New cameras are taking the challenge out of high contrast scenes, leaving photographers more time to compose and share their photos rather than retouch them in Photoshop. Check out the state-of-the-HDR-art in this December’s Outdoor Photographer magazine (intro below:)

INTRO:

Auto HDR, Quicker, Faster And Better?

New DSLRs with Auto HDR features can create high dynamic range images in just seconds, but are the results worth the convenience?

By Michael J. McNamara

In the last few years, high dynamic range (HDR) photography has become incredibly popular, propelled in part by the capabilities of both digital cameras and HDR-enabled imaging programs. As a group, outdoor photographers have been the biggest beneficiaries of the HDR process, as it enables us to tackle high-contrast scenes in nature and produce HDR images that more closely match our visual experience. Creating an HDR image isn’t new to digital, but with film it was a tedious process that required skill, an expensive darkroom and lots of trial and error. With digital photography, you can create an HDR image in the computer much easier and with better results. DSLRs can shoot a burst of bracketed exposures, and using a variety of HDR-enabled software programs, you can create an HDR image by combining elements from each exposure.

Camera designers apparently didn’t think this was easy enough, which explains why there are now Auto HDR modes in several new DSLRs from Nikon, Pentax and Sony, and we expect the trend to continue. At the push of the shutter button, these cameras shoot a quick burst of exposures and then use their powerful image-processing engines to merge them into an HDR JPEG image. As a bonus, several Pentax and Sony models can correct minor camera movements that occur between frames in the burst, allowing you to create HDR images without a tripod!

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Ready to upgrade from a compact camera to a more-capable DSLR? Or looking to trade in your old DSLR for a newer, faster, video-capable model that won’t cost you an arm and a leg? Check out the roundup I wrote in this month’s Outdoor Photographer magazine.

INTRO:
Big-Time DSLRs Under $1,000
Packed with power, advanced features and high performance, the latest sub-$1,000 ­­HD SLRs are outstanding options for serious nature photographers
By Michael J. McNamara

It’s hard to believe that the very first DSLR was introduced only 20 years ago, but that’s ancient history in the world of digital cameras. Priced at an astronomical $26,000 for the basic color model, the Kodak DCS-100 had a jury-rigged, 1.3-megapixel camera back attached to a Nikon F3 film SLR and a shoebox-sized 200 MB hard drive that slung painfully over your shoulder. By today’s standards, the DCS-100 was a real clunker—but the same can be said of any DSLR that’s more than five years old, as recent advancements in digital camera technologies have upped the performance ante dramatically in DSLRs from entry level to professional grade. Now, if you’re a serious photographer who can’t justify spending several grand on a rugged, full-frame DSLR, or even a pro looking for an affordable, lightweight backup camera and one that just happens to record great video, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the features and performance found in DSLRs costing under $1,000.

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Recently, my old friend, prolific author, and GREAT photographer Rick Sammon stopped by my studio to record two shows for his new Digital Photo Experience podcast channel on iTunes. He got me going on my experiences shooting, editing, and testing the latest hybrid still and video DSLRs, as well as my advice on the best digital projectors for showing off your photos. (Want the best projection image quality for the price? Or want to shorten HD video conversion times from hours to minutes? Listen in here…)

On day two of the CES 2010 trade show Sarah Myers of CEA asked me to give a roundup of the trends and products I found most interesting on the show floor. Check it out:

Why does it seem like the new millennium started five years ago, and not 10? And what ever happened to the big Y2K scare and all the doomsayers who promoted it? I don’t know the answer to the first question–guess time compression and memory gets worse with age–but I’m pretty sure I know what happened to most of the doomsayers. They found new jobs working for Homeland Security updating the color-coded terrorist alerts.

Seriously, a lot has changed in the past decade, especially in the imaging and consumer electronics industries. From my perspective, it appears that the changes that have taken place in the last 10 years in photography, communications, and in our personal privacy and security are at least as vast as those that took place in the 100 years before the year 2000. For example, back in 2000 who would have thought that my teenage kids would now own tiny, cheap pocket computers that are far more advanced than the $10,000 work stations I used in 2000–especially when it comes to receiving or sending images, playing music, surfing the web, or even navigating around the world? I refer, of course, to their 3G cell phones. And who would have thought that it would actually be hard to find a role of film at any store to take those treasured Christmas photos? Oh, that’s right. I predicted that would happen by 2005. In any event, who cares about the film, now that everyone takes their photos with digital cameras and sends their Holiday cards via the internet, FaceBook, YouTube, etc.?

So as a tribute to all that’s changed in the past decade,  I decided to revisit a photo collage I made for the last page of Popular Photography Magazines January 2000 issue. The original concept for that collage was to show how much had changed, yet how much had stayed the same in Times Square between the years 1900 and 2000. Perhaps it’s time to redo the background (comprised of several images taken in late 1999 and stitched together in Photoshop) since now a days there’s hardly a printed billboard to be found in Times Square, most having been replaced by high tech digital LED or LCD panels. In addition, the left side of Time’s Square is now closed to traffic and has become a pedestrian mall, while the towering building in center now has a completely new look in terms of video screens and top. As for me, I’ve moved the office I once occupied a few blocks from this photo’s location about 80 miles North, while the magazine I once worked for has gone South.

How much change will occur in the next decade? I’ll be making my predictions soon. In the meantime,  it’s a good bet that staring at a computer monitor will cause my vision to deteriorate down to 20-40 by 2020. (After which, I’ll get it lasered back to 20-15). And I’m also predicting that the McNamara Report will still be around in 2020, and that I’ll be hosting (and storing) the entire web site including photos, text, and HD videos, on my iWatch. Perhaps, if I’m lucky,  one or two of those big screens in Times Square will flash the crowds a few of my ramblings, analysis, predictions, photos, and videos between now and then. Stranger things have happened! Happy New Year!

Welcome to the NEW McNamara Report blog!. I’ve been meaning to get this up and running for some time, but my former job as Executive Technology Editor of Popular Photography magazine (and the 4 hours I commuted each day to NY City) kept me pretty occupied. With change comes opportunity, and I’m enjoying the freedom to explore new ventures and expand my portfolio of services.

In fact, you may have learned about this website as a result of my new partnership with the folks on the Inside Digital Photo Radio & TV show.

Click here to read the announcement on the launch of the McNamara Report on IDP.

I’ll be expanding on the topics I cover there , so stay tuned for more–or check out my article archives, bookmark this blog as a favorite, or subscribe to this blog via RSS link (See Subscribe).