Facebook Photo Sync boots smartphone snaps to a private album as you shoot

Can't be bothered with adding photos to your Facebook albums à la carte? Well, Photo Sync has your name all over it. Rolling out today for Android and iOS, the new service automatically sends images from your smartphone (or Galaxy Camera, perhaps?) to a private album in the cloud. Once you're ready to flip your frames public, simply tick a box on each image to post it. And, because everything's easier to understand with a fancy promo video, you can learn all about Photo Sync in the dialog-free Facebook montage at the source link below.

[Source: Engadget]

Samsung Galaxy Camera reaches Canada on December 7th with carrier-independent 3G

Canadians won't have to race to the border or gamble on an import if they're jonesing for a Samsung Galaxy Camera to call their own. As of December 7th, they'll find the Jelly Bean-touting shooter sitting either in a local Black's Photography store or the official Samsung store in Burnaby, BC. The Canuck model keeps the HSPA+ data we've seen in the AT&T version, but the similarity in networks up north works to a budding photographer's advantage: a data micro-SIM from any of the larger carriers will be enough for some 3G photo sharing. Samsung is oddly silent on just how many toonies it will take to buy the Galaxy Camera, although a near-perfect parity in currency suggests the Canadian price won't be too far from the $500 US sticker.

[Source: Engadget]

'Father of digital imaging' Bryce Bayer dies aged 83

Bryce Bayer, former Eastman Kodak scientist, and inventor of the Bayer Filter -- found with most modern digital image sensors -- has sadly recently passed. Bayer's work with Kodak left an indelible mark on almost every digital image you see today, both figuratively, and literally. His eponymous color filter, developed in 1976, used a mosaic layout of red green and blue filters that enables light sensors to create full color images. The design imitates the way the human eye perceives color, with twice as much green as red or blue, and the resulting output is then interpreted with "demosaicing" algorithms to produce an accurate, RGB image. Bayer's work also included significant contributions to other areas of digital photography, including storage, enhancement and printing. Bayer died on November 13th in Bath, Maine aged 83. So, next time you're enjoying your digital memories, spare a thought for the man who helped make them all possible.

[Source: Engadget]

Instagram rolling out web profiles, sepia toning the world's browsers one account at a time

Instagram is getting ready to open up its collection of filtered images to the web. The photosharing service announced via blog post that it's going to be rolling out web profiles over the next few days, bringing profile photos, bios and shared images to easily navigable URLs at instagram.com/[username]. If you have photos set to private, you'll still get a profile, but those images won't be shared with the web at large. The site also notes that web uploading isn't currently enabled, seeing as how it's always been focused on mobile devices. If you don't have a page yet, you should be good to go within the week. In the meantime, you can check out other profiles in Instagram at the source link below.

[Source: Engadget]

Nikon reveals D5200 SLR with D7000-taunting specs: 24MP sensor, 39-point AF, wireless port

The trusty D5100 and D7000 have held sway over Nikon's low-to-mid DSLR range for around 18 months now, but come December and there'll be a new option driving a wedge right between them. The D5200 will still fulfill the role of a lightweight "advanced beginner" model and physically it's the spitting image of the D5100, but at the same time it brings some fundamental and distinctly D7000-like photographic improvements to try to excuse its £720 (body-only) recommended retail price. (Update: that equates to around $1,150, but Nikon tells us that there's no official US pricing or arrival date at this time.)

[Source: Engadget - Click here to read the full story]

Panasonic Lumix GH3 launches on December 13th, but pricing remains a mystery

Panasonic's forthcoming mirror-less multimedia wonder has been given a release date. Yep, the Lumix GH3, with its 'unlimited recording time' and magnesium alloy build, will arrive in the Land of the Rising Sun just over a month from now. While the Japanese press release doesn't specify pricing, you can expect this Lumix to arrive in body-only and two lens kit variants, one with a 12-35mm f/2.8 zoom lens, and another with a f/4.0 - 5.8 rig. Behind those optic options (not to mention the ability to capture 72Mbps 60p video), you'll be getting a 16-megapixel sensor, splash-proof shell and a flip-out OLED touchscreen alongside a 614K-dot viewfinder. If that leaked video sample piqued your interest, check out the full spec rundown at the source below.

[Source: Engadget]

Canon's upcoming 5D Mark III firmware update brings uncompressed HDMI output support, enhanced AF functionality

Proud owners of that sleek and relatively powerful Mark III will be happy to know Canon has just announced a firmware update for its flagship 5D model. The Japanese camera maker is touting this upcoming release as one that will bring clean HDMI-out support to the EOS shooter, which should be great for folks who would like to monitor their recordings in real time. Additionally, Canon's improved the Mark III's AF functionalities yet again; this time out by enabling the unit's auto focus system to adequately adjust to the type of lens that it is paired with. Unfortunately, it looks like users will have to wait a little while to install the new firmware, as the company won't be making it available until April of next year -- at which point it can be grabbed from the soon-to-be bookmarked source link below.

[Source: Engadget]

Nikon 1 V2 unveiled: 14.2 megapixel ILC shoots 15fps stills for $899.95 in November

It was just over a year ago when Nikon first dipped its toe into mirrorless waters with its first two 1 System cameras, the V1 and J1. Now, the company has released the V1's successor, the aptly named V2. Like its elders, the V2 has a 1200fps slo-mo capture mode, a 3-inch LCD display on the back, a high-res (1.4 million dot) electronic viewfinder, and does 1080/30p and 1080/60i video capture (Alas, 4K recording capability didn't make the cut). Unlike the V1, the V2 comes in only black or white and uses an upgraded 14.2-megapixel CMOS sensor with an ISO range of 160-6,400. It also packs a new Expeed 3A image processor in tandem with Nikon's Advance Hybrid AF to deliver higher speed shooting. That autofocus system is comprised of 73 phase detect sensors and 135 contract detect sensors, which enables the V2 to capture stills at up to 15fps for 45 continuous frames -- and it can shoot 60 frames continuously using fixed focus.

[Source: Engadget]

Colours! Samsung's Galaxy Camera pops at Photokina with vibrant orange and magenta paint jobs

Another Photokina star is Samsung's Galaxy Camera, which launched to much fanfare several weeks ago at IFA, but dominates the company's photo-themed booth at the biennial photography show in Cologne, Germany. There's not much more to report on the hardware side, apart from confirmation that certain versions of the Android snapper will pack LTE, but there are indeed some very shiny new finishes to gawk at. First up is a bright orange flavor -- if you feared that the Galaxy point-and-shoot's rather large footprint wouldn't attract enough attention on its own in the field, you shouldn't have any such concerns with an orange model. Also of the neon persuasion is a flashy pink version, which like the aforementioned color, should draw many an eye. We were quite pleased with the black and white models we saw at IFA, and while Samsung clearly has a few colorful prototypes in circulation, the company says they're only being considered at this point, with your feedback determining the final options. So, what do you think? Would you buy an orange or pink Galaxy Camera? Let us know in the comments after the break.

[Source: Engadget]

Hasselblad announces Lunar mirrorless camera

The bar's pretty high when your company is behind the first camera in space. Hasselblad's looking to build on that theme with its new Lunar mirrorless, which according to the company "revives the timeless charm" of 1957's 500c -- and if nothing else, the camera's got a curvy, space age body, built out of high grade aluminum with either a carbon fiber (available in black, silver or titanium colors) or wood (beech, olive, pear or mahogany) grip.

Inside, you'll get a Bionz processor processor and an APS-C 24.3 megapixel sensor. The Lunar can do 10 frames per second, full HD recording and sports a 100 to 16000 ISO range. On the rear, you'll find a swiveling three-inch display. All of that's packed into a body that weighs roughly a pound.

[Source: Engadget]

Panasonic video reveals Lumix GH3 Micro Four Thirds camera: 16MP, magnesium alloy, 60p video

Though the GH3 has yet to be formally introduced to the world, a video has just appeared on an official Panasonic YouTube channel that has either been posted accidentally or is deliberately intended to build hype in the run-up to Photokina. It mainly shows off the GH3 in a range of picturesque shooting situations, but the clip also spills a few key specs, including the presence of a 16-megapixel sensor, a new version of Panny's Venus Engine processor, a splash- and dust-proof magnesium alloy build and high-definition filming at up to 72Mbps and 60p -- although it's not clear if it handles full 1080 at that high frame-rate. We also see a a flip-out LCD that looks much the same as the GH2's, an f/2.8 12-35mm lens attached instead of the 14-42mm or 14-140mm glass that came bundled with that predecessor, and so far only evidence of a traditional black color scheme.

[Source: Engadget]

Sony NEX-6 spotted in the wild, electronic viewfinder and mode dial in tow

We've had furtive glances of Sony's upcoming NEX-6 before, but only in the very clinical space of a government test lab. Apparently, no mere agency can confine it: photography workshop director Vincent Kang has posted a photo of the pre-release mirrorless camera on Weibo for all to see. Posing next to 24mm and 50mm lenses, the NEX-6 looks to be very much the in-between camera we suspected it was, without as much dedicated control as the NEX-7 but still carrying an electronic viewfinder, a pop-up flash and a dedicated function key near the shutter release. The dedicated mode dial is also more conspicuous -- there's no question that Sony wants to free up controls on the back for the future camera's more experienced target audience. Between the new design and the already known inclusion of WiFi, it's looking as though the NEX-6 may hit the sweet spot for shooters who want more control than the NEX-5R without sacrificing all its newer features. We just need to wait for official launch details to make it all real.

[Source: Engadget]