Fstoppers Gear Reviews

A well-devised digital storage system should be one of the most crucial considerations for every digital creative. With larger and larger camera sensors constantly emerging on the market, we find ourselves needing to accommodate and functionally access enormous raw and video files. Like many photographers, I face a near-constant search for the perfect storage solution. This month, a new Thunderbolt 3 SSD by Plugable is emerging on the scene, and I have a feeling it is going to change photographers’ and videographers’ workflows in a drastic way.

The use of external monitors in shooting stills at honestly seemed unnecessary at first, especially in shooting more pace-sensitive kinds of photography. But as an architectural photographer who generally has more room for precise compositions, it seemed more feasible.

AI has surely become a catch phrase, and we are seeing it all the time in photography applications. Luminar touts AI and Topaz, and even Adobe is jumping on the AI Bandwagon. Topaz Mask AI is one of the latest apps using AI, and I put it to the test.

Of course that title is a tad facetious, but I truly did not expect this much functionality out of what at first seemed like a niche product.

Leica has just announced its successor to its full-frame mirrorless camera, and it just might be a sign they are listening to the demands of professional photographers. The Leica SL2 has a 47.3-megapixel sensor, an updated Maestro III processor, and is capable of 20 fps bursts. It can shoot video up to 5K 30 fps, C4K 60 fps, and has 5-axis IBIS.

If you are thinking of venturing into videography and looking for an entry gimbal, check out the compact ZHIYUN Crane M2, compatible with a variety of lightweight mirrorless, compact, and action cameras, as well as smartphones.

Are you a photographer who puts emphasis on quality over quantity when it comes to your cameras and accessories? If so, this camera strap may be the perfect addition to your kit (and outfit). Take a look at our review, and see if this is for you.

Today, Loupedeck launched the new Creative Tool or "CT." They sent me a pre-production unit a month ago, and I've got some thoughts.

When DJI's digital FPV system was first announced, it was big news for a lot of people in the drone industry. How does this new system stack up against what already exists in FPV and how will DJI's Digital HD FPV system play a role in its new ecosystem?

There has been much talk about the upcoming version of Luminar 4 from Skylum software. I've tested an early beta release and found the new features, particularly sky replacement, rather incredible. Others will be more interested in the new AI Portrait tools, to which I also gave some attention. The bottom line is that Luminar 4 goes beyond any manual method of sky replacement for speed and accuracy. The portrait tools also work more quickly and easily than any software I've seen, including apps dedicated to portrait retouching.

Shimoda Designs made a big entrance into the adventure outdoor camera bag market with its original Explore series. Since then there has been a lot of competition from both new designers and industry leaders. Not to be outdone Shimoda is back with a new evolution of their previous bag with the Action X series.

The Zenitar 85mm f/1.4 is designed to be a more modern lens with a hint of Zenit's vintage bokeh style.

The Moment 58mm lens is sharp, easy to use, and believe it or not, it's not just a gimmick.

Canon recently launched the successor to the EOS M6 with the aptly named EOS M6 Mark II. It's a seemingly innocent camera that looks almost exactly like its predecessor but is packed with very significant upgrades inside.

Dry or desert conditions provide incredible photographic opportunities. However, these places can expose your camera to a significant amount of sand and dust. The Namib and Etosha are two of the driest and dustiest places on Earth. Thank goodness for rain covers!

It's so easy I thought I did it wrong.

My wife and I went to Copenhagen for the weekend to shoot 7 models together. We stayed in this awesome Scandinavian-styled apartment with a lot of wood finishing and great character. I wanted to try out the Moment Superfish lens to shoot some interiors, typically what I think these lenses will mostly be used for.

Few things are more terrifying than a corrupted or accidentally formatted memory card. When that recently happened to me, I hastily hopped on the Internet to find memory card recovery software. After several hours of searching, I came across an obscure but free tool, and a few hours later, all my images and videos were safely and securely transferred to my hard drive.

It's been exactly a year since the release of Nikon's flagship full-frame mirrorless camera and the camera has been tested in so many different genres. For this review, I test out this camera for compatibility in the exact kind of photography that I do: urban photography.

The demands of photographers have changed over the years when it comes to transporting their gear. For those who demand a bag that gets the job done and looks great while doing it, there are some great options on the market these days. Today we'll look at one such option, the f-stop Dyota 20.

Laowa is a lens manufacturer that is making waves over and over again. I had a chance to use their newest macro lens and put it through its paces to see if it can really rival its counterparts.

Like them or not, medium format cameras are the truth when it comes to image quality. The latest 150 megapixel juggernaut from Phase One is another example of what these systems are capable of, but there's far more to this back than just sheer resolution. Ever shot long exposures at 1/125s?

Around this time last year Phase One released the IQ4 line of digital backs. The IQ4 expanded on the IQ3 and introduced a new Infinity Platform (the UI and operating system in the backs), as well as two brand new sensors: the 151 megapixel full frame medium format IQ4 150MP and 150MP...

The Masters of Photography courses are aimed at offering instruction from those who have mastered their genre, to those who are entering it. The Albert Watson course covers his whole career, working in portraiture and commercial advertising as well as shooting landscapes and personal projects. Here’s what I thought after giving it a go.

Today, Westcott announced their new FJ400 battery-powered strobe. I've had an early review unit for a few days now, and Westcott seems to have done the impossible: they've overtaken the Godox AD400 Pro in its segment.

It’s been seven months since the Canon EOS RP has been out in the market. While most others are looking at the performance of the camera in a general sense, I put it to the test and tried to find the right context for such a camera.

At 55 to 80 million years old, the Namib Desert is one of the oldest and driest deserts in the World. The Namib is made up of massive fields of sand dunes, a humid, fog-laden coastline, and arid rocky plains.

The Zenitar 50mm f/1.2 S is a hodgepodge of vintage lens design brought into the modern world in order to marry the delight of swirly bokeh with the convenience of a modern lens mount.

Before I even get into this review, I just want to state that I absolutely love flexible LED light panels now. I have properly been missing out on how brilliant they are. From now on, anything I shoot in a studio environment will be shot with a flexible LED panel.

Laowa is one of the first to create a wide lens for Nikon’s Z and Canon's RF mount, with their 15mm f/2 Zero-D. The lens is also available in Sony's FE, representing a unique option for full frame mirrorless users. With an impressive aperture and focal length combination, is it a lens you should consider?

With extreme wide-angle lenses on the market from all the major players now that don't accept screw-in filters, filter manufacturers have stepped up their offerings with larger filter holders and dedicated attachment rings. One such offering is Haida's M15 Magnetic Filter Holder.

It's no secret that producing still as well as motion gives any photographer an edge over his competition. As the years go by, creating animated content is getting increasingly more accessible. In this article, I review Flugo, an iOS app that turns any still portrait into an eye-catching motion shot.

I am a big advocate of calibrating equipment. For this reason, I regularly make sure my monitors, cameras and, lenses are calibrated and working correctly. Printers, on the other hand, are a device that I've never done anything beyond using the factory settings. I figured it might be a good idea to reconsider that.

Last week, Sony announced two APS-C cameras and two more G-series lenses for their crop-sensor system. In this first-look review, I share my thoughts after photographing birds with the new a6600 and E 70-350mm f/4.5-6.3 G OSS.

When I received the RAVPower FileHub my first thought was "This thing is light. It can't be what it says it is." and boy was I wrong. While it definitely is not perfect, the RAVPower FileHub is an extremely versatile, handy, device for those that like to travel light.

While the Pixel 4 may soon be upon us, right now, the Pixel 3 and 3a series arguably represent the high-water mark for smartphone photography today through a combination of decent optics and more-than-decent artificial intelligence.

Having a photobooth is something I recommend every wedding photographer to have. The problem is that not all photobooths are created equal.

The "Masters of Photography" courses are a collection of online lessons provided by, as the name implies, some of the top photographers around today. I tried their Joel Meyerowitz course to see what I could learn about street photography from one of the best in the game.

Canon released the Canon Pixma Pro-10 around 2014 and changed prosumer printing. Even though it was released over five years ago the Pro-10 (and the Pro-10S) is still one of the the flagship models until you reach into professional level territory.

With the growing popularity of mirrorless cameras due to their more compact size and weight, tripods have also been evolving to be more portable. But it doesn't mean that less weight automatically means better.

Fujifilm's XF 8-16mm f/2.8 lens is the widest available rectilinear lens on the system and has completed the "Holy Trinity" of professional-grade zoom lenses. Squarely aimed at the uncompromising photographer, this lens shows that Fujifilm is ready to offer working photographers of all styles great lenses to execute the images they conceive. Let's take a look at how it performs in the field.

Earlier this year, Fujifilm released the 16mm 2.8 R WR (AKA the 16mm 2.8). A compact prime lens for their Fujifilm X system. I got to play with it for about three weeks and there is a lot to love, but it isn't without its imperfections.

If you ask me, curved television sets are a little over the top. Unless you have a television the size of a movie screen, it just doesn’t make financial or practical sense to bend that screen. But when it comes to monitors a few feet from your eyes, Samsung’s CJ791 curved monitor really does make the difference.

The smart controller merges a CrystalSky monitor with a regular controller to offer an all-in-one package. This solution is effective and comes with interesting features.

Mind Shift’s ROTATION180° PANORAMA made by Think Tank has been on the market for a couple of years now, but is its unique quick access feature still useful, and who exactly is the bag designed for?

If you've got a Fujifilm X range camera and you've switched from Canon, it's been a pain leaving Canon glass in the cupboard. Fujifilm lenses are also expensive, so the transition period used to be tough, until the Fringer EF-FX Pro II adapter.

It's a case of comfort and user experience. In this review, I analyze what it feels like in hand and see what the added benefits are when putting a phone into it instead of shooting with a regular cover.

I think I'm right in saying that blogging, from choosing the images, to sorting, and uploading them, is the least fun part of running a photography business. So, is there a way to make this task less challenging, time consuming, but also make it work for our SEO? Take a look at our review of Narrative.

Topaz Studios seems to have endless releases of powerful tools for photographers, and many of us have at least one Topaz application or plugin in our collection of editing tools. So, just how good is the newly released Topaz Studio 2?

Venus Optics (Laowa), a small Chinese lens manufacturer founded in 2013, has risen to prominence with their sometimes off-beat, always different, and always high quality lineup of lenses for all the major lens mounts. They have launched niche lenses like the 24mm f/14 probe macro and a series of their flagship close-to-zero-distortion Zero-D lenses. Today’s topic is the latest in that line and the widest lens available for the Fujifilm GFX system, the Laowa 17mm f/4 Zero-D.

We dragged Nikon’s new 500mm f/5.6 PF out to the Galapagos islands, up over the Andes, and down into the Amazon jungle to put it through its paces — as well as through numerous rain showers, muddy trails, and squadrons of mosquitos. None of it fazed the lens a bit, though the mosquitos at times drove me a little mad.