/1001/noisy/cameras/

Yahoo announces Flickr update and upgrade: 1TB of ad-supported space for FREE!!!

The May 20 Flickr announcement from Yahoo is here! It was overshadowed by their $1 billion purchase of Tumblr, but Flickr is getting some attention too! In addition to a new remodel that puts more emphasis on the photographs, Flickr has also announced 1TB (terabyte) of free space for all!

There is a catch, as it is almost always the case, the 1TB is ad-supported. But who else is offering 1TB of free space? Still, the ads may be a deal killer for some.

Coming along with the free 1TB and redesign is a new remodel of the Flickr Android app at the Google Android Market Play. Sign-in is required before you can use the app.

Details at the Flickr blog. Discussion of the new development by Flickr power-user Thomas Hawk.

As Thomas Hawk points out, "Flickr Pro" will not be available for new customers, but existing Flickr Pro members have the option to continue the Pro service in grandfathered status. Hawk also points out that if you want a second terabyte, you can get it for $500 per year. 1TB is roughly 33 full 32GB memory cards.

Those of you frustrated with the pre-Mayer Flickr may resonate with this quote from a Yahoo senior VP, reported at PC Magazine: "According to Adam Cahan, senior vice president of mobile and emerging products at Yahoo, Flickr had become about words, little images, and blue links. "Flickr really was not about the photo anymore," he said."

Tech Crunch was at the event and summarized the happenings. Tech Crunch also points out that Yahoo is moving into the previous New York Times building. A move that perhaps is equal parts symbolic and equal parts practical?

Ms Meyer appears to be a lot smarter and internet savvy than her predecessor. The "free 1TB" is the type of thing that can go viral across different segments of the internet, and already it has made Flickr a trending topic on Twitter, the arbiter of things important and ephemeral.

More coverage via Techmeme.

Discussion in the The Verge comments and more.

We are using Flickr for the Readers Flickr Pool.

Panasonic GH2 further cements its place in history as it rides the Upstream Color train

The Panasonic GH2 was one of the few cameras that ushered in the more accessible era of digital video and cinematography. Other cameras of that era include the Canon 5D Mark II and the Jarvis viral Nikon D90. Newer and replacement cameras have failed to generate as much buzz and excitement, but that's partially because you can only get the genie out of the bottle once!

The Panasonic GH2 further cemented its place in history. Not just camera history, but also movie history. Used in the film "Upstream Color" by Shane Carruth [of Primer fame], it piggy-backs the film as it breaks new ground by making the film available for purchase or rental very quickly after its theatrical debut.

Today, The Verge, perhaps the most serious of the new generation of "gadget blogs that grew up from the unboxing frat boy era", has a detailed feature on the impact of Upstream Color in the world of digital video and the movie industry in general.

Last week, this film was featured, from a digital cinema convergence and Panasonic GH2 perspective at EOS HD.

And by being available very quickly after the movie theater debut, they are going all the way in. You can buy it at iTunes or get a digital rental at Amazon Instant Video or receive the BluRays and DVDs right away. And if you hate all these DRM schemes with a passion, it's also available for digital purchase DRM-free. Another important consumer-friendly consideration, since existing DRM schemes proved that they cannot stop unauthorized viewing/downloads and but they can stop legitimate buyers from consuming content in their preferred methods.

And this brings up another point, are we getting closer and closer to the point where new cameras cannot have the type of "impact" new-cameras previously had? In a very saturated market, with waves and waves of new overlapping models, the window is starting to close on "breakout" success stories - unless the camera manufacturers are willing to disrupt themselves. They are not exactly the high-risk types. Already, one of the holy grails/grains in the market is getting satisfied with a handful of new Big Sensor Primes, including one with a 35mm full frame sensor. We may have another excitement burst if/when Pentax releases its 35mm full frame DSLR, and there's a few more holes to fill (monochrome DSLR/mirrorless? full frame mirrorless? square sensor fantasies?), but the window is closing.

Laptop pixel-peepers, a Samsung 3200 x 1800 13.3" laptop is coming

If you are a laptop pixel-peeper, Samsung has some candy for you in the pipeline! They teased new laptops using 3200 x 1800 displays, a resolution that goes by the easy to forget name of WQXGA+. This is destined for a 13.3-inch laptop display. As part of their development announcement, they also announced a 2560 x 1600 display for 10-inch tablets. Bring it on 50-megapixel cameras ;-)

Among existing general-purpose products, Apple is leading the buzz wars with their 13.3-inch Retina 2560 x 1600 Macbook Pros, so apparently in the new never-ending-war between Apple and Samsung, Samsung felt the need to jump over Apple instead of cut-and-paste it this time :)

Details at Engadget and Sammyhub and /Gear and The Verge et al.

Impact review: Stabilized Tamron 24-70mm f2.8 at dpreview

Stabilized lenses are increasing by the day. Tamron is pushing the stabilized envelope with their 24-70mm f2.8 stabilized lens, giving it optical image stabilization, code word "VC" for vibration correction. Neither the Nikon nor the Canon competing lenses offer this, yet they cost 1.5x+ the price of the Tamron. Can Tamron "disrupt" this workhorse lens focal range and beat Canon+Nikon at their own game?

With that as a preface, the Tamron 24-70mm f2.8 Di VC lens has received a six page review at dpreview. If you are in a hurry, or running out of battery or out of signal range, you can jump to the conclusions before jumping to conclusions. Did it receive an Olympic medal or was it referred to the Alchemists? We won't leak the light here!

The review was just posted but discussion will pick up after a bit in the dpreview comments.

For more opinions on this lens, check its previous (and future) reviews in the Tamron Lens Reviews list.

As of the time of writing, the 24-70 VC goes for $1300 in the Canon and Nikon and Sony Alpha (new arrival!) SLR mounts at Amazon and Adorama and B&H Photo. Pentax K-mount photographers are sadly without this option :( CORRECTION: the Alpha version of this lens is now in-stock and shipping at B&H Photo!

Samples: Ricoh GR (APS-C) ISO-range and Color Chart (JPEG)

If nothing else, the Ricoh GR (APS-C edition) may succeed in bringing down the prices for the "Big Sensor Primes" category. Not much is known yet about the Ricoh GR in terms of measurable performance. One new piece of information arrived today, the standard ePhotozine ISO-range and Color Charts sample pictures, available in full-size JPEG.

The GR (APS-C) is available for pre-order for $800 at Amazon et al - see more options at the Stock Status site.

Dxomark picks the best lenses for the Nikon D600

Dxomark published a multi-part report based on the lab test results, looking at the best lenses specifically for the Nikon D600 full frame DSLR. Their findings start with a general overview, followed by the wide angles and telephotos and then followed by standard zooms and primes.

As with everything Dxomark, please keep in mind, that unless you are mainly shooting resolution and test charts in a lab test environment, the Dxomark test results should not be your only/main source in deciding which gear to buy/avoid/sell/trade.

For more opinions on the gear mentioned, check the list of Nikon D600 reviews. You can find reviews of the various lenses mentioned at the Lens Reviews stream. You can find the Nikon-mount ones under the Nikon F-mount category, and the lenses made by other manufacturers under their respective categories such as Sigma and Samyang and Zeiss and Tamron et al.

Opinion Soup: Dumping DSLRs for NEX, Gear, Imaging Software, Inspiration, Tips, Business, Interviews, Digital Video, etc

A new "Opinion Soup" has arrived. This covers roughly the last two weeks of opinions! You can find the previous editions along with future editions (in the future) at the Opinion Soup archives... Audio opinions can be found in our recent Photography Podcast round-up...

Like the Opinion Soup round-ups? Want them to continue? It takes a lot of time to prepare them and they actually hurt the blog because every time Google sees a new episode with a hundred links, it barfs at this blog. If you would like to see more, you can help fund them by making some of your purchases through our affiliate links at Amazon.com and Adorama and B&H Photo and more at the NoisyMall.

Camera Gear
+ dumping Nikon DSLRs for Sony NEX by Stuck In Customs (via VSL)
+ what will smartphone cameras of the future look like? at dpreview connect (two pages)
+ eight things that can help save compact digital cameras (at least for now) at Pop Photo
+ eight reasons why I am a big believer in 35mm photography at Peta Pixel
+ camera manufacturer fiscal year analysis at Sans Mirror
+ toasters, Olympus E-M5, buying advice and more at The Online Photographer
+ on the mirrorless market share chart presented by Olympus at Sans Mirror
+ opinion on Hogan's mirrorless value opinion at SLR Lounge
+ the "limitations of DOF" at Sound Image Plus
+ how good a lens? at The Online Photographer
+ on inkjet photo papers at Luminous Landscape
+ the story of a disappearing negative review about an online retailer at Photocritic

Imaging Software: Creative Cloud Edition and more
+ top six Linux imaging editors according to Tech Radar
+ why the new Google Server Farm could displace Adobe Lightroom by Stuck in Customs
+ is Lightroom a gateway drug to the Creative Cloud? SLR Lounge (note: "gateway drug" is another horrid gift of the "war on drugs")
+ the Creative Cloud conundrum by Thomas Fitzgerald Photography
+ on the Adobe creative cloud by at Ming Thein (first half of post)
+ are we slaves to technology and software post-Creative-Cloud? at DPhotographer UK
+ Dear Apple, Let's Talk Photos at PetaPixel

Creativity, Inspiration, Essays, Etc
+ Digital Hangover at The Online Darkroom
+ why your pictures suck at ThePhoblographer (endorsed by Kirk Tuck)
+ 38 quotes on abstraction assembled by John Paul Caponigro
+ how one photographer rediscovered his passion after going legally blind via PetaPixel
+ three reasons to donate your time to non-profits at SLR Lounge
+ my experience photographing the Boston Marathon bombing at Petapixel
+ on hobbies and photographers at Ming Thein
+ how I found my niche at Blackstar Rising
+ fearlessly rejecting rejection at PentaXForums
+ help others grow through constructive critiques at SLR Lounge
+ first be a photographer at Lighting Essentials
+ the photographer as a philosopher part #1 at Ming Thein
+ the nice shot comment myth at DIY Photography
+ colorless squares at Robin Wong
+ Fukuoka without people at Ming Thein
+ 80 headshots in a single day at DIY Photography and Peta Pixel

Tips, Tutorials, Learnings
+ tips for wedding photographers from a weddings DJ at PetaPixel
+ going from exclusive RAW to mixing in some JPEGs at PetaPixel
+ 10 things a photographer should never do while shooting a wedding at Peta Pixel
+ introduction to restaurant food photography at F/Stoppers
+ the perverted photographer: things NOT to say at a photoshoot at SLR Lounge

Interviews
+ Thomas Campbell at Peta Pixel
+ Carlos Hernandez at ePhotozine
+ Liu Bolin (video) via F/Stoppers
+ Belt Galton at Imaging Resource
+ Bruce Davidson (video) via ThePhoblographer
+ RED co-founder via Cinescopophilia
+ Platton via Duck Rabbit Info
+ Jamie Rose (audio) at Rosh Sillars
+ Teresa Franco (iPhoneography) at Photojojo
+ Joe McNally at Burn Magazine (via APE)
+ Brooke Shaden at SLR Lounge
+ Jenni Hogan (audio) at Chase Jarvis

Professional
+ traps that aspiring photographers can get caught in Part #1 and Part #2 at ThePhoblographer
+ saying no to jobs and getting paid at DIY Photography
+ how to sell your food photography at F/Stoppers
+ being busy is not a badge of honor at Tofurious
+ skills needed to thrive as a wedding photographer at Cameradojo
+ to Photoshop or not? the hard part of being a good photographer at PetaPixel

Business and Legal
+ Photo Theft and What You Can Do About It? at Photodoto
+ is Facebook the new breeding ground for infringement? at F/Stoppers
+ on orphan works laws in UK at Ming Thein (second half of post)
+ myth busting UK Orphan Works Law PDF file via ePhotozine
+ PMA explains why it is endorsing the national internet tax ("fair tax" is the euphemism) at PMA News Line
+ on children photo books at British Journal Of Photography
+ impact on new Google Images page on photographers website traffic via ThePhoblographer
+ anti-piracy website caught using photographs without permission via Peta Pixel

Digital Video
+ why you must have 4K RAW and why you absolutely don't need it by Philip Bloom
+ why I don't care about Canon 5D RAW video at Wide Open Camera
+ Philip Bloom at Need Creative podcast (audio)

On The Categories Above
A number of the opinions/posts could easily fit in multiple categories. Since this is not a library cataloging process, we pick one category. It may not always be the perfect category, but we can't create 100 different categories for 100 different posts :)

Camera & Lens Reviews pages updated (10 cameras, 3 lenses)

We almost fell too behind again but we caught up just in the nick of time! We caught up with the latest action. We added 10 new camera reviews at the Camera Reviews stream (including Fuji X100s, X20, Canon SL1, T5i, Nikon D7100, E-Pens, and more). We also added three new lens reviews at the Lens Reviews stream. These are completed camera and lens reviews that pass certain thresholds of review quality. We do not include every fluffing of every camera or lens :)

If you want to quickly get to the reviews streams, we have two easy to type and easy to remember urls, noisyreviews.com (for cameras) and noisylenses.com (for lenses).

Other things equal, a new Opinion Soup will be posted late tonight or early tomorrow. In the meantime, you can check the 69 previous editions. If you wrote or read any interesting camera and photography related opinions, let us know using the online contact form. We are trying to include a variety of wide-ranging opinions of photographers of different styles, philosophies and experience levels - not just the famous-online photographers. But it's harder to find non-famous-photographer opinions, so let us know!

Famous Photographer Gear on eBay: Philip Bloom

If you like to buy or collect equipment used by famous digital-era photographers/hybridographers, Philip Bloom has a eBay sale on some of his camera equipment including the Leica X1, Noktor 50/.95, Nokia Pureview 808, Canon and Nikon DSLRs and lenses, Panasonic AF101/AF100 M43rds camcorder and 14-140 m43rds zoom, Nikon V1, and lots more. These are classic eBay auctions with bids.

Flickr updates will be revealed May 20

UPDATE (MAY-20-2013)
The Yahoo announcement is here, everybody gets 1TB of free space and more. Details in the Flickr announcement post... The original post is below and will no longer be updated...

ORIGINAL POST
Yahoo and new leader Marissa Meyer will be revealing new updates to the Flickr photo sharing services on May 20 at a big Yahoo event in New York City. Yahoo is making a lot of moves in the Mayer era, they are also rumored to be buying Tumblr for $1+ billion among other things. Via Bloomberg and Techmeme.

In related news, Adobe's free Photoshop Express app is now available in the Windows 8 store for 8 and RT devices, joining their iOS and Android apps. Via Engadget and official Windows blog.

(ENDED) Software Deal: Adobe Lightroom 4 full version for $70

This daily special ended... For future specials, check the Camera Deals blog... Expired items after the jump for the deal historians...

Impact review: Nikon D5200 at dpreview

Nikon's 24-megapixel APS-C D5200 digital SLR has now received its 20-page dpreview review. As usual, we won't spill the e-beans here, but if you are in a hurry you can jump to the conclusions before jumping to conclusions. Did it receive an Olympic medal or was it referred to the alchemists?

The review is discussed in the dpreview comments and dpreview Nikon DX forum.

For more opinions on the camera, check the list of completed Nikon D5200 reviews (16 as of the time of writing).

Olympus dropping basic P&S digital cameras (V series) to focus on Interchangeables

A move that was previously discussed during the Olympus financial crisis has now materialized. Olympus is dropping the basic P&S digital cameras from their line-up, their V-series of entry-level digital cameras. It does not say that Olympus will abandon all fixed-lens cameras, but it does say that it will focus on interchangeable lens cameras. Story at the Wall Street Journal Digits blog. Discussed at and via dpreview.

Per the WSJ article estimate above, Olympus is estimating it will sell about half the number of digital cameras this fiscal year (compared to the previous fiscal year). On the plus side, this may turn them into a Leica-for-the-rest-of-us of sorts :)

New Photography Podcast Episodes talking Adobe Cloud, Photography As Art and More

Memorial Day weekend is just around the corner and that may mean more travel with trains, planes and automobiles, so this may be a good time to spend idle travel time "on topic" without working - with some photography podcasts! These are some of the most recent camera and photography podcast episodes:

This is a long post with 16 different podcasts included...

35mm Full Frame DSLRs and Friends Price Charts (visual reference)

Yesterday we brought you Price Chart snapshots of Compacts with RAW and the day before we brought you the Mirrorless Cameras Price Charts. So you know where this is heading, now we have the 35mm full frame DSLRs and beyond price charts!

The prices are a snapshot in time, the snapshot was taken on May-16-2013 in the afternoon. The prices will not be updated in the chart below. It is a snapshot. The prices are the lowest price between Amazon and Adorama and B&H Photo. More details on the data after the chart...

If you wish to repost the chart on your website/blog/forum, be sure to include a proper credit/reference to this post.

Can any of these three (Usain Bolt, Best Buy, Chase Jarvis) help Samsung's NX mirrorless system?

Samsung was one of the first to jump on the mirrorless bandwagon, divorcing their DSLR K-wife in doing so. And they have APS-C size sensors. And the Samsung brand name recognition and popularity is skyrocketing thanks to their Galaxy smartphones. Yet, their NX system continues to be in the shadow of the other mirrorless systems. And that's being polite :)

A trio of new developments may help Samsung's NX system get more exposure, directly or indirectly.

Five Good Deals: Nikon J2, Panasonic GX1 [updated]

We have a new round of "Five Good Deals". The theme in this edition is time was sensitive deals (they expired since the original post). To see all specials as they happen, stay tuned to the Camera Deals blog (shortcut url noisydeals.com).

The Nikon J2 with the 10-30mm kit lens, in new condition, in many different body colors is offered for $360 at Amazon by Amazon. This is a live/ongoing price with no preset expiration, so it may (or may not) change at any time.

If you need an extra M43rds body or if have no use for the 14-42 kit lenses, the Panasonic GX1 body only is offered for $250 in new condition in black by various at Amazon and Adorama and B&H Photo. The silver also goes for $250 at Adorama. The silver is discontinued (no longer available) at B&H Photo. This is a live/on-going price.

You can research the cameras mentioned above at the Camera Reviews stream with the easy to remember url noisyreviews.com

EXPIRED (after the jump)

Compacts with RAW Prices snapshot in a single Giant Chart (visual reference)

Yesterday we brought you the Mirrorless Cameras Price Chart (a snapshot in time), today we have a new Price Chart for you. We take a look at Compacts (Fixed Lens Cameras) with RAW (RAW support out of the box). To keep the chart at a readable size, we only include cameras with a sensor size of 1/1.8" and larger. There is a handful of superzooms at the 1/2.x" level that would have made the chart almost twice as long and ten times more unreadable.

Google I/O: new Highlight feature picks your best pictures

At Google I/O, Google announced a new feature, Highlight, that automatically picks your best pictures using a number of parameters with their algorithms "trained" by human picture raters. Another feature that is moving into Google+ is an "Auto Enhance" feature, including "noise reduction" and "wrinkle softening" and "auto awesome" Tumblr-y effects. Google+ has become the center of picture sharing at Google.

This was one of the announcements at Google I/O. Of gadget-interest, if you love the Samsung Galaxy S4 camera but hate bloatware, Google Play is going to offer an unlocked no-contract S4 for $650.

Zeiss Touits: Full Size Samples with 12/2.8 and 32/1.8 in both NEX and Fuji X

More Zeiss action! ePhotozine Japan has published hands-on reports with lots of real-world JPEG samples taken with the Zeiss Touit 12mm f2.8 and the Zeiss Touit 32mm f1.8. Samples are available from both NEX (NEX-7) and Fuji X (X-Pro1, X-E1) cameras. In addition to pictures of the lenses themselves.

The Zeiss Touits are currently available for pre-order at Adorama and B&H Photo.