Latest News

Stay up-to-date with the latest news within the photography industry. Here we feature new photography gear announcements, creative conferences, and other interesting headlines related to the world of photography and filmmaking.

Tamron Announces SP 24-70mm f/2.8 Di VC USD G2 Lens

For many photographers, a 24-70mm f/2.8 lens with vibration compensation is a holy grail. Tamron has just introduced their second generation of that exact lens with many improvements and a slick redesign. Check out the new lens!

Lensbaby Reveals New 85mm f/1.8 Velvet Lens

Lensbaby has revealed the next lens in their new "Velvet" lineup. Following on the heels of the Velvet 56, the Velvet 85 is set to offer a similar optical effect to its 56mm cousin re-purposed into the classic 85mm focal length. Like the Velvet 56, the 85 continues Lensbaby's timid new steps into more traditional lens designs featuring standard aperture and focus rings. 

Canon Announces the 6D Mark II and SL2 Cameras

With perhaps one of the most hotly anticipated updates, Canon has announced the 6D Mark II, the second version of their popular budget full-frame camera, which now has some intriguing new features. They've also announced the SL2, the second version of their smallest DSLR. Check out the improvements to each model! 

CineStill Opens Pre-Orders for 50D 120 Medium Format Daylight Film

CineStill is best known for its 35mm motion picture films that it processes and repackages for use in still cameras, but it's only recently that they dove into medium format with a high-speed, 800T (tungsten-balanced) film. Right now, 50D, a fine-grain daylight film stock already available in 35mm is now also available for pre-order in 120. The official announcement will be up on their site tomorrow, but you can see image samples and already pre-order if you read on.

Blackmagic Adds Wireless Control, Is It Any Good?

Blackmagic Design have brought new functionality to the URSA Mini Pro, their flagship camera. Keeping up with the times, users will now be able to download an app in order to control the camera. The best part? They’re letting the public create their own custom versions.

Sigma's New 24-70mm and 14mm Lenses Available For Pre-Order

In February, Sigma announced a cadre of new lenses including a 24-70mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM ART and 14mm f/1.8 DG ASM ART. Sigma now has revealed prices along with the opportunity to pre-order. At reasonably competitive prices for both of these new additions to the ART line it suggests they will mimic the quality photographers have come to expect from ART lenses over the past few years.

ZEISS Announce Milvus 35mm f/1.4 Lens for Full-Frame Canon and Nikon

This morning, Carl Zeiss have announced the tenth lens in the Milvus series for full-frame Canon and ZEISS DSLRs, boasting a new optical design that offers "practically no chromatic aberations". Previous Milvus lenses have been impressive, but often specialized, whereas this new addition is more of an all-rounder.

Adobe Lightroom Now Has an Instagram Account

You might say they are late to the pack, and it's quite ironic. One of the largest photography communities in the world and Adobe Lightroom, the software many photographers use to make the photos look the way they do. I'm glad they are doing it, but why now? I mean, Fstoppers has over 325,000 followers on Instagram. It's because of the love of photography and the community that we form part of. And I am not sure I can say the same thing for Adobe Lightroom starting up their profile now. Instagram just became a very viable marketing platform too, so it makes sense for brands to come into the fray, especially brands who make products for the photographic market. 

Neill Blomkamp's New Short 'Rakka'

Neill Blomkamp directed "District 9" and "Chappie" and now he's released a short film of a dystopian future where aliens have taken over earth and the humans have to fight with whatever they can to survive and before it's too late. It's done in the style you kan expect from Blomkamp, in a way I believe only he can do, and it's got all the action, suspense, and gross details of brain implantation and alien creatures that he's become known for. 

The Smartsuit Pro Adds Characters in Real Time for Motion Capture

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 Unveils 100th Anniversary Collection

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."

Instagram Is Clamping Down on Sneaky Sponsored Posts

Sneaky advertising is annoying. People often use their social media following to their advantage, featuring paid content to promote products, but the problem is that they often don't disclose that, leaving the consumer possibly tricked into believing it's an honest endorsement. With both the FTC and Instagram itself taking notice of this problematic trend, the company is introducing a new feature to help eliminate the issue. 

Kodak's Kodachrome Magazine Now Available in the U.S.

Announced earlier this year at CES 2017, Kodak's Kodachrome Magazine is now available for sale in the United States. Kodak's new publication is coined as a "new journal for anyone who loves art, film, and analog culture... Each issue, we bring you stories and conversations from around the globe that showcase our shared fascination with creation, craft, and inspiration."

Sony Releases Firmware Updates for Alpha Mirrorless Cameras

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.

Flickr Introduces New Showcase Feature, but Does It Still Matter?

In what seems like a long overdue move, Flickr posted on its blog on Tuesday that it’s unveiling a new “showcase” section to profiles. Photographers can feature specific photos in a large grid when users click on their information. It’s not unlike an Fstoppers profile page, actually.

Phase One Releases Capture One Styles Packs

Preset lovers rejoice: today Phase One announced new products in the form of Capture One Styles Packs. With a drag-and-drop installation, these Styles are made to be integrated with one’s Capture One workflow and provide creative support as well as speed up the image editing process.

British Police Make First Arrest via Facial Recognition Camera Van

In a story that's either a case of camera and computer technology taking a step forward or another nail in the coffin of privacy, the South Wales Police recently arrested a man using a mobile automatic facial recognition (AFR) system deployed in a van.

Affinity Photo for iPad Released on App Store

Today Serif released their fully featured photo editing app Affinity Photo for iPad on the App Store. The new app uses the same backend engine used in the desktop version while also focusing its capabilities for the iPad’s hardware, touchscreen, and Apple Pencil. “The result,” said Serif’s Managing Director Ashley Hewson, “is a genuinely unique new way to interact with your images and your iPad.”

Panasonic Quietly Release Details for EVA1, a 5.7K Video Camera with EF Mount

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.