Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

Sony launches NEX-VG20E camcorder

Sony has released the NEX-VG20E camcorder, which has been billed as the first consumer camcorder with an interchangeable lens. The camera will shoot in HD with an AVCHD format with 50p and 25p frame rate options and will take Sony E mount lenses. It has an effective 16 megapixel resolution via a Exmor APS HD CMOS sensor, with a BIONS image processor. Lastly it outputs to an SD memory card.

Prices are still to be announced and the expected release date is in November 2011.

Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

Nikon announces compact camera models.

Nikon has announced the release of six new compact cameras, including a new flagship model, the P7100 and a rugged model, the AW100. The P7100 features an effective pixel count of 10.1-million pixels and is equipped with a 1/1.7-inch primary color filter CCD image sensor and a 7.1x optical zoom NIKKOR lens. The P7100 claims to offer faster image processing with increased noise-reduction processing capabilities.

The AW100/AW100s was touted (by some) to be a replacement for the venerable and iconic Nikonos series. It is Nikon’s first compact digital camera with waterproof, shock-proof and cold-resistant specifications and has an effective pixel count of 16.0-million pixels. As it is only waterproof to 10 meters (33 feet) it is of limited importance for underwater photography per se, but it does mark a new line of AW series compacts from Nikon that may yet hold some promise. It is available in orange!

Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

Sony releases new cameras and lenses

Sony has announced the release of a slew of new camera models today. Widely trailed and rumoured, they have announced two new SLRs, the A77 and A65. Both feature a 24.3 effective megapixel Exmor APS HD CMOS Sensor with a new version of the BIONZ processor, and a 19 point AF system. They have also announced two new EVIL cameras, the NEX-5N and NEX-7 featuring 16.1 and 24.3 megapixels respectively. The NEX-7 claims a shutter release lag of just 0.02 seconds, “the fastest of any interchangeable lens digital camera in the world.”

In addition, the company has announced four new lenses, one Alpha mount and three E mount for its NEX system. The first is the DT 16-50mm F2.8 SSM, a dust- and water-resistant fast standard zoom with a range equivalent to 24-75mm on full frame. NEX users get a premium fast prime, the Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* E 24mm F1.8 ZA, plus the E 55-210mm F4.5-6.3 OSS telephoto zoom, and last but not least the E 50mm F1.8 OSS, which is claimed as the fastest optically stabilized lens available for interchangeable-lens cameras.

We will feature full details on these cameras and lenses later today. Please check back soon.

Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

Hurricane Irene threatens Caribbean and Eastern US

Voice of America is reporting that Hurricane Irene has strengthened to a category 2 storm and that advisories have been issued for the Turks and Caicos Islands and the Bahamas, with its expected track to reach the Carolinas and Florida later this week. The forecasters expect that the storm will increase in strength over the next few days as well.

We hope that the Wetpixel members in its path are holed up somewhere safe and that the storm does not cause damage to homes businesses or property. Hold tight, we are thinking of you guys.

Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

Adobe announces Lightroom 3.5 and Camera RAW 6.5 candidates

Adobe has posted release candidates for Lightroom 3.5 and Camera RAW 6.5 on the Adobe Labs. The new versions add additional support for a variety of camera models (including the Olympus E-PL3 and Panasonic Lumix GF3), and lens profile support for some new lenses, including the Canon EF 14mm f/2.8 L USM. In addition, the release candidates offer various bug fixes over the previous versions.

The release candidates status “indicates that this update is well-tested but would benefit from additional community testing before it is distributed automatically to all of our customers. The final releases of Lightroom 3.5 and Camera Raw 6.5 may have additional corrections or camera support.” Lightroom 3.5 and Camera RAW 6.5 release candidates are available as free downloads for Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5 owners.

Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

Optical Ocean Sales opens new store

Optical Ocean Sales has opened a new store in Lake Union, Seattle. It will stock equipment from many leading brands and will also offer trips, training and information.

The store will be run by Jack Connick and Martin Heyn, and they plan to hold many spare parts and accessories in-stock as well. The shop will be open 10am to 6pm Monday to Friday, and 11am to 5pm on Saturday.

Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011

Emma the tiger shark is pregnant

Somewhat belated congratulations to Emma the tiger shark who is definitely pregnant. Shark Savers reports that Jim Abernethy noticed what appeared to be mating wounds as long ago as June 2010. Given that tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier) have a gestation period of 13 to 16 months, it is likely that she will be giving birth fairly soon. She will produce a litter of between 35 to 55 pups and as tiger sharks are ovovivaparous, she will incubate the eggs internally until they are born live. Based on previous experience, it is likely that Emma will move away to a more protected area to give birth.

Monday, August 22nd, 2011

Dive Tribes announces the Great Shark Release

  Dive Tribes has announced that its Great Shark Release will take place on 3 September and it is hoped that it will be one of the largest shark releases ever staged. The idea is to release sharks that can be rescued from restaurants and pet stores in Thailand back into the ocean. Dive Tribes are working with a team of marine biologists and shark specialists to make sure that no harm will come to any of the sharks during the release. All the released sharks will have RF trackers fitted, and their data logged prior to the release.

Sunday, August 21st, 2011

Call for entries: Bijeli Lav film festival

The organizers of the Bijeli Lav (White Lion) film festival are calling for entries. The event is to be held from 16 to 18 September on the Red Island, Rovinj, Croatia. Last year, the event attracted many underwater filmmakers, and featured a review of underwater films, including the first Croatian underwater documentary, shot in 1947.

The organizers can accept entries on DVD, via email or through a FTP server. Details can be found on the event’s website or by email

Sunday, August 21st, 2011

The Wetpixel Rinse Tank number 1

Wetpixel Associate Editor Alex Mustard presents the inaugural Wetpixel Rinse Tank feature. In it, he describes what equipment he has been trying out over the last month or so, and gives an insight into the life of a very busy underwater photographer. He touches on his goals of resurrecting two old Nikonos strobes and testing a Zen 100mm dome of a cropped sensor (DX) camera, and gives his first impressions of the new Subal housing for the Nikon D7000.

The Rinse Tank will feature different Wetpixel staff members giving their thoughts and will update regularly. Please check back often for new editions.

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