Moments in Time Photography
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Picture This – How Pictures Work by Molly Bang
This is certainly the book that has surprised me most this year! Molly Bang uses four differently colored papers and cuts out shapes from them to make images. I was fascinated to see how simple shapes cut from paper can have such a powerful emotional impact. The woman is clearly a master. Read the rest of this entry »
Digital Macro Photography by Ross Hoddinott starts by describing digital photography in general and the technology found in digital cameras. Various categories of digital cameras are discussed regarding their usefulness for closeup work.
The second chapter introduces various lenses, tripods, flash units, and other accessories useful for macro photography.
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A reader has an interesting question regarding the Canon G9 and Konica-Minolta A2 comparison:
If you were to switch G9 to a next-down image size (8MP, no?) would it improve a quality of an image?
(…)
Would this work in the same camera (the G9) if you merely changed the settings? Would ISO400 look more like ISO 200? Could ISO 800 be used at all? How does it all compare to A2?
Interesting question! Read the rest of this entry »
I have used a Konica-Minolta DiMAGE A2, which was a fairly high-end super-zoom camera in 2004, for about 4 years. In the fall of 2007, I purchased a Canon G9. So how much progress has there been in the last 3+ years?
My sensor measurement series (G9 and 5D) continues. This time, I measured a Konica-Minolta DiMAGE A2, a 8MP camera which was introduced in 2004. How does it compare to a modern 12MP Canon G9?
| Konica-Minolta DiMAGE A2 |
Canon G9 | |
|---|---|---|
| ISO 64 / 80 |  |
 |
| ISO 100 |  |
 |
| ISO 200 |  |
 |
| ISO 400 |  |
 |
| ISO 800 |  |
 |
| ISO 1600 | N/A |  |
Up to ISO 100 there is little difference between the cameras. At ISO 200 and above the 12MP sensor of the G9 shows more noise than the 3 year older 8MP sensor of the A2.
According to dpreview.com the DiMAGE A2 has a 2/3″ (8.80 x 6.60 mm) sensor. The G9 sensor is a 1/1.7″ (7.60 x 5.60 mm) unit. In other words: the pixel pitch is much smaller on the G9. Noise seems to be inversely proportional to the pixel pitch, so it is not surprising that the G9 does worse than the A2.
What happens when the images are run through Noise Ninja?
| Konica-Minolta DiMAGE A2 (Noise Ninja) |
Canon G9 (Noise Ninja) |
|
|---|---|---|
| ISO 64 / 80 |  |
 |
| ISO 100 |  |
 |
| ISO 200 |  |
 |
| ISO 400 |  |
 |
| ISO 800 |  |
 |
| ISO 1600 | N/A |  |
Up to ISO 200, there is little difference between the cleaned up images. At ISO 400 there is slightly more noise in the G9 image, but the difference is very slight. At ISO 800 the A2 image seems definitely cleaner than the G9 image.
I am surprised that in three years there is no improvement in sensor noise. Well, there might have been if you where to create a 2/3″ 8MP sensor with todays technology, but unfortunately there is no such product.
