Adobe Lightroom 3.2 adds more Nikon lens profiles

September 1, 2010 – 5:39 am
Lightroom screenshot

Lightroom 3.2 final is out, and it brings with it support for more Nikon lenses. The profiles included with the app can now be used to automatically correct distortion and vignetting for the following lenses:

  • Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR
  • Nikon AF-S DX Zoom-NIKKOR 17-55mm f/2.8G IF-ED
  • Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 16-35mm f/4G ED VR
  • Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.4G
  • Nikon AF-S Zoom-Nikkor 17-35mm f/2.8D IF-ED
  • Nikon AF NIKKOR 35mm f/2D
  • Nikon AF NIKKOR 50mm f/1.4D

I'm particularly pleased to see support for the 50/1.4s, the 16-35/4VR and the 16-85mm VR DX. Additionally, the following third-party lenses are now supported on Nikon bodies:

    SIGMA 17-50mm F2.8 EX DC OS HSM (Nikon mount)
    SIGMA APO 70-200mm F2.8 EX DG OS HSM (Nikon mount)
    TAMRON 18-200mm F/3.5-6.3 DiII A14N
    TAMRON 18-250mm F/3.5-6.3 DiII A18N
    TAMRON 18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 DiII VC B003N
    TAMRON 28-200mm F/3.8-5.6 Di A031N
    TAMRON 28-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di A061N
    TAMRON 28-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC A20N
    TAMRON 55-200mm F/4-5.6 DiII A15N
    TAMRON 70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di A17N
    TAMRON SP 10-24mm F/3.5-4.5 DiII B001N
    TAMRON SP 17-50mm F/2.8 DiII A16N
    TAMRON SP 17-50mm F/2.8 DiII VC B005N
    TAMRON SP 180mm F/3.5 Di MACRO 1:1 B01N
    TAMRON SP 200-500mm F/5-6.3 Di A08N
    TAMRON SP 28-75mm F/2.8 Di A09N
    TAMRON SP 60mm F/2 DiII MACRO 1:1 G005N
    TAMRON SP 70-200mm F/2.8 Di A001N
    TAMRON SP 90mm F/2.8 Di MACRO 1:1 272EN
    Zeiss Distagon T* 2/28 ZF.2
    Zeiss Distagon T* 2/35 ZF.2
    Zeiss Distagon T* 2,8/21 ZF.2
    Zeiss Distagon T* 2,8/25 ZF.2
    Zeiss Distagon T* 3,5/18 ZF.2
    Zeiss Makro-Planar T* 2/50 ZF.2
    Zeiss Makro-Planar T* 2/100 ZF.2
    Zeiss Planar T* 1,4/50 ZF.2
    Zeiss Planar T* 1,4/85 ZF.2

For full details of all the other changes in LR3.2, download the readme file as a PDF from here. LR3.2 is a free download for users of earlier versions in the 3.0 series, download link here.

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Carl Zeiss announce Distagon T* 35mm f/1.4 ZF.2 lens

September 1, 2010 – 5:07 am
Distagon 1,4/35 ZE

Renowned maker Carl Zeiss today announced a new lens in their Nikon F-mount compatible ZF.2 format. The Distagon T* 1,4/35 (or 35mm f/1.4 in other words) is a fast, moderate wide-angle that actually fills what is a gap in Nikon's current lineup. Nikon have a 35/2 in FX format, and a 35/1.8 in DX format, but no modern 35/1.4.

This CZ lens contains a CPU to communicate with the camera body, but in common with their other lenses does not have autofocus.

By introducing the Distagon T* 1,4/35, Carl Zeiss is complementing the Planar T*1,4/50 and T*1,4/85 lenses with a wide-angle lens that shares the same high speed. Crisp, sharp images work every time, whether at dusk or in the weak lighting conditions of a café, and without the need for a tripod. With its 35-mm, the Distagon T* 1,4/35 matches the classic and versatile standard focal lengths when used on cameras with APS-C sensor formats.

Full press release follows
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Nikon D70 vs Canon 400D Durability Test

September 1, 2010 – 4:42 am

Hong Kong based retailer DigitalRev recently put together these amusing videos, testing the comparative durability of the Nikon D70 and Canon 400D. The results may surprise you, especially the image quality of photos taken after the tests!

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Nikon Rumors site suspended by MediaTemple

August 29, 2010 – 2:51 pm

The hosts of the extremely popular Nikon Rumors have suspended the site's account, in what can only be described as a very short-sighted move.

As of writing, the Nikon Rumors site is down. In a tweet, NR quote the hosts as saying:

great, @mediatemple just told me that they have suspended my account because, I quote:

"Your traffic logs also indicate an average of over 150k sessions a day. This is an extremely high level of traffic for a single site ..."

Nikon Rumors was hosted by mediatemple, who seem to be rapidly gaining a reputation for bad service. Wouldn't you expect them to warn the site owner before disconnection? Until NR moves to a new host they will be posting new content on the Photo Rumors site, so please go there for your rumor fix.

NikonHQ has no affiliation with either Nikon Rumors, mediatemple, nor any other web hosts.

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Sigma announces release of 70-200mm f/2.8 OS HSM for Nikon

August 27, 2010 – 3:32 am
Pphoto_70_200_28_os

It's been available in Canon mount for a while now, but Sigma have just announced the availability of their new 70-200mm in Nikon F mount.

An update of their well-respected 70-200/2.8 HSM, this version adds optical image stabilization that is supposed to be good for 4 stops.

This large aperture telephoto zoom lens, incorporating Sigma's original Optical Stabilizer function, covers focal lengths from 70mm to 200mm and offers a constant aperture of F2.8 over the entire zoom range. The OS function offers the use of shutter speeds approximately 4 stops slower than would otherwise be possible. It makes shooting easy for many types of photography such as portraits and sports. Two FLD (“F” Low Dispersion) glass elements, which have performance equal to fluorite glass, and three SLD (Special Low Dispersion) glass elements provide excellent correction of color aberration. Super Multi-Layer Coating reduces flare and ghosting. The lens incorporates HSM (Hyper Sonic Motor), ensuring a quiet and high speed AF as well as full-time manual focus capability. It is also possible to attach Sigma's optional APO Tele Converters.

Image samples from the new lens are available from Sigma's site here.

Lens Construction 22 Elements in 17 Groups
Angle of View 34.3 - 12.3 degrees
Number of Diaphragm Blades 9 Blades (Rounded diaphragm)
Minimum Aperture F22
Minimum Focusing Distance140cm/55.1in.
Maximum Magnification 1:8
Filter Size Diameter 77mm
DimensionsDiameter 86.4mm x Length 197.6mm /3.4in. x 7.8in.
Weight1430g / 50.4oz.

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Nikon CaptureNX updated to 2.2.5, supports D3100

August 24, 2010 – 4:18 am
ZZ19F7A045

CaptureNX has been bumped to version 2.2.5 this morning. Installation requires a previously installed copy of NX2 2.2.0-2.2.4.

The USA site is still showing version 2.2.4 at this time, but you can download the Mac version or the PC version from the Nikon Europe support site.

Changes in this version

  • Support for RAW images captured with the D3100 has been added.
  • Information for lenses used with the Auto Distortion correction function under Camera & Lens Corrections in the Develop section of the Edit List has been updated.
  • An issue that prevented smooth display of graduations when certain RAW images were opened has been resolved (however this issue may remain in some images)
  • An issue that caused certain RAW images to be displayed too brightly with Capture NX 2 Ver. 2.2.0–2.2.4 has been resolved.
  • When the Image Dust Off function under Camera & Lens Corrections in the Develop section of the Edit List was applied, block noise was generated in some very rare cases.  This issue has been resolved.
The following changes to Picture Control Utility specifications have also been made as listed below.
  • A Preferences button has been added.
  • In the situations listed below the D2XMODE1, D2XMODE2 and D2XMODE3 picture controls (and custom Picture Controls created from these) are not displayed under Stored Picture Controls.
    • When a RAW image captured with the D3100 or another Nikon digital-SLR camera that does not support Picture Controls is selected as the sample image.
    • When 'Always use the latest Color Reproduction Process' is selected in the Picture Control Utility preferences dialogue box.
  • Some specifications for Picture Control under Camera Settings in the Develop section of the Edit List have been modified.  In the following situations, Contrast and Brightness can now be adjusted for RAW images captured with Active D-Lighting enabled.
    • RAW images captured with the D3100 or D60
    • When 'Always use the latest Color Reproduction Process' is selected in the Picture Control Utility preferences dialogue box.
  • In the situations listed below the D2XMODE1, D2XMODE2 and D2XMODE3 picture controls (and custom Picture Controls created from these) are not displayed in the Picture Control pull-down menu.
    • For RAW images captured with the D3100 or another Nikon digital-SLR camera that does not support Picture Controls.
    • For NRW-format RAW images.
    • When 'Always use the latest Color Reproduction Process' is selected in the Picture Control Utility preferences dialogue box.
  • When 'Always use the latest Color Reproduction Process' is selected in the Picture Control Utility preferences dialogue box and the following images are opened, a message will be displayed and the images will be opened with the Standard Picture Control applied.
    • RAW images captured with the in-camera Picture Control function set to D2XMODE1, D2XMODE2 and D2XMODE3 (or custom Picture Controls created from these)
    • RAW images captured with a Nikon digital-SLR camera that does not support Picture Control to which the D2XMODE1, D2XMODE2 and D2XMODE3 picture controls (and custom Picture Controls created from these) has been applied and the images saved in NEF format using Capture NX 2 Ver. 2.2.4 or earlier.
    • RAW images, for which D2XMODE1, D2XMODE2 and D2XMODE3 Picture Controls (and custom Picture Controls created from these) has been selected from the Picture Control pull-down menu with 'Use the Color Reproduction Process applied in camera' selected in the Picture Control Utility preferences dialog, saved in NEF format.

* Please note that for images captured with the COOLPIX P6000 saved in NRW format with D2XMODE1, D2XMODE2 and D2XMODE3 picture controls (and custom Picture Controls created from these) applied with 'Use the Color Reproduction Process applied in camera' selected, a message will be displayed and the images will be opened with the Standard Picture Control applied.

For further information regarding new features, click here to download the pdf file. Adobe’s Acrobat Reader must be installed on your computer to view this file.

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What Nikon could learn from the Sony A33 and A55

August 24, 2010 – 2:00 am
A55_16

After numerous leaks (isn't that always the way?) Sony have today announced the A55 and A33 DSLRs. What's interesting about these models is that they use a pellicle mirror; a semi-transparent mirror that reflects 30% of the light up to the AF sensors, and lets the other 70% through to the sensor.

This allows the mirror to remain in place whilst shooting - and as the mirror doesn't have to move, these otherwise-basic DSLRs manage a blistering 10fps. That's faster than Nikon's D3 in FX mode. Additionally, as the AF sensors are always receiving light even when the sensor is recording an image, it means that the cameras can provide fast phase-detect autofocus even in movie mode (and they record AVCHD at 1080p).

The disadvantage of using this technology is that the cameras don't have a standard optical viewfinder, instead replacing it with a high-resolution electronic viewfinder, or EVF.

Other key features include D5000-style articulated LCDs, sensor-shift stabilization with every lens, and even built-in GPS for geotagging on the A55 model.

Sony Alpha A55 A33

Now, this pellicle mirror stuff isn't new technology. Both Canon and Nikon have produced (albeit in somewhat limited quantities) film SLRs with pellicle mirrors. Is now the right time to bring this technology back to market for the digital age? What would you prefer, full-time AF in movie mode or a traditional optical viewfinder?

Plus... GPS. A novelty, or a serious tool for professionals and amateurs?

Kudos to Sony for pushing the envelope - but isn't it about time that Nikon did the same, rather than continuing to produce "me too" models? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

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Nikon to provide aid to disaster victims in India, China

August 20, 2010 – 5:02 am
Red-Cross101 (1)

We'll let Nikon say it:

The Nikon Group would like to express its profound sympathy and condolences to the victims of Rain Disaster in Gansu province, China on August 8, 2010.In response to this tragedy and to extend the immediate support to its victims and affected area, the Nikon Group has decided to donate the following assistance:
Cash donation 6.5 million yen
Donees: Japanese Red Cross Society and the others

and

Nikon Corporation would like to express its profound sympathy and condolences to the victims of floods caused by heavy rain from late July, 2010 in Pakistan.In response to this tragedy and to extend the immediate support to its victims and affected area, Nikon Corporation has decided to donate the following assistance:
Cash donation 1 million yen
Donee: Japanese Red Cross Society

1 million Yen is approximately £11,700. 6.5 million Yen is around $76,000.

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Bob Krist posts samples using a 28-300mm lens prototype

August 20, 2010 – 4:50 am
img_02

Travel photographer Bob Krist has a history of having access to Nikon kit before it's announced. In this case, he got to try a prototype of the new AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR back in February of this year, and has just published some photos taken using the lens.

I have to say that this lens, along with the venerable 18-200mm Nikkor, has completely turned my head around when it comes to the viability of a variable aperture uni-zoom as a professional tool. This one, in particular, blew my mind and spun my head around 360 degrees … I couldn’t find a downside to it.

We won't copy any here, if you want to take a look at his photos and thoughts on the new lens, pop on over to Bob Krist Photography.

Nikon's sample images have been published, view them here.

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Pre-order links for new Nikon kit

August 19, 2010 – 1:55 pm

For your convenience, the following links take you to the pre-order page for the new D3100 and lenses announced today. Buying via these links helps NikonHQ survive, and we thank you for your help!

D3100

AF-S NIKKOR 85mm f1.4G

AF-S Nikkor 24-120mm f/4G ED VR

AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR

AF-S Nikkor 55-300 f/4.5-5.6 ED VR

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