Month: September 2014

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Armin Van Buuren in Valencia

They say that he is one of the biggest DJ in the world. According to some classifications, the best one. It is not a subject I master, but it he is certainly a well-known trance music producer and also an outstanding star who gets public attention. So if he came to Valencia and I had the opportunity to shoot some pictures of him and some on his show, well,  it did not sound bad.

Armin Van Buuren in Valencia

He came to present a product in which he has been involved in the design: Philips  M1-XDJ, an invention that allows iPad or iPhone using the full working DJ, providing mixers and including three speakers with a power Total 80W RMS, which is a respectable power for a small party. The device features a plug, but if what you like is getting lost in places that have no outlet, you can use batteries. And if your friends have a some other M1-XDJ, you can stack the speakers for adding output power.
Armin Van Buuren en Valencia

All this had Armin Van Buuren in Valencia, in the Mercat Central, an event that served as appetizer for his night show, Armin Only Intense. The event was somewhat marred by technical problems that prevented the Dutch had a minmally spectacular lighting system, so it was all as a presentation rather unspectacular but very sincere and direct, with  Van Buuren explaining details of the system and teaching it with great interest and vehemence. If you want more info, here: http://www.philips.co.in/c/audio-system/m1x-dj-sound-system-ds8900_10/prd/;jsessionid=358448819A185A74FAB4133123C049E8.app101-drp2

Later at night I assisted to his show. The tickets they gave me were subject to the general access rules so it was strictly forbidden to enter the event with an SLR or interchangeable lens camera, so I had to make do with a Canon Ixus 120 which have to, well, because I love the Ixus and go. You can not configure speed priority or aperture, so good, I managed as best I could.

Armin Van Buuren en Valencia Armin Van Buuren en Valencia Armin Van Buuren en ValenciaArmin Van Buuren in ValenciaSergi Albir.

If you want to read this article in Spanish, http://www.archerphoto.eu/armin-van-buuren-en-valencia/

 

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Images with Samsung S4: short review

Samsung S4

Images with Samsung S4

 

Everyone knows that Samsung makes great phones, and often people ask me about how good are their built-in cameras. Well, here is some data from S4, not the last phone the Korean company has launched in the market, but still a phone in the market.

Technically, the data are:

Backlit Sensor 13-megapixel
Lens: F2.2
ISO 50-1000 (100-800)
Image Ratio: 4: 3
2 Megapixel front camera
LED Flash
Video: 1080p 30fps
Simultaneous Dual Capture: front and rear cameras.
Filters and special modes
Digital Image Stabilization
4x Digital Zoom
Equivalent focal length on a 35mm camera: 31mm

I am not intending to write an S4 exhaustive review. It is true that the software used has some interesting features and some detail that I personally do not like it, However you can choose to install,among others, the implementation of Google for the camera so you can choose your favorite option.

The original application of the S4 allows manual selection of ISO and has other creative options: drama mode, which allows for multiple shots on the same picture, the dual mode, which triggers the front and rear camera simultaneously (null interest) Panorama mode (which itself is useful), Animated, which creates a GIF, Eraser mode, which is great for removing people is left in a picture, for example, to capture buildings when you are in tourist areas, night mode (do not ask me to explain it, come on), and finally the HDR mode, which allows fans of these photographs use it all the time. There is also a sport mode, which increases the shutter speed but, well, let’s just timely that improves outcomes.

There is a specific aspect of this camera is awkward: if by mistake you decided to activate vibration reduction, you won’t be able to choose the ISO value. It’s probably because the phone raises the ISO values when the algorithm considers it appropriate, so it has more speed available.

The camera quality is sufficient for the day and, as expected, much more loose at high ISOs: almost any compact will beat the Samsung S4 at night. The 13 megapixels are good, the optics are adequate, but the sensor size is still tiny.

The photos shown here have only been signed, without any further process, even levels, with the exception of the featured image (the pic with the lollipops was treated with LR).

I translated this post from the one in my Spanish website: http://www.archerphoto.eu/fotos-con-el-samsung-s4/

 

 

Images with Samsung S4

Fotos con el Samsung S4 Samsung S4, modo HDR

Images with Samsung S4

Images with Samsung S4, Night Mode

Samsung S4

Samsung S4

Samsung S4 Samsung S4, modo nocturno

Fotos con el Samsung S4

 

If you need a photographer in Europe, please contact me: sergi@archerphoto.eu