Latest news with #JPEG
Engadget
22-05-2025
- Engadget
Fujifilm's X Half is an $850 digital camera with an analog film aesthetic
Fujifilm has already released one unusual camera this year in the GFX100 RF medium format compact, but it's latest model may be the most offbeat yet. The $850 X Half is an 18-megapixel digital compact camera, but it uses half of a 1-inch sensor to shoot 3:4 vertical photos. To drive home the retro vibe, it has a rear screen dedicated to displaying the camera's 13 film simulation modes and can only shoot JPEG and not RAW images. The name comes from "half-frame" cameras popular in the '60s, like the famous Olympus Pen F, that use a 35mm film frame sawed in half (18mm x 24mm in size). The backside-illuminated sensor on Fujifilm's X Half is, well, half that size in both dimensions (8.8mm x 13.3mm) or a quarter the area. It's also the smallest sensor on any recent Fujifilm digital camera, as the X-series uses the APS-C format and GFX models medium format. In fact, the X Half has the same 3:4 vertical ratio as Fuji's Instax Mini instant cameras — so you can make prints using an Instax Mini printer via the new dedicated X Half smartphone app. The X Half naturally uses Fujifilm's film simulation and grain effect modes. Among the new ones are "light leak" for a blown-out quality that happens when film get exposed to light inadvertently, "expired film" and "halation," an effect caused by light bouncing off film emulsion layers. To really get you into that analog film mood, you can switch to the new Film Camera Mode that limits your view to the optical viewfinder, makes you pull a frame advance lever for each new shot and only lets you see the photos once they're "developed" through the X Half app. It even produces a "contact sheet" layout for 36, 54 or 72 images. Another feature is 2-in-1 images that let you combine two still images or movies into one composition in-camera for extra artistic possibilities (using the film advance lever again). That also means the X Half can shoot video as well as photos, with a vertical or square size (up to 2,160 x 2,160) that looks ideal for social media — especially with film simulations applied. Also exuding nostalgic vibes is the "Date Stamp" function that lets you imprint dates in the bottom right of images, just like on old-school Kodak-style film camera. On top of the main rear 2.40inch LCD 3:4 monitor, the X Half has an optical rather than an electronic viewfinder, adding another analog touch (and the accompanying parallax distortion errors). The camera itself is small enough to slide into a pocket and weighs just 210 grams (7.4 ounces). Other features include a built-in flash, massive 880 frame battery life and SD UHS-I card slot. The X Half looks like it could be coveted by social media users or anyone looking for a fun party or vacation camera. However, it's expensive considering that you can just get an Instax (or regular film camera and a lot of film) for a lot less. Fujifilm has definitely captured the photography zeitgeist before with models like the X100 VI, though, so I wouldn't be surprised if it becomes a hit. The X Half is now on preorder for $850 (in black, charcoal silver and silver) with shipping set to start on June 12.
Japan Today
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Japan Today
The latest Kenko Tokina Toy Camera line makes photography more fun
In an age when smartphones can do almost anything, the need for cameras seems to dwindle. When the phones of today seem to capture perfectly sharp images and videos at every click, sometimes it's more fun to use a camera that encourages more play and spontaneity. Toy cameras bring this element of excitement and a sense of being hands-on that can't be replicated even by the most advanced smartphones. It never guarantees the perfect shot and that's why it's fun. The new Kenko Tokina 'Disney Character Toy Camera DSC-PIENI M' doubles down on that play instinct. Barely larger than a matchbox, it hides a 1/9-inch 1.22-megapixel CMOS behind a 3.2 mm F2.8 lens, records 1280 × 960 JPEG stills, and even captures 720p video with sound. A 0.96-inch LCD lets you frame the action, while onboard storage slots accept microSDHC cards up to 32 GB. Its ISO is locked at 100, and the shutter is fixed at 1/100 s, making it all the more fun to shoot with. It uses a built-in Li-ion cell recharged over USB-C, and the box ships with a neck strap so the camera can double as an accessory. Best of all, Mickey, Minnie, Stitch, Pooh or Baymax adorn the shell and greet you with a voice clip every time you power up or press the shutter. Priced from ¥10,000, it's a great way to practice your photography skills. Source: © Japan Today
The Star
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
Heart And Soul: The best man from Belize
The writer and Ilse's (couple seated in the centre) wedding in October 1988, at the Registry of Marriage, Innsbruck, flanked by the writer's best man, Frenchie (right) and Andre, the bridesmaid (left). — PETER REIFINGER Do you have any real-life, heart-warming stories to share with readers? We'd love to hear from you. Please keep your story within 900 words. Photos are optional and should be in JPEG format (file size about 1MB, with caption and photo credit). There is no payment for stories, and we reserve the right to edit all submissions. Email your story to: lifestyle@ with the subject "Heart and Soul". I was married in Innsbruck, Austria, 37 years ago. My best man was Frenchie, a charismatic dive instructor from the island of Caye Caulker, Belize. We met at summer school at the University of Innsbruck, where we were learning German. Both of us had Austrian girlfriends at the time – now our wives. Frenchie was unmistakable: tall, dark, shoulder-length hair, with a magnetic personality and a wacky sense of humour. He spoke English, Spanish and Belizean Creole. He met his wife, Gertraud, when she went diving in Belize. They fell in love, and he followed her to Austria to marry. Gertraud and my wife Ilse had studied nursing at the same school and later worked at the same hospital. They reconnected by chance at the university, delighted to find their boyfriends were classmates. From that moment, the four of us became inseparable. We shared many wonderful times together during that summer. Frenchie, always the joker, kept the class in stitches. Once, when asked how people travelled back home, he replied with a straight face, 'We swim.' He explained that people on Caye Caulker swam between islands. The class erupted with laughter, and even the teacher couldn't help but join in. Outside class, I spent time with Frenchie and Joseph, a Kenyan priest studying German for agriculture. We explored Innsbruck, shared meals, and I even did chalk drawings for spare change – a carefree summer of 1988. Frenchie and Gertraud married in September 1988 in her hometown. Ilse and I decided to tie the knot in October 1988. Having only been in Austria for 10 months and knowing few people, I asked Frenchie to be my best man. He happily accepted. The following month, Frenchie and Gertraud returned to Belize. Ilse and I stayed another year before heading back to Malaysia. We kept in touch over the years, drifting apart until social media reconnected us. In 2017, we heard Frenchie had suffered a stroke, though details were sparse. This February, we went on a month-long trip through Mexico and Guatemala, ending in Belize to visit him and his wife. It was heart-warming to reunite after 37 years. Gertraud now runs a charming hotel where we stayed. Frenchie shared that the stroke had initially left him unable to speak and sensitive to sound. To recover in peace, he built a secluded home beside a swamp, guarded by his dog, Kaiser – and two crocodiles! Nothing, not even a stroke, can hold him down. He now lives with discipline: rising at 3am to meditate, do yoga, and weld barbeque grills from discarded oxygen tanks. He runs his home on solar power and is modifying his golf buggy to do the same. Though older and slower now, Frenchie remains the same spirited soul I once knew. His son runs the dive shop now and he helps out now and then. Business has been successful, and he has a fleet of diving and chartered fishing boats. On our last night, he cooked a delicious Creole seafood stew – lobster, crab, fish, vegetables and chillies in coconut milk. I had multiple helpings. We invited them to visit us in Malaysia, and we wait eagerly.
CBC
05-05-2025
- General
- CBC
How to digitize your most important documents — without getting overwhelmed
With wildfires, floods and other emergencies all too common of late, it's worth asking, if you had to leave your home in a hurry, would your important documents be easy to grab and take with you? Canada's Emergency Preparedness Guide recommends making copies of important documents — like birth and marriage certificates, passports, licences, wills, land deeds and insurance paperwork — and keeping them in a safe place both inside and outside of your home. You could put them in a safety deposit box or give them to friends or family who live out of town. That way, you have a backup in case the originals are destroyed, damaged or have to be left behind. And in addition to having physical copies, you may want to make digital versions as they can be easier to access in an emergency. But let's face it, organizing and scanning all those papers can feel overwhelming, and it's tempting to put it off. To help you get started, we asked archivist June Chow and digitization expert Jeff Marceil for tips on everything from image size to naming your files, so you can finally get organized and rest easy, knowing you're prepared. Use a scanner While your phone camera and document-scanning apps may be convenient, both experts strongly recommend using a scanner for best results. A photo of a document is better than nothing, but could be missing important details due to resolution, tone or hue, and might not be sufficient for government bodies like the Canada Revenue Agency. Chow, an archivist with the Toronto Reference Library, says a flatbed scanner is a good investment, but you may be able to use one for free at a public library. You can specify the resolution, file type and other details for each document, and you won't have to worry about lighting issues like you would when you're taking a photo. Of course, if you're short on time or have boxes of documents or photo prints you want scanned, there are businesses that can do this quickly and accurately for a fee. Think about format and resolution The first step is to determine if what you're digitizing is text or images — and if it's worth the time and effort to scan, store and manage the files. "Don't try to digitize everything just because the technology exists and is available," Chow said. Marceil — a project manager at Micro Com Systems, which specializes in document scanning and data capture for businesses in B.C. — suggests scanning documents at 300 DPI (dots per inch), and photos at 600 DPI. "As far as legibility [for documents], if you go higher, you're just creating [a] larger file size," he said. "It gets a little bit better, but not enough to justify the higher file size." Also, scanning your documents in black and white and saving the files as a PDF (recommended for most documents) or a TIFF using Group 4 compression will keep the original image data intact while often taking up less space on your hard drive. "A lot of times people scan things in colour, and it's just then you're using JPEG compression, and it's not as good," Marceil said. "[Group 4 compression] is also considered a lossless compression, which means … when you [open the file], there's no loss of the image quality." Of course, it all depends on what you're using the digital files for. "When we do digitization for preservation, it's done at high resolution [and] often results in TIFF file formats and very big files," Chow said. But if you want a file that is quick to open and easy to share, consider saving your images as JPEGs, which are smaller and suitable for viewing on a screen. Finally, if you're scanning a document that's several pages long, Marceil suggests creating a multi-page PDF rather than scanning each page individually. "Even the cheapie big-box-store scanners, they've got software that'll allow you to create a multi-page … file," he said. Some scanning software uses optical character recognition (OCR) to make printed documents searchable — handy when you need to find a specific receipt. Use logical naming conventions "However you are searching for your documents now — whether it's alphabetical order or numerical order or by subject or something like that — in the digital world, you should save things pretty much the same way," Marceil said. "Because when you end up with thousands of files or thousands of documents, you want to name them something logical so that you'll be able to find them later." For example, if you're digitizing personal documents for your family, the names of the files for each person could start with their first name so that everything is automatically grouped together in the folder. Or for all paperwork related to a specific property, the file names could start with the address or street name. Ideally, you want to make a few copies of each file and store them in different places and on different platforms. "It's not an issue of storing files on the cloud versus your computer hard drive versus a CD — it's actually all of them," Chow said. "It's an and-and-and relationship." Just be sure to use encrypted folders and require a password for sensitive documents. Chow says creating a digital copy protects valuable records and documents against loss or damage. But remember to update your digital records as your physical documents expire or are replaced.
The Star
04-05-2025
- Health
- The Star
Heart And Soul: Embracing the ageing journey
Lim says ageing reminds us that tomorrow isn't promised, so tick items off your bucket list, and if there's a dear friend you've meant to visit, go. — Freepik Do you have any real-life, heart-warming stories to share with readers? We'd love to hear from you. Please keep your story within 900 words. Photos are optional and should be in JPEG format (file size about 1MB, with caption and photo credit). There is no payment for stories, and we reserve the right to edit all submissions. Email your story to: lifestyle@ with the subject "Heart and Soul". How time flies! My other half is now officially an octogenarian, and in two years, I will join him. Statistics reveal that only 44% of people live beyond 70 to reach 80 – a sobering thought. Last year was particularly painful: I attended the funerals of two sisters-in-law, a couple of former colleagues, and several dear friends. I echo what many of us say at this age – we're all queueing up to meet our Maker. Our social circle has shrunk, and our activities have become more limited. With ageing, health inevitably deteriorates. Our organs begin to wear out and degenerate. Unlike machines that can be fixed with spare parts, the human body slows down, creaking towards its final chapters. Old age, as they say, isn't for the faint-hearted. We're prone to memory lapses – those 'senior moments' – dizziness, and mishaps around the house. I had two nasty falls last year: one in the garden that left me with a fractured wrist in a plaster cast for two months, and another resulting in dislocated elbows and a further four months of discomfort. Cutting vegetables with my non-dominant hand became a daily struggle. The frustration of living with limbs encased in plaster was overwhelming. On top of that, my hearing and eyesight have weakened. The once fiercely independent version of myself now needs assistance. Stories of friends slipping into dementia or becoming burdens to their children are unsettling. Some elderly people end up alone in care homes, depression slowly setting in. At this age, a small mishap can alter your life entirely. But, there are two sides to every coin. Life would be bleak if we only focused on its difficulties. So, live and let live. Erase words that darken your outlook. Don't dwell on regrets. Forgive freely. Grumpiness should be avoided at all costs. Pamper yourself – splurge on a spa treatment, a manicure, a facial. Use the perfume or dress you've been saving for a 'special occasion' – that moment is now. Tomorrow isn't promised. Tick items off your bucket list. If there's a dear friend you've meant to visit, go. If there are short day trips or senior excursions available, sign up and enjoy the camaraderie. Don't isolate yourself or fall into self-pity. Volunteering can be deeply fulfilling. Help out at an orphanage or a centre for the underprivileged. Your time and presence can be more valuable than you think. If you're blessed with grandchildren, cherish them. But be mindful – nothing irks them more than constant advice. Their world revolves around gadgets and screens – let it be. Offer guidance sparingly, only when truly needed. You've done your bit raising your children; let their parents take the reins now. Keep your visits joyful. My grandchildren often say, 'Chillax, Mama' – a lovely reminder to just relax and take things easy. Each morning, if you're fortunate enough to wake up, give thanks. Make the most of the day. Whether it's reading the paper, watching television, gardening or meeting a friend – do what makes you happy. Let no one dictate how you spend your time. Eat in moderation, squeeze in a little exercise, and keep moving if your health allows. Ultimately, you're in charge. Be the master of your daily life. Enjoy every moment – because it truly is later than you think.
