It's out, the first short film from the 5D MkII

well done Vincent Laforete

Get your Photokina Fix (but not here)

So, I'm not going to Photokina this year (no, I'm not bitter at all, who needs a week of the latest photographic gear and gadgets interspersed with great German beer in the evenings?)
Here a few sites to keep an eye on for the latest updates and news:

Calumet's Photokina Blog which promises to have news and video interviews.
DPreview's front page has a list of the goodies so far, sure to get longer.
Luminous Landscape has a great page, starting with the new Leica S2 Camera.

I'll post more links here as I find them so do come back.

Phaseone and Leica in Strategic Alliance

So, first it was Microsoft, now it's Leica.
I think this pretty much firms up the rumour of a Leica MF digital camera of one kind or another.
Does it also mean some Leica lenses for the PhaseOne Camera?

I have a feeling the next few days may hold the answers.....

The Leica Press Release in full:

Leica Camera AG and Phase One conclude strategic alliance

Leica Camera AG and Phase One A/S have agreed to enter into a long-term strategic alliance. Both companies are in mutual agreement on the terms of close future cooperation in the technical development and marketing of premium products for the professional photography segment. The objective is to offer photographers innovative high-end solutions that guarantee the greatest possible creative freedom and set standards in terms of performance, quality and technological maturity. Close cooperation has also been decided upon for the expansion of effective service and marketing structures.

The CEO of Leica Camera AG, Dr Andreas Kaufmann, welcomes the collaboration with Phase One: 'Our two companies are an outstanding match for each other due to the similarity of their corporate cultures, their extraordinary innovative strengths and their dedication to absolute quality. We complement each other very well, particularly in the marketing segment. This will enable Leica to establish a strong and sustainable position at the leading edge of the professional segment. Together with Phase One we will soon be able to begin offering professional customers a new range of products and services.'

In addition to digital backs for medium format and view cameras, Phase One, the world's leading manufacturer of camera systems for the professional segment, also offers industrialgrade software and image processing solutions specially designed to meet the most demanding requirements of professional photographers. According to the CEO of Phase One A/S, Henrik Håkonsson: 'Thanks to first class internal development and technological alliances, Phase One maintains its leadership in the provision of software and image processing solutions for the professional segment. As a consequence of this strategic alliance with Leica, Phase One now has access to the vast optical expertise of the market's quality leader and we can improve our product offerings to the world’s best photographers.

Leica Camera AG in Solms offers precision optical products of uncompromising quality and mechanical precision for the industrial and private high-end segments. The Leica range embraces a broad spectrum of cameras and precision optical products for analogue and digital photography, projectors and a range of binoculars, spotting scopes and rangefinders for field observation. Thanks to systematic investment in the manufacture of aspherical optical elements, Leica possesses vast expertise in the manufacturing, the optical calculation, the measuring and testing technology, as well as in the construction of lenses and the assembly of aspherical lens systems. Further information about Leica Camera AG and its products can be found at www.leica-camera.com.

More Laforete

2 Days ago I'd never heard of him, now, not long after finding his 5D MkII review, I find an amazing panorama of the Yankee Stadium.
Make sure you view full screen.

Run: 10K, I did.

So yesterday I did something I thought was impossible. I finished a Cancer Research UK Run:10K.
So today I'm feeling pain I never knew existed.

Feel free to donate.

5D, Game Changer

At least one person thinks so, I tend to agree.

New Elinchrom Products For Photokina

Elinchrom have on their website two new products for Photokina.

The first is an upgrade to the mid range compact mains flash. The Elinchrom BXRi comes in 250 and 500Ws versions and adds the following cool features:

• Recognition of pre-flashes by the slave cell
• Built in Skyport RX radio for power and triggering control

But, IMHO, the more important new item is the Ranger Quanta, a 400Ws battery kit. The heads are a new smaller design, it works with Skyport RX and the pack and battery are tiny. Think along the lines of Lumedyne, but Swiss.

The side links don't seem to go anywhere at the moment but there are more details in a PDF if you click on the 'News" link.

Enjoy!

Elinchrom in Maine Workshops

Check out this video from Tips From The Top Floor.
Loads of Elinchrom being used!

new videos on youtube

just uploaded the 30 minute Joe Craig intro to studio lighting (in 3 parts).

I'm going to give it a couple of days before sending a tfc e-mail just to see how they propagate on their own through subscriptions etc.