Canon's 40D may have officially "leaked" on Amazon.com.

Looks like it might be a KILLER camera! All the things we were assuming it would never have, except weather sealing maybe. (I couldn't tell from the specs, but it at least sounds BURLY...) Watch out, Nikon! (And everyone else!)

10 MP

6.5 FPS

14 bit A/D converter for greather dynamic range compared to most cameras 12 bit...

3" LCD

"live view" on LCD

vibration sensor cleaner

Some sort of new "high-precision AF point" center point.

ISO in the viewfinder

Magnesium alloy inner frame

Dedicated AF-On button

Wireless / remote compatibility (still no sign of wireless flash though)

Last but definitely not least, the glorious "Pict bridbe" button

All for $ 1299!!!!!! Sell your 5D's now and get on the waiting list!!!

You heard it here first, folks,
=Matt=

So, the latest rumor, a promotional ad / image in japanese, has the numbers "51" and "9" which people are saying translate to mean it will have 51 AF points and 9 FPS...

Other cryptic ads (could be all fake of course) state that it will be in the 18-22 MP range, will have a CMOS sensor, and will be 1.125x crop or so...

Sadly, the rumors also put this puppy at around $8,000 so it doesn't really make a difference to me lol.

HowEVER, more rumors abound that "just after" this D3 announcement, another body will be announced that will wow the advanced amateur market as well...

Oh and we're still talking about getting a bunch of new AF-S lenses, I just hope they come out with some wide angle DX primes!!!

That's all I have time for now, gotta get back to work, but do come online on Aug. 23/24/25 and check back, it MIGHT be announced then!

=Matt=

First, Gary Fong's latest diffuser, the "Puffer", is out. Yet again, he is a genius. This is something I've been wanting for years and Gary implemented it in a genius way I never thought of before. Basically it's a diffuser for your pop-up flash, that plugs into your external flash hotshoe!

Do you have any idea how perfect this is for Nikon shooters who use their pop-up flash as a wireless commander a lot? I would order one right away if I were you!

Second, I have a couple questions for all you hard-core photo editors out there. Do you edit on a laptop or a desktop? If you use a desktop, have you ever had the power go out on you? OUCH. Unless you save your work constantly, chances are you're going to sit there and cry.

Sure, EVERY body has a "surge protector" power strip. But about a year ago, I took that precaution one step further and bought a UPS. No I didn't buy a package delivery person wearing brown shourts, I bought an Un-interuptible Power Supply. A UPS. In fact I got it from APC. A UPS from APC. LOL. IMO.

Basically it's a monstrous battery that sits under your desk and you plug all your CRITICAL electronics into it. So, your desktop tower, your monitor, and maybe your printer if you must... Then if the power goes out, the battery is there to keep you running for a little while, but the important thing is that it's long enough to save your work and shut down properly. Then maybe once you've done that, you can plug in a desk lamp or radio and use that until the rest of the battery juice gets used up... (The UPS also has standard surge-protected plugs that don't drain the battery, how convenient!)

The next step of course is to get a generator lol, just in case you have a LOONG power outage and a LOT of photos that you simply must edit, but I'm not at that stage just yet.

I ask because I just got this APC catalog in the mail, and there's a bunch of sales going on apparently. I don't need ANOTHER UPS obviously, so I thought I'd post about UPS's in general and see if anyone thinks they should be using one, because if so I have a promo code for some deals, including the smallest UPS for just $39 I think, or $20 off an order over $200. Message me if you'd like the code, but first I'm going to check on Google and see if this is a wide-spread code that everyone can use, or if it's just a one-use code that ony *I* was given... Either way like I said I don't need it!

Although I WILL be using the 5% off coupon I got from G-Technology for purchasing one of their external hard drives, sorry!

Take care,
=Matt=

Okay, I can't say this is 100% GOLD, but it sounds like Nikon may be about to completely re-design the digital sensor as we know it today. Back in 2003 they filed a patent for a revolutionary sensor design, and it is just now coming to the surface for some reason, just before the highly expected release of Nikon's next flagship model. It may be a dud patent for dead technology, but I think not, the timing is just toooooo suspicious!

Here's the deal: Most "Bayer" sensors, which Canon, Nikon and others (except Sigma) use, are designed as follows- Each pixel has either a red, green or blue filter on top of it, and a light-collecting "photosite" underneath that. When light hits a pixel, a blue filter will only let blue light through, a red filter will only let red light through, and a green filter will only let green light through. The rest of the light is "lost" completely. Now I'm no math whiz, but people have said in the past that if you could have a simple sensor with zero color filters on it, making it a B&W sensor, you could capture 100% of light coming into the camera, instead of throwing away 66%, therefore achieving 3x the sensitivity out of the sensor! That would skyrocket today's ISO 1600 and 3200 capable sensors to capable of ISO 1280 and 2560, respectively. WOW.

It's slightly complicated to explain, but apparently Nikon has figured out how to use multiple colored mirrors and photosites to sense all three colors, RGB, at each "pixel", by basically putting a red, green AND blue "photosite" within EACH pixel. There's debate about which is more important for keeping high ISO noise at bay, pixel microlens size or actual photosite size, but if Nikon knows what the heck they're doing, which I hope, they may be about to turn the industry upside down.

I'm just sayin'!

=Matt=

We have quite possibly the most un-disputedly true information on the new Canon 40D. $1599, available Sept. 2nd.

Now for the speculation...

$1600 is pretty steep for a 40D, if Canon is simply planning on updating the 30D that came out at $1400. Usually they are able to bring out new models at a few hundred bucks LESS than the previous model... If they follow their body-only price trends, the 40D should be $1200. That leads us to believe that $1600 is with AT LEAST with a kit lens, and even then the price still sounds fishy. There was a "W" at the end of the 40D's item name in the leak, leading us to believe that it was "w/ kit lens" or something...

The 30D now however is a mere $1000, and with a lens it's $1150. That puts the current kit lens at $150.

So, we have the 40D that should cost $1200, but it costs $1600, and if it came with the current 18-55 kit lens that could only account for $150 of the difference.

What does this prove? One or two things:

Either Canon is bringing out a new kit lens, one that costs $400, or they're totally re-designing the 40D.

My first impulse is to think "SWEET! They're going to finally make a 17-200 IS!"

However the current "nice kit lens", the 17-85 IS, is $500 or so. So either the 17-200 is going to be el-cheapo unlike Nikon's awesome $750 18-200 VR, or it's going to be a different lens. Maybe it's just the 17-85 but with $100 since it's a kit...

That's probably the case, but just for kicks let's move on to "what if" Canon has decided to beef up the 40D a little more than we were expecting them to:

Our options are a weather-sealed body, better AF system, live LCD view, and not much else.

Our options are NOT a full-frame sensor, in-camera IS, or more FPS, sorry!

What I predict:

40D= 10 megapixels, 5 FPS, 2.5" screen, anti-dust sensor shaker, live view, same AF as 20D and 30D but with maybe a few algorithm tweaks, and no weather-sealing.

kit lens= Something to equal or slightly better than Nikon's 18-135 DX ($330) that comes with the D80- a Canon 17-135 EF-S with no IS? Sounds good to me.

The Nikon 18-135 DX by the way is a feat of engineering that I must blog about soon. But now I'm going to try and get some more sleep. Don't you just hate it when you have a really tiring day, you come home and crash to sleep just a little early, and then wake up at 2 AM and feel ready for the next day even though you know that if you get up and start the day you'll be dead-tired again by 10 AM? Yeah that's what's up.

In the end, remember that it's not about the latest-and-greatest equipment, it's about the photographer's eye and his skill with the camera he's got. And remember in the END-end we can't take anything material with us...

=Matt=

POLL:

How many photographers out there don't just think "oh yay a new camera just came out, I'm going to buy it!" ...but actually think "oh yay a new camera just came out, that means the price of used older cameras is going to drop!"

I'm just wondering this, because it seems like there is a stigma against buying used gear for some reason, and everybody just seems so inclined to buy whatever the newest camera is, even if it's a bad deal because of the value in older, used cameras?

Am I the only one that really considers buying a Canon 20D now that the 30D is out?

Am I the only one looking forward to the release of Nikon's new flagship cameras simply because the price of an old, used D2Hs or D2X is going to fall through the floor? (For that matter, am I the only one who thinks the "measly" 4 megapixel D2Hs is even worth considering?)

You might be a camera geek if you just leave your tripod in your car all the time...

=Matt=

I'm a little busy these days. How about you?

I love the commentary that Ken Rockwell posts on his website, it's always my kind of reading- humorous, yet no-nonsense, truthful and REAL.

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/different.htm

He's got a new article up titled "Making Photos That Stand Out" and I think it's a great read... Especially today, when we're seeing a lot of copycat photographers, bandwagon shooting / processign styles, and a general lack of freshness...

It's short and sweet, and it comes "paired" with another article titled "Photography Is Not A Spectator Sport"...

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/spectator.htm

Basically all I can really say is, for all the effort that you put into your photography, put the most effort into shooting YOUR own way, and being YOURSELF. Yes, I highly recommend studying other photographer's work, taking workshops etc. in fact that's the best way to rocket-launch yourself to a higher level. But once you have that experience and knowledge, don't settle for simply being an immitator! If you are simply an immitator, you'll never make a name for YOURSELF. You must find your own unique style, your own ultimate passion, and run with it...

Take care,
=Matt=

EDIT: *sigh...* There's nothing I can really do about it at this point in my life, since I'm quite poor, but please please PLEASE do not purchase a digital camera via any of the links in the ad banner at the top of my page. Not without ASKING ME first!

You see, Google takes advertising money from ANYONE, they do not research the reputation of a company first. Right now I see at least two KNOWN SCAM GROUPS advertising Nikon DSLR's for insanely low prices, a D80 for something like $399, and a D2Xs for under $3,000. These are scam groups, so don't even bother clicking...

=Matt again=

I'm sorry folks, but it is eerily quiet in the photographic industry right now, and this almost implies that Nikon will NOT be releaseing a whole shebang of new gear on the 25th. Why does the silence mean this, you ask? Well history has actually proven that in every previous major release of Nikon equipment, leaks started leaking about 7-10 days before the actual announcement. I'm almost certain that these leaks are intentional, and therefore the lack of leaks either means that Nikon just randomly decided NOT to leak anything even though they ARE going to announce a bunch of new gear, OR they simply aren't going to announce anything. I've still got my fingers crossed, but I'm losing hope as the days go by.

HOWEVER, un-releated to the D3H or D3X or 15 new DX lenses rumors, there IS a seemingly "official leak" about a D300 or D200X. For some reason I doubt this will happen because the D2Xs and the D2Hs need their next-generation models MUCH more than the D200 does. The D200 is the youngest "pro" body Nikon has and it is still selling very well, thus I find a D200X or D300 pretty hard to believe... (Well actually the "s" model updates to Nikon's D2 series cameras are about the same age as the D200, but still, the D2Hs is a "meager" 4 MP and the D2Xs is being crucified for it's (poor) high ISO performance...

Also, we may see a Canon 40D sooner than later, but don't expect that to be anything shocking, just the next generation of the 30D. It'll probably be 10 MP, have a dust shake-off mechanism, and not much else in relation to the 30D. (Personally I'd LOVE to see them start making PRO 1.6x bodies, with the 45 AF points and weather sealing etc. but that will probably never happen...)

Take care,

=Matt=

EDIT: *sigh...* There's nothing I can really do about it at this point in my life, since I'm quite poor, but please please PLEASE do not purchase a digital camera via any of the links in the ad banner at the top of my page. Not without ASKING ME first!

You see, Google takes advertising money from ANYONE, they do not research the reputation of a company first. Right now I see at least two KNOWN SCAM GROUPS advertising Nikon DSLR's for insanely low prices, a D80 for something like $399, and a D2Xs for under $3,000. These are scam groups, so don't even bother clicking...

=Matt again=

Two things prompted this post:

First, the recent christian conference I attended, and second Mike Colón's latest blog entry about the small decisions in life that need to be made in order to live a healthier life, especially along christian lines.

A couple repliers on Mike's blog were to the effect "getting with Jesus" is a great "business tactic", (and nothing more?) ...as if someone famous and skilled / successful like Mike couldn't possibly have a genuine relationship with God, and not just be blogging about it to appear spiritual and drum up business...

Which is of course a silly idea. I've had a relationship with the Lord all my life, and have only recently gotten into professional photography.

I really was helped by Mike's pointers and I think it takes guts to post about one's faith on a public blog, especially when every other pro in the industry is watching you... I never even thought that a "Jesus bandwagon" would be good for business, I just thought it was a life-practice that other christians would appreciate and non-christians would ignore.

I guess there will always be those non-christians who feel compelled to shove THEIR "gospel" down christian throats LOL...

But anyway... Check out Mike's blog and definitely subscribe, (via RSS of course) ...especially if you like beautiful photos, if you are a professional photographer, and/ or if you are a christian...

Moving on, I realized that there needs to be a difference between being materialistic and simply staying on top of an industry for the sake of ones' business. As a pro in general we *must* be well-informed if we are going to stay in business. Due to the super-competitive nature of the industry today we have to be at the forefront, plain and simple. Things like Bridge and Lightroom and the latest DSLR bodies are tools we need to master in order to stay in business!

But it's also incredibly easy to simply "worship" material posessions, to be a "fanboy" and obsess over gear, to put your heart into these temporary things that eventually leave us wanting more.

Christian or not, I beleive it is harmful to one's spiritual and mental health to be like this. You're always wanting something more, wishing you had another lens etc, always wanting to "dump it" and upgrade, getting hyped over the release of new gear, and so on and so forth. It gets you down plain and simple, and for me as a christian it totally takes my focus away from the Lord. But like I said christian or not, I think materialism is one of the great downfalls of society today, and a huge reason for all the depression and dissatisfaction in the world today...

Obviously I'm guilty of pretty much every one of those un-healthy things. At the moment I'm eagerly awaiting the (possible) announcement of Nikon's next generation of cameras / lenses. (10 days until Nikon's 90th anniversary)

While by Moses' "law" there's definitely nothing wrong with this picture other than coveting, and non-christians won't even care about that one, as a christian I feel only one true need inside me, and that is to "gain" Christ, instead of filling my "vessel" with other stuff.

Aside from my christian values, I strongly believe in a few things:

1.) Be happy with what (camera gear) you have.

2.) You probably don't need that new DSLR in order to take better pictures; that one you already have does the job just fine...

3.) Be nice to everyone else in the industry, first of all having a pleasant demeanor is GOOD FOR YOUR BUSINESS, but also it is just a common courtesy. Don't insult other people's gear, photos, or skills. Regardless of what camera they have!

4.) Keep a level / healthy head in general. If you're down, find out what is making you down and eliminate it from your life. Remember, theoretically YOU are in charge of your life, especially including your emotions.

I don't intend to cease from staying on top of the industry for the sake of my business of course, that would be dangerous. And I'll always post about gear and industry news so that other professionals can stay on top too. However hopefully I'll be able keep my spirit & soul on the right track, and hopefully any non-christians out there can be adult enough to respect my silly convictions hehehe...

Take care and the Lord be with your spirit,
=Matt=