Digital Camera News: Camera from Acer?, 39 Megapixel Camera Back, DIY Macro Lens, Kodak-Ritz Camera Kiosk Deal

[Ben Stafford]

Acer 8 Megapixel Camera

According to an article at Bios Magazine, Acer is launching an 8 megapixel camera for under 200 GBP (including VAT).  They report that the camera will have a 2.5 inch LCD, 3x optical zoom and it will ship with a 64MB SD card and leather case.

It's pretty unlikely that we'll see this camera in the US, but if it performs well at that price, Acer could pick up some steam.

See the article at Bios Magazine for more details.

Phase One Starts Shipping 39 Megapixel Digital Camera Back

The Phase One P 45 has started shipping.  The "ultimate in medium and large format digital photography equipment" captures 117 MB file sizes at 35 frames per minute.  The P 45 can write images to storage as quickly as 20 MB per second.  The back also features Phase One's secure storage system that checks that the media is valid before attempting to write any images to faulty media (and losing your work).

See www.phaseone.com for full details.

DIY Macro Lens from a Pringle Can

Not for the faint of heart or those with no "handy" skills, this article describes how its author created a macro lens using an old lens and a Pringles can.  He also shows some great sample images and describes the whole process, from eating the Pringles to taking the photos.

He attached his homemade macro lens to his Canon 20D for some great results, overcoming the electronic aperture controls of modern lenses.  He goes on to give some great tips about how to actually capture images.

www.photocritic.org/2005/macro-photography-on-a-budget/

Kodak and Ritz Camera Kiosk Partnership

Kodak and Ritz Camera have announced a partnership that will place Kodak Picture Kiosk G4s in all 1,100 Ritz Camera locations.  With this move, Kodak will further it's push into the high-growth digital image printing market.

Ritz Camera is the first retailer to get the Kiosk G4, the latest kiosk from Kodak.  The G4 can create a print 35% faster than previous models.  A faster processor doubles the upload time from memory cards, allowing multiple image to be displayed on the screen.  The G4 can handle all memory card formats and Bluetooth and infrared printing methods as well.

Press Release

[pt9386]

Wow, Acer in the digital camera field, who'd thunk it. The DIY Macro Lens sounds interesting, like a more advanced pin-hole camera.