Wednesday 15 June 2005

Hi,

Today:

• Student FAQ launched
• New lens five times thinner than paper
• A couple of recent snaps
• Photography fee: $55,000 per day
  

As you know I value your feedback. Keep it coming!
What do you like about my newsletter? And what's rank? email me.

Student FAQ launched

The new student FAQ page. It even has a picture of my grinning dial on it!

Yes, this huge and exciting news is generating a massive buzz around the world. Well, not really. But it's hopefully it's going to help out a few photography students - and hopefully save me from answering some of their e-mails in great detail! As you can imagine, I get lots of students contacting me and wanting to know all sorts of things - everything from "what film do you use?" to "How has being a photographer changed your life?". Well, I found I was spending more time answering student e-mails than taking photographs. OK, not quite, but you know what I mean. So I decided to collate some of the more sensible questions I've been asked over the years (along with the answers), and put them in one place - here: www.stevenpam.com.au/studentfaq.html Next on the agenda - the client FAQ! ...stay tuned.

New lens 5 times thinner than paper

Here's a story that caught my eye! Those crazy Canadians have figured out how to make a tiny lens which may find its way into your next mobile phone:

Québec City, May 18, 2005 – Scientists from Université Laval’s Faculty of Sciences and Engineering have invented a lens five times thinner than a sheet of paper that is able to zoom in and out without mechanical parts. Tigran Galstian and Vladimir Presnyakov present this amazing piece of optical instrumentation in the latest issue of the Journal of Applied Physics.

“There are several possible applications for such a lens. We believe one of its most promising developments could be in camera-embedded cell phones,” says Galstian. “Our opto-electrical zoom lens would be of much higher quality than the ones that currently equip these phones.”

The digital zooms now used in camera phones only enlarge part of a picture without enhancing its quality, giving sometimes disappointing results. Other than its size, the greatest advantage of the lens invented by the two Université Laval researchers is that it allows for the movement of the focal point – as with a real camera – thus increasing the clarity, detail, and overall quality of an enlarged picture.

Such a technology could help boost a market that seems to be losing its snap. According to a recent market study by one of the major camera makers, a significant number of camera phone owners find their devices less than satisfying, mentioning among other problems the poor picture quality.

The lens is made by adding a small quantity of photosensitive material to a liquid crystal cell. When the material is exposed to laser light, it forms a network of stable polymers varying in density according to the intensity of exposure. “The network is like a spiderweb, with its center denser than its periphery,” explains Galstian. “When we apply a weak electrical current to it, the crystals in the center realign differently from those in the periphery and thus take on the shape and behavior of a lens.”

The curve of the lens – its focal point – can be modified by changing the intensity and frequency of the electrical current. The researchers have thus been able to modify the lens’ focal distance from 1.6 to 8 meters in a few milliseconds by increasing the voltage from 1.5 to 4.5 volts. “The reaction is very fast and doesn’t involve any mobile parts or mechanical movements.” The focal point of the lens can go from 60 centimeters to infinity.

(source:dpreview.com)

Two recent snaps

Ron Gascoigne, IT Manager at Holmesglen TAFE, in front of a few of the 5000+ computers he looks after. Client: Netstar Networks

Keep your eye out for a story on 'working from home' in the next issue of Australian Anthill magazine!

Photography fee: $55,000 per day

Former supermodel Helena Christensen has been offered $110,000 to do a two-day shoot for Sydney's Leichhardt Council in November.

The shoot is to be a photo-study of Norton Street, Sydney's answer to our Lygon Street, intended to promote local businesses.

Understandably, many locals aren't too happy about the use of funds, but the proposal has already generated a fairly substantial amount of publicity, and Helena hasn't even got her camera out of its bag yet!

Maybe I should put my fees up...

Back Issues

If you've just subscribed and you're wondering what you missed out on, all of the back issues of this newsletter are now online at www.stevenpam.com.au/news. Enjoy!

Like my weekly rants? Help me broaden my reach - forward this message to a friend or colleague!

Has someone forwarded this message to you? Get your very own copy by sending an e-mail to news@stevenpam.com.au with subscribe as the subject. Or sign up at www.stevenpam.com.au. You can unsubscribe at any time without hurting my feelings.

Oh, and I hate spam just as much as you do. I will never pass your e-mail address onto anyone without your explicit permission.

And finally...

A Native American elder once described his own inner struggles in this manner:

'Inside of me there are two dogs. One of the dogs is mean and evil. The other dog is good. The mean dog fights the good dog all the time.'

When asked which dog wins, he reflected for a moment and replied, 'The one I feed the most'

- George Bernard Shaw

Gotta go. Next week: Choosing a colour printer.

Ciao,



Steven Pam
Steven Pam Photography