Gear

Our blockbuster action films have become so advanced with regards to the 3D and special effects that I'll go watch a movie just to watch it, and forgiving the lame dialog or bad acting just as long as the movie pushes the barriers to what I've experienced. Now Rokoko has made a suit that someone can wear that can generate a character of any kind to embed into a realistic computer generated space in real time. It removes the cameras and the time it takes to add in these characters in post production, and it happens in real time, so it's a massive saving for the production houses. It leads to new possibilities with regards to character movement and creating something that looks indistinguishable from reality.

Nikon announced their 100th Anniversary commemorative cameras, lenses, and special collectors items today. Founded in 1917, Nikon Corporation's 100th Anniversary is coming up on July 25th of this year. According to Nikon's press release, "Authorized Nikon retailers will be accepting orders for these commemorative products and special collection items starting today, June 15 through August 31, 2017."

Not too long ago, using autofocus in video was slow, unreliable, and generally unacceptable. Companies have been working to make it viable for filmmakers, with Canon's solution being Dual Pixel CMOS Autofocus, which has generally been lauded for its performance. Here's a neat, short video on how it works.

Back in the day (not all that long ago, in fact), the only memory cards you would find in a “pro”-level camera were Compact Flash. That all changed as SD cards started to get faster and faster. Speeds up to 95 MB/s were great for emptying out the buffer on machine-gun mode and writing 1080p footage, which meant that space in the bodies could be used for other things. These cards were great. You could dump 64 GB of images while you watched the evening news. Then came along UHS-II cards, and if you’re not using them yet, you should definitely add them to you list next time you're upgrading cards.

As a wedding photographer, we are always looking for new and interesting ways to add to our income. This usually comes in the form of photoshoots, prints, albums, and various types of upgrades, but most wedding photographers seem to be missing out on one of the easiest ways to make more money.

For the past few months I've been looking for a new laptop to edit videos on. As you probably know, I'm a Windows user, but because Apple just refreshed their MacBook Pro line two days ago, I decided to throw one into the mix as well. The results of my tests were both shocking and depressing.

After updating the firmware for many of their lenses just a couple weeks ago, Sony today has released firmware updates for many of their popular full-frame and APS-C mirrorless cameras. The updates mainly focus on overheating indicator issues as well as resolving the “star eater” problem that was introduced in a prior firmware version, plus other various support and stability fixes.

Leica is a company that is synonymous with premium quality at a premium cost in the photography industry. So when Leica co-engineered their second-generation dual-lens camera with Huawei and placed it on the affordable $599 Mate 9 smartphone, I was eager to try it out.

We have certainly talked about this before, but it seems Gear Acquisition Syndrome is forever waiting in the wings to try to convince us that that new camera will help us make better images. This is a great reminder that skilled photographers with basic gear will do a better job than someone with a nice camera.

While preparing for a shoot, whether it’s for film or photo, there usually is a few miscellaneous tools you don’t think of until you needed them. Sometimes they are really basic tools, when you realize you don't have them with you, you end up being disappointed that you didn’t think of it before.

B&H is having a massive sale for the Optic 2017 conference. Check out these great deals on numerous cameras, lenses, and accessories!

The Western Digital My Passport Wireless Pro Hard Drive is one of the best options for photographers looking to back up and access their files on the go. Western Digital updated the line in 2017 with new firmware features and capacities. Check out our review to see how the new version fares!

Rokinon announced the latest in their line of autofocus lenses made for Sony E-mount cameras with the 35mm f/2.8 FE. Joining the AF 14mm f/2.8 FE and AF 50mm f/1.4 FE, the company once known for its comparably inexpensive manual focus lenses remains on course to gain momentum with the new autofocus releases.

Apple announced a new iMac Pro and updated MacBooks today at their World Wide Developer Conference 2017 in San Jose, Calif. According to MacRumors Buyer's Guide, it had been 221 days since updating the MacBook Pro, 412 days since updating the MacBook, and a staggering 601 days since updating the iMac. Check out the stats on the latest hardware with some super high-end performance options that could be great for photographers and video editors alike.

Just a few days ago we got information on the new Canon C200, a 4K video camera with a number of interesting features including internal raw recording. While people were scoping the new Canon camera and talking about how it fit into the market with BlackMagic and Sony products, there was no mention of Panasonic for good reason – they didn't offer a feature-rich 4K capable camera, with interchangeable lenses, around the $7,500 mark. But coming this fall, that's going to change with the AU-EVA1.

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.

Today, Nikon announced three new lenses targeting different users. The new AF-S 28mm f1.4E ED was highly expected this year. Also, Nikon is finally out with its first FX zoom fish-eye lens, the 8-15mm f/3.5-4.5E ED, and the AF-P DX 10-20mm f/4.5-5.6G VR wide-angle lens for DX users.

The rumor mill was spinning the last few weeks, talking about a new Canon Cinema camera that was on the way, and sure enough, they were right. A new EOS C200 has just appeared on B&H and I’ve got some interesting specs to share on this new beast, as well as a video from Kai at CVP.

This Kickstarter smashed its goal in one day – and now stands at almost double the original target.

In April, Sony shocked the photography community by announcing the rumored Sony a9 to the world. The camera attacked all the critics by improving on most of the aspects that many believed to be holding Sony back from being a true “professional” camera. Dual SD card slots, 20 frames per second burst with autofocus, and improved battery life all made it seem that the a9 would be the camera to battle the Canon 1DX and Nikon D5 for the top sports camera in the industry. While on paper this camera seemed to be perfect but recent events have come to light showing Sony’s true Achilles heel is still reliability.

The Sony a9 might be the most hotly anticipated camera in quite some time, as it's the first time a mirrorless camera has taken such direct aim at the flagship DSLR bodies. While a lot of the excitement has been about its shooting speed and autofocus capabilities, another important characteristic is dynamic range, which you can now see measured and compared to those other bodies.

Fujifilm and Sony are keeping their products fresh and up to date by releasing many firmware updates for their cameras, lenses, and software. Check out everything that’s been updated right here with links to all the downloads.

The Tamron 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5 Di II VC HLD lens is more than an update of the older version it is a complete redesign in almost every way. Its overall design reminds me of the new Sigma Art lenses with its smooth clean lines and all black body construction. Something I’m happy to see Tamron adopt moving forward.

When you’re starting out as a photographer, it’s natural to lust after the lenses at the top of the food chain. You know the ones. Sometimes they have red rings around the front, or they are the portrait lens that can obliterate a background. Maybe you want the zoom lens that can survive a monsoon.

DJI just announced their latest drone, the $499, borderline pocket-sized Spark. The Spark is smaller than a dinner plate, weighs less than a can of Coke, and packs some of DJI's coolest tech inside its teensy tiny body.

Today Microsoft announced the next generation of Surface Pro. This new laptop has been redesigned inside out and greatly improves the battery life as well as performance, and even introduces LTE Advanced for working anywhere. Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Devices Panos Panay called the new Surface Pro a “powerhouse laptop and a mobile creative studio” all “in one thin, lightweight device.”

Manfrotto’s new Manhattan line of camera bags are feature-rich and highly adaptable based on what’s in your kit. As lifestyle bags for the city, presentation and durability are also key elements in their design. Here’s a closer look at the three introductory options of the Manhattan collection, the Mover-50 backpack, the Speedy-10 messenger, and the Changer-20 shoulder bag.

Before Sony announced their new a9 mirrorless camera in April, rumors were flooding the headlines about its possible existence. Now that we know what the a9 really is, did the reports hold up?

DJI issued a press release this past Saturday detailing their "new application activation process" that will go into effect at the end of this week. Users who do not register their drones with the site will find their units subject to "restricted operations."

Joby has released their latest products aimed towards mobile content creators with the GripTight PRO Video Mount and GripTight PRO Video GP Stand. The new mount is designed to be used with smartphones for on-the-go video filming, live steaming, or creating vlog content. Here are some of my first impressions.