The Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 certainly looks, acts and behaves like one of those old-fashioned film based cameras that you used to see professionals and artists using to take fancy photographs. But it’s smaller. Way smaller! The big lens on the front seems to dwarf the rest of the camera. It’s like someone took one of those big, professional cameras and hit it with a shrink wray. So what’s the deal?
For decades, digital cameras (yes, they did exist a long time ago, it’s just that they were too expensive and bulky for you or I) used what’s called a “mirror box” to properly refract the light. These boxes work great and are proven technology, but they’re inherently large, and they force the camera to be designed in a certain way. The Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 doesn’t have that. It has what’s called a “Micro four-thirds system” which basically takes the mirror box and makes it nice and flat. This allows the camera to be smaller, more portable, and easier to repair if dropped (no mirror box to break).
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 is a professional camera (with a professional price) that hasn’t sacrificed reliability and size in order to get really high-quality photos. It’s compatible with most Panasonic interchangeable lenses and comes with some really good ones to get you started. If you need to take really high-quality photos and you need a camera that can take really high-quality photos but is still portable, then the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 is the latest and greatest piece of hardware you just gotta try out!
Do you own a PS3? If you do, then you’re probably enjoying one of the greatest gaming systems ever made. The blu-ray player isn’t bad either, considering it can play movies with such detail that you can see every last particle in the explosions of your favorite action movies. But what about online content? A lot of PS3 users have been clamouring for more/better online content and functionality, and Sony has stepped up with a new gadget called Life with Playstation.
The Life with Playstation service is free for PS3 users to download, and unlocks various “channels” which you can watch over a broadband internet connection. The “Live” channel offers content that is organized by city and updates in real-time. You can check the weather and news for any city in the world which is in the database, which is great if you need to see if it’s going to rain where you are or where you’re going. It’s very visually engaging and beautiful to see, and it’s just darn fun to play with too.
The Life with PlayStation service also retains the functionality of the Folding@Home application, which opens up the fascinating world of protein folding. It’s almost a must-have for biology or biochemistry students, as it really brings the world of proteins to life. And even if you don’t understand what’s going on, as you observe the proteins, your PS3’s awesome processing power works to solve protein-based problems for Stanford University. You’re contributing to research just by sitting on your couch!
The Pentax Optio W60 and the Olympus mju 1050 SW are compact, durable, digital cameras for the beach, mountain or ski slope; having added “waterproof” and “freezeproof” characteristics. Let’s have a quick look at each one.
The Pentax W60 is a great upgrade from the W30 model. Its “Easy” mode allows for one-handed management, freeing up the other hand for negotiating rugged terrain. Its larger 10.1 megapixel image sensor provides more brilliant photos and higher image quality in more difficult light environments. It’s Shake Reduction feature and Viewfinder make your photographs less blurry. It has a 3.9 x 2.2 x 1 inches (99 x 56 x 25 millimeters) body, a 5x optical/4x digital zoom and weighs 5.1 ounces (145 grams).
It is a welcome addition to the traditional, compact camera with added “rugged” protection - JIS Class 8 Waterproof and Freezeproof to 14 degrees Fahrenheit (-10 degrees Celsius).
The Olympus 1050 SW is a compact, camera for active photographers. The helpful Tap Control feature (adjusts settings with one tap) is perfect for winter climates, when fingers are too cold to fully operate the camera. This camera also has an increased capacity for storing images.
Its rugged 3.7 x 2.4 x 0.76 inches (93 x 62 x 19.3 millimeters) body, doesn’t break when dropped from 5 feet (1.5 meters) and is JIS Class 8 Waterproof and Freezeproof to 14 degrees Fahrenheit (-10 degrees Celsius).
It has a 3x optical/5x digital zoom and weighs 5.4 ounces (152 grams). Sharper pictures result from the Digital Image Stabilisation and Perfect Shot Preview functions. It also has faster zooms available.
The “Lensbaby” line of camera lenses are unique in that they mate a simple lens to a bellows so that a photographer can move the sweet spot to any part of the frame. This allows for a part of the subject to be rendered in an extremely clear focus while blurring the rest of the image, even if the sweet spot is highlighting an area which is just as distant as that which is blurred. It is a unique and powerful effect that requires no electronic parts or technology.
The Lensbaby creates an oval bokeh around the sweet spot, which is ideal for photography focusing on a single point. The ability to focus on the subject of interest without making it’s surroundings invisible assist in maximizing the presence of the subject, though the final photograph will need to have the distorted area cropped off. More experimental or artistic photographers will find that the blur effect is useful in creating motion, directing focus, and that the unique look and feel the Lensbaby creates will ensure distinct photographs.
The Lensbaby contains no electronic parts and does not communicate with the camera. Though this improves it’s reliability and longevity, it may interfere with the software of digital cameras. It eliminates the possiblity of autofocus due to it’s blurring, and many cameras will require special settings to ensure the image comes out properly. Additionally, focus is hard to confirm, so multiple photographs may be required. It is also impossible to include an index mark when making infrared photographs, although it does not interfere othererwise with infrared photos. The lens is highly compatible with many lens mounts, and can fit most professional level cameras.
Watch out too for the new Lensbabies coming out soon Lensbaby Composer, the Lensbaby Muse and the Lensbaby Control Freak.
Looking to expand to have an even bigger footprint on the internet, Google, the search engine we all know and love, has released a new browser known as Chrome (beta). It’s neat, it’s new, it’s shiny (just like it’s name) but does it offer any advantages over the IE8 (beta) or Firefox 3?
Despite it’s name, the actual Chrome interface is surprisingly not shiny. You might expect something with a lot more silver and smooth curves, considering the name, but the standard light-blue-and-white is at least functional and simple. In fact, that pretty much describes Chrome, functional and simple. It doesn’t have a lot of add-ons, or fancy applications, or anything along those lines (which is slightly dissappointing). It’s also optimized to run Javascript so that GoogleDocs and GMail run faster.
IE8 (beta) is, however, a hulking resource behemoth that is loaded down heavily with add-ons and features which no one even knows about, much less uses. Like much of the software Microsoft has put out, IE8 suffers horribly from bloatware. IE8 has at least made considerable advances in safety and security, but it’s still got some gaping holes. That said, IE8 is still in BETA so they have time to turn things around.
Firefox 3 is pretty much the same ol’ firefox it’s always been. Of course the big advantage of Firefox is that you get access to AdBlockerPro, which not only gets rid of popups and advertisements but it drastically speeds up your browsing by doing so. Another addon I like is FlashBlock which really helps to speed up your browser as well as for some reason Firefox doesn’t seem to handle Flash as well as IE8 it seems.
So what is the “Best” browser? Well IE8 is still slow and insecure, so we’ll wait for it’s final release, but Firefox 3 and Chrome are pretty similar. They’re both fast, lightweight, crash-resistant browsers with good security and reliability. Chrome has a slight edge when it comes to Javascript, but Firefox 3 is better with their addons which really make the web more fun. They’re both free, so why not try them both out and see what’s best for you? Of course there is still Opera and Safari if these 3 just don’t cut it for you.
