Kodak discontinues E6 slidefilm

In yet another stunning announcement (after they killed off Kodachrome, declared bankruptcy and sold off their digital imaging division), Kodak has now announced that they are discontinuing all E6 slide film production. Kodak insisted that film production is still profitable, but the recent announcements seem to suggests otherwise. They will continue manufacturing Portra films, Ektar films and black-and-white films.

I'm gonna get as much of the remaining stocks while I can. And it will be a dark day when Ektar or Tri-X dies due to the boffins in charge of the once glorious Kodak.

Read more about it at this link.

WWII photos of Nazi Germany - in colour!

 

Photography by Hugo Jaeger

Most of the photo documenting the Second World War were shot in grainy black & white film, which is why it may come as a surprise that Hitler and his Third Reich Germany were photographed in color, no doubt for propaganda purposes. Thanks to Hugo Jaeger's photography, we can witness the Nazi era in full Kodachrome colour - which really looks eerily surreal given the modernity of colour. In fact, they look like they came off the set of a movie! Be sure to check out Hugo Jaeger's colour photos of Nazi Germany at this link. 

Fuji X100 - now available in black

Fuji is offering a limited (10,000 pcs actually) number of their X100 cameras in black, presumably making it more stealthy and professional looking. The only catch is the price of USD1700, which is significantly more than the usual silver X100. It does come with a leather cover, lens hood and protective filter though, but I'm not sure if the overall package is worth so much more than the USD1200 standard silver model. Still that's an option for those of us who have the extra dough in the pocket... I'm hanging out for the pink Hello Kitty version rumoured to be in the works.

An interview with Mary Ellen Mark

Mary Ellen Mark is one of my favourite photographers. Her photographs are starkly beautiful and peer deep into the souls of the subject; they make you want to keep staring and examining the depth of the photos. In this short video, she spoke about her way of photography and how she worked, which was seriously candid, humble and pensive.

Seriously, do not miss this 3:45min video for anything in the world. Your point of view may just be totally changed…

Gigantic 35-feet film negatives put digital cameras to shame

 
Think film is dead? Think again!

Chicago photographer Dennis Manarchy created a giant camera capable of producing 35-feet high single sheet negatives that blows all other film and digital formats out of the water with its astounding resolution. The downside? It costs US$50k to get your photo taken... Still it's a bargain if you have enough dough to buy a building so you can plaster your gigantic photo across its facade!

 

If you think that your rangefinder lenses are small, you ain't seen nothing yet! In Japan, a dedicated lens maker Mr. Miyazaki set-up his own company called MS-Optical to create astoundingly small lenses for rangefinders. He gained fame a few years back with his first product - the Perar 35mm lens, which really looks more like a body mount cap than a lens!

Now he has pushed the boundaries further with a new lens - the Perar 28mm f/4 lens, which is even smaller than his debut product! What's really amazing is that all his lenses are handmade by him in limited numbers, which explains their rarity and scarcity. They are popular for delivering good performance in an ultra-compact package.

You can order the lens from here.

Pentax has launched a new mirrorless interchangeable lens camera - the Pentax K-01 (pronounced "kay-zero-one"). It utilizes contrast detection because of the absence of a mirror, which will probably be detrimental for its focusing speed. However, unlike most EVIL (electronic viewfinder interchangeable lens) cameras, the 16MP K-01 is nearly as thick as the flagship Pentax K5. Which begs the question - why design an EVIL camera when you cannot capitalize on its key advantage, i.e a compact size? With an APS-C sensor, the Sony NEX cameras are much more compact, even though the Pentax can accept the range of Pentax K-mount lenses. The K-01 is the work of famed designer Marc Newson (whom I'm a fan of), but the design of this Pentax just leaves me in the cold with its odd blend of design cues.

Sorry Pentax - I love your K5 and K7, and I think your Q is something special and unique. But the K-01 looks like the work of some bad boardroom decisions.

Wishing all Chinese readers a Happy Lunar New Year!

Smoke Dragon - Shot with EOS 5D Mk II…

Today marks the beginning of the Lunar Year of the Dragon, so it’s probably apt to wish all the Chinese around the world a Happy Lunar New Year with this abstract image of a dragon!