And while the 12-megapixel Tryx's physical design is certainly its most noticeable drawing point, it also has more-traditional specs to compete with the vast majority of cameras in its price range. Chief among those are a super-high-speed video capture mode, an extremely wide-angle 21mm lens, 1080p video capture at 30 frames per second, and some cool in-camera tricks for capturing hands-free shots and artistic-looking stills.

Unfortunately, for all that aesthetic innovation and in-camera trickery, the Tryx stumbles a bit when you're using it as a plain old camera. Despite some excellent low-light features and creative scene modes, the Tryx has frustrating usability issues because of its often-unresponsive touchscreen. When you're using it in its folded-up configuration, the awkward lens placement means your finger will work its way into many shots. But if you can get beyond its finicky touchscreen interface and twist it into a shape that suits you comfortably, it's a camera that performs well.

Hardware and design

The Tryx's innovative form factor is as durable as it is unique. A gadget designed to repeatedly twist this way and that should be solidly-built, and the Casio Tryx is certainly sturdy enough. Its outer frame is built of a durable, seemingly snap-proof plastic, while the center part of the camera body, made of metal, feels about as solid as your average touchscreen smartphone.

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The Olloclip works by clipping to the camera corner of the iPhone. The clip section is made of molded plastic and fits securely on the phone, without causing any damage to the iPhone body. If you keep your iPhone in a case, you will need to remove it in order to use the Olloclip. And since the fit is so snug, it also has problems clipping onto iPhones covered with screen protectors (the clip was not compatible with my invisibleSHIELD Dry protector).

Other than not playing nice with cases and screen protectors, the Olloclip is smartly designed. It has two sides, one with a fisheye lens, and another with a smaller, wide-angle lens. You can easily unscrew the wide-angle lens to reveal a third, macro lens. Switching lenses is as simple as flipping the clip over.

In our photography tests, each lens option worked really well, producing high-quality images with the desired effect. Click on any of the sample images below to get a closer look. I recommend using a tripod or steadying device when shooting with the macro lens, since even the smallest shaking can render the photo blurry.

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By now you’ve probably encountered or taken some pictures taken with lo-fi iPhone camera apps like Hipstamatic or Instagram. These are the small, grungy-looking, toy camera-like images popping up all over Twitter and Facebook. The trend has even spread to OS X with filter-centric editing apps like Flare and Photo Effect Studio.

These apps mimic the look of toy cameras, and other low-end film cameras that, due to poor construction and low-grade components, yield images with very specific problems. Some people describe this as a retro look, but there are plenty of old cameras that yield high-quality results. What the these apps imitate is a very cheap film camera.

So what makes the Hipstamatic and Instagram look so popular? Why are these dingy, ill-colored, sometimes washed out images so appealing? To understand that, you have to accept something very fundamental about the nature of photography.

The big lie of photography

The fact is: no matter what type of camera you use, no photo actually looks real.

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Instagram, for the uninitiated, is a typical photo filter app à la Hipstamatic or Camera Bag. What sets it apart is a helping of social-networking integration. Users can easily share their Instagram photos on popular services like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Foursquare, and Tumblr. The app launched in October 2010 and its user base has been growing at an incredible rate ever since. The boom is especially impressive because so far, the app has been exclusively available on the iOS platform. That could change in the near future.

"We're focusing on making Instagram the best possible mobile photos experience," said Kevin Systrom, Instagram's co-founder and CEO in an email. "A lot of what we do day-to-day is dream up new interesting features that'll make that goal a reality. We're definitely paying attention to the need for both a website and Android."

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The waterproof camera is slightly bulkier than other Picsio camcorders, measuring 2.36-by-3.98-by-0.98 inches. On its right side, hidden behind a pop-out panel, is an HDMI slot, a USB/DC slot, and a SD card slot. A three-inch touchscreen takes up the vast majority of its backside, and is where most the camera's functions are operated.

When you turn the camcorder on, four buttons take up the vast majority of the touchscreen: a camera button, a video record button, an audio record button, and a quality button. Touch the camera button, and you can take still photos. Touch the video recorder button, and you can shoot video. Touch the audio record button, and you can use the pocket camcorder as a digital audio recorder. The quality button lets you change the image quality of the photos (2592 by 1944 or 1920 by 1440 pixels) or videos (720p, 1080p, QHD, or iFrame.) Once in a while, however, you may have to touch the buttons a couple of times before they actually respond.

If you're not interested in using the touchscreen, the camera has a few physical buttons. On its right side, there's a power button, a hold button, and a record button. Also on the right side is a button that allows you to switch between the camera's video and single-shot functions. Overall, the physical buttons are easier to access, especially in water.

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Because of the built-in projector, the Shoot 'n Share is slightly bulkier than other pocket camcorders on the market. It has dimensions of 2.4 by 4.9 by 0.9 inches, and weighs about 5.6 ounces. It sports a two-inch LCD, as well as an HDMI port, an AV port, and a Micro SD card slot. Below its LCD screen are a camera button, a record button, and a projector button. Below those function buttons are control arrows that allow you to fully interact with on-screen menus.

Performing the Shoot 'n Share's basic functions is not hard. If you want to take a picture, just press the camera button. If you want to record video, just press the record button. If you want to use the projector, just press the projector button and the camera's menu will appear on the surface being pointed at.

If you want to change the camera's settings, or find pictures you have taken, then things get a little more complicated. It's not intuitive to do such things, so you do have to press a lot of buttons and move the arrows around until you fully understand how to perform the tasks. Annoyingly, some of the camera's buttons don't always work right away when you press them.

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The Playsport Zx3 is an average-sized pocket camcorder, with dimensions of 2.3 by 4.4 by 0.8 inches. Everything you need to operate the camcorder is on its body; it doesn't use touchscreen controls. On its backside are a two-inch LCD, a record button, a playback button, a delete button, a settings button, and a navigation button ring. On its right side, hidden behind a pop-out panel, is a HDMI port, a USB port, and an AV-out port. On its left side, also hidden behind a panel, is its removeable, rechargeable Lithium-ion battery. Below the battery slot is the camera's SD card slot (a SD card is not included).

In an effort to make the Playsport Zx3 easy to use, Kodak placed all of the function buttons on its body. To record/stop recording a video, you press the record button, which is surrounded by a navigation ring. Press up on the navigation ring, and the camcorder zooms in; press down, and the camcorder zooms out (4X digital zoom). Unfortunately, the navigation ring is so small that it's possible to accidentally press the record button, stopping the recording. It's best to make sure to press the buttons with the flesh of your finger, not with your fingernail. This way, you can better feel which button you are pressing when you aren't looking at the controls.

The camcorder supports a maximum video resolution of 1080p. Other video recording modes include 720p at 60 frames per second (fps), 720p at 30 fps, and 848 by 480 pixels at 30 fps. You also have the choice of shooting video in black and white, or with high saturation. The Playsport Zx3 shoots 5.3-megapixel still photos at a 16:9 aspect ratio.

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The Xacti VPC-PD2BK has dimensions of 2.5 by 0.9 by 4.4 inches. The silver and black color combination gives it a distinct look, but what makes the camcorder seem somewhat peculiar is the silver 'ears' that flank the lens. Those are actually the camcorder's stereo microphones, and there's also a flash (for still photos only) on top of the device. Behind a pop-out panel on the left side is a HDMI port and SD card slot (SD card not included). Below the SD card slot is a rechargeable Lithium-ion battery that can last up to 65 minutes when fully charged. A pop-out USB connector on the Xacti VPC-PD2BK's right side charges the battery and can be used to transfer files to your computer.

Most of the Xacti VPC-PD2BK's operating buttons are found on its back, right below its two-inch TFT color screen. There's a photo button, a video button, a record/play button, and a delete button. Between the buttons are arrow keys for navigating the user interface.

The camera is, for the most part, easy you use. If you want to take a photo, press the photo button. If you want to record a video, press the video button. Not too complicated. You may have to check the manual to figure out how to utilize all of its settings (like how to change the camera from 720p to 1080p), but for the most part, it doesn't take long to figure out how to use the camera's core functions.

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The Bloggie Touch is a lean piece of equipment, with dimensions of about 2.1 by 4.3 by 0.6 inches. Its back is primarily taken up by a three-inch touchscreen and record button. Its left side sports a HDMI port, while its right side has its power button and trigger button to snap still photos. On its bottom is a foldout USB connector. The Bloggie Touch does not have an SD card slot or any support for removable media‚ have to make due with its internal 4Gb or 8GB of memory.

Using the Bloggie Touch isn't difficult. If you want to record a video, all you have to do is press the record button. If you want to take a photo, all you have to do is press the trigger button. The camera can shoot videos in 1080p (30 frames per second), 720p (60 fps), and at 720p (30 fps). Photos are shot at 12, 8, or 2 megapixels.

You use the Bloggie Touch's touchscreen to change the settings. If you want to change video or photo quality, you just have to press a square button on the top right corner of the touchscreen. To access the photos and videos you have taken, you just have to touch the play button on the bottom right corner of the touchscreen. The screen also lets you view the videos or photos you've taken.

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The SH100 ups the ante, however, with its built-in wireless features, which include (but aren't limited to) direct uploads from the camera to Facebook, YouTube, and other sharing services. The most unusual wireless feature is the ability to create a peer-to-peer connection with Samsung Galaxy S series phones, meaning that you can use a phone as a wireless remote control and a tethered storage device for photos and video.

The sum of all these parts is hardware you'd expect in a standard-issue $200 camera, but enhanced with innovative in-camera extras that provide great bang for the buck. The SH100 performs well in Auto mode, has well-implemented Wi-Fi features, and offers a little something extra for anyone who owns a Samsung Galaxy S or Galaxy S II phone. Serious photographers won't find much to like here, but it's a great option for a younger shooter.

Hardware and design

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At heart, the Lumix DMC-GF2 ($700 as a kit with an optically stabilized 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 lens or a 14mm/F2.5 prime lens; price as of May 16, 2011) is a souped-up successor to the groundbreaking Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1. The GF2 improves on the GF1's basic specs with a smaller, more streamlined body; higher-resolution, 1920-by-1080 60i video recording; higher ISO sensitivity (ISO 6400 versus ISO 3200); and compatibility with Panasonic's optional 3D conversion lens.

The most noticeable new feature in the GF2 is its 3-inch touchscreen, which provides significant benefits while you're shooting stills and video. Namely, it lets you use touch-to-focus controls like the ones you'll find on many smartphones—a powerful, versatile feature in a camera with the GF2's bigger sensor and swappable lenses. The camera's touchscreen interface is also customizable, so you can touch-access your favorite settings quickly, and the camera's aesthetic design is clean and uncluttered due to the lack of physical controls.

But the 3-inch touchscreen is also where this camera's problems start. A touchscreen simply isn't an effective substitute for some physical controls—most notably a mode dial—and menu navigation via the touchscreen can make you perform a lot of screen presses, smudging up the only native viewfinder the camera has as you go. You don't need to use the touchscreen for everything; if you don't use it, however, you still have to navigate a lot of menus via the camera's directional pad to access some important settings.

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The touch interface is well-implemented?the Auto mode and scene presets operate smoothly. However, the touch interface also has aperture- and shutter-priority modes (but no full manual controls), and adjusting settings in those modes isn't as hitch-free as it is when using analog controls. What's more, we've seen better touch-focus controls and options in competing cameras.

All the fancy touchscreen features also come at the expense of the camera's battery life, which is lacking. But beyond these shortcomings, this is a great little camera in terms of performance. Image and video quality are both strong suits, and the model's F2.0 lens and creative shooting modes make it a standout compact unit. When it comes down to it, it all depends on how much you like touchscreens.

Hardware and design

The 12-megapixel Canon PowerShot Elph 500 HS is one of a new breed of Canon point-and-shoots announced in early 2011: The "HS" designation refers to the camera's "High Sensitivity System" CMOS sensor, which the company claims enhances low-light shots and adds a few innovative shooting modes.

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For example, the HX9V offers three ways to capture 3D images, excellent 1080p video capture at a category-leading 60 frames per second, GPS functions and a digital compass for geotagging images, a searchable in-camera help guide, a 10-fps burst mode at full 16-megapixel resolution, manual controls, and one of the best implementations of a low-light shooting mode of any camera.

Despite that stellar résumé, the HX9V has a few omissions and shortcomings that may peeve experienced photographers: The camera has no RAW shooting mode, it offers no aperture- or shutter-priority modes to go along with its manual shooting option, it has a small sensor crammed with 16 megapixels, and its aperture maxes out at F3.3 at the wide-angle end of the zoom.

However, the HX9V makes up for most of those deficiencies with heaping helpings of creativity and versatility. This top-rated pocket megazoom camera may ultimately appeal more to gadget hounds. Its video capabilities are unmatched in its class, and it's a great entry point into 3D still-image capture, as it's an excellent camera beyond its 3D modes.

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Here are some tips to remember when taking macro photos (Enter your best macro photographs into Macworld's macro photography contest):

Pick a camera

Digital point-and-shoots are great for macro shooting, because most have macro modes and lenses capable of extreme close-up. Some point-and-shoots can get as close as one or two centimeters from a subject. You'll also find that your iPhone does a very good job of shooting up close. If you’re using an SLR, and are serious about macro shooting, then you’ll want to invest in a macro lens. These are lenses specially engineered for macro shooting. Typically, they’re fairly large, even if they have a short focal length. A macro lens will be clearly designated as macro.

Depth of field will be extremely shallow

That is, the area that is in focus will not be very deep, which means that your point of focus will be critical. If you don’t focus specifically on the area that you want sharp, then it might very well end up out of focus, due to shallow depth of field. This can be particularly tricky if you’re trying to shoot something that’s moving, such as a flower on a windy day.

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San Francisco artist and programmer Ken Murphy has combined a point-and-shoot camera, a Canon firmware hack, and a motorized telescope mount to create lively, panoramic time-lapse movies.

Typical time-lapse movies show a fixed scene changing at an accelerated rate over time. Time-lapse photographers accomplish this by shooting photos at regular intervals (anywhere from every few seconds to every half hour) and combining the frames into a movie file. Panning time-lapse movies add motorized mounts to the set-up, so the final movie slowly pans across a scene. Murphy has taken this technique one step further by editing the final movie so that it creates a full, 360-degree panoramic view.

Murphy shot two movies, one with a Canon A590 and the other with a Canon G12—both point-and-shoot cameras. He installed the CHDK (Canon Hack Development Kit) software on the cameras, amd programed them to take photographs every five seconds. The cameras were mounted on a panning telescope mount ($250) which slowly rotated the camera 360 degrees. A full rotation took 60 to 90 minutes.

To create the final product, Murphy spliced 12 views of the scene together, each section playing the same video at slightly different times. Check out one of the final products, which was shot outside of a San Francisco cafe at night:

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With this fall’s iOS 5 update, Apple plans to add some new camera and photo-editing features to the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. On their own, the new tools are nothing revolutionary—most are already available in third-party apps. What will make the new camera features useful, however, will be the added convenience that comes from being able to access them from the iPhone’s lock screen. The editing features will be a welcome addition to iPhone users who don’t already use third-party editing apps.

Lock screen access

The rallying cry of iPhone photographers has been that the best camera you have is the one that’s with you. Yes, always having an iPhone on you is handy for catching unexpected moments, but you lose precious time fumbling to unlock it with your passcode, and then finding and tapping the Camera app.

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I’m heading toward the start of the Lycean way, a roughly 300-mile hike that winds through the villages of Anatolia. Because this will be a backpacking and photography excursion, I’m trying to travel as light as possible. As such, I’ve left my 13-inch MacBook Air at home, and have decided to bring only my iPad, my cameras, and a HyperDrive.

This was not an easy decision. While I knew the iPad would be fine for reading email and browsing the web, I was worried about where I was going to offload images, and whether I could do without a full photo workflow. On the upside, I knew I would be traveling with a mid-sized backpack, so the iPad’s lighter weight, and durability was a big appeal.

iPad versus the 11-inch MacBook Air

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Apple has released an update to Digital Camera RAW that adds support for five new cameras. This compatibility update, version 3.7, affects Mac OS X users running Aperture 3 and iPhoto '11.

Only two DSLRs made the cut: Nikon's new mid-level D5100 DSLR and the Samsung GX-1S. The latter is a particularly interesting addition since the camera was released back in 2006.

Also supported are the Olypus E-PL2 Micro Four-Thirds camera and the Olympus XZ-1 point-and-shoot camera. Rounding out the list is FujiFilm's much coveted FinePix X100 $1,200 compact camera.

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After decades of Photoshop’s domination of the image editing market, it’s been surprising to see that, over the last couple of years, a lot of small companies have decided to make image editing programs—and have done a surprisingly good job! Joining affordable image editing applications like Pixelmator, Flare, and Adobe's own Photoshop Elements 9, is Flying Meat Software’s Acorn, which just received an update to version 3.0.

Priced at $50 (or a $20 upgrade for Acorn 2 users), Acorn 3 is a full featured image editor with a lot of high-end features, including raw conversion, multiple layers, vector graphics. What’s not entirely clear is who it’s aimed at.

My, what a big tool palette you have

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With the release of the D7000, Nikon created a new category in its broad DSLR line. At $1200 (body only), the D7000 offers a mid-range alternative to the higher end D300s, and the slightly-long-in-the-tooth but more affordable D90 (released in 2008). A full complement of advanced and automatic features, new 16 megapixel CMOS sensor, new 3D color matrix metering, good low-light performance, full 1080p HD video, full-time autofocus in video and Live View, along with under-the-hood improvements make the D7000 an extremely appealing DSLR for enthusiasts and prosumers.

Basic features

Like other DSLRs currently on the market, the D7000 is equipped with manual, semi-manual, and automatic exposure options. Two custom setting modes and 19 scene modes round out your basic shooting choices.With a new 16 megapixel CMOS sensor, the D7000 (along with the recently released 16 megapixel D5100) offers the second highest resolution in the Nikon DSLR line, bested only by the 24 megapixel sensor in the professional-level D3x ($8000).

The D7000 is more rugged than it may seem at first glance—it is sealed for weather and dust protection, and weighs in at a reasonable 1.5 pounds. It’s a little heavier than the D90 but about the same size. I shot comfortably with several different NIKKOR lenses, including the 18-105mm kit lens, as well as the 24-70mm and 70-200mm VRII lenses. All of the lenses felt well-balanced. Unlike some of Nikon’s more entry-level cameras, the D7000 accommodates both DX and non-DX lenses.

Photographers who have shot with other Nikon DSLRs will feel at ease with the control layout, but newcomers to the Nikon DSLR family will probably have to spend time reviewing the user’s manual to become familiar with the buttons and dials. For the most part, controls are arranged conveniently and Nikon has made a couple of really nice adjustments so Live View, video and continuous shooting are more readily accessible. However, the Function button is buried tightly between the grip and the lens barrel, making it difficult to access. Another drawback is that the bracket button sits just below the flash pop-up control, and it’s too easy to inadvertently activate the bracketing function when trying to pop up the flash.

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Movies created through time-lapse photography can be stunning. And for some people in the sciences they can also be a useful tool. While there are a variety of applications that allow you to create time-lapse movies of your own, none of them are built into the Mac OS save this one: Automator. The following workflow allows you to automate not only the shooting of your images, but their conversion into a movie.

Before you launch Automator, create a folder on the Desktop called Time Lapse. Now launch Automator and from the template sheet that appears, select Application and click Choose. In the resulting workflow window add these actions: Take Picture (found under Photos), Pause (Utilities), Loop (Utilities), Get Specified Finder Items (Files & Folders), Get Folder Contents (Files & Folders), Import Files into iPhoto (Photos), and finally, Run AppleScript (Utilities).

For the Take Picture action to work (and thus the workflow) you must have a camera compatible with that action. My point-and-shoot Canon S95 isn’t, but my Nikon D300 DSLR is (and I suspect many other DSLRs are as well). When you plug your camera into your Mac’s USB port and switch on the camera, this action will display your camera’s name, if it’s compatible. From the Download To pop-up menu choose Other and then navigate to your Time Lapse folder. If you’re concerned about your camera’s media card filling up during the shoot, enable the Delete Picture From Camera After Downloading option. Also, you’ll probably want to attach your camera to a power supply rather than depending on a battery that might drain before you finish the shoot.

In the Pause action choose an appropriate interval between pictures—30 seconds or 1 minute, for example. Configure the following Loop action so that the first pop-up menu reads Loop Automatically, the second reads Stop After X Times (where X is the number of shots you’d like to take), and Use the Original Input is selected in the last pop-up menu.

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Researchers have discovered a flaw in the system used by Nikon professional digital cameras to ensure images have not been tampered with.

Normally, in high-end SLR digital cameras a unique and encrypted signing key is appended to an image when it is taken, which is verified in Nikon's case by its proprietary Image Authentication System. If an image is edited this key will be overwritten, an action that will be picked up by the software.

Russian company Elcomsoft, however, said that it has found a way to extract the original verification key so that it can be attached to any image regardless of whether it has been edited or not.

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Depending on the kind of project, printing can be time-consuming and complicated. Despite the fact that an increasing number of documents originate in digital format, you cannot always avoid printing hard copies. Because not every household or office has access to a quality printer, and even the most cost-conscious business owner will not look fondly on the idea of collating and stapling 1,000 copies of a catalog or instruction manual, the option of choosing online printing services can save time, money, and hassle.

A few years ago, the use of professional printing services would have meant a trip to a photography store or print shop, with the associated wait and expense. These days, mercifully, you can handle the entire process, end to end, from the comfort of your home or office.

Here are a few online resources (which also may be associated with stores in your local area) where you can order professional print jobs at a reasonable price. While you can always seek independent, local vendors who provide quality, full service in your community, the selections below offer a broad scope and point you to popular resources that may not be specifically associated with printing services.

Photos and keepsakes

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When you compare the Olympus XZ-1's features with those of the vast majority of point-and-shoot cameras, it absolutely blows them out of the water. We're talking about things like an F1.8 lens, full manual controls and manual focus, raw shooting, a click-control ring around its lens to adjust in-camera settings quickly, exposure- and white-balance bracketing modes, a built-in neutral density filter, a 10-megapixel CCD sensor that's bigger than most, a hot shoe for various accessories, and a 3-inch OLED screen. Great things, all of those.

But the problem with premium compact cameras is that, despite outclassing the lion's share of point-and-shoots, they ultimately have to compete with one another. The Olympus XZ-1 ($500) is certainly a versatile camera with a great range of features, but it falls short of similar high-end cameras in one way or another, and novices might have a hard time getting the most out of it. This camera leaves quite a bit to be desired in Auto mode, and accessing most of its features requires a fair bit of menu-diving. Some of its more-enticing features—the control ring around its lens and its manual focus controls, in particular—are better implemented in some of its direct competitors.

The result is a very good camera that's likely to please its owners, but one that requires quite a bit of "quality time" to get the hang of. The good news is that most of the XZ-1's drawbacks can be fixed by using the camera's array of manual controls, but accessing those controls sometimes takes more effort than it should.

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