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Tamron lenses are fantastic. I’m not sure there’s any independent reviewer that would disagree with that. Tamron zoom lenses for Sony FE cameras are notably incredible. Their lenses don’t exactly compete with what Sony offers, but they augment it. What’s more, they do so while providing a ton of value for what they are. We’ve reviewed every Tamron zoom lens for Sony FE cameras on the market. And in this roundup, we’ll tell you what you need to know if you’re considering purchasing. This piece is presented in partnership with TAMRON. We’ve independently and ethically reviewed all the products in this post already without sponsorship. And we worked with them to recommend a few key gems to you. The Phoblographer’s various product round-up features are done in-house. Our philosophy is simple: you wouldn’t get a Wagyu beef steak review from a lifelong vegetarian. And you wouldn’t get photography advice from someone who doesn’t touch the product. We only recommend gear that we’ve fully reviewed. If you’re wondering why your favorite product didn’t make the cut, there’s a chance it’s on another list. If we haven’t reviewed it, we won’t recommend it. This method keeps our lists packed with industry-leading knowledge. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. Table of Contents Tamron Nomenclature Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 Di III VXD G2 Tamron 28-200mm f2.8-5.6 Di III RXD Tamron 35-150mm f2-2.8 Di III VXD Tamron 50-400mm f4.5-6.3 Di III VC VXD Tamron 70-180mm f2.8 Di III VXD Tamron 70-300mm f4.5-6.3 Di III RXD Tamron 150-500mm f5-6.7 Di III VC VXD Tamron Nomenclature Here are some common Tamron terms in their lens naming and what they mean. Di: Tamron Di (Digitally Integrated) lenses are performance-optimized for digital cameras. Lenses with the nomenclature Di are lenses for DSLRs featuring full-frame sensors; Di II for DSLRs with APS-C sensors; Di III for mirrorless cameras with full-frame sensors; and Di III-A for mirrorless cameras with APS-C sensors. VXD: (Voice-Coil eXtreme torque Drive) The VXD AF Drive provides the highest levels of autofocus speed and precision in Tamron’s long history. It is Tamron’s first-ever linear motor focus mechanism for stunningly fast and accurate auto-focusing. Two VXD units are arranged in a floating system and operated simultaneously via electronic control to achieve excellent optical performance at all shooting distances near and far. Focus tracking is vastly improved for sports and racing photography. G1 or G2: First or second generation of a particular Tamron lens. VC: (Vibration Compensation Image Stabilization System) Tamron’s VC uses a proprietary actuator and algorithms to deliver an extremely stable viewfinder image with excellent tracking. The 3-coil system electromagnetically drives the lens element that compensates for vibration, which glides smoothly on three balls with little friction. Several lenses offer different modes for panning and video shooting. VC can also be customized with the TAP-In Console or Tamron Lens Utility. VC should always be turned off when using the lens on a tripod. RXD: (Rapid eXtra-silent Drive) The RXD stepping drive uses an actuator to precisely control the rotational angle of the motor, allowing it to directly drive the focusing lens without passing through a reduction gear. A sensor that accurately detects the position of the lens enables high-speed and precise AF, which is ideal when shooting moving subjects or video. Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD The Strong Point: This is a small wide-angle lens that can be used for general shooting. Stick it on the camera and it might be the only lens you need. In our review, we state: “The Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD is a fantastic lens when it comes to image quality. This overall makes it a stellar performer.” Buy Now Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 Di III VXD G2 The Strong Point: This is an update to the previou...
The super-telephoto is one of the most difficult lenses to master both for the lens builder and the photographer attempting to wield such large glass. While no 500mm will be described as tiny, Tamron managed to shed some weight and length while still packing in a lot of zoom. The Tamron 150-500mm f5-6.7 Di III VC VXD weighs 3.8 pounds and is roughly eight inches long. With image stabilization built in, the new telephoto is manageable enough to shoot handheld. Editor’s Note: This review has been updated on October 10th, 2022. I took the 150-500mm lens on a hike, photographed two soccer games, and chased hot air balloons — all without a tripod. I instantly fell in love with the 500mm reach that’s not attached to a stick. I was eager to open up the extreme zoom images. So how do the photographs from a handheld 500mm that’s priced lower than many competitors hold up? Table of Contents Too Long, Didn’t Read Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Autofocus On Fujifilm Ease of Use Image Quality Bokeh Sharpness Lens Character Color Rendering Fujifilm Tests Extra Image Samples Edited Unedited Conclusions Likes Dislikes Too Long, Didn’t Read The Tamron 150-500mm f5-6.7 Di III VC VXD does an impressive job putting a 500mm zoom into a reasonably-sized lens. And the lens also manages to control aberration and distortion well. The biggest downside? The narrower aperture and long zoom length mean higher ISOs, along with some corner softness. Pros and Cons Pros Smaller than competing lenses Handheld telephoto shooting Versatile zoom range, with close-up ability Great color and background separation Reasonable price Weather-sealing Fantastic for Fujifilm X mount Cons Autofocus has occasional misses with fast action Soft corners Gear Used I used the Tamron 150-500mm f5-6.7 Di III VC VXD with the Sony A7R IV. I stashed my gear in the updated Wandrd PRVKE II backpack. Innovations 500mm is a lot of reach. But, the Tamron 150-500mm f5-6.7 Di III VC VXD is smaller and lighter than several similar lenses, including the Sony FE 200-600mm f5.6-6.3 G OSS, the Nikon AF-S 200-500mm f5.6E ED VR, and the Sigma 150-600mm f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Contemporary. The Canon RF 100-500mm f4.5-7.1 IS USM is slightly smaller. The Tamron also packs in some optical design and coating meant to preserve image quality. But, the biggest innovation about this lens is, well, that’s it’s not quite as big. Tech Specs Tamron lists these tech specs for the 150-500mm lens: Focal Length: 150-500mm Maximum Aperture: F5-6.7 Angle of View: (diagonal) 16°25’-4°57′ (for full-frame mirrorless format) Optical Construction: 25 elements in 16 groups Minimum Object Distance: 0.6m (23.6 in) (WIDE) / 1.8m (70.9 in) (TELE) Maximum Magnification Ratio: 1:3.1 (WIDE) / 1:3.7 (TELE) Filter Size: φ82mm Maximum Diameter: φ93mm Length: 209.6mm / 8.3 in (front tip of the lens to the lens mount face) Weight: 1,725g (60.8 oz) (without tripod mount included) / tripod mount 155g (5.5 oz) Aperture Blades: 7 (circular diaphragm, the circular diaphragm stays almost perfectly circular up to two stops down from maximum aperture) Minimum Aperture: F22-32 Standard Accessory: Round-shaped hood, Lens caps, Tripod mount Compatible Mounts: Sony E-mount Ergonomics Monstrous is typically the best word to describe telephoto lenses that reach 500mm. But, while the Tamron 150-500mm f5-6.7 Di III VC VXD isn’t small, it’s smaller than competing lenses. The Tamron is roughly four inches shorter and almost a pound lighter than the Sony FE 200-600mm f5.6-6.3 G OSS, and the maximum aperture at the wide-angle is brighter on the Tamron. The 150-500mm lens weighs 60.8 ounces, or about 3.8 pounds, adding a few ounces for the tripod collar. It will take up a little more than an eight-inch slot in the camera bag. While lighter than the closest competing lens, the 150-500mm is still hefty glass. It makes the Sony a7R IV front-heavy. After a few hours of use, the grip on the Sony body left a mark...
If you’re curious about animal detection autofocus in your camera, then you’ve come to the right place. We’ve been curious about it too. What’s more, each camera system takes its own approach to how to do it. And it can be very confusing to some folks. At other times, it can be really frustrating. So we’re looking at animal detection on various camera systems. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. What is Animal Detection Animal detection differs depending on the camera system. A lot of them incorporate animal and bird detection together. Sony is the major full-frame camera manufacturer that doesn’t do this. But basically, it tells the autofocus to look at the scene and prioritize autofocusing on an animal instead of a human, bike, car, etc. Lucky for you, we’ve reviewed tons of cameras that do this. For the record, we’ve tested all of the cameras that we’re talking about in this post. Canon With Canon cameras, there are a few ways to autofocus. The system can look at a scene and recognize certain things. If you set it to animal vs. human, it will detect all sorts of animals. We’ve used the Canon EOS R5, Canon EOS R6, Canon EOS R7, and the Canon EOS R3 in animal detection. Each time, it has found both birds and mammals with no issues in animal detection mode. Practically speaking, this means that you’re less likely to miss shots. You can be walking around in the forest and have your camera set to animal mode with ease. You can be photographing chipmunks one moment and hawks another moment. Otherwise, you’d need to physically move the autofocus point over the subject to get focus. That’s often much harder when it comes to focusing on a bird through trees. But a system that recognized the warbler in the trees can get it faster. Best Cameras for Animal Detection and Bird Detection: Canon EOS R5 Canon EOS R6 Canon EOS R3 Canon EOS R7 Nikon Update September 2022: The Nikon Z9 is the most innovative camera when it comes to animal detection for Nikon. It bundles birds and animals together. We’ve used the Z9 in our review, and found it to be much better than the Z7 II and Z6 II, which only have detection for basically pets. We’ve also known that the Z9 has improved with autofocus updates. Best Cameras for Animal Detection and Bird Detection: Nikon Z9 Sony Sony has a complicated but effective system. If you take the Sony a1 or even an older camera like the Sony a7r III into the forest to photograph birds and animals, you’ll need to set the camera accordingly. The Sony a1, in bird-detection mode, won’t do so well getting your dog in focus when you turn your camera to it. As a result, you’ll have to go quickly into the menu system and then switch it to animal focus priority. It also works well with the Sony a7 IV. We’ve done this, and it’s been pretty annoying at times. Best Cameras for Animal Detection and Bird Detection: Sony A1 Sony a7 IV Fujifilm Update September 2022: Fujifilm has finally entered the wildlife world! They separate animal from bird detection and have two cameras that can do it. There’s the XH2, which is slower than its older sibling, the XH2s. The latter is designed for speed, and with the right lenses, it can perform very well. Best Cameras for Animal Detection and Bird Detection: Fujifilm XH2s Panasonic With a camera like the Panasonic S5, you’ll be able to use animal-autofocus detection to photograph birds. There are also Micro Four Thirds cameras like the G9 and GH5 II that can do it. It does a pretty good job overall, but effectively tracking the subjects isn’t as good as it is with Sony and Canon. Even when you adjust the focusing profiles, it just doesn’t have the same hit rate. Best Cameras for Animal Detection and Bird Detection: Panasonic S5 Panasonic GH5 II OM System The Olympus OMD EM1x has autofocus for animals and birds. But it’s really not that great. According to our review: “For wildlife, I walked away very disappointed at the fa...
Culling photos from a big shoot such as a wedding is a process that typically takes hours. For me, the photo cull is a boring task that’s best tackled with Netflix and some snacks. But, can artificial intelligence turn that hours-long process into a few minutes? PhotoRefine A.I. Photo Manager is an app that uses artificial intelligence to ease the bore of the cull. Using A.I., the app groups photos together, then searches for the sharpest one. But, mixing artificial intelligence with art is a precarious teeter-totter. Can A.I. really find your best shots? When I first downloaded Optyx. I didn’t expect to really like the app. I was worried that, by integrating A.I., I would be losing the ability to pick a photograph based on emotional impact alone. But, Optyx works best with some manual input — and doesn’t really judge a photo beyond anything but sharpness. Optyx may have just found the perfect balance between speed and overlooking too many great shots. Optyx was bought out by Zenfolio, where it was added to its suite of tools and renamed PhotoRefine. That also means it’s part of the Zenfolio subscription — which is great for subscribers but perhaps not so great for photographers who only want the A.I. culling software. But, Zenfolio has added a bunch of features, including considering the “happiness” in a photo, and refined the user interface. Like Optyx, PhotoRefine won’t turn hours of culling into seconds. But, by flagging and color coding photos, it’s easier to quickly cull photos looking at small thumbnails rather than zooming in to see what photo is sharpest, or which one has everyone’s eyes open. Like any A.I., it’s best when mixed with some human input, but simplifies sorting through bursts and similar photos. Table of Contents TOO LONG, DIDN’T READ. PROS AND CONS PROS CONS GEAR USED MAIN FEATURES EASE OF USE REAL-LIFE APPLICATIONS CONCLUSIONS LIKES DISLIKES TOO LONG, DIDN’T READ. PhotoRefine does a good job of looking for sharpness and avoiding closed eyes. The sharpness tool works well some of the time, but it doesn’t like photos with a lot of bokeh. The manual culling tools allow a good blend between the speed of A.I. and the eye of an actual human. It’s a good app for burst shooters, but photographers who only take a shot or two of the same subject won’t save time. PROS AND CONS PROS Finds your sharpest photos Groups similar shots automatically Allows for a mix of human and AI culling The user interface is improved. CONS Another app to import to. Sigh. It’s not sold as a stand-alone program anymore. I wish it would use zero stars on bad images instead of one. GEAR USED I used the PhotoRefine app on my 2021 MacBook Pro. MAIN FEATURES PhotoRefine is based on several A.I. features. Here’s how Zenfolio says the software works: Focus detection: The app looks at each face to evaluate for sharpness, choosing shots with the sharpest focus on faces. A.I. Autocull: This feature groups similar images together, so you can easily pick the best of the bunch. Fast previews: PhotoRefine says that previews are fast so that you can also manually cull faster than Lightroom’s previews load. EASE OF USE PhotoRefine requires logging in at the start and sometimes even after the program has been left alone too long. There’s no option to remember your username and password. But maybe it sensed my annoyance at having to type my login information twice in one day because the next day it didn’t ask me to log in. After opening the program, it also has to analyze the photos, and large albums take a while. PhotoRefine starts out much like any RAW file manager — you must import your photos. The process starts by creating a new shoot, then adding your photos. This process is similar to Lightroom and Capture One. 150 photos took about 5-10 minutes, but 650 took about half an hour. PhotoRefine, however, analyzes photos as it imports. The sidebar lists choices on how loosely to apply groupings, whether to group exposure bracketing and the workflow ...
We’re streaming daily on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and Spotify! Retouching is part art, part technical savvy. The Nino Batista Premium Retouching Video tutorials build on the latter. The series of 30 retouching videos cover topics from retouching skin to perfecting color. Skin is one of the trickiest edits — and as a glamour photographer, Nino Batista does a lot to work with in his edits. Formerly part of Batista’s paid YouTube channel, the retouching tutorials cover more in-depth, advanced skills than the average free tutorial. The videos contain a heavy focus on Photoshop, with some RAW processing in Capture One. Made for photographers who know a few basics but not much else, I picked up a few tricks, even as an avid Photoshop user of more than ten years. Batista covers excellent techniques that are easily adaptable to your own style. Who Is Nino Batista? As a glamour photographer, Nino Batista’s work primarily features female models. His photos regularly appear in lifestyle and men’s magazines, including Playboy and FHM. Batista is also well-known as a photo educator. He regularly teaches retouching techniques, both online and in person. As a co-founder at NBP Pro EDU Retouch tools, he’s also part of the team developing Photoshop plug-ins. Retouching Tutorials — With Plenty of Skin “Tutorials for boudoir photography can easily feel like sitting next to that weird uncle that always makes inappropriate comments at family functions. But, I didn’t find that to be the case here.” A quote from this review by Phoblographer Reviews Editor Hillary Grigonis Let’s get the obvious out of the way first; Batista’s photos offer more to retouch than a basic portrait. As a glamour photographer, the photos he works on in the tutorial are typically of women in limited — and sometimes zero — clothing. The models in the online listing for these tutorials wear much more clothing than the photos in the actual tutorials. That’s excellent for photographers learning to retouch skin since there’s so much of it to work with. A skin retouching tutorial on the average portrait won’t include steps for editing the ribcage, for example. The tutorials go beyond just perfecting the face. As a woman, I did not feel terribly uncomfortable watching the retouching tutorials. Batista regularly threw out phrases like “she’s just human” and “common on every human you edit.” He doesn’t objectify or berate. Tutorials for boudoir photography can easily feel like sitting next to that weird uncle who always makes inappropriate comments at family functions. But, I didn’t find that to be the case here. That said, some photographers may still be uncomfortable watching tutorials on glamour or bodyscape. I wouldn’t watch these videos with my kids or my mother looking over my shoulder. If the work on Batista’s Instagram page makes you uncomfortable, then this isn’t the retouching course for you. What’s Included in the Nino Batista Premium Retouching Tutorials? The tutorial set includes 825 minutes of tutorials across 30 different videos. The series includes both short tutorials on a specific technique and start-to-finish edits. Batista works with both Capture One and Photoshop. The videos offer excellent coverage of the different techniques to retouch people for photographers with a little Photoshop experience. Batista covers basic topics like black and white conversions and customizing your Photoshop workspace. More advanced topics are also tackled, including perfecting skin tone and frequency separation. The PhotoWhoa series came after YouTube discontinued its paid memberships. The series includes 30 of those videos. Some, however, are missing — he references a tutorial on Photoshop brushes in one video that’s not listed in the class. The Good There isn’t one “right” way to edit — and Batista teaches to that. He calls his own editing process organic and teaches to that same tune. He talks about what a tool does, why to use it, and how much....
The Sony a1 shows that electronic shutters are the future. Sony stunned the photography industry when they announced their new flagship camera, the Sony a1. Sony is back to innovating again when it comes to silicon, and this is incredibly exciting. On paper, this camera with its new stacked sensor should impress even the most hard-headed photographers out there. Still, we all know that specs on a piece of paper don’t always equate to great real-world performance. We’ve had our hands on the new Sony a1 for a week, and we’ve put it to the test in some tough conditions. Will the wow factor from the spec sheet carry over into the wild when we test it? Find out in our full review of the Sony a1. Table of Contents Pros and Cons Pros Cons Too Long, Didn’t Read Gear Used Tech Specs Sony a1 – Innovations Sony a1 – Ergonomics Top Panel Camera Back Camera Left Camera Right Sony a1 – Build Quality Sony a1 – Ease of Use The Electronic Shutter Is Nuts IBIS Performance Sony a1 – Autofocus Human and Human Eye AF Animal Autofocus Bird Autofocus Sony a1 – Metering Sony a1 – Image Quality RAW File Versatility JPEGS High ISO Pixel Shift Multi Shot Sony a1 – Extra Image Samples Sony a1 – Conclusions Likes Dislikes Pros and Cons Pros Sony’s a1 shows that stacked sensors are the future Detail rich images with great dynamic range Excellent ergonomics (the best Sony camera to date) The a1 features the new touchscreen menu system Fantastic overall autofocus performance 30 frames per second with the electronic shutter with virtually no rolling shutter or banding issues 1/400th mechanical shutter speed with compatible TTL flashes and triggers Sony’s 9.44 million dot EVF is a work of art Excellent build quality Good battery life 8K video Excellent performance with CFexpress A cards Cons It has the same old 1.44 million dot LCD The LCD is not fully articulating Bird AF is a work in progress Multi Shot mode is inconsistent Autofocus suffers a little in very low light situations It’s $6,499 Too Long, Didn’t Read The Sony a1 is a camera designed for professionals who need the best in stills and video. 50MP images at 30 frames per second with autofocus make this camera a must-have for pro sports, pro wildlife, and photojournalists. It’s pricey at $6,499. However, if you need a solid camera that can produce high-resolution images by the bucket load and 8K video, the Sony a1is a no-compromise camera that delivers. Gear Used We used the Sony a1 with the Sony 24-70mm f2.8 GM and the Sony 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 GM OSS. Also used was a Sony CFexpress A memory card. Tech Specs All of the technical specifications have been taken directly from the official Sony website: 50.1-MP 35 mm full-frame stacked CMOS sensor with integral memory Advanced BIONZ XR engine boosts speed by up to 8x 30fps continuous shooting with AF/AE tracking Movie-making with 8K 30p and 4K 120p Wide AF coverage with 759-point phase-detection and 425-point contrast-detection AF points Battery life (stills) – Approx. 430 shots (Viewfinder) / approx. 530 shots (LCD monitor) (CIPA standard) Image Quality Modes – RAW (Compressed / Lossless Compressed / Uncompressed), JPEG (Extra fine / Fine / Standard / Light), HEIF (4:2:0 / 4:2:2) (Extra fine / Fine / Standard / Light) Viewfinder – 9.44 million dots LCD 1.44 million dots Human face and eye AF, animal body and eye AF, and a new Birding AF mode Flash Sync. Speed – (Mechanical Shutter), (Flash Sync. Priority) is (ON) or (AUTO):1/400 s (35 mm full-frame), 1/500 s (APS-C), (Flash Sync. Priority) is (OFF):1/320 s (35 mm full-frame), 1/400 s (APS-C), (Electrical shutter), 1/200 s (35 mm full-frame), 1/250 s (APS-C) Image Sensor-Shift mechanism with 5-axis compensation Continuous Drive Speeds – AUTO/Electronic Shutter: Continuous shooting: Hi+: 30fps, Hi: 20fps, Mid: 15fps, Lo: 5fps,10111213 Mechanical Shutter: Continuous shooting: Hi+: 10fps, Hi: 8fps, Mid: 6fps, Lo: 3fps Sony a1 – Innovations The Sony a1 features a brand new stacked with high-speed RAM stacke...
The Sony a7c is the company’s first rangefinder-style camera with a full-frame sensor at heart. I’m incredibly elated that Sony made a camera like the Sony a7c. The entire industry is lacking rangefinder-style cameras. Putting a full-frame sensor into one is the icing on the cake. Maybe it will mean other brands follow suit. Sony made a few sacrifices to create the Sony a7c. This is a real innovation that was proven long ago with the RX1 series. But this camera is different; you can swap the lenses out. The image stabilization isn’t up to par with the other Sony a7 camera bodies. And in some ways, I feel the autofocus isn’t either. You’re also missing a joystick. But otherwise, the Sony a7c has a whole lot going for it. Editor’s Note: Our original review was published with pre-production firmware. We’ve updated this review with firmware version 2.0. Sony a7c Pros and Cons Pros It’s tiny This is Sony’s first rangefinder-style full-frame camera, and it reminds me so much of the Mamiya 6 Good image quality overall I adore the shutter sound Weather resistance is excellent for shooting in the rain The colors from the images are lovely High ISO output is outstanding, especially in print Focus peaking seems better than previous cameras, but it’s still not Canon’s Cons No joystick I really wanted the Sony a7r III sensor: that was the most perfect one Sony’s IBIS isn’t as good as Canon’s or Fujifilm’s The IBIS in the Sony a7c isn’t as good as that of the higher-end Sony a7 models No touchscreen menu I’d really like a frontal exposure dial Sony needs to revamp its delayed shooting option to focus on a subject right before it’s going to fire I don’t feel like this is the same autofocus as the other Sony a7 cameras. Sony’s autofocus needs to be revamped to accurately focus on people of color with dark hair and against dark backgrounds Needs dual card slots 1/200th flash sync Dynamic range isn’t that great in Capture One Sony is still prone to getting dust on the sensor with this camera Gear Used with the Sony a7c We tested the Sony a7c with Sony 35mm f1.8 FE Sony 28-60mm f4-5.6 Fotodiox M to E mount adapter 7Artisans 50mm f1.1 7Artisans 28mm f1.4 Samyang 14mm f2.8 II Samyang 85mm f1.4 II Profoto B10 Sony 85mm f1.4 GM Sony a7c Tech Specs Here are the tech specs in brief 24 Megapixel Backside illuminated full-frame sensor 20% smaller and 30% lighter than other Sony a7 series cameras 5 stop of IS Weather sealing 4k video features 10 frame per second in mechanical and electronic shutter The same battery as the newer Sony a7 series cameras Variable angle LCD screen Magnesium alloy body with weather resistance Ergonomics Here it is in silver! Many of us have been waiting a long time for a rangefinder-style mirrorless camera boasting a full-frame sensor. And it’s here! Admittedly, I think I made it look more gorgeous in the photos than it is in real life. Personally speaking, my heart belongs to the Fujifilm X Pro 3. And the silver on both cameras is very similar. The front of the Sony a7c has the full-frame E mount area. There are no buttons on the front except for the lens release. I wish Sony put more buttons on the front of their cameras. It would help them feel more like, well, real-cameras! I also wish the front of the grip still had the extra dial. The top of the Sony a7c has three controls. Around the shutter release is the on/off switch. It shares the right side with the mode dial that includes the dreaded Auto mode. There is also a video record button nestled between the shutter release and the exposure compensation dial. To the left of all this is the hot shoe. The back of the camera is incredibly comfortable. It’s missing a joystick, and some folks won’t like that. Changing the autofocus point with the wheel at the back is more annoying and slower than a dedicated joystick. The LCD screen is the variable angle type. To the right of all this are control buttons and the other exposure dials. To the top left of it is the EVF. It’s ni...
Sometimes I find myself shaking my head at what cameras can do these days. The jury is still out as to whether it’s shaken in disbelief or wonderment. That is the case with the long-awaited and fairly priced Sony a7 IV. It packs a lot of features that photographers have been asking for along with capabilities that are overkill. I think Sony’s next camera could take an entirely black or even stark white image and recover almost every detail. Editor’s Note: This review has received updates as of July 2022. Alas, It has been fun watching the community pine for the newest Sony a7 IV leading up to its announcement. Based on what photographers have been asking for online, they will be delighted with the versatility of this camera. Its premise is to build a bridge for hybrid shooters and make their creativity more attainable. While the video functionalities are sure to pique interest, this review will focus on its photographic capabilities. Does it live up to the beloved a7 series? There’s no question that it does. The short answer is it’s an excellent option for most genres of photography. It’s sweeping an even broader net at who this camera is for. Keep reading to find out why. Table of Contents Too Long Didn’t Read Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Ease of Use Firmware Installation Improved Camera Stability Autofocus Eye AF Isn’t Always Accurate (Update July 2022) Metering Image Quality High ISO Images Raw File Versatility JPEG Quality Extra Image Samples Edited Unedited Conclusions of the Sony a7 IV Likes Dislikes Too Long Didn’t Read The long-anticipated Sony a7 IV is finally here and aims to bridge the gap for still photographers and videographers. It’s received a bit of a facelift with a beautiful, new OLED screen and a more comfortable grip. The updated face and animal detection with tracking is impressive and fun. It now comes with in-camera skin smoothing to significantly reduce post-processing time. Plus, its price is pretty great for an all-in-one option. Pros and Cons Pros Face detection and tracking Animal face detection and tracking Bird face and eye detection Metering Updated OLED screen and menu Comfortable grip Suitable for a variety of applications Weather-sealed and sensor dust issue is improved Fast autofocus Impressive Dynamic Range Sharp – almost too sharp for some womens’ portraits In-camera skin softening to combat incredibly sharp skin pores Cons High ISO performance could be better Color noise in out-of-focus areas at lower ISOs Shutter freezes and the camera becomes unresponsive at times when shooting bracketed High burst mode currently only works if shooting compressed RAW Gear Used We tested the new Sony a7 IV with the Sony 35mm f1.4GM lens, Sony 50mm f1.2 GM lens, and Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 lens. Innovations As far as cutting edge, the new a7 IV isn’t revamping the world of mirrorless cameras. What it does is borrow some of the great features of the flagship a1 and is a welcome upgrade to the lower-tier lineup. The upgraded OLED screen, real-time human/animal autofocus, and impressive dynamic range are welcome additions. Tech Specs All technical specifications are provided by the manufacturer. 33.0 MP (appx/effective) full-frame Exmor R™ CMOS image sensor Latest generation BIONZ XR™ image processing engine High resolution with color reproduction accuracy & low noise 15 stop dynamic range for natural gradations Creative Look / Soft Skin Effect 10-bit HEIF format (4:2:2 or 4:2:0) 5.5-step advantage 5-axis in-body image stabilization 828 continuous RAW+JPEG shooting 759 phase-detection AF points (94% coverage) Improved AF-S speed / Improved low light AF down to EV-4 AF tracking for continuous shooting at f22 Real-time Eye AF for Human/Animal/Bird More tenacious Real-time Tracking 4K 60p recording in Super35 format for slow-motion 4k 30p recording, 7k oversampling for high resolution S-Cinetone™ and Creative Look for delivery work 10bit S-Log3 with 15+ stops o...
The Canon EOS R5 is the company’s first major professional mirrorless camera, and it’s wonderful! There was a time when I was angry at Canon. But when the Canon EOS R launched, that anger subsided. It was a nice entry into the serious mirrorless camera world. But the Canon EOS R5 is arguably the camera they should have launched at the start. This camera can easily become the bread and butter of any professional photographer using it. It can also be a great tool for a multimedia shooter. Better yet, the hobbyist photographer who is passionate about the craft will enjoy what this camera can do. There has been a lot of wrongful bashing of the Canon EOS R5 on the web. And in this review, we’re going to talk to the practicality of it all. Note that before you go on, we’re not sensationalizing things just for clicks. If you’re a shooter that left Canon for another system, we’re probably going to tell you a few things you don’t want to hear. So, please keep your superiority complexes in check. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. This review has been updated in June 2022. Table of Contents Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used with the Canon EOS R5 Canon EOS R5 Tech Specs Canon EOS R5 Ergonomics Canon EOS R5 Build Quality Canon EOS R5 Ease of Use Canon EOS R5 Autofocus Performance Update December 2021 Update July 2022 Canon EOS R5 Image Quality JPEG Output RAW File Versatility High ISO Output TimeLapse Shooting Extra Image Samples from the Canon EOS R5 Canon EOS R5 Review Conclusions Likes Dislikes Pros and Cons Pros Well built Excellent battery life So intuitive for a Canon shooter Feels very good in the hand Image stabilization is pretty much second to none Wonderful menu systems Excellent details Weather sealed Reliable Canon’s Mobile App connection setup is as simple as ever Doesn’t overheat with short clips Wifi sending of full HD video is pretty fast High ISO RAW files hold a fair amount of data. There’s great dynamic range and colors, but the noise is a bit painful. Wireless RAW file transmission with Capture One 22 Cons The joystick is in an odd spot In some ways feels like an old 60D, but it’s totally not I personally feel the magnification button is in an odd spot Can’t transfer 8K video via Wifi 4K movie clips shorter than 30 seconds take a while to send, and then ultimately don’t end up on your phone High ISO Raw files above 12,800 tend to get a bit messy The price is a bit high at $3,899 Gear Used with the Canon EOS R5 We tested the Canon EOS R5 with the: Canon RF 24-105mm f4 L IS USM Canon RF 50mm f1.2 L USM Samyang 85mm f1.4 AF Profoto B10 Canon EOS R5 Tech Specs In Brief: High Image Quality featuring a New 45 Megapixel Full-frame CMOS Sensor DIGIC X Image Processor with an ISO range of 100-51200; Expandable to 102400 Dual Pixel CMOS AF covering Approx. 100% Area with 1,053 AF Areas Subject tracking of People and Animals using Deep Learning Technology In-body Image Stabilizer can provide up to 8 stops of Shake Correction Dual Card Slots for CFexpress and UHS-II SD Memory Cards Built-in 0.5″ 5.76 Million Dots OLED EVF with 120fps refresh rate, Vari-angle LCD Touchscreen 2.4/5Ghz Built-in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Technology Full Specs taken from the LensRentals Listing 45MP Full-Frame Sensor and DIGIC X Processor. The Canon EOS R5’s newly designed 45MP full-frame CMOS sensor works in tandem with the DIGIC X processor to produce high-resolution stills and video with plenty of speed. The native ISO range of 100-51,200 can be expanded to 100-102,400, making this camera suitable for working in a wide range of lighting conditions. 8K30 RAW and 4K 120 Video. The EOS R5’s 45MP sensor makes internal DCI 8K 30 fps RAW capture possible, in addition to 4K recording at up to 120 fps in 4:2:2 10-bit with Canon Log and HDR-PQ. Please note that DCI 8K is the only format in which you can shoot RAW with the R5—every other resolution offers All-I or IPB compression. External HD...
The Tamron 17-70mm F2.8 Di III-A VC RXD could be the best lens for APS-C cameras ever made. The Tamron 17-70mm F2.8 Di III-A VC RXD could be the best lens for APS-C cameras ever made. It combines weather-resistance with fast autofocus and a lot of versatility. For the record, it’s more or less a 24-120mm f2.8 equivalent zoom. And for any APS-C photographer, that’s a dream. To boot, it’s also incredibly small for what it is. While it feels fantastic on Sony cameras, some Fujifilm photographers might not necessarily want to use it. However, it’s great on both camera systems. This review was updated June 27th 2022. A whole other section was created just for the Fujifilm variant. Pros and Cons Pros Small Weather sealed Under $1,000 Image stabilized Basically a 24-105mm at f2.8 Lightweight Cons Tamron is a beautiful diamond being wasted on the sad Ringpop that is the Sony APS-C camera system. What’s Innovative About This? The Tamron 17-70mm F2.8 Di III-A VC RXD is the full-frame equivalent of a 26-105mm f2.8 lens. The depth of field will be around f4.2 in full-frame too. But the light gathering and true aperture will still be f2.8. This is the first time we’ve ever gotten a lens like this. Add onto all this the vibration compensation, sharp optics, and weather sealing features. Then realize that it’s under $1,000. To me, this sounds like a no-brainer. It’s a truly usable large range that photographers can use with confidence every day. Sigma has their 18-35mm f1.8 lens, but it’s not as useable a range as this Tamron offering. For what it’s worth, I think this lens is wasted on E Mount. Everyone fawns over the company’s full-frame cameras. It has also come to Fujifilm X series. It could also even make the Nikon Z50 seem more useful. Gear Used We tested the Tamron 17-70mm F2.8 Di III-A VC RXD on the Sony a6600. We also used it with Profoto lighting. Tech Specs Specs are taken from AlphaShooters Lens construction: 16 elements in 12 groupsAngle of view (APS-C): 79゜55′-23゜00′Number of diaphragm blades: 9（Rounded diaphragm）Minimum aperture: F22Minimum focusing distance: 0.19m (7.5 in) (WIDE) / 0.39m (15.4 in) (TELE)Maximum magnification ratio: 1:4.8 (WIDE) / 1:5.2 (TELE)Filter size: φ67mmDiameter: 74.6mmLength: 119.3mm (4.7 in)Weight: 525g (18.5oz)Accessories: Flower-shaped hood, Lens caps included Ergonomics The Tamron 17-70mm F2.8 Di III-A VC RXD is a moderately sized lens. I say this because it depends a lot on the situation you’re in. But overall, it’s simple to use thanks to the construction. You can see above that the only controls are a large zoom ring and a small focusing ring. The exterior is made of plastic. However, the lens doesn’t feel like a bad, plasticky lens. It’s a ways better than anything Rokinon has made. When fully zoomed in, the lens also doesn’t become much larger than it is. And that’s really great for real-life use. Of course, that also means that it isn’t an internally zooming lens. Build Quality Make no mistake; the Tamron 17-70mm F2.8 Di III-A VC RXD is a massive lens for an APS-C camera. But overall, it’s still smaller than a Canon 50mm f1.2 RF prime lens. It’s also far lighter. The lens is built solidly. It’s a plastic body that doesn’t feel cheap at all. Tamron is a specialist at constructing lenses like this. There are also nice rubber rings for grip. Of course, this lens is also weather-resistant. We’re confident that it will outlast the Sony bodies it was designed for. Overall, this lens is built to be the only one you need. It’s lightweight and fairly small. Stuff it into a camera bag slot, and you’ll be good to go. Again, Tamron has built one of the most perfect lenses for APS-C cameras. It’s again a shame it’s being wasted on a format that I don’t think sees its future in APS-C. Ease of Use Slap the lens on the camera, point, focus, and shoot. That’s all there is to it. The lens has vibration compensation built-in, which translates into better hand-holding at slower shutter speeds. And if you’re l...
Capture One is back with the newest rendition of their beloved editing software. Capture One 22 improves some of its best features and introduces several new functions photographers have been requesting. Real estate, landscape, and astrophotographers can now enjoy a powerful HDR merge function. The Panoramic Stitch feature resembles the Brenizer Method and makes it possible to create larger canvases in smaller spaces. Capture One Live adds collaboration tools, while the overall design prepares for the upcoming iPad version. Make sure you have plenty of hard drive space for these functions. You’ll see why. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. Table of Contents Too Long Didn’t Read Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used What’s New In Capture One 22? Ease of Use Capture One Live Magic Eraser and local editing Wireless Tethering for Canon and Sony Panoramic Stitch HDR Merge Auto Rotate Performance Conclusions of Capture One 22 Too Long Didn’t Read The newest release of Capture One is here, and it has some worthy upgrades. After adding HDR merge and a Panoramic Stitch functionality, the photo editor now has online collaboration, an enhanced Keystone tool, and a magic eraser. Wireless tethering is available for multiple Canon and Sony cameras, and overall performance has improved. The editing program still has room for improvement with its selections, healing, and cloning functionalities. Pros and Cons Pros HDR merge is pretty great Panoramic Stitch is a nice feature Many Canon and Sony shooters will enjoy tethering wirelessly Performance is noticeably improved Re-designed tool tab is easier to learn Capture One Live has simple sharing Customizable workspaces Solid performance Cons The clone and healing masks aren’t as precise as Photoshop There still isn’t a patch tool The magic brush should be more accurate and functional to compete with other programs Auto rotate isn’t geared towards verticals The Live feature really needs notifications Larger catalog sizes Gear Used We originally tested Capture One 22 on a 2019 16” MacBook Pro. The images used were captured with a Canon 5D Mark III, Sony a7 III, and Fujifilm GFX50s II. Tethering was tested with a Canon EOS R5 and EOS R. The 15.3 build of Capture One, released in June 2022, was tested on a 2021 MacBook Pro M1 Pro with images from a Fujifilm X-T4 and Panasonic GH6. What’s New In Capture One 22? Main feature upgrades are provided by Capture One. Panorama Stitch HDR Merge Auto Rotate (AI-Driven) Wireless Tethering for Canon and Sony Improved Performance Capture One Live collaboration Magic Eraser tool Enhanced Keystone tool Ease of Use Everything you already love about Capture One performs a bit better. The software has also improved how it captures data. Windows users will be pleased to see more user-friendly catalogs as they have re-engineered them. Mac users will see a quicker response when browsing through images quickly and zoom functionality. With the June 2022 update, the desktop software is now ready for the upcoming iPad app. One of those changes includes re-designed icons in the tool tab. These icons now all finally have labels. One of the most annoying aspects of switching from Lightroom is that there are so many tabs and none of them are labeled. The update will help new users find everything quickly. The only downside is that the tools tab needs a little more space. I had to make it wider to accommodate the Color tab, which was originally hiding in the ellipsis icon. Even with the updated design, Capture One is still very customizable. That’s one of the software’s stand-out features — being able to customize the workspace to your liking. Capture One Live Update June 2022 by Review Editor Hillary Grigonis Capture One Live is a new collaboration tool that shares collections online for others to view, star, or color code. Five sessions are included with a basic subscription — sharing more sessions at once...
Photographers now can take their pick of cameras that can shoot stills fast enough to actually be movies. But Canon’s approach to a speedy flagship is arguably the most different from Sony’s and Nikon’s. Instead of creating a camera that can shoot both fast and high resolution, the Canon EOS R3 uses a less-headline-worthy 24.1-megapixel sensor. Canon is taking a gamble that the photographers who want 30 fps are also the photographers who prioritize exceptional low light performance over high resolution. And, they’re trying to sweeten the deal with an autofocus system that will just focus on wherever you’re looking. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. Will Canon’s gamble pay off, or is the R3 going to lose out to a higher resolution foe? Does the AF in this headline mean autofocus or the Urban Dictionary definition of AF? I spent a few weeks with the Canon R3, shooting everything from wildlife to equestrian to low light portraits. I was blown away by both the autofocus and the noise reduction in the dark. And limited rolling shutter distortion may actually make the R3’s top speeds useful. Table of Contents Too Long, Didn’t Read Canon EOS R3 Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Canon EOS R3 Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Autofocus Eye Control AF Ease of Use Metering Image Quality High ISO Images RAW File Versatility Extra Image Samples Edited Unedited Conclusion Likes Dislikes Too Long, Didn’t Read The Canon R3 has a top burst speed that’s actually useful because of a great autofocus system and a faster processor to limit rolling shutter. This camera can not only shoot in the dark but print ISO 128,000 and still look good. While the R5 may make more sense for detail work, the R3 is an exceptional low-light and fast-action camera. Canon EOS R3 Pros and Cons Pros Impressive autofocus performance with both action and low light Face recognition works phenomenally, even on birds and in dark scenes Reduced rolling shutter distortion and 1/180 flash sync with electronic shutter Excellent noise reduction at high ISOs Eye Control AF Built-in vertical grip Lots of great controls Weather-sealed Cons Resolution is lower than competitors (but this is partially why low light quality is so great) Higher learning curve Hot shoe adapter recommended for weather-sealing with older flashes Heavier and larger than the R5 and R6 Pricey Gear Used I used the Canon EOS R3 with the 70-200 f4, 85mm f2 Macro, and 16mm f2.8 RF mount lenses. I also paired the camera with both the EL-1 flash and the Flashpoint R2 Zoom Li-Ion III and a wireless trigger. I stashed the gear in the F-Stop Ajna backpack. The reflections you see in some of the night portraits were created with Lensbaby Omni wands. Innovations Canon wasn’t the first to announce a sports-focused mirrorless flagship; it competes with the speed of the Sony A1 and the Nikon Z9. But, there’s still a lot of innovation here. Canon has included Eye Control AF, which was previously on some of their film cameras. This moves the autofocus point to whatever part of the frame your eye is looking at. The processor that’s behind the 30 fps top burst speed also reduces rolling shutter distortion with faster image processing. Canon EOS R3 Tech Specs Adorama lists the following specifications for the Canon EOS R3, shortened for clarity: Lens Mount: Canon RF Sensor Type: 36 x 24mm (Full-Frame) CMOS Sensor Resolution: Actual: 26.7 Megapixel; Effective: 24.1 Megapixels Crop Factor: None Aspect Ratio: 1:1, 3:2, 4:3, 16:9 Image File Format: JPEG, Raw, HEIF Bit Depth: 14-Bit Image Stabilization: Sensor-Shift, 5-Axis ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 100 to 102400 (Extended: 50 to 204800) Shutter Speed: Mechanical Shutter: 1/8000 to 30 Second, Bulb Mode Electronic Shutter: 1/64000 to 30 Second in Manual Mode; 1/64000 to 30 Second in Shutter Priority Mode; 1/8000 to 30 Second in Aperture Priority Mode; 1/8000 to 30 Second; in Program Mode; Bulb Mod...
We’re streaming daily on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and Spotify! There’s nothing wrong with the way the traditional Leica camera worked. If anything, the Leica M series makes the photographer more aware of what’s around them. But let’s be honest, autofocus is very useful. And the Leica SL2s is probably the camera that answers the needs of the modern journalist the best. At the heart of the Leica SL2s is what Leica claims to be a newly developed 24MP BSI sensor. This variant of the Leica SL2 maintains the IP54 weather sealing rating, but it also received a speed boost. Editor’s Note: We’ve updated this post as of May 2022. Table of Contents Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Ease of Use Autofocus Metering Image Quality JPEG Output RAW File Versatility High ISO Output Extra Image Samples Conclusions Likes Dislikes Pros and Cons Pros The fastest autofocus on a Leica ILC I’ve seen. It’s now on par with Canon and Sony. Autofocus profiles are cool! Solid build quality Easy to use Beautiful image quality People detection is wonderful. Functionality-wise, the buttons are fantastic with a good layout and give you everything you need. A camera that you truly want to carry around with you everywhere Both Panasonic and Leica lenses have comparable autofocus speeds. Raw files are pretty versatile in Lightroom. FANTASTIC high ISO print capability Cons A tad pricey. But when you consider the weather sealing, it’s not bad. I wish it did Qi wireless charging. I wish this had dedicated animal face detection There should be an option to never let the display time out. This is especially true for the EVF-Extended mode. It needs the right strap to be comfortable for long photo walks Still no multiple exposure mode I wish the menu was touch-capable and that it either flipped or tilted/pivoted. Gear Used We tested the Leica SL2s with: Leica 35mm f2 Summicron SL Leica 24-90mm f2.8-4 SL Panasonic 24-70mm f2.8 Lumix S Pro Panasonic 16-35mm f4 Lumix S Pro Tech Specs A new 24 Megapixel CMOS BSI full-frame sensor. This sensor is image stabilized. 25fps in the electronic shutter mode, and 9fps in mechanical 4GB of internal memory Up to ISO 100,000 96MP Multishot mode 4K 30p/60P video, Cinema 4K video at 30p/60p No 29 minute filming limit Capture One 21 support 5.76 Megapixel EVF IP54 weather sealing rating and you can shoot with it down to 14 degrees Fahrenheit Dual UHS II SD Card slots Top display USB C Ergonomics The Leica SL2s is pretty much identical to the SL2. The big difference is the blacked out Leica logo up top. But otherwise, this camera is very similar to its sibling. It’s still milled from a block of aluminum. The front of the Leica SL2s has a few controls. There are two buttons near the lens release that are customizable. Up top there are a few controls. The biggest things are the wonderful diopter control, the LCD screen, the exposure dial, shutter button, and two other buttons. We set these to ISO and white balance. The back of the camera has little going on. It’s dominated by a large LCD screen. The left has a play button, function button, and a menu button. The power on/off switch is also located here. On the right there is another button that I set to the view mode. Plus, there’s the joystick. And of course, a camera wouldn’t be a professional grade camera without dual card slots. And this camera has them. On the other side are other ports and the USB C terminal. Build Quality The Leica SL2s has an IP54 weather sealing rating. According to the web, that means it can take splashes from any direction and resist a bit of dust. Indeed, the Leica SL2s is one of the toughest and most rugged cameras on the market. I’d argue that it’s the most rugged for a photojournalist. Its predecessor quite literally saved the life of an Italian journalist. The build quality of the Leica SL2s has strengthened my beliefs in better cameras. And quite honestly, the next camera I purchase needs ...
Getting a pure white background doesn’t require post-production at all. Sure, you’ll shoot photos, but you don’t need to spend a whole day or two editing them just right. You can do it easily in-camera. But trust us when we say it’s a lot easier to do with flash than it is with LEDs. LEDs will mean that you’re more or less just spending more time editing in post-production. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. What You Need A white background with a lot of lighting control. Ideally, you’ll use a box with a white interior A flash with a large diffuser like a softbox, a beauty dish, or something Another flash, possibly How to Do This Getting this done is pretty easy, but it will change depending on what you’re using. Set up: your white box on a hard, stable surface With the white box’s opening towards you, cut the top of it so that you can put a flash over it. Shut all the blinds and curtains in the room to kill ambient lighting Place the light modifier with the flash inside over the top Meter the scene. If you’re using TTL flash, set it to be one stop extra of power. TTL works by looking at the ISO and the aperture. The faster your shutter speed, the more ambient light you’ll kill. The slower it is, the more will come in. If you’re just using a white background, you’ll need a second flash. With your subject in front of the white background, meter them and photograph them with a flash accordingly. Have the second flash firing at the white background and make sure that it is a stop more powerful than the main light. “When you use your light meter to check the output of the lights, your main light should be weaker while your back light should be stronger. For the image above, our main light (which was next to the camera and in front of our model) was metered to f8 at ISO 100. The back light (hitting the background and positioned off to the side) was metered to f11 at ISO 100. Therefore, the light in the back is brighter and therefore gives the effect of a seamless white. It would have also worked if my main light was set to f5.6 and my back light was set to f8. Same with my main being set to f2.8 and my back being set to f4.” Getting a background to go pure white The Idea The idea here is that you’re trying to make the background bright white. This is more complicated to do with LEDs and also doesn’t give you the crisp quality a flash can. To get the background to appear purely white, it needs to be brighter than the subject you’re photographing. That’s how you make it stand out. And it makes sense. If you were photographing a portrait subject with bokeh balls in the background, the bokeh balls will stand out because they’re brighter than your subject. The same idea is being applied here. If you don’t have all these, you should take a look at our tutorial on how to do it with a window, a reflector, and one flash. Of course, you’ll have to do some post-production. And if you’re like me, you want to avoid post-production as much as possible and get it right in-camera.
Ready for a fight? Don’t worry, I jest. The Phoblographer would never encourage our readers to step into the realm of combat. However, we do love combat sports, and we especially love it when photographers document the heat of battle. We’ve done many stories over the years that focus on fight photography, and below are some of the very best of them. Enjoy. Want to get your work featured? Here’s how to do it! Kevin Lynch Doucments Combat Sports And The UFC The UFC is one of the most popular combat sports organizations in the world. The organization has had to work hard to be accepted, with states like New York only recently licensing fights. Beyond the tough-guy persona, the fighters are humans. They’re normal men and women, just like you and I. Photographer Kevin Lynch documented that for the best part of a decade. He made pre and post-fight portraits of the athletes and really became connected to them. It’s beautiful. Take a look here. Katerina Gregoriou Incorporates Combat Sports Into Shattered Glass Katerina Gregoriou is an exceptionally talented photographer. We interviewed her back in early 2020 and took a closer look at her photography series, Shattered Glass. The work aimed to uplift women who were involved in jobs and social groups traditionally reserved for men. Part of the work involved photographing a woman who sumo wrestles, a space where you’ll seldom find women. You can read about it here. Greg Bowl Shoots Entertaining Combat Sports Professional wrestling struggles to find its identity. Is it entertainment, or is it combat sports? I tend to think it’s the former rather than the latter. Either way, it involves combat, even if it is scripted and staged. Greg Bowl was making images of pro wrestling way before it went global. He sent us his series, and we loved it so much we arranged an interview. He has many cool stories to tell and plenty of awesome photos to share. Take a look here. Erin Lefevre Shares Fight Like a Woman Way back in 2015, Erin Lefevre joined us to share her photography project, Fight Like a Woman. The work covered professional fighter, Casey Morton. Rather than create a bunch of action shots, Lefevre delved into what happens behind the scenes in the life of a professional boxer. It’s fight photography that thinks outside the box. It’s fascinating stuff and certainly worth your time and attention. See the images here. August Udoh Shows us The World of One-Handed Fighting Dambe fighting was born in West Africa. Back in the day, butchers and fishermen were the main competitors. However, today the sport is enjoyed by people from variant backgrounds. Unlike traditional boxing, fighters can only use one hand and fight over three rounds. Photographer August Udoh made some terrific portraits of local fighters and shared the history behind the West African sport. Take a look here. Do You Photograph Combat Sports? Whether you like combat sports or not, they’re here to stay. There’s something intimate about two people going into battle. If you study the sports closely, you’ll recognize the strong bond two fighters have after the war is over. Because of the emotions and psychology linked to combat sports, they’re the perfect subject for photographers to document. If you have some cool fight photography that goes beyond what the mainstream sees and shows something deeper, send it to us. You can use the form above to make contact, and if we like it, we’ll certainly be in touch. Do you like combat sports? What do you think of the examples shown above? Let us know in the comments below. Thanks for reading! Lead image by Kevin Lynch. All images used with permission. Check out more stories on our Flipboard page!
If you look at it, there are two schools of thought in photography: gear and photos. Some people are great with gear. Other people are great with making photos. Just because you’ve got an expensive camera doesn’t mean you can shoot a great photo. And it doesn’t mean you understand how to create a great photo, the idea of a moment, etc. I’ve also met a ton of photographers so into their art that barely know how to use their cameras. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. Some people are just more into cameras. Other people are more into photography. There’s a huge difference. Some people are into knives, but they’re not into cooking. Other folks are into gaming, but they’re not into building their own computers. A reasonable amount of people are into cars, but not necessarily driving them. Some folks are into archery, but not necessarily geeks about bows. Someone could really like whiskey, but not care about the distilling process. This is something we need to keep in mind. It’s fine if cameras are your hobby. You can own a bunch of cameras because you like them. Cameras are a fun hobby. If you buy them used, you’re going to probably get a great buy. More so than any other tech besides TVs, cameras are used pretty carefully. You can’t go wrong when buying a used camera the way you can with a refrigerator or something. At the same time, photography can also be a hobby. You can be just fine with your 30-year-old camera and just enjoy the act of taking photos. Even your phone could be enough, and maybe you’d just be really into the stories of the photos, looking at them, etc. It’s an enjoyable thing for sure. Some folks on the other hand might really like paging through photos in a book. Now here’s the bigger thing: it’s wonderful if you’re just into cameras. At the same time, your interest in photography is equally just as wonderful. But I think we need to go deep down inside our souls and figure out which one we are. You could say you’re into street photography, but you may actually just like using cameras. Similarly, you could say you love Sony cameras, but you may have never touched anything else in your time shooting photos. Can you genuinely be into both? Sure, but not a lot of people are. If I looked at our staff, I could easily see who is more into cameras and who is more into photography. Some people are a bit of both. If I look at brand ambassadors, I can easily tell who is into photography, who is into cameras, and who are both. There are people who call themselves photographers that end up just doing tons of layering in Photoshop. At the end of the day, they could do that with any camera. So they’re mostly just into being actual photographers and photo editors. If you’re making it this far, you’re probably wondering why this matters. I think it helps change the conversations about both cameras and photography. Some cameras are a more tactile experience. You obviously pick up a Leica for a specific experience. But when you look at a bunch of the cameras on the market, the experience is very similar. Conversely, when you look at the different types of photography, they’re very different. So why then haven’t camera manufacturers tried to make themselves as diverse as the genres of photography?
If you ever experienced photography before Instagram, then you hopefully got to check out the tilt-shift lens. They were used for a variety of things: architecture, landscapes, and surreal work. It’s where the idea of miniatures comes from. And almost a decade ago, they were expensive and not used as creatively. These days, the tilt-shift lens is completely missing from various camera systems. And I think that the tilt-shift should make a return, but in a totally different way. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner-ad-free experience. Tilt-shift lenses were all about getting perspectives 100% totally what you want them to be. All of that can be done digitally via post-production these days. But a lot of photographers would rather not have to do it in post-production. After all, what’s the fun of photography if you’re spending all day behind a computer screen? Manufacturers like to talk about how some of their lenses don’t have distortion. And for the most part, a lot of distortion has been eliminated. But it’s not perfect still. A tilt-shift lens, medium format, or large format lens can still do things much better and get it right the first time around. “The miniature effect is in essence, using the lens to drastically change the plane of focus by a tilt and/or shift to throw out the area of focus only keeping a small area IN focus.” How a Tilt Shift Lens Works Even so, I don’t think that that this is why the tilt-shift lens should come back. Instead, I think that the current landscape of lenses is just seriously lacking in variety. We’d know, we’ve reviewed more than any other photo publication. Manufacturers also generally work to engineer all the character out of their lenses. These clinical experiments have removed the soul from optics. To that end, we get the perfect metaphorical tacos that still need a lime to be drizzled on them. And this means that a manufacturer doesn’t necessarily need to create a tilt-shift lens, but a tilt-shift adapter could possibly work. Even then though, the adapters don’t do as good of a job as a dedicated lens. Years ago, we reviewed the Rokinon 24mm tilt-shift lens. And it touched on a very big and important point. Here’s a section from that review: “Now a lens like this is built to CORRECT distortion caused by less than ideal perspectives (we can’t all shoot from a cherry-picker 20-50 feet in the air all the time). So thankfully with the shift adjustments available on this lens it is quite simple to correct the converging lines of taller buildings or even normal rooms from a higher or lower angle than eye-level.” I’ll totally admit that this can be an annoying problem to deal with. But a tilt-shift lens would make sure that I don’t have to face it at all. And when I’m done with it for perspective correction, I’ll go play with it to create miniatures. If you’re sitting here saying, “Chris, you can just do it in post-production,” then you’re missing the point. I don’t want to do it in post-production. A lot of us don’t. We’re still in a pandemic that isn’t over and people spend way more time in front of screens. We don’t need to anymore. We can spend time working with our cameras and getting the photos to be perfect in-camera. Photography is a skill, and we should make it so again. Yes, AI and technology has made the basics easier. But it’s up to us now to raise the higher end of skills up since the lower end has also risen up.
Sometimes, it’s best to put your camera down and take a step back from photography. Whether you’re a die-hard hobbyist or a consummate professional, you likely practice photography a lot. But there comes a time in every photographer’s journey when things don’t go well. It can be a lack of enthusiasm, a struggle to find identity, or a general loss of love for the craft. When we hit lows in our journey, often the best solution is to take a break. And in this piece, we look at some signs that indicate you may need to put your camera down. The Photography Aesthetic Hasn’t Evolved I’m a big believer in progression. No matter how successful you become, you should always strive to improve and learn new things. That could mean photographing different types of subjects, or it could mean learning new photo editing skills that give your images more life. If you spend time with your archive and notice your images look the same, it’s time to take a step back. It’s easy to get into a routine when it comes to creating. And that routine can be difficult to break. But, by stepping away from photography, you can return to it with fresh eyes. Taking a break also gives you time to gain clarity on what direction you then want to go in. Photography Feels More Like a Chore Even if your passion is photography, there will be phases where you just don’t feel it. You may develop resentment to the feeling that you must always use your camera. Instead of photography being a joyous thing, it starts feeling more like a chore. That’s normal and can come and go in waves. But when that feeling does arrive, take a break. It’s good to miss the feeling of making photos. It can help you realize why you enjoy doing it so much. You’re Feeling Guilty About Your Lack of Productivity Rather than taking a conscious break, photographers may just stop using their camera. Better known as a rut, the camera begins a life on the shelf. “I’ll make photos next week,” you may say, but next week never comes. Over time you start to feel guilty. “I should be making more photos.” Instead of letting the guilt manifest further, and ignoring the obvious, decide to take a break. But the break has to be a conscious thing. For example, you can tell yourself, “I won’t make photographs for four weeks.” That way, you have committed to a date, and you don’t have to feel guilty. Hopefully, by the time you pick up your camera, you’ll have a new sense of enthusiasm. You Focus Your Attention on the Negative Elements of the Industry Every industry has its good and bad parts. The deeper you get into photography, the more you deal with egos, time-wasters, and a whole list of other issues. It’s par for the course, but people can usually handle all of that by connecting to the positive elements of being a photographer. If you can no longer see those positives, and find that you focus your energy on the negatives, it’s time for a break. Honestly, it’s a miserable place to be in when all you see are the bad parts of something. Take a break, focus on your mental health, and come back when you feel positive again. You Want to Have the “Falling in Love” Period Again The romance that comes with starting photography is special. Learning new things and exploring new places with your camera is awesome. But like the infatuation stage of a relationship, it can only last so long. That doesn’t mean it stops being a good thing; it’s just more of a balanced enjoyment rather than an intense thrill. But many photographers long for that initial buzz again. If this sounds like you, walk away from photography. Find something new to do or develop another passion. If the connection is strong, you’ll pick up your camera again. And when you do, it will feel like the beginning of a new, exciting relationship! Taking a Break Doesn’t Have to Mean the End Taking breaks should certainly be a part of your process. Breaks will prevent burnout and the loss of passion for what you love. Identify what you should do to be the best p...
On this episode of Inside the Photographer's Mind, we're joined by documentary photographer Dina Litovsky.
Dina has been featured in National Geographic, The New York Times Magazine, TIME magazine, and more!
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The refined Wandrd PRVKE has plenty of room and plenty of comfort. The Wandrd PRVKE generated a lot of buzz when the backpack launched on Kickstarter. And that was for a good reason — we gave the original bag the Editor’s Choice Award. Like most photographers, we’re picky about our bags. Now, Wandrd is back with an updated bag by the same name. The updated Wandrd PRVKE II keeps well-loved features like the roll-top, rear access, extra pockets, tripod pocket, and numerous compatible accessories. But, the updated version re-designs the back panel and shoulder straps for more comfort, and adds a luggage pass-through and accessory straps to the shoulders. It also fixes complaints on the earlier bag, such as stronger magnets on the top handles. We called the original PRVKE the perfect camera bag “for the most part.” Can the updated version hit that perfection without any modifiers? Table of Contents Too Long, Didn’t Read Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Wandrd PRVKE II Tech Specs Wandrd PRVKE II Ergonomics Wandrd PRVKE II Build Quality Wandrd PRVKE II Ease of Use What size Wandrd PRVKE do you need? Conclusions Likes Dislikes Too Long, Didn’t Read The Wandrd PRVKE II is a versatile, well-built bag with a roll-top that’s almost like having two bags in one. It’s comfortable to wear and easy to use, but you’ll have to put the bag on the ground to access all the gear, and the placement of the laptop sleeve makes the back panel stiffer. Pros and Cons Pros Versatile expanding roll-top Comfortable straps and back panel Two access points The design keeps straps out of the way when accessing gear Made from durable, sturdy materials Cons Small objects can fall from the top compartment into the main compartment The laptop sleeve is poorly placed Lenses with tripod collars are too big to easily get through the side access door Without a waist strap, you have to put the bag on the ground for full access to gear. Gear Used I used the Wandrd PRVKE 41L with the Wandrd camera cube (a larger Pro size is available). I stashed the Nikon Z6 II and Z7 II, the 24-70mm f2.8 Z lens, the 70-200mm f2.8 Z lens, a 20mm f1.8, and the 24-200mm Z lens in this bag. I also slipped an iPad Pro and my 13-inch MacBook Pro into the laptop and tablet sleeves. A Manfrotto BeFree travel tripod was stashed in the side pocket. Finally, the roll-top stashed lots of extras for outings with my three kids, including sweatshirts and snacks for everyone. Innovations This updated Wandrd PRVKE II more of a refresh than anything crazy new. It houses more features, like a luggage pass-through and a back panel and shoulder panel designed for more comfort. Wandrd PRVKE II Tech Specs Wandrd lists these tech specs for the new PRVKE bags. You can find this and more in their Amazon Store.: Materials: Waterproof Tarpaulin and Robic 1680D Ballistic Nylon. YKK Weather Resistant Zippers. Dimensions: 21 Liter: 17″H X 11″W X 6.5″D 31 Liter: 19″H X 12.5″W X 7.5″D 41 Liter: 21H” X 12.5″ W X 9″D Volume: 21 L to 26 L (rolltop full extended) 31 L to 36 L (rolltop fully extended) 41 L to 46 L (rolltop fully extended) Weight: 21 Liter: 2.8 LBS 31 Liter: 3.4 LBS 41 L: 3.7 LBS Wandrd PRVKE II Ergonomics Like the original, the Wandrd PRVKE II backpack has a rear clamshell opening, quick access side door, and a roomy expanding roll-top. The 41L is a massive bag that’s 21 inches tall. I originally thought I picked the wrong bag for my small torso, but the big bag still fit okay, and I was grateful for the extra space. Let’s start our tour on the inside of the bag. The PRVKE doesn’t have to be a camera bag — you make it one with the camera cube. (A larger Pro camera cube is also available.) While I generally don’t care for bags with camera cube inserts, I wasn’t bothered by the Wandrd camera cube because the zipper top and side door are made to tuck out of the way and under the cube. That means you don’t have to go through two zippers, but when you remove the camera cube to use the bag for eve...
We’re all fans of some photography brands. Some hold a special place in our hearts, and many among us defend them to no end. Other brands we can’t stand, and we secretly wish our favorite brand would do better than them. But this article isn’t about which brands are outshining others. Almost all leading camera manufacturers are guilty of doing (or not doing) one or more of the points below. What is worrying is that some of these unhealthy trends have continued for years. And manufacturers don’t seem to want to address these anytime soon. Which ones do you find most annoying? You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. This isn’t an exhaustive list by any means. These points are ones I’ve been discussing with fellow photographers for nearly a decade now. It makes me wonder why, despite these issues being addressed in camera forums, manufacturers pretend they’re a non-issue. Isn’t the voice of the consumer valid to them? Isn’t it annoying when existing users reach out to brands with feature requests, only to have them ignored? Table of Contents Camera Manufacturers Not Providing Firmware Updates to Capable Older Cameras Not Innovating Enough to Fill a Genuine Need Camera Manufacturers Not Giving Prime Lenses as a Kit Lens Option Pretending Like a Major Manufacturing Flaw Doesn’t Exist Camera Manufacturers Not Providing Firmware Updates to Capable Older Cameras Fujifilm is the most notable exception to this. I’m not a user of their cameras, but it brings me a smile to see them releasing firmware updates to old cameras. Many of these aren’t just updates that perform bug fixes. In many cases, they’ve brought AF performance of previous-generation cameras almost on par with current ones. Let’s take the Fujifilm X-Pro2, a camera released to the public in early March 2016. Firmware version 5.00 made the following improvements: The low-light limit for phase detection autofocus has been improved by approximately 1.5 stops from 0.5EV to -1.0EV, raising the precision and speed of autofocus in low-light environments. The range at minimum aperture has been expanded from F8 to F11. For example, even when using the XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR with the teleconverter XF2X TC WR, phase detection autofocus can now be used. Major improvements have been made to the AF-C performance while operating the zoom, which provides major benefits when shooting sports and other scenarios in which the subjects moves unpredictably. Finely-detailed surface textures of wild birds and wild animals can now be captured at high speed and with high precision as a result of improvement in phase detection autofocus. Fujifilm’s firmware releases are a testament to the fact that even older cameras can perform better with things like autofocus and subject tracking. Of course, they do this without having to resort to newer or dual processors. Manufacturers try to push consumers to purchase newer models for improved features. Yes, we’d all like faster AF. And we’d never complain if Eye-AF was an added feature with a firmware update. Just don’t keep spinning the annoying old tale that new features need newer processors. Fujifilm clearly proves that older processors can be improved upon if brands just took the effort to work on them. You don’t always need that latest camera; sometimes all you need is just a newer firmware for your current one. By continuing to support even first-generation models of their X-line of digital cameras, Fujifilm keeps their fan base loyal. We only wish more camera manufacturers would do the same. In September of 2020, a whole bunch of Fujifilm’s cameras received firmware updates. These included the following: X-T4, X-T3, X-T2, X-T1, X-H1, X-Pro3, X-Pro2, X-Pro1, X-E3, X-T20, and X-T30. No doubt, it takes up a considerable amount of their R&D budget, but by continuing to innovate in this fashion, they ensure their customers stick by them. Plus it frees up customers from wanting th...
For more stories like this, please subscribe to The Phoblographer. I have been a Nikonian photographer for more than a decade. Yet, after trying the company’s first full-frame mirrorless, I chose to stick with a DSLR. I simply didn’t have the confidence in the Z7 and Z6 autofocus system and lack of ability to record to two cards at once. That’s exactly what Nikon focused on in the second generation, however. The Nikon Z7 II keeps much of the first generation intact but steps up the autofocus, adds a second card slot, and moves to dual processors. Then, there’s also the price bump of a few hundred bucks. So, has Nikon earned my trust back with the Nikon Z7 II? I didn’t fall in love instantly like I had hoped, but gradually, the Z7 II earned my confidence. The Z7 II isn’t perfect, and it doesn’t outperform the competition. But, it’s a camera many photographers could still manage to fall in love with, especially paired with a Z system lens. Table of Contents Too Long, Didn’t Read Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Autofocus Ease of Use Metering Image Quality High ISO Images RAW File Versatility Extra Image Samples Edited Unedited Conclusion Likes Dislikes Is the Nikon Z7 II Worth it? Too Long, Didn’t Read The Nikon Z7 II corrects much of what disappointed me in the first version, including a much better autofocus system and dual card slots. The Z7 II is beautiful inside and out: it takes beautiful pictures, and it’s also beautifully designed. But, while finally competitive, there are a few annoyances to contend with. Pros and Cons Pros A much-improved autofocus system Durable magnesium alloy build with weather-sealing Image quality is great, especially with native Z lenses In-body image stabilization Dual card slots with XQD/CF Express and SD Cons While improved, the autofocus isn’t as good as Canon’s R series Eyepiece rubber sometimes blocks the eye sensor Viewfinder blacks out Gear Used I used the Nikon Z7 II with the Z 50mm f1.2 S, the Z 70-200mm f2.8 VR S, and the Z 24-200mm f4-6.3 VR. I used the Wandrd Sling strap, as well as the Wandrd PRVKE II and Lowepro Flipside backpacks. Innovations The Nikon Z7 II is more about fixing complaints about the first generation than crazy innovation. It adds the dual card slots, improves autofocus performance, and upgrades video to 4K at 60 fps (93 percent crop). The biggest change is the move up from a single processor to two, which improves performance. Tech Specs These Nikon Z7 II tech specs are a shortened version of the full specifications available from Nikon USA: Sensor: 45.7-megapixel full-frame CMOS RAW: 12 or 14 bit Two card slots with XQD/CF Express, SD EVF: .5 inch, 3690k dot 3.2 inch 2,100K dot touchscreen with tilt Shutter: 30 sec. to 1/8000, Flash sync up to 1/200 10 fps burst ISO: 64-25,600 (32-102,400 extended) AF: Hybrid phase-detection/contrast with AF assist beam, -3 to +19 detection range, 493 focus points 5-axis sensor-shift stabilization Video: 4K at 60 fps (93 percent crop of the sensor), up to 29 minutes 59 second recording time Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Li-ion battery rated at 360 to 440 depending on settings Weighs 21.7 ounces 5.3 x 4 x 2.8 inches Ergonomics Little has changed on the exterior of the second-generation Z7. Save for the little “II” in the corner on the camera name, it would be difficult to tell the two apart at a glance. The biggest exception? The second generation has both the XQD or CF Express slot and an SD slot. That’s a must-have for working professionals who need to back up their images in the field. The Z7 II weighs 21.7 ounces, which is significantly lighter than the Nikon D850. It’s also more compact, yet the grip is almost the same size, so it doesn’t have the uncomfortable hold of a compact camera. A long-time Nikon DSLR user, the control scheme on the Z7 II feels like home. The top houses an LCD screen. Dual control wheels flank the shutter, on/off, record, ISO, and exposure compensation on the ...
Anna Neubauer joins us on this episode of Inside The Photographer's Mind. She's here to talk about her recent success at the Sony World Photography Awards, her motivation to photograph children, and to discuss a project she's currently working on.
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https://www.anna-neubauer.com/ https://www.instagram.com/annaneubauer_photography/
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We’re streaming daily on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and Spotify! You can also listen to it right here on The Phoblographer. The 135mm lens is a magical wonder for many photographers. It’s a long lens, and arguably the longest practical portrait lens. In the past, many photographers loved and adored the lens for more than just portraits. It’s a great candid lens; you can be far from a subject before being noticed. The 135mm lens has lots of desirable qualities about it. And if you’re a certain type of photographer, it might never leave your camera. Before you make the commitment, though, let’s go over a few things. They’re Arguably the Best Portrait Lens, But They’ve Got Tradeoffs The 135mm is considered by many photographers to be the perfect focal length for portraits. Optically speaking, no one looks bad when you shoot with it. It gives the right compression level to faces, bodies, heads, cheeks, noses, etc. As the years have gone on, they’ve become better. Though these days, they’re arguably a bit too clinical for lots of photographers. Some legends of this focal length are the Canon 135mm f2 L, Sigma 135mm f1.8, Sony 135mm f1.8 G Master, Sony 135mm f1.8 A-Mount, and the Zeiss 135mm Milvus lens. We’ve used all of them both in studios and on locations. Indeed, shooting with a 135mm lens requires you to think differently than you would with any other lens. If that’s intimidating you, you should probably stop here. Otherwise, continue on and check out some of the best 135mm lenses we’ve tested. They’re Long First off, attach a 135mm lens to your camera. You’ll realize it’s very long and thin. It’s a huge prime lens. If you’re the type of photographer who likes small lenses, steer away from the 135mm lens, and reach for an 85mm lens instead. (85mm lenses are excellent, and something akin to a 55mm lens.) What’s more, a 135mm lens gets even longer when you put a lens hood on. I’d shoot without one. The newer ones are a lot more clinical, so I’d use a polarizing filter to make the color pop a bit more. Otherwise, there’s the PrismFX stuff that we’ve reviewed. They’re Hard to Get and Keep a Subject in Focus 135mmm lenses are notoriously hard to get in focus. If you’re on a DSLR, you need to nail the focusing point and ensure you don’t move. With mirrorless cameras, there’s face and eye detection. After you get it in focus, you need to make sure tracking is on to constantly follow the eye or the face. At f1.8, they’re super hard to get in focus. I think the easiest 135mm lens I’ve ever worked with is the Zeiss Batis 135mm f2.8. It’s an autofocus lens and the slowest of the bunch. But it’s also pretty nice with its render. Most people have shaky hands. They’ll probably end up shooting portraits in burst mode and have to cull through hundreds if not thousands of photos later. Otherwise, you can shoot on a tripod and carefully focus. If you happen to be good at handholding a lens, you won’t have an issue. You Need a Lot of Room to Use Them 135mm lenses render super tight if you don’t have a lot of room. If you’re shooting indoors, be sure to have at least 10 feet between you and a subject. Arguably, the best thing to do is shoot outside. If you shoot outside, you have more options with where you can shoot. But, of course, you lack the control that indoor shoots can provide. Usually, 135mm lenses are more of a pain than what they’re worth. But I’ll admit they can create beautiful photos.
On this week's episode of Inside the Photographer's Mind, we're joined by fine art photographer Jennifer Thoreson.
Jennifer joins us to discuss her series Testament, her photography career, and her latest, moving project, The Prayer Glove Project.
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https://www.jenniferthoreson.com/ https://twitter.com/jennthoreson
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If you told me years ago that nearly every lens on the market made today would be super sharp wide open, I’d be elated. But if you also told me that lenses could be too sharp, I wouldn’t believe you. I mean, how is that possible? Years ago, you’d just consider the best fstop on a lens based on sharpness. These days, that’s not necessarily the case. Photography has changed, and people want something different. So, with over 12 years of testing lenses under our belt, we’re going to talk more about the best fstop and how it’s changed over the years. How It Used to Be: The Story of the Best Fstop When I first started The Phoblographer over 12 years ago, lenses were much different. They were mostly developed for film cameras and then ported over. Very few were developed with the idea of being digital first. Back then, you used to have to stop the lens down to get to the best fstop. On full-frame 35mm, it used to be around f8 to f11. It varied based on which medium format option you were using, but you’d try to get the same equivalent. This also applied to APS-C and Four Thirds sensors. Shooting a lens wide open set you up for a host of problems back then: Your lens would be very soft wide open, which is nice these days. Your lens might have a bunch of color fringing, which can be seen as lens character these days. Vignetting was abound, which is now easily correctable. You’d also probably not get your subject in focus because DSLR and Film SLR autofocus wasn’t so great. Then things changed. And Then the Zeiss Otus Line Happened I remember there was a short period of time where a lot changed. A bunch of tsunamis and storms destroyed lots of factories out east. Then, oddly enough, the industry bounced back with good optics. They came to Zeiss and Sigma first. The Zeiss Otus lens lineup was pretty much unbeatable. The Sigma Art lens lineup was also unbeatable for image quality. Then Sony got it, Tamron caught on, Nikon, Tokina, etc. Optics became a ton better. This was interesting because Zeiss started to market that you didn’t necessarily need to stop the Otus lens lineup down. They showed the press tons of MTF charts where the Zeiss 55mm f1.4 Otus lens would have equivalent sharpness of the nearest competing lenses. However, the Otus was doing it wide open while the competition was doing it at f5.6 or f8. It was remarkable technology, if not incredibly flawed. Zeiss did what they do with an insane price tag, no weather sealing, and a few other things. Then Sigma’s 50mm f1.4 Art started to outdo the Otus. Sigma has always been strong with clinical image quality at the cost of build quality, character, and autofocus speed. It was the same back then as it is today. So by all means, back then, Zeiss began to say that the best fstop is shot wide open. That started to change the rest of the industry. Combine this with the rising megapixel count on camera sensors and improved flash technology and you’ve got a winner. Today, What Is the Best FStop? Today, it’s hard to find a lens that isn’t sharp wide open. Lensbaby purposely does this, and that’s awesome, but all other camera and lens manufacturers strive for sharp wide-open performance. The best fstop and all it means has changed since then. There used to be the idea of the sweet spot, which referred to when the lens was at its sharpest. And today it’s more about a balance between pleasing bokeh and sharpness. It depends on what sensor format you’re using, but generally, most photographers think the best fstop is either wide open, f4, or f5.6. Lenses are super sharp wide open, and honestly, most of us on staff rarely have good reason to stop down unless the exposure calls for it. High megapixels on camera sensors mean more value is given to a lens. Combine that with flash and what specular highlights do, and you’ve got a winner. Overall still, the best fstop is the one that fits the exposure. Need to stop down to f8? Then do it. Need an f1.4 aperture? Use it! These days, lenses are so ...
For more stories like this, please subscribe to the Phoblographer. Trust us, we’ve done the tests. When it comes to weather sealing tests on cameras, there’s arguably no better solution than the stuff that we’ve done to various cameras and lenses. We’ve actually gone out and used the cameras and lenses in the worst weather conditions. Our reviewers do this and a whole lot more. We push the gear to the edge because we know that you’ll want to. With all this said, we decided to talk about how to protect your camera. Here are the things we keep in mind before we go out. What Qualifies Us to Talk? For a number of years, we’ve really wondered about how durable cameras really are. Reps have told us that if you take a camera into the rain, that they’d be fine. But is that really the case? Some reps still say this. But only some cameras are advertisers as weather resistant. So over the years, we’ve routinely tested various cameras in the rain, snow, sand, etc. Our build quality tests are a major part of our reviews. And we’re committed to making the entire industry create cameras and lenses that can stand up to the elements. Oh yeah, and we’ve heard Olympus uses this test of our every time they talk about weather sealing. If a brand is alright with it, then we are too! Trust us, we know how to protect your camera. Is Your Camera Marketed as Weather Resistant? First off, figure out if your camera is weather resistant. This is a big thing to figure out. Here’s a general guide, there could be more. But these cameras are the most popular.: The Fujifilm X Pro 3, XT4, and the the entire GFX lineup are weather sealed. Here’s a guide to weather sealed Fujifilm lenses. Every Canon RF camera body has weather sealing. Our Canon RF lens guide should help you. Every Nikon Z full frame body has weather sealing. We’ve also got a guide to Nikon Z lenses. Every Sony a7, a9, and a1 camera body have weather sealing. Every Panasonic S series camera body has weather sealing. If you’re going to use Olympus, do yourself a favor and just go for the Olympus OMD Em1 Mk III and the Olympus OMD EM1X. The Leica SL2s and Leica SL2 are IP rated, and the Q2 is as well. Protect Your Camera. Check All the Ports It’s important to check all the ports on your camera. Make sure that they’re fully sealed. Check the USB ports, the battery ports, the SD card ports, the audio jacks, etc. If the doors are a little loose, don’t risk bringing your camera into the rain. It’s not worth it. Something else to consider looking at is the hot shoe. In the past years, manufacturers have sealed the hot shoe very well. But some cameras, notably Sony, don’t have as much sealing. Your Lens If you’re taking your camera out into the rain, you need to ensure the entire package is protected. Lenses are where it gets really, really difficult. Some brands will say their lenses are weather-sealed, but they’re not. Instead, there will be sealing right around the mount and maybe at a spot around the focusing ring. A few lenses are fully completing their weather sealing when you add a front lens filter. Other brands go above and beyond to fully weather seal the lenses. Personally speaking, if I’m buying a modern lens, there’s no way I’m not going to buy a lens that isn’t fully weather-sealed. Constantly cleaning a camera sensor is a major annoyance that’s avoided with just a few extra bucks. Extra Ways to Protect Your Camera There are a bunch of other options to keep your camera protected. For example, you can cover your camera with a plastic bag and ensure that the entire thing is fully protected. There are also things like camera skins. Alternatively, if you’re outside, an umbrella helps a lot.
Landscape photography is fun for both the consumer and the creator. The consumer gets to enjoy remote parts of the world they may not have otherwise seen. And the creator gets to have the thrill of adventure and the sense of tranquility that often accompany this type of photographic practice. Of course, we’ve shared plenty of stunning images made by the best landscape photographers around, and in this article we’re going to celebrate our favorites. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. Cath Simard Turns Her Landscape Photography Into NFTs Cath Simard joined us as a guest on Inside The Photographer’s Mind. She’s an introvert who loves going on long hikes alone and creating images nothing short of mindblowing. She’s used her photographic style to tap into the NFT market. In this podcast, she told us she’d made more money through NFTs than in her entire photography career. Check out her story here. Caitlin Fullam Creates Surreal Landscape Photography Beyond the joys of landscape photography, Caitlin Fullam has a deeper motive to go out and create. “These photos were an escape for me during a dark time,” she shared in a recent interview. She aimed to create out of this world images that made her feel like she was escaping the world she felt trapped within. She certainly accomplished her goal, not just with herself but for us too. Spending time with her photography lets us forget reality, even if only for a moment. Check it out here. Alicja Zmysłowska Combines Dogs and Landscape Photography Love dogs? Mesmerized by landscapes? If it’s a yes to both, you’re going to love the photography of Alicja Zmysłowska. She places man’s best friend in the center of some of the most beautiful locations. (The dogs aren’t photoshopped into her landscape photography.) Instead, she allows the human to stay with them (with a leash) and then photoshops the human and leash out. Zmysłowska has a range of cameras and lenses at her disposal, turning to the Canon 5D Mark III, the Canon 5D Mark IV, and the Canon EOS 5DS for her bodies, and the Canon 16-35mm 2.8L and the Canon 135mm 2.0L for her glass. Check out her full story here. Paolo Pettigiani Landscape Photography Goes Infrared Peru and Bolivia are home to some of the most beautiful landscapes in Latin America. Many photographers hit these spots to create landscape photography. Because of that, Paolo Pettigiani decided to put his own twist on things. Opting to shoot with Kodak Aerochrome (a now-discontinued infrared film roll), Pettigiani made a series of images that stand on their own. We’re glad he still had access to the film roll! Check his out here. Ludwig Favre Makes Haunting Images Ludwig Favre began his journey in photography at the tender age of six, and it’s a passion that’s stayed with him ever since. He shoots his haunting, mysterious landscape photography in Oregon, a part of the States known for its glorious nature. Favre uses a Panasonic Lumix S1R and pairs it with the Panasonic Lumix 16-35mm f4 to make most of his work. However, he also uses the DJI Mavic 2 Pro to offer a different perspective. You can see his work here. Send Us Your Landscapes! We would love to see your landscape photography if you feel it’s worth our attention. You can send it in using the form below. If we like it, then we’ll be in touch about giving you a feature. Which was your favorite landscape photographer from the selection above? What gear do you enjoy using when making landscape images? Let us know in the comments below. Thanks for reading. Want to get your work featured? Here’s how to do it! Lead image by Caitlin Fullam. All images used with permission. Links to certain pieces of gear are included in this article. The Phoblographer gets a small cut from any purchases made via the links. It helps us keep the lights on, and we thank you for your support.
Every single one of them are good. Every single camera these days is very good and has gotten to a point where they’re all capable of taking great photos. But there is a lot more that goes into making a camera. Believe it or not, they’re all mostly the same in some ways. And it’s easy for someone to sit there and think that one camera is very similar to another until you pick them up and use them. With this in mind, cameras need to diversity. They Can All Achieve Fast and Accurate Autofocus, But They’re Not the Same Years ago, some cameras just wouldn’t be able to autofocus. They would be as slow as molasses. The performance would be bad for both contrast and phase-detection. But that’s all changed. They can all autofocus. Will they always be able to autofocus quickly? No. Can they all keep a moving subject perfectly in focus? No. Do they all have animal and bird face detection? No way. And you can surely bet that they all don’t have vehicle detection. However, they can all autofocus and take a portrait of a subject in good lighting. The performance will really vary in low lighting. More importantly, the speed will really vary depending on the brand used. But again, if you just want them to take a picture, they can all do it pretty well. Even Sigma, much maligned by many reviewers, can make a camera that can do the very basics. They’re all more or less copying one another. When one brand does face detection, so too does another. Some brand will try to do animal detection, and then another brand will too. Because they’re constantly copying each other, the products become the same. Most are Weather Resistant, and That’s Very Important Most cameras have weather resistance these days. And we’re happy about that. It’s not important just for going out into the rain, but also for overall sensor protection. Plus, your cameras will keep working in tip top shape for longer if they’re built better. The way I like to think about this is like what my mother did to the poor Camry we had growing up. She’d use it to haul hundreds of pounds of stuff from Home Depot. The entire suspension system would be screwed up. Of course, there are cars designed to do that kind of stuff. A 1997 Camry couldn’t do it in 2011. Similarly, your Nikon z50 isn’t going to resist what a Nikon Z7 II will. The Sony a7c won’t stand up to everything the Sony a1 can either. At this point though, more and more weather resistant cameras need to be hitting the market. There are also folks that say that weather resistant cameras don’t necessarily need weather resistance. But it’s a big issue for anyone that actually uses their cameras, warranties, insurance, etc. All Ergonomics Follow More or Less Two Design Variants All cameras follow one of three designs: The SLR: like most cameras with a raised viewfinder. The rangefinder: in my opionion, this is the best. The box: Hasselblad and Sigma more or less do that. So with that in mind, there are subtleties that make one camera look and feel different from another. Sometimes it’s a small thing like thumb grips. Other times it can be the exterior materials. But when they’re all copying one another or changing things slightly, it’s easy for everything to be the same. They’re All Using More or Less the Same Sensors All sensors come from maybe three companies: Canon, Sony, or Tower Jazz. So they’re all getting the same image quality until they start doing this own tweaks via the processor and more. This is a big problem. At the root of it all, most cameras on the market have the same Sony sensors in them. What’s the point of discussing image quality if they’ve got the same starting point? The processor and the tweaks companies make can surely have something to do with it. But again, they’re all more or less similar.
I’m going to preface this post by saying that none of the established manufacturers are making bad camera bags. We’d know; we’ve reviewed the most of any photography publication. Just take a look at all our camera bag reviews! The bags are all varying degrees of mediocre to good, but none of them are truly awful. Even if they can’t be used as camera bags, they can be used for something else. But the modern camera bag industry has a big problem. I’m going to partially credit the idea for this post to my friend, Michael. One day, Michael said that there were too many camera bag manufacturers. And I agree with this. Michael specified that there are so many camera bags, but camera brands are making fewer and fewer cameras these days. While the camera industry shrunk, the camera bag industry grew. How does that make sense? Honestly, I don’t know. But I’m pretty sure it has something to do with Kickstarter. Brands have been using Kickstarter for years to fund their products. This helps brands that otherwise might not have made it to market have a fighting chance. And that’s great for them. The newer camera brands have done some innovative things that have changed the photo industry. Without them, the camera bag industry would be incredibly plain–more so than even vanilla. It would be plain like Greek yogurt. So why is this a problem? Well, it’s becoming tougher for things to become more unique. The problem was already plaguing the camera world. But in the camera bag industry, manufacturers copy one another in some ways all the time. Some stand out from others through materials. Some have pretty different and innovative designs. I think you get the point. What do we do about it? This is a tough question. There are only a few types of bags that make sense in the camera bag industry: backpacks, slings, messenger bags, duffels, and roller bags. I haven’t seen a lot of totes do a fantastic job at being camera bags. But I did some research into what types of bags could work. The Bucket. A bucket bag is sort of like a giant lens cloth. Just imagine one with dividers in there. It wouldn’t need to hold a laptop, but it could work as a messenger bag or sling style bag. Randoseru. A special type of backpack with quick access. Plus, there’s a hard front shell. Who wouldn’t want this? Battle Bag: From the same website as above, these could be modified with the right know-how. I tried to years ago, but I failed. Guitar bag: I used to carry guitars and basses with me. They were awesome. But creating a larger bag that could hold lenses, cameras, lights, etc, could be pretty awesome if it would have a definitive shape. Further, lots of brands don’t use materials like canvas and leather because they feel they’re too heavy. But with the right design and support, they can work much better. Most camera bags are made from nylon. In recent years, other materials have come up. What about hemp? Or why not silk? Or how about recycled scarf materials like wool and cashmere? I think brands need to try new things.
For more stories like this, please subscribe to the Phoblographer. The sad truth is that peel-apart film has been gone for many years now. In its final, last years, it didn’t get enough love. For decades, it was used primarily as a way to get a preview of what you were shooting on medium format cameras. But it evolved into other things after that. Recently, Supersense tried recreating it poorly. But if you have some of the original Fujifilm stuff, then you’ve got something special. Lots of folks don’t know what to do with them. So we’re going to walk you through. Oh, and by the way. My favorite camera to shoot peel-apart film with was always the Polaroid 180. Put it In the Fridge. Now. If you happen to get some, trust me on this. Put it in the fridge. Peel apart film is an actual film. And film has organic matter in it. Like all other organic materials, refrigeration helps preserve them. Whatever you do, don’t put it in the freezer. This film has an actual chemical in it that gets sorted through the photo once you shoot and pull it. Then it develops. Putting peel apart film in the freezer lets that film bubble possibly burst. Then the film is useless. So put it in the fridge. Let it Defrost When You Want to Shoot it When you’re ready to shoot your Peel apart film, let it sit outside for a while. Let it adjust to room temperature for maybe around an hour or so. This will get it prepped to shoot. And that brings us to our next step. Don’t Shoot it In the Cold Years ago, you could easily shoot Peel apart film in the cold, put it in a cold plate, and then warm it up with your body heat. At this point, all Peel apart film is pretty expired. So you’re best off just shooting it in warm weather. Aim for at least 70 degrees Fahrenheit in the room or the outdoor space you’re shooting. Years ago, I took a date out in the winter with this film. I pulled it through the roller when it was too cold out, and the photos never developed because of that. When you pull the image, make sure you’re in the warmest place possible. That will make the chemical saturation its richest. Overexpose it By at Least a Stop of Light Typically, you’re supposed to overexpose expired film anyway. When you use Peel apart film, you’re going to have to expose it. Use a light meter and get the best reading you possibly can. Then add a stop or so extra of light. Sometimes you’ll need to add two stops. This is the only way that you can get an image that will look really great. The Secret: You Can’t Overdevelop It Always remember, this isn’t digital, and it’s not really the darkroom. You can’t overdevelop Peel apart film. You can sit there, let it develop, and it will just stop after some time. Peel apart film usually tells you how long you need to wait until it’s done developing. You can underdevelop the shots, though. Don’t do that. It’s a waste. Keep the Other Side, It’s a Negative You Can Develop at Home with Bleach Lastly, when you’re done shooting, don’t throw away the other side of the instant film. That side contains a negative that’s easy to develop at home. Just use bleach or some toilet bowl cleaner with bleach. Then you’ll be able to get a beautiful negative that you can scan in and make it look gorgeous.
What is a leaf shutter? If you started in photography under a decade ago, we’re pretty sure you may not know the answer to this question. Even if you started in digital a decade ago, you might not know what a leaf shutter is. But these types of shutters are mostly absent from cameras these days. However, for the last decade, photographers clamored for them. Leaf shutters have advantages for photographers, but as time has gone on those advantages mostly disappeared. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. Table of Contents What Is a Leaf Shutter? Little to No Camera Shake A Faster Flash Sync A Quieter Camera The Leaf Shutter and the Modern Point and Shoot Camera What Is a Leaf Shutter? Having a leaf shutter means that the shutter is in the lens. When film was dominant, there were a few cameras with leaf shutters. The Mamiya 6 and Mamiya 7 series cameras used leaf shutters, as did many point-and-shoot cameras. The leaf shutter is the opposite of the focal plane shutter, which has the shutter right in front of the film plane or the camera sensor. The focal-plane shutter is built into the camera instead. Modern cameras can be confused as having leaf shutters because the shutter opens up, adjusts itself, and then opens back up at times. But that’s not the case; the shutter is still built into the camera. Leaf shutters have a few distinct advantages. But some of them are moot at this point in technology. “These lenses are specialized. Modern leaf shutter lenses are handmade by small, employee-owned companies, not mass produced on assembly lines. Not everyone on the block shoots with them. And their price is a direct reflection of quality. You get what you pay for. When it comes to using them with high resolution medium format cameras of the highest quality, you want to pair them with a lens that is sharp lens with amazing clarity to boot. You would’t put cheap tires on an Indy car.” – Why Leaf Shutters Matter Little to No Camera Shake With a leaf shutter, you’re not getting a whole lot of swing or shake. When a camera’s shutter fires, it can cause a shake. But with a leaf shutter, it’s very gentle. For years, this was a great advantage. It’s one of the many reasons the Fujifilm X100 series of cameras took off. The leaf shutter, colors, and style of the camera made professionals really want it. These days, the benefits have been pretty much superseded. Lots of cameras have image stabilization built into the sensor and the lens. We can make a very strong argument for 10 stops of image stabilization outdoing the camera shake negation a leaf shutter can achieve. If you’re still shooting film, leaf shutters are amazing. If you’ve ever fired a Pentax 67, you probably understand why. There’s a certain romance to the sound of that big, loud shutter on the legendary Pentax camera. But you probably also know how difficult it can be to shoot with. Of course, there are leaf shutter options for the Pentax 67. But, they’re very expensive. At that point, you’re better off trying to score a Mamiya 7 or Mamiya 7 II. You’ll lose the whole through-the-lens viewing experience, but you’ll get more stability. If you’re using a modern or vintage point-and-shoot camera with a fixed lens, then you’re also going to experience a leaf shutter. The well-known Yashica GSN Electro 35 sports an electronic leaf shutter. A Faster Flash Sync Faster flash sync is a great advantage of the leaf shutter. To understand why this is important, you need to understand how flash works. So we’re going to break it down. Shutter speed controls ambient light’s effect on the scene Aperture controls the output of the flash power in TTL flash mode. In manual mode, the aperture controls how much of the flash’s light output affects the scene. ISO controls the overall sensitivity of the scene to both ambient light and flash output lighting. Obvious...
You’d be shocked at just how simple it is to get the redscale look that everyone loves and craves. The redscale look derives from the organic look that you can get from film. And so, I’m going to preface this piece by saying you should just go shoot film. But you can totally get the look digitally too in-camera. Better yet, you don’t need to do post-production at all. In this short, useful photography tip, we’re going to each you how to get the redscale look. Want more useful photography tips? Click here. If you’re organically shooting for the redscale look with film, it will vary depending on how you expose for it. Years ago, we reviewed Redscale by Lomography. We said the following: “.the shorter your exposures are, the more red and orange the film results will be. But the longer your exposures are, the more normalized they’ll look.” So basically, the less light you give it, the more extreme the look. The more light you give it, the less the effect will be. You’ll need to dial in the look according to what your own preferences are. Of course, if you shoot digital, you might want to just try the look. Well, you don’t need some fancy preset and you don’t need to even step into post-production. You can shoot the image and then just port it straight to your phone. That means you can just focus on creating the entire time. Here’s how to get the redscale look. Tungsten Light and Daylight White Balance Tungsten-colored light is a big way to start getting the redscale look. How do you know what Tungsten light looks like? Well, is there warm light in the room or whiter light? If it’s warmer, it’s closer to Tungsten. Does the light remind you of the warmer lights you see in bars? If that’s the case, then that orange light is closer to tungsten. Most street lamps are also tungsten-colored. Whiter light is more daylight colored. Combine tungsten light in the environment with daylight white balance to get the redscale look. Your camera should have a daylight setting. But daylight white balance is anywhere between 5200-5600 Kelvin on your camera. Yes, this means, that you need to manually set the white balance by kelvin and not by using the white point option. This is just one way to do it, but there is, of course, yet another way to get the look too! 10,000 Kelvin White Balance In most lighting situations involving the outdoors or daylight, you can get the redscale look using 10,000 Kelvin white balance on your camera. For most cameras, this is the most extreme option on the warmer end. Want the extremely warm look with the clothes to be a different tone? Well, use a flash or shoot in daylight. Everything will have a tint of orange going over it and you’ll get a pretty awesome look without needing to do post-production. Some of you might wonder if this is possible with an orange filter on the lens. However, that’s not the case. An orange filter just makes the entire scene orange. That’s a cool look for sure, but it’s not quite the redscale look that you want.
You’ve probably read me say a bunch of times that the DSLR is dead. It truly is such a case. Using a DSLR in 2022 is like using a fax machine in 2009 when you could instead just send an email. It can do the job, but there is better technology that can do the job more efficiently. Mirrorless cameras and even your phone and incredibly capable these days. But just in case, here’s how you can give your DSLR new life this year. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. Convert it to Infrared This is an obvious choice for many photographers. Convert the camera to an infrared sensor option of some sort. The folks over at Kolari Vision can do this pretty easily for you. It doesn’t make much sense to bring along a big, heavy camera unless it has a specific purpose. So give your DSLR new life by making it shoot in a completely different way. This way, your mirrorless camera can specialize in shooting in a more conventional and normalized way. But when you want to get more creative and fun, you can bring this one out and just enjoy the process. These days, there are lots of different infrared options. Some are designed to look a bit like Kodak Aerochrome. You’ll still need to do a bit of processing, but you’ll enjoy the overall experience. Change the Focusing Screen to Support Manual Focus Lenses This was a personal project that for years, I wanted to do but never ended up doing. Give your DSLR new life with a new focusing screen. DSLRs have interchangeable focusing screens a lot of the time. If the viewfinder is offering 100% coverage, then it’s a bit more difficult. But if it’s something like 97%, then changing the focusing screen above the prism is easier. Zeiss and other brands used to make things like split screens and more. Grab an old Canon DSLR, change the focusing screen, and then go grab some old Zeiss glass on eBay. Forget all about autofocus. Turn this camera into the manual focus dream that you’ve wanted for a while. You’ll see just how different the experience becomes. It’s never going to be as nice as looking through a Pentax Spotmatic film SLR and it will be nowhere as wonderful as a Pentax 67 II. But it’s still going to be really nice overall. Can you use these with your autofocus lenses? Yes, but the experience won’t be the same as it will for manual focus lenses. It starts with the old-school shutter slapping sound and goes from there. Lots of mirrorless cameras lack the audible romance of DSLRs; even though they gain a whole lot in return. Give it an Angle Finder and Shoot in a Different Way I truly wish that more DSLRs had removable viewfinders, but they don’t. So instead, you can give your DSLR new life by modifing the viewfinder to shoot in a completely different way. It’s nowhere as cool as using a medium format camera and having a big hood finder. But it’s still a totally different way of shooting. By looking down at the screen like this, you’re giving yourself a different experience. Of course, you could do this with a rotating LCD screen if it has one. But it’s still not the same experience at all. Angle Finder photo by sachinese on Flickr.
For more stories like this, please subscribe to The Phoblographer. I’d like to believe that the photo industry has advanced quite far, despite still being behind phones somehow. I think that we’re now at a point where cameras can do even more. For example, a bunch of cameras try to do high megapixel modes and lots more. And years ago, they did panoramic modes as JPEGs. But I genuinely feel like it’s time they took that further. My idea: a panoramic RAW file that stitches together using similar tech as the high megapixel and multiple exposure modes. A while ago, camera manufacturers started saying that they’ve maxed out what’s possible with still photography and that they’d focus more on videos. But I sincerely disagreed. Modern cameras are competent tools, but camera manufacturers aren’t imaginative. That’s why it’s shocking that the panoramic raw photo mode hasn’t become more commonplace. You’re probably sitting there wondering why manufacturers haven’t made this yet. Well, for the past two decades, they’ve all been telling us that we can do that in post-production instead. But lots of us don’t want to sit in front of a computer slaving away to combine an image. However, if I needed to, I’d surely bring a panoramic raw photo that’s ready for me into Capture One to do some minor edits. The best part of this is that so many brands can do this differently. Canon can do this using the same multiple exposure technology that they’ve had for years. You’re just blending the photos together left to right. Sony doesn’t have a multiple exposure mode anymore. But they had a panoramic mode. Nikon can have panoramic RAW and apply its cool creative effects. The Sunday and Somber look are bound to make the mountains render really cool! Panasonic can do panoramic raw and apply their L Monochrome or Cinelike profiles to the images. Just imagine something genuinely looking like Panovision? Leica has the durability in their cameras to really encourage this. I’m not sure why Olympus doesn’t have this. They’re the brand I’d most expect to do panoramic raw. Fujifilm is where this would probably be the best. Imagine a panoramic RAW file in Velvia or Classic Chrome? It would look just like those old Nat Geo spreads in magazines. Naturally, these would be huge RAW files. So I’d expect the imaging processors to take a bit of time to line everything up. But Sony used to make this the easiest with their Sweep panorama mode years ago. For some odd reason, everyone got rid of it, and it hasn’t been back since. Yet, most modern cameras can do things like apply clarity, high dynamic range, etc. So just imagine a high dynamic range panoramic raw image with clarity bumped up a bit. And you’d get both a Raw and a JPEG. Wouldn’t that be awesome for landscape photography? And what about cityscapes? Some of the closest I’ve gotten to this is with a 16:9 photo aspect ratio. But that gives us a smaller image. Why can’t I have a bunch of raws combined in-camera? Just also think about the beautiful prints you could make. Further, imagine when the camera gets older, you convert it to infrared. Now you can get infrared panoramic photos. You’re more inclined to stay with the camera system then and won’t want to switch. Camera manufacturers want people to stick with their system more than anything else.
In the global pandemic, a lot of people became bird photographers. Tons of those folks took to the countryside, but some of us stayed in big cities. Believe it or not, big cities are great places to photograph birds. In fact, we reviewed a ton of lenses that help to do just that. So we’re giving readers some tips on how to photograph birds in cities based on our experiences. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. Table of Contents Set Up a Local Birdbath or Bird Feeder Start Early in the Day Walk Around and Notice Their Habits Tips for Better Bird Photos Recommended Lenses and Cameras to Photograph Birds in Cities Set Up a Local Birdbath or Bird Feeder It might seem like common sense, right? Instead of going out and hunting for the birds, bring them to you! We’ve seen a few things people do to get birds to come to their windows or close by. Some folks leave bird seed on their windowsill. We’ve also seen folks leave nuts and fruit on their windows or fire escapes. I set up a birdbath on my balcony that I sometimes fill up. If you don’t have space to do this, look for local parks, lakes, community gardens, etc. One cool idea is to hang a bird feeder from a line of some sort. If your home has an old-school clothes line, try hanging a feeder from there. The reason to do these things is to find a way to get the birds to come around at different times of the day. Birds are almost always looking for food. So if you can get birds to come to your home or space and pick up some food, you’ve then got an opportunity to photograph them. Ideally, you want the birds higher up from ground level. We’ve seen folks throw rice near trees for the sparrows to eat. This isn’t always safe, and won’t lead to attractive photos. The backgrounds may be way too busy. Putting berries out on plate on a fire escape or out a window sill is a better idea. Start Early in the Day The first thing you should know about how to photograph birds in cities is that they’re out and about early in the day. Sometimes you’ll see and hear them around at sunrise. At other times, you’ll see them gather in certain trees around 9am or 10am. You’ll typically get the best light earlier in the day when people are commuting and going to work. If you’re in a city, there are lots of different places you can look. Most wildlife and birding photography happens in the outdoors and countryside. But the truth is that big cities are where tons of birds go because of the free food sources available. Here in NYC, lots of folks flock (pun intended) to Central Park to photograph birds, but my favorite place is Forest Park in Queens, NY. Look around for fruit and berry trees. Birds like going to these trees and bushes for a snack. In parks, people might sometimes throw a bagel on the floor. If the squirrels don’t get to it, the birds will. One of the big problems about photographing birds in cities is that you mostly find pigeons or sparrows. But it’s possible to find other birds if you understand their diet. According to What Birds are in my Backyard, here are some of the most common birds. We’ve done a bit of research to also add in what they eat. Blue Jay: Peanuts and sunflower seeds. Try to make sure the nuts aren’t salted. American Robin: Fruits, berries, earthworms. Northern Cardinal: Sunflower seeds, grains, fruits. American Crow: Grains, nuts, seeds, berries. Black-capped Chickadee: Insects, seeds, berries. Mourning Dove: Sunflower seeds, cracked corn, and shelled peanuts. American Goldfinch: Seeds European Starling: Insects, berries, and seeds. Song Sparrow: Insects, seeds, berries. Downy Woodpecker: Beatle Larvae. Red-winged Blackbird: Insects, corn, and wheat. House Sparrow: Grains and seeds Common Grackle: Seeds, grains, and rice. Red-bellied Woodpecker: Nuts, foods, and seeds. White-breasted Nuthatch: Seeds and peanut butter mixtures. Tufted ...
“We’re closing up shop,” is what they told me. Behind my face mask, my jaw dropped. And the rest of my body language communicated complete shock and heartbreak. I moved back to Queens in 2020 and 37th Ave Photo had been my local film lab since coming back. But they’re gone now, and the knowledge of the old man, his son, and their incredible work has disappeared. In over 12 years of running The Phoblographer, the ongoing love story involving film labs has surely had its share of heartbreaks. When people want to find a film lab, they often ask friends. Every analog photographer has one they use and like. In New York City, lots of folks like CRC. I prefer Luster. A bunch of folks in North Brooklyn adore Kubus. But quality tends to change sometimes. Kubus might be great at one point of the year and awful at another while selling expired film that isn’t refrigerated. CRC might scan your black and whites and have dust all over them. Luster will do a consistently great job but they’ll be incredibly expensive. Duggal will do a great job but cost you an arm and a leg. There’s always something with film labs. But, finding the one for you is sometimes more heartbreaking than relationship-based heartbreaks. The problem with the film lab industry in NYC is huge. Some of them send your film to another developer at times. Turnover is also pretty vast. The profit margins are slim because film is still a niche product. It’s grown over the years; Fujifilm has cited that Millenials and Gen Z use it. It’s unfortunate, as I’ve heard of some wages paid are minimum wage. I don’t think this is the case with bigger labs, but at the smaller ones, it’s part of what’s wrong with them. This is a compound problem that I think is going to get worse. Manufacturers have raised prices, and I hope the profit will go back into developing new film that can’t be duplicated with a digital preset. But when film prices rise, people usually buy less. When people buy and shoot less film, less are developed. So the film labs get squeezed with a big problem. Have you ever tried scanning your film? It can be an incredibly annoying process and can take a really long time to get them right. Believe it or not, I don’t think film labs charge enough. But if prices went up, people would complain. I’m sure some of you saying “Just shoot digital.” But no. Digital is a great experience, but film is a completely different type of ceremony. I’ll liken it to vinyl. When you’re listening to vinyl, it makes sense that you’d sit around and do nothing else but listen to the music. After a while, you’re going to need to get up and flip the record. You obviously don’t have that issue with digital music. Similarly, with film, you have to experience the ceremony of being more careful with your shots. Sure, you can do that with digital, but most people don’t. I’ve seen photographers shoot in burst mode and end up with 500 images of one look. You’re not going to do that with film. And a lot of digital photographers don’t shoot digital in the same way they do film.
There are a lot of things to know when it comes to photography terminology. And there is also a difference between knowing what things mean, and being able to apply them. We’re going to talk about that a little bit in this article. When I started this site, I wrote about photography terminology. And today, I’m revamping that piece with a bit. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. Shutter Speed – This is how long your camera’s shutter stays open and it can be read on either the back of your screen or within the viewfinder. It is typically a fraction or a whole number. For example: 1/15 = a fifteenth of a second 1/1000= a thousandth of a second 1”= 1 second 15” = fifteen seconds Here are the basic rules to follow: The longer the shutter speed the more motion will be captured and the stiller you need to remain. This is great for capturing nighttime scenes. The faster the shutter speed the less motion will be captured. This is great for capturing fast-moving objects like sports action. The longer the shutter speed, the more the camera is going to pick up on your shaky hands. So you’ll get the effects of camera shake. Image stabilization can help with this, but the best thing to do is use a tripod or hold the camera in an efficient way. On your camera, this can be seen with the S mode. Aperture – This is also known as F stop. It controls how much of your image is in focus or not (what is clear and what is blurry). It also controls how much light comes into the lens of your camera and hits the sensor (the equivalent of film). In general: f1.4 = Enables high shutter speeds – not much is in focus f2.8 = Enables almost as high shutter speeds – more is in focus (great for portraits) f11 = Needs slower shutter speeds – much more is in focus f22 = Needs the slowest of shutter speeds – everything you point your lens at should be in focus (best used with a flash unless there is tons of bright light available) If you have a smartphone or a drone, it most likely won’t have a variable aperture; it will be locked at one setting because the sensor is so small. It’s a bit useless to have a working aperture. So the blur is created using software. On your camera this is also known as AV mode. Bokeh – Bokeh can mean a few things. Colloquially, it will refer to the quality of the out-of-focus area in a photo. But it’s been adapted into the vernacular to just mean the out of focus area. Various things affect the bokeh. The coatings on the lens elements can add more or less contrast. More contrast can sometimes mean that your subject pops out from the background. We’ve typically seen Leica Apochromatic lenses lend some of that special “pop.” And the number of aperture blades also affects bokeh. The fewer aperture blades there are, the less pleasing the bokeh balls in the background can be, but this also depends on the focal length. Depth of Field – This is what is the range of distance within the subject that is acceptably in focus. It can be controlled using aperture. ISO – Light sensitivity of your camera’s sensor. The higher the ISO, the more sensitive your camera will be to light and the grainier your images will be. The lower the ISO, the less sensitive the camera will be to light and the less grainier your images will be. Higher ISOs allow for faster shutter speeds. ISO 100 = great for daylight use, no image grain ISO 400 = great for twilight use, a bit more grain ISO 1600 = much more suited towards low light or high action where you need to stop fast movement ISO 6400 = even better suited towards low light and fast action, but delivers grainy images In recent years, cameras have gotten so good that ISO 6400 can print images at 17×22 inches with little to no grain. ISO is something that’s more flexible with digital cameras than it is on film. With film emulsions, you typically have to shoot at the same ISO for the entire roll. Manual – A shooting mode on your camera that ena...
If you look at the state of Leica cameras right now, you’ll see a carefully selected set of items. Their cameras are great in so many ways. But for lots of photographers, they’re still not perfect. I’m not talking about the folks who won’t buy them, I’m geeking out here with the folks who adore Leica cameras from the start. In this post, I discuss my idea for the perfect Leica camera. It addresses some of the problems found in the Leica M11 and the Leica Q2. Most of all, it feeds into the gear acquisition syndrome we have, but doesn’t encourage us to be irresponsible. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner-ad-free experience. Take the Leica Q2 Leica built the Leica Q system many years ago. For some, it’s the perfect camera. The Leica Q2 improved over that. Wedding photographers and others talk it up, and every time it’s in my hands I fall for it a little more. It feels like a modernized Leica M. Now, the Leica M is an exquisite camera. And by all means, before we go on, please understand I’m not saying Leica should get rid of the other M-series cameras. Instead, let’s call this the Leica Q-CL (because the Q2 is smaller than the M). Anyway, though, we’re starting out with the body and full electronics of the Leica Q2. Give It the Leica M-Mount We’re removing the excellent autofocusing lens on the Leica Q2, and we’re replacing it with an M-mount. Indeed, the lens is part of what makes the Q2 special. It’s sharp, versatile, can shoot macro stuff, and autofocus quickly with the latest firmware updates. But, we’re removing the Leica Q2’s lens and giving the Leica Q-CL an M-mount. This means it would be able to use many different lenses, like the 50mm f2 Summicron-APO and a bunch more. On top of that, we’re using an EVF. If Leica adds a joystick, it will make selecting the focusing area more straightforward. A photographer will be able to magnify anywhere in the frame, focus, and then shoot. What would be even more tempting is giving the Leica Q-CL internal 64GB storage. Let’s also be honest here; it doesn’t need autofocus. If you’re buying a Leica, then you understand the tactile functionality of it. You’re purchasing a passion product that can take beautiful photos. Leica cameras are a tactile experience that Sony, Canon, and Nikon can’t even comprehend. If someone says they’re paying all that money and there is no autofocus, they don’t get it. And that’s fine. Weather Seal the Mount Finally, Leica would add some sort of weather-resistance to the mount. If we’re really dreaming big, then they’ll also start delivering a line of Leica M-mount lenses with complete weather sealing. We know it’s possible, and we know Leica’s durability is undoubtedly very high. But let’s make it official! Even if you’re not taking your camera into the rain, the weather-resistance would maintain functionality for a longer period of time.
Most new photographers would never know or understand when the best time to shoot portraits is. But if you want an effortless time and diffused natural light, then you’ll have to plan accordingly. Most importantly, you’ll need a subject that’s got the time to shoot. And you don’t need a fancy camera or lenses for this method. As long as you just know and understand the timing, you’ll see that this is universally the best time to shoot portraits. So what is it? We’ll tell you after the jump. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. The Best Time to Shoot Portraits and Why The best time to shoot portraits is during an overcast day when the sun is behind the clouds. Some photographers and producers call this the softbox look in the creative industry. Obviously, this doesn’t mean it will always happen during the golden hour. The Golden Hour is very nice, but if you don’t know how to use the light, it’s useless. Instead, it’s easier to just get naturally diffused lighting in all situations and from every angle. Here are some specific reasons why the best time to shoot portraits is during a cloudy day. You can shoot at a wider aperture and a lower ISO. This will give you sharper images and often a lot of data to work with in post-production. As you raise the ISO of a camera, it tends to lose both color rendition and dynamic range. You can use your camera’s spot metering methods to meter for a subject’s face. No matter the angle, and as long as you’re exposing accordingly, no angle can look bad. You’re not going to have deep, dark shadows under their eyes or under their chin. No one wants those. (I purposely grow a beard to hide my chin, or chins rather! Ha!) Colors tend to pop more with soft, diffused lighting. If you’re using auto white balance, it’s going to add warmth to the image to make the skin tones look more radiant. You can do all this using just natural light. If you choose to mix in a flash, it will make everything pop even more. How to Do It Here are a few tips on utilizing a cloudy day. Once you try it, it will really hammer in why it’s the best time to shoot portraits: Consider bringing a reflector. It will bounce light back into someone’s face and under their chin. Don’t want to bring a reflector? Change the pose up or shoot very tight. Shooting a photo with a subject by a red brick wall will make your subject appear more red. Use your camera’s natural HDR mode. It will raise the shadows and nerf the highlights, but to the point where a portrait will still look natural. Grab a lens with a shallow depth of field and a fast aperture. A standard nifty 50 lens is just fine. At that previous link, you’ll find our reviews of lots of them. Pose your subject. Even though there is all this diffused lighting, you’ll still have to move them around a bit. Come up with a concept of some sort. At the end of the day, just remember that you shouldn’t stress any of this. Look at the image, assess what’s going well and what’s not. Figure out a solution to what’s plaguing your photos. And always remember to experiment.
On this week's episode of Inside the Photographer's Mind, we're joined by underwater photographer Brett Stanley.
Brett joins us to talk how his creative process, the types of clients that visit his home studio, and what type of personal work he likes to do. It's a fantastic show and one you're sure to enjoy.
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On this week's episode of Inside the Photographer's Mind we're joined by our Reviews Writer, Brittany Smith.
If an app version is incremented by a whole number, this usually indicates that many new features have been added. In some cases, it could mean an almost complete overhaul of the app itself, both visually and functionally. Rarely have I seen an app undergoing such an upgrade that negates the core purpose of the app itself. Judging by the recent reviews I’ve seen on the App Store, I’m not the only one who’s facing these problems with the FilmLab 2 app. I hope the app’s next update corrects what I’ve observed, which I detail below. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. Table of Contents Too Long; Didn’t Read Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Ease of Use It’s Not Easy Anymore How Good Are the Changes in Version 2? Improved editing tools (after clicking a photo using the camera, or selecting a photo from the Photo gallery) Who Thought It Was a Smart Idea to Remove the Crop Tool? That Yellow Overlay What’s With the Colour Cycling? Delayed Response to Pressing the Shutter Button Conclusions Likes Dislikes Too Long; Didn’t Read I wouldn’t call this roundup scathing, but I really think the folks at Develop and Fix, Inc need to fix the main reason why someone would use this app (to seamlessly and flawlessly preview negatives). Version 1 of this app was really amazing. But the experience of using version 2 might be why someone will look for another app that does the same feature better. I used the Android version a lot when working on my Negative Supply Basic 35mm Kit review earlier this year. That app worked great (and still does on version 1.5.0, released on Apr 17th, 2020). It was a real time saver when it came to picking negatives to scan for the review. In September, the developers got in touch to state that the iOS version 2 was in beta. The apps we tested on my iPhone and iPad weren’t the beta ones though. They were tested on FilmLab 2 after it was released to the App Store. If you’ve got the FilmLab iOS v1 app, I strongly recommend not upgrading it to v2 for now. You’ll see why in the review below. Pros and Cons Pros FilmLab has moved to a freemium model The mobile version now uses the same colour conversion engine as their desktop software There’s an optional Pro version that allows you to import and edit files stored on your mobile device Finer, in-app edits with numerical adjustment values for each slider Integration with Files app on iOS to allow file imports from Photos library, memory cards, iCloud etc. All edits done in the app are non destructive Pro upgrade has the same license as the Desktop app. You don’t have to pay extra for the license on multiple devices Cons What was earlier a simple inversion of the negative (which allowed you to see what the photo was) now has the preview screen cycling through Yello, Cyan, and Magenta, as well as varying levels of exposure when the app’s camera is open and focused on the negative Eventually the negative preview has a highlighter pen-yellow tinge to it The headaches that come from viewing (or trying to preview) your negatives because of the above points Previewing the negative has become a lot more painful in version 2 Gear Used iPhone SE on iOS 14.8; FilmLab 2.0.1 (non beta) iPad 6th Gen on iOS 15.0.2; FilmLab 2.0.1 (non beta) Huawei P30 Pro on EMUI 11.0.0; FilmLab 1.5.0 (to compare new version against previous) Negative Supply 35mm Basic Kit Ease of Use “FilmLab makes it easy to view and digitize film negatives. All you need is your iPhone or iPad, and a light table or other back light.” I hadn’t tested version 1 of the app on iOS, but assuming it had similar functionality to version 1 on Android, I would agree with the above statement. I heavily relied on it while working on my Negative Supply 35mm Basic Kit. Having to sift through tons of negatives to pick a handful of images for that article wasn’t easy. Then I discovered FilmLab (for my primary phone using Android). I didn’t even use the LightSource ...
When it comes to camera bags, I’m incredibly proud of the work we’ve done here at The Phoblographer. We’ve arguably reviewed the most camera bags of any publication. And our team comes in a variety of body shapes, plus we’re of different genders. I’ve been reviewing Manfrotto bags for a long time, and they always seem to do something that doesn’t get it quite right. That’s what I experienced with the Manfrotto Advanced Active III for the most part. I purposely held off on writing this for a month. Why? I wanted to sit with my feelings on it and step away from the experience. But after some time away, I still feel the same. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. Too Long; Didn’t Read The Manfrotto Advanced Active III could’ve been better with the addition of a few things like a waist strap and better side pockets. In our meeting with Manfrotto, they told us it didn’t need a waist strap. But, we found this to be a poor understanding of the modern photographer. Pros and Cons Pros It’s all black. A decent amount of pockets and compartmentalization It can hold a surprising amount of gear, just not in the camera section. For what this bag is, it’s comfortable but could’ve been made so much more so. It’s only around $109. Cons I wish there were a canvas and leather version of this bag. I understand that can be too heavy, so I’d settle for treated hemp. It really needed a waist strap. The side pockets feel restricting. I don’t quite understand how the top compartment is so huge yet the camera compartment is so small. I think all backpacks these days should have a roll-top standard. It lets a photographer expand the capabilities of the backpack. Innovations In the grand scheme of things, the Manfrotto Advanced Active III isn’t reinventing the wheel. Everything that we’ve seen from this camera bag we’ve seen from others. So what makes it stand out? Manfrotto’s padding is quite good and gotten better. But this is across the entire latest refresh of products. Gear Used We stuffed the Manfrotto Advanced Active III with: Sony a7r III Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Tamron 70-300mm FE Macbook Pro 2015 Books Filson mask Tech Specs The tech specs for this bag are borrowed from the Adorama listing. The Advanced Compact, Active, Befree, Gear, Fast, and Travel backpacks offer a diverse variations of backpacks that differ in overall capacity, designated compartments for camera gear and personal items, and various options for access points to the gear compartments that complement the needs of every creator with any kind of on-the-go workflow. Black Microinjection 3D Logo: Characteristic feel of the Manfrotto Bag collections’ new sleek and minimalist design Gray Hypalon Pullers: Durable lightweight accents for the main gear compartment access Gray Functional Details Total Black Polyester Fabric: Characteristic feel of the Manfrotto Bag collections’ new sleek and minimalist design Manfrotto Branded Lining M-Guard Dividers – Improved Protection Harmonized Harness System with Chest Strap Ergonomics The Manfrotto Advanced Active III is a fascinating bag. First off, if you’ve ever wanted a camera bag that doesn’t look like it’s a camera bag, this is probably one of if not the best option on the market. When you look at it, you wouldn’t at all think it’s a camera bag. It’s also got a very plain, nondescript look. The low profile of the bag mostly permeates through the rest of the design. Manfrotto’s big logo, red tabs, and structured back pad make things look a bit different. On the side of the bag, there isn’t much in the way of pockets. Quite honestly, you can forget about bringing a tripod with this bag. In my opinion, Manfrotto took the support strap to hold a tripod and put it on the wrong side. The pocket below isn’t very expandable. However, the pocket on the other side is easily expandable enough to accommodate a tripod...
“I somehow see Plexus as a portrait project – a portrait of what has faded, and what is still lingering,” explains photographer Elena Helfrecht. “Maybe it can be seen as a sort of conjuring.” I originally poured over the images in Plexus on a mobile phone, and realized I wasn’t doing her work justice. When I looked at Plexus on my iMac, I had a completely different experience. I immediately thought of the Blair Witch Project, Paranormal Activity, and more of the found-footage horror movies that dominated my younger years. That’s where I became enamored with the series. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. I think Plexus is not a series that belongs in print. To be honest, I think that would ruin the series. It belongs on your screen in dark mode, with you staring at the photos. When you peer into the work, you can almost feel its moving elements. Combine this with the fact that Plexus explores generational trauma, and you’ve got a recipe for a cinematic piece of photographic work. Personally, I’m also a huge fan of the direct flash, no Photoshop or post-production, and the use of black and white. The Essential Camera Gear of Elena Helfrecht Sony a7r II Flash I am mostly working digitally, as this allows me to experiment with the utmost flexibility, and without material (and financial) restrictions. My main tool is a Sony A7RII, which I chose first and foremost because of its capabilities to work in low light. Phoblographer: It looks like you’ve used a lot of direct flash. How did this help you express yourself creatively? Elena Helfrecht: The beauty of flash is its ability to highlight forms and structures and to blacken out the background. This often helps me to elevate the subject I had in mind. Since one overarching concept of the project is the visualization of psychological structures, and the exploration of how they are connected through different times and international contexts, the materials of the photographed subjects become a symbol for these aspects. Flash, together with the reduction of color, even them out and make them appear as one fabric. Phoblographer: How much Photoshop was used in this project? Was most of it created in-camera? Elena Helfrecht: While I always work on contrasts, lighting, and minor retouching, the whole project was created in-camera. “The beauty of flash is its ability to highlight forms and structures and to blacken out the background. This often helps me to elevate the subject I had in mind.” Phoblographer: A lot of your work is in black and white. What do you feel it does for your creativity? Elena Helfrecht: A reduction of colors emphasizes form and structure, and it breaks down the image, so only the essentials are left. In turn, the image becomes more abstract and the eye is guided towards shapes and textures, which often helps to materialize the vision I had in mind. Recently, colors frequently seem more and more like a distraction to me. If I use color, it has to be for a very specific, often symbolic, reason. Phoblographer: What photographers have influenced you? How have they done so? Elena Helfrecht: It’s not only photography that influences my work, but my roots actually lie in art history. I think Symbolism and Romanticism have influenced me a lot. And then there is literature and movies, too. Some photographers I adore are Joel-Peter Witkin, Roger Ballen, George Shiras, Frederick Sommer, Annegret Soltau, and Francesca Woodman, for example. I believe we are constantly influenced by what we see and experience. Phoblographer: Almost all of these images were shot in portrait orientation. How does that help viewers understand what you’re conveying in the images? Was that a purposeful creative decision? Elena Helfrecht: I somehow see Plexus as a portrait project – a portrait of what has faded, and what is still lingering. Maybe it can be see...
If you’re a fan of landscape photography, then you’re probably aware of the feature on Olympus cameras called Live ND. Since it was introduced years ago, no other camera manufacturer has implemented it into their cameras. Granted, there has also been a worldwide pandemic that’s restricted productivity and innovation. But still, Olympus cameras, and therefore OM System cameras, are very capable. For a while, they were the only ones with vehicle AI autofocus tracking. But in truth, Live ND is one of the coolest things they’ve made. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. Have you ever gone to photograph a landscape and then needed to bring along ND filters? It’s not all that inconvenient, but you may have a whole stack of them in a case. Lots of them also vary by quality. Some remove all colors casts and provide maximum sharpness. Other filters make the image softer and dreamier. While I personally like the latter look, not everyone has the same taste. So Live ND gives photographers a bit of help with things like that. It acts as an artificial ND filter. Unfortunately, it was a feature that also wasn’t talked about a lot. That’s a problem with the way camera reviewers often do their jobs. Instead of focusing on some of the major new innovations, they mostly focus on image quality. But in reality, no one can tell the difference between a Canon photo or a competitor’s. Reviews Editor Hillary Grigonis proved this a while back. These days, in many cases, sensor size won’t matter until you get to the extreme edges of photography. Sure, Olympus can’t do high ISO imagery as cleanly as other cameras. But if you add their art filters, you’ll get unique image quality. When it first hit the scene, I thought a lot of other manufacturers would’ve copied it. I mean, it would make sense for Sony, Canon, or Nikon to do something similar. But at the same time, I thought Panasonic cameras would’ve gotten it as they have the Live Composite feature. That wasn’t the case. And instead, OMDS keeps this tech to themselves. And bravo to them! In a world where too many cameras do the same things, OMDS is standing out. At this point in time, image quality is such a small factor to buying a camera. You can do a whole lot with post-production. Of course, we always say we’ll try to do the least post-production possible. But that really truly happens with very few camera systems. We wish Olympus applied their Art Filters to their RAW files in Capture One. We also wish that several brands weren’t on an endless quest to achieve clinical perfection. But, in a camera world where many manufacturers use the same components, features are what will differentiate them from each other. With that said, there’s a lot of praise the the OM system deserves. At the same time, they surely can improve their animal autofocus detection, high ISO output, and perhaps even add more AI to the system. Since they use a smaller sensor, AI is truly their future. It works the processor nowhere as hard as it would with a full-frame sensor. With that said, I’m hopeful for the future of OMDS. I just hope all the manufacturers start to realize that photography can all be done within the camera.
For $600, the Sony 40mm F2.5 G delivers portability, speed, and pretty good image quality. Sony’s G lenses have a reputation for high-end image quality — but with a price to match. Sony’s newest optics in the series were announced on March 23. These put G series sharpness in a trio of compact lenses that are $600 each. The Sony FE 40mm f2.5 G, alongside the new 50mm and the 24mm, is now the most affordable of the E-Mount G lenses. The question is, did Sony sacrifice too much to reach that lower price point? The most obvious sacrifice is the aperture — and f2.5 instead of the f1.8 or f1.2 of pricier lenses. By going with a slightly narrower aperture, Sony has managed to create a weather-sealed lens that weighs around only six ounces. I tested the Sony 40mm f2.5 G in a portrait session to see just how well the $600 lens holds up. Table of Contents Too Long, Didn’t Read. Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Sony 40mm f2.5 G Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Autofocus Ease of Use Image Quality Bokeh Sharpness Lens Character Color Rendering Extra Image Samples Edited Unedited Conclusions Likes Dislikes Too Long, Didn’t Read. The Sony FE 40mm f2.5 G looks almost exactly like the 50mm f2.5 G and even captures similar images. But, the lens is a bit more flexible with a closer autofocus range. That, plus the slightly shorter focal length, makes the affordable, compact lens a good option for working in tight spaces. Pros and Cons Pros Light and small Aluminum build with unique hood design Weather-sealed Wider autofocus range than the similar 50mm Sharp photos Accurate color Affordable Cons Not the brightest G series lens Bokeh isn’t quite perfect Some chromatic aberration Gear Used I paired the Sony FE 40mm f2.5 G with the A7R IV body. In some portraits, I also used a Wescott reflector. Innovations The Sony FE 40mm f2.5 G doesn’t really do anything drastically new. But, it does put some high-end touches into an affordable, compact lens. Sony 40mm f2.5 G Tech Specs Aluminum build Weather-sealed Internal focus with double linear motors Minimum focus distance 11 inches (9.8 inch in manual focus) Measures 2 3/4 inches long Weighs about six ounces Ergonomics Except for the numbers on the lens, the Sony FE 40mm f2.5 G looks identical to its sister lenses, the 50mm f2.5 G and the 24mm f2.8 G. The lens trio share both a similar control scheme and size. The 40mm weighs around six ounces. Mounted, the lens only sticks out from the camera body about two and a half inches. That creates a well-balanced system that doesn’t pull the front of the camera down. The lens has three simple controls near the mount. Near the left hand, the barrel houses an autofocus lock button and, just below that, a switch to move to manual focus and back. A bit tucked away on the opposite side of the lens, an aperture de-click switch sits near the camera grip. Like the 50mm and 24mm, it lacks a focal distance scale. The aperture control ring has a thin textured grip. Below that, flush with the lens, the different aperture settings are clearly labeled. The lens turns with a satisfying click or with the de-click switch, smooth and without hesitation. At the front of the lens, the focus ring is wider, with a slightly smoother texture. Reaching for a ring without taking your eye from the viewfinder is easy to do by feel. At the front, the Sony 40mm f2.5 G has a hood that feels more like part of the lens than a separate hood. The hood is only about a fingertip deep but has a small lip at the front that should also help keep out rain and fingerprints. The hood is so small that there’s no need to reverse it for storage. A 49mm filter can be attached to the hood itself or the lens with the hood removed. Build Quality Made from aluminum, the Sony FE 40mm f2.5 G doesn’t feel like a budget lens. The lens is sturdy yet not overly heavy. The lens cap feels a little more budget, but that’s partly because it’s a tiny 49mm cap. The lens is also weather-sealed. While I didn’t...
Buying a film camera can be very confusing. After all, you can’t really ask questions about the megapixels. Further, the autofocus doesn’t have things like face and eye detection. Film cameras let you do things much differently from digital. They’re fun! In 2022 though, it’s nonsensical to ask yourself the same questions folks did back in the ’90s and prior. You could say that your camera took good pictures, but it would be the film that did it along with the lenses. We’re diving into the questions you should ask yourself about how to buy a film camera. And I’m sharing my experience from buying them for over a decade. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. Table of Contents Choose the Right Shops (eBay, Blue Moon Camera, and More) Point and Shoot, Rangefinder, or SLR? Medium Format, Large Format, or 35mm? Your Best Bet Is All Mechanical Check Out the Lens System (If There Is One) Choose the Right Shops (eBay, Blue Moon Camera, and More) First off, choose the right shops. If you’re wondering how to buy a film camera, don’t get it from an awful source. You can’t always trust Craigslist. And so let’s dive into this a bit more: Some retailers do nothing to prep the camera for resale. Some will buy it straight from a buyer for a stupidly low price, and then sell it straight to you for more than they bought it for. I wouldn’t go with any of the big guys unless it’s a really big purchase of a camera that’s also very rare. Even the people I know who work at the big camera shops don’t buy their used film cameras there. Some retailers go as far as revamping and refurbishing the cameras. Blue Moon Camera, our partner for the Rare Camera Store initiative, does this! eBay can have good shops, but be sure to check the ratings. Etsy can be an awesome place to buy cameras if you can get them at the right price. Look around at prices on the market. Don’t be afraid to be confrontational. The truth is that you’re not going to be sitting there one day when you retire regretting you were confrontational. Hold them accountable. If the store you’re looking at is charging more, ask them what’s justifying the extra cost. Good shops will be transparent with you. Point and Shoot, Rangefinder, or SLR? There are lots of tough questions you need to answer as far as how to buy a film camera. One of them is about the camera type. A point and shoot will keep things simple. A rangefinder is one of the smallest and most versatile. Plus, they can transition easily into digital if you’re reaching for something with Leica M-mount. An SLR can transition into digital too, though a bit poorly these days. SLRs show you what you’re getting in the viewfinder, while other cameras give you an approximation. Personally, I reach for point and shoots and rangefinders. There are affordable SLR film cameras, but I’ve got a good enough experience with modern day mirrorless! Medium Format, Large Format, or 35mm? Here’s another big question! What format are you intending to shoot? 35mm is a small format, but if you think about how to buy a film camera and what you’re buying it for, it could be the tactile experience. If you’re going for 35mm, get it because it feels good, the film you want is easier to get in 35mm, or it’s just fun. Otherwise, just go medium format or large format. Most digital cameras can outdo what 35mm film does these days. But medium format can outdo digital in many ways. Your Best Bet Is All Mechanical THIS IS A BIG ONE!!! Cameras with electronics are prone to failure. Some cameras are a combo of both mechanical and electronic. For example, look at the Leica M6 or Leica CL. They’re mechanical cameras but the meter uses electronics. If anything, your Leica M6 will just become a Leica M4! Mechanical cameras will also mean that they’ll keep working pretty much no matter what. If your camera needs a battery to power the shutter, buy with caution. Check Out the Lens System (If There Is One) S...
On this week's episode of Inside the Photographer's Mind, we're joined by our EIC, Chris Gampat.
Links to Gear Discussed:
OM System OM1: https://amzn.to/3BXy4Es (Full review: https://www.thephoblographer.com/2022...) Nikon Z 28mm f2.8: https://amzn.to/3C1mnws Canon QL17: https://amzn.to/36PQfAD
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If you look on social media, lots of photos have a particular format. Sure, you can share landscape-oriented photos pretty easily. But the ones that take up the most space are vertical images and portrait-oriented images. Photography hasn’t really caught up though. Photography has long been based on the idea that images will be printed onto paper. Then it was oriented towards computer screens. But the dominant devices these days are smartphones, and landscape-oriented imagery on smartphones doesn’t make sense. Instead, portrait and square photos are more practical. For this reason, I think a square camera sensor would make the most sense. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. Back in 2016, Hasselblad had a concept for the V1D. This was a camera that used a medium format sensor and cropped the image down to a square format. It was a weird but fascinating idea. While it ended up being vaporware, they were surely onto something. A square sensor format camera could be just what the industry needs right now. You’re probably saying, but why not just crop the image? I’d argue back that you should have the image right from the start. A lot of cameras have a square format JPEG image option. It’s very fun to use. But medium format film cameras that used a 6×6 square format existed for years. I think a square format sensor could be the next big, fun thing in cameras. A square camera sensor would change a lot of things. The body shape wouldn’t need to be so long. Instead, it could be cubed. The way folks composed images would totally change. And if they wanted to create a landscape or portrait-oriented photo, they could use an in-camera stitching method. Sony has a sweep panorama feature, but imagine doing it with a square camera sensor. Specifically, I think a square camera sensor in a camera body like a Hasselblad 500C with a top-down LCD could be amazing and fun. Every camera these days more or less follows two shapes: a traditional DSLR or a rangefinder style. Sigma has tried and failed with a lot of ideas. But why does the industry continue to ignore a critical part of history? Many photographers have gone back to film to use Mamiya SLR film cameras partially because they love the format and the experience. So why can’t that be done a different way digitally? I think a square camera sensor device could also be really simple to make lenses for. The camera would basically just use the center area of the lens where the image quality is best. And making a sensor larger than a Fujifilm GFX sensor would be the way to go here. So who would do something like this? I think Hasselblad would be best. But let’s face it, they barely seem to exist as a camera company anymore. Tamron, years ago, owned Bronica. They make a ton of lenses and it would be amazing for them to team up with Sony to make their own square format cameras. Fujifilm might also make sense. But could this actually happen? Unfortunately, I don’t think so. I think camera manufacturers often try to be very safe. And for business, that makes sense. But I wouldn’t believe anyone who told me there isn’t a demand for a square format sensor camera. If it were good, I think folks would totally buy it. It’s perfect for social media. And, again, most photos these days are consumed on social media. This website’s audience is 65% mobile-based.
Let’s be very honest here, Zeiss lenses are fantastic. They’re capable in every single way. For years, they also had some of the best image quality you could ever get from a lens. Zeiss lenses were available for Canon EF, Nikon F, Sony E, Leica-M, and Fujifilm X cameras. But they quietly disappeared from the photo industry with more of a focus on cinema. So what happened? Well, I’d like to relay what I’ve seen in my 12 years of journalism and covering the Zeiss company. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. For many years, Zeiss has been known as a premium lens manufacturer that offered a wonderful look. They were popular among Leica photographers and a few Canon photographers who used 5D cameras. The lenses gave a look Japanese manufacturers just weren’t offering. Zeiss optics were better: sharper, more contrasty, more vivid, and delivered beautiful focus fall-off. It’s was sometimes pretty obvious to tell when you were seeing a Zeiss image. We were reviewing them not long after I started the site in 2009. My first experience with Zeiss lenses was back in 2010. That’s over a decade ago. And even when I look back at that very old blog post, I still get goosebumps about how nice those photos are. A few times, I’ve gone to eBay to find some of those old Zeiss gems for DSLRs. You’d be amazed at how well they’ve held their value. Back in 2013 though, the entire lens industry began to change. This was a time when major tsunamis and other effects of global warming were wiping out factories. It was also a time when third-party lens companies stepped up and created lenses that turned peoples’ heads. Zeiss announced the 55mm f1.4 Otus lens. They touted that this lens, when shot wide open, would be as sharp as their competition’s lenses stopped down. And as we saw, they were right. I think every photographer at the time was drooling over that lens but also hesitant because of the insanely expensive price. Zeiss touted this lens as a no-compromise lens to create the single best optic, but they neglected a few major points. A lens costing over $3,000 should have weather sealing and autofocus, but they didn’t have either. Still, the image quality really did prevail. Around the same time, Sigma announced they’d be coming out with a 50mm f1.4 Art lens with autofocus. Amazingly, it held its own with the Zeiss 55mm Otus lens at a far cheaper cost. Lots of folks decided to go with slightly worse image quality fully understanding they could edit the images later on. They really wanted autofocus though. Zeiss understood this–and found ways to press on. They delivered the Touit series of lenses for Fujifilm X mount and Sony E mount. We reviewed all of those and really liked them. But again, it was sometimes the price that held us back. Then Zeiss partnered with Sony on the full-frame cameras by delivering the Loxia and the Batis lens lineup. The latter had autofocus, but we haven’t seen anything from the company’s lens division since 2019. By that time, they had pretty much given up on DSLRs. For the record, The Phoblographer has reviewed the most camera lenses of any publication in real-world reviews. We’ve done entire lens guides for their Milvus lenses while their Batis and Loxia lenses are rolled into our Sony FE Lens Guide. Trust me, if we could test them, we’d do so. Across the board, our staff tends to really like the challenge manual focus lenses give us. It makes our jobs a lot less monotonous. There are some very odd, dark secrets in the camera and lens world. Some manufacturers make lenses for others. Other brands have closed-door deals. But Zeiss never managed to get autofocusing lenses for Canon or Nikon. However, they all had autofocus contacts for manual focusing. If Zeiss had just made some autofocus lenses, things probably would’ve been different. So why did Zeiss stop making lenses for Son...
Most photographers automatically protect their camera with a padded bag — but what about the tripod? My own tripod is, admittedly, a little beat up from just being tossed in the bed of my pick-up truck. When I saw Manfrotto had launched a dedicated tripod bag to go along with the new accessories to their Tough series hard cases, I decided to give my tripod a much-needed break from the bumps and test it out. The Manfrotto Pro Light Tough Tripod bag uses a roll-top design that allows the bag to expand to accommodate more tripod sizes. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. Made for attaching to Manfrotto’s Tough series hard cases, the bag can also be used as a stand-alone tripod carrying case. It sports both a shoulder strap as well as a handle, along with those hard case attachment points. Priced at $60, it’s one of Manfrotto’s more affordable options for tripod bags that can accommodate a 34-inch folded tripod. Table of Contents Too Long, Didn’t Read Manfrotto Pro Light Tough Tripod Bag Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Manfrotto Pro Light Tough Tripod Bag Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Ease of Use Conclusions Likes Dislikes Too Long, Didn’t Read The Manfrotto Pro Light Tough is great as a stand-alone camera bag or added to a Tough hard case. The size is better suited for mid to large-sized tripods — small travel tripods will have a lot of extra space. While I wish there were an extra pocket, it’s a solid, reasonably priced tripod-carrying solution. Manfrotto Pro Light Tough Tripod Bag Pros and Cons Pros Three ways to carry — shoulder, hand, or attached to a Tough series hard case Expandable design Lots of room even for heads with larger levers Comfortable to use Durable, water repellent fabric Cons No extra pockets Zippers are not water resistant Gear Used I tested the Manfrotto Pro Light Tough Tripod Bag with the Manfrotto BeFree travel tripod, as well as the Vanguard VEO 3T+ 264CB without reversing the legs. I also tested this attached to the Manfotto Pro Light Tough 55 hard case. Innovations Two key features set the Manfrotto Pro Light Tough Tripod bag apart from other options: an expandable design, and compatibility with hard cases. The bag’s design allows it to accommodate smaller travel tripods as well as larger heavy-duty tripods. Four attachment straps are designed to attach to the front of Manfrotto’s Pro Light hard case line, but this bag can also be used by itself. Manfrotto Pro Light Tough Tripod Bag Tech Specs Manfrotto lists the following specifications for the Pro Light Tough Tripod Bag: Weight: 1.19 lbs Minimum Weight: 1.19 lbs Internal Dimensions: 7.09 x 3.94 x 34.65 in External Dimensions: 7.87 x 4.72 x 36.02 in Color: Black Volume: 11.5 L Material: Nylon, Synthetic Fabric Tripod Compartment Dimensions: 7.09 x 3.94 x 34.65 in Types Of Gear: Tripod Type Of Bag: Carrying Solution Ergonomics The main compartment of the Manfrotto Pro Light Tough Tripod Bag can be from 30 to about 36 inches tall. That’s thanks to a roll-top that’s secured with a slide-on clasp on the outside of the bag. With the top fully expanded, you can fit up to a 34.65-inch folded tripod inside. The bag is narrower at the bottom and wider at the top. That means video heads with larger handles and dials will fit, provided the head is smaller than about 7 inches by 3.9 inches. A zipper runs three-quarters of the bag’s length down one side and all the way through the top end. Even with the roll-top folded, that leaves a large enough opening to easily pull the tripod out. If you use the bag for the same tripod, you can adjust the roll-top as needed and leave it. You don’t have to undo the roll-top to unzip the bag. But, you do have to thread the zipper underneath the roll-top clasp. Reversing the zipper so that it started at the other end would have made it a bit faster to unzip for photog...
Follow along and Listen to this Article by pressing the button. Give it a try! You’re probably wondering why all these camera reviews sound the same. Well, quite frankly, we’re wondering why all these cameras are the same! For as good as the Nikon Z5 is, it should’ve been released years ago. This is what the Nikon Z6 should have been. And the Nikon Z6 II should’ve gotten some insane boosts. In some ways, Nikon is still the company we’ve known for over a decade. They’re still pretty much the best at high ISO output in some ways. Additionally, their cameras can still take good pictures. There’s also the really fun Nikon color profiles that irritatingly can’t be applied to your RAW files. Make no mistake, the Nikon Z5 is a good camera. In fact, it’s my favorite that Nikon has made in a long time. But Nikon isn’t innovating. They’re struggling to keep up, and there’s nothing that’s compelling us to buy from them unless you’re probably a YouTuber. Ultimately, it’s mostly the same internals as everything else with a better exterior. Editor’s Note: Update as of February 2022, these updates are in bold. Editor’s Note: We just talked to Nikon and have to issue an apology on our error. Lots of Nikon cameras do not have a textured ISO button. However, we’ve tested lots that do. I’ll rephrase this to say that little things like that really do count. Or having the illuminated buttons totally count. Further, in regards to weather sealing, everything should have an IP rating these days. It’s critical to the future of our industry. Table of Contents Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Ease of Use Autofocus Image Quality JPEG Output RAW File Versatility High ISO Output Extra Image Samples Conclusions Likes Dislikes Pros and Cons Pros Dual card slots The Single most reliable Nikon mirrorless camera I’ve used in terms of autofocus, battery life, and performance Weather sealing This is what the Nikon z6 should’ve been at the start Beautiful image quality I like the shutter sound Charges while shooting video if hooked up via USB C This is a finally proper camera for a working photographer AF-F mode tracks beautifully in the video modes. I’ve never played with the various more lively color modes. They’re very fun and great for webcam use! A fantastic webcam. This and the Panasonic S1 have arguably been the best at tracking my face. I really wish that Nikon pushed their creative presets a lot more. Their Sunday preset is so gorgeous. It’s only around $1,400 at the Nikon Store on Amazon. Cons No-textured ISO button to look for in the dark. Really Nikon? When we pressed them on this, they didn’t answer us. Which makes us believe that they think our question isn’t important. We finally got an answer and were able to clarify that no Nikon cameras have the textured ISO button. Why can’t their creative presets be applied to the RAW files in Capture One? No buttons that light up in the dark 4K video mode crops the image when using it as a webcam I miss the top LCD screen of the higher end camera models Gear Used We tested the Nikon Z5 with the 24-70mm f2.8 and the 35mm f1.8. Tech Specs Here’s a summary of the essential specs from the LensRentals listing. If you’re interested, rent it before you buy it. 24.3 Megapixel Backside illuminated full-frame sensor Hybrid image autofocus; five-axis vibration reduction ISO 100 – 51200 Weather sealing 4K UHD video with a crop 14-bit RAW depth 4.5 fps shooting 1/200th flash sync speed 1,040,000 Dot LCD screen 1.3 lbs. Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Ergonomics The Nikon Z5 continues Nikon’s DSLR-feeling mirrorless camera trend. When you look at it, this camera seems pretty serious. But instead, it’s not one of Nikon’s most serious offerings. It’s eventually going to be targeted at the mid-tier when Nikon’s highest level cameras come out. On the front of the camera, you’ve got a few controls. There’s the lens release. But there are also two customizable buttons. These buttons affect autofocus an...
I typically prefer backpacks for camera gear. But, when I knew I would be shooting a 10-hour wedding while seven months pregnant, I invested in a waist belt with lens pouches. I parked the heavy backpack, but could quickly access the essentials without adding additional weight to my back. My son is now two-and-a-half, yet I still switch from my backpack to a waist belt for long wedding days. So when Manfrotto announced the new Street Camera Waist Bag — in one of my favorite colors — I was eager to try it out. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. The Manfrotto Street Camera Waist Bag is a compact, 2L bag that can fit a lens or two from compact mirrorless systems, a compact camera, or a smaller drone. Besides being worn around the waist, it doubles as a sling. And despite being quite tiny, it can still house a water bottle or compact tripod using connection straps on the bottom. While another extra pocket would make this bag nearly perfect, the Street Waist is a good option for minimalist photographers. Table of Contents Too Long, Didn’t Read Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Ease of Use Conclusions Likes Dislikes Too Long, Didn’t Read The Manfrotto Street Waist is a small, “fanny pack” style bag that also converts to a sling. I loved using it as a lens bag for fast swaps, but it needs a few tweaks to be perfect. Hoever, all of that may be forgivable because of a $40 price tag. Pros and Cons Pros Minimalist design Quick to access lenses Comfortable Can be worn as a waist bag or sling Straps for mini tripod or water bottle Great color Really affordable Cons No SD card pockets Pretty small — only the smallest bodies will fit here, but works great for a lens bag (excluding big telephotos) There’s no strap padding when worn as a sling. Zippers are not weather-sealed. Gear Used I used this bag with the Leica M Macro 90mm f4, M Summilux 90mm f2, and the M Telyt 135mm f3.4. I also tested this lens with the Fujifilm 50mm f1 R WR and the Fujifilm 90mm f2 R LM WR. In both cases, I used the Street Waist as a lens bag for holding multiple lenses, rather than holding a body and one lens. And I still was able to barely fit the Fujifilm X-T4 in with the 90mm detached. Innovations While waist bags aren’t as plentiful as backpacks and messengers, they’re not impossible to find. The Manfrotto Street Slim isn’t the only bag that converts from waist to sling or even the only one that allows a tripod attachment. But, it sits at a very competitive $40, is one of the few options that are not black, and has a minimalist design. Tech Specs Manfrotto lists the following specifications for the Street Camera Waist Bag: Minimum Weight: 0.66 lbs Internal Dimensions: 8.66 x 2.76 x 5.51 in Camera Insert Dimensions: 7.48 x 2.76 x 4.72 in External Dimensions: 9.45 x 5.12 x 5.91 in Volume: 2 L Tripod Connection: Yes Compatible Drones Models: DJI Mavic Pro, DJI Mavic Pro Platinum, DJI Mavic Air, DJI Mavic 2 Pro, DJI Mavic 2 Zoom Material: Synthetic Fabric Types Of Gear: Point & shoot, Smartphones, Mini tripod Type Of Bag: Carrying Solution Water Repellent: Yes Ergonomics The Manfrotto Street Waist bag is quite compact. Vertically, it won’t fit lenses longer than about 2.75 inches; stashed horizontally, a single lens under about 5.5 inches can ride along. For mirrorless cameras, I find the small size works best as a lens bag rather than one to carry all your gear. I could fit one lens and my X-T4 body, but I had to detach the lens first. As a lens bag, it fit my two Fujifilm lenses nicely, with a narrow spot between them that could stash batteries. With the Leica M system, which has much narrower lenses, I fit all three lenses and still had an extra slot big enough for batteries. As a small bag, photographers should carefully measure their gear to see if the Street Waist is the right fit. The Street Waist is a very minimalist bag. There are just...
I have a very love-hate relationship with it when it comes to retouching. It is incredible to have a recipe of minor fixes that gives an ordinary image something extra. But, to get the desired result, switching between programs is frustrating and time-consuming. Capture One has made vast improvements to its software and continues its reign as the industry standard. The software could become the standalone, raw editor for most photographers’ arsenals if they were to double down on this Capture One wish list with a future update. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. Capture One does a lot of things well. Color grading, black and white tones, and basic global adjustments are easily performed with the software program. Recent upgrades such as Canon native wireless tethering, panoramic stitch, and HDR merge are welcome functionalities. As good as the program is however, there are some improvements I would love to see them make. Answering this Capture One wish list would allow them to become the all-in-one editing suite they’re capable of being. Masking and Selections Photoshop is still the go-to if you are looking to make precise adjustments to a specific area of an image. Their selection functionality is significantly more advanced than what is possible with Capture One’s magic brush. It simply lacks the precision and speed offered in Adobe. Take window pulls in real estate photography as an example. Even with the added benefit of HDR merge, precise selections within the highlights are still challenging to do well. For portraiture, making adjustments to the background should be more efficient. Color Corrections Capture One has simplified color-correcting inconsistent skin tones. Normalizing magenta fingertips to match the more golden hues has become relatively easy. After perusing the forums, it has become evident that many photographers are requesting frequency separation type capabilities. The addition of a color-matching brush would be a great start. This would allow portrait photographers to blend skin colors for close-up beauty images better. Real estate photographers could even out color casts around the edges of the frame. It would be fantastic to do all color finessing within the construct of one application. Ethical Skin Retouching Capabilities The anticipation of the addition of style brushes within Capture One was met with a slight feeling of deflation. Dodging and burning brushes with the pen pressure is pretty good. But, it could be improved with updates to overall opacity and flow capabilities, perhaps multiple options. The healing brush and clone stamp are sufficient for near-flawless skin or digitals for model test shoots. However, more notable imperfections become problematic within the software. The addition of a patch tool on par with the quality and speed found in Adobe would be a huge upgrade. As it is, it is lethargic and feels a bit proprietary in comparison. So, in an industry where time is money, time is best-suited working with skin in a different program. Final Thoughts One of the things I appreciate most about Capture One is that they listens to their customers. Now that many of these desired tools have been integrated into the software, I’d love to see them commit to making it as competitive as possible. I hope one of their subsequent upgrades lets me fully untether from Adobe.
In this week's episode of Inside the Photographer’s Mind, we’re joined by Alex Miller aka Liquid Verve.
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There is a common misconception that men are much easier to photograph. While this holds when it comes to men’s less demanding styling, women can be every bit as easy to work with as men. Understanding a bit of the psychology at play, setting expectations, and communication are vital elements to a successful shoot. These skills are not difficult to learn and easily mastered with practice. Plus, they will help you take better portraits. You can view this article and much more with minimal banner ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. And for $24.99/year, you can have a banner ad-free experience. Table of Contents Communicate Stock Poses Bring It to Life Sensual Over Sexual: The Key to Better Portraits Communicate Let clients know in the beginning that you are getting to know their angles. It’s like dancing with a brand new partner and working together to get your footing and develop a rhythm. Tell them of your pattern and any quirks you may have. I almost always forget my lens cap at least once during a shoot. I also have a habit of trailing off in thought when the images start coming together. Communicating this in the beginning always elicits laughter when it comes to fruition during the shoot. Women naturally put a lot of stress on themselves, so showing that you’re very human eases the moment. It also builds a natural rapport with them quickly. That rapport is instrumental to creating powerful portraits that build confidence and a positive reputation. The relationships produced as a result are everything. From our article: How to Communicate with a Portrait Subject. “Then I recommend taking a test shot of some sort and with the model holding the pose or something relatively close to it, and showing them what the framing will be and how to work with it. Then after each shot, just tell them to change it up a bit.” It is also essential to provide positive feedback during their shoot to get better portraits. Don’t be afraid to show clients the image and encourage them to get it better with a few tweaks if you want a little more. On the other hand, be honest when a proposed shot just isn’t working. For example, sometimes, a proposed picture just isn’t working. Rather than push something that isn’t there, acknowledge how the angle and timing aren’t coming together. Also, communicate that the two of you can do even better with something else. Circling back around to an idea once the cadence has been developed is always a possibility. Eventually, successful communication often leads to connecting empathically. When this happens, both the photographer and client build off each other’s energy. This immersion allows communication without words, and the results are always worthwhile. Stock Poses One of the key ingredients to better portraits is having a list of basic poses and adapting them for every body type. Examples of these poses include a simple head and shoulders shot. A properly positioned hand by the face always works. Give them directions like bringing their forehead to the lens and show them the result. The accentuated jawline extinguishes the angst of a double chin while simultaneously building their confidence in you. Another stock pose is an asymmetrical knee-to-head crop. For women, the focus is on creating an S-curve. Directions include placing their weight on the back leg and hands either at the side or in their pockets for a more pleasing look. I tend to photograph men pretty square on. Additionally, I tend to have them put their weight on the front leg to look more powerful. Try nailing these basic poses towards the beginning. Bring It to Life Sometimes heavily directing an image sucks the energy out of it. It becomes static and dull. A simple remedy is telling them it was a practice run and now it’s time to bring the image to life. Tell them you will give them a countdown and then ask them to hit it. Repeat it a few times and then direct them to laugh or try to capture an expression. Paint a pictu...
Backing up photos is one of the most important things you can do as a photographer. It’s poor form to have your images on only one hard drive. If a disaster happens and you damage your computer, or someone steals it, your work is gone forever. Thankfully, there are several ways to backup your images. Online cloud storage and external drives remain the most popular. But there’s one method of backing up your photos that people often overlook. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. Backing up Photos with Cloud Storage Cloud storage has become the most popular way of backing up photos in the modern era. As everything is digital nowadays, having the ability to sync photos across multiple devices is helpful for a photographer’s workflow. From Google Drive to Dropbox, all the mainstream cloud services offer robust, industry-standard encryption for your files. But they’re not perfect. The top dogs don’t use client-side encryption, meaning they can access your photos should they wish. And they’re also not immune to middleman cyber attacks. So, while they’re generally safe, there’s always a chance of something going wrong. If you want total control over who can access your files, I recommend going with a cloud service that offers zero-knowledge encryption. Some of the best options are: Sync.com pCloud MEGA Also, while it’s rare, some files can become corrupt over time. I’ve used cloud storage for over five years, and I can no longer open some files. We’re talking about one or two images from a collection of thousands. But imagine if that one image was your favorite photograph? It would be heartbreaking. Backing up Photos with an External Drive The old-school way of backing up your photographs was to copy them from your computer’s hard drive and back them up to an external hard drive. Hard drives are small enough to travel with, but there’s one major downside to using them: they don’t last forever. Depending on how much you use it, you may need to replace your hard drive every three to five years. If you don’t keep on top of maintenance, it may fail you one day and your backups will be lost. SSDs are more reliable, perform better, and last longer, but still not forever. The Overlooked Method of Backing up Photographs With cloud storage and external drives out of the way, what other method can photographers use when backing up photos? Prints. Now before you all scream, “Do you know how much it would cost to print all my photographs?” that’s not what I’m suggesting. Amongst the masses of photographs we create, every photographer has their “gold collection.” 10 or 20 images that they’re totally in love with and that highlight the peak of their photography skills. Backing up photos or not, you should print every a-star photograph you create. Digital screens will never do as much justice as a quality print with a premium matte finish. You can smell the photograph, you can feel it, and you can immerse yourself inside it. Sounds deep? Try it. You won’t disagree. But beyond that, a physical print is the perfect backup and companion to the digital version. You can hang it on the wall if you want to bring extra life to your home. But honestly, I would frame your printed backups and store them away either in your home or, if you have the money, a vault. Because when your cloud storage provider hits a roadblock or your hard drive goes to heaven, the printed versions of your most prized photographs will remain intact for you to enjoy for as long you’re around.
The pandemic turned photographers back to film in droves. If you’re looking for the best film SLR cameras to choose from while you’re just getting into film, you’ve come to the right place. We’ve reviewed a whole lot of them over the years we’ve been around. And more importantly, the options we’re choosing in this list suit a slew of criteria. A lot of them have mechanical shutters. Some of them don’t, but then we recommend that you not spend an arm and a leg. But most importantly, we’ve done full and thorough reviews on all these cameras. Dive in with us! The Phoblographer’s various product round-up features are done in-house. Our philosophy is simple: you wouldn’t get a Wagyu beef steak review from a lifelong vegetarian. And you wouldn’t get photography advice from someone who doesn’t touch the product. We only recommend gear we’ve fully reviewed. If you’re wondering why your favorite product didn’t make the cut, there’s a chance it’s on another list. If we haven’t reviewed it, we won’t recommend it. This method keeps our lists packed with industry-leading knowledge. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. Table of Contents Pro Tips on Choosing the Best Film SLR for You Pentax Spotmatic: Access to Incredible Lenses Standout Features Nons SL42 Mk 2: Give Your Old Lenses New Life Standout Features Canon EOS Elan 7: The Best Film SLR Camera for Canon EF on a Budget Standout Features Mamiya RB67 Pro S: An Incredibly Versatile Camera Standout Features MiNT SLR 670-S: Yes, It’s an SLR Standout Features Minolta Maxxum 7: Sony Fam, Here’s Your Best Film SLR Standout Features Leica R6: The Affordable Leica. No, We’re Not Kidding Standout Features Contax NX: The Best Film SLR with Lenses to Match Standout Features Pro Tips on Choosing the Best Film SLR for You We’ve used tons of film cameras and we’ve even reviewed lots of film emulsions as well. Here are tips on choosing the best film SLR for you: No, your mirrorless camera lenses won’t adapt to the film camera (but you could do the opposite). Whenever possible, go for a camera with a mechanical shutter. If the battery stops working, you’ll still be able to keep shooting. This helped us choose some of the best film SLR cameras on this list. But with some mounts, it just isn’t possible. At the moment, we’re not including anything for Nikon F mount. This mount gets insanely complicated and is worth writing a blog post in and of itself. Besides, there are so many that could make this list of the best film SLR cameras for a beginner. When traveling, consider putting your film in a bag that will be hand checked. Don’t run it through the X-Ray machine; their strength tends to vary from airport to airport and it could damage your film. Modern film photography is much different than it was in the past. The frame rate means nothing because film is expensive. The autofocus is nowhere as good as modern mirrorless cameras. But what’s more important is how durable these film cameras are. Check the viewfinder and diopter. If you wear glasses, you’ll need something that lets you see clearly. SLR stands for single lens reflex. This means that you can see what the lens sees. It’s very useful when using things like graduated ND filters. Pentax Spotmatic: Access to Incredible Lenses Standout Features This Pentax has an M42 screwmount. It can adapt a ton of different lenses. But what’s more important is how big and bright the viewfinder is. I’m legally blind, and I could see through it with little struggle. Oh, plus it’s affordable. In our review, we state: “The Pentax Spotmatic is pretty much all metal. Considering that there are virtually zero electronics to deal with you won’t have any sort of issues with the build. If you’re one of those people who knows Sunny 16 well or can carry around a light meter on their phone and figure stuff out from there, then this is one of the most perfect cameras for you.” Buy ...
You’ve probably heard of the Brenizer Method a lot in the past few months. And in truth, it’s a super fun method that can give you results you couldn’t have made otherwise. At least, you could’ve have done these without a medium format camera, large format camera, or wider super-fast aperture lens. In this post, we’re going to dive into posts we’ve done on the Brenizer Method over our years of publishing. We’ll showcase photographers who’ve done it, how to do it, the history, and more. Who Is Ryan Brenizer, the “Creator” of the Brenizer Method? Photographer Ryan Brenizer enjoyed a pretty great time rising through the ranks almost a decade ago. His business is still strong, and he more than deserves the success he’s had. For the record, he’s a wedding photographer who has been based in NYC for years. And he’s always been experimental. The Brenizer Method came about when there was an emphasis on some of his unique portraits. Years ago, he used to use long lenses with a wide-open aperture and then created panoramic portraits. Ideally, his photos would be nine images stitched together. Ryan didn’t exactly create the Brenizer Method, but he resurrected it at a time when DSLRs were actually becoming really good to use. The panoramic portrait stitch method had been around for many years beforehand. Proliferation amongst social media made it come back again. Which Photographers Have Done the Brenizer Method? Because we believe in the rights of photographers, we’re citing those who have used and talked about the Brenizer Method in their work. We’ve interviewed these photographers, and you can see more of their work in our hyperlinked interviews below. “My first two years of photography I relied very heavily on Photoshop to create my images with a lot of compositing. These days I like to get as much in camera as possible and only play around with colors. But I tend to always expand my images using the Brenizer Method as a way of controlling the whole scene. Sometimes the background itself really adds to a story and I like to think of each part of the photo like a canvas. You have to paint each part individually before it comes together as a whole.” – Sarah Loreth Sarah doesn’t really shoot anymore these days, but her work helps to show what’s possible with the Brenizer Method. Creating an image like this is pretty much impossible to do without the Brenizer Method. And back in 2015 when we interviewed her, super-fast wide-angle lenses weren’t around. Another way of doing it is the way Anthony Chang did it. In our interview this was said: “I love the Brenizer method (or bokeh panorama/bokehrama) because I love shallow depth of field and I love having a wide-angle of view. Nothing more than that to be honest. I didn’t buy a F0.95 (I have the Mitakon 50mm F0.95 for those curious) lens so I can shoot at F8. I want it so I can shoot at F0.95 and get that shallow depth of field. With this method I can get unbelievably shallow depth of field with that wide field of view that would other wise be impossible. Personally I just love the aesthetic of a panoramic photo, I love that crop and framing you get with it.” Anthony really embraces the idea of the panoramic portrait. Instead of just shooting nine photos around the subject, he goes fully into the left and right sides. It creates a cinematic look! Also be sure to check out the work of Mark Sapps. What Is the Brenizer Method Essentially, think of it as a panoramic portrait method. You’re taking a bunch of photos and stitching them together in Photoshop or Capture One. You’re creating the look of a super-fast aperture wide-angle lens. In 35mm full-frame photography, it isn’t really possible. But you can create this look with medium format film straight out of the camera. How Do You Do the Brenizer Method? The photo above will really help you see how the Brenizer method is done. It looks like cubism, right? This photo was created back in 2014. During that year, Adobe’s panoramic stitch algorith...
“I had no idea what it would lead to,” says Aaron Parke of Camerakote about the first time he attempted to customise his beloved Spotmatic with a new coat of paint. What started as a personal project to spruce up his camera has turned into something that has gotten him a steady stream of clients. He’s not the only one doing this in recent times. I spoke to three customisation experts specialising in giving old cameras a brand new look by overhauling their exterior. The personalisation possibilities are endless once you realise what these specialists are capable of doing to turn your beloved camera into a one-of-a-kind collectable. What’s amazing is that I contacted each of the three independently, but it turns out they’re all quite well connected with one another. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. When I began growing my vintage camera collection about six years ago, one of the cameras I couldn’t easily find back then was a working Polaroid SX-70. Some months later, I stumbled upon a working one on eBay for a half-decent price. However, upon closer inspection, I realised it wasn’t in the best cosmetic condition. The leather was peeling off in many places, and a few corners needed a decent polishing. There really aren’t any stores in Dubai that could fix this, so I set about finding places online for a solution. And there it was, on the 3rd page of the google search results – DIY cutout leather for my SX-70. Two weeks and some painful yanking off of the original tarnished leather, and my SX-70 looks like it came straight out of the factory. I doubt I’d ever attempt anything more complicated than a reskin to give my beloved cameras a new look. Instead, I’d send my cameras to any of the below-mentioned companies if I ever wanted to revamp them. They don’t just re-skin, they repair and repaint your prized camera to showroom or possibly better condition. Got a colour you have in mind for a repaint? Chances are one of them has a very creative version of it. Want to add some unique texture? They’ve got the right tools for it. And from the conversations I’ve had with them, it’s pretty clear that your camera is in safe hands. They love what they do, and the pieces they present make you wonder why camera manufacturers aren’t this imaginative when it comes to colours and finishings. Who Are These Expert Customisers? Where Did It All Start? Marc fell in love with photography at a young age. Shueido Camera is the company’s name, and its founder Marc discovered photography when he was in high school. He started the company soon after that, in 2003, and began by selling used camera equipment. Shueido Camera is based in Taiwan with a studio in Japan. And producing high quality, visually distinct refurbishing and painting are what they specialise in. Shueido’s camera customisation is probably the most unique that I’ve seen. It’s not just in the different styles of paints they have. They also have some interesting methods of finishing off the bodywork. Hammertone (seen in the picture above), Brassing, and Accenting are just a few of the finishes they offer. He used to paint cars expertly. Now, he’s moved those skills onto cameras. “In terms of applying liquids to a solid surface, there isn’t a lot I don’t know,” says Aaron Parke confidently. “I was trained by a ‘Coach Painter’ a technician whose brush paintwork was like sheet glass. His attention to preparation details included greasing himself up for some of the higher-end jobs to avoid even a flake of skin departing from him and landing on the job.” “I’m someone who enjoys capturing images, the process of composing and taking a photograph and believe I have a good eye. I am, however, far from what anyone would consider a professional. I am a qualified Mental Health Nurse, an Independent Prescriber and have worked in this profession for the last 18 years. Prior to this, I spent a good 20 years working in the motor tra...
I’ve had my fair share of airline baggage horror stories. I was once on an island for a week with no luggage and only a Kmart to clothe myself with because my bag had literally ripped into two pieces. (I know, it’s no Tom Hanks Castaway story, but it is true.) Since then, hard cases have always appealed to me for air travel. But, the most durable of cases typically don’t have smaller pockets for personal items or even a place to stash a laptop or tripod. That’s why the launch of Manfrotto’s new Pro Light Tough series caught my attention. The Manfrotto Pro Light Tough 55 case can pair with an add-on laptop sleeve, tripod case, or even a backpack harness system. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. The Manfrotto Pro Light Tough 55 is a hard case that’s designed to fit within the carry-on restrictions of most airlines. (As always, check before you fly.) It has a roller system and a grab handle. But, if that’s not your style, the line of add-ons can even convert it into a backpack. But, can a few add-on accessories lessen the negatives of a hard case — like the lack of extra storage and inability to carry hands-free? I tested the Manfrotto Pro Light Tough 55 with three accessories to find out. Table of Contents Too Long, Didn’t Read Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Tech Specs Ergonomics The Manfrotto Pro Light Tough Harness System The Manfrotto Pro Light Laptop Sleeve The Manfrotto Pro light Tough Tripod Bag Build Quality Ease of Use Pre-Cubed Foam vs. Adjustable Dividers Conclusions Likes Dislikes Too Long, Didn’t Read If you want the protection of a hard case, but hate the lack of room for a laptop or tripod, the Manfrotto Pro Light Tough 55 is an excellent option. This carry-on-sized hard roller can be paired with accessories to add on a laptop, tripod, or even backpack straps. Be careful though, the accessories may put it over the carry-on dimensions. Pros and Cons Pros Very durable and waterproof Versatile, with the purchase of add-on accessories Lots of room Rolls smoothly Available with dividers or cubed foam Cons Pricey Handle takes two hands to unlock Accessories push the case over the carry-on limit Gear Used The Manfrotto Pro Light Tough 55 comes in a few different versions: a high lid, a low lid, with cube foam, or with adjustable padded dividers. I tested the high lid version with both the foam and adjustable dividers. I also tested three different accessories with the hard case: the Pro Light Tough tripod bag, the Pro Light Tough laptop case, and the Pro Light Tough Harness System. I filled the case with two Fujifilm X-T4s, the 50mm f1 R WR, the 90mm f2 WR, the 16-80mm f4, and the Flashpoint Zoom Li-Ion flash with a transmitter. I used my 15-inch 2015 Macbook Pro in the laptop sleeve and my Manfrotto BeFree travel tripod with level locks in the tripod case. Innovations Hard camera cases are not very hard to find. Where the innovation lies is actually with Manfrotto’s accessories. Hard cases typically don’t have space for a tripod, a laptop, or personal items. You can add that capability with the Pro Light Tough accessories, or even convert it into a backpack. Tech Specs Manfrotto lists the following specifications for the Pro Light Tough 55 (high lid, with foam insert): Weight: 9.92 lbs Internal Dimensions: 11.22 x 8.07 x 20.47 in Camera Insert Dimensions: 10.24 x 5.51 x 19.68 in External Dimensions: 13.78 x 8.86 x 21.65 in Color: Black Volume: 30 L Tripod Connection: No Material: Plastic Number Of Lenses: 8 Storage For Personal Items: No Types Of Gear: DSLR with grip, Foldable drone, Modular Camcorder, DSLR/mirrorless handheld gimbal Type Of Bag: Roller Water Repellent: Yes Ergonomics The Manfrotto Pro Light Tough 55 is a hard case designed to meet carry-on dimensions. It’s a mid-sized hard case that’s not too huge, yet still fits a good amount of gear. I had room to spare after adding two bodies, three mid-sized lenses, and a fla...
There aren’t many reviews of flashes out there. And there are even fewer reviews and sensible tutorials on how to use ring flash. But ring flash is a favorite technique of mine and I’ve used it for years. Some folks like to just blast their subjects with direct flash, but this is different. Also, ring flash and its use have evolved over the years. So we’re going to talk about how it’s different and how photographers should be using it these days. At One Point, They Were Great for Macro Photography The origins of ring flash start with dentists. When they had to photograph someone’s teeth, they used it along with a macro lens. That evolved into being used for macro photography. The reasoning here is that macro lights were bright and highly capable. So they gave a lot of nice, even lighting on something from the front. It stayed this way into the early 2010s. Anyone who wanted to shoot macro photos would be told to go buy a macro lens, macro flash, etc. But then things changed. There Are Better Ways to Do Macro Photography Now For what it’s worth, I never liked the look macro lights gave for macro photography. It lacked character and seemed incredibly sterile. It’s much better to use an off-camera flash or studio strobe with a diffusion of some sort. If you’re using an on-camera flash, just use a Rogue flashbender. We’ve got a tutorial on doing this here. Ring Flash Is for Portrait Photography These days, the ring flash is much better suited for portrait photography. Just think, everyone shoots selfies with a ring light LED. People geek out about it. Women and men will stop what they’re doing just to stand in front of a ring flash and shoot selfies. Let’s face it, it makes sense to use ring flash for portrait photography. “The best part about using a ring flash is that your lighting will stand out. There’s so much of the off-camera light that’s used these days and not enough of something different. However, while most laypeople won’t understand an umbrella or a softbox, they’ll totally understand a ring light. If you talk to them about a ring flash, they’ll probably also be a bit more excited to shoot with you. Just be sure to give them breaks.” – A tutorial for new photographers There are various options. You can spring for a dedicated ring flash (I use the Flashpoint RF-400). But there are also great items from folks like Neewer, which are versions of the Roundflash diffuser that manipulate on-camera flash lighting. Almost a decade ago, there used to be more flash modifiers on the market. But they all disappeared more or less. There was the Orbis which really needed the exposure compensation cranked up. And the Ray Flash was similar. Since then, the ring flash craze kind of died down, and brands started working on making other things instead. Otherwise, you’d need to spend a ton of money on options from brands like Profoto. And honestly, I don’t recommend it. Some might tell you to just use an LED ring light. But there are tons of problems with LEDs and constant lights just don’t really do what strobe can do. Maybe I don’t want to shoot a portrait at ISO 1600. And maybe I also can’t see what an LED could do for me that a ring flash couldn’t! Here are some tips: If you’re using a flash modifier, then crank the exposure compensation up by an extra stop of light or so. Ring flash is meant to give a sparkle in the eye, even lighting overall, and the full-blast look on someone directly. But still, it’s all about the poses. Traditional photography would scoff at the look ring flash gives. But in truth, it does everything you want much easier. We’ve got more tutorials on using a Ring flash right here.
A Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 will look and feel fantastic strapped around you. Bags like the Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 and others have just become better for photographers over the years. Though Iâm still partial to a backpack instead of a messenger, this update feels just a bit special. Arguably, the Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 is for photographers. But in use, one could say that itâs for content creators and journalists. Messenger bags over the years have evolved a lot, and the Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 shows evidence of that. The internals were updated to give photographers who shoot with mirrorless systems a bit more organization. Further, you can shove a laptop in this bag along with pretty much every tool youâd possibly need. If youâre the type to go for hot shoe flashes, thereâs room for that. But if you tote along a Profoto B10 the way I do, youâll have a bit more trouble. Weâve taken the Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 with us on planes, on trips, on commutes, to meetings, and everywhere. Weâre very impressed. However, this is more of a bag for a content creator than a photographer. Editorâs Note: In a previous version of this article, we said that this bag was made from canvas. It is not, but it surely feels like it! Pros and Cons Pros Weather sealed Beautiful Leather and Sage FibreNyte Expandable pockets Incredibly comfortable Can pack a whole lot of gear, laptop, cords, and more. Very well built Cons Nothing really to be honest Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 Technical Specifications External dimensions (W x D x H) W430 x D140 x H280mm (Height excluding handle: 240mm) Internal dimensions (W x D x H)(inside removable padded insert) W340 x D80 x H210mmPadded insert is flexible so âDâ measurement can expand to 100mm at the bottom of the bag and (up to) 160mm at the top. Capacity 6 liters Weight 1.2kg (including removable shoulder sling) Pockets 3 Front dump pockets x 2 (W x D x H) 130-170mm x 40-60mm x 200mm, 1-1.25 litres capacity Rear zipped pocket (W x H) 320mm x 180mm Detachable, adjustable shoulder sling Length â can be adjusted between 94cm and 164cm approx. Width â 38mm; Weight â 0.16kg Ergonomics The Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 is a bag that looks pretty compact. And in truth, itâs really not excessively large. But itâs capable of carrying a lot of stuff. It also doesnât necessarily look like a camera bag. Instead, it just looks like a beautiful bag. Weâll start our tour of the Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 with the leather straps. These allow you to get into the Billingham Hadley Pro 2020. Thereâs a buckle and top metal knobs. To accommodate more gear, just adjust the buckle. Undo the top flap, and youâll be treated to these pockets. Theyâre quite large and can carry a whole ton of stuff for when you travel. Oh yeah, these pockets are expandable. There are buttons on each that let them hold more gear or make the entire bagâs profile smaller. These are great! Get to the inside, and youâll see the removable divider system. There is a top flap that contains all the gear inside of the rest of the divider case. In the case is padding that can be adjusted and moved all around. The back of the Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 has a zipper for stuff like cables, documents, and other smaller profile things. Iâve stuffed Macbook Pro cables in here. Before we forget, you can put your laptop inside the main compartment of the Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 too! A 13-inch laptop slides into the back just fine. Last, there is the top handle that lets you carry the Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 like a briefcase. Itâs sturdy and can be really convenient when your chest/shoulders need a break. Build Quality We took the Billingham Hadley Pro 2020 through rain, airports, subways, cabs, and several different environments. It survived everything, and it kept our gear safe. Iâm most satisfied that it kept my laptop secure and the various camera systems that I was testing safe too. Part of this is due to how you have to open up the bag. This is not a bag...
Every now and again, we make mistakes. And with some of the reviews weâve done on Billingham camera bags, we got the materials wrong. The Phoblographer, for 12 years, has really done the most extensive review coverage of the camera bag world. Indeed, lots of folks tell us we honestly have the best. So, we take these very seriously. We invite you to take a look below and see what updates weâve made. Some photographers, quite transparently, wouldnât bat an eye at this update, but we take this seriously. And Iâm penning a specific news post on it because it happened across a category of camera bags. This all started when we published our Billingham Hadley Large Pro review. We mistakenly said that the materials were canvas. Reviewer Brittany Smith and I both agreed that it was made from similar materials as the Hadley Pro 2020. To that end, we concluded that it was canvas as we have reviewed a lot of camera bags. Indeed, if you didnât know any better, itâs likely you would also say theyâre made from canvas and leather. But, we were wrong about this and a few other products. Our Billingham rep got in touch with us to offer a correction. Truth be told, even they admitted itâs confusing. To the touch, Billingham bags feel like canvas and leather. They even look like it. But not all of them are canvas. It reminds me almost of what Canon did years ago with the Canon AE-1. Lots of folks think that camera is made of metal, but itâs actually plastic thatâs designed to look and feel like metal. Hereâs what our rep said: Our Sage is always FibreNyte. Navy, Grey and Burgundy is always Canvas. Black and Khaki can either be Canvas or FibreNyte. Sorry I know itâs confusing! Looking at the bags that you have reviewed for us: Mini Eventer â Black FibreNyteHadley One â Navy CanvasHadley Small Pro â Grey CanvasHadley Pro 2020 â Sage FibreNyteAVEA End Pockets â Khaki Canvas35 Rucksack â Black CanvasF1.4 â Black FibreNyte And there you have it! Youâre probably wondering why we didnât just check the materials to begin with when doing our reviews? Well, itâs because, for years, we were just that sure of it. Others mightâve checked because theyâre so new and donât have the vast database of camera bag reviews we have. Literally, we have over 172 camera bag reviews. To put this into more perspective, Iâd like you to think about the differences and similarities in the following situations; Beef vs buffalo vs yak meat: If you didnât know any better, you could easily say Buffalo is probably grass fed beef. To that end, you could say Yak is a buttery form of beef. But if you werenât told the difference, youâd probably blame it all on the seasonings and way it was cooked. Meanwhile, the stark difference between beef and lamb shoulder is synonamous with canvas and nylon. Single Malt Whiskey vs Indian Dessert Whiskey vs Bourbon: Some single malt whiskeys taste like a bourbon. Some Indian whiskies taste like a bourbon as well. And if you had to do a blind taste test, you probably wouldnât be able to tell the difference. Letâs not even get into wine. Iâm not sure how many people would be able to tell the difference between a Cabernet and a Malbec just by taste. Kitten fur vs rabbit fur: In most blind situations, I doubt most folks would be able to tell the difference between well groomed kitten fur vs rabbit fur. It isnât as stark a difference as say cashmere vs wool. For the record as well, this really only applies to three reviews weâve done. Billingham has some canvas bags for sure. But the two are incredibly difficult to tell apart.
Your new camera isnât just meant for capturing scenes. The reason you get it instead of a phone is to get a lot more out of its capabilities. So weâre rounding up a bunch of things you should try with your brand new camera. Have you considered multiple exposure modes? What about a less crunchy HDR mode? And can your phone do long exposures with as much efficiency? Give some of these a try! Multiple Exposure Mode The multiple exposure mode on your camera can do so many cool things. It allows for more creative options with your camera than simply capturing things. Youâll add layers. Plus, it can be a fun challenge. At the moment, most cameras have a multiple exposure mode in them except for Sony and Leica cameras. There are various ways of doing them too. Thereâs Additive, darks priority, lights priority, and average. Plus you figure out how many images you want to work with by experimenting. Some systems even give you an overlay to, so youâll get an idea of what youâre creating. Go give it a try! Using Long Exposures to Capture Movement Timelapse mode is very fun and so is video. But thereâs huge potential with long exposures. Lots of photographers try to go for the fastest exposure possible to freeze the motion in front of them. But why not exaggerate the movement? If youâre photographing a dancer, maybe try a slow shutter speed and second curtain flash. Shooting street photography? Why not stay in one spot and shoot a long exposure of people passing by? Do something different! A Custom JPEG Profile Thereâs nothing wrong with shooting RAW and JPEG, but sometimes you donât need to shoot RAW. Itâs nice to have those files just in case. But, if all youâre doing are minor edits in Lightroom or Capture one, you might as well set it up in-camera to begin with. Why spend the extra time in front of a computer when you can instead spend it shooting more. When youâre done, just beam the images to your phone. With systems like Fujifilmâs, you can use customized presets. The folks at Fuji X Weekly have a lot of great ones. Take Off Exposure Preview/Live View Setting Effect Cameras come with exposure preview and live view setting effect on by default. Take it off. Believe it or not, it will affect so much of the performance. The darker your scene is, the less light will hit the sensor. Itâs like walking outside at night wearing sunglasses or walking into a dark bar with sunglasses. Does it make sense? No. If you take the setting off, your camera will be able to focus faster in low light. Weâve seen this on our review tests. That doesnât mean exposure preview isnât useful. Itâs super useful. But whatâs often better is just knowing how to look at a scene and estimate the exposure. Use the In-Camera HDR Mode This isnât done enough, but it can be really useful. Your camera has the ability to shoot in an HDR mode of some sort. Some folks say it limits whatâs possible in post-production or it isnât as good as editing later on. But that can also depend on how you expose and meter the scene. What Iâve seen, for example, is that Fujifilm sensors render more in the highlights than Sony sensors, while Sony definitely brings more out of the shadows.
I didnât read the rumors of the Leica M11 purposely before I went into the meeting with Leica. To that end, I was genuinely surprised as to what I saw and experienced. For one week, I had personal play-time with the Leica M11. And overall, this has to be the best Leica M digital camera yet. The company gave us a ton of versatility while also giving us the Leica M9âs colors back. Itâs almost the perfect M-camera. But even better, youâll be very happy staring at the colors. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. Editorâs Note: This statement is from Leica: âAll images were shot using a pre-production camera, so may not fully represent final image quality.â We were told that pretty much everything else is final. Table of Contents Too Long, Didnât Read Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Ease of Use Focusing Metering Image Quality JPEG Quality RAW File Versatility High ISO Output Extra Image Samples Edited Unedited Conclusions Likes Dislikes Too Long, Didnât Read The Leica M11 is a fantastic camera thatâs basically three cameras in one. Shooting at 60MP gets you tons of details. At 36MP youâll get a balance of details and high dynamic range. At 18MP, youâll get a small RAW file and lots of dynamic range. It also feels great in the hand. But itâs also time for Leica to think about true weather sealing, building in an EVF, and a new style of viewfinder. Pros and Cons Pros Leica M9âs colors have returned! Extended dynamic range as the megapixels go downâ Aluminum version and Brass version.â Brass version has some nice heft to itâ Maybe itâs just that my unit isnât busted but the viewfinder is wonderfulâ New Leica Fotos updateâ Integrated USB port for charging and all other applications like tetheringâ Iâm assuming this is the Sony a7r IVâs sensor, which is fine because the autofocus on that camera annoyed me. And Leica is giving this the M9âs color, so I honestly canât complain. â If you have a lens that wonât resolve this sensor then you can use the lower megapixel options. This is also the best camera Iâve used with the 7Artisans 50mm f1.1. At the highest resolution, this lens can resolve the sensor.â Editing the files even feels like Slide film!â Capture One does a slightly better job of editing the RAW files for dynamic range while Lightroom gets better colors; at least thatâs the case for the pre-production firmware version weâve tested. Cons $8,999 I donât know how I feel about the removal of the traditional bottom plate. In Adobe Lightroom, the dynamic range isnât all that great at high ISOs. If you shoot like youâre shooting slide film, this is just fine. But I can see how folks will think this is traditionally a âconâ vs a âpro.â You lose a lot of dynamic range at high ISOs and 60MP settings. All of it comes back in droves at the lower megapixel settings Sunny 16 metering is a tad wonky. Gear Used We tested the Leica M11 with the: 7Artistans 50mm f1.1 Funleader Contax 35mm f2 Leica 35mm f2 Summicron-M Innovations This is the first camera with an internal 64GB storage that acts as a second SD card. But more than that, this is a camera that gets more dynamic range the lower the megapixels go. Otherwise, this is just a Leica M through and through. Weâre not sure if this is the Sony a7r IVâs sensor, and Leica wonât say where the sensor came from. But we can attest that theyâve actually done something to make it stand out. Tech Specs 60MP BSI CMOS Full Frame Sensor Maestro II processor 4.5 fps shooting Aluminum (530 grams with battery) or brass body (640 grams with battery) option ISO 64 to 6400 on the ISO dial Silver or Black Special IR + UV filter cut and placed onto the sensor, itâs incredibly thin 2.3MP LCD screen on the back 64GB of internal storage memory Single SD card slot USB-C charging 3GB of buffer memory At lower resolutions, the dynamic range increases from 14 stop to 15 stops Multi-field metering Erg...
Everyone loves going to the beach, right? The sunshine, the sand, and the good vibes; who doesnât enjoy that type of atmosphere? For photographers, the beach is an ideal spot for making cool photographs. Thatâs why you see so many portrait and lifestyle shoots shot on the beach. But for candid photography, things become complicated. There are certain ethics one has to abide by, and Iâll cover them in this article. The Ethics of Beach Photography As someone with a background in street photography, I veer closer to âanything goesâ than âdonât photograph strangers without consent.â Of course, street photography has its own set of ethics, which I stand by and respect. But for the most part, candid photographers couldnât make the type of images they do if they stopped and asked every stranger if itâs okay make a photograph. Most beaches are public spaces. So, depending on what country youâre in, the likelihood is you have the legal right to make photographs. But people behave differently on the beach. They do things they would never do in city streets (like walk around half-naked). Bearing that in mind, below are some things I wouldnât do (and some things I would) when making candid photographs on the beach. Donât Get Too Close When Shooting Beach Photography Street and documentary photography, and photojournalism involve getting into the heart of the action. Photographers get extremely close to their subjects in the hope of capturing some form of emotion and narrative. I donât think itâs wise to do that when shooting beach photography. People often go to the beach to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life. They want to relax and disconnect. Having a stranger candidly making photographs of them will make them uneasy. It can ruin their ambiance and make them feel uncomfortable. Thatâs not good, especially considering itâs likely theyâre on vacation. Avoid Nudity When Doing Beach Photography Some people, whether itâs at a nude beach or not, like to get naked when theyâre on the sand. They feel liberated or donât want those dreaded tan lines. Whatever the reason, public space or not, donât photograph them. Even if you have good intentions, donât do it. It comes across as creepy any way you try to look at it, and it could land you in a lot of trouble. I think thatâs especially true if itâs a child. I donât think thereâs anything wrong with photographing children, but if theyâre nude, stay away from it. And that goes for both female and male photographers. The reality is, right or wrong, itâs going to look worse if youâre a man, so save yourself the hassle. Ask Permission to Shoot Beach Photography The whole point of candid photography is that itâs unplanned, unauthorized, and unpredictable. So, naturally, asking people permission to photograph them goes against all of that. But beach towns are often tight-knit communities. Keeping that in mind, people will quickly understand youâre a photographer and what your intentions are if you communicate with them. If you see a group messing around on the beach, say, âHey, Iâm a photographer. Can I spend some time with your group? Let me make some images of you, and I can send them to you.â If they agree, theyâll eventually forget your presence and stop playing up for the camera. Eventually, you can make some candid beach photography, which no doubt theyâll appreciate. What Do the People Think? Something I find interesting about ethics is that itâs made by photographers instead of the people photographers impact. Above are three ethics I live by, based on what I think is important to be a good person and a respectful photographer. But what do the people think? After all, theyâre the ones impacted most by our actions. Iâm currently in Puerto Escondido, Mexico. Itâs a beautiful beach town, a little removed from modern infrastructure, and full of photo opportunities. I spoke to some beachgoers and asked what their take is on beach photography. I spoke to Mitch, an entrepreneur from Colorad...
This blog post is inspired by a thread that happened on Reddit. I personally responded to it as I'm a Mod for R/Polaroid. But I realize that there is a ton of misinformation and folks who don't know what's going on. Modern Polaroid Film isn't what it used to be. Further, there are great reasons for that. And in this blog post, we're going to explain everything to you. The following is from a post on R/Polaroid, where I'm transparently, a mod for the subreddit. So I've taken a summary I wrote there and modified it for this blog post. I hope that it will provide a lot of clarity on some of the misinformation out there. Specifically, this tidbit made me write this post. Polaroid lost their original formula since their rebranding with Project Impossible and Polaroid Originals and the team are actively working to improve the image. The Fall of Polaroid Years ago, Polaroid screwed up very, very big. They were already on the decline because the world became very anti-analog to embrace DSLRs fully realizing what they could do, and early mirrorless digital. So to make themselves look cool, they literally hired Lady Gaga as their creative director without the funds to do it. Kodachrome was also on its way out then, and the entire analog photo world was in disarray. This was more than a decade ago. Polaroid shut it doors, sold itself off to a Chinese company, and started to go the route of making zInk cameras. They survived and thrived off of their name alone for a few years. But no one took them with any bit of seriousness. The Death of Polaroid, and the Birth of the Impossible Project When Polaroid shut their doors, Florian Caps and a few others bought the factory and tried to recreate Polaroid's formula. They asked Polaroid for help, but Polaroid refused to do so. This is how the Impossible Project was created. Caps and others started the project to find a way to keep Polaroid film alive. Progress was made slowly and in a questionable pace. They focused on the 8×10 cameras first quite a bit along with a few other models like the SX-70 and more. They had a beautiful, and cozy gallery shop in NYC back then where they'd show the prints off. They were gorgeous but had to be experienced in person to really be felt, sort of like a Leica camera. Back in December of 2010, Impossible said that they were making progress and created a version of PX680. This and a lot of the smaller format films had problems. Some of those problems: Fading Issues with the film and spots Bad colors At my desk is a box of both Polaroid and Fujifilm instant film. And it's very clear what's what. Then they found a way to take your phone's photos and print them on their film. This is when the Impossible Project started to refocus a bit more. One of their biggest problems back then was that the film faded really hard. So they literally created something called color protection film. Impossible Project film continued to improve, but still wasn't up to what Fujifilm was making. Polaroid's Rebirth Speed up ahead, and a few things happened. Polaroid was bought by shareholders. Then the same shareholders also bought the Impossible Project. This brought the two companies under the same banner finally. Impossible film was rebranded to be called Polaroid Originals. By that, today's Polaroid is not the same company that started in NY that many years ago. Neither is Kodak, Kodak Alaris, Kodak Moments, or any of its variants. Fujifilm, Ilford, and Lomography are still the same companies they've always been. The modern Polaroid is not at all the same company that Edwin Land founded. So Will Polaroid Film Ever Improve? Personally speaking, no, the current Polaroid film will not ever look like the original stuff in my opinion. I've got photos of me from McDonald's when I was super young (I'm almost 35 when writing this). It hasn't faded a bit. And then I look in my desk drawer of Impossible Project and Polaroid originals film that I shot in the past few years. Some of it has fade...
Not all bokeh is made the same. Some kinds are clearly superior to others in the way that the bourgeoisie snubs their nose at the proletariat. Of course, Iâm kidding about that; itâs all personal preference. But objectively speaking, there are many different types of bokeh out there. Luckily, weâve studied and used the most lenses in real-world environments of any website. So we dove into our Reviews Index to look at bokeh shapes. Are there more? There could be, but these are more than sufficient for the modern photographer. This post may contain affiliate links. When you make a purchase, we may receive affiliate revenue at no extra cost to you. The Phoblographer has a 100% transparency policy with our audience, and everything presented here is as factual as our Editors can research. Table of Contents Swirly Bokeh How to Get the Look Shaped Bokeh How to Get the Look Onion Bokeh How to Get the Look Smooth Bokeh How to Get the Look Donut Bokeh How to Get the Look Soap Bubble Bokeh How to Get the Look Swirly Bokeh Swirly bokeh is fascinating! I honestly wish it were available in more lenses. Of all the types of bokeh, itâs often the most unique. Itâs typically associated with petzval style lenses. In a nutshell, itâs making the center very sharp and the outer edges less in focus. So, if youâre shooting with this style of lens, you canât expect the edges to be in focus. Instead, youâll have to always center your subject. It works best at wider open apertures. And the more you stop down, the lessened the effect becomes. Because of this, swirly bokeh is one of the types of bokeh that will appeal to portrait photographers. Combine it with some sort of sepia preset and youâll get an old-timey look. How to Get the Look Some of the best ways to get it are to reach for a Lomography Petzval lens or a Lensbaby Twist for less than $200 for just the optic. Lomographyâs Petzval lenses can be had easily on eBay. And various vintage optics can do this, like some from Helios. Shaped Bokeh Shaped bokeh is different. It takes the bokeh and literally turns it into a shape. Ever seen Scott Pilgrim vs. the world? Itâs used often there. Itâs an amusing look, but it can also be limiting. You need to use a very wide-open aperture at all times to get the results to pop. Theyâre fun to use for portraiture, and theyâll be fantastic with modern lenses as theyâre super sharp wide open. How to Get the Look Years ago, SLRMagic used to make this lens called the Bokehmorphic. I canât even find it anymore for the record, and it was hard to use, but fun. But you can also score these little stencils to put over your lens to shape the bokeh. Onion Bokeh For many years, this was just known as bokeh. Of all the types of bokeh, this is one of the weirdest to me. Itâs so odd because of just how it came to be called this. Basically, onion bokeh is when you look at a bokeh ball and there are little circles in it. It happens with the vast majority of optics made before 2018. Someone, somewhere on the internet, decided that it was awful because they were pixel-peeping. Sony hyper-inflated it out of control. It was a problem if you want to call it that, with the way the optics were polished. And now, manufacturers have changed the polishing technique so that the optics are more smooth. Personally speaking, I liked the onion bokeh look. It made the bokeh balls pop and gave images a more fascinating look. How to Get the Look Basically, pick up any lens made prior to 2018. Itâs bound to have onion bokeh. Make sure there are bright bokeh balls behind your subject. Thatâs it; itâs that simple. Smooth Bokeh Continuing from the onion bokeh trend, smooth bokeh occurs when the optics are polished differently. The bokeh balls are smooth and donât have an onion character. Itâs bound to make you not cry if you canât handle a bit of heat in the kitchen. How to Get the Look Sony G Master lenses are enormous on this look. Lots of Canon modern RF L lenses and Nikon Z S lenses are big on ...
Since we began the site, our objective here at The Phoblographer has been to help people feel good while educating them about the world and the photo industry. To achieve that, the team works hard to bring you its views, as well as the work of photographers within the community. It's not always easy, but we think we do a good job. From using photography to boost mental health to using your skills to benefit society, there are many ways photography can provide positivity. Below are some perfect examples. Want to get your work featured? Here's how to do it! Use Photography for Mental Health Stability Back in June, yours truly wrote an article aiming to help photographers keep their mental health stable. I've written about my depression in the past, and how photography really helped save the day. In this piece, we cover six ways photography can help keep you happy and strong to battle through difficult times. Read the full article here. David Klammer Used Photography to Show Off a "Utopia" Have you ever dreamt about living in a utopian society where everyone works together for the good of the community and the land? Well, there is a part of India that's trying to achieve that. Auroville is a self-sustained city that focuses on green living and people supporting each other. Money doesn't really exist. Instead, people do their part to keep things functioning. David Klammer has a 20-year relationship with the city and has been back to photograph it many times. Take a look here. Use Positive Photography to Do Charity Work Being able to create photographs is a beautiful gift to have. Sure, you worked hard to perfect the craft, but some people just don't have that creative flair, so be grateful you do. With that, don't just use it for your benefit. Use it also to uplift others. A helpful way to do that is to do charity work. Volunteer your photography skills to support a charity's brand and the work they're doing. I go into further detail here. Sándor Kereki Kept His Photography a Secret Sándor Kereki's story spreads positivity because of how interesting it is. Similar to the story of Vivian Maier, it seems Kereki kept his photographs to himself for decades. He made photographs of the Hungarian revolution, and this year he released them to the online photo catalog, Fortepan. They're wonderful and educational. See more of them here. Greg Bowl Takes Us Into the World of Professional Wrestling Professional wrestling, although aggressive on the surface, is all about entertainment. Greg Bowl spent time photographing pro wrestling before it had really hit the mainstream. He has plenty of stories to tell. Imagine sitting by the fire, drinking hot cocoa, and listening to him go down memory lane. While that's not possible, you can create the same ambiance by looking at his photographs and his interview here. Yannick Schurwanz Lights Up Atheletes Yannick Schurwanz is a former athlete-turned photographer. He understands how athletes move, how they think, and how they utilize their bodies. Schurwanz also has a strong understanding of photography and lighting, which he uses to creatively document current athletes. He took us behind the scenes and showed us how he approaches his portraits, sharing what gear he uses. You can take a look here. Send Us Your Positive Photography We desire more positive photography. If you have some, then please do send it in by using the above form. Also, if you think there's a particular story or photographer we need to be aware of, let us know in the comments below. Thanks for reading. Lead photo by Yannick Schurwanz. All photos used with permission.
âA drive to embrace new technology and change,â answers data scientist and CEO of Alice Camera, Vishal Kumar, when queried about what sets Alice Camera apart from other camera companies. He found that existing mirrorless cameras were too cumbersome and decided that a shift was needed in the camera industry. This stirred up multiple ideas in his head, which eventually led to the creation of the Alice Camera. We caught up with Vishal and his team for an exclusive interview about the upcoming camera and an insight into the AI algorithm it uses to produce pictures. You can view this article and much more with minimal ads in our brand new app for iOS, iPadOS, and Android. If youâre a millennial like me or older, chances are that your family had a compact camera even if there was an SLR in the household. It was the go-to camera for parties and trips around the country. You didnât have to think much while using it; most of the time, the inbuilt AF and metering system got a decent picture. Somehow, when the digital camera revolution came about, digital compact cameras didnât last very long. I wouldnât say thatâs because DSLRs quickly became more affordable; itâs just that the smartphone camera became more convenient. Here was a device that did more than just calls and messaging â it was the perfect pocket-sized camera to carry with you everywhere. And with the average person taking photos primarily for social media purposes without any real intent to print them, the quality they provided proved to be more than enough. Camera specs and features drive smartphone sales more than anything else these days. Itâs what phone manufacturers use first these days when promoting the features of their smartphones. These days, some smartphone cameras have a higher resolution sensor than the average DSLR or mirrorless camera. A handful of them even enlisted the service of leading camera brands like Leica and Hasselblad to develop technology for their smartphone cameras. And the most prominent casualty as a result of the rise of the smartphone was the compact camera. When your smartphone camera can do everything it does, and sometimes even better, what was the need to carry around a dedicated camera in your pocket or bag? Maybe three years ago, I was at a photo walk when someone introduced me to a Huawei smartphone. It wasnât the specs of the cameraâs sensors and lenses that amazed me; it was the inbuilt scene recognition AI it had. Depending on where you pointed the lens, the phoneâs AI could recognize the subject and enhance the color and details accordingly. Skies turned bluer and sand warmer if you aimed it at the beach. Food on your plate popped in color and looked more appetizing. Even when you took a selfie, you had the option of smoothening your skin. I canât conclusively say if Huawei was the first to introduce AI into their smartphone photography, but they certainly made me realize one thing â camera manufacturers needed to innovate faster. The compact camera is almost a thing of the past now because of the convenience of the smartphone. Yes, digital compact cameras still have larger sensors, but the benefits of these sensors are being matched with AI. Phones can now selectively and accurately blur the background behind a subject using AI, and they are getting better and better at this with each new release. I realized soon after seeing that Huawei demo that if camera brands needed to compete with this level of innovation, the only way to do it was to introduce AI features into their cameras. The way I imagined it could be done was by connecting the camera to a data network (possibly via a smartphone) to be connected to an AI neural network. Otherwise, to the average consumer, a DSLR or mirrorless camera requires more effort to get a similar result to what AI-enabled smartphone cameras can already do today. Gadgets like the Arsenal 1 and 2 have attempted to make some headway in this regard, but Vishal and his team hope to shake things aro...
Aluminum frame backpacks tend to make me regret my life choices as soon as I put them on. Often, the added structure isnât worth the added weight. Thatâs not the case with the F-Stop AJNA, an adventure and travel backpack that has an aluminum frame so light I didnât even notice it at first. Combined with a waist belt, the backpack helps distribute weight on the hips instead of the back and shoulders. The F-Stop AJNA fit almost perfectly, had plenty of pockets, and even has an unexpected built-in whistle. Itâs big enough for two camera bodies â including a built-in grip like on the Canon EOS R3 â and a handful of lenses. Then, there are the seemingly endless pockets for accessories and personal items. But, there are a few details that wonât take to adventure quite as well. Table of Contents Too Long, Didnât Read Pros and Cons Pros Cons Gear Used Innovations Tech Specs Ergonomics Build Quality Ease of Use Conclusions Likes Dislikes Too Long, Didnât Read The F-Stop AJNA is a well-organized and comfortable camera backpack made for adventure and travel. I love the pockets, organization, and smart features like a whistle and removable side straps. But, Iâm not completely in love with the new material or the thinner straps. Pros and Cons Pros Full-gear access from the back Lightweight Magnetic closure memory card pockets Aluminum frame and waist belt distribute weight well Built-in whistle, hydro pack pocket, ice axe sleeves, and other hiking features Lots of space Well-organized, with lots of pockets Cons Light fraying questions the long term durability The fabric is noisy The side pockets are too short The most important zippers arenât weather-sealed, and the fabric isnât 100 percent waterproof Itâs pricey Gear Used I used the F-Stop AJNA 37L with the Slope Medium camera bag insert. I packed the bag with the Canon EOS R3, the Canon EOS R6, the RF 70-200mm f4, the RF 85mm f2 Macro, the 14-35mm f4 L, and the 16mm f2.8. I also tried the Vanguard Veo 264CB Carbon Tripod in the side pocket. Innovations The AJNA is one of three new bags for F-Stop. It uses a new material called DuraDiamond that the company says is stronger and lightweight. The bag also has a few small touches that I havenât seen on a lot of other bags, including magnetic closure memory card slots. Tech Specs F-Stop lists the following features for the AJNA 37L camera backpack: 37 liter capacity Ideal for travel (carry-on compatible) and short adventures DuraDiamond⢠material is proprietary to f-stop and is stronger, lighter weight, and more weather resistant Combination T6 aluminum and plastic hardware adds strength to critical carry and suspension components Upgraded weather resistant zippers including woven-in zippers for significantly improved strength than standard coil zippers Improved organization and storage features added to pockets, lid, and back panel Mesh side pockets carries a 32oz/1 liter Nalgene bottle For comfortable carry, we recommend you do not exceed a load of gear exceeding 12 kgs/27 lbs. Aluminum frame shifts packâs weight to hips for all day carry comfort Pairs best with the Slope â Medium or Pro â Large Camera Insert Ergonomics The F-Stop AJNA 37L uses one of my personal favorite designs for backpacks, similar to the one on my go-to backpack. The gear access is in the back, but thereâs also a waist belt. You can remove the shoulder straps, swing the bag around the front, unzip it, and grab gear without taking the bag off. This isnât as fast as using a messenger bag, but itâs more comfortable. Unlike a quick access door, you can see and grab all your gear, not just whatever is tucked into one spot. The main compartment is an empty slate ready for a camera insert. You can access it from the large back zipper, which opens fully and stays open. Or, there is a second zipper to the main compartment at the top. This zipper has easy access to the extra room at the top of the bag when paired with the smaller Slope insert. Thereâs yet another pocket here ...