Articles written by Ryan Mense

In this new episode of Adorama’s “Through the Lens” web series, lifestyle photographer and one-time creative director for Apple, Michael O’Neal, is featured. In the brief five-minute video O’Neal recalls his motivation for moving on from a coveted job at Apple and going out on his own to work for himself. He reveals what draws him to photography, inspirations for his sought after talents, and where he’s heading next.

In early February, Sony unveiled the a6300, a follow-up to one of the best selling interchangeable-lens cameras of all time, the a6000. The updated a6300 features an APS-C 24.2-megapixel CMOS sensor, 4D Focus system with 425 on-chip phase-detection points and 169 contrast-detection areas, 11 frames-per-second burst shooting, and 4K video recording without pixel binning. Along with many other similar features that are available on Sony’s flagship a7II-series cameras, but with a price tag of only $999 (body only), this is one of the most feature-rich prosumer cameras ever released.

To the excitement of professional photographers shooting with Sony Alpha cameras, today Sony announced plans to release an all new wireless lighting control system this summer in the U.S. and Canada. The control system set consists of the FA-WRC1M wireless radio commander and the FA-WRR1 wireless radio receiver.

Midway through 2015, Phase One released the XF camera system, an impressive digital medium format system which combines modularity, software upgradability, and image quality into the ultimate shooting package. Last August I spent a couple weeks shooting with the XF paired with the IQ3 50MP digital back, and in January I again spent two more weeks with the newly released mind-blowing XF 100MP system. In this review I cover my time with the new Phase One system shooting landscapes and nature photography and my experience playing with the image files in post-processing.

Today Sony has announced a follow-up to the insanely successful Sony a6000. The new 24.2-megapixel Sony a6300 with internal 4K video recording once again pushes autofocus capabilities into uncharted territory. Take a closer look at all the specs of this prosumer beast and tell me you aren’t impressed.

Chicago-based photographer and designer Elise Swopes is absolutely brimming with creativity. Her highly popular composite work is astounding in itself for combining the unexpected, but the fact it’s all done on a smartphone is simply incredible. In this video kicking off Adorama’s second season of their “Through the Lens” series, Swopes talks about what inspires her to create, the apps she uses, and lays out some strong motivating lines for photographers of all backgrounds.

Love it or hate it, mobile photography is the king right now. So what’s a world-renowned lens manufacturer for “traditional” system cameras to do when a large majority of photos these days are coming from smartphones? You adapt. Today Zeiss has announced, in partnership with Fellowes Brands, plans to ship a macro, wide-angle, and telephoto lens for iPhone in Q2 2016.

As the latest addition to Booq’s growing camera bag offerings, the new Slimpack brings together many features perfected in their previous packs and includes the staples that many photographers now expect.

Musicbed has just released their latest “artist spotlight” in-house production which focuses on world-renowned pianist Chad Lawson. This short six-minute video isn’t a tutorial, it doesn’t feature a videographer or photographer, and it isn’t about the filmmaker behind the camera. What this video does have, and why I’m sharing it, is excellent storytelling and beautifully crafted scenes pieced together in postproduction to create an emotional, touching film. The inspiration given in this video is beyond teaching one how to film with a camera, rather it inspires how to tell a personal story and gives example to creating an emotional tone in moviemaking.