INSTAGRAM Goes All Zoomie, A Woman Shoots Down A DRONE, A Darkroom Bar?: FroKnowsPhoto RAWtalk 197
Instagram now lets you pinch and zoom in on photos, what do you think about this? A bus driver in Virginia was cleaning her shotguns on the porch when a drone flew by, she shot it down. Do you think a darkroom / bar is a good idea or could it lead to some bad exposures? All this and more starting at 7:34 for photo news.
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Don’t forget about GERMANY on September 21st at 7:45 PM at the Colner Dom in Cologne Germany. We are meeting at the top of the stairs overlooking the train station.
We had gear of the week, flying solo, the Wheel Of FRO and finally MEMS. Keep on sending them in and thank you all for your continued support of our fun little show.
00:16 Knock, Knock. Rode?
02:46 We’re coming to Germany!
05:44 Plug of the Week
07:34 Photo News
32:44 Gear of the Week
40:10 Flying Solo
1:09:26 Wheel of Fro
1:13:46 Memes of the Week
Here’s all of Stephen’s photo news stories in detail:
DJI Announces OSMO+ — Now with 7x Zoom
DJI has updated their OSMO handheld gimbal camera, with the second iteration being called the OSMO+. Equipped with a 7x zoom—technically 3.5x optical zoom, along with a 2x “digital lossless zoom” which is really just a crop mode—the new camera, called the Zenmuse X3, is very similar, but not interchangeable, with the Zenmuse Z3 that’s used on the Inspire 1 drone. Covering a field-of-view equivalent to that of a 22-77mm lens on a full frame camera, they’ve updated their stabilization to counteract the extra zoom, claiming it will “keep the camera flat no matter how you move it.” Spec wise, it’ll shoot 4K at up to 30fps and 1080P at up to 100fps. Photographers and photojournalists can also shoot 12MP RAW or JPEG stills though. The OSMO+ now has a built-in motion control feature, where you can tell the camera where you want the movement to start and stop at—this comes paired with a new motion time-lapse feature as well. The new gimbal camera is now available for preorder for $649. Will you be upgrading?
Introducing the Darkroom: a Photo-Themed Bar with a Working Darkroom
There’s a new photo-themed bar opening up in Washington DC which will house a working darkroom and photo studio. Coined “The Darkroom,” it will be dedicated to “building community through the art of photography.” According to the DC liquor license application, the new bar will host “screenings, art shows, lectures and classes” on photography as well—and they will even have an art gallery! No word on when or if the bar will be approved its liquor license. In the meantime, grab a beer! (via Borderstan)
Rare Set of Iconic Baseball Photos Set To Fetch $1 Million at Auction
A rare set of early baseball photos is going up for auction and expected to sell for $1 million. Taken by photographer Charles M. Conlon, the iconic photo set features 7,462 original negatives, taken between 1904-1942. Featuring everything from action photos to headshots, the negatives feature legendary baseball players like Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio and more. They made an important note on the auction page, saying due to the age of the collection, copyright for most of the images has expired, which is why so many collector baseball cards use these images today. Conlon got the access by working for the New York Evening Telegram. Spalding Guide Editor John B. Foster took notice of him and said, “they need pictures of ball players for the Guide, and there is no reason why you can’t take pictures of the players, as well as landscapes. It will be a good pick-up for you, and it will be something of a day off.” Well wasn’t that the best offer of his life. The auction was approved by an Arkansas judge to help sports memorabilia dealer (and owner of the collection) John Rogers pay off some of his $50 million in creditor and investor claims. The money raised by the auction will “benefit the creditors in order of their priority.” Hosted by Heritage Auctions, the photos were officially sold this past weekend. (via PP)
FAA’s New Commercial Drone Rules Now In Full Effect
The FAA’s new commercial drone rules are officially now in effect. The new “Small Unmanned Aircraft Rule (Part 107)” says you’ll first need to pass a test for a remote pilot certificate, which will be valid for two years. next, You’ll need to keep the drone in your line-of-sight, and can only fly during daylight hours unless your drone has anti-collision lighting built-in, which then you can fly during civil twilight—30 minutes before sunrise or after sunset. Operators can fly up to 400 feet above ground level and up to 100mph as well. Those currently commercially exempt under the Section 333 exemption can continue flying with that, until it expires. Then, they’ll have to get the part 107 certificate. UAS pilots can find all the details here at the FAA’s official website. (via PP)
Virginia Bus Driver “Blasts” Drone Out of the Sky
Virginia school bus driver Jennifer Youngman was cleaning her two guns out on her front porch when a drone came below her tree line and she “blasted it.” Her neighbor, actor Robert Duvall, owns a 400-acre property across the street from her, which is where she thinks the drone was headed. She says, “sometimes my actions think before I do.” Her only regret? The debris left from the drone left two flat tires in her tractor. Fauquier County Sheriff’s Office says it’s tough to determine if there was any violation of the law because a complaint was never filed from the UAS operators. Check out a video interview below where she recounts what happens. She notes, “When you come out to the country only leave your footsteps…” Is this Meredith’s long-lost cousin?! (via Fauquier)
Hang Your Cameras on the Wall with a HANGIE
A new wall mount has been made to specifically hold and display your cameras. 3D-printed with a slim profile, the new mount—called the HANGIE—makes your cameras appear to be floating on the wall. Here’s how it works: after screwing the stainless steel mount into the wall via two screws, you simply add a tripod screw on the bottom end and your camera on top, tighten, and voila. The mounts are strong enough to hold up to a DSLR. The makers note that they tested it with a Canon 7D and 17-55mm lens—a total weight of 3.3lbs and it worked fine. They note that it’s not just for displaying your collection either: it can be used to mount your current working camera, and can easily be unmounted in seconds. However, if you’re not hanging heavy cameras, they also offer a plastic HANGIE for lightweight cameras. These will cost $4 each while the standard HANGIE will run you $21 each. Check them out here if you’re interested in displaying some of your gadgets. (via PP)
Man Attacked by Group After Photographing Accident Scene in San Fran
A man named Peter Muller has been attacked in San Francisco for photographing an accident. A taxi driver had a medical issue which caused him to hit the gas and run over the sidewalk into a shoeshine stand, critically injuring two workers. Muller began to take photos while a group of three approached him, “verbally attacking him for taking pictures at the scene,” saying what he was doing was offensive. Well, an argument then ensued, where Muller says, “there’s 500 other people over there taking photos, why are you yelling at me?” Next, he told the man of the group to “get his girl out his his face.” He then turned around, and was sucker-punched by the guy. Even worse, while on the ground, he was then punched and kicked by the other two women in the group. The police came and arrested and charged the group. Even better, Muller snapped a photo of them in cuffs…How’s that for a picture… (via DIYP)
ATF Warns Kentucky Residents to Watch Out for Bomb-Rigged Trail Cameras
The ATF issued a PSA in Kentucky, warning residents to stay away from any trail cameras they find in Harlan County. They say there could be possible bombs inside, instead of an actual camera. A man named Mark Sawaf allegedly planted IEDs inside trail cameras, leaving them on high-accessed paths. Some were even rigged to explode when someone put batteries inside while others were triggered via a trip wire on the trail. Now, Sawaf was arrested back in June, but shot dead after attempting to escape police custody, so they never got him to reveal where the other IEDs were located. Police found nine in the meantime, but still think more are out there. Please contact Kentucky State Police or the ATF immediately if you find such a device. Scary stuff. (via PP)
PortraitPro Body Makes Retouching Easy
Introducing “the industry’s first dedicated full-body retouching software” called PortraitPro Body. Simply using sliders, instead of confusing Photoshop actions, the app has six main editing panels: Mark Up, Shape Sliders, Shape Tool, Skin, Face and Picture. Allowing you to modify facial expressions, remove blemishes, adjust a person’s height or body size—the app claims to do it all. PortraitPro Body is mainly automated and doesn’t require much retouching experience. They say the program’s intelligent system has been trained on human experience, body shape, beauty and more, but how does one define beauty? The app is available now as a free trial, a paid unlocked version for $40, or a $60 “studio” version which supports RAW editing and has Lightroom and Photoshop plugins. Check out the full demo video of it in action below: (via PP)
Instagram Now Lets iOS Users Pinch & Zoom in on Photos & Video
Instagram has been updated in iOS to now allow for pinching and zooming in on photos and video which is big news. It works just like zooming in on anything else in iOS, except when you let go it will snap back to the original full photo and video. Instagram says, “Dive into an adorable puppy’s smile or into every detail of your friend’s new shirt.” Don’t worry droid users, the new feature will be released for Android in the next few weeks. Now Instagram, will you finally allow for full-res-uploading so people can zoom in and actually see detail and not over-compressed pixels?
