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Mel Martin
Tucson, AZ

Articles written by Mel Martin

Apple Vision Pro for Photographers: How Useful?

The Apple Vision Pro is all over the news lately. It's an expensive $3,500 wear-on-your-head device that offers augmented reality, virtual reality, and what Apple calls "Spatial Computing." (That's just the base price. Adding memory and prescription lenses adds to your ticket.)

Photo Editing by Voice? Apple Is Working on It

Recently, we've seen a lot of AI used in image creation, but so far, we haven't seen it as strongly applied to image editing instead of widespread image creation.

Long Exposures on an iPhone: No Tripod Needed

I always have my iPhone with me (it's an iPhone 15 Pro Max), and I've been able to capture some excellent images when I'm without my usual gear. But there are times when I'd like to do some long exposures, and without a tripod, you're up the creek with just an iPhone.
Here Are the Less Talked About Features of the DJI Osmo Pocket 3

It seems like the whole world (or at least the photographic world) is buzzing about the new Osmo Pocket 3 from drone maker DJI. It's a portable, full featured kit for video makers, YouTube creatives, and even regular consumers who want to easily capture high quality 4K video with a gimbal mounted camera.

Skylum Now Adds Even More AI to Luminar Neo

Just a few weeks ago, Skylum added GenErase to the Neo platform, a smart AI erase and fill feature. Now, they are adding the second part of their trilogy of AI tech: this one is GenSwap.

Here Comes Another Low-Priced, High-Quality Astrophotography Telescope

It hasn't been long since I reviewed that Dwarf II portable telescope/camera combo. I found it reasonably priced, ($595 with filters, tripod, extra battery and carry bag), easy to use, and something that was going to excite people of all ages who have longed to take good astrophotographs without spending a fortune or having to learn a lot of complicated science and processing skills.

Luminar Neo Adds Generative AI to Its Photo Editing Software

It was inevitable considering the evolution of photo editing, so Skylum is adding key AI features to its very popular Luminar Neo editing software. The new features include GenErase, GenExpand, and GenSwap. The new tools will be released one by one throughout October, November, and December, starting with GenErase on October 26, 2023.

Radiant Photo Mobile Gives You a Powerful Editor in Your Pocket

We've looked at the Radiant Photo Editor for Mac and PC in the past. It was created by some professional photographers to speed your editing process by making some smart decisions about your image and making intelligent changes. It was infinitely variable, and some good improved photos could result from the process.

We Review The Sigma 14mm f/1.4 DG DN Art: Astrophotographers Will Fall in Love

I've been through a lot of fast and wide lenses for my nighttime photography — cheap bargains, expensive highly touted lenses. But I've never been as happy as I am with the Sigma 14mm f/1.4 DG DN Art lens. Designed specifically for Milky Way and star field photography, it's by far the best lens I've used and evaluated.
Peakto Announces Luminar Neo Advanced Compatibility

Luminar Neo is one of my top editors, and Peakto is my very favorite cataloging app. Bringing the two together is a win-win for editors because one of the weaknesses of Neo is their catalog/database. It's been improved some, but it certainly can't compete with Lightroom or even Adobe Bridge.

The Dwarf II Smart Telescope Is One Amazing Gadget

I've been an amateur astronomer since I was around 11 years old. I had an uncle, a retired engineer, who had a small reflecting telescope, and when I saw Saturn for the first time I was hooked. Photography through a telescope came much later for me, and it was a very difficult undertaking in the film days. I remember taking some star shots to the drugstore for processing, and they told me they threw them away because there were just a bunch of white spots on them, and I should take better care to learn how to take pictures. Oh well.

DXO Is Back With a Solid Update to Nik Collection Version 6.3

I go way back with the Nik Tools software. I bought the set before Google snapped it up, then they let it sit virtually idle. DXO got it six years ago and have added their own deep knowledge of photo editing and, I think, fulfilled the dream of what the Nik Collection should be.