March 2014

March 26, 2014          

Viewfinder Hours. Back in my days running Backpacker magazine, we had an “authenticity” metric that we developed and practiced. I think it’s time for that here in the photography arena, as well. Article on dslrbodies.com.

Grass is Always Greener Syndrome. There’s a lot of “grass is always greener on the other side of the fence” going on in people’s minds these days. Article on dslrbodies.com.

Reminder: Nikon’s lens rebates go away at the end of this week. I do not expect them to be renewed for April. Why? Because March 31 is the end of Nikon’s fiscal year. Traditionally, Nikon has not been aggressive about discounting early in their fiscal year. Instead, they’re aggressive just before the end of their fiscal year, which is why we have so many rebates active at the moment. So if you’re thinking about getting one of those discounted lenses, make up your mind soon. You can help this site by ordering from the following advertiser:

bhnikonlensbanner.jpg

I expect most of the DSLR instant rebates to continue into April, by the way. Indeed, we may see a few new ones as Nikon completes their year-end inventory this week and decides they need to be more aggressive with certain cameras.


March 24, 2014          

Whats Your Biggest Problem? Today it’s time for you to come clean. You’ll need to do some soul searching and honest evaluation. It will be rough. Your ego will be bruised. If that worries you, just stop reading now. Article on dslrbodies.com.

Was it Announced or Not? Article on sansmirror.com.

 
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March 21, 2014          

What Nikon Has Taught Us. I can’t help but note that Nikon has conditioned customers in a way that is circular: since there’s a reason to wait to buy, this causes Nikon to overproduce, which lowers price, which gives the customer the reason they waited to buy. Article on dslrbodies.com.

Samyang’s “New” Lenses. As far as I can see, the only real new lens is the 12mm f/2. Article on sansmirror.com.


March 19, 2014          

Samsung Enters 1 Mirrorless Market. Samsung introduced the NX Mini Smart camera and three lenses today. Article on sansmirror.com

Sony A7/A7r and NEX-5/6 Firmware Updates. Article on sansmirror.com.


March 18, 2014          

D4 Firmware Update. Trap focus returns! Article on dslrbodies.com.

Off Target, Overloaded, and Overpriced. Let me describe the problem, because this is going to someday become a classic Harvard Business School Case Study, I think. Article on dslrbodies.com.


March 17, 2014          

Calumet Closes its Doors. I wrote late last year that this was coming (more dealer closings), and now we have a big one: Calumet US has closed their store doors last week and declared Chapter 7 bankruptcy (liquidation). Article on dslrbodies.com.

Have We Gone As Far As We’ll Go? Reaction to some of my recent articles has led me to a conclusion: for most folk, the train has gone as far as you’d care to take it. That doesn’t mean the train won’t continue to chug out into the hinterland with a few hardy souls aboard. Article on dslrbodies.com.

China Steps up for D600 Users. News out of China today says that Nikon’s D600 problem is ongoing: Officials from Shanghai Administration of Industry and Commerce apparently visited Nikon China on Sunday and got an agreement to “replace problematic products with new ones.” Article on dslrbodies.com.


March 14, 2014          

Nikon Introduces V3. The V3 contains an 18mp sensor that’ll work up to 20 fps with phase detect in a new body that’s closer to the classic soap bar shape with minimal grip and, get this, no built-in EVF. Instead, we get a 2.4m dot EVF that’s “optional" and attaches in the hot shoe/accessory port. Article on sansmirror.com. Data page for camera. Data page for 70-300mm lens. Data page for 10-30mm lens.

Fujifilm to Repair Light Leak. Fujifilm has responded to the “light leak” issue on the X-T1 with an official announcement. Article on sansmirror.com.


March 10, 2014          

Sony A7 and A7r Review. The Sony A7 and A7r are the first full frame mirrorless cameras from a Japanese manufacturer, and both generated a very large buzz on the Internet from their introduction through initial sales. Find out what Thom thinks. Article on sansmirror.com.


March 6, 2014          

Cameras Dont Stand Alone. Technology sometimes allows emerging economies to leapfrog infrastructure hurdles. Smartphones did the same thing to digital cameras that cellular phones did to landlines. Article on gearophile.com.

How to Fix What Happened. Let’s assume that I’m right and that Nikon has fumbled pieces of the serious camera lineup. How do they fix that? Article on dslrbodies.com.


March 5, 2014          

Photography: Craft or Art? There’s long been a heated discussion about photography and where it fits into the worldview in the liberal arts. Is it a craft, or is it art? Article on dslrbodies.com.


March 4, 2014          

More on Legacy. How many lenses does it take before people feel locked in? Article on dslrbodies.com.

An Interesting Choice of Words. I was struck by a quote from Canon’s Ken-Ichi Shimbori. Article on dslrbodies.com.

New Nikon Repair Experiences have been posted.

Nikon extended their lens rebates until March 29th. My analysis of the best deals is here.


March 3, 2014          

What Happened? look carefully at the 2007-2009 lineup. Nikon’s first FX DSLR. Nikon’s highest megapixel DSLR (FX). Nikon’s twin prosumer offerings (FX and DX). Nikon’s first video-enabled DSLR. And a constantly iterating low end. But look at the period after that. Article on dslrbodies.com

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