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Aperture: First Look

Apple Steps Up
- By Pop Photo Staff on December 16, 2008
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We were excited, though somewhat skeptical, when we heard that Apple was jumping into high-end photographic software with the $500 Aperture. To understand the program, imagine a world where a RAW file never needs to be converted to enable you to work with it like a JPEG. In Aperture, you can sort, select, organize, and fix RAW files, but it will make the conversion only when you need to output as another file type-the fixes are nondestructive sets of instructions applied to the RAW file's display.
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Can an EVF do battle with digital SLRs?

Test: Sony Cyber-shot DSC-R1
- By Michael J. Mcnamara on December 16, 2008
Click to download News Podcast for this article

PC User: Right Click > Save Target As...
Mac User: Control + Click > Download Link to Disk
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Meet the New Boss: The Canon EOS 5D

A powerful DSLR that worked its way up the ranks.
- By Michael J. Mcnamara on December 16, 2008
Canon's New EOS 5D DSLR ($3,300 street, body only) is a study in the yin and yang of camera design. On the one hand, its 12.8MP full-frame CMOS sensor eliminates the 35mm lens factor found on all lower-priced DSLRs and gives it a potential image-quality edge. On the other hand, it costs more than twice as much as the 8.2MP EOS 20D ($1,300 street) from which it was cloned, and it's missing a few of the 20D's features. So you might ask, if the EOS 5D takes a picture in the woods and nobody hears it, does it make a sound purchase? Put simply, yes.
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Ricoh GR

From Japan With A Wide Angle
- By John Owens, Editor In Chief on December 16, 2008
You know Ricoh. And not just as an office copier company. Anyone who's been involved in photography for more than a few years knows that this Japanese company was a player in various film cameras, especially 35mm SLRs.
We recently got one fresh out of U.S. Customs (which intercepted it on its way from Tokyo), and this 8.1MP compact is really impressive.
First, there's the solid-feeling magnesium-alloy body that measures about 4 inches wide by just over 2 inches high and a mere .75 inches thick. Then there's the 2.5-inch/210,000-pixel LCD.
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First Look: Canon EOS 5D

12.8MP, and no 35mm "lens factor." Amen!
- By Michael J. Mcnamara on December 16, 2008
What do you get when you cross a semi-pro 8.2MP DSLR with a pro 16.7MP DSLR? Only Canon could answer that riddle, and has with the new 12.8MP EOS 5D ($3,299, body only).
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Nikon announces 10.2 MP D200

Could this camera be the coal in the 20D's stocking?
- By Philip Ryan on December 16, 2008
This morning, Nikon announced its latest DSLR, called the D200. For an estimated street price of $1,699, it offers a 10.2 (effective) megapixel, APS-sized CCD sensor housed in a weather-sealed, magnesium-alloy chassis, which sports a 2.5-inch, 230,000-pixel LCD on back. The camera can capture up to 37 JPEG, or 22 NEF RAW, images at a rate of up to 5 frames per second. And, since it doesn't have an integrated vertical grip, its size and weight are a manageable 5.5x4.4x2.9-inches and 1lb 13oz (without battery, memory card, body cap, or monitor cover).
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10 Things You Should Know About The Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D

There's a switch for almost everything...we said almost everything
- By Dan Richards on December 16, 2008
It's no secret that we here at Pop Photo like our cameras with lots of dials and levers-not as a matter of aes-thetics (although they do look impressive), but because they provide faster access to more controls than a menu system. Konica Minolta's Maxxum 7D is that camera, squared: Among the numerous external controls is a dedicated dial for white balance, an exposure-compensation dial calibrated in both 1⁄2- and 1⁄3-EV steps, plus a flash-compensation dial. And all the settings you make are displayed in one place: the huge, very readable, 2.5-inch LCD.
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Just Out 09/05

New gear that has impressed our editors
- By Philip Ryan on December 16, 2008
Tower of Power Boutique PC-maker Velocity Micro's hand-assembled, silver metal-cased custom computers come to life with a cool blue glow when you start them up. Look inside the 17-inch diagonal side panel windows and you'll get an up-close view of wires carefully folded and neatly tied back for the healthy airflow essential for long processor life. But it's not just looks that tell you these go beyond typical, plain-vanilla Windows PCs.
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Camera Test: Nikon D50

This Nikon DSLR redefines "entry level."
- By Michael J. Mcnamara on December 16, 2008
First impressions mean a lot. That's why we were eager to get our hands on a production version of Nikon's 6.1MP D50 DSLR-to confirm our positive first impression (see "First Look," July 2005). At a street price of $750 (body only; $1,150 with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 and 55-200mm f/4-5.6 Nikkor DX lenses, reviewed on page 56), it's priced below the $900 Nikon D70s and aimed at budget-conscious photographers shopping for their first DSLR. But as our lab and field tests confirm, the D50 is hardly an entry-level DSLR.
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Canon Announces EOS 5D, EOS 1D Mark II N

Besides the digital SLRs, Canon also announced new compact cameras, photo printers, lenses, and a flash unit.
- By Philip Ryan on December 16, 2008
After over a week of intense rumors, Canon announced two new DSLRs Monday, along with new compact cameras, photo printers, lenses, and a flash unit. The hottest news was the 12.8MP full-frame EOS 5D DSLR ($3,299 estimated street price), which is expected to hit stores in October. The magnesium alloy body houses a 35.8x23.9mm CMOS sensor, 2.5-inch LCD with 230,000-pixel resolution, and a newly designed pentaprism, in a unit that measures 6x4.4x3-inches and weighs 31.5 ounces with battery installed.
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