Abduzeedo has posted a great tutorial on creating HDR photographs. If you haven’t heard of HDR already, you’re missing out on some amazing photos - you can see some nice ones in the Flickr HDR pool. HDR stands for High Dynamic Range, and is basically a combination of 3 photos taken at 3 different exposures. Tonal Mapping is the next process done in software like Photoshop or Photomatix - it gives the photo that “surreal” effect that the best HDR photos have.
If you’ve got a Digital SLR camera, you’ve most likely got a feature called “Auto-bracketing”. If not, you’ll have to take the 3 different exposures manually - a tripod is recommended.
If you’re like me, you’ll be signed up to almost every social network/web 2.0 website in existence; but it can become hard for others to keep track of your profiles across the internet, and you could forget your username too. There are so many social networks I’m signed up on, that I needed a one organised place to put all my profile links.
I use a service called ClaimID - it’s simple, fast and works great. It has support for OpenID, and ClaimID can even be your OpenID host. You can sign up at ClaimID for free and start posting links. Take a look at my profile as an example.
Roughly Drafted has posted a long, in-depth analysis of the iPhone as a gaming device - they bring up a lot of great reasons for the iPhone to become a great gaming device. The iPhone has an amazing amount of processing and graphics power for a mobile phone, comparable to any of Nokia’s gaming phones, but not quite up-to-scratch with dedicating gaming device, Sony PSP. Apple’s recently announced SDK also looks promising to game developers that want to turn their game ideas into reality on an iPhone or iPod Touch.
The iPhone would also have a great distribution platform: The iTunes App store. Unlike traditional portable gaming devices, e.g. the Sony PSP, the iPhone wouldn’t require external media like UMD discs. Instead, the iPhone could download games wirelessly, either over Wi-Fi or EDGE connections. I believe the iPhone could make it as a gaming device. It eliminates the need for three things: Your iPod, your phone and your portable games console. Its only limitations are battery life and storage; a lot of your 16GB flash drive will be taken by music and video already.
An interesting article on the iPhone as a gaming platform I wrote for Appletell. What do you think - could the iPhone replace your Sony PSP or Nintendo DS?
Read [Appletell]
It’s almost been 6 months since I bought my 16GB iPod Touch in October 2007, and I haven’t looked back on my old 5G video iPod since. After Steve Jobs announced the iPod Touch, I immediately checked it out at the Apple Store and decided to buy it. I’m glad I went for the slightly more expensive 16GB model, because it is almost completely full of music, videos and photos.
Some people like to think of the iPod Touch as a pointless device - why not get the iPhone instead? There are several reasons you would buy an iPod Touch over an iPhone:
- You already have a good/better phone than the iPhone
- The iPhone costs so much that you could buy an iPod Touch and a Nokia N96
- You don’t want to be forced onto one network, on a pay-monthly contract
- You want 3G or HSDPA internet access, rather than EDGE.
The list could go on much further, but I think those are the main reasons.
The iPod Touch does everything else the iPhone does, with the exception of making phone calls and SMS messages - other than that it’s a fully-functional media player, organiser and web browsing device. It even has the exact same multi-touch interface you get on the iPhone.
I also think the iPod Touch’s design is much nicer than the iPhones. The mirrored finish on the back is nice, and it’s 8mm thinner than an iPhone. With an iPod Touch you now get three options of storage: 8GB, 16GB or 32GB. At the time of purchasing, there were only the first two available - I would have gone for the 32GB if it were possible.
iPhones are great for people that can’t stand carrying around an iPod and their phone, and have the money to spend on an 18-month O2 contract. But if you want the latest phone technology, with the latest music technology, you should buy both an iPod Touch and a similarly priced phone - it will still be cheaper than an iPhone in the long term.
According to TechCrunch, Facebook is to launch an IM service of its own, possibly as soon as next week. I’ve thought up three reasons why Facebook’s IM won’t work:
Not innovative
I can’t go ahead and say it’s not innovative without seeing or using it, but given from what Facebook has done in the past, I can see this just being a plain old web-based IM, branded with the Facebook logo.
Jabber
Jabber is a great thing for users, but what about Facebook themselves? Surely advertising revenue is lost through people using other IM clients than their own.
Web-based IM hasn’t taken off
And it probably never will - not until the semantic web (a.k.a. “Web 3.0″). It’s just something about desktop applications that makes them feel more responsive, reliable and generally better than web-based ones. I like to be signed on to MSN, AIM, Yahoo and Google Talk for all the time I’m using my computer. I don’t think anyone wants to be logged on to a website all day. Saying that, you do have the option to use something like Adium through the Jabber platform.
Another point about the whole web-based thing - you won’t get rich, visual experiences on a website. Webcam conversations, audio conversations can be done through websites - but not that well - nothing like Skype.
I know a lot of people are now excited about Facebook’s IM, but I still think the big guys (MSN and AIM) are there to stay for quite some time. Just because it’s branded “Facebook” doesn’t mean it’s good.
A lot of readers from the USA may be thinking: “What’s Bebo?”. Well, apparently, Bebo wasn’t ever that successful in the USA - instead, MySpace and Facebook took the lead. For those who don’t know what it is, it’s a social network just like MySpace, Facebook, Friendster and all the rest. It’s been a huge hit in the UK, and most people I know have used it before and have an account.
I personally found Bebo a much better experience than MySpace; however, when I came across Facebook, it became my new favourite social network. At the time I found Facebook, it didn’t even support UK networks. But it was Facebook’s simple and intuitive interface that kept me coming back to the site.
If I were to guess, I’d say Bebo is about even with Facebook for UK users at the moment. According to the Telegraph, they are actually the UK’s second most popular social-networking website.
I think it’s a smart move for AOL to buy Bebo for $850 million, from both Bebo and AOL’s perspective. Bebo has been starting to struggle in the past few months, because of Facebook’s domination of the market - although Bebo is still a strong presence in the social-networking world. AOL is an internet giant that is now struggling to compete against new Web 2.0 start-ups. Bebo could be the key to getting AOL back on track; and AOL could be the key to bringing new, exciting features to Bebo.
Twitter, in my opinion, is an amazing social network; a place where you can connect with people in short 140-character messages. Its community is mostly made up of bloggers and those who spend their lives on every social network known to man.
I signed up for Twitter over a year ago, but didn’t start fully using it until late 2007. When I first joined I was following practically no one, and I only had one or two followers. Once I started following hundreds (over 500) of people, I gained followers in the hundreds. I thank these people for taking the time to follow me back; because it’s these people that motivated me to start using Twitter on a daily, sometimes hourly basis.
Once I started Tweeting more, I realised what a valuable social network this was - it has the potential to be so much more, but I’m happy with Twitter the way it is. Twitter has recently become a communication tool for me - almost replacing IM in some cases. Some people hate it, some love it. Those that hate it are either baffled by the fact that you publish what you’re doing to the rest of the world, or just see Twitter as a time-waster.
Feel free to follow me on Twitter, and I’ll follow you too.
Forget the Wii for a minute - although it’s a next-gen console, it’s not in the same league as these two consoles. The decision between a PS3 and an Xbox 360 is like Mac and PC. Different people have varied opinions on the matter; they will usually support the console they own.
I have a PlayStation 3 and love it; I see no compelling reason to buy an Xbox 360 at this point in time. The PS3 has the best graphics (in HD resolution terms, at least), Blu-ray built-in, free online play and a great selection of games. I’ll agree that the 360 has far more games than the PS3, but this is simply because the Xbox 360 has had an extra year of time for developers to make the games for it. I think the PS3 has a great future ahead of it - we’ve already seen a number of promising games confirmed for release this year. Blu-ray winning the format is an extra bonus for current PS3 owners, because now we don’t need to buy another player. Those looking for a Blu-ray player should consider a PS3, too - although there are some cheaper ones now.
The Xbox 360 only outputs a maximum of 720p (unless you buy the ridiculously-priced “Elite” version), only plays dual-layer DVDs and you have to pay £40/year to play online. Xbox users claim their Xbox Live online experience is superior to that of the PS3 - but to be honest I’ve played both, and the difference is marginal - definitely not worth paying £40/year for.
It will be interesting to see what Microsoft does next with the Xbox 360. Now that HD-DVD is dead, they are expected to release a Blu-ray drive for the Xbox 360. Sony will become its own competition, as it has a large stake in the Blu-ray disc association.
What are your thoughts on the console war?
All my life I’ve used a regular digital point-and-shoot camera - until last month, when I decided to purchase my first Digital SLR camera: The Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi (EOS 400D in Europe). I went for the standard black with the 18-55mm kit lens. A lot of people have recommended I get a 50mm prime lens, too. This will definitely be something I’ll buy some time soon - I’ll either get the f/1.8 or f/1.4 USM.
I chose the Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi because I’ve heard excellent reviews of it throughout the internet, it has won several awards in the past. The other camera I considered was the Nikon D40X - the Rebel XTi’s rival. I was also considering a very high-end point-and-shoot camera, the Canon PowerShot G9.
The XTi will soon be replaced by the new XSi, an updated version of Canon’s highly successful beginner SLR. It features a larger 12-megapixel sensor, 18-55mm IS (image stabilisation) lens, Live View and costs approximately $200 more than the XTi. I’m happy with the XTi though, and as Glenn Wolsey mentioned: 12.2 megapixels stuffed into such a small sensor might not be so forgiving on noise at ISO 800 and above.
The Canon Rebel XTi definitely lived up to the expectations I had of it. I’m a first-time SLR user, but I instantly picked up the basics of how to use it. The size of the camera is a lot bigger than my previous compact camera, but this is something you get used to over time. I’ve spent a lot of time experimenting with the camera, and you can see the majority of my photos on Flickr.
I hope to improve taking photos with my new camera, and, as Canon say, explore the “digital playground”. If you have any tips, please comment - it’s much appreciated.
Stephen | Photography | Monday, March 31st, 2008