PhotoPlus Expo 2019

Canon and Nikon are still the twin tent poles of the event.  Nikon still gives out their signature yellow shopping bags but there aren't that many freebies to take home, not like a decade or so ago.  There are still candies and pens to grab but that's pretty much about it.  This year there was popcorn and that's new.

This year the exhibition id doesn't come with a plastic sleeve and I think there's a good move.  You don't need a plastic sleeve.

I played with the D5, some Nikkor glasses.  I am an old man so I don't really get too excited with the Z cameras.  Still I picked up the Fuji cameras; the GFX 100 and a couple others.  I got my hand on the Olympus I like the feel of it but it's a micro 4/3, so it's good on the long end, but not so much on the wide angle end, plus the depth of field is not what it is with full frame; it's part psychology part reality but I would concede chances are I can't tell the difference just by looking at the pictures.  For me, the DSLR still feels faster.  Notice I say feel.  There were instances I didn't know if the cameras were taking pictures or not.  I guess I didn't get the setting right.  I can still feel the shutter if it's shooting fast.

PhotoPlus Expo 2018

some dude with the D5 and 800mm

seems like i can just upload HEIC file format, wonder if Google just changed it to JPEG or not.  Oh well it "works"

Another year, another PhotoPlus Expo.

The show just got a little smaller each year.  It's is gradual but you can feel it.

Nikon this year gave out its Z launch T-shirt.  I went on the third day and L was gone.  I got an XL but sadly I dropped it.  So in the end I just got a medium.

Nikon, Canon and SONY pretty much took up all the space.

Nikon took a page from Apple resale.  The cameras and lens were just on a bench maned on one or two Nikon staffers.  Gone were the "treasure island" kind of setup where cameras and lenses were behind and under the counter and manned by a team of staffers and were made available upon request.

I got to play with some Z camera and the 24-70 f/4.  Overall I wasn't too excited.  I hand-held a 300mm f/2.8 which was like exceptionally heavy.  This is the kind of lens that I don't think it's practical for how and what I shoot even I have the money.  If I don't need to walk around then maybe it works.  I also played with the D5 and 800mm, that's right 800mm.  For what I have and shoot, I still prefer the SLR kind of cameras.  Between a D5 or D850 and a Z7, I have no doubt want a D5 or D850.  All of my AF-D lenses or older would become manual focus.  And I wonder if my AI or AIS lenses can do matrix metering or not on the Z body.  I think some people may prefer to use native Z lenses anyway.  I am a hoarder and I like my old lenses.  I have not sold any one of my old lenses.

I briefly played with some SONY model and used the eye focusing.  It was pretty good.

I also quite liked the Fuji XT-3 with the motor drive or sorry the grip.  It was really a nice compact camera.  I got to try it with the 200mm f/2.

PhotoPlus Expo 2017

I can't remember when I started to go to Photo expo.  There used to be a PC Expo but it's long gone.  When I do something long enough it takes on some extra meaning.  Look at the pictures I took years ago, I could really see the changes over time, not just the industry but myself.  Kodak used to give out free film and then they stopped and then they didn't even bother to show up because they bankrupted or something.  Fuji used to give away film as well.  But they don't bother anymore.  Now they shift their products more on cameras and lenses at least at the expo.  Nikon, Canon and now Sony are the big three in the expo.  Sony is like making some big move in the expo, the space got bigger or at least as big as Canon and Nikon.

PDN PhotoPlus Expo 2015 Write-up

I don't remember since when the name became what it is today.  I think it used to be shorter.

I wonder what would happen if one day Nikon or Canon decide not to be part of the expo.  They are the tent poles of the event.  Sony actually might be just having as big a presence as Nikon or Canon, especially in the last two years.  Fuji sticks around.  And I don't think Kodak bothers to show up anymore.  Leica got a respectable show booth and gets a bit bigger every year.  It is somewhat comparable to their brand allure.  I am surprised to find Hasselblad but their presence seems a disservice to the brand.  But it is what it is.

Nikon basically provides the most generous display of merchandize for users to play with.

I hand tested or played with the new 24-70 as well as the 200-500.  The 200-500 is slightly outside my comfort zone.  And I wonder how useful it would be for me practically speaking--I am not practical so it doesn't bother me even it's totally impractical.  The thing is big but not too unwieldy to hand hold.  And actually with VR, I think you can acquire pretty sharp images all and all even at 500mm.  The price tag in relation to all things Nikkor is practically free--I know it sounds obscene but if you look at the pro lens price tag, they are sure around $2500.  The 24-70 is a 24-70 and I am not particularly turned on by it.  I guess everybody shoots differently.  My lens combination has always been the 20-35 and 80-200 or 16-35 and 70-200 or some variations of them since last year.  I find them most useful for my liking.  Most of the time I carry one camera and if I feel a bit insecure then I carry two.  I don't know how the 200-500 would fit into my shooting MO.  If the lighting condition is sub optimal you may need a better camera body that can give you better ISO performance than what I have now.  Talking about camera, I am again impressed with the D4s.  I shot mostly between the D4s and the D810 at the expo.  And I have to say I like the image on the D4s' LCD screen better.  It is by no means scientific or objective at all as I hardly go through the settings of each camera.  The exposure and the color seem better on the D4s: no blown highlight and color is vivid and saturated, again on the LCD.  Silly as it sounds I am really sold on the D4s.  I read somewhere the sensor on the D810 is actually better, so what do I know?  My next camera upgrade hopefully is a D4s or a D810.  Maybe my next single digit D camera is the D5 or D5s so it dovetails with my Nikon F5 from the film day.  I can keep dreaming, eh?  Camera choice for me is really a personal choice, it goes beyond specification and rationality.

I probably regret not having my D700 sensor cleaned at $40.  Oh well.  Just don't shoot at f/16.

PhotoPlus Expo 2015

PhotoPlus Expo 2014 p11

Lucas Gilman presents his D810 Icelandic photo trip and more.  Inspiring shots and tips straight from the horse's mouth.  The guy is candid and generous.

PhotoExpo Plus 2014

Or PhotoPlus Expo, whatever!
Being a VIP, self-proclaimed of course, and cheap I got to pre-register and just pick up the expo badge when I got there.   But the lines for pre-registered attendees were longer much longer than those for on-site registration.  Adding to the confusion and crowd was the many marathoners who were there to pick up their bibs.   But nobody should get confused with who is who, one is lean, mean and healthy and the other is just like yours truly.  The lines weren't moving just like the morning traffic of Manhattan.  It was uber ridiculous.   Anyway I just waited in a shorter line that is meant for  on-site registration.  I noticed I wasn't the only one.  The woman behind the counter asked for an ID and printed out my badge.  No begging required.   I was then on my way to candy land

PhotoPlus Expo 2014

It's this time of the year.  All the camera nerds congregate on the midtown west at Javits center gawking at camera equipments.

FUJIFILM

I always have positive experience with Fuji.
Top was taken with a X-E1, printed out from a Frontier-S DX 100
Middle was from a instax
Bottom was shot by Sam's Graflex KS-98B using Fuji Instant B/W 4x3, exact model I don't know and don't bother to look up.

PS:  I must praise Epson and Ubuntu.  I don't know what I am doing but the Epson XP-400 and Ubuntu 12.04 just work, I click click click and bam, I scanned the prints wirelessly, painlessly and effortlessly onto my Ubuntu.  How easy is that?

Shooting Sony a7R in Haiti

I guess if you shoot what he shoots then it's perfect.  Image looks good and it shoots pretty well too.  I like a larger real optical view finder but I guess I can't have it.  I don't remember but I think most of his shots are done on some Carl Zeiss 55mm.

UPDATE:  I believe the gentleman is James Duncan Davidson or Duncan Davidson.  Nice guy.  This being a full frame 36MP camera wilth a killer sensor and taken with a Carl Zeiss lens, and display on a possibly Sony 4K monitor and not to take anything away from the photographer behind the camera, i.e. the very multi talented Mr. Davidson, Brian Smith, the pictures are just immaculately detailed.  Correction:  It's Brian Smith not Duncan Davidson. Not Cuba but Haiti. By now, you should know you shouldn't believe a word I say. http://briansmith.com/sony-a7r-field-test/

Some JPEGs from Sony a7R

I don't remember anything, not the lens not the settings.  On the EXIF, the Make is "SONY" and Model is just "MODEL-NAME"  I don't think this is a production model.

Sony a7R

just click the label below to see more of Sony a7R ...

Project Overcompensation

Canon 1200 mm comes with a price tag of $99,000

Another view of the monster

 

 Bigma

Nikon