In Focus: September 2007

SMALL SHOOTER

MEDIUM-FORMAT SCANNER

Give new life to those landscape photos shot on film using the Microtek ArtixScan M1, a flatbed film scanner designed for 35mm, 6cm and 4×5-inch film formats. The ArtixScan M1 also scans reflective art or prints as large as 8.5×14 inches. With 4800 dpi optical resolution, the scanner produces image files from 35mm scans that allow prints of up to 15×22 inches with 300 dpi resolution. Other features include 16-bit digital output and autofocus. List Price: $699. Contact: Microtek, (310) 687-5940, www.microtekusa.com.

SAFE CASE

Keep your photo gear protected in the Hardigg Storm Case iM2875. The watertight case is 22.5×21.1×11.5 inches and made from ultra-rugged HPX resin material. Inside, multi-layered cubed foam holds your equipment in place and can be adjusted to fit your specific needs. Padded dividers and custom-cut foam are available. For extra security, the case has six unbreakable latches and two molded-in lock hasps. Other features include automatic air pressure adjustment, durable wheels and soft-grip handles. List Price: TBD. Contact: Hardigg Cases, (800) 542-7344, www.hardigg.com or www.stormcase.com.

2 TB NETWORK STORAGE

Share, stream and store your files using the LaCie Ethernet Big Disk, which packs 2 TB of capacity into a 2x7x11-inch frame. You can share files between Windows- and Mac-based computers using the device as a central storage space or as a personal hard drive, off-network, via USB. A second USB port lets you connect an additional hard drive for more capacity, and you can stream photos, video or music to various media devices. List Price: $1,099. Contact: LaCie, (503) 844-4500, www.lacie.com.

POCKET HOLDER

Don’t run out of pockets to put stuff in wearing the Woolrich Men’s Guide Vest. The 100-percent cotton Island cloth vest has a total of 18 pockets, including five front bellows pockets with hook-and-loop closures and lots of room, three zippered pockets to keep your items secure and a large back bellows pocket for a hat, lunch, rain gear or more. The vest is enzyme-washed for a broken-in feel and the mesh liner keeps away moisture. List Price: $89. Contact: Woolrich, (800) 966-5372, www.woolrich.com.

GET SOME REST

Sleep comfortably when you’re outdoors in the Marmot Sawtooth 15 Degree Down sleeping bag. You’ll stay warm, too, due to the 600-fill down the bag is stuffed with and the X-static draft tube to block cold air. The highly compactable bag features a locking two-way zipper so you won’t accidentally unzip it if you start tossing and turning. List Price: $199. Contact: Marmot, (888) 357-3262, www.marmot.com.

LIGHT COOKER

For easy camp cooking, check out the Coleman Fyrestorm SS Stove. The one-burner backpacking stove has a tripod-like design, providing a wide, stable cooking surface and allowing the fuel source to be placed away from the burner. The compact cooker weighs just 13 ounces and is 3.25×6.75×6.25 inches. Using Reflex technology, the stove requires no priming or preheating, and the overall time from start-up to full ignition has been reduced. List Price: $149. Contact: Coleman, (800) 835-3278, www.coleman.com.

CLEAN HANDS

Keep your hands free of germs using Atwater Carey’s hand sanitizing spray. Designed for outdoor adventurers, the spray kills nearly all germs on contact and comes in a compact PocketPak spray measuring about the size of a pen. The sanitizer also features SmartScent technology, which works to break down and eliminate odor. Estimated Street Price: $2. Contact: Wisconsin Pharmacal Company, (800) 558-6614, www.atwater-carey.com.

SOFT SHELL

Be prepared for unexpected turns in the weather taking along the Titanium Wildcard Softshell jacket from Columbia.The waterproof and windproof jacket features active four-way stretch for total freedom of movement, a three-way adjustable and detachable hood with visor, internal powder cuff, bungee drawcord hem and underarm venting. Multiple pockets, including a zippered security pocket and multifunction audio pocket, offer storage for all of your gear. Estimated Street Price: $100. Contact: Columbia, (800) 547-8066, www.columbia.com.

ALL-WEATHER BOOTS

Give your feet some support by lacing up the Tibet GTX backpacking boots from Lowa. Ideal for long-haul trips off-trail, the boots have a tall ankle shaft for extra knee and back support when carrying heavy packs. The Gore-Tex®-lined boots are waterproof and breathable with a climate control system that manages moisture, keeping your feet dry and protected from blisters. Estimated Street Price: $275. Contact: Lowa, (888) 335-LOWA, www.lowaboots.com.

RAM IT

Improve the performance of editing applications on your iMac or MacBook laptop with up to 3 GB of RAM from Other World Computing. A 1 or 2 GB memory module is available for MacBooks, MacBook Pros and iMac Intels with a Core Duo processor; a 1, 2 or 3 GB memory module is available for MacBook Pros and iMac Intels with a Core 2 Duo processor. For MacBook Pros with Core 2 Duos, there’s a 4 GB module. A free online installation guide comes with it. List Price: $48 to $219. Contact: Other World Computing, (800) 275-4576, www.otherworldcomputing.com.

TRAVEL LOCK

Lock up your camera bag using UPStrap’s Pro Mini Camera Security Cable and TSA (Transportation Security Administration) lock. The four-inch nylon-coated cable is tested to resist 170 pounds, and its small diameter lets you thread it through your camera or bag and a chair, hotel bed frame and more to prevent theft. The lock has an indicator window that tells you if it was opened. A six-inch version of the cable that resists 250 pounds is also available. List Price: TBD. Contact: UPStrap,
(877) 872-7639,www.upstrap.com.

PC PROTECTION

Protect your PC from viruses, spyware and phishing using Symantec’s Norton 360, a comprehensive software solution with new online transaction security and automated backup services. In addition to technologies designed to fend off a range of threats, the program offers online identity protection, website authentication, a two-way firewall and 2 GB of online storage for backing up work. List Price: $70. Contact: Symantec, (408) 517-8000, www.symantec.com.

PORTABLE REFLECTORS

Control the lighting conditions on your next shoot with the Lightright LR500 Professional Reflector System. The portable system contains five magnetically adjustable reflectors, 20 reflecting panels and six non-magnetic trimable reflectors. All reflectors are reversible, from silver to white. Panel sizes range from 7×2.5 inches to 13.5×9.5 inches. They can be flexed to concentrate or spread reflected light, and they’re ready to use right out of the box. List Price: $70. Contact: Lightright, www.lightrightreflector.com.

SAFE SHELTER

When it’s time to hit the road, protect your valuable photo equipment in the new PCS283 case from the RSV Series of Pelican Soft Camera Cases. A D-SLR, lenses and accessories fit in the main compartment, and a removable tray with dividers keeps everything organized. There are also removable tripod straps with a catch pocket for the legs. The bag meets carry-on luggage size requirements after removing the messenger-style laptop case, which holds up to a 17-inch laptop. The PCS283 is designed from ballistic nylon material and has molded corners for extra protection. List Price: $399. Contact: BKA, (847) 821-0450, www.bkaphoto.com.

BOOK BLURB

Create, print and sell your own photography books using Blurb. The online publishing service lets you download its BookSmart software for free, giving you access to hundreds of professionally designed book templates. After you’ve chosen the design, simply drag and drop your photos in and add text using the built-in photo layout tools. Book sizes include: 7×7-inch square, 8×10-inch portfolio, 10×8-inch landscape and 13×11-inch large-format landscape. List Price: From $13 (softcover) and $23 (hardcover).
Contact: Blurb, www.blurb.com.

SLIM CAM

When you’re out for a long hike, take the compact Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FX100, which weighs just five ounces and has a 28mm wide-angle Leica DC lens with 3.6x optical zoom. Other notable features include 12.2-megapixel resolution, a 2.5-inch LCD and optical image stabilization. The camera captures 1920 x 1080 high-definition stills and 1280 x 720 video at 15 frames per second. List Price: $400. Contact: Panasonic, (800) 211-PANA, www.panasonic.com.

ART TOOL
Give your nature photos a unique look using Alien Skin’s Snap Art software. With hundreds of styles to choose from, you can turn your photos into oil paintings, pencil sketches, comics and more in a single step. The software uses edge detection to make out objects, edges, lines and shapes of the original image. Using that outline, an advanced paint engine strokes and fills the outline using the brushes and colors you’ve chosen. List Price: $99. Contact: Alien Skin, (888) 921-SKIN, www.alienskin.com.

CLASSY MINI-PRINTS

Make high-end prints in mini-format using Hahnemuhle’s FineArt inkjet photo cards. Ideal for greeting cards and invitations, the 4×6-inch cards are offered in Photo Rag 308gsm, a 100-percent rag paper with a smooth, white surface, and FineArt Pearl 285gsm, a lignin-free, alpha cellulose fiber-based paper with a bright white surface similar to that of traditional silver gelatin photo paper. List Price: $15 (Photo Rag); $17 (FineArt Pearl). Contact: Hahnemuhle, (815) 502-5880, www.hahnemuhle.com.

SOFTWARE SWAP

Fans of iView Media Pro 3 can check out Microsoft Expression Media to find the latest version of the workflow application. Microsoft bought iView Multimedia in June of 2006 and their product line is now fully integrated into Microsoft. The program contains the same powerful tools, which include: quickly editing and organizing large numbers of images, including RAW; batch processing to rename, convert or tag hundreds of files at a time with sophisticated metadata (including IPTC) and keyword features; and creating sophisticated slideshows, videos and web galleries. List Price: $299. Contact: Microsoft, www.microsoft.com/expression; iView Multimedia, www.iview-multimedia.com.

ROAD BURNER

When you’re traveling, burn CDs and DVDs with the portable Samsung WriteMaster SE-T084L DVD burner. It supports 12cm, 3cm and 8cm discs for copying content from DVD camcorders. Data transfer rates vary depending on the media type and power source, with maximum read and write speeds of 10.8 MBps. The burner is 6.2×0.8×5.6 inches and weighs less than a pound. List Price: $150. Contact: Samsung Electronics, (800) SAMSUNG, www.samsung.com.

MOVIE MAKER

Get creative with your home movies using Ulead VideoStudio 11. The latest version of the software is packed with tools for creating professional-looking videos, slideshows and DVDs easily. New features include auto color and tone filters for correcting video shot in poor light, DeBlock and DeSnow filters for cleaning up noise, and fully interactive DVD authoring for creating motion menus. VideoStudio 11 Plus offers high-definition video-editing capabilities and Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. List Price: $89 (standard); $129 (Plus). Contact: Corel, (800) 772-6735, www.corel.com; Ulead, www.ulead.com.

STICKY SUPPORT

Leave the tripod at home and still give your compact camera the support it needs with Monsterpod. It looks like orange Silly Putty® and sticks instantly to just about any surface, thanks to its polymer base. The stabilization device is ideal for cameras weighing less than 20 ounces and for up to 10 minutes, depending on the angle. Monsterpod isn’t recommended for D-SLRs. List Price: $35. Contact: OmegaSatter, (410) 374-3250, www.omegasatter.com.

DIRT SPOTTER

Check to see if your D-SLR’s sensor is dirty before you clean it with the VisibleDust SensorLoupe. The device uses a six-LED lighting system with 5x optical magnification to light up the sensor, giving you a clear view of any dirt or debris that could affect your images. By looking at the sensor before you shoot, SensorLoupe helps cut down on unnecessary cleanings that could damage your camera. List Price: $69. Contact: VisibleDust, (780) 455-1082, www.visibledust.com.

PICTURE PLAYER

Showcase your photos and video clips in Aluratek’s 10.5-inch Digital Photo Frame. Play your content directly from the camera or camcorder by inserting a memory card or USB thumb drive into the frame. A built-in 256 MB memory makes it possible to transfer files directly to the frame from your computer. Play slideshows, zoom, rotate and listen to background music all at the touch of a button with the included remote control. List Price: $199. Contact: Aluratek, Inc., (866) 580-1978, www.aluratek.com.