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Equipment Review: Lowepro Slingshot 300 AW

Although the single shoulder strap design takes some getting used to, this $99 bag from Lowepro swallowed all the gear we threw into it, and then some.
- By Jack Howard on December 16, 2008
I'll admit it, I didn't quite "get" the whole buzz about the Lowepro Slingshot line. And considering that until recently, most of the bags were on the smaller side, I was OK with that, since I'm the sort of photographer who lugs a ton of gear along with me.
But then Lowepro released the Slingshot 300 AW (street $99.00), a bag big enough for a DSLR (or two) and a handful of lenses. Being in the market for a new bag as I am, I was excited to see whether this new concept in gear-toting really lived up to the hype.
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Lighting: Two 4 One

How to make a single studio light do the job of two -- and make your portraits pop.
- By Peter Kolonia on December 16, 2008
The late, great studio guru Dean Collins pulled many rabbits out of his lighting hat, but this trick attributed to him took my breath away: He made a single light produce two contrasting colors simultaneously, each aimed in a separate and discrete direction, with no significant cross-contamination.The beauty of this technique: it lets you make what appears to be three-light-location portraits from a very portable two-light kit.
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Super Printer Shootout

Want to make big, gorgeous, color and black-and-white prints? We put three pro-level printers to the test.
- By Michael J. Mcnamara on December 16, 2008
Small prints don't do justice to your beautiful photos?
Do your creative juices start to flow when you see a 11x14- or 13x19-inch enlargement on premium glossy paper, watercolor paper, or canvas? Then it's time to take your photography to the next level with the latest generation of super printers.
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Printers: The Gift That Keeps on Giving

If you're considering giving that special someone a photo printer this year, here are two worth considering.
- By Popphoto.com Staff on December 16, 2008
Epson Stylus Photo RX580 All-In-One ($200)
It scans, it faxes, and it prints photos that are amazingly high quality. It can give you snapshots that are as good or better than anything you'll get at a store...and you get them in 32 seconds. Want big pictures? How is 8.5x11 inches? Or a panorama up to 8x44 inches? It also prints directly on CDs and DVDs. There's even a little color LCD screen for checking and editing your photos.
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The Goods

Identical-twin 10.2MP DSLRs, a 5MP Zeiss-lens camera you can talk with, AA batteries charged by computer, and a cool bag to carry it all.
- By Popphoto Staff on December 16, 2008
Two of a Kind?
Samsung is now the fifth camera maker to offer a sub-$1,000 10-megapixel DSLR in the U.S. But its new 10.2MP GX-10 may look oddly familiar. Check out the sensor-based Optical Picture Stabilization... the self-cleaning CCD... the thoroughly sealed and gasketed body...
Could it be? Yep, it is: The GX-10 is essentially the clone of the Pentax K10D (see our Lab Test, or view specs and pricing).
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The Goods

Power for your pocket, armless heads for tripods, upgraded software for novices and pros, and more.
- On December 16, 2008
D-Lite-ful
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Five Must-Have Storage Drives

Five hot devices for archiving, protecting, and sharing your photos.
- By Jack Howard on December 16, 2008
1. WESTERN DIGITAL PASSPORT PORTABLE DRIVE
At 3.5x5.7x0.8 inches, this drive puts up to 160GB in your shirt pocket, letting you carry massive amounts of digital photos around with you in a tiny amount of space. It needs no power brick because it draws from the Hi-Speed USB 2.0 cable to transfer up to 480 Mbit/sec. Windows-only WD Sync software encrypts your data. (60-160GB, $120-$200, street; www.wdc.com)
2. SEAGATE MIRRA PERSONAL SYNC AND SHARE PERSONAL SERVER
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How to Tame High-Contrast Lighting

A pair of quick tips for taming high-contrast lighting when you shoot out-of-doors.
- By Peter Kolonia on December 16, 2008
Whatever your outdoor subject, if you're making pictures under a cloudless daytime sky, you've got a problem: contrast. Highlights can be blazingly bright and shadows impenetrably dark. Even with your DSLR at its lowest contrast setting, preserving detail in both highlight and shadowed areas can be impossible.
The good news: If you're forced to shoot in bright sunlight, photographers have developed techniques that can dim down highlights and/or brighten shadows to ultimately shrink the dynamic range of a scene. Here are two such contrast-controlling techniques.
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The Goods

New ways to print bigger, soften your focus, eliminate grain, shoot from the wrist, and more.
- On December 16, 2008
Big Time
A 17-incher is the acme of desktop printers: Who wouldn't want to whip out images so big that you have to stand back to appreciate them?
Canon's new entry, the imagePrograf iPF5000, is a beaut. It has two, count 'em, two heads to transport a whopping 12 inks. According to Canon, that means faster prints with a superwide gamut.
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Which Software Should I Buy?

I'm getting serious about image editing. But do I really need to spend $650 for Adobe Photoshop CS2 -- can't I get by with Photoshop Elements 5.0 ($100)?
- On December 16, 2008
If you're getting serious, but you're not yet sure just how serious you're going to get, the answer is yes, you can get by with Elements. For now.
Photoshop's "junior" version, Elements 5.0, is a great program. And it has a lot of the most commonly used Photoshop tools: the awesome Healing Brush and its cousin the Spot Healing Brush, the Magnetic Lasso, and the Clone Stamp.
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