Photography Gear

In early October, Sony announced a new addition to their a6000-series of APS-C mirrorless cameras. This camera, the a6500, is the new flagship of Sony’s crop-sensor line and costs $400 more than the previously released a6300. So what are we getting for that extra cash? Check out my first hands-on look of the 24.2-megapixel Sony a6500.

It's been a tumultuous year for GoPro. The company, whose name is still as synonymous with "pocket-size- action-HD-video-camera" as Band-Aid's name is with "adhesive bandage," has had a rocky time recently. From its drones falling from the sky to its stock losing half its value just this year, things have been rough for the once market-driving manufacturer. Today, steps were taken in an attempt to right the ship.

Canon has always been known for its fabulous portraits lenses: the 85mm f/1.2 and the 135mm f/2. I used to own and love both of them, with a preference for the first. When I bought into the Nikon system, I was afraid I would miss these two optics. But truth be told, the Nikon 85mm f/1.4 is at least as good as its Canon equivalent if not better! Regarding the 135mm, that’s a whole different story as the Nikon’s is quite old now. However, they recently announced the 105mm f/1.4, and I had the chance to put my hands on it for a few weeks! Let’s see how it compares with other portrait lenses and if it could potentially replace a 135mm.

There’s no denying the uprising of drone use in both photography and videography over recent years. Now, one company has created a pocket-sized device that coincides perfectly with usage on your smartphone: AirSelfie. Backed by a $3 million investment, the miniature drone will launch in March 2017.

This is a quick review of something very simple: a charging cable. "A charging cable?" you may wonder. "Now, why would anyone care about that?" Well, the cable reviewed is a special kind of cable: it combines an Apple Lightning connector and a micro-USB connector. That is nothing new, but it is done well here and actually a much more useful thing than you'd expect.

A French photographer has shared the results of images he took with his own 3D-printed lens. Mathieu Stern, a freelancer, came up with the idea due to his passion for collecting cheap and unusual lenses.

We all work with expensive gear, but sometimes, we don't want the world to know that we're carrying the monetary equivalent of a nice car on our backs. Brevitē recognized and addressed that earlier this year with its announcement of the Rolltop and Rucksack, both of which embody the look of a fashionable backpack over a specialized gear-hauler. Nonetheless, at the end of the day, that's exactly what the bags are. The Rucksack serves that purpose quite well while also providing the sort of discreet look that many photographers desire.

It's the time of year to save on your spending. Cameras, computers, lenses, tripods, grips, and just about any other photography related item is on sale this Black Friday at B&H. If you've been planning on buying any photography equipment this season, now is definitely the time to act with discounts and rebates being offered for hundreds of dollars. 

When you hear "Sony Alpha" and "battery life" in the same sentence, it tends to be followed with a groan or sigh, because if one article has covered it, a dozen have covered it and made a big deal about how quickly the small batteries in the Alpha cameras run out. For me, 90 percent of my time with my Sony a7S II is spent doing video work, frequently during fast-paced events or sequences or racing the clock with lighting conditions. There's nothing more frustrating than being mid-shot and seeing that dreaded "Battery Exhausted" display pop up on your screen after draining your last battery after a long day of production. So, what options do you have to help extend the life of your battery?

Hanging a photograph from your wall will always have its appeal. Make that photograph the work of a famous and respected artist, and the appeal starts to rise. This is why well-established artists can demand such a high price tag for their work. But this entire process relies heavily on the person purchasing the piece to actually enjoy the art. If the photograph does not resonate with you, then it loses a lot of its value.  With that in mind, would you buy a photograph without actually seeing it first?

Only two months after it was released, the Elinchrom Skyport HS for Olympus is getting an update and now supports Panasonic cameras. It still does not support Fujifilm, but it seems like the Swiss flash manufacturer is heading in the right direction by adding more devices to its supported cameras list.

I am a photographer who started shooting with daylight only, and I moved to discover new possibilities of lighting only after mastering daylight and craving more tools to create the desired images in my head. I don't believe the idea that you have to have all the possible equipment to be a good photographer or that the equipment makes you the photographer. My credo was always to master what you have available and only afterwards move to a new tool. This way, you can have all the understanding of your tools and avoid a bulk of unnecessary equipment.

I don't care what you say; film is cool. It's a great way to become a more technically apt photographer, it makes you carefully think through your creative impulses, it gives a unique look, and it's just fun to shoot. That's why I own film cameras that I regularly shoot with alongside my digital setup. And it's also why I'm so excited for Film Objektiv, a rental house for anyone looking to get into shooting film or for pros looking to augment their current setup.

Look, accidents happen. Unfortunately, the worst happened to a $30,000 RED Epic while shooting on a bowling alley. A dumb idea? Or was it planned?

I am a Sigma lens lover after they released their Art series of lens. I got very excited getting the Black Friday Instant Savings offer of up to $300 on a variety of Sigma lenses at B&H today. If you craved to get your hands on some of their lenses and were saving up to buy one, this is the right time to do so.  As an addition, most of the offers are eligible for 4% reward, it makes a double great deal.  

Put down your Sunday brunch mimosas and listen up, because things just got interesting. Canon is slated to release many photographers' dream: a wide-aperture 85mm lens with image stabilization.

I'm that photographer who watches silently while waiting for the moment to arrive and snap one or two frames, then quickly moves on to the next worth while split second to capture. Yes I'm that girl, the one who shoots on slow shutter. At weddings this style of shooting suites me just fine, however it wasn't until this last year I learned with this skill there is another genre that lights me up even more. Grabbing up a single moment, purely just off gut instinct as a Still Photographer on an Indie film starring Ed Harris called, "A Crooked Somebody," I really harnessed my timing. Rather hunting you could say, for the exact moment when I choose to fire away, just less dramatic.

Think Tank has long been regarded as one of the go-to companies for bags for the working photographer, and their line of Airport and Airport Security bags in particular are considered by many to be the gold standard of rolling photo bags. The newly released Think Tank Photo Airport Security V3.0 adds some small improvements to an already fantastic bag, helping ensure its continued reign as the king of this category.

Being a long time Lightroom user has helped me have a well polished workflow for my photography projects. So why should I bother trying Capture One Pro?

Thin, new MacBook Pro. Elegant design. Pure jewel. Lack of legacy ports? Well, OWC comes into play to help those in need offering a Thunderbolt 3 Dock. However, sometimes this could be too much for what we actually need.

If you weren't aware, there is quite a market for mobile lenses within the photography community, and sitting atop the pack is a little company called Moment. They came bursting on the scene about two years ago with the plan to bring high quality glass to the mobile photography market. Here are my thoughts on their brand new super fisheye lens, the Superfish. 

If you've ever booked an out-of-town photography gig and needed to catch a flight to get there, you might have run into this problem: you get on the plane, lift up your roller bag to put it into the overhead bin, and it just doesn't fit. You push, you squeeze, you try taking out the laptop, but nothing works. You hang your head in shame and walk back up to the front, and ask the flight attendant for help. As always, Think Tank Photo is here to help.

One lens that is a staple in almost all camera bags of professional photographers is a fast, ultra-wide-angle zoom. Being a Canon shooter, the Canon 16-35mm f/2.8 II found a place in my bag when I purchased it back in 2008, and I have been using it constantly for work ever since. However, it also was the weakest lens in my kit from a sharpness standpoint. But if I needed 16mm and f/2.8, it was what I had to grab. Until recently, there simply wasn't a sharper option available.

Modernity has brought increased convenience and comfort to countless lives, but there have been unintended consequences as well. Increasing urbanization has caused more and more people worldwide to lose their primal connection with nature, something that is almost impossible to replace by technology alone. The brilliant river of stars known as the Milky Way that has dominated the night sky and human imaginations since time immemorial is no longer visible to one third of the Earth’s population, and 80 percent of Americans. This is especially tragic for photographers.

The new MacBook Pro's release has stirred the Internet with a mix of positive and negative reactions. We've seen praising and hating. We've seen reviews claiming faulty ports, cables, and adaptors. We've seen the fancy videos. However, there are still few real-life experience reviews from working pros. Here's one of them. It's quite intriguing.

The X-Pro2 and X-T2 are the most recent flagship models from Fujifilm and on paper, they seem very similar. They both have the same sensor, processor, auto focus frame, etc. So it makes sense that a lot of people want to know which one to get. While each camera has its obvious differences, there are also some little things that could have you lean one way or the other.   

Most photographers who are just starting off have a difficult time discerning what depth of field is and an even more difficult time trying to envision it. In this short tutorial, I'll show how to envision depth of field, and three easy way to manipulate it.

Take a peak into any photographer's bag and you will find a tightly crammed mass of odds and ends designed to help during virtually any shoot. Most of these extra pieces of gear are directly photography related, but sometimes we encounter a few non-photography gems that are certainly worth making space for.

I wanted to share two things specifically with everyone in respect to my personal experiences with the highly regarded Sigma 50mm Art lens, after using it now extensively over the past two years. I want to address how it has held up for me, as far as a durability stand point, which was one of my biggest concerns. And I would like to let you know if I have any regrets ditching my Canon 50mm f/1.2 L lens for the Sigma glass. 

One of the best things about shooting film is that there are so many cameras to choose from! Of course, your wallet may disagree with me. The number of formats, combined with the different brands, form factors, lenses, and options make shooting with film almost impossible to get bored with. If you're at all familiar with my articles on Fstoppers, you know that I tend to focus on film and bringing it to a new audience. To that end, I've created a new video series profiling various film gear, some of it well known, some not so much! In my quest to learn about and use different systems, I hope you'll learn along with me. First up, a medium format rangefinder style camera from Fujifilm: the GF670.

The original MōVI M10 shook the filmmaking world, liberating camera movement and taking the Steadicam head-on. Three years on, Freefly Systems is ready to take on the market again – the market they arguably helped create – with the MōVI Pro.

Apple has been causing controversy within the world of "working professionals" after releasing the new Macbook Pro laptops and replacing all old ports including USB, HDMI, power, and MiniDisplay, with Thunderbolt 3 ports. To use almost any accessory with your laptop you'll now need to buy a dongle... but the dongle doesn't even work. 

Macro lenses are fun to play with, and besides they are essential for most photographers, in terms of their versatile usage areas. The Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG OS Macro HSM is one of Sigma’s long-termed produced lenses, and I had a chance to review this lens before the “Art” version comes out.   

Canon’s newest flagship cinema EOS camera was put into the hands of Cinematographer Russell Carpenter and ASC and Canon Explorer of Light Tyler Stableford. Together they created the beautiful short film, "The Calling," that takes a look into the lives of three people in the American West.

There's a question I've been getting in my inbox every couple of days since the release of the Fujifilm X-T2: Is it ready for professional use? There have been several articles floating about and a lot of opinions in forums, but the honest answer to this is the same as it is for absolutely every camera body and system on the market. It really depends on the type of work you do. 

For better or worse, Apple ditched almost every port on its latest MacBook Pro lineup, opting instead for a single audio jack and four Thunderbolt 3 ports with the new USB-C connector. While there are inherent advantages to such a setup, it is true that users will need to invest in a series of adapters to connect their devices. Starting today, through December 31, nearly all of Apple's adapters and cables featuring USB-C are discounted 24-52 percent, depending on the cable.

In preparation for my most recent flight, the airline sent me an update on their new baggage regulations in regards to batteries. Going forward, some airlines will be imposing new rules when it comes to flying with batteries. These new regulations are especially annoying to photographers as we not only tend to often fly with batteries, but we also like to bring along several sets of backup batteries as well.

One of a photographer's least talked about yet most important tools is the horse he rides in on. Okay, so I doubt many photographers are still riding horses, but the concept is the same: a trusty companion that will take you from point A to point B safely and in many cases with style. After all, it's not like you're going to hoof it into the middle of the Baja Desert, camera equipment in hand.

If it works, GearEye's new RFID tagging system for your gear could change the way you pack for your shoots forever. Thin stickers in three versions allow you to tag all kinds of gear from memory cards to camera bodies and lenses, while an additional accessory scans a nearby area to verify if those items are in your bag, ensuring you never forget a piece of gear (and, alternatively, ensuring that you're never carrying more than you need).

Most of us in the photography and videography world have seen, used, or at least heard of Yongnuo flashes, wireless transmitters, and even those handy little video LED lights and light bars. Well Yongnuo is slowly making their mark in the camera lens world as well with their already released 50mm f/1.8 and 35mm f/2 for both Canon and Nikon. Newly spotted at the Photokina Expo is the upcoming Yongnuo 100mm f/2. Yes, the price-cutting camera accessory makers are currently in preproduction of a 100mm f/2 lens that will have a version compatible with only Canon cameras for now.

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.

As a photographer who has spent the last couple of years around plenty of other sponsored photographers and one who has a couple of sponsors of his own, I’m going to share the one thing that no one is actually saying aloud, the one decision you should consider before you ever press the buy button on any photography equipment.

I'd like to think so. The new Surface Studio may have stolen the show at the Microsoft press conference, but what I'm most excited about is the new Surface Dial. Even though touchscreen devices have started taking over our lives and in many ways increased our mobile productivity, I'm still a big fan of tactile interfaces to help speed up the long hours of editing at my desk.

If you spend any time on the Internet, then you’ve probably seen by now that Apple announced their long-awaited updates to the MacBook Pro during an event at their campus in Cupertino. Spend a little more time on the Internet and you’re sure to see the plethora of articles pointing out how Apple seems to become less and less innovative as years go by, many even pointing to Microsoft as a great example of innovation with their really fantastic Surface Pro line of portable computers and the newly announced Surface Studio. Microsoft more innovative and creative than Apple? Let’s dig in and figure out what happened.

I don't care much for Halloween; as a miserable Brit, it's all a bit odd to me. However, if Canon is going to offer a 15 percent off coupon code, I'll dress up in costume (read I'll wear a hat or non-matching socks) and celebrate with the best of you. The code is at the bottom of the page; please pretend to read my words while en route to it. I'll know if you don't.

I've never owned a Mac computer, I've always been a Windows guy. I do keep up with Apple because I love technology and I couldn't live without my iPhone and iPad. Everyone tells me I should switch to a Mac but once again I'm glad that I haven't. 

I have been using the Microsoft Surface Pro 4 for quite some time now. It has been my go-to computer for pretty much all the editing I do. It really is an amazing computer. But if I had to pick one of the downsides, it would be the small screen. Enter the Microsoft Surface Studio.

Since 2012, when the Apple Retina MacBook Pro’s introduction set a new standard for laptop displays and did away with the DVD drive, not much has changed in the way of your standard laptop — especially for Apple. Four years before that, Apple simply moved to the now-ubiquitous unibody design. But after well over a year since the last refresh, Apple is back with a generational update that millions have not-so-patiently awaited. It’s about time. Let’s jump right in with the newest features of the latest Apple MacBook Pro range.

Photographers love gear, so we tend to get somewhat upset when gear goes missing. Not only is gear quite expensive, but it often worms its way into our hearts. Our gear often becomes a pride and joy. As a result we want to avoid losing gear as much as humanly possible. Here are some of my favorite strategies for making sure that all my gear comes home with me after every shoot.