Recent Gear Articles

How Does the Canon EOS R5 Compare to the 5D Mark IV?

Canon has indicated that the EOS R5 is essentially a mirrorless replacement for the 5D Mark IV, which is one of Canon's most popular DSLRs and the workhorse of choice for a wide variety of photographers across lots of genres. If you are one of those people and wondering how the EOS R5 compares, check out this comprehensive video review.

Should You Buy a 2019 iMac Or Build a Hackintosh?

Last week Apple refreshed their iMac range for the first time in two years but is the new 2019 iMac worth the hefty price tag? Or would you be better off building a Hackintosh that you can easily upgrade in the future?

Rebranded Lighting Equipment Horror Story: Be Careful What You Buy

If you've been a long time reader of Fstoppers, you might recall one of my original editorial pieces: How China Changed the American Lighting Industry. At the time of its publication, I had just come off a recent spell of a few years at an American photographic lighting company and got to see first hand how American greed led to a Chinese takeover of the industry. In the years following that article, the problem hasn't gotten any better. If anything, it's gotten far worse, and to the detriment of you as a consumer.

Five Simples Hacks for Creative Photography

Are you looking for different ways to add some creativity to your work? There are several different methods to add special effects to your photos, both in-camera and in postproduction later with Photoshop or other photo manipulation software. Depending on what effects you are trying to achieve, some of them can be done really easily in-camera and won’t take up too much time extra time.

Is The Canon EOS 5Ds or 5Ds R Right For You?

Rudy Winston (from Canon USA pro productions team) breaks down the differences between Canon's EOS 5DS and 5DS R cameras. At $3699.00 and $3899.00 respectively these 50.5 Megapixel full-frame offerings will take some serious consideration before committing resources.

Should Your Next Upgrade Be to a Seven Year Old Camera?

You have a daily workhorse camera that gets used for all your run-of-the-mill jobs. Like most businesses you go with a five year replacement cycle, so why would you replace it with a seven year old camera?

Why Apple Still Rules, Microsoft Is OK, and Everyone Needs to Chill Out

On one hand, it’s understandable to be territorial over the features in our technology and sensitive to change. But technology inherently demands change — and that change is demanded at the fastest rate possible. We can complain about it all day long, but if we stop complaining at the whims of our feelings and start thinking logically, we can and should start to feel better as we realize the true nature of our so-called upgrade-cycle and innovation-searching frustrations. In reality, the only thing lacking innovation is our expectation.

The Price Difference Between a $100 Camera Lens and $5,000 Cinema Lens Explained

The price of videography equipment has its reasons, but those justifications often remain a mystery to most of us. From cameras that cost thousands of dollars or cine lenses that are close to the price of a car, it’s hard to justify such prices to ourselves, let alone explain to your loved one why you got a new lens instead of going on vacation! In this video, Sawyer Hartman sheds light on the difference between a $100 photography lens and a $5,000 cine lens in the most comprehensive way possible.

Who Makes the Best 85mm Lens? Samyang, Sony, or Sigma?

An 85mm lens with a wide maximum aperture is the tool of choice for countless portrait and wedding photographers, offering a classic, flattering focal length in tandem with shallow depth of field and plenty of low-light capabilities. Such lenses run a wide gamut of prices, however. This excellent video comparison takes a look at three options with a $1,000 price difference between them, the Samyang AF 85mm f/1.4 FE II, Sony FE 85mm f/1.4 GM, and Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN Art.

Which Is the Better Choice, A Macro Lens or Extension Tubes?

If you want to photograph small things, you need to get close. For that, you can choose a macro lens. But there is an alternative that is much cheaper. Extension tubes transform any lens into a macro lens. But what is the better choice?

The World’s Quickest Lens Review - Fuji XF 23mm 1.4R

So here is probably the shortest review on a lens in the history of photography. Ready? Do you own a Fuji interchangeable X series camera? Yes? Go buy this lens. That's it. Not sure what else you need from me. The new XF 23mm F1.4 from Fuji is a BEAST. This thing renders stunning images and just gets out of the way. If you grab one lens before you go out to shoot all day, this is the one you’ll want. If you really want more detail, read on, otherwise, just go buy this thing and have fun.

Documentary Photographer Who Toured With Motorhead Trialled Mirrorless Nikon Z7 at Heavy Metal Festival: Here Are The Results

As far as perks of being a photographer go, traveling the world and documenting everything you see along the way is right up there with the best of them. Luckily for Pep Bonet, he’s been around the globe as Motorhead’s previous resident photographer of 7 years, as well as documenting the impact of war and disease in Africa. Then, he became one of the first in Europe to test out the Nikon Z7 and S-line NIKKOR Z lenses. So how did he find it faired against DSLRs?

Another f/0.95 Prime Lens, This Time From Zenit

Like London buses, you wait years for a standard f/.0.95 prime lens, and then, two come along at once. Russian lens manufacturer Zenit has just unveiled the Zenitar 0.95/50, a super fast, manual focus 50mm prime lens for Sony full-frame cameras with an aperture wide enough to swallow planets.

The Best Camera Lineup for Your Photography Projects

There are so many camera options when considering a primary camera and a secondary backup, so there’s quite a bit to take into consideration. As the saying goes, two is one, one is none, so for big trips and always for professional work, a backup is a must. If you are looking for a second camera, how do you know what to choose? Rather than looking at specific brands, here’s a look at which gear combinations might be the best for your still photography projects.

Sony, Sigma, and Tamron: Who Makes the Best Supertelephoto Zoom Lens?

Supertelephoto zoom lenses are useful for a wide range of genres, including everything from sports and wildlife to landscapes. There are a lot of options out there, and this excellent video review takes a look at four of them, the Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG DN OS Sport, Sony 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS, Sony 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS, and Tamron 150-500mm f/5-6.7 Di III VC VXD.

Stop Buying Equipment to Improve Your Photography, There's a Better Way

The holiday season is upon us and dreams of new camera gear are dancing in our heads. Our email boxes are full of offers for deals on lenses, flashes, tripods and of course those new mirrorless cameras. If only we could have it all, our photographs would be so much better.

What Is Exposure Compensation and How Does It Work?

A fundamental function that you can find on pretty much any camera is exposure compensation, and depending on how you shoot, it can be a crucial aspect of your workflow. This excellent video will introduce you to exposure compensation, explaining what it is and how you can use it in your own work.

A Review of the Fujifilm X-E4 Mirrorless Camera

The great thing about the Fujifilm X Series is that almost all models get the same sensor, allowing you to get the best image quality, even if you decide to go with a budget model. The Fujifilm X-E4 pairs the company's latest X-Trans sensor with a variety of new features and versatile capabilities, all packaged at an affordable price. This informative video review takes a look at the camera and the sort of performance you can expect from it in practice.

Apple ProRAW Redefines the Meaning of Raw Files

Historically, a “raw” file from a camera has typically been considered the purest form of image a camera can produce, a straight dump of sensor data that leaves a lot of leeway for editing — a digital negative, if you will.

The Sony a7 IV: What's Coming Next

We now know that the Sony a7R III and a7 III have sorted out many of the major complaints with mirrorless cameras, such as battery life, overheating, and autofocus, but there are still so many more features that we didn’t get. What does the next generation of Sony mirrorless cameras have in store for us?

Why You Should Be Syncing Your Cameras

If you only shoot with one camera, you will never have to deal with the issue of syncing clocks, but if you have ever shot a large event with multiple bodies that were not perfectly in sync, you know the frustration of trying to cull those images. This excellent video tutorial will show you why you need to sync the time between your camera bodies, how to do it, and how to fix a time discrepancy in post if you forget to sync beforehand.

[Review] Tamron 24-70mm 2.8 VC VS Canon 24-70mm

I've been waiting a long time for a 24-70mm full frame lens with stabilization. Tamron was the first to create this lens and we got our hands on a Canon version. In this review we compare the Tamron 24-70mm 2.8 VC to Canon's 24-70mm 2.8. Which is the better lens? The answer to that question is a little more complicated than you might expect.

Terramaster F8 Plus SSD NAS: The Future of Affordable Storage?

I’ve always been interested in setting up my very own NAS server. There are many uses and advantages of a dedicated NAS server as opposed to standalone hard drives. A NAS is not a cheap investment, but TerraMaster aims to change that with their new F8 Plus SSD NAS.