KOH KHO KING

Toshiba quits HD-DVD

Posted on February 20th, 2008 by KhoKing.
Categories: Computer / IT.

Yes…this might be the hottest news in the technology world recently. Toshiba has announced that they are officially quiting the HD-DVD format, leaving few others players behind.

In case you are wondering…this it the world for the next generation high storage DVD format, between HD DVD and Blu-Ray (Sony).

Toshiba’s HD DVD is backed by Paramount, Universal Pictures, Microsoft, Sanyo, and NEC.

Sony’s Blu-ray is backed by Disney, 20th Century Fox, MGM, Dell, Panasonic, and Philips.

In Japan, the TV news even conduct a very comprehensive war analysis between the two formats…but my memory not so good to remember all. In summary, Sony Blu-Ray seems to have more promising future, with HD DVD dying slowly. PlayStation 3 is definitely playing big help in promoting Blu-Ray format.

You can read CNN news on Toshiba quiting the HD DVD format at:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/BUSINESS/02/19/toshiba.hdd/index.html

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Tamron SP 70-200mm F2.8 Shipping Date - 7th March 2008

Posted on January 29th, 2008 by KhoKing.
Categories: Photography.

Tamron has just announced the shipping date of Tamron SP 70-200mm F2.8 which will be available from 7th March 2008.

First available in Canon EOS mount, follow up by Nikon, Sony and then Pentax mounts.

The lens was first announced in March 2007 under development. Using 77mm filter size, removable tripod collar, MSRP at 10万4,790円 (around RM3.2k). Street price should be 70-80% of MSRP, which means the lens is sure going to be a hit!

Tamron is well known for creating good value for money lenses!

3 comments.

Memory card speed test

Posted on January 16th, 2008 by KhoKing.
Categories: Computer / IT, Photography.

How fast is your memory card? How fast is your camera writing and reading speed? How fast is your computer writing/reading speed? How fast is your card reader?

Does it really matter?

A friend of mine, Aaron Kok took up the trouble and spent time to do the test below. Hope you will find it useful.

Camera - 1D Mk3

PC - Sony Vaio notebook - Centrino 2ghz

Card Reader Tested

- Buffalo PCMCIA CardBus (RCF-CBA)

- Buffalo MCR-A27

CF Card Tested

- Sandisk Extreme IV 4GB

- Sandisk Extreme III 2GB

- Lexar Pro 2Gb 80x

- PenDrive 4Gb 155x

SD Card

- Kingston 2Gb Elite Pro SD

Tests are NOT scientific, just done to satisfy myself to purchase cheaper cards . Tho keep in mind on reliablity. So far only cards have failled me is kingston CF and Lexar Pro. Kingston was exchanged for Sandisk and Lexar was replaced. Lexar works fine now.

Buffer Clearing Tests. 6 shot burst. Time calculate from 1st shot till camera stops writing via the write light..

Test done by taking photo of a clock and taking final shot when buffer clears. Error of approx +-1 sec. All these are done via eyes and just the windows clock, not an actual timer.

Compact Flash

- Sandisk Extreme IV 4GB - 6 seconds

- Sandisk Extreme III 2GB - 6 seconds

- Lexar Pro 2Gb 80x - 10 seconds

- PenDrive 4Gb 155x - 20 seconds

SD Card

- Kingston 2Gb 50x Elite Pro SD - 6 seconds (it feels as it it clears much faster, will need to do more bursts to test)

There are differences in some card when it clears the buffer. Some will show the buffer dropping smoothly, some clears 1,2, then wait, then clears another 3, then wait and clears ones.

Card to PC - 200MB Multiple RAW Files

Buffalo PCMCIA

- Sandisk Extreme IV 4GB - 20 seconds

- Sandisk Extreme III 2GB - 20 seconds

- Lexar Pro 2Gb 80x - 25 seconds

- PenDrive 4Gb 155x - 30 seconds

Buffalo USB

- Sandisk Extreme IV 4GB - 15 seconds

- Sandisk Extreme III 2GB - 13 seconds

- Lexar Pro 2Gb 80x - 20 seconds

- PenDrive 4Gb 155x - 18 seconds

Credits to:

• http://www.aaronkok.com/ 

0 comments.

Sony Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 24-70mm F/2.8 ZA SSM

Posted on December 20th, 2007 by KhoKing.
Categories: Photography.

Saw photos of a interesting lens today, Sony Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 24-70mm F/2.8 ZA SSM!

Sony DSLR has been of interesting mainly because it inherit the previous very high quality Minolta legendary glass, and of course not forgetting the partnership with Zeiss to specifically produce ZA series of lenses for Sony Alpha mount. Zeiss lenses in autofocus! Something like a dream comes true for many! German glass (Leica, Zeiss, Schneider…etc.) has always thought to be more superior than Japanese glass. How true is it I am not sure, but I sure am interested in this Zeiss if my pocket is deep enough.

Let’s see the two photos I saw in PhotoMalaysia forum (original source unknown):

A few things I found interesting in this lens.:

1. SSM

SSM in Sony means silent wave motor, which means the lens has built in motor, which is great! First in Zeiss!

2. 24mm

Yes! Latest zoom lens in this focal length in Canon and Nikon and now Zeiss has gone wider to 24mm! Great!

3. Full frame lens

Yes, this is a full frame lens. Very possible that Sony will come out with a full frame DSLR soon. Rumors that Nikon D3 full frame sensor is co-design with Sony, so very possible Sony will use the same 12.1MP full frame sensor in their full frame professional DSLR. Minolta has a 9 series professional SLR in their range, Sony will definitely utilize the technology and design from Minolta. My prediction is that we shall see full frame professional DSLR from Sony within year 2008 before Beijing Olympic.

4. Boxed

Yes…if you notice the box in the photo above, which means that the lens should already been in production or available to some! (if the photo is genuine).

5. F2.8 Aperture

Yes, F2.8 constant aperture. I just love fixed aperture lens, which immediately shout to you: PROFESSIONAL GRADE!

I must admit that the design and look of the lens is very sleek and clean. It looks simple, fat but clean. No busy badge or sticker here and there. I wonder how long will the lens extend from zoomed, it would be a dream lens if the length of the lens remain constant during zooming, which I hate in Nikon and Canon similar lenses.

If only Zeiss can make AF lenses for Nikon, that would be my dream lens to get!

3 comments.

Photo taken by Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T30

Posted on November 20th, 2007 by foong.
Categories: Family.

Sometimes I do read the posts in Photomalaysia forum and other forums set up by my husband. There are so many professional photographers sharing their great photos with technical explaination, particularly the equipments they used to take the photos, how to set their equipments in order to have such effects, etc etc..

(more…)

2 comments.

Tamron SP 17-50mm F2.8 lens ~ Front / Back focus problem

Posted on August 30th, 2007 by KhoKing.
Categories: Photography.

I have bought many…yes MANY Tamron SP 17-50mm F2.8 lens. Most are in Canon and Nikon mount, a few in Sony/KM mount.

Every unit I tested them myself for focus accuracy. From my previous experience, I found this lens is seriously having QC issue with focus accuracy. My most recent experience testing 6 units of this lens in Nikon mount that I ordered, 2 of them are having front focus problem. I have spent more than 2 hours in testing them, comparing against my own copy that is sharp with focusing.

What is front focus?

Front focus of a lens is when you focus on subject A, in the photo captured, the sharp focus patch is a few cm or even meters in front of subject A. Back focus simply means in actual photo the sharp focus path is a few cm or meters behind subject A.

When testing for front / back focus issue of a lens, one need to test with far subject as well as near subject. This is to make sure that the focus accuracy is not just for close-up shot but problematic on far/infinity subjects.

I use a few methods in testing focus. I find the focus test chart in the internet is not entirely accurate, especially if your DSLR focus sensor is not exactly in the middle or center of your viewfinder, then you might be in trouble. So, I prefer to use top to bottom or depth of field kind of testing technique. With this I can be sure that what I focus doesn’t get affected by the variation of focus sensor.

I will share with photos in future my testing technique.

2 comments.

Heat Up on Sony?

Posted on August 29th, 2007 by foong.
Categories: Photography.

Another leak photo of the possible Press Release by Sony.

It seems like there will be TWO new DSLRs from Sony. One seems to be the A300 (on the left) and there seems to be another more PRO body on the right. Could it be in the Minolta 9 series range?!

As for lenses, there might be 7~9 new lenses from Sony. Still, Sony lenses are way too expensive in my opinion. Their 70-200mm F2.8 lens is about 15% more than Nikon and Canon equivalent, and that is in the RM8k~9k region!

One must considered deeply before wetting on Sony DSLR…

Found a BIGGER image from the net:

Click to view…

0 comments.

Sony Alpha A300? New Alpha?

Posted on August 29th, 2007 by KhoKing.
Categories: Photography.

There are rumors that Sony will announce a new Alpha on 5th September 2007, which is next week.

A photo showing possible Alpha A300 is flying in the net…

It is said to have 12MP sensor, possible the same sensor used in Nikon D300. It supposed to be a model higher than the current A100, possible in the Minolta 7 series.

The vertical grip looks great in the photo, Minolta used to make the best vertical grip for their SLR back in the film days, giving the best ergonomic and functionality to users.

Let’s wait for further news in September…

0 comments.

Sony Unleashes Possible iMac Killer

Posted on August 28th, 2007 by KhoKing.
Categories: Computer / IT.

Sony has just announced a new personal computer which might be the Apple’s new iMac killer!

Sony VAIO LT19U

The US$2,899 model sports a Blu-ray burner, a pull-out sled for adding another hard drive and a VESA-standard wall mount input. Besides that, it offers an external ATI Digital Cable Tuner.

Key Features:

• 22-inch widescreen LCD (1,680×1,050)
• 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500 CPU
• 2GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM
• 500GB 7,200 rpm hard drive
• 256MB Nvidia GeForce 8400 GT graphics chip
• Windows Vista Ultimate
• 802.11n wireless networking
• Built-in ATSC and NTSC TV tuner
• Built-in 1.3 megapixel Web cam
• 3 watt stereo speakers, and built in 5 watt subwoofer
• various USB, Ethernet, removable media, and audio ports

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Choosing Camcorder in the market

Posted on July 14th, 2007 by KhoKing.
Categories: Photography.

I did some study recently on which digital videocam to buy as well recently, here’s what I think:

Media Type:
1. HDD type of camcorder is not practical at the moment. The highest 120GB in Sony can only record 13 hours of high def video quality. Transferring and backuping those space is going to be troublesome. Worse if HDD failed.

2. DVD type is not practical as well, as one DVD is only 15 mins of high def recording.

3. SD (secure digital) memory card? Hmm…maximum is 8GB SDHC at the moment, can record around 12~15 minutes of high definition video. Quite useless IMO…

4. I end up chose miniDV, as I find it easier to store and miniDV is cheap (RM15 or US$4 per tape).

Video Quality
There are standard type and high definition type in the market nowadays. After seeing and comparing the quality of standard type with high def type, the answer is clear. Although I do not have high def TV at the moment as well, but achieving the video on high def format is definitely the way to go for me. The video quality is totally different, like watching VCD vs DVD.

After deciding on the above, the rest is easy as there are not many high def miniDV camcorder in the market. In Sony range, there is only one model at the moment, DCR-HC7.

I read the review at cnet and some other sites in the internet. I too have actually made up my mind on choosing Sony only camcorder, as it is always known to be the best. However, if you checked some reviews in the net on miniDV high def camcorder, you will notice another popular model: Canon iVIS HV20. (There is no high def miniDV from Panasonic.)

After reading and comparing Canon HV20 with Sony HDR-HC7 in a store (actual products), here’s what I found:

1. Sony LCD is not as bright and as contrasty as the Canon LCD. Both are of same size, but Sony one is dull.

2. Sony design is nicer, very classy. Canon one felt like plastic, Sony is silver metalic.

3. Canon is using standard ISO type of hotshoe (for flash or light or mic). Sony is special Sony hotshoe design, must buy Sony only accessories.

4. Sony is using memory stick for still photo, Canon is miniSD.

5. Canon is cheaper by around RM400.

6. Canon high def format is full 1920 x 1080 picture, while Sony is 1440 x 1080.

7. Canon has a drawback on sound quality, it records the sound of motor in the camcorder. Not sure about Sony.

8. Canon has better low light recording than Sony, in COLOUR. While Sony has night shot mode, but all becomes green/grey (B&W).

9. Canon HV20 has very fast focusing speed. Point your camcorder to different distance and subject, immediately it change and refocus. Fast, definitely FASTER than Sony.

So, I end up getting the Canon iVIS HV20.

3 comments.

TIPA Award 2007 Winners

Posted on April 28th, 2007 by KhoKing.
Categories: Photography.

TIPA Award 2007 Winners

The “European ‘Oscar’ of the Photo & Imaging Industry, 2007″ is what TIPA like to call themselves has been announced and the winners in no particular order are :

• D-SLR Entry Level Camera - Nikon D40x
• D-SLR Expert Camera - Pentax K10D
• D-SLR Professional Camera - Canon EOS-1D Mark III
• Medium Format Digital System Camera - Hasselblad H3D
• Rangefinder Digital Camera - Leica M8
• Ultra Compact Digital Camera - Fujifilm FinePix Z5fd
• Compact Digital Camera - Nikon COOLPIX P5000
• Superzoom Digital Camera - Panasonic LUMIX DMC-TZ3
• Multimedia Digital Camera - Samsung i7
• Entry Level Lens - Nikon AF-S DX VR Zoom-Nikkor 55-200mm F4-5.6 G (IF) (ED)
• Expert Lens - Sigma 70mm F2.8 EX DG Macro
• Professional Lens - Canon EF 16-35mm F2.8 L II USM
• Prestige Camera - Rocoh Caplio GX100
• Innovative Design - Olympus µ770 SW
• Flatbed Photo Scanner - HP Scanjet G4050
• Small Format Photo Pinter - Canon SELPHY ES1
• Expert Photo Printer - Epson Stylus Pro 3800
• Multifunction Photo Printer - Canon PIXMA MP810
• Large Format Printer - HP Designjet Z3100
• Fine Art Inkjet Paper - Hahnemühle Photo Rag Pearl 320
• Imaging Storage Media - Lexar Professional 300x CompactFlash
• Storage Back-up - Epson Multimedia Storage Viewer P-5000
• Imaging Innovation - Samsung Smart Touch User Interface
• Photo Software - Apple Aperture 1.5
• Color Management System - X-Rite i1PhotoLT
• Accessory - Manfrotto 190XPROB
• Digital Accessory - Delkin SensorScope
• Expert Photo Projector - CASIO XJ-S35
• Pro Photo Projector - JVC DLA-HD1
• Film - Kodak Portra II
• Expert Camcorder - JVC HD Everio GZ-HD7
• Pro Camcorder - Sony HDR-FX7E
• Mobile Imaging Device - Nokia N95
• Digital Minilab - Fujifilm Frontier 550
• Photo Kiosk - HP Photosmart Studio
• Monitor - EIZO CG 211

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