A mirrorless Nikon with Nikkor zoom for $299? Yes indeed. B&H Photo is offering the Nikon 1 V1 Mirrorless Digital Camera with 10-30mm Lens for $299 with free shipping. And for a very limited time, free overnight shipping.

The V1 features a 3.0" LCD display and a 100 percent view electronic viewfinder (with diopter adjustments). Other specs include:

• 10.1Mp 13.2 x 8.8mm CMOS CX Image Sensor
• EXPEED 3 Image Processor
• SD/SDHC/SDXC Card Slot
• Advanced Hybrid AF
• 100-3200 and 6400 ISO
• i-TTL Hot Shoe for Optional Speedlight
• 1920 x 1080/60i Movie Capture

This is the kit that recently sold for $800 before the V2 was released by Nikon. (According to DxOMark, the V1 actually has better image quality than the newer, more expensive V2.) Many photographers have purchased the V1 because of its advanced Hybrid AF, which has earned very good marks, super slo-mo video capture, mechanical and electronic shutter, and because it uses the same battery as the D7000.

Definitely the camera deal of the day.

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This week's stories: Lightroom 4.3 gets very Apple friendly, Flickr gets it together on the iPhone, and The Return of Drobo, Part 3.

Story Number One: Lightroom 4.3 was a hefty update for Adobe. There are 20 in new cameras supported in the application including the Canon 6D, the Nikon 1 version 2, the Nikon D600, Pentax K5 II, Sony RX1, and on and on. Plus there is a boatload of new lens profiles. Two that caught My eye were for the iPhone 4S and the iPhone 5.

And finally for those using the MacBook Pro Retina display, Adobe has added HiDPI support. I tested this on my MacBook Pro, and I've reported on the differences in a blog post.

Story Number Two: Flickr version 2.0 for the iPhone. What a terrific update! Not only is it easy to use my iPhone to take pictures and post them directly to my Flickr photo stream, it's also quite easy to manage all of my social activity with this new application. In fact I think it's easier to manage my Flickr account with this new iPhone app, than it is with the computer through the web browser.

Story Number Three: The Return of Drobo, Part 3. So I moved an Aperture library from another hard drive onto the Drobo. The library and its referenced masters took up 2 TB of space on the other drive. However, on the Drobo, it's only taking up about 1.3 TB. I am now using up 25% of the space that I have on the drive array.

What's interesting, is that I can run my Aperture library off the Drobo instead of having to have it on my MacBook Pro retina display. Performance has been very good. As I mentioned before, I'm connected via Thunderbolt, and I have the Hot Data Cache active on the Drobo unit.

In this particular library, I have 60,000 photos, most of them raw files. I've done image-editing, organization, and I did a big printing job earlier today. Performance again has been very good. I feel very confident running my Aperture library on the Drobo unit.

The Gift Guide for Photographers features 12 tempting goodies for the photographer in your life. Each item includes a background article about it and a direct link for the best price.

Listen to the Podcast

You can also download the podcast here (30 minutes). Or better yet, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. You can support this podcast by purchasing the TDS iPhone App for only $2.99 from the Apple App Store.

Monthly Photo Assignment

Long Exposure is the Dec. 2012 Photo Assignment. You can read more about how to submit on our Member Participation page. Deadline for entry is Dec. 31, 2012.

More Ways to Participate

Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.

Podcast Sponsors

Red River Paper -- Keep up with the world of inkjet printing, and win free paper, by liking Red River Paper on Facebook.

Make Your Photos Sizzle with Color! -- SizzlPix is like High Definition TV for your photography. Special this month, order one SizzlPix and get the second one for 50 percent. Buy just one SizzlPix and get a 25 percent discount. Put "TDS" in the comments field of your order.

Need a New Photo Bag? Check out the Lowepro Specialty Store on The Digital Story and use discount code LP20 to saven 20% at check out.

With the current holiday sale of 50 percent off a second SizzlPix or 25 percent off a single order, lots of photographers from the TDS community are trying their first SizzlPix. And as a result, a few of you might have a question or two about preparing your images.

"Baltimore Harbor" by Fred S. Brundick. This was Fred's first SizzlPix. He writes, "It should come as no surprise that everyone who sees my SizzlPix loves it. :-)"

I have a few tips here to get you started. But feel free to post additional questions too.

"What format do I need to use?" You can use JPEG or TIFF. I've used regular JPEGs with great results. Even images from my iPhone 4S have Sizzled up well.

"Do I need to do anything special in post production?" You don't. If you image looks good to your eye, then it will Sizzle up well. Don't over-sharpen! Let the SizzlPix secret sauce do its thing.

"The SizzlPix site seems a little homespun." It is indeed. All I can say is that the product is far better than the web site.

"How do I get the holiday discount?" All you have to do is enter "TDS" or "The Digital Story" in the comments field of your order. They will apply the discount (which is valid until Dec. 31, 2012).

If you have further questions, just post them here, and I will get an answer for you.

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Congratulations to StillMike who was randomly selected to win the Olympus Tough TG-1 iHS Digital Camera as part of the The Olympus Tough TG-1 iHS Digital Camera Giveaway. Mike published this image on Instagram with the hash tags #DerrickStory and #FavoriteCamera to participate.

StillMike

And just for fun, here are some of the other entries that I thought were terrific.

Jeff Doot

richii67

Mike Sage

Oliver Gunasekara

Thanks to everyone who joined in the fun. I loved looking at your images. And I'm now following each of you on Instagram. It's just another way that we can stay in touch with each other.

As for our winner, Mike please send me your shipping information and phone number (for the shipper), and I will get that new Olympus camera out to you right away.

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The recent Lightroom 4.3 release addresses a number of bug fixes, adds RAW profiles for the latest cameras, additional lens profiles including for iPhone 4S and 5, plus for Mac users who have Retina displays, HiDPI support in the Library and Develop modules.

Lightroom 4.3 Develop module (above). Click on image for full size version.

Lightroom 4.2 Develop module (previous version). Click on picture for full size image.

If you do use a Retina display, you might want to go to Lightroom > Catalog Settings > File Handling and set the Standard Preview Size to 2048 or 2880 pixels to see the most detail in your images in version 4.3.

Version 4.3 Develop model with Standard Preview set to 2880 pixels and iPhone 4S lens profile applied. Click on picture for full size image.

Lightroom 4.3 is a welcome update with its new RAW profiles, bug fixes, and plenty of goodies for photographers who use Apple products.

The Gift Guide for Photographers features 12 tempting goodies for the photographer in your life. Each item includes a background article about it and a direct link for the best price.

The Mac App Store has released its Best of 2012 list with five entries in the Photo category. Leading the way is CameraBag 2, which is runner up for App of the Year (behind Day One).

"Redesigned from the ground up, CameraBag 2's Analog Engine pairs a full suite of photographic tools with the high quality filters and vintage simulations we're known for. Its key innovation is a stunningly straightforward approach to layering, rearranging, and endlessly tweaking all of these effects in realtime. The 100+ fully-adjustable filters and 25+ professional controls CameraBag 2 ships with are only the beginning, forming the palette from which you can find, and create, your own styles." CameraBag is available for $14.99.

Four other notable photography mentions included Snapheal and Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4, which now features Retina Display support in the Develop module. Rounding out the list of top photo apps were Snapseed for the Desktop and Diptic.

Even though I listed URLs here for the software, I recommend that you purchase through the Mac App Store where updates are handled quite elegantly.

Congratulations to each of these excellent imaging applications for their recognition on the Mac platform.

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You might fall in love with Flickr all over again. The latest release of Flickr for iPhone app (version 2.0) brings back the joy to the venerable photo sharing app in a very modern way.

You can capture images, apply filters, share on Flickr and other sites, monitor your contacts, explore the world of photography, and keep track of your groups... on your iPhone or iPod Touch. The interface is well-designed and easy to use.

The camera mode works well on my iPhone 4S, and once I've captured the image, I have 16 filters to choose from, if I so wish. The image quality seems quite good, and original size is preserved. Sharing to Flickr, Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr is a cinch - as is adding title, description, and all of the normal Flickr controls.

On the social side of things, monitoring activity with my Photo Stream and keeping track of what others are doing is actually easier on the iPhone than the web page. If you see a photo that you really like, all you have to do is tap on it twice to mark it as a favorite. The presentation of your contacts' photos is top notch and a great way to pass the time during a coffee break or when standing in a long line.

Turn the iPhone sideways, and you go into lightbox mode where you can swipe from image to image. Great way to enjoy pure photography without interface clutter (of which there is very little with this app anyway.)

And if you want to see the big world of photography, tap on the globe icon to see great imagery worldwide and near you locally.

The Flickr 2.0 for iPhone is very well done. And as a result, I've become even more engaged with The Digital Story Flickr account.

Flickr Training

I have a lynda.com title, Flickr Essential Training that provides all the ins and outs you need to master Flickr. Stop by and learn how to get the most from this terrific photo sharing environment.

Previously on The Digital Story

Exploring Interesting Places Via Flickr

Become Your Own Museum Curator with "Galleries" on Flickr

Using Google to Search Within Flickr

Flickr Keyboard Shortcuts

Flickr Updates Share Tools for Facebook, Twitter

Introduction to Flickr Essential Training

I've had the iPad mini since day 1 of its release. And how I'm using it is much different than I would have anticipated. Here are 5 personal iPad mini myths that have been debunked over time.

I loved reading The Daily on the iPad mini, and I'm going to dearly miss that publication.

Myth 1 - I'll use the camera more: I thought because the iPad mini was smaller that I would be more prone to using its built-in camera. Nope. I still reach for my iPhone 4S for mobile photography. I can send the image to the iPad in a matter of seconds using PhotoSync. The iPhone is a better image capture device. The iPad is a superior viewing device.

Myth 2 - I won't use it as a mobile portfolio because it doesn't have a Retina display: Wrong again. Even though I much prefer the Retina display on my iPad 3, my photos still look terrific on the mini. I use it all the time as a mobile portfolio. And it's much lighter to carry around and hand to a client.

Myth 3 - I'll use the mini for image editing just like I do my iPad 3: Wrongo in the Congo. I'm much more comfortable using Snapseed, iPhoto for iOS, and Photogene on the full size iPad. I will use the mini in a pinch. But I much prefer the iPad 3 for image editing. In an odd sort of way, the iPad 3 had become more of a computer to me since having the mini.

Myth 4 - I'll still use the iPad 3 for periodical and magazine reading: Sorry, but that hasn't panned out at all. I love reading the San Francisco Chronicle, USA Today and other periodicals on the mini. And I'm really going to miss The Daily (shown above), which I have been a subscriber to since its launch. The mini is far more comfortable to hold for reading than a full-sized iPad. And as a result, I'm reading more than ever on an iPad. I would go so far as to predict that the mini is really going to help us make the transition to digital periodicals.

Myth 5 - The mini will never become my favorite iPad: Hmmm, the jury is still out on this one. No way I would ever want to give up the beautiful iPad 3. But around the house, 3 times out of 4, I'm picking up the mini. And that surprises me the most.

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This week stories: A Bargain Canon Super Zoom, The Return of Drobo Part 2, and the Olympus TG-1 camera giveaway.

Story Number One: - The Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 IS II lens, Standard street price for the zoom is $299. But I've see it going regularly for $249, and I even scored one brand-new in the box with warranty for $195. This is not a fancy lens. But it certainly takes good pictures. What I like about it is that it has four-stop image stabilization, and that it is light and relatively compact for a zoom with an effective range from 88mm to 400mm. More on this lens in the first segment of the show.

Story Number Two: - The Return of Drobo - Part 2. Let's go under the hood and look at some of the specifications for the set up that I'm testing.

I have all five bays of the 5D filled with drives. That includes three 1-TB drives and two 3-TB drives that occupy the five slots. In the bottom slot (on the bottom of the unit), I have one mSATA SSD Accelerator Drive installed. This is a solid-state chip with 64 GBs of memory that improves performance. With a total of 9 TB of disk space installed, I have access to 5.4 TB of space. 2.77 TB of the 9 TBs is used for protection. More on how this all works out in the second segment of the show.

Story Number Three: -The Olympus Tough TG-1 iHS Digital Camera Giveaway. To celebrate the holiday season, I want to give away an Olympus Tough TG-1 iHS Digital Camera. It's one of my favorite compact cameras, and I think someone else should enjoy one too. I go over the details in this segment of the show.

The Gift Guide for Photographers features 12 tempting goodies for the photographer in your life. Each item includes a background article about it and a direct link for the best price.

Listen to the Podcast

You can also download the podcast here (34 minutes). Or better yet, subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. You can support this podcast by purchasing the TDS iPhone App for only $2.99 from the Apple App Store.

Monthly Photo Assignment

Long Exposure is the Dec. 2012 Photo Assignment. You can read more about how to submit on our Member Participation page. Deadline for entry is Dec. 31, 2012.

More Ways to Participate

Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.

Podcast Sponsors

Red River Paper -- Keep up with the world of inkjet printing, and win free paper, by liking Red River Paper on Facebook.

Make Your Photos Sizzle with Color! -- SizzlPix is like High Definition TV for your photography. Special this month, order one SizzlPix and get the second one for 50 percent. Buy just one SizzlPix and get a 25 percent discount. Put "TDS" in the comments field of your order.

Need a New Photo Bag? Check out the Lowepro Specialty Store on The Digital Story and use discount code LP20 to saven 20% at check out.

At $255 (or less), the Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 IS II lenscombines powerful magnification (88mm-400mm), terrific image quality, four-stop stabilization, and impressive close-up performance in a compact, lightweight design. I've been testing the lens, and here is my hands-on review.

A Consumer Lens by Design

Don't get me wrong, as much as I like this zoom, it's a consumer design through and through. The lens mount is plastic, not metal. The autofocus motor is not the silent USM variety. And the front lens barrel rotates when focusing. But after that, the news is pretty darn good.

Medium shot with the Canon 55-250mm zoom set to 70mm (f/4, 1/25th, ISO 100, hand held). All images captured in RAW with normal post-processing in Aperture 3.4. Photos by Derrick Story.

Close Ups as Well as Scenics

I mounted the zoom on my Canon 60D and shot a variety of images, from very close up to full distance. The autofocusing was snappy and accurate. Image quality was high. Flare was well controlled, as was chromatic aberration.

Move the zoom setting to 250mm to take advantage of the lens close focusing ability - magnification 0.31x at 250mm. (f/6.7, 1/350th, ISO 1000, hand held)

The lens is also compatible with the Canon Extension Tube EF 12 II and EF 25 II for increased magnification. I have the EF 12 II and tested it with the 55-250 zoom. In all honesty, I had a blast with it.

African Daisy photographed with the EF-S 55-250mm zoom and Extension Tube EF 12 II on a Canon 60D - magnification 0.60x at 250mm (f/16, 1/45th, ISO 1600, hand held).

As for scenics and long shots, I was able to get separation between the subject and the background, even though the maximum aperture is f/5.6 at 250mm. This composition had strong backlighting, but I can't detect any noticeable flare.

Autumn color, captured at a distance with the zoom fully extended (f/5.6, 1/350th, ISO 125, hand held).

Who Is this Lens For?

I think the Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 IS II lensis best suited for travel and outdoor photography. By adding the Extension Tube EF 12 II, you have a super light 88-400mm zoom that's also capable of engaging close-up photography. Autofocusing is snappy, image quality is great, and it has a terrific 4-stop IS system.

The f/5.6 maximum aperture nixes this zoom for sports and indoor action. But if you want a feather-light companion for your outdoor adventures, you can't beat the value of this lens at less than $300. I particularly like it with the Canon 60D. I bet it feels pretty good on the Rebels too.

The Gift Guide for Photographers features 12 tempting goodies for the photographer in your life. Each item includes a background article about it and a direct link for the best price.