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A triptych showing close-ups of fashion accessories: left, a person holds a green utility bag filled with red-handled tools; center, a foot in a black shoe and blue disposable shoe cover; right, a belt with tools and cords over denim.

‘Assistants’ Celebrates the Unsung Heroes of Fashion Photography

Behind nearly every iconic studio fashion photo is a stylist assistant. These unsung heroes often go entirely unnoticed to the outside world, but they are essential to the photographic process and vital members of the team. A new photography book, Assistants, brings fashion stylists from the background and puts them front and center.

Canon 14mm f/1.4L VCM Review: Major Trade-Offs for Compactness

Close-up view of a Canon camera lens with a red ring on a white background, featuring the "PetaPixel Reviews" logo at the bottom left corner.

Canon has created, in a very short time, a complete line of L-series prime lenses that cater to the hybrid photo and video shooter. It is quite an achievement to build a whole line of professional prime lenses that are all similar in size, weight, and form factor, while still maintaining the quality expected of an L-series optic. The latest addition to the family is the 14mm f/1.4L VMC, a first for Canon in its RF-mount. I took this $2,600 lens for a spin, appreciating its compact nature, but with serious trepidation that Canon may have pushed the envelope a little too far this time.

Split image on a pink background: left half shows a pixelated camera icon, right half shows a Canon EOS R6 camera. Large white text reads "FLICKR'S 22ND IN NUMBERS" across the image.

The Most Popular Cameras on Flickr

Flickr is celebrating its 22nd birthday, a remarkable achievement. To mark the occasion, Flickr shared some interesting data and insights into how photographers use Flickr, which cameras they own, and what types of shots they like to share the most.

Valentine’s Day Photo Gifts Under $100

A collage of photography gear and accessories, including filters, camera housing, a film camera, film packs, a dry cabinet, rings, and a leather camera bag, arranged on a red rose background.

Finding the perfect Valentine’s Day gift for the photographer in your life just got easier and more affordable. Whether they’re traveling, creating content daily, exploring the outdoors, refining portraits, or embracing analog photography, these deals offer thoughtful gifts all under $100. From bags and tripods to lenses, lighting, and workflow tools, there’s something meaningful for every type of photographer.

A surprised man holds a fan of Canadian dollar bills in one hand while looking at three large camera lenses floating beside him, with a blue checkered background.

Are Lenses Actually More Expensive Now? | The PetaPixel Podcast

A few weeks ago, Jordan Drake challenged Chris Niccolls and Jaron Schneider's historical camera pricing knowledge with a test: are cameras actually more expensive now than they were 10 or more years ago? The answer was mostly no, but it got them thinking... was the same the case for lenses?

A Canon EOS R10 digital camera body without a lens is mounted on a tripod, with a blurred background showing shelves and equipment.

DIY Digital Iris Animates and Customizes Lens Bokeh

Adapters to use DSLR lenses on modern mirrorless cameras are very common parts of photography kits. They are extremely useful tools that enable photographers to use their existing, older lenses on new mirrorless cameras. However, as New Zealand builder James, who goes by Ancient on YouTube, shows, these adapters can be so much more and capture photos and videos that would otherwise be impossible.

A person stands behind a large, open, white photography umbrella with only their head and hands visible above it, against a black background.

Snap Rabbit Softbox Delivers Big, Soft Light in a Snap

DoPchoice has introduced the Snap Rabbit Octa 5' Snapbag, a new softbox system designed to simplify setup while maintaining the high-quality light control expected on professional sets. Built for today’s high-output COB LED fixtures, the Octa 5' aims to reduce assembly time without sacrificing diffusion quality or output efficiency.

What Hope Looks Like: Photographing Recovery at Springs Rescue Mission

Split-screen image: Left side shows an older man in a "Springs Rescue Mission" t-shirt and cap, smiling at the camera. Right side shows a man in a yellow vest holding a small dog, standing outdoors before a backdrop.

Most people dread receiving their monthly electric bill. For a Colorado Springs man named Thomas, however, receiving his first utility statement in his own name was cause for celebration. After six years living in a tent on the streets, Thomas now has an apartment, a job, and a piece of mail worth framing. Through a decade of work with Springs Rescue Mission, Thomas’ is just one of the many stories of transformation that photographer Aaron Anderson has documented in an ongoing project capturing hope and recovery.

A Tamron camera lens with zoom and focus rings, shown against a dark blue gradient background.

Tamron Says It Will Launch 10 Lenses in 2026

In Tamron's newly published FY2025 financial results, the company not only detailed its financial performance over the full fiscal year 2025 but offered key insights into its plans for 2026 and beyond, including how many lenses it plans to release in FY2026.

Satellite view of the snow-covered Alps mountains with deep valleys, a prominent dark blue lake (Lake Geneva) near the center, and green plains to the southeast, indicating lower elevation terrain.

The Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics Venues as Seen From Space

With the Winter Olympics in full swing and hundreds of millions of people worldwide tuning into all the sporting action from Italy, the European Space Agency (ESA) delivered a very special look at different Winter Olympic venues using its Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission satellite.

Panasonic Lumix S 100-500mm f/5-7.1 O.I.S. Review: Slow and Steady

A large black camera lens sits on a wooden surface, featuring dials and switches. Blue "PetaPixel Editor's Choice" and "PetaPixel Reviews" banners are overlaid on the image.

For the last several years, if you were an L-Mount user looking for a super telephoto lens, Sigma was your only option (or a Leica version of a Sigma lens). Now Panasonic has introduced their longest full frame lens yet, with the Lumix S 100-500mm f/5-7.1 OIS. It’s compact and light, but also slow and expensive. Is there a place for this $2,100 lens in the L-Mount lineup? Let’s find out.

A digital camera is mounted on a white microscope examining a circuit board. Next to it, there is a black OM System TG-7 compact digital camera on a white background.

OM System Launches New TG-7 Kit Made for Microscopes

OM Digital Solutions has announced a new, specialized version of its OM System Tough TG-7 camera designed for microscopy and other industrial applications. The TG-7 Industry NY-TGV Super Adapter Kit with Microscope Adapter is designed for examinations, research, and testing.

Close-up of two hands holding a compact black and blue camera with a circular lens on the left side, against a blue background.

This Failed Kodak Digital Camera From 2001 Was a Smartphone Precursor

These days, it's easy to take for granted that a smartphone does just about everything. They run games, they make calls, they play music and movies, and, of course, they capture great photos and videos. But long before smartphones arrived on the scene, Kodak was actually at the cutting edge of combo camera devices. 2001's Kodak mc3 was Kodak's first foray into multi-function digital cameras, and the weird little device captured photos and videos and played MP3s.

A black-and-white split image shows a woman’s emotional face with a tear on the left and her looking upward hopefully on the right. The word "unavailable" is vertically overlaid on both sides.

You Won’t See Another Super Bowl Ad Like This One

Oscar-nominated filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos teamed up yet again with famous actor Emma Stone for what is very likely to be the only Super Bowl commercial this year shot on 35mm Kodak 2302 black and white film stock with Panavision lenses.

How to Capture Unique Wildlife Photos

A triptych image shows: a duck flapping its wings on water, a brown bear holding a red fish in its mouth by a river, and a brown horse running through ocean waves.

Photography has never been more accessible, yet truly distinctive images feel harder to come by than ever. With social media reinforcing familiar compositions and popular locations, many photographers find themselves asking how to create work that feels original and fulfilling. This three-part series is designed to explore that question across three genres: wildlife, landscape, and night sky photography. In this first article, the focus is on wildlife and how slowing down, understanding animals on their own terms, and committing to personal projects can help photographers create images that rise above the expected.