For all you folks who’ve been telling me for years that Canadians are no fun I’m here to prove you wrong once and for all. I recently posted a piece titled, Not All SD Cards are Created Equal, and to that end, in the name of international science and technology, I would like to share with you a recent torture test where the Panasonic’s SD card is the only one out of three to survive.  It survived all other cards, working even after the toughest test known to SD card science, the “Two Dudes in a Tub Test”. Thanks to Dan Bowden, a friend on Google+ for sharing with us such highly accredited scientifc studies. Here’s to Dan Bowden. Dan you and I should have a beer together some time. Thanks for sharing.

Several months ago my wife and I were lounging, watching one of the few TV shows we enjoy, Sunday Morning, when they presented an insperational story on two of our favorite subjects: Dogs and Photography. I went to the CBS website, hoping to find the program, but apparently they don’t post the videos until later since I wasn’t able to find it anywhere. Fast forward to this Sunday Morning, which reminded me of my original desire to write a blog on the show that featured Dogs and Photography. I grabbed my IPad, pulled up Google and bingo, found this amazing video I hope you enjoy as much as I do.

My reasons for wanting to share this are two-fold. First, it’s a great piece on helping expose the huge and horrific issue of throw-away dogs and the need to find them good homes. Second, for years I’ve wanted to try and find a way to encourage people to understand that quality photography is worth its weight in gold. As the world is inundated with more and more images, the value of a quality photography is even more important. How do you convince a photo editor, art director or the CEO of a company that there is a difference between good and bad photography? This show drives that point home like nothing I’ve ever seen. Take a look and you’ll understand what I mean.

I’m hopeful this video will inspire all of you to continue producing quality work that makes a difference. I’m equally as hopeful that this video will educate each and every one of you to the value of your work. With this knowledge, when someone requests the use of your photography, you will have the courage and pride to do what is right and fair for yourself and the world of photography.  If it’s for a nonprofit FREE OF CHARGE it’s fair game. However, if the use is for a commercial entity, charging a fair and reasonable fee is the right and prideful thing to do. If you don’t market your work, watching this video will at least give you your morning dose of warm and fuzzy, knowing our mutual passion for all things photographic can make a difference. Enjoy the show. Sorry about the pre thirty second commercial but somebody has to pay for this stuff and thankfully it included someone getting paid to do a job well-done shooting a commercial video.

As I’ve been saying for quite some time now the mirrorless camera revolution is a freight train that will be impossible to stop. A new survey out of Japan, the leading country of all great new ideas in photographic tools, shows that mirrorless cameras are now selling better than all DSLR’s, and the Micro 4/3s cameras are leading the mirrorless charge.

I just returned from our second year leading photo tours to Costa Rica and there was one other person beside myself that had a version of the  Micro 4/3s system. Our group had several ongoing discussions regarding the changes we’re all beginning to see regarding more and more people turning to smaller and smaller cameras. Through those discussions I came up with a theory I would like to share with you.

As many of you know, I’ve earned my living as a natural history photographer for many, many years. When I was 21 years old I bought my first Nikon 300mm F/2.8 lens. It was a beast, but based on the exquisite detail it produced in the transparency film I was shooting, I felt as an aspiring professional I needed to have that lens to make a living. It was somewhere around six pounds but the weight was worth it due to the sharper glass, the lower light situations I could shoot in and the fact that it was easier to MANUALLY focus due to a brighter image the large, front element allowed through the viewfinder. All of these benefits were worth the tremendous weight of the lens alone, but to make it work I had to add a Nikon F2AS body with motor drive. Combine it all and you had very close to a ten pound package sitting atop a tripod and a head that was an additional ten pounds.  With all that weight it was essential to wrap the tripod legs in foam padding to keep from developing groves in my shoulders when I hiked for miles searching for pictures.

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I recently ran across this article on the Video Blog EOSHD that compared the inexpensive Panasonic GH2 against the newly released Red Scarlet. Both shoot still photos, with the Panasonic being known for mainly being a still photo capture device. That said, Panasonic also equipped it with fabulous video capture, and it’s the video imagery that EOSHD was looking at. Comparing the two cameras is almost ridiculous since the GH2 is about $699 for the body. The Red Scarlet is in the range of $15,000 to get enough pieces put together to be able to shoot it properly. The difference in price is substantial yet the difference in video quality is amazingly close for the normal viewer. Read the article to see for yourself and to see some of the samples they’ve included. Panasonic really is producing amazing technology for a rock bottom price.

EOSHD compares video quality between the Panasonic GH2 and the Red Scarlet. Read the article to see the results that will floor you.

Below is a video I recently made on how to clean the digital sensor on your DSLR camera. I’ve been cleaning my own sensors since 2003 when I first started shooting digital. I am often asked by my students how this is done and very seldom do I show them, since most of the time we’re in dusty, outdoor conditions that should be avoided when doing this procedure. Since I had a little time on my hands here in Costa Rica and a nice clean hotel room to work from, I decided to create this How To Video on cleaning your sensor. Hope this answers the question for those of you who are interested. Let me know if you have any questions by dropping me a note on the Blog.

Here’s the first installment of Photo Tips From The Field. This will be a regular feature here on the Corkboard/Blog where I share with our readers new ideas, photo accessories, photography tips and tricks etc. This first video was shot on my recent trip to Kenya, Africa, where a good friend of mine, Joel Kleiner, introduced me to a new product I really appreciated. It’s the  Don Zeck Lens Cap for the Nikon 200-400 Zoom and other large Nikkor Lenes. I also had  chance to use Sandisk’s new Extreme Pro SD Card that writes at 95mbs! What a difference that card made when shooting the Nikon D7000 that has a rather small 10 frame buffer when shooting in RAW mode. If your paying attention to the video, you’ll notice a technical gaff where I mention the Sandisk Extreme Pro writes at 96mbs when in reality it is 95mbs. Sorry about that, but it wasn’t enough to reshoot the whole video. Let me mow if you have an questions and feel free to pass this around to your social networks. We always love to hear from our readers.

Wow, what a great article written by a guy many of us follow, Trey Ratcliff of StuckInCustoms. I don’t often post from other sites but sometimes it’s the best thing to do for passing information along that you folks can use. If you follow my Blog, or travel with Tanya and me, you know that I’ve been talking for four years about the Mirrorless Revolution that’s in full swing and coming like a freight train. Trey Ratcliff sees the same road ahead although he refers to it as “3rd. Generation Cameras”. He writes a great piece on his blog about his thoughts and predictions and they are dead on with what I’ve been talking about for the last several years. You might want to head over to his informative Blog to take a look. Don’t forget about us over here at Natural Exposures after you see his site, he’s a master at this web stuff and a great photographer to boot. Keep in mind that his images are a bit more processed than what I typically care for, due to my my journalistic roots, but for those of you who have no issues with a more manipulated look, he has some great information on how he does it all.

Nikon's V1, their first entry into the Mirrorless Revolution.

The only difference I have with his take on how the Mirrorlesss Revolution will evolve is his predictions on where Canon and Nikon stand in this exciting new world of cameras. Although I wasn’t excited about Nikon’s decision to go with a smaller sensor size in their new Mirrorless cameras, the J1 and V1,  these two new models offer industry leading, world class technology advantages. If they bring even half the technology in the V1, into updated more professional models, they’ll be industry leaders in the coming new world of photography like they have for so many years in the traditional DSLR industry. Hope you find Trey’s Blog as interesting as I did.

I recently posted the image below on our Natural Exposures Facebook Fan Page of my Godson Colter helping me rig one of the newest additions to my image capture arsenal. He was working to connect my Apple iPad and iPhone to a MiniHD, video camera known as the ContourGPS so my two Apple devices could each be used as a wireless viewfinder. A comment that came in on the Facebook page made me realize many of you may not be familiar with this technology and why it’s so compelling for capturing unique moving images.

Colter working on the Contour GPS video camera, getting it hooked up to the IPad via Bluetooth.

The Contour GPS is just one of several options out there that give you a small, HD quality, video capture devise that is super simple, can be placed almost anywhere, and produces stunning video images. The two most popular options include the Contour series of cameras and the GoPro series. Another option has shown up recently made by Delkin called the WingMan but it doesn’t get quite as good of reviews as the Contour or the GoPro.

I’m not going to get into the details of each camera since everybody has their own opinion as to what is important to them. The links I’ve provided will help you make a decision on what features YOU may want. I chose the Contour due to it’s small compact size and shape. I wasn’t to excited about the square GoPro. I also like the idea that the Contour would allow me to use my Apple devices as viewable LCD screens via the Bluetooth connections. The downside to the Contour is that if you don’t have an Apple or Android device you have to basically guess at what the camera is seeing since there is no built in viewfinder. The Delkin does have a a built in screen and the GoPro you can order one as an option, but neither of these other devices has the quality or form factor I wanted so I settled on the ContourGPS. So there you go, those are just a couple of things to chew on that delineates the three different models I’ve looked into.

The question that came up on Facebook was, “what is a Contour GPS camera, and how does it work with an iPad?” The iPad part I explained above but the “What” part is more of a question of, “why”? So here’s how I plan to use this camera in the future.

If you take a look at the ContourGPS web site you notice that they highlight video from vantage points we don’t typically see. Many of the videos where shot from what is known in the video world as POV or (Point of View) of the person shooting the video. Below is a very nice introduction to the ContourGPS by NETWORKWOLRD that gives you an idea of POV shooting.

Along with the HD camera you get software that allows you to work with the movies you produce. They call it SorryTeller and it gives you a fairly nice video editing setup that has easy options for uploading your video to Youtube, Facebook etc. However, I personally use Apple’s IMovie. IMovie is very easy to use, has tons of options for special effects and is also user friendly when it comes to uploading movies to several different places on the web.

How do I plan to use this camera you ask? Well I’m not completely sure yet. I do know that it will be a great option for hard to access locations that I’m sure to run into while shooting for the Arctic Documentary Project. I can see attaching this to the hull of a ship, maybe the tallest mast of a sailboat, on a remote controlled vehicle, on a helicopter, airplane to name just a few. Time will tell but the options are limitless.

The Contour GPS had numerous accessories and the one I picked up when I ordered the camera was the underwater housing. This housing is hard to believe due to the incredibly low price of $39.00. Compare that to the underwater housing I bought for my D2X several years ago that cost well over $6000.00. I realize the Contour and D2X housings are two different animals but for doing underwater video work the Contour GPS housing is a fantastic option. Other add ons for the Contour include the Rotating Flat Surface Mount, XL Bike Mount, Headband Mount, Vented Helmet Mount, Rollbar Mount, Suction Cup Mount, Goggle Strap Mount, Surf-Wake Mount, and the list goes on and on. You get the idea. You can stick this thing just about anywhere. Hope this explains the why that my friend Joel brought up on Facebook. If you have any further questions just let me know.

Last night Polar Bears International hosted Dr. Ian Stirling at the Fairmont Hotel in Winnipeg, Manitoba where Dr. Stirling signed his newest book about polar bears. His presentation discussed hs prediction that Manitoba polar bears are doomed due to the warming climate and that other polar bears are equally at risk if we don’t do something to reduce our production of CO2 emissions that are the cause of dramatic increases in global temperatures.

Cover of the November 17, 2011 Edition of Winnipeg Free Press

Read the entire story in the Winnipeg Free Press

View photos of last nights Book Signing Event with Dr. Ian Stirling

Tonight was the official launch of the Arctic Documentary Project here in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It’s been a long time coming, something I’ve been working on unofficially for many years. It wasn’t until I was inspired by a good friend that offered a substantial donation that I realized I really needed to get this officially organized and officially launched. So here it is. You can click on the image and you will be able to review the ADP promotional booklet. Let us know what you think. It’s a work in progress but it really is officially off the ground.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I’m attending the 2011 PhotoPlus Expo in New York. It’s an interesting year and the show is a bit different than other PhotoPlus Expos I’ve attended. The biggest difference I’ve noticed is there are many more Japanese engineer types, executives, etc. obviously  from Japan, in attendance. Not sure if I’m on track with this theory but my hunch tells me this has become a much more important marking event since PMA (Photo Marketing Association) in Vegas was merged into CES (Consumer Electronics Show) about a year or two ago. I mention this because it’s very interesting to think that PhotoExpo Plus may turn into an even bigger, better event since PMA is no longer around. Just my observation.

Getting inspired at the Nikon booth.

When I decided to try and keep up with this idea of blogging about the show I made the decision to not try and cover everything but rather just the things I was actually interested in. One of the downsides to attending a show of this size is what I call sensory overload. There are so many products, so much noise, so much fanfare. It’s really difficult to tune all that junk out and concentrate on finding the new and different. So that’s what I’ve tried to do. The following items are some of the things I found most interesting.

Aerial Photography or Videography

By far the coolest new gadget on the floor was Rotor Concept, Inc. This was a company that makes miniature helicopters that you can attach a camera to for either still or video shooting. Unfortunately you can’t hang a large DSLR like the D7000 onto this machine but I was able to see if my point and shoot sized Panasonic GF2 would work and the gentleman at the booth assured me it would. I shot a very short little video, may go back today and shoot something longer. But it was impressive. Here is the video of the guy flying the helicopter at the booth.

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I just flew into New York in preparation for PDN PhotoPlus International Conference & Expo. I’ve been attending this show for nearly twenty years, sometimes as a guest of Nikon and others, sometimes just on my own. This trip qualifies as just on my own. It’s a great trade show, all the big players are here from Nikon, Canon, HP, Sandisk, Lowepro and lots of others. I haven’t been to New York for a couple of years so I decided it was time to pack my bags and head east. It’s always nice to reacquaint myself with some of the folks we work with on a regular basis but hardly ever actually see.

I’ll be snooping and pocking and asking lots of questions about this, that and lots of other things. I’m crossing my fingers that we may see the newest pro or semi-pro Nikon body. However, I’m not holding my breath. Lots of rumors out in cyberspace regarding the devastation Nikon has endured in Thailand due to colossal flooding. Imagine the turmoil they must be going through created by the flood in Thailand the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear radiation event in Japan and the downturn in the world economy. It can’t be easy but amazingly they are more savvy than I have ever seen in the nearly 30 years I’ve worked with them. Nikon has actually become amainzgly astute at marking. That was not always the case. Back in the 1980′s you would have never seen anyone remotely similar to Ashton Kutcher helping sell Nikon cameras. Ashton is a great asset for all of us wanting better and more sophisticated photographic tools. If Nikon can sell to the masses, the technology and research eventually makes it over to the more serious professional side. It’s good for everyone wanting to capture great memories.

My first stop will be the Nikon booth where I hope to see the new enthusiast cameras they recently announced, the Nikon J1 and V1. both these cameras are apparently doing very well. I’m hoping to get my hands on one or both to give them a good once over. Might even be able to talk my friends in to letting me give them a try. Stay tuned and stop by to see what I come up with. I’ll be blogging from the show each day.

My friends at Polar Bears International and Frontiers North Adventures just announced the rebirth of the Polar Bear Cam coming from the Tundra Buggy Lodge on the shores of Hudson Bay, Manitoba. You can take a look for yourself to see how the bears are doing. My good friend and past assistant BJ Kirschhoffer has made much of this happen with past help from another supporter of PBI Daniel Zatz. Thanks to these two guys and PBI we can now watch first hand the changing seasons as the Western Hudson Bay polar bear population waits for the ice tar rive so they can get back out to start hunting and fill their shrunken stomachs. Take a look and join the conversation. I’ll be up north in a couple more weeks and will be reporting first hand.

Home page image of Tundra Buggy Adventures and Polar Bears Internationals Polar Bear Cam

I just watched an amazing Youtube video that was shot at Adobe’s Max Conference. Seems the day of soft images due to camera movement or possibly even subject movement will be a thing of the past. Over the past few years I’ve quite throwing images out due to lack of focus with hopes in mind that this technology might be coming down the pipeline. Seems it’s almost here. Watch the video to see one more reason why our creativity as artists/photographers will eventually be the major factor all photography will be judged by. The technology just keeps pushing the envelope to make the technical side a nonissue. Pluses and minuses to that game but overall the photographic field is the most exciting it’ ever been in my thirty+ years as a photograher.

We’re in the process of designing a logo for the Arctic Documentary Project that I’m working on with Polar Bears International. We have numerous options that we would love to get your opinion on. Below is a sample of what has been designed so far. Click on the image below to go to LogoGuruDesign web site to voice your opinion in their official format or click the same image, take a look at each option, then find the number in the upper right corner of each design and send us an email or post your opinion on our Daniel J. Cox/Natural Exposures Fan Page. We need all suggestions by Wednesday, October 12, 2011. I realize this is short notice but we’re really hoping to get a ton of feedback. We want to make sure the general public gets a chance to add their voice to the decision. Thanks and please tell your friends on Facebook or send them to this blog page. We’re very grateful for your help.

As most people already know, Steve Jobs, the amazing creative genius and business man who’s passion has been so inspirational to so many across the planet, including me, has passed from this world to the next. I like so many others will miss his spirit and creative influence.

The man who inspired tremendous greatness.

I have to admit that I wasn’t an Apple fan until 2003. But once I saw the light there was no going back. My reasons for not using Apple computers for my photography workflow were all lthe same lame and unverified excuses that many people still use. Apple. doesn’t have enough software, Apple computers are too expensive, Widows PC’s can do everything a Mac can do, etc, etc, etc. After finally jumping onboard, against my will, I came to realize all these issues where unfounded. When I say against my will what I’m talking about is that I had no interest in switching. Then one day a company approached me to do a project that required I be using the Apple system. I somewhat grudgingly accepted after they sweetened the deal with a free Mac Pro and a Macbook Pro. I gave the Mac Pro to my assistant in the office that had been poking me for several years to switch to Apple. I took the laptop and spent three weeks fighting the change. To be totally honest, the new operating system was different enough that I struggled a bit but most of my frustration was due to me WANTING to find problems and issues. Once I finally started seeing the benefits I started to give  into change and I’ve never regretted it.

So hear’s a tribute to Mr. Steve Jobs who I wish only the best for him and his grieving family.  I’m guessing he was a good father and husband as well for his obvious insistence for keeping his four children and wife out of the incredible media spotlight. I know I will miss the excitement and vision that he was famous for. I can only imagine how hard it must be for his wife and children.

Wow! Big news on the mirrorless camera front. Today Fuji has announced they are jumping into the mirrorless, interchangeable lens camera game. And from what they announced they are entering the game in a BIG way. Seems Fuji is going to really pull out all the stops with a monstrous amount of courage to boot. They are really looking to do something different by building a mirrorless camera that will have a larger sensor than current Full Frame digital camera’s such as Nikon’s D700 currently have.  This is really exciting news. Most of my predictions for mirrorless camera’s has been related mostly to the 4/3′s system that Panasonic and Olympus have pioneered. Others companies that have joined the game with sensors different sized than the Micro 4/3′s technology include Nikon and Sony. Nikon chose to go with the smallest of all sensors currently being offered in an interchangeable lens, mirrorless camera. Sony chose a larger APS-C sensor which is quite interesting since it’s the same sized sensor as many traditional camera companies use for their normal mirrored cameras. Now Fuji is going super large. Click on the image below to see the information I’ve run across and read it for yourself. Click on the image below to go to the dcwatch web site that has a news story translated by Google.

Early prototype of new Fuji XS-1 mirrorless camear

Rear view of prototype Fuji XS-1 mirrorless camera.

It’s nearly time to head to Churchill, Manitoba for my annual pilgrimage to the best place on the planet to get close and document the largest carnivore known to man, the polar bear. I’ve been fortunate to have spent nearly twenty consecutive Novembers in this little town on the edge of what is considered the subarctic. About half of those years I’ve been guiding for Frontiers North Adventures, one of  the finest ecotourism companies doing business today and most definitely the best working out of Churchill.

The season has actually already started for my colleagues at Polar Bears International. Krista Wright, BJ Kirschhoffer, Jane Kudrna Arnold, Julene Reed and Kathy Foat who are already out on the tundra preparing for Tundra Connections 2011 . Tundra Connections is an annual web cast hosted by Polar Bears International and sponsored by many great organizations including Frontiers North Adventures. Through the magic of the internet Tundra Connections brings you topics affecting the polar bears and all the arctic with notable dignitaries such as Dr. Steven Amstrup, Sr. Scientist for PBI, Dr. Tom Smith, Associate Professor of Plant and Wildlife Sciences, Brigham Young University and Kassie Siegel, Climate Law Institute Director, Center of Biological Diversity to name just a few. It’s all free and open to the public but you need to Register and Sign In to get access. It’s a great opportunity to hear some of the worlds leading scientists who study polar bears and the arctic. Signup now and DON’T MISS IT!

I just returned from northern Main where I was one of two Mentors for the Mentor Series World Wide Photography Treks. The other Mentor was my old college buddy Layne Kennedy and as always we had a great time teaching the craft of photography as well as getting to know lots of new photo enthusiasts. The weather was a bit of a challenge but nothing we couldn’t handle with a little luck. The great thing about photographers who appreciate nature are typically pretty flexible.

Main street in Bar Harbor, Maine.

Much of our time was spent photographing in Acadia National Park but we also worked the beautiful little town of Bar Harbor and Isleford. The Acadia region is simply spectacular with phenomenal scenery, interesting faces and fabulous food. Lobster rolls where on every corner and there was often times a friendly, interesting face behind the counter handing it over.

The Schooner Margaret Todd anchored at the dock in Bar Harbor, Maine silhouetted against the rising sun.

Erica Johnson of the Mentor Series was our fearless leader on this Trek although Michelle Cast was along to help out. The main reason I do these Treks has as much to do with the organizational skills of these ladies as anything else. They really do their homework and take extremely good care of everyone involved. Equally important is the enjoyment and inspiration I get from seeing budding photographers work their magic. I would love to be the one who knows and sees it all but even after nearly thirty years of taking pictures I’m constantly impressed and enlightened by the images I see from so called amateurs. Everybody has their unique style, vision and personal approach to photography. With the Mentor Treks I get to experience dozens of different views at one time and I end up learning as much or more than the people I’m helping.

If you’re interested I’ve created a small gallery of images I shot on the Trek. You can see them by clicking on the link below. If you have any questions please feel free to drop me a note via the Blog. I’m happy to help with whatever I can.

World Wide Mentors Trek to Bar Harbor and Acadia, Maine

About two weeks ago I posted an entry on the Corkboard titled My Predictions of Changes in Camears Coming True.  It was a short piece that included a news item from Bloomberg highligihting the Mirrorless revolution taking place with nearly all camera manufacturers except Nikon and Canon. Well, a lot of things can change in two weeks and so they have with Nikon finally joining the Mirrorless group with their introduction of a new line of photographic tools called the Nikon 1 J1 and the Nikon 1 V1.

Nikon 1 V1 Mirrorless Camera

With the introduction of these two cameras they have brought some interesting new technologies to the game that sound quite interesting. However, they also chose to go with a considerably smaller digital sensor than any of their major competitors. For example the Sony NEX7 uses a digital capture sensor with a 1.5X magnification factor. Olympus and Panasonic chose the Micro 4/3′s route with a magnification factor of 2X. Nikon decided to go with an even smaller sensor that has a magnification factor of 2.7X. Below I’ve included a graphic provided by CameraDebate.com that gives you an easier to understand visual of the differences between all these different sized digital capture sensors. Please note that the size of the visuals are not the actual size of the sensors but rather size comparisons of all options.

So the good news is that Nikon has finally joined the game and that is a tremendous plus. However, the possibly not so good news is, they chose to go with such a minuscule sensor. We’ll all have to wait to see if this will be a serious flaw to the new line of Nikon cameras since in general, smaller sensors produce lower quality images. For photographers that put a tremendous emphasis on image quality I’ll remain concerned until I see samples I’ve shot for myself. Who knows maybe Nikon will pull another rabbit out of their hat as they did with the sensor in the D3 and D700. If so these cameras could be amazing. If not then they will only be cameras for the point and shoot crowd.  I’m really hoping they will be AMAZING!

Some of the more interesting new features in the Nikon 1 V1 include:

• The capability to capture a still image even while recording in 1080P movie mode.
• 73 Point AF sensors across the entire viewfinder
• 12 Million pixel sensor
• Color LCD Viewfinder
• Frames Per Second equal 10, 30, 60
• Entire new lens system but also will have the ability to use traditional F series lenses.
• Movie Slow Motion
• Smart Photo Selector for best image suggested by camera.

You can read more about the new line of Nikon 1 cameras at the following web sites.

Nikon USA
DPReview
DxOMark
Nikon Press Release