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Nikon Zf Mirrorless

15th January 2024

Nikon at CeS<br />

A Bright Orange Camera

If you read my previous post, you’ll know that I recently returned from attending the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Since the 1980’s Ive been attending CES which showcases many of the newest gadgets and products that are destined to be delivered to the marketplace.

At the Nikon booth a bright orange colored camera caught my attention. This was the Nikon Zf which was introduced last November (2023).


	The Nikon Zf is a 24mp full frame mirrorless camera that shares some of the looks of older classic SLRs – the familiar pyramid viewfinder, a circular shutter dial, an independent ISO dial. I was told that it’s able to capture 11fps stills and handle 4K video at 30fps. The autofocus tracking can recognize nine types of subjects. The image stabilization is linked to the AF point. The rear screen is fully articulated. The camera also features several dedicated black and white modes. For the fashionable photographer the Zf is available in six different colors. The price is about $2250 with 40mm f/2 lens.
	After speaking to the Nikon rep who explained the camera’s features, he walked me over to their in-booth photo studio for a demonstration. I registered my name and email address and found myself in line to have my picture taken. Here the photographer was using the Zf camera surrounded by a set of lightboxes. After sitting for a series of six photos I walked over to the nearby monitor where the artist assistant showed me the resulting pictures. Whatever the artist did, the portraits turned out better than my real life visage.

Later in the day, the images from the photoshoot arrived in my email box.

Here are a couple of the portraits taken with the Nikon Zf.

My thanks go to the people from Nikon for a new set of portraits and for showing me another one of their newest capable cameras.

Post tags: camera, CES, Consumer Electronics Show, Las Vegas, Nikon, Nikon Zf

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Canon Portrait at CES

15th January 2024

Canon Portraits

Magically Making a 3D Image

I’ve attended the annual Consumer Electronics Show pretty regularly since the 1980s. Due to pandemic concerns, I skipped 2022 and 2023.

However this year I decided to go again and just returned from this year’s event.

Naturally my interest in photography sent me over to the Canon booth where one of their presenters prodded me to have my picture taken.

Eric showed me what appeared to be a normal digital camera. He told me that he was going to take my picture and turn it into a 3D image.

After taking my snapshot, Eric walked me over to Jay who asked me to locate my image on the large board beside him and click on my photo.

Seconds later I received an email on my cellphone.

It contained the following short mp4 video.

Eric told me that the photo is passed through software which renders the single image into a 3D mp4 file. I don’t know the exact details of how this happens but the result is pretty cool.

Thanks to the staff at Canon.

Post tags: 3D, Canon, CES, Consumer Electronics Show, Las Vegas, portrait

Posted in: events,informational,personal,photographs,portraits,presentation,software,stills,technical,video | | Comments Off

Consumer Electronics Show 2016

24th January 2016

All Things Techie

The Consumer Electronics Show has been the face of the electronics industry for almost 50 years. Except for one year, I’ve attended the show continuously since 1980 first as an exhibitor for many years, next as an industry member and lately as part of the press.

CES is held each year in early January in Las Vegas. This makes traveling to CES a respite from the cold and snowy winter weather of my home base in Michigan. I walked many miles through the aisles and took in the breath of new gadgets that may make their way to our homes and businesses in the next months.

Along with 170,000 attendees, I was privy to see some 3,800 exhibitors that occupied 2.5 million square feet of floor space showing their products.

Here are a couple that caught my attention.

DXO One – iOS Camera
One of my first stops was at the DXO Labs booth where their rep Elodie Petiot demonstrated a small, standalone camera that melds seamlessly with the iPhone and iPad. The DXO One has a high resolution 20MP sensor with a fast f/1.8 32mm equivalent lens and attaches directly to the iOS device through a Lighting connector thereby eliminating the need for a wifi connection. An iOS app provides control over all of the cameras’s features – focus, exposure, shutter speed, aperture setting, ISO setting, more. Captured images are immediately transferred to the iPhone for editing or sharing online. The suggested price for the DXO One is $475. For more information please visit DXO.

Sony Alpha 7R II Mirrorless
I’ve been using Sony APS-C mirrorless cameras for the past four years, but Sony’s new full-frame a7r II has been on my radar scope since it became available late last year. With a whopping 42-megapixel sensor it should fits into my fondness for landscape photography. Its BSI (back sided illuminated) sensor enables Sony to pack more light gathering power onboard, thereby boosting sensitivity to 102,400. Autofocus speed is said to be 40% faster than the earlier a7R model. Other improvements include five-axis image stabilization and shutter dampening for less camera vibration.
What’s holding me back from purchasing this camera? I’d also have to shell out a big investment for a set of full-frame lenses. The suggested price of the a7R II is $3200. For more information, please visit Sony.