04/22/96 THE NEXT GREAT LEAP FOR SHUTTERBUGS?

THE NEXT GREAT LEAP FOR SHUTTERBUGS?

`Take pictures. Further.'' That's the theme of the largest advertising campaign in Eastman Kodak's history, as the company trumpets the imminent arrival of the Advanced Photo System, a feature-rich new film format backed by the heavyweights in the photo industry. Kodak joined archrival Fuji Photo Film, plus Canon, Minolta, and Nikon in developing the APS standard. On Apr. 22, consumers can get their paws on the first cameras to embrace the system.
Should they race out to do so? The answer depends on how dedicated they are to the craft of photography. Those who take occasional snapshots at a family gathering or on vacation can clearly get by as they always have with one of the many compact 35mm cameras flooding the market--from cheap disposable and ``idiot proof'' models to more advanced kinds with built-in zoom lenses.
At the other end of the spectrum are serious hobbyists and professionals. They have doubtless invested a great deal of money outfitting themselves with one or more single-lens-reflex (SLR) cameras, plus lenses and accessories. Absent astonishingly better pictures--which won't be the case with APS--and given that the new film isn't compatible with their current camera equipment, they may not have a compelling reason to plunge in, either.
EASY LOADING. Yet for many shutterbugs who crave good pictures without the steep learning curve of conventional SLR equipment, APS boasts features that can make picture-taking a breeze: simple loading, easy flexibility on print sizes, and, in theory, improved photo quality.
But anyone who wants all these APS goodies must pay for the privilege--every step of the way. APS cameras will cost from $12 to $700, or about 15% to 30% more than roughly comparable 35mm models. A roll of film will also run 15% to 20% extra. And in most instances, you'll pay a premium to have the photographs developed.
At the APS launch, Kodak and Fuji will market color print film suited for three different light levels (100, 200, and 400 ISO), packaged in cassettes of 15, 25, and 40 exposures. Slides and black-and-white film will follow later. A 200 speed, 25-exposure APS roll carrying Fuji's Smart Film brand will list for $6.87, same as Kodak's Advantix brand, vs. $5.92 for a 24-exposure roll of 35mm Fuji film.
The first thing you'll notice is how simple it is to load the film: There's no tail sticking out of the specially designed film cartridge. You just drop it into an APS camera. No more fussing with threading a film leader into a spool, as you would with many 35mm cameras. It's practically impossible to mess up: The oval-shaped cartridge, which is about 30% smaller than a 35mm roll, only fits in one way. Many APS cameras will likewise be smaller than their 35mm counterparts.
SELECT YOUR SIZE. Once the cartridge has been loaded, photographers can flip a switch to select among three frame formats for each shot. (You'll see the difference in the viewfinder.) The C, or classic, 4-in.-by-6-in. shot corresponds to conventional 35mm photographs. The H setting yields a wider 4-in.-by-7-in. view; this is often the way to shoot if you want to capture a group of people in one picture. And the 4-in.-by-10-in. P format is for panoramic shots. Even after you have exposed the roll, you can have the image cropped in any shape. That's because the images are always recorded on film in the full-frame H format. One warning: Pictures taken in P-format will cost a lot more to develop, so consumers should use that option selectively.
As with 35mm film, pictures are captured photochemically on silver halide film. But APS cartridges also contain a magnetic layer that can record digital data, such as lighting and flash conditions for each shot, frame numbers, date, titles, and time. At first, little of the magnetic layer's capacity will be used. Longer term, you might be able to record audio tracks or other information. Through a process known as Information Exchange (IX), the recorded data are read by special APS processing machines at the photofinisher. The date and time will be printed on the back of your photos, and the information is also supposed to boost the quality of your prints.
But how quickly can you get your pictures developed? Photofinishers must lay out $70,000 to $90,000 to install new equipment, or about half that to modify their 35mm processing equipment. Some are loath to do so. Beginning on May 1, consumers can call 800 242-2424, punch in their zip code, and have Kodak provide a list of APS photofinishing locations in the area. The owner of a minilab in Manhattan said he expects to send an APS roll off to Kodak for processing, but that won't satisfy the instant-gratification crowd used to getting their pix back in an hour.
Once film is processed, consumers get back prints of varying sizes, depending on whether the pictures were shot in the C, H, or P format. They will also retain the now-developed film cartridge--which can be inserted into auxiliary gadgets for showing the pictures on a TV screen--plus an index print, or contact sheet that displays sequential thumbnail images of every frame on the roll. The negatives are rewound in the cartridge. Each frame has a corresponding number, so it's a cinch to order reprints or enlargements. The index print also lets you see how each image was cropped, in case you want to try out a different size.
NO MIRACLES. With a few exceptions, my efforts at shooting rolls of APS film yielded pleasing results. But we're not talking miracles here--and the system can't save a bad photograph. Some of the pictures I shot in fluorescent light with a roll of 400 ISO from Fuji came out with a yellow tinge. On a roll of 200 ISO Kodak film, outdoor pictures appeared a tad washed out, though indoor flash pictures were generally impressive.
The launch of the new film will coincide with the debut of a host of new APS cameras, but not every model will take advantage of all the APS features. Some cameras will let you swap a roll of film midway through, which might be useful if you wanted to take 100 ISO pictures for some shots and 400 later on. Kodak is backing its Advantix film with nine Advantix cameras, including the $195 3700IX that I used.
Fuji has unveiled two single-use APS cameras, costing $12 and $20, and five Endeavor models ranging from an $850 4x zoom (25mm to 100mm) SLR to a $70 fixed-focus entry-level model. The slim $350 Endeavor 250Zoom (25mm to 55mm) that I tested has presets that let you put a brief title (vacation, honeymoon, graduation) in one of a dozen languages on the back of the print, and select the number of copies you want of a shot before you snap the photo. That means you can take a group photo of your pals on a tour bus and arrange for a copy for each person. If you suspect that the photo was a dud, you can cancel the extra copies before you snap the next frame.
Canon is offering perhaps the coolest new picture-taker. It's the tiny autofocus, 2x zoom (24mm to 48mm) known as ELPH. The camera is about the size of a deck of cards, with a retractable flash and a slick corrosion-resistant stainless-steel body worthy of Agent 007. Even the first pictures I took with ELPH were generally first-rate. One quibble: I found it a bit difficult changing the dial on the three print format sizes. The camera is expected to cost around $500.
Nikon is initially bringing out a half-dozen $155 to $380 compact automatic cameras under the Nuvis brand names. Nikon will eventually market APS SLR cameras that can handle existing Nikon 35mm lenses to satisfy those who have invested heavily in the old equipment. Minolta also plans to appease customers who own lenses when it unveils an adapter that will fit onto some of its APS cameras. Meanwhile, Minolta showed off its stable of APS models, including the top-of-the line, fully automatic Vectis S-1, which can handle five interchangeable lenses. Vectis costs $590 for the body only or $786 in a kit that includes a lens, film, and battery. Although not an underwater camera, the S-1 is splashproof, meaning you can chance using it in the rain.
WEB SHOTS. While APS uses a bit of computer wizardry to improve on picture-taking, there's an even more electronics-laden format gaining momentum: digital photography. Filmless digital cameras store images on memory chips inside the units until they're downloaded onto a PC. And prices are dropping fast. Last fall, Epson introduced a color digital camera for less than $500. Several other digital point-and-shoot cameras from Apple, Casio, Chinon, Kodak, and others can be had for around $1,000. (Professional versions can cost $10,000 on up.) What's more, you don't pay for film or processing.
Those considering a digital camera should think about several factors before moving forward, not the least of which is picture quality. Digital varieties are no substitute for 35mm cameras, so if all you plan to do is take snapshots of Grandma or the kids, you're best sticking with conventional photography. Even expensive digital cameras can't match the sharpness of photos taken with a $15 disposable camera. ``Digital cameras under $2,000 don't give you the image quality that consumers expect from a 4-by-6 print, let alone anything larger,'' says Michael McNamara, technology editor at Popular Photography.
But digital cameras are a superb way of getting photos into your PC in a hurry, and kept small, the images are acceptable for display on World Wide Web pages or for use by desktop publishers, insurance adjusters, and real estate brokers. Indeed, they're becoming a big hit with many businesses (BW--Apr. 15). What's more, the advent of inexpensive and vastly improved color inkjet printers lets you spit out decent enough paper copies.
Still, digital photography has a long way to go before it challenges the dominance of film. McNamara of Popular Photography recommends a camera with software drivers that make it easy to move and download pictures, such as Chinon's $1,100 ES-3000, Fuji's $1,200 Fujix DS-220, or Kodak's $980 DC50. There also can be substantial differences in sharpness, skin tones, and color quality, so you should try to inspect various models ahead of time. Casio's QV-10 has a unique 1.8-in. color LCD screen in lieu of a viewfinder, but the camera's overall sharpness and contrast were rated poorly by Popular Photography. And the camera does not have a built-in flash. Ricoh's higher-resolution RDC-1, which costs $1,800, is perhaps the most compact digital camera--it's about the size of a microcassette recorder. That's appropriate, since it can record sound. It comes with a built-in flash, and for $500, an optional plug-in, 2.5-in. LCD display screen.
I shot a few images with Epson's PhotoPC. The fixed-focus, point-and-shoot camera is on the large side and not particularly attractive. I ran into a port conflict hooking the camera up to some computers, but once up and working, it was fairly simple to manipulate images with Storm Software's EasyPhoto program, which lets you preview pictures and transfer them to other programs on your computer. The camera can take up to 32 standard resolution images or 16 higher-quality pictures using the memory chips that come with it. Once you have reached capacity, you must download the pictures onto the PC before you can take others. To add capacity of up to 160 images, you can snap on a 4-megabyte memory module for $249 or a 2-megabyte one for $149. PhotoPC's software currently works on IBM-compatible computers. A Macintosh version is in the works.
Indeed, whether you buy a digital, 35mm, or APS camera, the personal computer is fast becoming a major repository for family and business photos. While digital cameras send pictures directly to a PC, consumers can get film processed onto a floppy disk or Photo CD. And with such products as Storm's EasyPhoto scanner, now built into the drive bays of some new Hewlett-Packard home computers, you can easily transmit pictures onto the PC's hard drive. Whichever method you choose--nowadays it's a snap to take pictures, a lot further.
EDITED BY AMY DUNKIN By Edward Baig