Digital Photo Tips

I read with interest this piece of information I got from MOSHmobile. Can you believe that they said they are going to provide a new wireless service in the United States that will offer their users totally free wireless? Users simply purchase the phone and setup an account and they can use the new UNLIMITED phone plan that gives them everything that all the other carriers do without all the costs.

Wow, that will be so awesome, isn’t it? Right now, I still dare not use my phone to capture photo, send it to Flickr and blog about it. My friend, Samm told me that the charges are very costly. She subscribed to the monthly plan which costs her close to a hundred bucks. I couldn’t afford that so I never went into that part of technology yet.

Free Wireless Service will probably enable me to take more photos, blog more often and of course, make more money with it. I won’t have to worry about losing connection when I travel and I can probably raise my blogging productivity. Imagine having my meals and blogging it live on my food blogs. Or find something interesting and blog it on my personal blog.

You get what I mean? It is every blogger’s dream come true! So, if you are living in the USA, hurry up and head over to http://moshmobile.com and find out how.

*This is brought to you by MoshMobile.*

Following my earlier post about the fake SanDisk SD card that I have, we went back to the shop last night to settle things. The shop we got it from is the (One-Stop Midland) branch of another one that we regularly go to. So, they know not to mess with us and immediately take a new SD card from one of the boxes and exchange with no questions asked.

The senior guys were not around, leaving two young cikus so we did not bother to shell them. However, the next time we go to the Gurney Plaza branch, they will definitely get some interrogations from my husband and I. My question is : Are they intentionally selling fake cards for profit? I doubt so because this shop has several chains around Malaysia and amongst all the camerashop, this shop hires some of the more professional staffs whom are all photographers with lots of knowledge about photography. So, I do not think they will bother to make profits selling fake SD cards because they cost peanuts only.

Anyway…let’s see the real thing…

This (supposed) real card has no ‘Genuine, Authentic seal’. The colour is darker blue and the red colour is much darker too. Whereas, the fake one is more orangey red.

If you notice, the latch of the lock is much smaller and less prominent. It doesn’t get lock/unlock that easily now. (When I have the time, I will photoshop the real and fake, side by side.)

And above is the notch at the bottom of the card, unlike the fake one which is just a straight line.

This is like a ‘Spot the difference’ game now, isn’t it?

Anyway, I supposed most people may be unaware their memory cards are fake unless they have used several types before. SanDisk is the third brands I used so that’s how I can feel the huge difference between the fake and real cards. I hope camera shops are not resorting to this tactic of pushing cheap, free, memory cards in their attempts to sell more cameras in this competitive markets.

Few days ago, I lamented about the SD card which gives me a lot of inconveniences. Guess what? It is fake. Bah! The shop that sells this to me better give me a good explanation or else….

I first learnt about fake SD cards from DigiSniper. True enough, upon closer inspection, my SanDisk SD card have all the fake features mention on OCAU Wiki .

As I mentioned earlier, the card kept getting locked whenever I inserted it into my camera or card reader because of the loose latch (the white thing on the left?) kept going into the ‘Lock’ position.

Now that I had blown up the photo, the finishing of the exterior does indeed suxs.

Pttooii…what genuine what authentic seal. The photo below is the tell-tale sign. There is no notch.

The photo below is taken from OCAU Wiki.

So, folks, be aware of these fake memory cards. And make sure that you give your piece of mind to our local retailers for pushing these sub-standard stuffs to us. Otherwise, more will flood our market. When buying camera, be suspicious when you are getting more freebies than usual.

The above card costs us only RM80 whilst a Kingston is RM95. Now, I am going to whack the guy for recommending SanDisk to us when we wanted a faster card. The inconveniece I had with the lock drives me crazy and not to mention the slow speed it takes to download the photos to my PC.

DPREVIEW - 5th June, 2006

Sony has today officially revealed the new Alpha DSLR-A100, a ten megapixel Digital SLR, the first to come out of the Sony and Konica Minolta marriage, with many similarities to the Konica Minolta 5D. The A100’s ten megapixel CCD is mounted on a CCD-shift Anti-Shake platform (now named Super SteadyShot) which delivers both image stabilization and Sony’s own form of dust reduction (by shaking the sensor at power off). There’s also a new image processor called ‘Bionz’ (hmmm) which delivers hardware based dynamic range optimization (with only a slight impact on performance).

About a week ago, my hubby gave a call to our regular camera shop to enquire about a possible macro lense (28mm) for my Konica-Minolta 5D . Actually, on an shopping trip about two months ago, the shopowner suggested to us to get it before they ran out of stock but our budget can’t allow that as we had bought a zoom lense 70-210mm at that time. We were told to wait for Sony to launch the lenses.

Now, Sony has plans to launch 20 lenses in the first year after the release of their first Sony Alpha DSLR! Woohoo…I hope I can afford at least one macro lense for the DSLR because the lenses by Sony is compatible for my Konica.

New α (Alpha) DSLR-A100 Camera Makes Its Debut

SAN DIEGO, June 5, 2006 — Sony is jumping into the digital single lens reflex (D-SLR) camera market with today’s introduction of the α (Alpha) DSLR-A100 system. The system combines advanced SLR features with other Sony digital imaging innovations.

With its 10.2-megapixel APS CCD image sensor, the DSLR-A100 camera is expected to have the highest resolution available in its class. It will be introduced with 19 high-quality Sony lenses, and will be compatible with most of the former Konica-Minolta Maxxum® mount lenses. The system will include a wide range of accessories as well.

Sony developed a new Dynamic Range Optimizer image analysis technology to provide exceptional picture quality and natural color reproduction, along with a new Bionz image processing engine. This new engine supports a continuous burst mode for fast-action shooting and performs intelligent power management.

“Our system will be attractive to people who are ready for something beyond what’s available in D-SLR cameras today,” said James Neal, director of marketing for digital imaging products at Sony Electronics. “Sony enthusiasts who want to upgrade from point-and-shoot cameras, as well as former Konica-Minolta digital and film SLR camera users who have already made substantial investments in lenses, will welcome this initiative.”

Read the full preview from this site.

Meantime, I must start saving/earning for that macro lense which I think will be around RM600 and above?

I learnt this new word while surfing through photography sites and forums.  I sniggered and feel so relieved!

Do you feel intimidated when the big boys  go into measurebator mode?  Can you guess what it means?  I tried looking for an explanation and since I can’t, I will make my own assumptions.

In order for noobs like us to improve our photography skills, it is good that we peek at others’ photos.  After that, we advance a few steps and hang around or usually lurks at photography forums.   There are many kind and generous people who will explain in layman’s language what you did wrong with your photos.

But there are many who will go into lingos that only they understand.   Inevitably, the whole bunch will then start comparing their mms , speed and f numbers.
Frankly, it is no difference from comparing the size of their manhood!  LOL.  Then, if you watch quietly from the sideline, the $$$ will come into picture and everyone will outdo each other in terms of the price of their cameras.  Of course, these are in the leagues of at least RM15K and above investments.

So, those are measurebators.

For my own reference sake, I am going to paste some very wise thoughts from an owner of a Konica-Minolta Dynax 5 (my brand of dSLR).  Do read and surf over to the site to read the whole post.  It is very enlightening.

You probably know I am not a measurebator who wastes endless energy parroting “specs”. Before digital cameras, photography was a lot less about specs and a lot more about feel and control and perception. KONICA-MINOLTA understood this and built their DSLRs to be instruments that one picked up, brought to eye, and composed compelling imagery without the instrument itself getting in the way. Sadly as I scan so many other posts in this forum I can hear the screams of those who honestly believe that more megapixels will make them a better photographer or that all the other specs thrown at us by the reviewers can allow a camera to make a photograph better or worse. That is just not true. The instrument is just a tool, please remember that. You need a tool that helps you, not hinders you. Again, KONICA-MINOLTA understood that when they created the 5D and 7D. They are both capable instruments and after putting mine through hell for a month I can honestly say it is an amazing value in the sub-$1000 DSLR category.

Bottom line … claims that a particular brand or model is “best” is the height of ridiculousity. Don’t even ask the question what brand is best. When you shop for a digital SLR put specs out of your mind and put the camera to you eye. Ask yourself if you feel that the hunk of plastic and metal you’re holding can capture what your eye sees and your heart feels. Buy the camera that makes you feel good. I feel very good after coming home with priceless memories and some irreplaceable magic moments, assisted in large part by a camera that worked with me rather than against me

I had silently watch noobs who often quote the megapixels of their camera. Sometimes, they are fooled that bigger number of MP equal better photos equal high price they pay.   From my very first post, I had stated that megapixels is not very important.  I had taken some nice photos with only 1.3MP camera.  So, remember, don’t ape the specs.  Just go with the feel. And don’t follow the crowds nor buy what Mawi sells.