Nikon DSLR Night Vision Adapter

LetsGoDigital has details on the AstroScope 9350NIKS-3PRO, a adapter that sits in-between your Nikon Digital SLR and any of your lenses; automatically making them night-vision capable. Very neat!

"In wide use with military organizations around the world, AstroScope’s battle field-proven design utilizes a state-of-the-art third generation image intensifier tube, with built-in technology designed to reduce halos and blooming effects. The image intensifier draws minimal power directly from the host-camera because it is only energized when the shutter button is depressed, protecting the unit from bright light sources. Measuring 5.0” (128 mm) in length, with a maximum diameter of 2.7” (68 mm) and weighing 22.8 oz (646 g) the AstroScope is the premier choice for professional photographers and enthusiasts who want to explore the world of nighttime photography."

AstroScope 9350NIKS-3PRO - Night vision camera Adapter
- Use High Performance Nikon Lenses and Retain Lens Functions
- No Back Focus Adjustment Required
- No Vignetting on Most Platforms
- User-Friendly, Rugged Design-Installs in Under 10 Seconds
- Powered Directly by Camera
- Cost Saving Interchangeable Gen 3 PRO Central Intensifier Unit

Improving the Details in Your Photos

Did you know your eyes are able to see a much wider range of light and dark values than your camera can record?

When faced with wildly differing light and dark values in a single frame, your camera can't record everything, so it has to make a choice. Usually, it does its best to meter for the average light in the scene. That means the bright stuff ends up being too bright or the dark stuff too dark... or a little of both. Those dark areas aren't lost, however. Often, they're hiding detail that the camera just barely saw. Make a few subtle adjustments in Photoshop, and you're on your way to an improved image!

Website Photojojo.com has a good article and short video that teaches us how to-

Find Detail in Your Photos That You Thought Was Lost… in Five minutes or Less!

If you're looking to improve your photos, this topic is 'need to know' stuff.

Photo Editing in Three Minutes

Photography website Photodoto has posted an article which shows how a few small adjustments can make a photo really stand out. It also shows that you have to start with a photo that’s already pretty close to your final vision. You’re probably not going to succeed if you have to make numerous, huge adjustments in an attempt to “salvage” a photo. As the saying goes: garbage in, garbage out.

"I really enjoy the process of editing a photo. Each one is different. And it can be a lot of fun playing with ideas, colors, highlighting this area, downplaying another. A single photo really does have a lot of possibilities depending on what you do with it. But I’ll often make a photograph knowing in advance the edits I’ll need to make to “develop” it."

Read Anatomy of a photo edit: Ready in 3 minutes

Complete Digital Photography, Third Edition

The Complete Canon EOS System Explained

Phillip Greenspun gives us another fine article in which he covers the Canon EOS system of digital single-lens reflex (SLR) bodies and lenses. Every component manufactured by Canon is covered, plus a few exceptionally good third-party components. Phillip goes through every section of the Canon EOS system and concludes with some starter system recommendations.

• Canon EOS Bodies
  
• Nomenclature
  
• Lenses
  
• Flashes
  
• Accessories
  

The article even discusses some recommended starter systems.

Canon EOS 5D

Read the Canon EOS System

Kodak Easyshare online Photo Book service

Looking for an easy online photo-sharing solution?  We're not talking about the likes of Flickr, who only let you share tiny, unorganized photos.

Now you can publish your photos with friends and family members with the new Kodak Easyshare Gallery Legacy Photo Book (see sidebar for link). Available today at the Kodak website, the Legacy Photo Book is the latest addition to the Kodak Easyshare Gallery Photo Book portfolio that also includes the popular Classic and Mini Photo Books. "Kodak Easyshare Gallery is committed to providing people with a variety of ways to share pictures and stories with friends and family," said Madhav Mehra, Vice President of Product Management, Kodak Imaging Network Inc.

"This new addition to the existing photo book portfolio makes it possible for everyone to publish the story of their lives in a big, bold way with this high quality book." The Kodak Easyshare Gallery Legacy Photo Book joins the immensely popular Mini and Classic Photo Books currently available at the kodak website. The newest addition to Kodak Easyshare Gallery's photo book portfolio provides consumers with a larger alternative to the 10"x9" Classic Photo Book and 7"x5" Mini Photo book. With the new Legacy Photo Book, Kodak Easyshare Gallery ensures you'll have the perfect size photo book to show off and share memories from any occasion.

- Starts at $69.99 for 20 pages. Each additional page is $1.49
- Printed on high quality, thick, professional premium photo paper
- Hardbound linen or leather cover measures 12"x14"
- Brand new page layouts include full bleed and nine picture collage among other popular layouts.

About Kodak
Kodak is the world's foremost imaging innovator, providing leading products and services to the photographic, graphic communications and healthcare markets. With sales of $14.3 billion in 2005, the company is committed to a digitally oriented growth strategy focused on helping people better use meaningful images and information in their life and work. Consumers use Kodak's system of digital and traditional image capture products and services to take, print and share their pictures anytime, anywhere; businesses effectively communicate with customers worldwide using Kodak solutions for prepress, conventional and digital printing and document imaging; creative professionals rely on Kodak technology to uniquely tell their story through moving or still images; and leading healthcare organizations rely on Kodak's innovative products, services and customized workflow solutions to help improve patient care and maximize efficiency and information sharing within and across their enterprise.
Tags: easyshare, kodak

Building a Digital SLR Camera

If you are thinking of getting yourself a digital SLR, I have found this excellent piece (Building a Digital SLR Camera System) written by Phillip Greenspun.

The article explains the different kinds of digital SLR cameras available, how to choose the right one for you, and what to do once you get it home from the shop. A digital SLR camera system, complete with lenses and accessories, can cost anywhere from $1,000 to $10,000. This article shows you how to choose and buy the basic items first and the more expensive and hard-to-use components later.

Phillip goes through a comprehensive overview of-

• What is a single-lens reflex (SLR)?



• Who makes digital SLR cameras?



• What kinds of digital SLRs are available?



• Which big lenses/small sensor digital SLR to buy?



• Accessories



• Where to Buy
  and even goes through some sample projects you can try to get a good understanding of what a DSLR is capable of.

I recommend this read to anyone with or contemplating purchasing a digital SLR.
Tags: DSLR, digital slr

How to get started in Astronomy Photography

They say necessity is the mother of all invention. Yes you can find a reasonably priced tripod for your Powershot. I have seen them at Wally Worlds and such places. To do real astro photography, or meaningful astro photography you would need more than just a tripod. You can make filters or a filter rig for just about any camera for photographing the sun and the cosmos. To photograph the constellations on the other hand is a little more tricky. To get a good shot, you would need a tracking tripod, or one that is motorized to move at the same speed as the night sky. Like what most telescopes now have. The other thing that I might point out is trigger jerk. When most people take photographs they have a tendency to get trigger happy and jerk the camera. Now for a normal photograph in the day time, the film/chip is faster than there jerk, so to speak, and it is not that noticeable. But at night when you have a black sky and little points of light, then it becomes more critical and noticable. As far as time lapse you would have to check your manual. Most digital cameras do, mine do. Most camera manufactures offer for an extra fee an Infrared Remote trigger. I bought one and hooked it up to a 4 foot section of fiber optic cable. I mounted it to my camera/filter rig so as not to fog the chip on extended exposures. (All ccd chips used in digital cameras are sensitive to infared). One other point I might address is the lens. With the stock lens, I believe which is about 140mm on your powershot, you might wish to try the Afocal technique. Afocal coupling means aiming a camera (with its lens in place) into the eyepiece of a telescope. You can do this with any camera and any telescope. Digital and video cameras make it easy to see what you're getting. You can do the same with binoculars. Again necessity is the mother of all inventions. Google the phrase "digital cameras + Astro photography" and you will be suprised on what comes up. With telescopes, remember that it is the eye piece that magnifies the image from the objective lens, not just the scope. Back in the day, I started with a pentax film camera coupled to a 300mm super fast F2.4 lens.
Tags: astronomy, photography, astrophotogrpahy