Lomography is crowdsourcing the funding for this lens project. The lens will be available for Canon and Nikon DSLRs. The Phoblographer has a good article to learn more about the Petzval lens. For sample pics check the Kickstarter page.

Quoting the project:

In the 19th Century, the vast majority of photos were shot with the extremely popular Petzval lens. The lens was invented by Joseph Petzval in Vienna in 1840 and had a huge impact on the development of photography. Photos shot with a Petzval lens are immediately recognizable for their sharpness and crispness, strong color saturation, wonderful swirly bokeh effect, artful vignettes and narrow depth of field. The totally distinctive look of Petzval photos is all about the fantastic lens design that gives you the satisfaction of the instant optic experience that goes far beyond using photo editing software and filters.

For this Kickstarter project, we are reinventing the Petzval Lens for 21st century photographers and videographers. It doesn’t matter whether you shoot analog or digital; the brand new Lomography Petzval Portrait Lens is designed to work withCanon EF and Nikon F mount cameras. So, for the first time, you can easily get the fantastic Petzval photographic look with 35mm analog cameras and DSLR cameras too. This will bring with it a whole new world of possibilities; from shooting Petzval photos with your 35mm SLR or DSLR, to creating amazing DSLR movies with the lens!

The specs:

• Focal Length: 85mm
• Maximum Aperture: f/2.2
• Apertures: Waterhouse aperture set, up to f/16
• Image Circle: 44mm
• Field of View: 30 degrees
• Lens Mounting Profile: Canon EF and Nikon F
• Electronic contacts: No
• Closest Focusing Distance: 1m
• Focusing Mechanism: Gear Rack Focusing
• Lens Construction: 4 Elements in 3 Groups
• Filter Thread: 67mm
• Max. Diameter x Length, Weight: 120mm x 85mm x 80mm (Please note: This is an estimate based on the first working sample)
• Weight: 500g (Please note: This is an estimate based on the first working sample)

 

• Canon 6D vs Canon 5D Mark III Which One to Buy
• Canon SL1 review: Find out why the world’s smallest DSLR is much more than just a mini Rebel T5i – imaging-resource
• Canon Powershot SX130IS- Review – photographic-central
• Canon Powershot A1200 Review – photographic-central
• Canon PowerShot A3500 IS Review – ephotozine
• Canon IXUS 135 HD Wi-Fi Review – ephotozine
• Canon Dims Sales Outlook as Smartphones Capture Snapshots – bloomberg
• Canon previews a handheld version of its MREAL Mixed Reality tech at SIGGRAPH, we go hands-on (video) – engadget
• AF Consistency of EOS 5D3 and EOS 40D with EF50 1.4, EF 100 f2, EF 24-105 IS L – photo.net
• Talking Gear: Dissecting the EOS C500 Steadicam rig accessories – Canon Digital Learning Center
• Canon EOS Speedlite Custom and Personal Functions – Canon Digital Learning Center
  • Virtually every Canon EX-series Speedlite, with the exception of the super-compact Speedlite 90EX, offers the options of Custom Functions (abbreviated “C.Fn”) within the flash itself. As they have done in EOS cameras since 1989, Custom Functions in a Speedlite allow the photographer to change default settings and control certain aspects of the way a flash operates. In effect, they can allow the user to personalize his or her flash units, just as the Custom Functions in a camera body allow the photographer to personalize their cameras.We’ll take a closer look at what the different Speedlite Custom Functions do, show different ways to access them and provide a better idea of how they can be used in real-world situations to improve your flash photography.
• Photos of Falling Subjects Moments from Disaster – PetaPixel

Three Canon DSLRs among the six first ranked on Amazon US DSLR Best Sellers list. The Rebel T3i (EOS 600D) is ranked first, the EOS 60D is ranked second, and the Rebel T3 (EOS 1100D) is ranked fourth. Similar situation on Amazon Germany DSLR Best Seller list: first is the Rebel T3i/EOS 600D, the new Rebel T5i/EOS 700D is ranked third, and the Rebel T3/EOS 1100D is ranked fourth.

Amazon US compact system camera best seller list is firmly lead by the Canon EOS M.

Video above: Hands on with the Canon EF 1200 f/5.6L Lens

Canon press releases:

• Canon U.S.A Celebrates Official Grand Opening of its Canon Americas Headquarters with Chairman and CEO of Canon Inc. and Local Officials – Canon USA
• New PIXMA All-In-One Printers from Canon U.S.A. Provide High-Quality Output to Encourage Creativity –  Canon USA
• Canon U.S.A. Adds Apple AirPrint Compatibility to Newest PIXMA Wireless All-In-One Printer – Canon USA
• Canon U.S.A. Brings Images to Life with Interactive Solutions at SIGGRAPH Conference – Canon USA
• Canon U.S.A. Services Local Community With Customer Service Center – Canon USA

Reviews:

• Best lenses for you Canon EOS 6D: Part III – Wide-angle telephoto and super-zoom models – DxOMark
• Just Published: Our Canon PowerShot N Compact Camera Review – steves-digicams
• Canon PowerShot SX280HS review – trustedreviews
• Which One: Nikon D3200 or Canon Rebel SL1 – The Phoblographer
• Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM IS (Canon EF Mount) – The Phoblographer

Video above: Kickass Bokeh Glass – Sigma 35mm f1.4 Review

Various:

• Canon Auctions Five Phantom of the Opera themed Canon PowerShot Ns – superadrianme
• Lenstag: A New Layer of Security For Your Camera Gear and an Interview with Creator Trevor Sehrer – The Phoblographer
• Canon plans to expand, possibly in NYS – newsday
• Hahnemühle teams up with Canon in the “Try My Photo” program. Have you ever wondered what your image will look like printed on Hahnemühle Photo Rag or Hahnemühle William Turner? Now you can get a free print through Canon’s “Try My Photo” program from select Canon PIXMA PRO printers – photoghraphyblog
• The Photographer’s Fascination With Being “NEW” (Developing Your Own Style) – photofocus

Video above: Magic Lantern RAW Dual ISO (100 and 400) hack v ISO 100 RAW

German researchers of the Saarland University presented a paper describing an accessory that transforms your DSLR in a Lytro-like, refocusable light field camera. This opens new perspectives for multi-spectral and high-dynamic range photography. The prototype will be presented at the Siggraph conference and exhibition in Anaheim, California. The prototype, named KaleidoCamera, is an accessory that fits between the lens and the camera body, and has a beam splitter that enables the camera to record various differently filtered images. Those images are then available for further processing. The paper abstract:

We propose a non-permanent add-on that enables plenoptic imaging with standard cameras which we refer to as KaleidoCamera. Our design is based on a physical copying mechanism that multiplies a sensor image into a number of identical copies that still carry the plenoptic information of interest. Via different optical filters, we can then recover the desired information. A minor modification of the design also allows for aperture subsampling and, hence, light-field imaging. As the filters in our design are exchangeable, a reconfiguration for different imaging purposes is possible. We show in a prototype setup that high dynamic range, multispectral, polarization, and light-field imaging can be achieved with our design.

The paper A Reconfigurable Camera Add-On for High Dynamic Range, Multispectral, Polarization, and Light-Field Imaging is available for download.

[Max Planck Institut via MLZphoto via Photographyblog]