Slow Dance by Wonder Machines Makes Real Time Slow Motion Effect!

Slow Dance by Wonder Machines

In what may be described as a practical home application of a stroboscope, the Slow Dance frame by Wonder Machines makes it possible to see the deformation of objects without motion blur with your naked eye and or a typical camera. The Picture frame makes extreme vibrations on deformable lite objects i.e. a flower or bird feather and then uses a synced led light to match the deformation wave period. In essence, creating a snapshot of the motion in real time while your brain is processing the data to create a fluid almost magical effect.

At just $299 for the Slow Dance product, it becomes a very unique gift proposition or conversation starter piece.  Electronic Stoboscopes have been with us since 1931, when Harold Edgerton (“Doc” Edgerton) employed a flashing lamp to study machine parts in motion. Now you can have a somewhat limited but beautiful display to experiment using the technique.  The results are quite mind-blowing as the still life objects appear to take on a spark of life. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Slow Motion News & Rumors July 2018!

Slow Motion News & Rumors July 2018

The Summer is usually a time of slow product releases with little to show for in the way of new products. That, however, means that the fall product cycle is close by and now releases should be picking up the pace.  We have some rumors and information that may be valuable when considering upcoming high-speed capable devices.

Do note that rumors and speculation are subject to change or be completely incorrect so take a lot of this with a grain of salt. We strive to weed out the most outlandish rumors but concentrate on the most probable technology announcements. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Sony RX100 VA Is Now Available Worldwide!

Sony RX100 VA

Sony has decided to release the RX100 VA worldwide and it effectively replaces the RX100 V production line. The new camera will have a better EVF refresh, modern Autofocus with improved tracking and a larger buffer of 233 images.  We considered the newly announced RX100 VI camera to be just a longer lens version of the RX100 V but with an increased price tag.  That camera does have a touchscreen and the reach but the fans of the faster f1.8-f2.8 lens of the RX100 V now can get a more up to date version.

We favor the RX100 VA to all other RX100 cameras as the $999 price tag is more in line with the segment. If you already own an RX100 V camera there is no reason to get a VA version as there will not be any improvement to the slow-motion component which is already one of the best out there. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

SONY IMX586 Stacked Sensor 48MP and High Frame Rates!

SONY IMX586 Stacked Sensor

Sony has released specs for a new IMX Cellphone oriented sensor that has a whopping 48 Megapixel photosite grid with a new Bayer altered pattern of quad pixel colors that aims to quadruple the dynamic range of the signal and increase detail retention significantly by supersampling every photosite and creating a final 12MP image with excellent characteristics.

As far as frame rates go we were glad to see very high-end read-out speeds for this sensor as full 4k video can max out at 90fps and other high fps settings include 1080p 240fps full area downsampling and 720p 480fps but with a cropped windowed frame extraction.  At 48MP or 12 regular De-Bayered then we expect the crop to be quite extreme at the 720p mode unless they do a 4 or 6MP downsample. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Galaxy S9 480fps Software Update with Double Rec Time!

Galaxy S9 480fps Software Update

Both the Galaxy S9 and S9+ phones shipped with 720p 960fps slow motion capability but the recording was limited to 0.2 seconds which is just too short a time span.  This made it difficult to capture things in manual mode since the reaction time of your finger is about the same as the recording time making you miss moments.  Pre-record made it easier but still limited to just 6.4 seconds playback in regular 30fps video timelines.

The new S9 update allows for manual high-speed recording to be used in 480fps slow motion mode at 720p for now 0.4 seconds or twice the recording time.  This allows for easier capture of moments but in real time playback at 30fps it is the exact same playback time of 6.4 seconds.  Since only 192 frames are recorded in the 0.4 seconds same as in the 960fps mode of 0.2sec then the only thing you gain is double the time to capture the moment. It would have been ideal to get also double the playback time.  Memory buffer seems to be the limiting factor here! → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Fran 8k Camera by Cinemartin First Manufacturing Sample!

Fran 8k Camera

The people at Cinemartin have publicly released new specs and images of the first industrial prototype of the cinema camera.  There are some killer features like 8k RAW video at 24p and up to 96fps RAW recording in both 4k DCI and1080p HD. Some other frame rates include 48p and 60p in a variety of resolutions which are needed for cinema production in either higher fps or just as a shooting necessity like 48p to get the Hobbit look.

One of the most impressive features listed is the ability to shoot in true Vista Vision format at 7920 x 6024 pixels for 8k at 24p that turns out to be 47.7MP; also the Dual ISO recording feature which will be available by August 2019 which allows dual recording capability for an extreme Dynamic Range improvement.  Other features include: Global Shutter, Internal full sensor downsampling, and in-camera electronic image stabilization. → Continue Reading Full Post ←