FujiFilm goes dry...

2011-02-23

Fuji have been in the “wet” minilab business since the dawn of time. But now their “dry” labs are setting a new standard, I thought it was time to find out more by spending a few hours with the tech guys at Fujifilm’s UK HQ in Bedford.

As well as the obvious advantages that come from getting rid of the hot soup of chemicals that form the “wet” component of a conventional minilab, there is also the fact that we no longer have to worry about light. Keeping photo paper in the dark, changing rolls inside a black bag and struggling to fix paper jams without opening the machine become a thing of the past.

Fujifilm launched their first dry lab, the DL400, in early 2008. This machine was a direct result of the 2006 “Global Alliance in Photofinishing” between Fujifilm and Noritsu with the underlying print engine and chassis of the DL400 (and, indeed, all of the Fuji DL4xx series) being based on the Noritsu M300 which was unleashed on an unsuspecting world six months earlier in 2007.

The pressure is on now…

2009-12-11

OK. THE PRESSURE IS ON NOW

Less than two weeks to go before Christmas hits and I’ve done nothing about buying presents. What with building the site - which means spending lots of time on Google to find out how to do specific things - and trying to get work in the current environment, Christmas shopping seems to have slipped down the priority list. Ho Hum.

In the meantime, I was accosted by a group of kids in Tokyo’s Haneda airport. They wanted to practice their English. They left me with a very nice laminated leaf as a thank you.

Building this website

2009-12-09

I finally got around to starting the web site I’ve been threatening to build for some time and I have to admit the process was a lot easier than it used to be.

The picture is me in full flight presenting digital cameras, imaging software and dial-up services in 1996.

It has to be said that not only does hardware technology progress at a scary pace but the tools that allow the use of the latest hardware and services almost keeps up.

I remember, not that long ago in the grand scheme of things, when creating a website required half decent programming skills, imagination and a lot of patience. It really was a tedious and troublesome process. Particularly when you tried to make it work on even a couple of different browsers. Doing that as part of my job all those years ago left me less than enthusiastic to do a personal site in my leisure time.

But now the tools are nothing short of awesome! No programming at all, just assemble each page like a powerpoint slide, hit “publish” and its done... “just like that”

I love my Mac.