Indholdsfortegnelse for January 2017 i Smart Photography

Sometimes, I feel we are a fated economy. After several years of virtual stagnation, we were looking forward to a bounce-back 2016. A good monsoon and a few feel-good factors helped us to be optimistic. Alas, that was not to be. The demonetisation, however well-intentioned, has taken its toll and along with December 2016, the next few months may be a washout. Let’s look forward to a better 2017. As we move ahead, we wonder what lies in store for the imaging industry in 2017. 2016 saw both, smartphones get better in their picture taking ability and the compact camera market shrinking again. D-SLRs and mirrorless cameras saw some success but the rising prices of high-end D-SLRs are a cause for concern. Why camera manufacturers under attack have not taken…

Hitachi Ltd. announced that it has developed a new technology to enable video shooting using a thin film on which a pattern of concentric circles is printed. The film is placed on the image sensor and data of the images captured by the sensor are processed by a special mathematical formula to determine the shapes and position of the subject from the moire or interference fringe generated from the two patterns of the image and the concentric patterns printed on the film. As the image sensor is able to record the depth of the image, the point of focus can be changed after shooting the videos, like a light field camera. The developers recorded and studied the movement of various subjects shot at 30fps but the periphery of the subjects…

Japan Display Inc. announced the development of a new LCD panel featuring a 651 ppi resolution. Expecting for replacement from OELD panels of the current mainstay, the company began sample shipment of 3.42-inch panel for a single glass. The company utilises the LTPS (Low Temperature Poly Silicon) driving technology cultivated with the one for smartphones to yield high resolution and high response speed. The panel also features a lesser extent of afterimages by switching backlight at high speed. Current head-mount displays for VR devices employ OELD panels because of its faster response time than LCD counterparts at a cost of lesser image quality because the VR glasses display images at just several centimeters away from the eyes. JDI expects the new LCD panels featuring high response speed and high quality…

According to a research by Sigma Intel, sales of Chinese-branded TVs in 2016, are likely to exceed those of the Korean brands. The research reveals that the sales of TVs in China, will grow by 12.5% over 2015 to about 51.2 million units. Thus having an overall market share of 33.9%. Sales of Korean branded TVs are likely to decline by 1.2%, amounting to 31.3% of the total market share. Exports by Chinese makers are to increase by 19% to 32.4 million units. World market share of Japanese branded TVs continue shrink to 9.4%. Market share by each brand: Samsung Electronics 19.7%, LG Electronics 11.6%, followed by TCL 7.6%, Hisense 7.1%, Skyworth 6.6% and Sony 5.0%.…

Sony India recently introduced its new flagship APS-C sensor camera, the α6500 (model ILCE-6500). The new α6500 shares the same 4D FOCUS™ system as the α6300. It features 425 phase detection AF points and touchscreen AF capabilities for focus point selection and adjustment. The new α6500 also features in-camera 5-axis optical image stabilisation. It can shoot images at up to 11 frames per second with continuous autofocus and exposure tracking, and up to 8 frames per second in a live-view shooting mode. Sony interchangeable lens camera offers 4K movie recording. It can shoot 4K (3840 x 2160p) video in 35mm format on the full width of the image sensor. The camera supports the XAVC S codec while video shooting, recording at a high bit rate of up to 100 Mbps…

Sunny Oberoi, a post-producer by profession, started wildlife photography in November 2013, on a casual trip to Ranthambore National Park, Rajasthan. To transform his passion into something concrete, he launched ‘Camera Speaks by Sunny Oberoi’ in December 2013. Since then, there has been no looking back. His work has been featured in various publications.…

Bipin Christian is an upcoming photographer from Ahemdabad, Gujarat. A member of the Federation of Indian Photography, Bipin started his photographic journey around 20 years ago, when he started photographing animal fairs in Kutch. Soon he started photographing the people of Kutch, whom he found very impressive. Bipin has won many accolades for his work and has been featured in various publications. Discovery of various fossils have been fascinating mankind for over thousands of years. Fossils are the physical evidences of our evolution. Tracing back to the remote past, these preserved remains tell us about our history. The chemical reactions and atmospheric pressures that lead to fossilization, reveal evidence of life that existed millions of years ago. India, with its geographic diversity and vibrancy, has various sites with abundant historic…

Calangute: The seven-km long ‘Queen of Beaches’ located 15 km from Panaji also offers para-sailing opportunities. Vagator: Adjoining Anjuna beach and about 22 km from Panaji, the 30 km stretch is one of the most photographed and much sought-after for midnight parties. Anjuna: Located about 18 km from Panaji, it is famous for its weekly Flea market, where one could buy souvenirs. Aguada: It is the location of one of the most famous landmarks, Fort Aguada, which is about 14 km from Panaji. Morjim: This Olive Ridley turtle nesting site is about 28 km from Panaji. Bambolim: Located about 7 km from Panaji, it is perfect for lounging on a bamboo chair in the shade of a palm thatched umbrella or coconut trees even as we look out at the…

The photography industry has been through a highly exciting but tumultuous century. During this period, many corporates have entered and exited the camera business. The industry has been severely competitive in the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties and this inevitably took its toll. SP tracks those companies that did indeed play a part in the fortunes of the industry, but for a variety of reasons were forced to exit the business. In this issue, we look at a number of small Japanese companies that surfaced before and during the boom years for SLR cameras namely in the 1960’s and 70’s. They were, for a variety of reasons, not able to withstand competition and therefore had to close down. AIRES CAMERA WORKS Let’s begin with the AIRES CAMERA WORKS, a Tokyo…

Our Imaging Expert No one can take a picture that everyone likes. But, almost every picture can have scope of improvement. Often, we are not our best critics, while others can immediately point out the faults. In If I were you, our expert comments on how your pictures could be taken to another level. The Deer This picture comes to us via email from Zitesh Kaushal of Himachal Pradesh. He hasn’t mentioned why he has sent this picture so I take it that it was meant for If I Were You . In terms of composition, it is good that you have left enough space to the left of the deer, where it is looking. But I do not like the way its legs are cut off. Also, the man-made…

Smart Photography has been continually receiving requests to start a basic course for beginners. With this in mind, we have asked a very knowledgeable photographer from Hyderabad to take over writing these articles. We have also requested him to be as jargon-free as it is possible, so that newcomers to photography feel comfortable to pursue the hobby. The author, Ashok Kandimalla has been in the photographic field for over three decades and has extensive experience in both film and digital photography. Being an electronics engineer by profession and a photographer, he possesses a unique and deep insight into the technical aspects of digital photography and equipment. He has published several articles on photography and some of his writings have also been published in the well-known international magazine Popular Photography. An…

WE ARE GLUED TO THE GLOBAL IMAGING INDUSTRY Our team is updated with all the benchmarks and road blocks that the field of photography and imaging across the globe experiences. This helps us record the changes in the global perspective, thus making us the first to predict which products will be a rage in the Indian markets. WE’RE IMPARTIAL Loyalty towards our readers is a given, and their best interests are always on our mind. Every verdict is honest and not influenced by advertisers or personal favorites. So when we say a product is a ‘BEST BUY’, then, it is just that! OUR TESTS ARE CONDUCTED BY EXPERTS All equipment go through a series of tests at the hands of our experts. Our reviewers are experts in the field of…

Panasonic has announced a reduced estimated profit for the year 2016 due to the company’s massive investment in battery cell production, largely at the Telsa/ Panasonic Gigafactory. Sony has filed a patent for a 3D printing system which will enable PlayStation users to select characters and objects from the game and convert them into a 3D printable format. This application will periodically render the virtual environment of the game from multiple viewpoints to collect 3D data. Panasonic, with a fading presence in television, mobile phones, laptops and gadgets market, turns to batteries and automobile electronics to drive new directions and growth. Huawei takes the top spot as the most profitable Android manufacturer. Although Apple maintains its place as the overall leader in the smartphone market, Huawei and other Chinese manufacturers…

World’s leading photo copier and printer companies are entering into the industrial-use 3D printer market at a full-scale, spearheaded by Hewlett Packard Co. of the US and Ricoh Co. from Japan. Companies like Canon Inc. and Seiko Epson Co. will soon join the race. HP Inc. and HP Japan Corp. have recently announced its industrial-use 3D printing system—the HP Jet Fusion 3D Printing Solution. It can produce high quality components at approximately 10x faster rate and at about a half the cost of conventional 3D models. In 3D printing, a voxel represents a value on a regular grid in a three-dimensional space; like a pixel with volume. Each voxel contains volumetric information that will essentially bring a product to life with the desired properties. HP’s 3D printing platform features capability…

The Consumer Electronics Imaging Fair 2017 that was scheduled to be held from 5th to 7th January 2017 in Delhi NCR, has been cancelled. The organisers of the event have announced that the 2017 edition of the CEIF will not be held due to the current economic conditions prevailing in the country. With the on-going cash crunch faced by all, the organisers have cancelled the event. The decision has been taken keeping in mind the interest of the photographers, trade & industry and the visitors at large. In spite of the fact that the expo was fully booked, the managing committee of the All India Photographic Trade and Industry Association has unanimously decided to refund the amount collected from the exhibitors. The goodwill generated and the support received by the…

The 2017 edition of the India Art Fair will be held from the 2-5 February 2017. The event will be take place at the NSIC Grounds, Okhla, New Delhi. With BMW as its presenting partners, the event will feature an exciting range of national and international exhibitors from South Asia, Middle East, Europe and US, representing a breadth of contemporary art practices such as painting, sculpture, new media, installation and performance art. The participants this year includes Britto Arts Trust (Dhaka, Bangladesh), Nepal Art Council (Kathmandu, Nepal), Theertha International Artists’ Collective (Colombo, Sri Lanka) and Blueprint 12 (New Delhi, India), among various others. The 2017 edition of the fair will unveil Vernacular In Flux, curated by Dr. Annapurna Garimella. It will showcase the vernacular art with a focus on Gond,…

Gionee has recently introduced the Pioneer P7, it’s newest in the smartphone market, with an improved performance and expanded memory. The smartphone supports VoLTE and CDMA and comes with a 5 inch HD IPS display. It runs on Quad core 1.3GHz processor and has a 2GB RAM along with a 16GB ROM which is expandable up to 128GB. Gionee P7 comes with a 8MP primary and 5MP secondary camera with screen flash for high quality selfie experience. The phone comes with a 2300 mAH Li-ion polymer battery and has a standby time of 259 hours. It runs on Android OS, V6.0 Lollipop (amigo 3.2). The P7 is priced at INR 9,999 and is available in the Indian market from December 2016. The device is available in three standard color variants…

Gurdas Dua, who specialises in nature, wildlife, portrait & advertising photography, is a Fellow of India International Photographic Council, Butterfly Art Foundation as well as an Honorary Associate of Pictorial Art Society of Pakistan. Gurdas has conducted several technical and specialised photographic campaigns for the Archaeological Survey of India. He has documented more than 100 ASI listed monuments. He has conducted many photography workshops throughout India and has been honoured as Sony Alpha Series Brand Ambassador for conducting workshops, organised by Sony India. A winner of many photographic accolades, Gurdas has represented India at the FIAP-KODAK International Photo Contest in 1993 at Belgium and led an Indian photographers delegation to Pakistan for ‘Art for Peace’ mission in March 2006. He was also placed among top 30 exhibitors of the world…

Mumbai witnessed the 12th one-man-show of photographs by the well-known homoeopath Dr. Mukesh Batra. The exhibition – a splendid collection of images from Switzerland – was held at The Piramal Art Gallery, NCPA, Nariman Point, Mumbai, between 1st and 10th December 2016. The proceeds of the event would be sent to The Victoria Memorial School for the Blind. Dr. Mukesh Batra, apart from being a successful doctor and a proficient singer, is also an avid photographer and his excellence in this art could be seen in his beautiful presentation of Switzerland in all it snowy glory. It was difficult to say which was the better image, as all were equally exquisite. It wouldn’t have been wrong to title the exhibition, Switzerland in Mumbai! For those who were unable to…

It is yet another New Year, and one that we are looking at with much excitement. It is also the time for us to set aside the hopes, concerns and curiosities and reflect upon a year gone by. For Smart Photography , a reflection on the previous year cannot go by without a compilation of the best cameras available in the market by the end of 2016. Here is a compiled list of top D-SLRs in the market. The cameras are featured in random order and hence the first position does not necessarily indicate that it is better than the rest. The list includes both Full Frame and APS-C format D-SLRs. Canon EOS 1Dx Mark II The 1Dx Mark II is the full-frame flagship from Canon. This…

In 2003, when we pitted the leading five Smartphone cameras against two mid-priced compact cameras, the cameras blew the lids off the phones by a very wide margin. However, Smartphones have come a long way since, and have all but replaced low and mid-segment compact cameras. Now cameras have become the main features of Smartphones, and even hardcore photography professionals have started appreciating the utility of Smartphones as a secondary camera. Here we have selected three of the high-end Smartphones that boast exceptional image quality in their cameras. Meet the Devices  Google Pixel XL: The Pixel XL is Google’s first phone from own stables. The device runs on Android Nougat and features a 12.3 MP, f/2.0 main camera employing Phase Detection AF along with Laser Detection AF. It offers 4K…

Camoline Lens Stabiliser T he most common cause for unsharp images, especially when using long focal length/ heavy lenses, is, camera shake during exposure. No one appreciates a fuzzy image, unless it’s done for a particular effect. To counteract this problem, one can use a sturdy tripod, but unfortunately, there are times when a tripod is just not practical. Tripods, though useful, can often be a pain to carry and set-up. Enter CAMOLINE Lens Stabiliser! CAMOLINE Lens Stabiliser is India’s first lens support bean bag with an anti-skid abrasion-resistant base and a Head Mounting Plate. The Lens Stabiliser can be used with any lens/camera combination from 70-200mm to 800mm. It is a must-have accessory, especially if you own lenses above 300mm. Its anti-skid base provides exceptional stability on both smooth…

Write to us at: Smart Photography, Next Gen Publishing Ltd, Trade World, C-Wing, 2nd Floor, Kamala Mills Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel(W), Mumbai 400013. E-mail: sp@nextgenpublishing.net Beautiful Edition Dear SP Team, Greetings! December 2016 edition of Smart Photography was amazing. Photographs featured in Kaleidoscope and Showcase were wonderful. Being able to correlate the exif data provided along with the images is really helpful. Saksham Gangwar has used extreme f stop, from wide open to most narrow, for landscape photography and the pictures have good details. Also the quote by Henri Cartier-Bresson that was mentioned in Kaleidoscope gives the article an ecstatic feeling. Both the travel photo-features, Indonesia and Malaysia, were enthralling. Thank you for such a beautiful edition. Regards, Manish Sitlani Kudos Team Dear Editor, I have been reading…

Kenko Professional Imaging Co. announced the launch of its new cinema lenses for mirrorless cameras with the ‘Veydra Mini Prime’ series. The new lens series was introduced at the Inter BEE 2016. The lineup includes six models: 12mm T/2.2, 16mm T/2.2, 25mm T/2.2, 35mm T/2.2, 50mm T/2.2, and the 19mm T/2.2 lens (which is to be added later). The lens comes with Micro Four-Thirds and Sony E-mount. The six-lens kit, along with a case, will be available for 853000 yen.…

Canon has announced its 60th annual World Press Photo Contest and the 7th annual World Press Photo Digital Storytelling Contest. Entries to the contests are now open for all photographers. The 2017 Photo Contest requires participants to register before 6th January 2017. The registered participants can submit their work on the official contest website. The deadline for submissions for the 2017 World Press Photo Contest is 11th January and that for the Digital Storytelling Contest is 6th January. The contest winners will be announced on 13th February. Winners in each category will be invited to the World Press Photo Festival of Visual Journalism, and will also receive a diploma and a Golden Eye Award, presented during the annual Awards Ceremony. For futher details, kindly visit: www.worldpressphoto.org/activities/photo-contest…

Panasonic Corp. reportedly succeeded in manufacturing a next-generation solar cell in the Perovskite type and developed a prototype. The Perovskite solar cell is very thin (1 micron meter) and flexible. The production cost will of these solar cells are estimated to be much lower since it uses printing-like method of production. Panasonic has succeeded in making a prototype which has the power generation efficiency of 21.6%. The cell is transparent and very thin so making it easier to use. Panasonic is workking towards making a larger panel from the prototype’s 4 square millimeters. It is said the production cost to generate 1kW/h for some 20 yen and the new Terovskite solar cell can be reduced to one-tenth of the current level.…

The photographs from the Maasai Mara National Reserve, by Girish Vaze will be exhibited in Mumbai. The photo exhibition titled ‘Enchanting Africa’ will be displayed at the Terrace Art Gallery, a part of Jehangir Art Gallery, Kala Ghoda. Starting from 10th of January 2017, the exhibition will be open for public viewing till 16th January, from 11am to 7pm. “The images in this exhibition have been selected mainly on the basis of their emotional impact on me,” says Girish Vaze, who attempts to bring before the audience, a glimpse of the African wilderness.…

Srikanth, an embedded engineer by profession, enjoys travelling. He took his first step towards photography with a cousin’s Nikon point and shoot. His first owned camera was a Canon EOS 600D, which was gifted to him by his best friend in 2013. Srikanth’s pictures are not restricted to a particular genre. However, he says, candid and nature are his favourite genres of photography.…

‘H imalayas Black & White’ is a tribute to the father of landscape photography and his ‘guru’ – the one and only, Ansel Adams (1902-1984) – from one of his ‘shikshaks’, Ashok Dilwali. The Foreword is written by Shyam Benegal, the well-known film-maker. This coffee-table book represents Ashok’s several visits (almost 300) to the mighty Himalayas over the last four decades. If you have ever been to the Himalayas, you’d be humbled by its sheer magnitude and splendour. “To imagine my work like his (Ansel’s) would be the highest form of foolishness” says Ashok, with all humility. Ashok Dilwali is probably the biggest Indian name when it comes to photographing the Himalayas. You might be surprised to know that Ashok Dilwali is a qualified Chartered Accountant from A. F. Ferguson…

I started with photography in 1964 when I was studying in 6th or 7th standard. The first film roll that I used on my father’s Kodak Brownie had disastrous results – unknown to me, the front element of the lens had fallen off! I then went to Idar, my native place in Gujarat, and there I saw a Kodak waist-level box camera at a relative’s home. The camera was unused for a very long time. I cleaned it as best as I could and went looking for a Kodak film since the word ‘Kodak’ was mentioned on the camera. I then came to know that the film used in this camera was known as 620 format and that the camera would yield 8 frames per roll. The Kodak film was…

Which AF Points? I am using a Nikon D810. I generally use the Group AF for photographing birds. This works well most of the time, but sometimes I feel that the images (especially of small birds) are not as sharp as I would like. Any suggestions? Arthur S. via email. The Group AF, as the name suggests, is a cluster (group) of AF sensors which work together like a single large autofocus sensor. This works very well for large birds (even in flight). When photographing small birds, especially those sitting on a tree branch, I would opt for the Single point AF, which has a better chance of locking on the subject; with the Group AF, the leaves/ twigs surrounding the small bird could cause the AF system to focus…

Sigma 50-100mm F/1.8 DC HSM Art 95,900 Inside the Box ✓ Lens ✓ Front & Rear lens caps ✓ Lens hood ✓ User Instructions Sigma’s ‘Art’ lenses have created a name for themselves as being amongst the finest, offering very high optical performance. Sure, they are heavy but their image quality and build are outstanding. This focal length range (equivalent to 80-160mm) makes it ideal for a variety of photographic situations as in weddings, portraits, travel, action etc. The fast f/1.8 maximum aperture allows for quick autofocussing even in low-light situations and can create great bokeh. We have today with us the Sigma 50-100mm f/1.8 DC HSM Art (Canon mount). Let’s see how it fares on our test bench... Design & Build Quality The 50-100mm f/1.8 DC HSM Art lens…