by Aaron Hockley on June 16, 2011
Those wacky folks over at LensRentals.com did some tests on lens filters. A lot of them. This is a good read if you’re curious about the difference between high-quality and low-quality filters or whether filters affect image quality at all.
Please go read Good Times with Bad Filters.
by Aaron Hockley on June 9, 2011
Last week I was made aware of a new service being provided by the folks at GadgetTrak. Their core business involves software solutions used to locate and track hardware devices (for example, to track a stolen laptop). Last week they announced a new service that indexes photos across the web based on camera serial number. As a photographer, the idea is that one could enter the serial number of their camera and see everywhere that photos from that camera are being displayed on the public internet. It sounds like a good way that one could do a bit of copyright policing if one was so inclined.
I went to the GadgetTrak Camera Serial Search site and put in three serial numbers from my three most-used cameras (Canon and Nikon DSLRs which are about 5 years old, 3 years old, and 6 months old). Zero results were returned. I know that I’ve posted over 6,000 images publicly from these cameras to sites such as Flickr, SmugMug, and a variety of smaller or self-hosted locations. I dropped a quick message to my contact at GadgetTrak and was told that they’re still indexing. They indicate they’ve indexed almost three million serial numbers but that there are billions of images to go as they create a more complete index.
The service sounds like a great idea, and perhaps at some point it will be more useful, but until their index grows bigger to encompass more images from more cameras, it sounds like a service that I’m only going to find interesting in theory.
Update 6/9 15:00: After chatting with someone from GadgetTrak, apparently the reason why I can’t find my photos is that the serial number is missing. Given that I’m using standard software (Lightroom, Photoshop) and not explicitly removing any metadata, we’re going to investigate what’s going on. If my serial numbers are being stripped without my knowledge, I can’t help but wonder how many others are in the same situation. I’ll post a followup after we do some research.
by Aaron Hockley on June 6, 2011
Came across something new earlier today: someone who has put a text watermark with a copyright notice on an Instagram photo.
Seriously? It’s a 612-pixel image.
It made me all unfollowy.
by Aaron Hockley on June 3, 2011
A long-standing issue that I (and many other) photographers have with Wikipedia is that the licensing policies for Wikipedia preclude photographers from contributing images without also making those images free for the taking and use for any purpose commercial or non. There are a few caveats (such as fair use), but in general if one contributes images to Wikipedia, one must also allow that image to then be repurposed for other uses including commercial projects.
A group in Portland, Oregon has been constructing PortlandWiki, a community-built wiki that’s all about Portland. Tomorrow there will be a photography contest with the purpose of crowdsourcing the gathering of new images for use on PortlandWiki. When I first heard about the contest, I assumed that the same licensing woes of Wikipedia would be in play and I didn’t think much of it.
Last week, Mark Dilley reached out to me and asked me if I’d heard of the effort and if I had any thoughts. I indicated my photo licensing concerns, and I’m pleased to note that the PortlandWiki folks are taking a more reasonable approach to photos for their project. They’ve added a variety of licensing options, and as Mark noted in an email:
I think we all agree that if the person uploads it to PortlandWiki and says it can be used there – they can pretty much pick the license.
The plan makes sense to me. Allow photographers to license their work for use on PortlandWiki without also forcing them to allow that photo to be used elsewhere. It respects the notion that a photographer may want to contribute their work to a community wiki without also having to give away rights for other usage.
I’ll be out in Portland tomorrow and I hope to create a few images for the PortlandWiki site.
by Aaron Hockley on June 1, 2011
It’s the beginning of a new month so it’s time for my monthly look at the top-selling camera and photo items as measured by Amazon.com.
The list is dominated by pocket cameras although we see one DSLR and a handful of small video units.
- Canon PowerShot A3000IS 10 MP Digital Camera
– A newcomer to the bestsellers list, this compact point-and-shoot offers decent 10 megapixel photos for just over $100. It’s a great affordable option for someone who wants a camera which slips easily into a pocket.
- Flip UltraHD Video Camera
– although officially discontinued, the Flip UltraHD continues to be a bestseller due to its great quality, durability, and ease of use. I have one of these units and it works great.
- Canon PowerShot S95 10 MP Digital Camera
– Canon’s S95 is one of the most popular compact cameras amongst professional photographers, and for good reason. A larger-than-typical image sensor (for a camera of its size) means great image quality even in low light, high-ISO conditions. Couple that with a pocket size and it’s a great option for producing high-quality images on the go.
- Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX5V Digital Camera
– another great pocket camera, this mid-range Sony provides ten megapixels which is about right – cameras that try to push for more in this form factor often suffer from image quality issues. This is a nice little pocket camera with a 10x wide angle zoom.
- Canon PowerShot ELPH 300 HS Digital Camera
– Another pocket camera, this one is part of Canon’s long-running small ELPH series. This one occupies a price point below that of the S95 but more expensive than the $100 models.
- Canon PowerShot A495 10.0 MP Digital Camera
– if you need a pocket camera and the number one factor is cheap, this is a decent option from Canon. It’s less than $70.
- Nikon D5100 Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm Zoom Lens
– seeing this on the list doesn’t surprise me at all. Nikon recently released the D5100 and it’s become a popular “first DSLR” model for good reason. Packing a good image sensor along with nice features, for about $850 one can pick up a great camera along with a wide angle zoom lens.
- Flip UltraHD Video Camera – White
– the white version of Flip’s popular camera. The black version is up at the #2 spot on this month’s list.
- Kodak Mini Video Camera with SD Card
– This super-cheap ($40) video camera seems like it would be a great fit for kids or for another situation where one was concerned about the camera being damaged or destroyed.
- Kodak PlaySport (Zx3) HD Waterproof Pocket Video Camera Bundle
– It would seem that a waterproof video camera might be fun in the swimming pool, while boating, or for other summer water sports. In addition to Kodak’s great PlaySport waterproof camera, this bundle includes a flex tripod, remote control, and 4GB memory card.
If you use the links above and end up purchasing through Amazon, a small commission will be returned to me that helps fund the operation of this site. Thanks for your support!
