CameraTalk » David Richardson

Apple iPad first hands-on!

David Richardson — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 22:42:43 +0000

If the Engadget guys who made this video sound excited, you can’t blame them.

As a Mac user myself I know that I can somehow justify buying one of these babies to my wife. It just looks real cool and the functionality is easy to understand.

Here we are, it’s 2010 and we are now using our hands/fingers to interact with our computers. The future has arrived and I think it is perfect timing. These babies will sell like hot cakes.

Of special note I love the ibook, ebook, whatever its called, function. I could see myself reading a book on this device, the page turning is exceptional.

Of course the uses for photographers are outstanding. It will be like carrying a personal portfolio with you.

Link to Apple website: http://www.apple.com/ipad

Cyber-shot® Digital Camera TX7

David Richardson — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 06:12:58 +0000

Here we go again! Another year and another bag load of new “the best we have ever seen” point & shoots are about to hit the market.

Let’s quickly review the highlights of 2009 – Panasonic DMC-LX3 was a stand out, pity they didn’t make enough to service the demand. Nikon gave us the Coolpix S1000pj the one with the built in projector. I lost $100 on this camera. I bet that it would be the biggest selling camera of Xmas 2009. It hardly left a mark. Though I do believe it was simply before it’s time, so keep an eye on it. I still think it was the best “feature” in 2009. Then the daddy of them all was the Olympus Mju Tough 8000 This was probably the best marketed camera in 2009, the slobbery dog chewing away on it. My wife dropped our Canon IXUS into the pool at Xmas and was very happy about it. Why? I asked. Because I can get a Mju now! she said.

So onto 2010, and first out of the gate is the SONY Cyber-shot® Digital Camera TX7.

At first glance it looks nice, it looks well built and it looks classy (important that last one). Point & shoots are moving well and truly into the fashion accessory, iPhonesque arena.
On spec it has:

10.2 mega pixel camera… that’s good.
It’s got a new sensor that will help in low light situations… that’s good too.
It has a 4x zoom range of 25-100mm which is right in the sweet spot.
It has a Burst Mode : Approx 10 fps at 10.2MP
It measures in only at 97.8mm x 59.5mm x 17.5mm
Touch screen to easily take and review photos (like the iPhone does)
1080i AVCHD Movie Mode

So there it is really. Of course there are a host of other features but I consider then standard now. It certainly looks good and I think it will sell well. It makes for a great replacement to an older point & shoot. It’s stylish, it’s easy to use and it will, well, just do the job for you in a typical Sony way!

Merry Christmas

David Richardson — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 05:38:13 +0000

Merry Christmas to all our visitors, regulars and contributors.

2009 was, well just another year really! It went so very fast for me that I really remember very little about it. Did anything interesting happen? Let me think….

There was some recession stuff in there somewhere, cricket wasn’t good I seem to remember, Tiger won’t return my calls now for some reason, and oh yes I had a lovely holiday. Surely there was more than that?

Well 2010 better live up to expectations, they are high and honestly I can’t wait to get back to work and see all the wonderful plans for CamerasDirect and Cameratalk come to fruition.

I’d like to take the opportunity to harp on about our staff at CD’s. Making the choice to only employ energetic people with a passion for photography has proven to be a good one. They all bring that something special to work with them every day and make a BIG difference to our customer service levels. They all genuinely love photography and that shines through to every customer we have. Thank you all.

I’d also like to thank our customers, thank you for choosing CD’s and thank you for choosing to spread the word to your friends and family. We hope we can keep you coming back year after year.

Keep your eyes on CD’s in 2010, we have listened very carefully to our feedback this year and are investing heavily to bring you the BEST online shopping experience possible.

Merry Christmas all and a Happy New Year.

Nikon D3s Images

David Richardson — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 06:03:52 +0000

First look at the NEW Nikon D3s.

ISO range of 200 to 12800
high-definition movie recording
12.1 megapixel FX format CMOS sensor
51-point AF system
9 fps for extended bursts
environmentally-sealed magnesium alloy body

Funny Stop Motion Video

David Richardson — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 21:09:56 +0000

Iron Man vs Bruce Lee from Patrick Boivin on Vimeo.

Some people just have way too much talent, check this guys talent at his Vimeo account above, EXCELLENT WORK.

Viva Las Vegas

David Richardson — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 16:57:32 +0000

LAS VEGAS is hosting the shop.org trade show, showcasing what’s new in online retailing. I am here to investigate and see what Vegas is like for a married Aussie male.

Arriving on Saturday, I went for a stroll down the main strip. It was hot. Very hot.

The dry desert heat doesn’t make you sweat so much but you really dehydrate quickly.

Staying at the Luxor (the pyramid shaped casino), I was at one end of the strip, so I went for a looong walk to other end.

Honestly, it was pretty boring. Yes, there are some amazing casinos. Yes, there are 1001 big burgers to eat. But other than that, not much. If I was younger, single, and with a group, I could see the attraction. Oherwise, not my cup of tea.

For a town where prostitution is illegal there seems to be an amazing abundance of guys handing out business cards for ladies. Inevitably they all end up on the floor… so much so, you are walking on a carpet of boobies!!

I must admit I am also struggling with this whole concept of tipping. A taxi driver grabbed my arm and tugged me back when I walked away without tipping him. I told him that grabbing my arm wasn’t the way to get a tip and walked off. But then I felt guilty!!

The waitress at the café was quick to introduce herself by name, telling me she would be my waitress. She was friendly and talkative, but the coffee was crap. And I had waited a looong time to get it. Then a glass of water took 10minutes to arrive. Good service? Not. But did I tip? Yes. Because on the bill it told me to. It even gave me the amount to tip!!! Strange indeed.

I crossed the road and a car slowed to let me cross. Nice, I thought. But straight away I was nervous the window would come down and hand would appear asking for a tip.

Sunday today. Show starts tomorrow. Can’t wait. It’s pretty lonely here with no one to talk to… without tipping them.

Customer Service – Online

David Richardson — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 06:33:28 +0000

Working in retail can be a thankless job at times, however, I am a very firm believer that all retailers and service providers should focus first on customer service, then customer service, and then a little extra customer service thrown in for good measure.

Customer Service has always been blatantly obvious to me, yet so many businesses become successful then seem to forget about it. How do we let them get away with it? Why do we put up with grumpy waiters, or waiting 30mins on the phone for someone in India to answer your call? We can be a placid bunch.

What if a company invested in customer service? Surely it should be a category in every business’s Marketing Budget, where the key indicator is their customers happiness. An indicator that was more important than profit!! Would shares soar when the happiness factor went up? I guess they would.

If the product is good and the service is good and the price is right, you are left with a warm glow… then I’m guessing you would return to that business.

Simple really (except if you’re just too focused on yourself and the money).

Anyway, the pursuit of happy customers is difficult. You can try, yet the only way you can truly succeed is to keep 100% of customers happy — an impossible task.

So when a customer takes time to stop and thank you it does feel good, it’s the energy food I feed our staff.

Thank you
“I can’t say thank you enough, I had prepared myself for spending a small country’s fortune on my new camera but thought surely there’s got to be better prices out there than what the stores are selling at and so I began my internet search, within a few minutes I came across your site, I have to be honest and thought it was a joke, I know I was looking for better prices but this is ridiculous and so I thought I’d give a call and sure enough, not only did CamerasDirect have someone to talk to but they had a few and friendly people to boot. I put in my order, crossed my fingers and prayed that it wasn’t a scam and 48 hours later had a delivery, my brand new perfect camera. I can say without a doubt, I will never buy my camera products at any other store again. CamerasDirect you’ve gained another life long customer. Great service, amazing products………. again I can not thank you enough”

Well done everyone

Why Buy ‘Name Brand’ Lenses?

David Richardson — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 23:39:05 +0000

Working in the photographic retail industry, I do get some interesting insights into customer trends and, more importantly, product performance.

I spend a lot of time talking with our customers. I get a very good feel for their needs and also how consumers interpret the oooodles of information that is available online.

From the multi-page reviews at DPReview through to local forums and ecommerce sites, there is a lot of information to digest.

We can see from our statistics that an online buyer can spend 1 month researching before buying. Armed with all this information, consumers then have to choose the product that is right for them. This means they often need a helping hand deciphering this information and making a decision.

Let me help you…

LENSES

As a photographer, you know already that it is the LENS that has the biggest influence on the quality of your images – GOOD GLASS is what we all seek.

So which lenses should you buy? Or more importantly, which brand?

Now I must qualify my comments at this point — they are my thoughts only. Though I believe them to be correct, they are by no means gospel.

If you use Nikon DSLR bodies – then buy Nikon lenses.
If you use Canon DSLR bodies – then buy Canon lenses.

That’s it! Simple really.

OK, I’ll give you my reasoning.

Nikon and Canon are lens specialists. They make stuff we don’t even know about for NASA, the Military, and Medical Industries. They are, without doubt, at the cutting edge of lens technology.

Canon and Nikon also make their own DSLR bodies. They make them to work perfectly with their lenses.

Third party manufacturers like Sigma, Tamron and Tokina DO NOT pop over to Nikon and Canon for tea everyday and share their blueprints. They simply take the technology and backward engineer it.

Note: There is rarely a quality benefit in buying a 3rd party lens, there is only ever a monetary saving.

Now before you jump on my back saying, “Hang on, I have a Sigma 10-20mm on my Nikon and it’s simply great”, I say that this simply highlights a bigger issue — inconsistency.

Nikon and Canon can repeatedly make a lens to the same specification (of course, there are the odd duds but, considering the huge volumes they produce, the % is minuscule).

Third party manufacturers have varying grades — they can be great, pretty good, average, pretty poor, and really bad.

So when you are out in Web Land, reading reviews, keep this info in the back of your mind.

To translate this in commercial terms, I would simply say to you: “If your photography is commercial — i.e. if you make money from it, then insist on Canon on Canon, or Nikon on Nikon.

Hope this helps