Popular Gear Reviews

How To Clean Dust Off Your DSLR Sensor:  Sensor Gel Stick

Over time every DSLR will collect dust on its CMOS or CCD sensor; there really isn't anyway around it. Cleaning your own camera's sensor with liquid wipes or other wet processes has always been a bit risky. Luckily the Sensor Gel Stick is a safe and easy product that top manufacturers like Leica, Nikon, and Canon have been using in their own factories for years. Now YOU can use it too!

Five Fantastic Cameras for Both Stills and Video

To be fair, it is very hard not to find a camera that is great at both stills and video nowadays. But there are some that just excel one way or another. Let’s have a look at five different cameras, each from a different brand, to keep it nicely balanced.

The New Fuji Your DSLR Will Love To Hate

The new Fuji XT1 is Fuji’s best designed, highest performing X Series camera yet. It's the young buck on the block, a DSLR-styled body that’s turning heads left and right. It’s tiny, packs a huge punch and there is no doubt in my mind that it will be delivering a TKO to more than a few DSLRs. But is it really that good? I pushed this thing hard for a solid month to bring you the review, read on to find out.

We Review the Amazing Canon EOS R10 Mirrorless Camera

Together with the EOS R7 Canon released the entry-level EOS R10 mirrorless camera. Although I didn’t expect that camera to be special, it turned out to be a surprisingly capable camera. If you want to step into the Canon EOS mirrorless world, you can’t go wrong with this little gem.

Hey Canon, Why Are Your Cameras Falling Apart?

Judging by my title, you'll be shocked to know that I have always been a Canon loyalist. From learning with the Canon A-1 inherited from my grandmother in 1999, to the latest mirrorless models, I have been a devoted customer and an advocate of the brand for over two decades. That is, until the Canon EOS R5. The Canon R5 is where my bond to the brand was systematically dismantled as the hardware itself did.

Here's a Brilliant Free App for Astrophotographers

If you shoot a lot of astrophotos, you know all about gradients. They are almost always present in your images, and they have to be removed to smooth out the sky background and make your images look their best.

I Bought My Dream Wedding Photography Lens

For several years, I traveled to weddings or other events with multiple lenses in my bag, much to the detriment of my back! No longer is this the case, as I finally purchased a lens that was top of my wish list, and the results have been amazing! Can you guess what it is yet?

The Premium Compact King Is Back! Fujifilm X100VI Preview

The successor to the worldwide popular, and rightfully so, Fujifilm X100V has finally been revealed! The new X100VI brings forth some very welcome features while staying true to what made the X100 lineup great. We’ve used it for a while and loved it! How was it? What’s new? What stayed the same? Is it worth upgrading? Will you even be able to get one?

Beautiful and Powerful: We Review the Nikon Z f

Many have been waiting for it ever since the release of the Z fc. Well, it is finally here and it is not just gorgeous, but surprisingly well-built using high-quality materials and impressive tech. The Nikon Z f is partially a Z6 II, a Z8, and a beautiful FM2 and yet it’s its own unique thing.

Is Adobe Lightroom Classic CC Really Faster? [Updated]

It's been at least four major updates to Lightroom throughout which so many photographers have been begging for performance improvements, even at the cost of feature updates. Finally, that day is here. Alongside today's announcement of Lightroom Classic CC (the new "normal Lightroom" for those who aren't yet aware of the name change), Adobe promised major performance updates. We know they're serious this time, but they've made similar performance enhancement claims in the past that have fallen far short of expectation. Do they mean it this time? Short answer: Hell yeah they do.

This Might Be the Best Lens That $80 Can Get You

You don’t really expect so much out of ridiculously cheap lenses. However, every once in a while, a budget lens comes along that may surprise you. This might be one of those lenses.

First Hands-On Look at the Sony a7R III

Following the announcement of the Sony a7R III, I had the chance to use the new a7-series flagship mirrorless camera for an evening of studio shooting. Here are my first impressions on handling, Pixel Shift Multi Shooting, the much improved autofocusing system, and 10 fps continuous shooting.

Review of the Canon RF 200-800mm f/6.3-9 IS USM

If you're looking for a long telephoto lens for the mirrorless R system, Canon has some great options available. The RF 200-800mm f/6.3-9 IS USM is the most recent one, and I predict it will become a very popular lens. And it's with good reason.

We Review the Powerful Canon EOS R3 Mirrorless Camera

I got excited when Canon Netherlands asked me to review the new Canon EOS R3. Together with the camera, I received three lenses and was offered just four days to use them under different circumstances. In this review, I share my first impression and shooting experience.

Our Long-term Review of the Dell XPS 9510 Laptop for Creatives

It's been nine months since I started to live a nomadic life and do full-time travel and photography. To stay productive on the road, I had to exchange my old and trusty desktop PC for a portable solution. I'm a Windows user and decided to go with the Dell XPS 9510. In this article, I explain why and share how it held up over the past months.

If You Shoot Fuji, You've Got To Try This Lens

The Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 DC DN Contemporary Lens is the new addition to the Sigma range for Fuji X Mount to accompany their three existing contemporary f/1.4 prime lenses. So how does this lens fair when it comes to image quality, value for money, and useability? We test it to find out.

Retro Review: Shooting With a 20-Year-Old Fujifilm/Nikon Frankenstein Monster

The early 2000s were a golden age for digital cameras. Companies like Olympus, Nikon, Sony, Canon, Ricoh, and others seemed to release an endless stream of unique, quirky, and often excellent cameras. I was lucky to work at a large camera store at the time, and almost every day, I remember unboxing some new gadget that was pushing the boundaries of design and resolution. The most fun days were when a new DSLR arrived.

Advanced Lightroom Effects From Lens Distortions Will Change the Way You Edit

Without a doubt, Lightroom is an extremely powerful editor. So much in fact, that I can edit an entire wedding without ever leaving the program. The main things I find myself doing that cause me to leave Lightroom and enter Photoshop are multiple exposures, liquefying, more advanced cloning and healing, and adding certain overlays. What Advanced Lightroom Effects from Lens Distortions does is make it so I no longer need Photoshop to add these overlays. It saves me time from switching back and forth between programs and having to create multiple copies of the same image.

Is the Fujifilm X100V the Perfect Travel, Documentary, and Street Camera?

With the long-awaited release of the Fujifilm X100V — the fifth generation of the X100 series — it is fair to say that this is now a pretty mature camera system. The question is whether the improvement brought with this latest iteration makes the X100V the perfect camera for travel, documentary, and street photographers.

Fstoppers Reviews the Canon EOS 1Dx Mark III: Who Needs a Mirrorless?

I got a chance to review the Canon EOS 1Dx mark III for a few weeks. It is the newest generation of the amazing 1Dx DSLR, made for extreme fast sport and action photography. I took the opportunity to photograph the dogs in the park, to see how it performs.

Fstoppers Reviews the Fujifilm X-T2 Mirrorless Camera

In the world of mirrorless cameras, Fujifilm is among the elite. Their cameras have that vintage look and feel along with the performance that shooters require in a professional realm. So, when they announced the new Fujifilm X-T2, a lot of people took notice. It has the latest in sensor and processing tech and boasts a new autofocus system that claims to keep up with high-end DSLR cameras. But just how well does it perform in the real world?

Fstoppers Reviews the Canon EOS R5 From a Photographer's Perspective

If you have missed the launch of the Canon EOS R5 mirrorless full frame camera, you have lived under a rock for at least a year. Or perhaps you aren't interested in new cameras. The Canon EOS R5 is the most advanced Canon mirrorless camera on the market. Canon Netherlands gave me one for a week to make an extensive review.

Crazy Wide, Crazy Fast: Fstoppers Reviews the Sigma 14mm f/1.8 DG HSM Art Lens

Every once in a while, a lens comes along that truly breaks new ground for one reason or another. Such is the Sigma 14mm f/1.8 DG HSM Art, which has an aperture over a stop faster than its competitors and is the fastest full-frame lens under 20mm. Of course, extreme lenses often have compromises of some sort, so how does this one perform? In short, extremely well. Check out our full review.

New and Improved MagMod Is My Favorite Speedlight Accessory

One year ago we all started hearing the buzz about MagMod after they launched a Kickstarter campaign that ended successfully. They then went on to be one of the hottest booths on the tradeshow floor at WPPI. Rather then sit content with their success the team at MagMod has been making improvements to their system and just released version 2 making their popular Speedlight light modifier better than ever.

Snapchat: The Next Big Thing for Photographers (Part 1)

Since the birth of social media, almost every business, public figure, and of course, creative, like us, are discovering new, interesting ways to engage with their following to portray value. In our industry, engagement and creativity in garnering it is very essential because of the abundance of noise and content that exists in the social media world. By constantly looking for new ways to engage with their fans and projecting value to clientele, there are always innovative ways to fill the gap. With that being said, there’s a new kid on the block and its name is Snapchat.

If You Shoot Sony, You've Got To Try This Lens

Sigma has built a solid reputation for its commitment to innovation and excellence in its ever-increasing range of photography lenses. The Contemporary series offers a very high-quality glass and price-friendly option for all photographers.

Real Life Comparison of the Sony a7R III, the Nikon Z 7, and the Canon EOS R

The year 2018 will be known as the year Canon and Nikon introduced their first mirrorless full-frame camera. It was their first step into a world that has been dominated by Sony for years. The cameras of Canon and Nikon have been mocked and laughed at, but how do they compare in real life? I got a chance to find out.

My Experience of Buying Used Camera Gear From MPB

Buying used camera gear doesn’t mean just private parties anymore. Commercial sellers have entered the market of used gear, and it’s a growing business. I tried out one of them and was quite surprised.

Shooting Portraits on a $12,000 Lens

This week, I borrowed a $12,000 600mm lens and decided to shoot portraits with it. Random? Yes. Weird? Of course. But I learned some things I never would've experienced had it not been for this, so here's my review of the 600mm behemoth for shooting portraits.

Panasonic, Please Come Back! Lumix GX9 Re-Review

Compact, packs a punch, and relatively cheap. The GX9 is one of the many cameras recently discontinued by Panasonic which has undoubtedly found a well-deserved following. The manufacturer has been unfortunately turning away from smaller cameras, and that is a damn shame. The GX9 is a perfect proof.

Ten Months and Thousands of Images Later: We Review the Fujifilm X-T5

The Fujifilm X-T5 has been out for some time. It was announced back in November 2022, but I’ve been using it since a few weeks before that so you could say I’ve had the camera for a long enough time to be able to tell you my opinion on it. Is it the right camera for you? What are its pros and cons?

Can You Tell the Difference Between the 24-70mm EF and RF Lenses? Look For Yourself and Prepare to Be Shocked

I upgraded my camera to the Canon EOS R5 last year and have since been shooting with my adapter ring and the EF lenses. If this sounds like jargon to you: let me catch you up to speed. Canon launched its first mirrorless camera in 2018, and the mount on the mirrorless cameras is different than the ones of the previous DSLRs. As a workaround, you can use an adapter ring to shoot with your older EF lenses on the new mirrorless cameras.

The Mobile Photography Workflow Solution: Fstoppers Reviews the 12.9-Inch Apple iPad Pro

Ever since tablets became more mainstream, I've been aching for a device that could truly be a full-powered, mobile photography solution. After all, the idea of a tablet seems tailor-made for photographers. And finally, in the last few years, hardware and software have reached a point where the tablet truly is a viable solution. Find out how the 2017 iPro Pro fares in this review.

Can DxO PhotoLab 6 Elite Knock Lightroom Classic Out of the Ballpark?

I tested a range of raw camera files in different development programs in a quest to find the ultimate development tool. This time it is the turn of DxO PhotoLab 6. Lightroom is good, and Capture One was better. How does Photolab 6 compare, and is it worth the investment?

Is it Time to Ditch Fuji Film Simulations? We Review Dehancer Film Emulator

Fujifilm is widely considered the king of film simulations and for good reason. Anyone who has owned a Fuji camera over the past decade appreciates the variety of excellent film recipes that can be created in camera and no doubt has their own go-to simulations they love to use. But is there a better way to give your photos a vintage look? In this review of Dehancer Film Emulator, we will find out.

The Razer USB-C Dock Will Improve Your Home Office Workspace

A dock for your computer can really level up your home workspace and make it even more efficient and productive. I look at the new Razer USB-C Dock and how it has performed under heavy usage for the past month. Can it improve your home workspace?

Fstoppers Review Of The Panasonic Lumix GH4: Is It Ready For Professional Use?

In short, no it is not. But a few minor dealbreakers are all that stand between leaving this camera on the shelf, and making it best digital camera in its class.

After nearly a month of capturing video, stills, and timelapse media with the Panasonic GH4, I laughed, I cried, and I almost threw it off a mountain. At times it was a joy to shoot with, and other times it wouldn’t even power on with a full battery. I’ll give you a complete, unbiased rundown in my full review, complete with video samples.

Fstoppers Hands-On First Impressions of the Sony a7R IV

Last week, Sony surprised us all when they announced their latest a7R mirrorless camera. I had the chance to use the new a7R IV shooting a number of different portrait studio sets at the launch event, and in this first-impressions review I offer my opinions on its updated body design and performance.