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Usman Dawood

Batley, GB
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Articles from Usman Dawood

Canon RF 85mm f/1.2L Versus EF 85mm f/1.2L II: Which Is Better?

Portrait photographers who have shot with the Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II will probably tell you about how wonderful that lens is. Having this particular focal length with such a wide aperture produces very unique and beautiful results. The new RF mount lens looks to take the crown for the best portrait lens, however. 

Learn More With ACDSee and Their YouTube Channel

For many photographers, the Adobe software suite is the main suite they use for editing and to manage their content. Over the last few years, however, many creatives have become dissatisfied with the monthly subscription model that Adobe has now opted for. For this reason, many photographers have been looking for a viable alternative. 

Fstoppers Hands-on Look at the Hasselblad CFV II 50C (and X1D II 50C)

With companies like Fujifilm entering the medium format industry, it's not going to be an easy place to compete, especially for a company like Hasselblad. The new Fuji GFX 100 looks pretty incredible; however, Hasselblad does seem to have a few tricks left up its proverbial sleeve. 

The Sony a7S III: Destined to Disappoint?

Over the last year, a fair number of very impressive cameras have been released with lots of new features both for photographers and videographers. Companies like Panasonic and Fujifilm have released feature filled exciting cameras, yet the original mirrorless full-frame camera manufacturer has been seemingly dragging its feet. 

Fstoppers Reviews the Alter Rapid Filter System

Early on in my career, I was quite reluctant to use any kind of filter system. I was under the impression that any filter effects could be achieved by utilizing a few techniques such as mean stacking. I've changed my mind since then and I now regularly use filters for my work. The issue is they can be a hassle, however, a company called Alter may have a solution. 

Tilt-Shift Lenses vs Lightroom/Photoshop: In Camera or Fix It in Post?

As an architectural photographer, the main types of lenses I use are tilt-shift lenses. These prime lenses are unique in how they operate because they allow you to move the internal elements parallel to the sensor. This can be extremely useful for perspective control and ideal for shooting architecture. The question is, are they vital or just overpriced? 

Asus ZenFone 6: The First Ever Dual Camera Swivel Phone

Smartphones seem to be advancing at a much quicker pace than conventional cameras are. Companies are consistently trying to find solutions to problems and issues. The battle to perfection continues and Asus seems to be pushing towards this goal with their latest smartphone

Is the Canon EOS-1D X Mark II Still Worth Buying?

It's been more than three years since Canon first released their flagship camera the EOS-1D X Mark II. Since then, plenty of other cameras have been released, new flagship models from other manufacturers and even a whole new mount. Three years is a long tie in the world of technology so how does the current Canon flagship camera hold up to today's standards? 

How to Recover Deleted or Formatted Files with Wondershare Recoverit

One of the best pieces of advice I have been given in recent times was to not be a firefighter. Before you all jump on me and tell me I'm a dummy for saying something negative about people who are clearly more heroic than I am, let me explain. What I mean is to not be proactive in how I operate. 

Image Cataloging Made Easy With ACDSee Photo Studio Standard 2019

I hope I'm not the only person who does this, but up until recently, I had not used any of the cataloging features from any image editing software. This isn't because I thought any of them were particularly bad; instead, I just have my own way of managing files and their locations. However, ACDSee has changed my mind about this. 

Are Apple Macs Slower? It May Be Time to Switch to Windows

The Apple versus Windows discussion tends to get some strong opinions from both sides. Many creatives swear by Apple and consider them to be the only option, and this is mostly due to the operating system. Preferences aside, it would seem that Macs are sometimes the slower and worse option for creatives. 

Sony GM vs Sigma Art: Which 135mm f/1.8 Lens Is the Best?

Portrait lenses are getting more and more ridiculous these days with their oversized glass elements and their super wide apertures. It's like every year a company will come out and try and outdo everyone by producing the most over the top lens they can and honestly, I couldn't be happier. 

The New ColorChecker Passport 2: Every Professional Photographer Needs One

Since starting my career as a photographer, one of the more challenging things I found was producing relatively accurate and pleasing looking colors. For a long time, I've been using the ColorChecker Passport from X-Rite because it consistently helped me to produce better-looking colors.  

Every Architecture and Landscape Photographer Needs Luminar 3

I know this article is sponsored, and some of you may pull back a little because of that. I don't blame you; I mean, I'd personally have reservations too, but I genuinely mean every bit of praise I give to Luminar 3. This software is seriously awesome, and in this article, I'm going to explain why. 

Fstoppers Reviews the Movavi Video Suite 18

As someone who has previously used the Movavi Video Editor 15, I was really interested to see what the full suite had on offer. After using the Movavi Video Suite to edit some of the videos that I recently posted on YouTube, I have to say I'm quite impressed. 

Hands-on Look at the New Samyang AF 85mm F/1.4 FE

For a while now, Samyang has been producing some very popular lenses. Their lenses are known for being excellent when it comes to optical performance without the premium price tag. This is why so many photographers love their lenses. 

Use Artlist to Improve Your Work With Better Music

As someone who produces videos for YouTube, one of the things I've struggled with is the music. Buying individual songs from people to use in projects can be very costly and impractical. Fortunately, platforms like Artlist.io make it extremely easy to find the right piece. 

Fstoppers Reviews The Big Sur by ONA

In a previous article, I reviewed the Prince Street by ONA and for the most part, I had some very positive things to say about it. More recently ONA sent me The Big Sur to review and I've been using it quite extensively for the last few weeks. 

Fstoppers Reviews the Leica M10-P: Falling in Love Is Easy

For a long time, Leica was known for producing some of the best cameras on the market. Some of the most iconic images in history have been shot on a Leica and the M series has remained one of their most sought after and almost idolized series of cameras. Recently I had the immense pleasure of testing the Leica M10-P and here are some of my thoughts on the camera. 

Fstoppers Reviews the Feiyu Tech AK4000: A Brilliant Gimbal but One Major Flaw

Not so long ago, if you wanted to produce super smooth looking footage on the move, you'd have had to spend an immense amount. These days the number of options available to us is simply fantastic. There are so many gimbals currently available at various price points and personally, I think this is quite wonderful. 

The Asus Zenbook Pro 15 UX580: A Better Alternative to MacBooks

As a company, Apple has been catering to the creative market for most of its history. This is one of the reasons you'll find so many photographers and video editors using Apple products including the MacBook. More recently it seems Apple has been moving away from creator-specific products and many in the industry are starting to notice.

Hands on With the New Fujifilm X-T30

The latest Fujifilm camera is here and based on the spec sheet, it looks like a minor update at best. Personally, I don't think this is a bad thing because considering the price point this is a fantastic camera. The X-T20 was a brilliant well-priced camera and the new X-T30 continues in that vein.

Make More Money with Adobe Stock and Textures

If you're relatively new to the world of stock photography and trying to figure out the best way to make money, then I might just have the answer for you. With creativity, you can produce work that fills a need and earns income. In this article, I aim to provide some methods that will help give you an edge.

Fstoppers Reviews the Billingham Eventer Camera Shoulder Bag

When it comes to high-quality camera bags, Billingham continues to be one of my all-time favorites. A fellow photographer and close friend of mine Imran Mirza introduced me to their bags when I first started in photography and I've been buying and using their bags ever since. 

Fujifilm X-T3 Versus X-T2: Which Camera Should You Buy?

When a new camera comes out, one of the most common questions I see is whether it's worth upgrading to or not. This I think is a very reasonable and fair question because in many cases now, new cameras tend to be minor updates as opposed full on upgrades. Based on that, how does the Fujifilm X-T3 compare to the X-T2 and is it worth paying slightly more for the upgrade?

Are Camera Manufacturers Lying to Us?

It would seem as though there is a disconnect between the marketing and engineering departments for many companies. Marketing departments tend to follow trends and engineering departments are tasked with making it a reality. But what happens when it's simply not feasible for engineers to give everything the customer base wants?

Mirrorless Still Has a Significant Weight Advantage Over DSLRs

When mirrorless cameras first started gaining popularity within the industry, brands and photographers were generally discussing the weight and size advantages. This was predominantly true until larger faster aperture lenses were brought into production and the mirrorless weight advantage was supposedly debunked.

Is the Olympus OM-D E-M1X Doomed to Fail or Crazy Enough to Work?

The Olympus OM-D E-M1X is a relatively large flagship camera retailing for just under $3,000. Most flagship cameras tend to be priced at around this mark, however this is rather unusual for a Micro Four Thirds camera. Using the same sensor as the previous model, surely this must be a laughable attempt from Olympus, or is it?