What's the Over-Under on How Long IStock Photo/Getty Stay in Business?

HatTip: PetaPixel vis SLR Lounge

Coming off last year's debacle when Getty was found to have violated violated copyright law, you might have expected the company to tread carefully when it comes to bad publicity.

Nope.

Thousands of photographers just received emails from the company informing them that their future payments were going to be limited.

Getty contends that the payment system erroneously overpaid these contributors in September/October 2013.  The individuals overpaid will have royalty payments confiscated until that overpayment is recovered.

I predict a great deal of umbrage on part of the affected contributors.  There is little transparency on the company's part when it comes to royalty payments.  Contributors have no way of determining whether the payments received are accurate.  They had no way of knowing they were receiving an overpayment.  They probably feel they should not be the party bearing the burden here, since Getty/iStock Photo was the only one in this relationship with the ability to avoid the error.

Getty faces having a large number of contributors defect from their stock site, and the contributors with the largest incentive to leave are the ones hit hardest by the overpayment problems.  These are most likely the most successful contributors.

Having the most successful contributors leave the stock site does not bode well for the company's future.

(Note to Getty: Having your most successful contributors flee your stock site is going to hurt your bottom line far more than simply writing off these overpayments.)

BTW, this wouldn't be the first mass defection from the company.  There was one last year following a deal Getty mad with Google.


It gets worse when you factor in the Morel episode.  Getty has already proven itself to be a bad actor.  Some contributors might suspect that this is nothing more than a way for the company to recoup the copyright infringement award in that case. 

Don't be surprised if Getty gets sued over this move as well.

The affected contributors have an argument that Getty assumed the risk of overpayment due to the way they structured the relationship between contributor and company.  Getty was the only one in the relationship in position to ensure correct payment amounts.  They may have lost any ability to recover overpayment as a result of that arrangement.

Then there is the suspicion that this is being done to cover the Morel award.  At the very least, a lawsuit would force Getty to open it's books in order to prove that it overpaid.  The people running Getty have already proven themselves to have little regard for the law as a result of the Morel case.  Why would the people that had no qualms violating one photographer's legal rights have any qualms violating the contractual rights of their contributors?

Getty may very well have inadvertently overpaid some of its contributors, but it should be up to the company to prove that before asking those contributors to repay.

A letter stating that future earnings will be confiscated  and the amount being confiscated just doesn't cut it.

Nikon D600 Service Announcement

Hat Tip: Imaging Resource

Some owners of the Nikon D600 complained about about spots appearing in images as a result of contamination occurring on the camera's sensor.  The problem seemed to go beyond the typical dust problem as the issue could not be resolved by the cleaning methods available to camera users.  The issue could only be resolved by sending the camera in for professional cleaning.

Nikon has issued a Service Advisory for the D600.  The company will clean the sensor and replace the shutter and related parts free of charge, even if the warranty has expired.

The Imaging Resource article goes into the subject in much greater detail, including the impact of purchasing a Gray Market camera when it comes to such service programs.


Gray Market goods are actually manufactured by the company in question (Nikon in this case), but are sold or resold in a manner not intended by the manufacturer.  This can cause problems for the end consumer if there is a problem with the item.  The warranty may not be honored, or service may require shipping the item back to the country of origin.

Clearance Deals on Sony NEX-3N

My last post was on the new cameras being released in the near future.  Buyers looking for the latest model will want to wait until those cameras are available.

The release of these new models does create the opportunity to purchase the older models at a large discount.  Keep an eye out for deals on the older models as the newer models become available.  One model currently being discounted is the Sony NEX-3N mirrorless camera.

The 16MP camera with 16-56mm Kit Lens is currently being offered for under $300 at Amazon or B&H.

Hat Tip: SLR Lounge

(The SLR Lounge article has direct links to the camera on both Amazon and B&H's websites.)


Amazon and B&H aren't the only potential sources for this particular model.  Other stores are currently offering deals on this model, or will be doing so in the near future as they clear stock on a discontinued item.

Check any camera store (online or brick-and-mortar) that you already do business with.

Preview of New Camera Models Set for Release This Year

The Camera & Photo Imaging Show opened in Tokyo yesterday.  The Cameras on display are set to go on sale later this year.  (The products on display cover more than just cameras.  The camera products just match the focus of this blog.)

Anyone thinking of purchasing a camera this year should probably do a little research on the new models coming out later this year.  It may be worth delaying any purchase until the new models are available.  Media outlets are already writing articles/reviews covering the products on display.

Some Links covering the new models:

PC Mag, Canon Powershot G1 X Mark II, EOS Rebel T5.
(Article also covers the other PowerShot cameras.)  Cameras go on sale this Spring, so there is very little time to wait for the new Canon offerings.

PC Mag, Sony Alpha 6000.
Covers the newest offerings from Sony, including the Alpha 6000.  Again, cameras are set to be offered this Spring.

PC Mag, Nikon Rolls Out Coolpix Compacts at CP+.
The latest Coolpix offerings from Nikon, sales begin in February or March depending on model.  Line-up includes a new 60X zoom bridge model for $499.95.

Amateur Photographer
Canon EOS 1200D
Canon G1 XMark II
Sony Alpha 6000

Image Resource
Canon T5, G1 X Mark II
Sony Alpha 6000
Sony Cyber-shot releases at CP+

DP Review
CP+ 2014: Nikon Stand Report
CP+ 2014: Canon Stand Report
CP+ 2014: Fujifilm Stand Report
CP+ 2014: Hands on with the Sony a6000
CP+ 2014: Hands on with the Sigma DP2 Quattro
CP+ 2014: Hands on with the Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark II
CP+ 2014: Highlights of the Show

Pop Photo, New Gear
Sony a6000
Canon PowerShot D30 Rugged Waterproof Camera
Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark II

Ricoh/Pentax CP+ 2014 Press Release
(Press release the only information on Pentax/Ricoh offerings at CP+ right now.  Probably because the camera being shown is medium format and not really aimed at consumer market.  The current Pentax 645D model sells for $7,000.)

Digital Camera World
Sony a6000 hands-on review
Canon EOS 1200D


These are just the articles from the sources I have included in my feed list.  There are more out there if you want to look for them.  These should be good to start with (especially the PC Mag articles and the DP Review Stand Reports.)

Edit Note: DP Review added a couple more CP+ articles after posting this.  I have added those articles.

New Foveon Sensor, The Latest in Unconventional Sensor Design

PC Mag, Image Resource, DP Review and Pop Photo all have articles today on the new Sigma DP Quatro featuring a redesigned Foveon sensor.

 I suspect the timing has less to do with overwhelming interest and more to do with a news embargo timed to end today.  I have to admit, though, having four articles written on the same day is great for P.R.


How the Foveon Sensor Works

Conventional digital camera sensors utilize a single layer of photodetectors and a mosaic patterned filter.  The filter limits light hitting the detector to a specific color.  Different color are allowed through at different areas of the sensor.  These results are combined to produce a full-color image.

The Foveon sensor takes advantage of one of the properties of Silicon.  Light wavelengths (color) penetrate silicon to different depths.  Blue light only penetrates slightly with red penetrating the most.  The sensor uses three layers of photodetectors, each capturing light penetrating to different depths.

The depth is used to tell the camera what color is being captured.  The top level yields blue, the middle green and the bottom red.

(Technically, the top layer captures all light.  The middle all light except blue.  The bottom only captured red.  Determine blue/green requires a little extrapolation based on the light captured by the layer below.)

This design allows the sensor to capture all the light hitting the sensor instead of limiting the light to certain wavelengths.  The original generation of cameras using the technology did capture very detailed images, largely due to the ability to eliminate the color filter and low-pass filter used by typical camera sensors.  Unfortunately, they were also prone to noise at higher ISO settings.

The original sensor had three layers with equal resolutions.  This has been altered in the latest version so that the top layer has a much higher resolution than the lower two layers.  The top layer's resolution is four times that of the second and third layer.  (Top is 20MP, second and third 4.9MP each.)

Lowering the resolution of the bottom two layers may help lower image noise and increase processing speed.


Camera Design
The DP line comes in three fixed-lens versions.  The DP1 has a 19mm lens, the DP2 a 30mm lens and the DP3 uses a 45 mm lens.  (Equivalent to 28mm, 45mm and 75mm, or wide-angle, standard and minor telephoto.)

A large amount of the body has been eliminated. Viewing an image of the 30mm lens model emphasizes just how much of the body has been eliminated.  The lens extends above the camera body.

This is from the CNet review.  The published a day before the other sites.

The grip faces the opposite direction from what is used on most digital cameras and appears to have been angled slightly.  It almost looks as if Sigma decided to flip the typical body over, putting the lens on what originally was the back and the lcd on the front.

Prices have yet to be announced.

The Death of Selfies? One Can Only Hope.

Reuters had an interview recently with a fairly influential U.K. Photographer (David Bailey) in which he predicted the death of the selfie. 

A much younger photographer that writes for SLR Lounge (Adam Kuzik) responded online. 

Personally, I don't know which of the two is more out of touch.  David Bailey, who didn't even know what a selfie was until recently, or Adam Kuzik who proclaimed the seflie "arguably, the most significant photographic movement ever".

I'm tempted to go with the latter.

I can understand how someone who is currently 76-years old might just miss out on the latest social trend among those 1/4 his age.

I have a hard time seeing how you can honestly call the trend of people taking pictures of themselves mugging for the camera and then posting the shot online as a significant photographic movement.  The proliferation of cell phone cameras maybe.  This vastly increases the number of people with digital cameras.  But the selfie?

The self-portrait photograph has been around since the development of the timer. 

How many family photographs taken with one have you seen?  Those are basically "selfies".


Personally, I think Bailey might be right in predicting a short life for the selfie trend.  The trend has been pushed by teenagers with cell phones.  The problem is that adults have started engaging in selfies.

When adults do it, it's no longer cool.


Selfie?  That's, like, so 2010.

Deal of the Day: Samsung 20MP Mirrorless NX1100 Camera with Kit Lens for $274.99

Hat Tip: Image Resource

Amazon currently has a deal offering the Samsung NX1100 with lens for $274.99.  That's over 50% off the original price for the kit.

This is a mirrorless camera system with a 20MP sensor and built-in WiFi capabilities and supports RAW output.

Using a Digital Camera to Convert Slides into Digital Images

I see articles covering this subject on a fairly regular basis.  Many photographers that were active before digital became common have large numbers of slides and/or negatives that they would like to convert into a digital format.  (Or their like me and they inherited a lot of family photographs from their parents, including old slides and negatives.)

The options for converting these old slides has seemed to diminish recently.  I have an old flat-bed scanner with a slide attachment, but the software is incompatible with any Windows operating system written this decade.  It will work as a basic scanner, but the light used for scanning negatives or slides won't work with the basic driver currently offered.  (There is third party software that will allow the scanner to scan slides or negatives.)  I have looked for a replacement but few stores offer scanners with slide attachments anymore.  They only offer multifunction office equipment with scanner, printer and fax machine combined.  These don't offer the ability to scan slides.

This leaves conversion services, dedicated scanners or do-it yourself methods involving a digital camera.

Using a service to scan your slides can be expensive if you have a large number of slides to be scanned.  You also give up quality control.

This leaves do-it-yourself options consisting of dedicated negative/slide scanners or using a digital camera.

Dedicated Scanners
Dedicated scanners that will convert slides or negatives into digital files are available,  for a price.  The price is directly related to the resolution produced by the scanner.  There are fairly inexpensive units available at places like Best Buy.  These are fine for smaller prints (8" x 10" or less) or for viewing on a computer screen.  Larger resolution scans require more expensive scanners.

After a quick check, the lowest price unit available right now sells for just over $50 and produces 9MP images.  Batch scanners go for up to $2,000.  (This particular unit also scans 120 film as well as 35mm negatives and slides).

Then there are the drum scanners used by those scanning services you can send your negatives off to.  Those go for $25,000.

A dedicated scanner might be worth the investment for someone with a large number of negatives or slides to scan.  Just make sure to thoroughly research he options available before purchasing one.

Using a Digital Camera
If you carefully examine the specifications for some of those film scanners you might notice terms like "14 MP CMOS Sensor."  That means that the scanner is using the exact same technology utilized by your digital camera.

A digital camera is perfectly capable of capturing images from a film negative or slide.

The only requirement is that the camera be capable of capturing images in macro mode.  Even point-and-shot cameras can capture images from a slide using certain procedures.  Various web sites offer methods for pulling this off.  These varying setups work as long as they meet the key requirements:

1) The camera and the slide must remain motionless while the shot is being taken.

2) The camera must be capable of shooting in macro mode.  (DSLR cameras with excellent macro lenses work best but I have used an auto-focus bridge camera with a fixed lens).

3) The slide must be lit from behind in a way that does not create an image visible through the transparency.

Here's the result using a slide of a shot my father took of me when i was a child:

This was shot using a 14MP GE X5.

My setup?

I attached the camera to a tripod.  The tripod then rested on a pair of jack stands placed on a table.  This results in the camera facing straight down.

The slide was then placed on a light box positioned below the camera.  (The light box had a few marks on it which are visible in the end image.)

I then turned all the lights in the room off to prevent light reflecting off of the slide. 

The end image is only 2MP, but that's due to the limitations of the camera used.  A better camera would be able to focus closer to the slide or zoom in.

Slide Holders
The method set out above seems to be the simplest approach that can be used with any digital camera.  Some cameras are capable of using a slide holder that screws onto the front of the camera (like a filter).  The camera just needs to be pointed at a strong light source once the adapter is attached and a slide or negative is mounted.

Try an internet search for "slide copier attachment" or similar terms.

DIY Photography has an article using a little more complex setup than the one I used.  It also has a couple of useful hints not listed here.  (I'm not going to post someone else's ideas as my own.  That doesn't mean I won't use them myself.)