Taking Sport Photographs - Digital Camera Tips

Taking sport photographs is not difficult at all and can make for some really nice pictures. If you are really into sports and highly enjoy watching the games or even participating in them it can be very fun and rewarding to take sports photos.

Taking Sport Photographs - Digital Camera Tips

First off, taking sport photos isn't the same as the way that enthusiastic parent is taking pictures of his or her kids. Sport photos that look good are not simply pointed at the action and taken. If you take a look at most, you'll see how they end up very different looking from most sport photos regular point and shooters take.

Sports photography can be somewhat difficult especially if you don't know how to do it or have a slow eye. Most sports are very fast and have lots of movement. This, nevertheless, is easy to overcome and take really great photos. If you can learn how to flawlessly capture movement with your digital camera then you can take really great sports pictures.

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When it comes to taking fast action photographs, whether they are sports photos or bird photos, there are some common tips to follow. These tips are NOT just for sports photos. You can use these tips for taking action photos of birds, lions, planes, etc.

One of the most important aspects of sports photos is the settings on your camera. If you've ever taken sports photos with a fully automatic camera you probably ended up deleting nearly half the photos. Shutter speed is a setting that is usually much manipulated with action sport photos. Another setting that is manipulated often with sports is the ISO setting.

Shutter Speed Manipulation

When you take pictures of any object in motion, the need to freeze the object or blur the object is fully made through the shutter speed. If you're taking speed motion pictures of sports you'll want to stop the motion and not have blurred subjects. This means you'll want a fast shutter speed. The shutter speed should be faster than the subjects motion. If you're taking a shot of a very fast object you'll need a much faster shutter speed than a slow moving object like a turtle.

ISO Settings

What happens when you use a faster shutter speed is that less light is let into the camera. This can be fine for somewhat faster shutter speeds, but faster speeds require some change in the ISO to allow more light exposure.

Taking sports photos indoors can provide many more challenges. Because the light is mostly artificial it'll be much harder to properly expose when manipulating shutter speeds. When taking sports photos at or above around four hundred ISO setting can be fine. Be careful when using ISO because using a very high number can make your image very noisy. Some noise is alright as you can easily remove a little noise in photo editing programs.

Besides the settings, equipment is also used for sports photos. Unless you're allowed to be on the field with the players and get close ups of them, you'll most likely be very far from the action. To get up close you'll need a high quality telephoto lens. The telephoto lens is what all professional sport photographers use and gets you to get really close and get great shots of the action.

What happens with such long telephoto lenses is that the background will get out of focus. A shallow depth of field is very common with sports pictures and even sports on television. If you watch the closer shots of individual players you'll notice how the background is very blurred.

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Comparing the GoPro HD and the GoPro HD2 Action Cameras

GoPro has established itself as one of the leading brands in the action camera market, which as any enthusiast will know, is a fully justified achievement for the range of cameras that pack style, features and functionality by the truck load.

Comparing the GoPro HD and the GoPro HD2 Action Cameras

GoPro first hit the scene back in 2005, when it launched its first model, the Helmet Hero. This was soon followed by the Helmet Hero Wide, another standard definition model with the addition of a 170º wide angle lens - a common feature in today's market, but highly innovative at the time.

In late 2009 came the GoPro HD Hero, a model that made history by claiming its place as the first full HD 1080p helmet camera on the market, and continues to make headlines today. The GoPro HD Hero's success is arguably down to its adaptability. Be it on snow, dirt or water, the Helmet Hero, Motorsport Hero and Surf Hero have every eventuality covered.

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The latest addition to the GoPro family comes in the form of the GoPro HD2 and it's the most advanced GoPro camera, yet.

On first inspection, you could be fooled in to thinking that there's not great deal of difference between the old and new GoPro models, with both weighing in at 168g and both packing full 1080p resolution and a 170 degree wide angle lens. But take a look under the bonnet and you'll soon see what makes the HD2 camera stand out from it's predecessor.

The HD2's new processor delivers twice the processing power as the HD, which as well as making it twice as fast, allows you to capture 11 megapixel photos at a rate of 10 photos per second, more than doubling that of the GoPro HD. In addition to this, low light performance has been improved considerably.

To take advantage of all that new processing power, the HD2 has been equipped with a new a glass lens that's twice as sharp as the previous model. The new user interface has also had a complete overhaul, making the camera easy to use and eliminates the need for instructions.

One of the most hyped additions to the GoPro HD2 is future compatibility with the imminent arrival of GoPro's new Wi-Fi BacPac and Wi-Fi Remote, which will allow you to control the camera wirelessly and stream content live to the web, from just about anywhere.

Much like the HD, the HD2 comes in three variations. These are the Outdoor Edition, Motorsports Edition and the soon to be launched Surf Edition, each including the necessary mounts to get you up and running. In addition, the GoPro HD2 is also compatible with all existing GoPro mounts and accessories, which is good news if you're upgrading from an older GoPro model.

Naturally, HD2 comes with a slightly heavier price tag than the GoPro HD, but for a camera that packs twice the power while maintaining a sleek, lightweight design, it's more than worth the investment.

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Kindle Fire and iPad Comparison

If you are considering spending your hard-earned money on an iPad to improve your productivity you may be interested in knowing that there is yet another option now available. The Kindle Fire has many of the same features as an iPad but at only a fraction of the cost.

Kindle Fire and iPad Comparison

Some things to consider:
Do you really need the larger size of the iPad, or will a smaller more portable device meet your needs? The Fire is 7.5" x 4.7" vs. the larger iPad at 9.5" x 7.31". The Kindle is about the same size as a paperback novel (only half the thickness) while the iPad is closer to the size of a piece of notebook paper. A Kindle will fit much better into a purse or an inside jacket pocket and it will be much more comfortable since it weighs 31% less than the iPad.

As with most things electronic, as you lower the size or the price you can gain portability but you will inevitably sacrifice capabilities. The Kindle Fire is first and foremost an e-reader. Granted, it is an e-reader on steroids as it can play movies, music, games and run apps in Amazon's customized Android OS. The Fire has access to nearly 17,000 apps through Amazon including Netflix, Hulu Plus, Pandora, and ESPN ScoreCenter. You can enjoy games, including Words with Friends, Angry Birds, Plants vs. Zombies and more. All apps are Amazon-tested on Kindle Fire for the best experience possible.

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The iPad has access to over 140,000 apps so there is sure to be an app to fill your needs. There are apps for Business, education, entertainment, games, lifestyle, news, social networking, travel, and on and on and on. The iPad is very versatile. It will solve a myriad number of productivity goals.

As an e-reader, the Fire has access to over one million titles. The Kindle Store contains the largest selection of the ebooks people want to read including New York Times® Best Sellers. Most new releases are priced at .99. With Amazon's Prime membership, Kindle owners can choose from thousands of books to borrow for free - including over 100 New York Times Bestsellers - as frequently as a book a month, with no due dates.

Wow! That is a lot of available reading. Here's the catch. Remember, I mentioned that the smaller price of the Kindle sacrifices some capabilities. Amazon had to work hard to keep the price of a Kindle as low as possible and means some features had to be left out. One of those is 3G access. The Kindle is only available with Wi-fi. And it has only 8GB of internal memory (approximately 6GB available for user content). That's enough for 80 apps, plus 10 movies or 800 songs or 6,000 books. In addition to the on board memory you will have access to the Amazon Cloud. You get 5GB of free online storage to store anything you want, and you can access it from anywhere. Just remember that you have to have your media on board before you leave your wireless hot spot.

There are over 100,000 movies and TV shows, available to stream or download, all just one tap away. Amazon Prime members enjoy unlimited, commercial-free streaming of over 10,000 popular movies and TV shows. However, there is an additional charge for Amazon Prime of per year; the first month is free when you purchase a Kindle.

With the iPad you will have 16GB of storage with the options of 32GB and 64GB. The iPad is a computer vs. an e-reader. You also have the option of adding 3G connection capability. This will push your cost for an iPad from 9 for the 16GB/Wi-fi model to 9 for the 64GB/Wi-fi/3G model. With the additional cost of an iPad vs. a Kindle you do get many more features: a 9.7" (diagonal) touch screen, cameras (front and back), longer battery life, built-in speaker, and a microphone. If you are tech savvy and comfortable with the additional features this is definitely a plus.

For those who may want a simpler interface the Kindle Fire is intuitive and even first time users will quickly find the music or books they may be after. When reading, the Fire will be easier on your wrist and hand with its lower weight but when it comes to video the iPad has the advantage of a larger screen.

When comparing price, size, portability, ease of use, weight, and visual experience, hands down the Kindle Fire is the winner here, and will probably cut into Apple's iPad2 sales. With such great quality, access to nearly unlimited content, and reduced cost compared to the iPad, the Kindle Fire is THE hottest hybrid e-Reader/tablet available today.

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Motorcycle Intercoms - How to Choose the Best Motorcycle Intercom For You

Without a motorcycle intercom, motorcycle riding is a solitary experience. When you're riding alone it's a good way to clear your head or get your thoughts together. But if you've got a passenger, or you're riding with another biker, inevitably you'll want to talk to them. Motorcycle intercom systems that mount in your helmet let you do that.

Motorcycle Intercoms - How to Choose the Best Motorcycle Intercom For You

The problem is that there are so many to choose from in such a wide price range. It's hard to decide which one to choose. And given that motorcycle intercoms have to work in an extremely difficult environment, choosing the right one can make the difference between enjoying your new purchase or hating it. This motorcycle intercom review will hopefully make your decision easier.

Let's start with a broad overview of the types of motorcycle intercoms available.

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Acoustic Motorcycle Intercom

The most basic form of motorcycle intercom is the acoustic intercom. By acoustic I mean that it doesn't use electronics at all. It just uses hollow tubes that your voice travels through. They're like the old ships where the captain yells down a tube to the engine room to tell them to "give it more steam."

These systems have rubber-tipped tubes that insert in your ear the same way an earplug would. There is also a mouthpiece tube for you to talk into and all the tubes connect into a junction box.

One of the positives is that there are no batteries or electronics to mess with. That makes them very dependable. However, there is no amplification which means there is no way to adjust the volume or filter out wind noise. So at higher speeds, it will be more difficult to hear. Another problem is that some people find the "earplugs" uncomfortable in their ears for long periods.

Obviously these acoustic intercoms only work for rider-to-passenger and not bike-to-bike.

Wired Motorcycle Intercom

The next step up is wired intercoms. These systems have wires that run from the rider and passenger into a central control box that houses the electronics and battery.

Just like the acoustic intercom, with a wired system you don't have to worry about any external interference like you do with wireless technologies, unless you add a radio handheld communicator for bike-to-bike talking to your system. Some wired units let you plug in an FRS/GMRS radio, which is described in the wireless technology section below. The radio requires voice activation for it to work.

One of the issues some people have is that the wiring can be a little bit of a pain. Every time you and a passenger get on and off the bike you have to remember to unplug the units. Depending on how you have it set up, this could be two or three plugs.

Wireless Intercom Technology

There are four types of radio technologies used in the U.S. for motorcycle intercoms. They are GMRS, FRS, FM, and Bluetooth. There are also wired intercoms that enable you to plug into a handheld Citizens Band (CB) radio that has voice activation.

Frequency Modulation (FM) radio is similar to the FM radio you listen to, but for motorcycle intercoms a narrower frequency is used. Like FM radio, these systems can produce clear sound, as long as the distance between them isn't too great. FM radio works best when there are no obstructions such as hills between the transmitter and receiver. If long range is the most important feature, then GMRS intercoms will provide better performance.

The Family Radio Service (FRS) and the General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) are the modern equivalents to the old walkie talkies you may have had when you were a kid. FRS radios typically have a maximum range of two miles with few obstructions in between, while GRMS radios communicate up to several miles. Like FM, these are public frequencies so other people can hear your conversations and vice versa. In some heavily populated areas these FRS/GRMS radios are heavily used, while out on the open road you should have fairly private conversations.

One nice thing with the FRS and GMRS radios is that you can go to your local discount store and purchase a cheap handheld radio that will communicate with these units. If someone were following you in a car, or they had a wired motorcycle intercom system that lets them plug in an FRS/GMRS handheld radio, they can communicate with you. The downside of this was just mentioned in that there are millions of these radios out there so in heavily populated areas you'll pick up lots of other transmissions. Also GMRS radios require an FCC license for legal use.

Bluetooth is the latest technology to hit motorcycle intercoms. Not only can these systems communicate totally wirelessly from rider to passenger, they can be used to communicate from bike to bike. Although with these systems the range is not in miles, it is in hundreds of feet. Since you are likely riding close to your buddies, this is not usually a problem. Although, range can be as much as 800 to 1600 feet.

The Bluetooth range limitation actually works as an advantage since it limits the amount of outside interference you'll get. Also, since you must program two units to work together, you won't pick up conversations from other people with Bluetooth devices...and they won't be able to hear you. You won't have to worry about your conversations listened to by anyone else.

If you want Bluetooth wireless communication there is one thing to watch for. Some units that say they are Bluetooth use FRS or GMRS to communicate bike-to-bike and the Bluetooth is just used to communicate with a Bluetooth enabled cell phone or other device.

Bluetooth intercoms also usually have some other features you won't find on other types of intercoms such as:

• Integrate with Bluetooth enabled cell phones and automatically answer calls totally hands free.
• Enjoy your favorite stereo music from your A2DP enabled cell phone or MP3 player
• Listen to the audio navigation message from your Bluetooth enabled GPS.

Some Bluetooth intercoms only have one ear speaker while others have two.

Motorcycle Helmet Intercom Features

Here are features to look for as you are shopping for an intercom to use with your motorcycle helmet:

• If you may be riding in the rain, get a system that says it's waterproof and not just water resistant. Some riders will put a water resistant system in a plastic baggie and that works for them.
• You can get systems that have a headset speaker for one ear or both ears. Installation and moving the intercom to another helmet is easier for systems with only one ear, but some people want to hear sound in both ears.
• Most systems have voice activation of some kind to keep the headset quiet when no talking is occurring. This voice activation often has the ability to be disabled and a push-to-talk switch used instead.
• Many intercoms have noise reduction capabilities with digital signal processing to help reduce the noise they pick up from the microphone. The faster you drive, or the windier it is, the more important this feature is.
• If you want music, look for a system that has a built-in FM stereo radio tuner or an auxiliary stereo input for a Walkman, MP3, iPod, or satellite radio unit. You can also use this input to receive driving directions from a voice prompted GPS unit.
• Some systems mount on your helmet, while others have capability to mount on your belt clip or bike. If the system is big and bulky, you may want the ability to mount it on your bike.
• You can integrate some intercoms with cell phones so you can talk while you ride. They require special cables or you can get motorcycle intercoms that have Bluetooth capability so they connect to your Bluetooth-enabled phone wirelessly.

Once you find the right motorcycle intercom for you, it will really make your ride with other people much more enjoyable. You'll wonder how you got along without it. You typically get what you pay for when you buy motorcycle intercoms, but even a bad motorcycle intercom is better than none at all.

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Best Digital Cameras of 2010

For each digital camera type, the best overall model available was selected, emphasizing on image quality above all else. The top digital cameras shown below are outstanding models in their respective categories. They are chosen for outstanding image quality, feature set, performance and value relative to cameras in the same category.

Best Digital Cameras of 2010

Fuji Finepix F200 EXR

The Fuji Finepix F200 EXR combines a wide-angle 5X optical zoom lens, image stabilization, ultra-high ISO and a 12 megapixels SuperCCD EXR sensor which features a revolutionary design.

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The image quality of this digital camera is so fantastic that it even outperforms pretty much every fixed lens camera. This one is clearly the low-light and dynamic-range champion in this category and by a wide margin at that.

Nikon Coolpix P7000

The Nikon Coolpix P7000 packs an extensive feature set along with a 7X wide-angle optical zoom lens. Its image quality is excellent, even beating the previous champion in terms of image noise. Exposure, metering, color and white-balance are also very reliable too. A complete set of manual controls make this an ideal camera for creative photography when a large camera would be impractical.

The extensive buttons and dials that cover the P7000 make it efficient to control in all exposure-modes. Dual control-dials means that manual-exposure can be set without using buttons or a menu. The P7000 even includes a digital-level and support for stereo sound during HD video recording via its internal microphone or using an external audio input.

Canon S95

The Canon S95 is a compact digital camera aimed at advanced users. It has full manual controls, an efficient interface with dual control wheels and built-in stabilization.

While a look at the Canon S95's ISO performance is nothing to write about, its savior is a bright F2 wide-angle lens, that gives it a one stop head-start. Still, the Nikon P7000 remains superior in terms of image quality but the S95 is noticeably smaller and even more efficient to use.

Fuji Finepix F300 EXR

The Fuji Finepix F300 EXR is the ultra-zoom version of the excellent F200 EXR. It packs a slightly smaller 12 megapixels sensor and an amazingly versatile 15X ultra-wide optical zoom lens instead. High ISO and dynamic-range performance are superb, matching its predecessor while offering more advanced functionality including 720p HD video recording. The lens quality is truly impressive with some corner-softness but virtually no distortion, vignetting or chromatic aberrations.

The bonus ace of the Fuji Finepix F300 EXR is its hybrid autofocus system which lets it use contrast-detection or phase-detection, giving it the ability to focus extremely quickly. Under most well-lit circumstances this system works so well that only DSLRs can focus faster.

Sony Alpha SLT-A55

The Sony Alpha SLT-A55 is an introduction to the future of ILCs. It features a 16 megapixels sensor behind a translucent mirror which gives it unique class-leading capabilities. Having a translucent mirror lets it focus and meter constantly, even during exposure and particularly during video-recording. The SLT-A55 can shoot continuously at 10 FPS and record video with full-time phase-detection autofocus, promising to keep up with more action than any other SLD and even most DSLRs. Movies can be recorded in full 1080p HD video resolution.

Ergonomics of the diminutive A55 are rather good considering its size. The most comfortable aspect is its superb EVF with Eye-Start sensor. This EVF is exceptionally large, bright and very sharp with a resolution equivalent to 1.4 megapixels. It shows a true exposure-priority live-view display with 100% coverage and phase-detection autofocus. The A55 is also the first ILC to have a built-in GPS.

Pentax K-x

This entry-level DSLR pushes the limits among its class with 4.7 FPS continuous shooting and a top 1/6000 shutter-speed. It does miss the older K200D's weather-sealing but keeps use of AA batteries and adds 720p HD video recording. It also has the largest viewfinder among its peers.

A new CMOS sensor design gives the Pentax K-x an ISO range up to 12800, although the last two stops are quite noisy, it does match its peers in the ISO 100-3200 range.

Pentax K-5

The new 16 megapixels sensor in the Pentax K-5 brings unprecedented level of image quality to cropped-sensor DSLRs, challenging even larger full-frame cameras on many fronts. Plus, the K-5 keeps all the fantastic and unique features of the K-7 including built-in stabilization, automatic horizon correction, 100% coverage viewfinder and the best weatherproof protection among ILCs.

This DSLR now features an extended ISO range that reaches 51200 plus a dual-axis digital-level, 7 FPS continuous drive and full 1080p HD video recording in standard 16:9 aspect ratio.

Nikon D3S

The Nikon D3S is without a doubt the low-light champion. By keeping its 12 megapixels resolution, the D3S can remain usable with a reduction in print-size at ISO 51200. Ultra-clean images up to ISO 6400 make this professional DSLR a must have for event photographers where reaching fast shutter-speeds is a top priority. Its fast 9 FPS continuous drive at full-resolution and fast 3D-tracking autofocus system reinforces this digital camera's position for high-speed action.

As expected from a high-end model like this one, this DSLR includes a 100% coverage viewfinder and weather-seals to protect it against the elements. It can also record 720p HD video and has a digital-level and dual compact-flash memory slots which can work to provide a longer uninterrupted shoot or on-the-fly backups.

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