There is a straightforward explanation of diffraction limits at the link
below.  The page has an illustration of limits v. pixel sizes for
several cameras (animated as you point at each camera type).
It also has a calculator where you can simulate it all for various

Ran across some interesting posts about faked photos.  Led me to this:
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=5-ways-to-spot-a-fake
Then, ran across some opinions that RAW files cannot be faked?  Wait a
minute!  The demosaicing algorithms are public knowledge.  Algorithms ...

Discontinued lens, bought used for $400. Sharp as heck, though I did
have to tweak the CA corrections pretty heavily and it's still got a
blue fringe thing:
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4020/4364830592_a1360d2d70_o.jpg

Three Old Men
A woman came out of her house and saw three old men with long white
beards sitting in her front yard. She did not recognize them. She said
'I don't think I know you, but you must be hungry. Please come in and

Four years ago, Olympus claimed their middle-line pro lenses would
resolve 22 megapixels on a 4/3rds sensor.  That's 88 megapixels on a
FF sensor.  Therefore, the conclusion should be (even though Olympus
lenses in that class and the top-pro class are very good), even modest

Since my D3 has been in repair for an unreasonably long time,
I just bought a D3x as backup.  Now I notice that while the
minimum ISO for my D3 is 200, my D3x can go to 100.
How do they compare with regard to image quality?  For example,

It's got to be the sensors.  They must just not be dropping in price
like sensors in more popular cameras like FF (35mm) or smaller sensor
DSLRs.  This latest (cheap) back is almost $20k and you still need a
body and a lens(s).

Canon EOS 550D, New 18-megapixel Camera with Full HD...
http://www.techespot.com/2010/02/canon-eos-550d-new-18-megapixel-dslr.html

OK, here's the deal: in an attempt to encourage participation, the SI
Dictator has decided to announce multiple mandates with a "capture
date" so you can shoot for multiple mandates, and take more time for
the harder mandates. With that in mind, here's the next three

I can select an image size of large (12.2 megapixel (MP)),  Medium
(6.9 MP), or Small (3.1 MP).  That I understand.
I can also select an image quality of fine, normal, or basic.  What
does this mean?  If I set the image size to "large", I find that a

Gear:  Canon 5D2, 24-105; 50/1.2; 100-400 zoom.  Works well, compact,
etc.
I was googling through some other stuff tonight and found myself
checking out lens reviews, in this case, specifically the 50/1.2.

I purchased a Tamron-F 2x c-af1 BBAR MC7 teleconvertor for my Canon XSI.  I
have two Canon lenses, an EFS 55-250 and an EFS 18-55.  The teleconvertor
fits fine on the camera, but neither lens will fit down into the
teleconverter.  Any help on this is greatly appreciated.

Further to my previous posts, I provide simple/easy calculations for
determining the megapixel equivalent of a diffraction-limited system
i.e. a perfect system.
Using perfect optics with a perfect Bayer CFA sensor, how far can the