George Schaub

Note the "EX DG" appellation in this new Sigma lens. This signifies a lens that you can use for both film and digital photography, as opposed to Sigma's "EX DC" branding, which can only be used with digital SLRs. The difference is in the image circle each projects. Use a "DC" lens on a film camera and you'll have serious...

There are times when we have images that are too dark or too light and often
reject them out of hand. But the values only need to be adjusted to bring what
might have sat in shadow into the light. We can do that selectively with certain
tonal areas in the print or globally--that is, on the entire image. This
web how-to covers revealing what might sit in the shadows and deals with a very
simple global adjustment. The work is done here in Photoshop, but many other
image manipulation programs have similar controls.

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If you've ever been walking down the street and a picture caught your
eye, but had no camera to capture the moment, then the small, shirt-pocket size
digicams might just be item you're seeking. A number of companies, including
Pentax, Casio and Minolta have already introduced such models, each with their
own unique feature sets. Now, Contax, a name renowned for exquisite cameras
and excellent lenses, has jumped into the fray with their own version, the U4R,
a 4-megapixel camera sporting a Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar T* lens. Those familiar
with the amazing image clarity of this line of lenses will immediately recognize
the name; those unfamiliar with it can be assured that it is a legendary name
in optics. The camera has just under a 3x optical zoom lens, delivering the
equivalent of 38-115mm in 35mm format. There's also a digital zoom if
you need it, delivering over 400mm, but as with many digital zooms it's
really a crop into the frame, and will not deliver the quality of the prime
optics.

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All Photos © 2004, George Schaub, All Rights Reserved

I grew up with black and white. Color, for me, was a distraction, a pretty thing that was fine for stock and the family album, but the color of the photographic blood that ran through my veins was monochrome. I spent many a year in the darkroom, honing my black and white skills, and even paid the rent for a good many...