -

First off, Scott Kelby is hosting an exclusive Lightroom® 3 training Webcast for all 30,700+ registered photo walk participants on Wednesday, July 28 at 10:00am EDT USA! Scott will also be joined by Matt Kloskowski, Dave Cross, and RC Concepcion. During this exclusive Webcast, Scott will take viewers through his Lightroom 3 workflow using the photos he took during his Photo Walk. This live Webcast is only available to registered Photo Walk participants.

And secondly, Adobe is extending a 15% discount to Photo Walk participants! Registered participants will receive a unique code via the email address you provided at registration from us to be used for 15% off the purchase of Lightroom 3 the week of July 26th. Watch for your email, or check back here. I’ll post when it goes out on this blog.

source:worldwidephotowalk.com