(Quick note from Dave: Apologies for the late mailing of this issue: I took a much needed weekend off this week, but left my %@## laptop at home, so couldn't do the mailing until today (Sunday). Apologies again, I'll chain the laptop bag to my wrist next time!)

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THE IMAGING RESOURCE DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY NEWSLETTER
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Volume 15, Number 7 - 5 April 2013

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Copyright 2013, The Imaging Resource. All rights reserved.
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Welcome to the 355th edition of The Imaging Resource Newsletter. In this issue we celebrate IR's 15th birthday, thank everyone who helped us along the way, and reminisce about what the digital camera marketplace looked like way back then. We then explore the mystery and lost treasure of famed photojournalist Robert Capa's "Mexican Suitcase," and share an excerpt from our in-depth review of the impressive Fujifilm X-E1 compact system camera. In addition, we've handpicked the latest, most interesting news and views from the website and we answer a ton of reader mail. We hope you enjoy!

TOPICS
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Letter from Dave: Imaging Resource turns 15, thanks to you!
Feature: Famed photojournalist Robert Capa and the mystery of his "Mexican Suitcase"
Camera Review: Fujifilm X-E1 (Shooter's Report Excerpt)
Quick Hits
We've Got Mail
New on the Site
Next Issue
Signoff

SPONSORS
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This issue is sponsored in part by the following companies. Please show your appreciation by visiting the links below. And now a word from our sponsors:

* Sigma *

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Learn more about Sigma offerings at http://www.imaging-resource.com/cgi-bin/nl/pl.cgi?sg13

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Are you in the digital photo business? This newsletter is read by more than 47,000 direct subscribers (plus additional pass-along readers), all with a passion for digital photography. For information on how you can reach them, contact us at editor@imaging-resource.com.

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LETTER FROM DAVE: Imaging Resource turns 15, thanks to you!
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By Dave Etchells
April 1, 2013

It's hard to believe, but it was 15 years ago today that I first brought Imaging Resource live on the Internet. Some say Internet Years are like Dog Years, only more so; by that measure, IR is more like 100, but I don't feel a day over 99 :-)

IR was a classic entrepreneurial startup, beginning its life in a spare bedroom before eventually moving to the basement. Nine years ago this January, we moved it to a building of its own, a 2-bedroom ranch house with a nice big basement that now houses the IR lab.

At first it was just me doing everything, but it wasn't long before current News Editor Mike Tomkins joined me, as well as writer Stephanie Boozer, both of whom continue to be involved. Nowadays, there's a dozen of us who work more or less full-time on the site, plus several freelancers and outside programmers. And we're excited that our latest hire, William Brawley, will be joining the team as Associate Editor tomorrow.

Only possible with much support

If time flies when you're having fun, I must be having a blast, because it doesn't remotely seem like I've been doing this for so long. It's been a great ride: I have great people that I work with, a fantastic community of enormously supportive readers, and a loyal collection of advertisers who support our efforts to educate and inform via our rigorous and objective testing and reporting. I'm deeply grateful to every one of the above. The team here works incredibly hard, but with incredible grace and goodwill towards each other: They make coming to work every day a pleasure, which has a lot to do with why it seems like far less than 15 years that I've been at this.

Our readers are, of course, the ultimate reason IR exists: With out all of you, none of what we do would be possible. I'm deeply appreciative not only for your vast legions, but for the time so many of you have taken to drop an encouraging email, say thanks, support us with a donation, and just generally contribute to the collegiality and good humor of the IR community.

And naturally our advertisers make it all possible, too. We've been genuinely blessed with advertisers who value the service we provide to readers, helping you make more educated camera and gear purchases.

On the one hand, it's amazing that I've never had an advertiser try to change or influence our coverage of their products in any way, regardless of how the reviews might come out. (A PR firm did try to twist my arm once, but I'm pretty sure their client would have been horrified if they'd found out.) Really, though, knowing all the people involved at the various companies, it's no surprise at all: The photo industry is a truly remarkable business, characterized at the highest levels by fair dealing and good will, and that's certainly borne out by all the people I've come to know and appreciate at so many companies over the years.

One of my very first contacts in the industry was Jon Sienkiewicz, then of Minolta, who shared this thought with me at my first PMA in New Orleans in 1998. Paraphrasing heavily, due to the distance in time and my imperfect memory:�People don't generally go into things like appliance sales or real estate because they have a passion for their products, but most of the people in the photo business have a real passion for photography. While the realities of business mean that they have to move the products, their motivation for doing so is rooted in sharing and spreading the joy and magic of photography. (Thanks, Jon)

It's a really good group of people, one that I'm hugely grateful to be associated with.

We are family, literally

Of course, there's one group in particular who deserves credit above and beyond all the others -- my family. Many longer-term readers will feel they already know my wife Marti, since she was the long-suffering model for thousands (and thousands) of "indoor portrait" and "outdoor portrait" shots in the earlier years. Marti has also managed our accounting since day one, and sons Arthur and Chris have both worked on the site as well.

Arthur now serves as our Director of Development, dragging our software kicking and screaming into the 21st century. Marti, Arthur and Chris have all suffered the usual ups and downs of a small, entrepreneurial business, and having "Dad" or "Hon" perpetually working late and on weekends. I can't say enough how much I appreciate their patience and unflagging support.

And, of course, I couldn't forget our four-legged family members. Many of you know Charlotte the Wonder Dog, who's been chasing Frisbees in videos for us for more than a decade. The photo (below, right) shows her coming home for the first time, in late 2001. (Hard to believe she's 11 years old now, and still chasing Frisbees for us.) And then there's our relatively new addition, Yoshi (below, left), a rambunctious pup who's always ready to help a co-worker finish off his lunch. (Sometimes, whether the co-worker wants him to or not.) Even Arthur's pooch, Woolly, stops in most every month to see the team and share his opinions on what we're doing. Safe to say that bringing our dogs to work keeps things in the office exciting -- and helps keep our priorities in order.�

Yoshi, Wonder Dog in Training (And accomplished Lunch Thief)	Charlotte the Wonder Dog coming home for the first time in Dec. 2001.

A passion for technology, since Day One

The photo business is also unique in the extent to which it's driven by technology, another passion of mine. I love seeing electronics, device physics and image processing turning into better and better cameras with every year that goes by. IR began right as digital imaging tech was finally making its way into the consumer market, and there's been enormous growth and change in the years since. Looking back, it's literally hard to believe how much the industry has changed.

The first reviews posted on the site were for a clutch of Olympus cameras, the D-220L, D-320L, D-500L and D-600L. The Olympus D-600L was quite the choice piece of gear, a real object of envy at the time. It had no fewer than 1.4 Megapixels, a 1.8-inch LCD on the back, a 3x, 36-110mm-equivalent zoom lens, and a snazzy-looking frame reminiscent of Olympus' popular "ZLR" (zoom lens reflex) film cameras. All this for only $1,299 -- crazy! I still have mine, sitting on the IR "museum" shelves in the living room / conference room here.

What's hard to convey is just how utterly cool this camera was back then, how far ahead of the rest of the field it was at the time. I could say that most competing models had VGA-resolution sensors (640x480), but really, there wasn't anything that truly competed with the D-600L at the time; it really stood alone at the top of the digicam market for quite a while.

Other cutting edge cameras and gadgets from 15 years ago

What else was going on back then? Some things were surprisingly advanced for the time, others never made it past the lab.

One of the interesting gadgets in the latter category was the Imagek EFS-1. The concept was to package an image sensor, electronics, and battery into a 35mm film-can sized package that you could just drop into your film SLR, turning it into a digital model. It could shoot 30 images before you'd have to remove it and download the photos to a computer.

Or, you could just drop in another EFS-1 and keep on rolling, although at a projected price of $1,000 each, I doubt many photographers would have been able to justify a handful to lug along. Perhaps fortunately, no photographer ever had to face that particular budget decision; the EFS-1 never made it as a commercial product.

In the "surprisingly advanced" category was the Casio QV-770. It was only VGA resolution, and had a fixed focal length lens, but offered some unique "timed exposure" modes, as well as in-camera panorama stitching. The timed exposure modes were evidence of Casio's innovation even then, and something that's been a constant of the Casio line ever since.

The timed Exposure modes were what we'd call continuous shooting mode today, with the camera capturing four shots in rapid succession (20 fps!). The real innovation wasn't so much in the idea of continuous shooting, but rather the "past" and "future" modes, which let you capture images either before or after you pressed the shutter button. In the "past" mode, the camera shot continuously at the 20 fps rate, with the images flowing through the buffer, stopping when you pressed the shutter button. As a result, you'd end up with the last four shots it took before you tripped the shutter, a great help when trying to catch fleeting action.

From 1.4 megapixel cameras for $1,300 to vastly more capable 16-megapixel ones for less than $200, it's been a wild ride for all concerned. Look for an ongoing news feature from us, looking at where the industry stood 5, 10 and 15 years ago and how it's changed.

In 2013, IR feels more vibrant than ever

Another way the business has changed is in its footprint on the Internet. These days, there are myriad individual blogs about most any aspect of photography you care to name, but back then, there were only a few of us.

Sadly, IR seems to be the only site from that era still operating independently. Some great sites have fallen by the wayside and gone dark, while others have been swept up into larger organizations. I suppose that's just the way of things, but it's sad to see it happen, nonetheless.

But with all our recent changes and additions, IR feels more vibrant than ever. We've made a number of upgrades to the site recently, and have a lot more up our sleeve that you'll start seeing over the next month or two. I'm looking forward to 2013 being the best year yet for IR!

Stay tuned, and thanks again for your support!

Dave Etchells
Founder, Publisher, Editor-in-Chief

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FEATURE: Famed photojournalist Robert Capa and the mystery of his "Mexican Suitcase"
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(Note: To see the images found in Robert Capa's "Mexican Suitcase," click through and read the story on our site at http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/04/05/famed-photojournalist-robert-capa-and-the-mystery-of-his-mexican-suitcase)

By Steve Meltzer

Renowned photojournalist Robert Capa took hundreds of images of the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. Yet, in the ensuing 70 years, only a handful seemed to have survived. What became of those other images lies at the heart of the mystery of Capa's "Mexican Suitcase."

Telling the story of a war that no one seemed to care about
The story begins in 1936, when three young Hungarian photojournalists -- Robert Capa, Gerda Taro and David Seymour (known as Chim) -- crossed the Spanish border from France. They were intent on telling the story of a war that no one seemed to care about. Even today, that war seems little more than a footnote in history (at least for most of us), something from long ago and far away. However, its impact remains with us because it was the moment when war went from battlefields to the streets of cities. Civilians were no longer non-combatants; they were often targets. And the places that were once fought over, were now fought in.

The Spanish Civil War pitted the Nationalists -- under the infamous General Francisco Franco and supported by Hitler's Germany -- against the Republican forces supported in part by the Soviet Union. The Republican side was also supported by the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, a ragtag band of young Americans who volunteered to go to Spain to fight the Fascists. My friend Milt Felsen was one of them. I met him when he was in 80s; he spoke like Humphrey Bogart and got a kick out of calling me "Flash." I asked him if he had met Capa and he told me:

"Sure, I did, Flash, at the Hotel Florida bar. He was a short guy. Good looking. A good man, just a little crazy. Always running towards the shooting."

The Hotel Florida in Madrid was where Ernest Hemingway lived at the time, and it was a gathering place for the foreigners fighting and covering the conflict.

Photographers crazy in love
Gerda Taro, like Capa, was a little crazy too, always running towards the gunfire. Idealistic and romantic, they wanted to warn the world of the looming threat and to make some money, too. They were also deeply in love, traveling and photographing together and labeling their photos Capa&Taro. To sell their work, they would cut up their contact sheets and paste the best pictures into 8 x 10 notebooks along with their captions and story backgrounds. These notebooks were then given to their agents, who would then use them to market the stories. These photo essays sold well, and soon were published in European and American publications, including Regards, Ce Soir,�Vu and, of course, Life magazine.

For the couple, life existed between the polar opposites of chic Paris caf� society and the killing fields of Spain. Too soon, however, Gerda's luck ran out and on July 25, 1937, she was killed by a tank while covering the Battle of Brunete. Capa was devastated. It took him months before he could go back to the front. But as usual, when he did he headed towards the shooting and covered the war until it ended in February of 1939.

Fleeing the war, leaving his files behind
Hemingway and the others then decamped for Paris as tens of thousands of Republican fighters and ordinary Spaniards crossed the Pyrenees, fleeing Franco. Many ended up in internment camps in France -- in places such as Barcar�s and Argel�s-sur-Mer, not far from where I live. The unlucky ones were sent north to German concentration camps, while a few lucky ones survived and later settled in France.

When he returned to Paris, Capa realized he was in jeopardy. The Nazis were in occupation and were sure to arrest him, so he left for New York. He entrusted his studio and Spanish Civil War negatives to his friend the photographer, Imre "Csiki" Weiss. Although he returned to Europe two years later and extensively photographed the war, and accompanied American troops landing in Normandy on D-Day, he apparently never made a effort to retrieve his Paris files. (A reader pointed out a historical discrepancy in the above, see the "Added Note" below about this timeline, and comments to the original article on our site for further details.)

Cornell Capa, Robert's younger brother and the founder of the International Center for Photography in New York City, told me in 1973 that Robert had taken "other Spanish pictures" but� he had no idea what had happened to them. That was until 1975, when he received a letter from Ire Weiss:

"In 1939, when the Germans approached Paris, I put all Bob's negatives in a rucksack and bicycled it to Bordeaux to try to get it on a ship to Mexico. I met a Chilean in the street and asked him to take my film packages to his consulate for safekeeping. He agreed."

A suitcase filled with treasure
Now the search was on, but Cornell's best efforts to find the rucksack and consulate produced nothing. At this time, no one knew of the amazing journey the lost photographs were on. Shortly after Weiss gave them to the "Chilean" stranger, the rucksack became a suitcase which�never got to the consulate. However, in 1941 or '42, one General Francisco Aguilar Gonz�lez -- the Mexican ambassador to the Vichy France government -- somehow got hold of it. There is no way of knowing whether the General knew what he had or ever opened the suitcase, but we know that he took it with him to Mexico City. There it was left among his personal belongings, where it stayed safe and forgotten for nearly 30 years.

The General died in 1971, and the suitcase's journey resumed. It was passed on to a woman friend of the General's who stored it away again, probably unopened, where it stayed until 1995. Then the woman died and the suitcase was left to her nephew, who happened to be the Mexican filmmaker Benjamin Tarver. He did open it and marveled at what he found. Having just seen an exhibition of Spanish Civil War photographs by Dutch photojournalist Carel Blazer in Mexico City, he understood what he had. He then reached out to Queens College (NY) art historian, Jerald R. Green for help. "Naturally it would seem prudent to have this material... become an archive available to students and researchers of the Spanish Civil War," Tarver wrote to Green, who was also a friend of Cornell Capa.

The elusive suitcase and its contents finally come home
Green immediately called Capa to tell him the news. Capa tried to get in touch with Tarver, but the filmmaker was oddly elusive and couldn't be reached. Finally, according to Cynthia Young, Assistant Curator of the Robert Capa and Cornell Capa Archive at the ICP:

"In early 2007, Wallis (the chief ICP curator) enlisted the aid of independent curator and filmmaker Trisha Ziff, based in Mexico City. Ziff first met Tarver in May 2007,�and over the next several months helped to persuade him that the negatives belonged at ICP with the rest of the Capa and Taro Archives, and a large Chim collection. On December 19, Ziff arrived at ICP with the Mexican Suitcase. The missing negatives had finally come home."

Cornell Capa was 89 when at last he got to hold and open the "Mexican Suitcase." In it were 126 rolls of film containing more than 4,500 images taken by his brother Robert, Gerda and Chim, as well as several of the story notebooks.

As for my friend Milt, he made his way home, too. The F.B.I. called him a "premature anti-fascist" and a communist but despite that, when America entered the war, he and other Brigade vets found themselves recruited by General "Wild Bill" Donovan into the new O.S.S (later the C.I.A). Because of their combat experience in Europe, their country needed them and soon Milt, well ahead of the regular troops, was behind enemy lines blowing up bridges.

But that's another story for another time.

Special thanks to Camille Ortiz, Public Relations Coordinator at the International Center for Photography for her assistance with this story. http://www.icp.org

Added note: After this was written, but before we mailed this issue of the newsletter, a reader pointed out some historical inaccuracies in the above. These trace to a letter by Imre Weiss in 1975, apparently the result of his failing memory of events then long in the past, but do need to be noted. See comments following the original article on our site for the details: http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/04/05/famed-photojournalist-robert-capa-and-the-mystery-of-his-mexican-suitcase

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REVIEW: Fujifilm X-E1 (Shooter's Report Excerpt)
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(You can check out our Fujifilm X-E1 review, complete with gallery photos, lab test results and our final conclusion, here: http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/fuji-x-e1/fuji-x-e1A.HTM)

By Dan Havlik

You've got to hand it to Fujifilm for creating what has quickly become a fully realized group of digital cameras based on analog designs. No, Fuji was not the first imaging company to release a digital model that resembled an older film camera, but it has been one of the only manufacturers to produce such a wide lineup of retro-styled offerings. One of Fujifilm's latest cameras is the 16.3-megapixel X-E1, a rangefinder-style compact system camera which is the baby brother to Fuji's current top-of-the-line CSC, the X-Pro1.

The Fuji X-E1 uses the same 16.3-megapixel APS-C X-Trans CMOS sensor and the same X-Mount for Fujinon XF lenses as the X-Pro1 but it's 30% smaller and significantly lighter, weighing just 12.6 ounces (358g) with the battery and media card installed. It's also about US$700 less, despite having many of the same features and looking quite similar to the X-Pro1.

The X-E1 adds a new kit lens to the line-up too, the surprisingly good XF18-55mm (27-84mm equivalent) f/2.8-4 OIS, which, at the time of this writing, was the first XF Zoom available from Fujifilm, as well as the first optically stabilized XF lens. All in all, the X-E1 would seem, on paper at least, to be a good bargain, especially for anyone interested in getting their feet wet in the world of retro CSCs (compact system cameras). Does it stand up to the exceptional image quality and solid performance of the more professional X-Pro1? Let's take a look.

In the hand. Even if you don't remember classic, film-based rangefinders of the past, the Fuji X-E1 will impress you with its simple, elegant, and highly functional design. Drawing style elements from a variety of cameras (to me, it recalled Canon's enthusiast-focused Canonet rangefinders as much as Leica's coveted M-series of cameras), the X-E1 feels like a stripped down version of the X-Pro1. Available in two color schemes, all black and silver two-tone (which is the version I tried), it's easy to mistake the X-E1 for an actual rangefinder, which, it would seem, is the point. While rangefinder cameras have their devoted fans, the learning curve for newbies is high and some photographers find the unique, manual focus-only set-up of RFs to be tricky. CSCs, with their compact, lightweight, mirrorless bodies and improving AF speed, are a good alternative for aspiring street photographers or anyone else who doesn't want to be weighed down by a d igital SLR.

Instead of the distinctive, optical viewfinder window of a rangefinder, the Fuji X-E1 has a small OLED electronic viewfinder on the upper left hand corner of the rear of the camera. You can also compose photos via the 2.8-inch LCD screen on back. More about the performance of these two features in the section "EVF & LCD Screen" section below.

One difference between the X-E1 and the X-Pro1, aside from the lower price, is the build quality. While my silver two-tone X-E1 looked a lot like my old Canonet G-III QL film rangefinder, it doesn't have an all-metal body like that camera. Instead it's mostly polycarbonate with magnesium and metal accents, and feels a bit less substantial than it looks. But hey, this is why it's the less-expensive, step-down model.

But this construction does make the Fuji X-E1 noticeably lighter than the metal X-Pro1, weighing in at 12.6 ounces (body only) vs. 16 ounces (body only) for the flagship camera. Even with the new 18-55mm kit lens attached, which increases the X-E1's overall weight to 24.2 ounces (687 grams), the X-E1 still feels a lot less hefty than the X-Pro1 and, ultimately, more portable.

The faux leather texture of the Fuji X-E1's body looks nice, but when I held the camera, I thought it felt a bit plasticky to the touch. The small, leatherette handgrip is made from rubber and has a less slippery, higher-end feel to it. It's comfortable, but I would've liked it to be slightly bigger. After a day of street shooting with the X-E1, my fingers grew tired from gripping the camera. I'd recommend springing for the optional HG-XE1 hand grip, which attaches to the base plate of the camera and then extends up the right side of the camera, giving you a thicker area to hold on to.

The top of the X-E1 looks a lot like a traditional rangefinder with a similar control layout to the X-Pro1. The camera's pop-up flash is on the small side with a Guide Number of 7 meters at ISO�200, and a range of up to about 16 feet (five meters) with an f/1.4 lens. Flash range with the kit lens set to its widest angle would be half that, or just 8 feet, and only about 5.5 feet at telephoto. And flash x-sync speed is also a little on the slow side, at 1/180s. Just the fact that the X-E1 has a pop-up flash, makes it clear that this camera is aimed at prosumers and enthusiasts rather than pros. I did find the flash to come in handy as a fill light, however, when shooting portraits or macro close-ups of flowers. You'll want an external strobe for any serious flash work, though. Enthusiasts and pros will, however, be pleased to know the built-in flash has a commander mode, allowing you to control compatible remote flashes wirelessly.

One nice design touch about the flash is that when it's not in use, it tucks back into the Fuji X-E1's top deck and stays flush so it's out of the way. Also on top of the camera are a shutter speed dial, an exposure compensation dial, a function button, and a shutter button that reminded me a lot of a shutter on an old rangefinder but without the film winder. Overall, I was very satisfied with the build and design of the X-E1. Fuji's done a great job of marrying the classic look of a traditional rangefinder with the modern conveniences of a lightweight CSC.

Controls. There's a minimalist design quality to the Fuji X-E1 but the camera by and large doesn't skimp on external controls. Along with the pop-up flash and the aforementioned controls on top of the camera, the X-E1 has a hotshoe if you want to add a more powerful external flash. While I liked the old school look of the X-E1's shutter button, it also had an unfortunate old school feel to it. It wasn't particularly responsive to the touch, feeling a bit "mushy" when you press down on it. This took me some time to get used to, especially when trying to get the right feel on how hard I needed to press the shutter to lock in autofocus.

If autofocus isn't your thing or if you just want to experiment with the X-E1's manual capabilities, flip a switch on the front of the camera to activate manual focus, which you adjust via a ring on the front of the 18-55mm kit lens. The kit lens also has a switch on its back barrel that lets you turn the Optical Image Stabilizer (OIS) on or off. Another interesting but somewhat confusing feature on the kit lens' back barrel is a switch that lets you choose between manual aperture adjustment or auto aperture control.

The confusing part, at least to me, was the choice of nomenclature for the two settings. For manual aperture control, you move the switch to the aperture icon; for automatic aperture selection, switch it to the "A." I guess I have it ingrained in my brain from previous cameras that "A" should stand for Aperture Priority, so I kept accidentally picking that setting when I wanted to manually set the lens to f/2.8. It also took me a few tries to figure out that the rear ring on the kit lens lets you manually change the aperture settings, not the control wheel on the back of the camera.

The generously sized, knurled shutter speed dial on top of the X-E1 lets you select shutter speeds from 1/4000th to 1/4th of a second. There's also an "A" setting for Aperture Priority (there it is!), which lets you pick the aperture via the lens ring while the camera automatically selects a comparable shutter speed. For timed exposures, turn the dial to T, which lets you pick from 1/2 to 30 sec exposures. The B setting on the dial puts the camera bulb mode, which will keep the X-E1's shutter open for as long as the shutter button is pressed down, up to 60 minutes.

Most of this won't seem strange to anyone who's shot with a rangefinder or an older film camera before, but for those looking for the familiar PASM settings, scene modes and custom settings on the mode dials of most digital cameras, it could be a little confusing. Take some time, however, and you might grow to like these throwback options.

Controls on the rear of the X-E1 might look more familiar to most digital camera users and, in particular, to anyone who's tried Fujifilm's latest X-series models. There are generously sized buttons for the menu, image playback, autoexposure, autofocus adjustment, etc. Many of the camera's internal settings can be adjusted quickly via the Q (quick menu) button on back, including white balance, aspect ratio, image quality and other features.

One conspicuous absence is the lack of a dedicated ISO button on the camera. This is disappointing, especially considering that the X-E1 fares quite well at high ISOs -- more about that later -- and it would be nice to be able to change the setting more quickly. As it is, you have to hit the Q (quick menu) button on back and then cycle through to change ISO. Not hard, but a single button would be faster.

The Fuji X-E1 also has a slow system for switching the camera into video mode. There's no dedicated movie button or setting on the top dial so, instead, you have to press the Drive button on back of the camera and scroll down to the movie camera icon to engage the feature. One workaround for the lack of dedicated ISO and video buttons is to program the FN (Function) button on top of the camera for one of these tasks. If you program it for one thing, however, you can't program it for the other, so you end up with one less dedicated control

EVF and LCD Screen. Unlike the more expensive X-Pro1, the X-E1 doesn't have the flagship model's elaborate hybrid optical/electronic viewfinder. To tell you the truth, we didn't miss it as much as we thought we would, especially considering the X-E1's much lower price. Instead, the X-E1 has a 0.5-inch, 2.36M-dot OLED electronic viewfinder with 100% coverage, 23mm eyepoint, and a -4 to +2 diopter adjustment. It's not bad, but if you're already ambivalent about EVFs, this one won't likely turn you into a convert. While the resolution is high, there's a slight, jerky lag when you pan, particularly in low light. Also, when you lock in focus by half-pressing the X-E1's shutter button, the small EVF screen partially pixellates before it achieves focus.

This also occurs when using the X-E1's rear, 2.8-inch, 460,000-dot LCD display but it's less noticeable. I liked the rear screen just fine for previewing and reviewing shots, but with most cameras offering displays of at least three inches, it seemed a little small. (Again, this is a side product of the X-E1 being the less expensive, step-down model.) The X-E1's LCD also washed out in bright light, especially when I was shooting in the snow, which reflected the sun's light. With the X-Pro1's superior LCD, this was much less of a problem.

The View Mode button, which lets you switch between the EVF or LCD screen, is a helpful concept but needs a few tweaks, maybe via a firmware update. As it is, you can choose to use the rear LCD for framing shots, the EVF for framing shots, or select the Eye Sensor mode, which automatically turns on the EVF and turns off the rear screen when the camera detects your eye in the eyecup. It works fine but if you want to review shots, you can only do so via the EVF, not the rear LCD in this mode.

I was also disappointed by how long it takes to wake the X-E1 when it goes into battery-preserving sleep mode. I found myself having to mash on the shutter button to get it to wake up and be ready to take pictures. You can adjust the sleep mode and have the camera run continuously but this will drain the battery because the EVF and rear LCD use a lot of power.

Performance. I shot with the Fuji X-E1 this past winter in New York City and tested it under two different sets of weather conditions: an unseasonable warm spell in early December 2012 that had plants and flowers unexpectedly blooming; and then after a severe snowstorm hit the area in early February. In terms of performance, the X-E1 is a mixed bag. At times I really wished it was faster, yet other times it felt about right for a CSC. But if you're expecting the speed of a DSLR or one of the faster CSCs on the market -- such as Sony's NEX series -- you'll probably be disappointed. That said, once I got used to the X-E1's performance quirks, I found it to be a smooth and stealthy camera to shoot with that's great for candid street photography, if you're able to do a fair amount of pre-focusing.

Powering on the X-E1 and getting it to snap a first shot is rather sluggish, even for a CSC. Our lab timed it at 2.4 seconds, which can seem like a lifetime if you're in a rush to capture a photo. The Fuji X-E1's autofocus speed is slightly slower than average for a current CSC. In our lab testing, shutter lag ranged from 0.44 second using Area AF mode (center) to 0.52 second using Multi AF mode. In real world shooting, I felt I had to anticipate shots a bit more with the X-E1 and pre-focus as much as I could. As I noted earlier, the X-E1's shutter is not as touch sensitive as a DSLR, so if you have any itchy trigger finger, this camera might not be for you.

Also, as I mentioned earlier, the time it takes to wake the Fuji X-E1 from sleep mode can take anywhere from a second to four seconds. I missed a few candid opportunities while trying to "wake" the camera, which was frustrating. Other than turning sleep mode off completely, which drains the battery, my workaround was to keep tapping on the shutter button, to make sure the X-E1 stayed awake.

The Fuji X-E1 fared extremely well when I prefocused, with a very slight lag that our lab clocked at just 0.054 second. That's faster than most SLRs and quicker than many CSCs as well. During my shoot after the snow storm, I was able to get some fairly decent shots of sledders speeding down a big hill if I pre-focused the X-E1 and timed it right. While candid photos were hard to nail at first, the more I shot with the X-E1, the more I was able to get the pre-focusing/timing down pat.

Shot to shot cycle times were a bit slower than average for a CSC, taking just under a second between images, and flash recycling took 4.2 seconds after a full power discharge.

The Fuji X-E1's continuous shooting mode was quite good, with the camera approximately reaching its maximum burst speed of 6 frames per second. (Our lab found the X-E1's maximum burst speed ranged from 5.45 fps to 5.56 fps, depending on the image file type.) Buffer depth was only average at approximately 16 JPEG frames before the X-E1 had to stop to catch up. With RAW�files, buffer depth dropped to 12 frames.

So, no, the Fuji X-E1 is certainly not going to win any speed contests. However, thanks to its comprehensive external controls and its logical and well executed menu system, changing settings on the fly to adjust to different shooting situations was fast and easy. I just wish the camera was a notch faster to use overall.

Image quality. While the X-E1 wasn't as quick or responsive as a DSLR, the camera produced top-notch image quality and we got surprisingly good results from the 18-55mm kit lens. In short, this CSC captured photos that looked better than most APS-C-sensor-based DSLRs on the market.

As already noted, the X-E1 uses the same 16.3MP X-Trans CMOS sensor as is in the more expensive X-Pro1. And like the X-Pro1, the X-E1 has no low-pass filter, a move that's designed to increase resolution and sharpness. Low pass filters are typically used in digital cameras to prevent moir� from occurring in images with subjects that have repeating patterns. To tackle moir�, the X-E1's sensor (as with the X-Pro1) has a new color filter array inspired by the random arrangement of fine film grain. In the array, RGB pixels are arranged in 6x6 pixel sets as opposed to the traditional Bayer array of 2x2 pixel sets.

Is it effective? Tough to say specifically, but I did get excellent detail in the landscape and cityscape photos I captured with the X-E1. Also, I saw almost no moir� in my shots, even in images of the vertical wires on the George Washington Bridge in upper Manhattan. When I zoomed in at 200% on my shots, I not only saw details I didn't know were there, they looked surprisingly sharp with few aberrations.

The X-E1 also eclipsed most APS-C-based DLSRs I've tried when it came to shooting in low light at high ISOs. At ISOs of up to 6,400, the camera produced images with manageable levels of noise -- and without significant smearing of pixels from anti-noise processing. Images at ISO 12,800 were, of course, much more noisy and blurry, but in a pinch I'd feel comfortable using this setting in dim conditions. I was helping a professional photographer friend with a shoot of dancers in front of a bar in New York City, and I was able to get fairly decent shots of them as they leapt from the sidewalk at night. Sure, there was noise but considering the conditions, the camera performed quite well. In short, the X-E1 did a deft job, producing crisp images in low light at high ISOs.

I was also impressed with the 18-55mm kit lens, which produced excellent sharpness overall. I think this is due, in part, to having no low-pass filter over the X-E1's sensor, but also to the better than expected optics of the lens, which is the first zoom in Fuji's X-mount lineup. Its maximum aperture is relatively fast at f/2.8-4, and the kit lens produced images with tack sharpness in the center for portraits and nice background blur (aka bokeh), particularly for portraits and Macro shots. (One feature I liked about the X-E1 is the camera's very simple one-button adjustment on back to get it into Macro mode.)

As mentioned in the Controls section, I was a little confused by the way you switch between manual aperture and auto aperture control via a switch on the 18-55mm lens' barrel. I pretty much kept it on the manual setting and adjusted aperture on my own but, when I was feeling lazy, I let the camera pick the aperture.

Filter effects. My shots during the unseasonably warm day in December had great color that looked realistic and not too oversaturated. Of course, if you want to add some saturation, you can switch to the Fuji X-E1's Velvia/Vivid, film simulation mode, which is designed to mimic the look of Velvia slide film, with pumped up colors. The camera defaults to Provia/Standard mode, and there's also an Astia/Soft setting, as well as Pro Negative and Monochrome modes to choose from.

While some consumer-oriented digital cameras hit you with a ton of effects modes, many of which you probably won't use, I'm glad Fuji's kept it simple with its filter options on the X-E1. I also like that the company continues to draw on its film lineage in these film-simulation modes. After the snowstorm, I tried out several of the Fuji X-E1's black-and-white modes including traditional Monochrome, and Monochrome with a Yellow, Red, and Green filter options. I also tested out the Sepia mode, which produces an "old-timey" light brown effect. Overall, I liked the monochrome modes quite a bit, and they worked really well with snowy images I shot in a local park, giving them am austere, classic look. The sepia effect, I could take or leave, and only used it sparingly.

Video. For video, the Fuji X-E1 can capture HD clips at the increasingly standard 1080p resolution but only at 24p (24 frames/second), not at 30p as with most competing cameras. I also wish it was faster to switch into video mode. Instead of a dedicated video button, or a setting on the mode dial, you have to press the Drive button on back of the X-E1 and scroll all the way down to the movie camera icon at the bottom of the screen to engage the feature. If you're looking to capture video of one of those precious, spur-of-the-moment slices of life, you might miss it. As mentioned earlier, a workaround is to program the Fn (Function) button on top of the camera for video, but that prevents you from giving it any other functionality, such as for adjusting ISO, which you might want.

Movies can be recorded in full Auto mode, or in Aperture priority mode, and you can use the full selection of available film modes, including the various black and white modes. As with still photography, this feature can create some pretty classic-looking video clips. Video quality, compared to a good DSLR, is only so-so and gets worse in lower light. There are also significant rolling shutter effects when you move the camera rapidly, especially when panning. Most of my videos of sledders zooming down a big hill were fine when I focused on a single spot but if I tried to pan with them as they moved, I'd get the wobbly "jell-o" effect in the video.

One big plus for shooting video with the Fuji X-E1 is that its zoom kit lens has built-in OIS (Optical Image Stabilization), which made it far easier to handhold the camera when recording movies. While the XE-1 has a built-in stereo microphone, sound quality is limited, so you'll want to take advantage of the external mic jack to capture the best audio.

Overall, I was pretty pleased with the lightweight build of the Fujifilm X-E1: It's solid without seeming too bulky. It's still a larger camera, but I'd be happier carrying it around than the larger, heavier X-Pro1. Inclusion of a kit zoom lens makes more sense for the consumer market, but the good news is the X-E1's introduction also includes another prime to appeal to the X-Mount owner, a 14mm f/2.8 lens. Given its excellent image quality, the X-E1 looks like another winner for Fujifilm.

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QUICK HITS: The most interesting, most-read articles on the IR site in the past two weeks
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Canon S110 review: Canon trades GPS for instant sharing�can the camera giant master Wi-Fi at last?

By Mike Tomkins

The Canon S110 is the latest in a long line of PowerShot S-series cameras, and it has some mighty big shoes to fill. The PowerShot S line has proven popular with enthusiast photographers, and for good reason: The pairing of a pocket-friendly body with enthusiast-oriented features like twin control dials and a raw file format is a potent one. Add in good image quality compared to their compact camera brethren, and it's no surprise that for three consecutive generations, PowerShot S cameras have earned our coveted Dave's Pick award.

For the new generation, the PowerShot S110 replaces its predecessor's built-in GPS receiver with a Wi-Fi radio, and adds a touch screen display for good measure. Canon has stumbled in past attempts to make a sharing-friendly camera, and touch screens too have proven divisive with photographers. Will the Canon S110 be the camera that makes good on both features, and can it earn another Dave's Pick for Canon?

Find out by reading our Canon S110 review here: http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/canon-s110/canon-s110A.htm)

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By Dan Havlik

In concert photography, drummers are notoriously difficult to capture because they're usually positioned at the back of the stage behind an obstructive drum kit. But what if the drummer you wanted to photograph also had a custom-made rig that allowed him to play upside down? Sounds like a tough challenge, right?

That's the set-up Mike Corrado faced when he went to photograph M�tley Cr�e at Jones Beach on Long Island, NY last September. The Cr�e's drummer, Tommy Lee, has a rather infamous "roller coaster" drum kit rigged to a circular track that allows him to play completely upside down at one point during the show. So, along with trying to get close-ups of Lee, Corrado had to figure out how to get a difficult shot from a killer angle showing the drummer playing upside down before the live crowd.

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WE'VE GOT MAIL: Questions from readers, answers from IR
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Please send us your camera and photography questions and comments (mailto:editor@imaging-resource.com). Not only will we respond to each and every one of your letters, but we'll also publish the best ones here as a resource for all our readers.

EVF vs. OVF

Dave,

I read most of your review on the A77, which I thank you for taking the time to write such a detailed review. But when you discussed the EVF on the A77 you talked about the positives and the shortcomings of it, but I have to wonder if you've ever talked about the reverse happening with an OVF. I find that you easily have the same problems with OVFs in that the image captured does not always look as it did in the OVF, as far as highlights and shadows, color, even cropping. I see all too often people criticizing the EVF and not even mentioning the cons of the 100-year-old stagnant technology of the OVF.

Thx,
Steve

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Hi Steve,

Yes, there are definitely pros and cons to both technologies, and the OVF not being able to preview your image for you (showing expected overall exposure, white balance, etc) is certainly a shortcoming relative to the EVF. I personally also really like being able to have status information displayed in an EVF while I'm shooting, along with things like level indicators (aka artificial horizons). Overall, I've spent quite a bit of time shooting with EVF cameras, particularly Sony's (since their SLRs are all SLTs these days, so they necessarily have an EVF on them).

I think I've talked so much about the limited dynamic range of EVFs for two reasons. First, it really bothers me, and has been a problem on multiple occasions, when I'm faced with detail that's important to the framing of a photo, in both the highlights and shadows. It's something I think readers who might only have shot with OVFs in the past should be aware of, because it is in fact a real impediment.

The second reason I focus on this a lot is because I want the manufacturers to fix the problem, and I've seen plenty of evidence that what we write about cameras has a significant influence on how the designs evolve. One manufacturer goes so far as to send a contingent of Japanese engineers to IR once or twice a year, to get direct feedback on upcoming designs. But I've seen that even other makers who don't go to that length do take our feedback seriously.

The thing is, it's not (or shouldn't be) fundamentally difficult to apply a correction curve to data being sent to the EVF, to pull the shadows up and highlights down when faced with a lot of contrast. It could be tricky to get the correction curve perfectly correct, but I really don't need that: Just give me the option to set a mode or push a button to put the EVF into "HDR" mode, so I can use it when I really need it. Really, this shouldn't be difficult to do, and would in one stroke eliminate my sole remaining beef with EVFs.

Overall, I'm probably about 90% of the way to being ready to forge ahead with EVFs and not look back. I just need to know that they're not going to cost me lost photos caused by incorrect framing. (For another take on this, and a great illustrative example, check out this article from Michael Reichmann: http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/03/27/why-i-hate-electronic-viewfinders-evfs-no-were-not-there-yet)

- Dave

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Scanner depth of field

Dave,

Hi, I want to ask you about scanners, that I want to buy a scanner that has enough depth of field, like 1 cm. I want to make textures, carpets, leather or even flowers. But I need depth of field enough like 1 cm. I searched too much but couldn't decide. Please help me just advice me a scanner model that has enough dof. I have some models in my mind like Epson v600, Canoscan 5600f. Their prices are also good enough to buy. But I want an expert opinion from you.

- Okan

-----------------------

Hi Okan,

I'd like to help you out on this, but I honestly don't know anything about the depth of field of scanners. Since many reflective scanners (at least in the small office/home office market) are designed to deal with scanning books spread open on their glass, though, I tend to think that most would have a reasonable depth of field. But that's just speculation.

Out of curiosity, I did a quick check of the DOF of the scanner in the Canon MP980 combo unit on my desk: I took a piece of paper with print on it, and folded it to make a little "tent", with the peak 2 cm above the scanner glass. You can see the result below. Things are clearly pretty soft at 2cm, but might be acceptable at 1cm, depending on how you intended to use the resulting images (see my comments further down on that point).

In general, a lot of people do this sort of "scanner photography", so I think most scanners will be up to the task. One thing to note is that the parts of the subject actually touching the scanner glass will be quite sharp, so there'll be an impression of sharpness in textures, even if some parts of them are OOF.

Here's an example of some flowers scanned on an old Canon 8400F flatbed scanner: http://jmvigil.smugmug.com/Flowers/Scanned-Flowers/10628587_6c8LGz#!i=1210077242&k=HCW9BPW .

And here's a Wikipedia page about scanning 3D objects: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scanography.

For a different approach, here's a YouTube video about a 3D multifunction unit (scan, print, etc), that has an 8 MP camera and special lighting built into it, so it can "scan" 3D objects properly: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfLFFHOJq0A.

Which suggests another approach: Just set up a couple of lights in typical "copy stand" orientation (45-degree angle on either side of the subject, with the camera looking down from the middle) and snap photos with your digicam.

As to exactly what the DOF is for various scanners, I unfortunately don't have any data for you, because we've never measured that as part of our testing. I do think, though, that most any scanner would work fine for the sorts of objects you're talking about (carpet, leather, flowers). You mentioned these as "textures", which suggests to me that you're going to apply the resulting images to art in Photoshop or perhaps onto 3D models. In that case, chances are the texture images will be much smaller in your final image than they were when you scanned them. If this is the case, it means you'll have a lot of leeway on DOF, because small amounts of out-of-focus won't be very visible in the final image.

Bottom line, I think most any scanner would work pretty well for you, but you might also want to think about just setting up a copystand sort of arrangement to use with your camera.

- Dave

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What about the Plustek Opticfilm scanner?

Hello Dave,

I was interested to read your reply to Tom regarding "Scanner Choices". Have you had a look at the very recently released Plustek Opticfilm 120 scanner? Reading the information put out by Plustek it appears to be a very respectable piece of equipment. I, like Tom have many negatives and also want to dust of my 2 beloved Hasselblads, with the idea of using very fine grain (20 ISO) monochrome film and scan the results. I would appreciate your thoughts.

Regards,
David

-----------------------

Hi David -
We haven't looked at high-res film scanners for quite a while now; I think it's about time we did again, though. We're currently buried with a fresh onslaught of new cameras, so I'm not sure of the time frame, but it's on the agenda. (Please feel free to bug us in another month or two, though, if nothing seems to be happening. :-)

The Plustek 120 does indeed have some impressive specs, at least if it can live up to them. From what I've seen around the 'web, it looks like it's a pretty good performer, although there have been some complaints that the Silverfast scanning software it ships with is a little buggy. Unfortunately, Ed Hamrick's excellent VueScan doesn't support it yet. Stay tuned, and feel free to remind us on this; I'd really like us to take a look at it.

- Dave

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Discounts from Thomas Distributing?

Do you still have a program with Thomas Distributing�for discounts to subscribers and credit for you?

Thanks,
Jim L.

-----------------------

Hi Jim,

No, we don't have an advertising arrangement with Thomas Distributing any more, but they're still an excellent place to buy batteries and chargers; I highly recommend them. As cameras moved more and more to proprietary Li-ion batteries vs. the AA cells that were common in the early days, there became less and less point to Thomas advertising with an all-cameras-all-the-time site like ours. Like I said, though, I still highly recommend them, and frequently use them myself, to buy any batteries or chargers I need that they carry.

- Dave

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Alternatives to iView

Hello!

I've been using iView on a Mac for about 5 years. Its use is primarily to categorize and catalog images for a not-for-profit organization's archive and for their publicity use. I have close to 4,000 images at the moment. Thus far iView has proven quite useful. The catalog reader function enables organization members to select images on their own computer and then request full rez versions from me when needed. I am concerned for the future since Microsoft no longer supports iView and, as I upgrade my operating system, I am finding some minor problems running iView. My question for you is whether there are other catalog systems out there which would replace iView that you would recommend.

Respectfully,
Arthur Radin

-----------------------

Hi Arthur,

It appears that Microsoft sold iView to Phase One, makers of high-end digital backs for medium format cameras, as well as the CaptureOne RAW converter program. Phase One has continued development and support (including incorporating the rendering engine from CaptureOne, and integrating with CaptureOne itself), and is now selling the program as Media Pro 1.

There were some complaints a year or so back that it was very slow, but I didn't find similar complaints about the latest version (I think this is version 1.2, released last September) when I went looking. But then, I didn't find any really in-depth reviews of the new version. Here's one I did find for the most recent version, which makes passing mention of performance (a wash with Lightroom and aperture for collections up to 5,000 images, much faster with really large collections): http://www.nikonians.org/reviews?alias=review-phase-one-media-pro.

I think the best thing for you to do would be to download a 60-day free trial copy, and see how it works for you: http://www.phaseone.com/en/Downloads/Media-Pro-1.aspx. I'm not sure how many people in your organization would need access to your database, but Phase One sells multi-user licenses for up to 50 seats.

- Dave

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Testing ISO
(From the IR forums)

Dave,
A belated thanks for your response.

I'm reviving this thread after a long lapse, because I have a related question about a couple of your current test images. Specifically, X100ShSL06400NR1.JPG, and D7100hSLI06400NR0.JPG. Both were taken at ISO 6400, but the X100s image received 1 1/3 stops more exposure than the D7100 image (1/500, f/8 vs. 1/1250, f/8). Assuming that your test scene received the same illumination for both tests, how can this be a fair comparison of the two cameras' performances?

Maybe I am not fully understanding your testing protocol, but it seems to me that the critical factor in noise tests should signal, i.e., the actual exposure of the sensors, not ISO. Wouldn't it make more sense to equalize exposures, and to vary gain to match brightness levels, rather than the other way around?

- Jeff

-----------------------

Hi Jeff -
No problem, apologies for my slow reply to this note of yours as well.

It does appear that the X100s is "cheating" some on its high ISO settings. Some of the difference could be put down to the difference in the "T-stops" of the lenses involved. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-stop#T-stop) The X100s has a multi-element zoom lens, while the D7100 was tested with one of our lab-standard 70mm f/2.8 Sigma macro lenses. The more complex optical formula of a zoom lens almost invariably means lower light transmission than you'll see with a prime.

That doesn't nearly explain the full difference, though, and as I said, I suspect the X100s is cheating a little (maybe a lot) on its ISO speed. They haven't tested the X100s yet, but when DxOMark looked at the X100, they found that it's true maximum ISO was actually somewhere around 1,000, regardless of what ISO you set it at. (http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/Cameras/Camera-Sensor-Database/Fujifilm/FinePix-X100 - Click on the "Measurements" tab, and ISO Sensitivity should be the first graph that appears.) I imagine something similar is going on here.

We expose to get the brightness levels in the JPEGs as close to identical as possible, to make visual comparisons easier, as well as to be able to feed consistent numbers to the Imatest software we use for some of our analysis. (We try to get the middle gray swatch of the MacBeth chart right around 123 for the RGB values.) We make coarse adjustments with the shutter speed, which gets us to within +/- 1/3 EV, then tweak the lights forward or back slightly to bring the exposure right on the money. - So there could be as much as plus or minus a third of a stop of difference in light levels, as a result of making the finer adjustments with the lights that the camera can't manage on its own. This variation would be nowhere near what we're seeing in this particular comparison, though.

Because of the whole issue with T-stops, we can't easily measure ISO directly, but we could at least get things somewhere in the ballpark, probably sufficiently so to point out what's going on in situations like this. - I'll look at having the team do that going forward.

Thanks for the note, it pointed out that we do need to make some estimate of ISO in our review work.

- Dave

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Comparing telephoto photos
(From the IR forums)


I am new to these forums and have had a look to see if this has been covered before. I don't see how the image comparisons display which camera does the best job at full telephoto. I currently have a Panasonic DMC-ZS7 (12x) and was interested in the new ZS30 (20x). But I got a chance to take test photos with a dealer's ZS30. I then cropped the resulting images heavily (the ZS7's more so, of course) to show the same distant building detail at the same size on my computer screen. The ZS7 crop was much clearer and sharper than what the ZS30 produced. While awaiting full reviews of the ZS30, I am now turning my attention to other GPS enabled point & shoot cameras with high telephoto capability but don't see how I can determine this important (to me) aspect of each camera via the comparison photos on this excellent site.

Dave

-----------------------

Hi Dave -

Good point, we should really be including some examples at wide and max tele with these super-zoom cameras, so people could more easily see how they perform. We do an outdoor shot of the local City Hall with interchangeable-lens cameras that would give a good idea of zoom with the kit lenses, but we don't do those outdoor shots with digicams. You can get some idea of lens quality from our VFA shots, though: If you look at the thumbnails page for more recently-reviewed cameras, you should usually see a VFA shot marked with something like "_20x" in the filename, shot with the camera at that zoom setting in our lab.

I do think we should be testing super-zooms to show their full zoom performance, though, with at least one set of outdoor shots. City Hall is a bit of a drive to make for all the digicams, but we could perhaps use some more nearby subject to show this.

Thanks for the note, I'll discuss this with the team.

- Dave

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NEW ON THE SITE
-----------------------

At http://www.imaging-resource.com/new-on-ir you can keep track of what's new on our main site. Among the highlights since the last issue:

- News: Photoshopped Creative Commons image wins photography prize (http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/04/03/photoshopped-creative-commons-image-wins-photography-prize)

- Fun: The latest photo meme fad is called Vadering. The force may be strong with this one. (http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/04/03/The-latest-photo-meme-fad-is-called-Vadering.-The-force-may-be-strong-in)

- DIY: Make your own "Ice Light" for under $20 (http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/04/03/make-your-own-ice-light-for-under-20)

- Lens Review: Nikon 1 18.5mm f/1.8 (http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/04/03/lens-review-nikon-1-18.5mm-f-1.8)

- Tech: Check out this beautiful hack of a Sigma DP Merrill to take Leica lenses (http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/04/02/sigma-dp-merrill-heavily-modded-to-take-leica-lenses)

- Latest from the IR Lab: First shots uploaded from Nikon Coolpix A, the smallest APS-C camera money can buy (http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/03/28/first-shots-uploaded-from-nikon-coolpix-a-smallest-aps-c-cam-money-can-buy)

- Security: Experts show how WiFi-enabled cameras can be hacked to spy on people (http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/03/26/security-experts-show-how-wifi-enabled-cameras-can-be-hacked-to-spy-on-peop)

- Photos: See Paris then and now in side-by-side photo comparisons with circa 1914 color shots (http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/03/26/see-paris-then-and-now-in-current-and-early-20th-century-color-photo-compar)

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NEXT ISSUE
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Our next issue will be mailed to you in two weeks, on Friday, April 19.

SIGNOFF
-----------

That's it for now, but between issues visit our site for the latest news, reviews, or to have your questions answered in our free discussion forum. Here are the links to our most popular pages:

Newsletter Archive: http://www.imaging-resource.com/cgi-bin/dada-nltr/mail.cgi/archive/irnews
Daily News: http://www.imaging-resource.com/news
SLR Gear: http://www.slrgear.com
New on Site: http://www.imaging-resource.com/new-on-ir
Review Index: http://www.imaging-resource.com/camera-reviews
IR Photo Contest: http://www.dailydigitalphoto.com

Happy snapping!
Dave Etchells & Roger Slavens
mailto: editor@imaging-resource.com