Got an iPhone? Check out this cool camera app…

Mattebox.   For 4 bucks you can turn it into a camera based on the legendary Konica Hexar AF of old.   (I used Konica 35mm SLR equipment for many years in the film days,  still have it.)   This is pretty impressive.  The functionality looks to be nothing short of incredible, but…

I don’t have an iPhone (sigh) ….. although,  I would surely be trying this app if I did.   Some folks are turning out amazing feats for this device with their programming skills.

However,  even if you don’t have the Steve Jobs thingy,  any digital photo buff should pay attention.    Why?  Because it portends what could happen if camera makers start sharing what goes on inside their magic boxes.    (doubtful;)

Check it out:

Screen shot

Be sure to watch the video on Vimeo here:

http://vimeo.com/29450263

And here’s the whole skinny on the developer,  Ben Syverson’s site:

http://mattebox.com/iphone/camera/index.html

My guess is you’re gonna’ be downloading this ….    if you have an iPhone, that is.

If you’re lucky enough to be able to try it,  please comment back to me (and site readers) on your experience.

Happy hunting with your new camera,  wish I could be there with ‘ya,  maybe someday..

KB

ps.  Credit where it’s due…I first saw this on Mike Johnston’s site,  The Online Photographer (there’s a permalink on my sidebar,  always has been).

Montana Students Submit Winning Names for NASA Lunar Spacecraft

GRAIL’s Twin Spacecraft fly in Tandem Around the Moon (Artist’s Concept)

 

Excerpts from an article on NASA’s website: 

WASHINGTON — Twin NASA spacecraft that achieved orbit around the moon New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day have new names thanks to elementary students in Bozeman, Montana. Their winning entry, “Ebb and Flow,” was selected as part of a nation-wide school contest that began in October 2011.
The names were submitted by fourth graders from the Emily Dickinson Elementary School. Nearly 900 classrooms with more than 11,000 students from 45 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia, participated in the contest. Previously named Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory, or GRAIL A and B, the washing machine-sized spacecraft begin science operations in March.

“The 28 students of Nina DiMauro’s class at the Emily Dickinson Elementary School have really hit the nail on the head,” said Maria Zuber, GRAIL principal investigator from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “We were really impressed that the students drew their inspiration by researching GRAIL and its goal of measuring gravity. Ebb and Flow truly capture the spirit and excitement of our mission.”

GRAIL is NASA’s first planetary mission carrying instruments fully dedicated to education and public outreach. Each spacecraft carries a small camera called GRAIL MoonKAM (Moon Knowledge Acquired by Middle school students). Thousands of students in grades five through eight will select target areas on the lunar surface and send requests for study to the GRAIL MoonKAM Mission Operations Center in San Diego.

Launched in September 2011, Ebb and Flow will be placed in a near-polar, near-circular orbit with an altitude of about 34 miles (55 kilometers). During their science mission, the duo will answer longstanding questions about the moon and give scientists a better understanding of how Earth and other rocky planets in the solar system formed.

If you’re a teacher, this may be of interest:

GRAIL MoonKAM will allow classrooms to request pictures of the lunar surface from cameras on the twin satellites. As we count down to the MoonKAM mission, we will be adding exciting features and resources to this site, including student activities, teacher guides, and more.

LINK:

https://moonkam.ucsd.edu/

Happy moonscaping,

KB

Olympus OM-1 Redux

Interesting.  This appeared in the Japan Times online.   The OM-1 was a great little systems camera in its day.  Maybe this will help revive the troubled company.

Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012

 

Digital remake: Olympus Corp. launched the OM-1 single-lens reflex camera in 1973. The scandal-tainted firm is planning to revive the once-popular brand. OLYMPUS CORP./KYODO

 

Olympus to digitally revive OM line

Kyodo

Olympus Corp. plans to revive its once popular OM brand for a new digital mirrorless interchangeable-lens camera it plans to release this spring, industry sources said.

The company is hoping the new product will symbolize its recovery from the ongoing accounting scandal stemming from the coverup of bubble economy investment losses, they said.

Olympus launched the OM-1 single-lens reflex film camera in 1973. The OM-1 was a hit thanks to its small size and durability, and the line thrived for about 30 years.

The new OM-D model will be offered in the United States, Europe and and parts of Asia as its top model in digital mirrorless interchangeable-lens cameras. Prices will surpass ¥100,000 in Japan.

The new model resembles the original OM-1 and features high-speed autofocus and image stabilization functions, as well as 16-megapixel resolution.

In December, Olympus had the largest share of the domestic market for digital mirrorless interchangeable-lens cameras, which are gaining in popularity thanks to their smaller size and lighter weight, according to marketing research firm BCN Inc.

Goodness and Light…

Always liked that line from the old Christmas carol.  The world certainly could use more of both.   Let’s hope we see plenty of each in 2012.

Yes,  I’ve neglected my blog for quite some time, so allow me to apologize.  It seems there are so many other things to become pre-occupied with these days, it often becomes difficult to get into the zone to complete a post.   It isn’t necessarily a New Year’s resolution,  but I intend to try and get back to posting again on a,  more or less,  regular basis.

In the meantime,  here’s something interesting grabbed from Wired Magazine through CNN’s site.

(WIRED) — Dropbox is trying out a neat new feature that will give it magical Photo Stream-like abilities. Everybody’s favorite cloud-storage app has added photo and video import.

In a new “Experimental Forum Build” of the app for Windows, Mac and Linux, photos and videos will be slurped up from any memory card or camera connected to the computer. These will then be sent spinning off to the DropBox servers, ready for access by all your other Dropbox-connected devices.

Here’s the link for the article on CNN:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/27/tech/mobile/dropbox-camera-auto-import/index.html

 

ALSO,

NASA’s Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory (GRAIL)-A spacecraft successfully completed its planned main engine burn and has entered lunar orbit.  It’s the first of two intended for this mission to study the formation of the moon.

Here’s the link for more on the NASA site:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/grail/news/grail20111231.html

 

God rest ye merry gentlemen (and ladies).  Here’s to a healthy and prosperous new year,

KB