Ten Great Holiday Gifts for the Photographer in Your Life by Jon Sienkiewicz

I haven’t been particularly good this year, but I have taken a lot of good pictures. In case you’ve forgotten, I still have that shot of you at the holiday party (ha, ha, ha). Unless you’d like to see it published all over the Internet, I suggest you pay very close attention to my holiday wish list. ;)

If you’re looking for a gift for the photographer on your list, or if you’d just like to drop a few hints for you-know-who, this commentary will give you the rundown on some interesting items that any photo enthusiast should love.

Zoom me up
Digital SLR cameras offer great versatility. You can attach various types of lenses to extend your shooting possibilities. If you want a lens that’s as versatile as your camera, take a good look at the Tamron 18-200mm zoom. On a Nikon DSLR for example, it provides a 28-300mm zoom range (film camera equivalent) plus excellent macro (close-up) capabilities. Its full name is Tamron Super Wide Angle 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 XR Di-II LD Aspherical (IF) Macro Lens and it’s the perfect lens for travel, sports or general photography. It’s available from under $400 in mounts to fit most popular digital SLR cameras. I own one, and wouldn’t be without it.

Cut the cord
Instead of using a finicky cable to connect your digital camera to your PC every time you download, save time and effort by using a high-speed USB (2.0) card reader. The SanDisk 12-in-1 Card Reader/Writer handles a dozen different memory card formats and sells for less than $30. Like to watch your digital images on the television? For under $50 the SanDisk Photo Album makes it a snap to enjoy digital photos, video clips and music on your TV – without a computer. Comes complete with a remote control that lets you zoom, create special effects and select transitions. You can also store slide shows, video clips and MP3 music selections on a Compact Flash card via the built-in card slot.

Cut the tape
The Sony DCR-DVD7 DVD Camcorder provides 10x Optical/120x Digital Zoom, 2.5" LCD Screen and stores digital videos on 8cm DVDs. It sports a hot, modernistic design and an excellent assortment of features. You may even catch Santa in the act with the Super NightShot Plus Infrared System -- it lets you shoot in near-darkness, low-light situations. The DVD7 is available for less than $500 – a bargain for a full-featured DVD camcorder. But do yourself a favor – buy it before the holidays so that you don’t miss any of the action.

See Red
Be the envy of the NASCAR crowd with a pair of Olympus 8x21 Ferrari Speed View Roof Prism Binoculars. They’re the first pair of binoculars that are as good to look at as they are to look through. Their 8-power design brings objects 8X closer, making them perfect for sporting events, while their compact size makes them a worthy traveling companion. Designed with distinctive styling and Ferrari touches, these are serious, high-quality optics that use fully multicoated lenses with aspherical elements. Street price is under $200.

Swimming allowed
The Kodak Water & Sport 35mm one-time use camera is fully waterproof to depths of 50-feet (15-meters). It’s filled with a 27 exposure roll of ISO-800 film and is designed to withstand rough use. Think of it as an all-weather, all-purpose camera that can take a picture where others can’t. Available for less than $10, these make a great “first camera” for kids. They also belong in your fishing tackle box, car glove compartment and in that suitcase you’re packing for your Caribbean vacation.

Print at home
Fujifilm is a name you trust for outstanding, high quality film as well as recording media, memory cards and digital cameras. Home printing enthusiasts can enjoy the same great quality with Fujifilm inkjet paper. It’s available in three grades: Family, Gallery Select and Premium Plus. Family inkjet paper delivers bright whites, sharp detail, rich true colors and an instant-dry glossy finish. It’s water resistant, acid-free and works with all brands of inkjet printers. The Gallery Select uses patented technology that is derived from Fujifilm's legendary coating process and gives you crisper detail, whiter whites and more brilliant color. The Premium Plus is specially created for photo album scrapbook use.

Add a splash
Pentax has been making precision optical devices for more than 75 years. Their lineup today includes exciting digital SLRs, ultra-compact point-and-shoots and one model that they call “lifeproof.” The Pentax Optio WPi is a 6-megapixel, 3X zoom digital camera with a large, 2” LCD monitor. It offers a quick, 0.6 second start-up and fast click-to-click response. But the real story is that it has a JIS Class 8 waterproof rating. That means you can submerge it to a depth of five feet for a period of thirty minutes with no harm. It’s completely waterproof, dustproof, and foolproof. Think of all of the times you did not take your camera out of its case because of the weather. Now, think about the pictures you missed. For under $350 the Optio WPi will turn you into an all-weather photographer.

Rebel
If the snap shooter in your life is ready to advance to the next level, step right up to the Canon Rebel XT kit. It’s a digital SLR (single lens reflex) camera and comes standard with an 18-55mm zoom lens. It features an 8-megapixel imaging sensor and will accept more than 50 different Canon lenses and accessories. There’s nothing like a DSLR for serious photography, and the Rebel XT is one of the finest you can own. Starting at less than $1000 (even less with manufacturer’s rebate) it’s not inexpensive, but if your photography is important to you it’s worth every penny.

Scan Can
Unless your first camera was digital, you have a pile of negatives somewhere – probably in a shoebox under the bed. Don’t neglect them. Color negatives and slides can be scanned into very high quality digital images – with resolution that matches output from a 10-megapixel camera. If you do not have any negatives, odds are someone in your family does – baby pictures, wedding shots – all of those important, sentimental memories. Holiday time is a good time to scan your old negatives and share them with family members. In fact, a CD full of scanned images makes a cherished gift. The Nikon CoolScan V ED (under $600) produces 4000 dpi true optical resolution and 14-bit A/D conversion for super high quality scans. It’s fast – about 38-seconds for full resolution – and uses a high-speed USB 2.0 interface for fast image transfer. It also features advanced Digital ICE-4 (Digital ICE Quad Advanced) to help eliminate dust, scratches, grain and to restore faded colors.

Nikon Coolscan V ED

A Good Read
For the image admirers, don't forget the great coffee table books published by Aperture Foundation. Go to our Photo Book Reviews sections to see the numerous titles we have reviewed, including Colorama: The World's Largest Photographs, Portraits by Hellen van Meene, Photographs by David Hilliard, American Cockroach by Catherine Chambers, and many more. To browse their list of all available titles, go to their website at www.aperture.org.