What Photo Gear

The camera reviews website - DPReview.com have now published their full length Nikon D300 review.

If you haven’t already read the review and are even remotely interested in the D300, then hit the link now. For those not in the know, DPReview.com is the place to go online for in-depth camera reviews (although they focus mostly on DSLRs)

And I’m sure some people would also be very interested in the image comparison of the Nikon D300 vs the Canon 40D, in both JPEGs and their respective RAW output. Or perhaps a look at the high ISO performance of the D300 compared to the Canon 40D, Sony A700 and the Olympus E3.

From: DPReview.com via WhatPhotoGear.com

The third camera that Canon has announced today, is the Canon SD890 IS (Digital Ixus 970 IS in Asia and Europe) - and this one features a 5x optical zoom - the longest ever on Canon’s Digital Elph series of camera’s. The lens has a 35mm equivalence of 37mm - 185mm - so there’s quite a bit more reach compared to the 2 earlier models. (Although personally I would have preferred that they had added to the wide angle end instead)

The IS of course means it also comes with Canon’s Image Stabilization system like the 2 other camera’s announced today. And the SD890 IS will have a 2.5inch LCD and thankfully an optical viewfinder as well.

The Canon SD890 IS:

• 10 megapixels
• 5x optical zoom (37-185mm equivalent)
• Image Stabilization of course (which Canon claims can deliver up to a 4 stop advantage)
• 2.5″ LCD with an optical viewfinder
• Multi Control Dial (a first for an SD series camera)
• And an interesting body design, with one side being a lot more curvy

This 5x zoom ultra compact can be yours by mid-April, with an MSRP of $399.99.

Hit the Read More link to see the full Canon Press Release.

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Canon has introduced today 2 new SD Digital Elph’s - the SD790 IS and the SD770 IS. Also known as the Digital Ixus 90 and the Digital Ixus 85 in Asia and Europe. The IS of course, stands for Image Stabilization.

Both camera’s pretty much share the same specifications, with the main differences being found on the back - the SD790 IS having a 3 inch LCD with no viewfinder while the SD770 IS gets a smaller 2.5 inch LCD but with the added benefit of a viewfinder (much more useful in my opinion) - and we get slightly different control layouts as well, due to the different sized LCDs and the addition of that viewfinder on the SD770 IS.

And some key specs:

• 10.0 Megapixels
• 3x optical zoom (35mm-105mm equivalent)
• 30 fps movie mode and a Time Lapse mode
• Face Detection
• Enhanced Auto-Focus (that performs up to 1 stop darker)

Not a bad pair of camera’s here by Canon (on paper at least) - the addition of Image Stabilization is certainly welcome, and will help in combating camera shake. Both camera’s will be available by the end of March (SD790 IS) and mid-April (SD770 IS) with suggested retail prices of about $349.99 and $299.99 respectively.

Full press release from Canon after the jump.

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And what a great way to start off your Wednesday morning - you get to see someone drop their Nikon D3 from their second floor apartment to the brick sidewalk below.

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And perfect timing too, as I’ve been looking into getting a photo backpack capable of storing a laptop for my trip to Manila in a few months ; DigitalCameraReview.com have a review of the Lowepro Fastpack (the particular model they review is the Fastpack 250)

I’ve always been a big fan of Lowepro bags, in fact I own 4 of them. Some people dislike them because they supposedly look like camera bags - quite honestly, I don’t know about that. As far as I know the only ones who would know they were camera bags would be your fellow photographers - who would also know all the other brands like Tamrac, Crumpler etc.. What I like about the Lowepro designs are that they’re not splashy, and most of the the time they’re available in black. That’s pretty much as inconspicuous as you can get methinks. Unless you get a beat-up backpack and just wrap all your gear in old t-shirts.

Overall, based on this review, it looks like the Fastpack is definitely going to go on my list. My main concern right now is the lack of weather-proofing it seems Lowepro decided not to add their All-Weather cover to this particular line of backpacks. (it’ll be the rainy season in the Philippines during my trip)

The Lowepro Fastpack 250 for 15.4″ notebooks is available at Amazon for $89.95 ; and the Fastpack 350 for 17″ notebooks is available for $112.95.

From: DigitalCameraReview.com via WhatPhotoGear.com

Thom Hogan’s Nikon D300 review is now online.

Thom Hogan has always been one of my favorite gear reviewers, he’s a Nikon guru, and his reviews are always clear, concise, to the point and fairly objective and he always adds great insights on the products he is reviewing. Plus his e-books are always some of the best resources for Nikon DSLR owners. I’d love to be on one of his workshops one of these days.

Despite quite a long list of issues with some of the button changes and the UI - “Overall, the D300 shows just how overextended the current Nikon UI design has gotten. You will be hit by something that slows your shooting (or makes you miss a setting) someday, which is not what we want in a camera of this caliber.”

The drawbacks are mostly over-shadowed by the positives - Excellent image quality, faster AF ; and value - “Okay, I’ll say it: yes, it’s the average person’s D2x, at a little over one-third the price. There were reasons to have a D2x, but they just went completely away.”

One thing I really like about his review are his thoughts on “Should you get a D300″ - a great read for all those looking to upgrade.

Click here to read Thom Hogan’s Extensive D300 Review

From: ByThom.com via WhatPhotoGear.com