Category Archives: Cameras

Cameras

Nikon 1 still alive

Between lack of Nikon 1 product announcements, and a quote buried in a DPReview of a different camera, saying the author thought Nikon 1 development had ended, there have been rumors that Nikon’s mirrorless 1″ sensor based cameras, the Nikon 1 J-series and the V-series might be discontinued.

At Photokina, Nikon officials say the J-series (Nikon 1 J5) is selling well and they are not discontinuing the Nikon 1 series:  Nikon at Photokina 2016: J5 doing great, remote-controlled robot cameras, DL models missing | Nikon Rumors

My read on their statements is that Nikon intends to continue at least with the J-series line but that the V-series (with electronic viewfinder eyepiece) is probably over with. Nikon says that the 1″ sensor and the Nikon 1″ sensor lens mount, the CX line, will continue into the future.

Nikon has also announced a new DL line of 1″ sensor cameras, in February 2016. However, the shipment date of the DL line cameras has been indefinitely postponed, possibly due to disruptions caused by a major earthquake in Japan, in the spring of 2016.

Presumably, future Nikon 1 products might use similar components to the DL line and the delays in the DL line might be why we have not heard about new Nikon 1 products either.

There may be word on the DL shipments in a few weeks, however. And Nikon has now indicated that the Nikon 1 line will continue in some, unspecified fashion.

I shoot with both Nikon 1 and micro four thirds formats. I really like the small size and light weight of the 1″ sensor format bodies and lenses. With the J5, except for high ISOs, the 1″ line is delivering image quality essentially equal to my micro four thirds cameras.

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Cameras, Gear, Photos, Still photography

Using the Minolta 58mm f/1.4 lens on a Nikon 1 J1 camera

I like experimenting and using “non-standard” camera configurations. In a world of full frame DSLRs, I tend to use little sensors because its more challenging. Or something!

Here, I shot a couple of test shots (JPEG mode, not RAW) using a Minolta f/1.4 58mm prime lens. Both photos were taken using an MD mount to Nikon 1 mount adapter on the Nikon 1 J1 (10 megapixel) camera with a 1″ sensor. Both photos are shot with the aperture set to f/2.0; at f/1.4 the lens is very soft, typical of most older lenses when used wide open. For a portrait shot where soft focus may be desired, f/1.4 is okay, but for other shots the softness is distracting. At f/2.0 and smaller apertures (f2.8, f4 especially) the lens gets really sharp.

Each of these photos was resized to 1/2 the original for uploading to my blog site.

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Business, Cameras, Software, Still photography, Techniques

The demographics of camera users

The author, at the link below, notes that those under 30 predominately use their smart phone to take photos.

Older travelers use compact point and shoot cameras, and middle aged and older often shoot with higher end DSLRs.

One thing I noticed on my trip to the UK , specifically London, was the abundance of cameras.

Source: Cameras, Cameras, Everywhere | Garden Walk Garden Talk

A recent Nikon item said that 55% of their DSLR sales are now going to consumers upgrading from smart phones.

My observations are in line with those of the linked article. I noticed this summer an increase in the number of travelers using an actual camera, rather than a smart phone. “Bridge cameras” – which look a bit like DSLRs but have a built-in, non-interchangeable lens, are popular.

The market is shifting a bit back towards real cameras. My hunch is many consumers will start out with larger cameras but eventually retreat to smaller cameras as they find the size and weight becomes cumbersome.

I suspect the 1″ cameras, with excellent image quality and good low light performance, may be the sweet spot for size, quality and convenience.

As the next blog post notes, post processing software is enabling small cameras to begin to rival their big cousins’ features. Software tools today provide high quality noise reduction, enabling small sensor cameras to work more like big sensors, and software tricks can even simulate bokeh.

3D, 3D Tech, Cameras, Software, Technical

Using 2 cameras to create fake narrow depth of field images

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Small sensor cameras – such as smart phones and point and shoot cameras – are unable to create significant blurring of the background or foreground. Narrow depth of field is mostly limited to large sensor cameras – or to long telephoto shots.

But, two camera sensors may be used to measure depth in the scene. One camera is used for the actual photo and the second for depth. Parallax, or the difference between the two camera images, varies by distance to the subject. This information is used to blur the original image based on distance to the subject. (Blurring is done by averaging local pixels together using a simple average or a weighted average.)

This means that software creates the narrow depth of field effect, rather than large sensors and expensive lenses.

The HTC One M8 smart phone has this feature today. The linked article gives examples of how this works, in practice. Take a look at their sample photos!

We compare the HTC One M8 camera with a Fuji X-M1 to see what its bokeh-style effects are really like.

Source: HTC One M8 Camera vs A Proper Camera: Fake Bokeh On Trial

Note that if the cameras are very close together, as is typical on a smart phone, the ability to accurate measure distance a long ways from the camera is greatly diminished. Image resolution and interaxial spacing both impact the capability of this feature.

Rumors are that the iPhone 7 will feature dual cameras for the same reason – to create narrow depth of field photos using tiny sensor cameras built in to the phone.

Currently, the best narrow depth of field comes from DSLR full frame cameras and expensive, large aperture lenses.

But post processing software is eliminating many advantages of the full size cameras. Modern post processing noise reduction enables many small sensor cameras to perform more like their big cousins in low light. And now, with dual cameras and depth processing, little cameras may soon deliver narrow depth of field at lower cost than the big guns.

This should be worrisome to the DSLR makers. Particularly as increasing numbers of shooters would prefer to travel light – and not have to carry big camera bodies and heavy lenses.

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