First, the simple (and dare I say, newsworthy?) fact: DxO Labs has announced that their DxO Mark tests have demonstrated the image sensor in the recently announced Nikon D800 digital SLR performs remarkably well, in some cases better than the top medium format digital backs.

Let me say right from the start that this is a very engineering-focused (OK, geek-focused) evaluation of a camera (really just the sensor in this case). A great photograph is about much more than the camera and lens used to capture the image. But the camera does play a role, and the minutiae about sensor specifications and performance are of at least some interest.

But I’m not talking here about whether this or that camera will really help you get better pictures (for the record though, I’m one of those who thinks composition is infinitely more important than camera specifications). Instead, I want to focus on what these latest tests suggest for the world of digital photography.

Not too terribly long ago I wrote an article for Digital Photo Pro magazine, addressing the question of whether we had reached the proverbial “end of the road” when it came to the digital SLR image sensor. After all, more megapixels means smaller individual photo sites, which means more noise, lower dynamic range, and lower image quality, right? I very seriously went into the writing of that article assuming I already knew the conclusion, and that the end of the road was right in front of us.

After talking to several people much smarter than myself, I became convinced I was wrong, and that we perhaps had a long way to go for the digital SLR format image sensor (“full frame” and APS-C formats, in general). To be honest, I felt a little uneasy about presenting that conclusion. I had been presented with some very compelling scientific evidence, but that evidence seemed to go against my gut feeling, as well as the bias I had developed over the years. But I trusted the people who had shared the information about new (and future) technological developments and possibilities.

The latest test results from DxO Labs speak very highly of the quality of the image sensor in Nikon’s D800 digital SLR, and certainly make me feel more comfortable about what I wrote in that article. But it still feels a little surprising.

As seems to happen so often with all things technological, just when we think we’re reaching the end of the line, the limits of physics, or some other barrier, very smart people find a way to get around those limitations. I love when that happens. Perhaps that’s why from a very young age I idolized Chuck Yeager, who was first to break the Sound Barrier.

More than a few engineers didn’t really think a pilot could retain control flying that fast.
As a photographer I think it is great that technology keeps advancing beyond what we think the limits are. As a self-confessed computer geek I think it’s really cool. I don’t think the Nikon D800 is going to destroy the market for medium format digital backs. In theory it might give pause to some medium format photographers, but in reality I think different tools attract different people for different reasons, and there’s a lot of inertia in place there.

What I take from all of this is that we can count on the tools available to us in digital photography to continue to get better all the time. That’s a very good thing. But as much as I love cool new technological achievements, I’m going to try my best not to get distracted. While not generally referred to as someone with tremendous humility, I am humble enough to know that my photography has much more room for improvement from the standpoint of composition and style than it does from technical attributes such as signal-to-noise ratio and exposure latitude.

© Posted by Tim Grey

With the BOX TENGOR you’ll start taking good pictures straight away. It is so simple to use that you couldn’t go wrong.

The BOX TENGOR is the Ideal camera for a beginner.

Even a child can use it. It’s indestructible metal body will stand more than an occasional knock.

Many generations of photographers have learned the art of photography with the Box Tengor, which was first made in a quite simple form over 88 years ago.

Since then numerous valuable features have been added to the instrument which justify it’s title of the arttiocrat of box cameras.

“A quick glance at the manual makes me wonder whether these old box cameras were really as easy to use as everyone assumed. Consider this extract:
As the camera is not a worthless toy it should be treated with care and not exposed to rain or left on wet grass, etc., but kept in its leather case in a place where it cannot be damaged. The care you devote it will have a good effect upon the film, the lens and, above all, the picture.
‘Not a worthless toy’? Thanks for pointing that out…”

Posted by JÜRGEN ZIMMERMANN

HISTORY OF BOX TENGOR
The Box Tengor line was carried over from the Goerz line into Zeiss Ikon after the merger in 1926, and the line was given the Zeiss model number prefix 54. Initially there were only three models, 54/2 for 6x9cm on 120 film, 54/15 for 6.5x11cm on 116 film, and 54/14 for 5×7.5cm on 129 film. They have a plain leather front, have two finder optics in a vertical line on the front, and the winding key is towards the bottom of the camera.
In 1928 the camera is remodeled. The finder optics are now side by side, and the winding key is moved towards the top of the camera.
In 1931 the Baby Box Tengor is introduced in two styles with catalog numbers 54/18 and 54/18(E). I have covered them in a separate section, Baby Box Tengor.
The entire line was remodeled again in 1933/34. The front of the camera was given a decorative hexagonal front plate. The 54/14 size was discontinued, and the 54 for 4.5x6cm on 120 was introduced (this format does not have a suffix).
The 54/2 and 54/15 were discontinued in 1938, leaving only the 54. It was discontinued the following year.
In 1939 the Box Tengor 55/2 was released as a replacement for the 54/2. It has a double exposure prevention built into the wind system.

After the war, the last model of the box Tengors was to be sold. It was the 56/2, for 6x9cm on 120 film. It is easily recognizable by the satin chrome trim around the front. It has a Frontar f/9 lens, and flash synchronization. Production ended in 1956.

You like to try to work with 120 roll Film?

For minimal price?

With a lot of pleasure and good photographs?

The Zeiss Ikon Box Tengor is just for You!

1 – Say good-bye to blurry shots and heavy noise.

Of course, when taking pictures of your drunk friends dancing half-naked in the street, there might not be enough time to setup the tripod. Don’t about you, though, but that’s not too high on my list of favorite subjects any way. Landscapes, on the other hand, allow for more preparation and are way worth taking the time to setup. Why use a tripod when you can hand-hold a camera? Perfection! By using a ground anchor, you are suddenly able to keep your ISO setting to a minimum and obtain the best quality image possible in terms of noise and sharpness. The usable speed range drops along with ISO and that’s why you need to be steady. But each lens has a sweet spot, an aperture at which it gives the cleanest results, and very often a tripod is the only way to achieve that setting if the light is anything but perfect. The whole spectrum of aperture / speed / ISO combinations becomes available, whether you are using a DSLR or a small point-and shoot.

2 – Play with motion blur.

In step one, we got rid of accidental blur; it’s time to re-introduce it as a motion indicator. Photographs are not called “stills” for nothing; they can manage to shave a slice off of the fastest moving scene and freeze it into eternity. In come long exposures. When exposing longer (sometimes much longer) than a second, water turns fluids, nocturnal cars leave amazing light trails and people join a volatile crowd or simply disappear.

3 – Capture invisible light.

Our eyes are poor sensors and only weakly register a faint portion of the spectrum. A tripod allows for long exposures in near complete darkness, when our brain has decided that the session is over due to overwhelming obscurity, and yet when the shutter has been open for a few minutes, a new world emerges, bright and colorful and completely unsuspected.

4 – Test your affinity with HDR. The only way to bracket efficiently for HDR is to use a tripod and either over and underexpose a number of shots manually, or use the camera’s auto bracket feature. I recommend using mirror lock too if you go into very long exposures to avoid the vibration caused by shutter movement.

5 – Explore the mesmerizing world of macro photography.

Only a tripod permits the patience and precision required by most macro situations, but a set of macro focusing rails is the only way to maximize tripod use and allow for easy framing and focusing. If the tripod is still too shaky, hanging a weigth from its base will steady it a little more.