Photo.net Newsletter: January 19, 2012

Hi %%First Name%%,

The CES trade show has come and gone in Vegas (as have I). I must have walked 15 miles in my three days there. Serves me right for not doing a better job of scheduling my meetings in closer proximity to each other. Also serves me right for getting lost so many times. I swear, that place was like a corn maze made of flatscreen TV’s and tradeshow models handing out press kits. I love seeing new photography gadgets, but I was happy to go home. Was there anything cool? Read this article on some of the neatest photography products that I ran across.

This month in the Photo.net newsletter, I’m happy to announce a new Mirrorless Digital Cameras forum as well as a “test posting” forum for those who need to practice posting images or hotlinking. There’s a survey on how you store your images. Shun Cheung previews the new Nikon D4, gallery owner Steve Brown gives you some tips on getting into the art gallery market, and I explain why I think 2012 is an amazing time to be a digital photographer. The monthly project is ‘around the table’ and the in honor of the fact that it has been freezing cold here, I have added some new images to the “ice/snow” editors picks.

There is a cool offer from 123D Catch to use their 3D modeling software to create and another cool offer from Squarespace to create your own stunning portfolio website. The 123Catch software is free and the Squarespace offer has a 30 day trial and a 10% discount coupon for Photo.net members.

As always, share your thoughts about editorial, community, photography, and anything in between on the Facebook Page, Photo.net Blog, and Twitter Feed.

As always, if you have any questions or suggestions, please send them to us directly at contact@photo.net. Enjoy the newsletter!

Sincerely,

Josh Root, Director of Community, Editor in Chief, Mop & Bucket Man

Community News

Mirrorless Digital Cameras Forum

Are you using any of the mirrorless system cameras (MILCs or EVILs if you prefer)? A Sony NEX or a Olympus PEN or a Ricoh GXR or any of the many others? Then come check out the Mirrorless Digital Cameras forum.

While other non-SLR digital camera discussion is on-topic there, the primary focus of the forum is the mirrorless system cameras and their every growing user-base. Where to start? how about the ‘Photo of the Week’ thread? Or maybe chime in on the “Which Mirrorless do you have and/or want?” thread?

Mirrorless Digital Cameras Forum

Test Posting Forum

The ‘Test Posting’ forum is a forum where you can get used to the photo.net forum system by making new posts or replies without worrying about messing up an active thread in another forum. If you want to make sure you understand how to attach an image to a forum post or how to make a link to another website, this is the place. Simply make a new thread or reply to an existing one and practice to your hearts content.

Test Posting Forum

Photo.net survey on how you store images

I set up a small survey regarding how we all store and backup our digital images. I’m working on a basic tutorial/overview on the subject of data storage and I thought the survey results might be interesting to include. Plus, what the heck, right? Surveys are fun.

Click here for the survey.

Even if you don’t find them fun, if you take the minute or two to fill it out (10 questions, multiple choice) I’ll put your name in a hat (Seattle Mariners to be specific) and draw two names for free 1 year photo.net subscriptions. Yes, those subscriptions will include a Popular Photography subscription as outlined here.

Survey will be open a few more days. Any questions, please ask in this forum thread.

http://photo.net/survsimp/one?survey_id=282

Image above is by Photo.net member Gregory Langhorst. Please take a moment to check out his Photo.net gallery.

Photo.net & Popular Photography Subscription Offer

For a limited time, Photo.net is proud to be able to offer a one year subscription to Popular Photography magazine included with your paid Photo.net subscription. No tricks, no “cancel later”, and no hoops to jump through. It’s just our way of encouraging you to become a photo.net subscriber! Not located in the USA? Don’t worry – our worldwide subscribers will receive the digital version of Popular Photography magazine. Much more info here:

Photo.net & Popular Photography subscription offer

Sponsor News

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The process is easy. Simply take multiple digital photos of stationary people, places or things, and the photo stitching technology in 123D Catch operates in the cloud to create the model. Then, save your project as a movie and share it via email or YouTube, or export the model to use in other 3D programs.

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Editorial Highlights

Nikon D4 Preview

One of the more exciting announcements in the lead up to CES 2012 was the new full frame D4. ISO up to 204800, 11fps (with 9fps AF), AF that works with f/8 or faster lenses (allowing AF with teleconverters for many lenses) and a shutter that is rated to 400k actuations are just some of the improved features int he D4. Nikon editor Shun Cheung takes a look at the camera and how he thinks that it stacks up to the D3/D3S.

Read the Nikon D4 Preview.

Three Tips for Selling/Showing Your Photos in a Gallery

Many of us have thought about trying to get our photography work into a photo or art gallery. But few of us have any idea where to start. While there are many MANY different things that go into becoming a successful fine art photographer, this article by art dealer Steve Brown will give you a few important things to consider before you get started. What’s a good resource for finding the good framing shop in your area? How can you tell if a gallery is worth showing at? Are theme shows worth your time?

Read Three Tips for Selling/Showing Your Photos in a Gallery.

Photo above is by Photo.net member Julian Hebbrecht. Please take a moment to view Julian’s Photo.net gallery.

DSLRs in the movies: ‘Hellbent’ the ten best action films of 2011

“At the time, everyone was using 3-CCD miniDV cameras like the Sony VX1000 or the Canon GL2. We mostly all had Century fisheye lenses screwed onto the front and some sort of low-angle carry-handle setup to give everything that “extreme” look. Depth of field? Almost infinite. Selective focus? Never heard of it. High definition 1080p video? Still a decade away for the average person. High frame-rate for smooth slow motion shots? Nope….Little did we know that in a few short years, the consumer/prosumer “video camera” market would be all but wiped out by the most unlikeliest of products, the DSLR." -Josh Root

Read DSLRs in the movies: ‘Hellbent’ the ten best action films of 2011

Eight Neat Products From CES 2012

I’m not a trade show guy. I just don’t really relish doing anything with 100,000 other people. Then add in rushing around across the show for meetings, getting lost, getting trampled by crowds trying to catch a glimpse of a celebrity, waiting forever for a bus or taxi, and overpriced overbooked airplanes/hotels and you’ve got what I consider a long week. But to be fair, it is always good to get some face to face time with the people and companies that I interact with via phone and email. At CES 2012 I saw a lot of neat things that I expected to see, saw a few things that I hadn’t heard of before, and saw a handful of hush-hush upcoming projects that we’ll all be talking about in the not too distant future. While I can’t share any of the secrets, here is a quick wrap up of what I considered to be the most interesting of the CES 2012 photographic announcements.

Read Eight Neat Products From CES 2012

Top 10 Most Popular Deals from Our Partners this Week

1. Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8 L II USM Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens (compare prices)

2. Sigma 30mm F1.4 EX DC HSM Wide Angle Lens (compare prices)

3. Pentax smc DA * 50-135mm F2.8 ED IF SDM Telephoto Zoom Lens (compare prices)

4. Nikon D3s Black Digital SLR Camera – Body Only (compare prices)

5. Canon EF-S 18-135mm F/3.5-5.6 IS Zoom Lens (compare prices)

6. Tamron 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3Di II VC PZD AF Lens For Canon (compare prices)

7. Pentax K-5 Black Digital SLR Camera – Body Only (compare prices)

8. Epson Artisan 730 All-in-One Inkjet Printer (compare prices)

9. Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5 Black Digital Camera (compare prices)

10. Otterbox APL2-iPAD1-20-C4OTR Defender Series Case for iPad (compare prices)

Find great deals on thousands of other products at the Photo.net Partner-powered Store.

What’s Happening In Our Forums

• Leica and Rangefinders (20 Responses) If we had some idea of what the manufacturer has in mind
• Classic Manual Cameras (29 Responses) Minolta Hi-Matic 7 goes downtown.
• Canon EOS (63 Responses) Original 5D vs new crop camera
• Mirrorless Digital Cameras (31 Responses) What SD card has the best reliability?
• Film and Processing (16 Responses) Film developing only - regular lab vs pro lab

Go To Photo.net Forums. »

Monthly Project: Around the Table

What could be more awkward than taking photos when people are eating? On the other hand, how many special moments and events in life involve eating food? Family dinners, Sunday brunches, Superbowl BBQ’s, weddings, and parties of every sort. Food ties them all together and lays the base for some of our happiest memories.

If you can make good images while people are eating, you should feel proud. Share you success (or failure) with everyone.

See all of the Monthly Projects (and submission instructions) on the Monthly Project Index page. Here are a few images that have been submitted for this month’s project that caught my eye:

Editors’ Picks

And this month’s editors’ picks topic is… Ice and Snow Photography.

Samples:

Also, take a look at what the Editors found visually interesting in the previous months—perhaps one of your images has been selected…

Here are some recent Editors’ Picks topics:

• Glamour/Fashion Photography
• HDR Photography
• Beach Photography