Sigma is a company that makes aftermarket lenses for DSLR cameras and just about every manufacturer out there. The company also makes a number of other accessories such as flashes and lots more. Sigma has announced pricing and availability information for its latest lens, the 24-105 mm F4 DG OS HSM art lens. The new […]
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
What you see here, dear readers, is the image of a fiber-coupled monocentric lens camera that was recently developed by engineers from the University of California, San Diego. The researchers involved in the project say this particular miniature wide-angle lens is one-tenth of the size of more traditional options, such as the Canon EF 8-15mm f/4L pictured above. Don’t let the sheer magnitude (or lack thereof) of this glass fool you, however: UCSD gurus note that the newly developed optics can easily mimic the performance of regular-sized lenses when capturing high-resolution photos. “It can image anything between half a meter and 500 meters away (a 100x range of focus) and boasts the equivalent of 20/10 human vision (0.2-milliradian resolution),” according to engineers. As for us, well, we can’t wait to see this technology become widely adopted — don’t you agree?
Filed under: Cameras
Source: UCSD Jacobs
So you think that your smartphone’s camera is pretty snazzy, and the only thing limiting you from taking even better photos are because of the hardware, and nothing to do with improving your skill? Assuming you take that line of thought and follow it all the way to the end, perhaps it is time to sit down and take stock of the situation. Times are hard, many countries are going through various austerity measures, so what happens when you feel that itch to upgrade your handset to a newer device simply because the more recent model has a better camera? Take a deep breath and do not make any harsh decisions. The $14.99 Easy-Macro Universal Smart Phone Lens Band might be able to give your smartphone photo-taking sessions a new breath of life, as it functions as a macro add-on lens for smartphones.
This would mean you can now use your current smartphone to snap remarkably detailed close-up pictures, and this particular design is so simple, you can slip it on or off in a jiffy. The amount of magnification stands at 4x, and it does seem to shape up to be worthy of hobbyist photographers and Instagram fanatics. Not only that, thanks to the relatively small form factor, you can stash it away in your wallet or purse without missing a beat.
[ Easy-Macro Universal Smart Phone Lens Band lets you shoot more creatively copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]
If you have a knackered old SLR lying around, are game for a project and fancy adding a little quirk to your front door, why not think about creating a photography themed peephole?
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Sony has been as leaky
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I don’t know if 3D cameras ever took off or are taking off, but a simple invention could hasten their downfall. It’s called the Kúla Deeper, an add-on for standard DSLR cameras that uses mirrors to create two side-by-side images or videos.
The Kúla Deeper attaches to 72mm DSLR lenses by default, but Kúla will also release additional lens adapters for other lens sizes. The add-on has four high precision mirrors that create two images and then reflect those two images on the lens. You can immediately enjoy the stereosopic 3D on your camera’s LCD display with the glasses that come with the Kúla Deeper. Kúla will also release a free software called Kulacode that will let you convert the images and videos you captured into various 3D formats.
Cross your eyes and pledge at least €59 (approx. $78 (USD)) on Karolina Fund to get a Kúla Deeper as a reward.
[via Digital Trends]
Though we’ve seen the Sony “Lens Camera” devices appear connected to smartphones before, today a set of press photos suggests that the user might be able to use these devices without a companion smart unit at all. Where before we’d assumed that it was the smartphone – or tablet – that allowed a Sony Lens […]
The extent of Oppo’s mobile photography efforts is quickly becoming clear: the company just used Sina Weibo to tease a new series of plug-in camera lenses for its smartphones. The initial range will use 16-megapixel Sony CMOS sensors with optical image stabilization, and they will also have a degree of support for NFC, SD cards and WiFi. Buyers will only have to choose between a thin lens with 10X zoom and a thicker, 15X variant. While Oppo isn’t yet ready to disclose launch details for the add-ons, we won’t be surprised if we hear more about them at the company’s N1 smartphone event on September 23rd.
Filed under: Cellphones, Cameras, Mobile
Via: Engadget Chinese (translated)
Source: Sina Weibo (login required)
With the Sony Alpha 3000, Sony is targeting the entry-level user wishing to carry with them the power of a professional photographer. Sony is aiming to reach a balance between the “emotional needs and wants” of the user, needs and wants generally taken care of in both compact system cameras and a full-sized DSLR-style cameras […]
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