2015

Jump to articles by year, month, or day.

Year
Month
Day

Year alone opens that year’s archive. Add a month or day to narrow it.

Hands On with the New Leica Q

Leica officially announced their new full-frame Q series camera this morning. The beautifully compact unit features a 24-megapixel sensor and built-in Summilux 28mm f/1.7 lens. Designed for performance on the go, we got a chance to sit down with the Leica Q and get a better feeling for its aluminum and magnesium alloy constructed body. Does the Leica Q feel like $4k? We are going to find out.

One of the Largest Great White Sharks Ever Caught on Camera

Back in 2013, researcher Mauricio Hoyos Padilla and a Discovery network group of filmmakers and photographers paid a visit to Mexico’s Guadalupe Island, where dozens of adult great white sharks congregate every year. During the expedition, they came across one of the largest great whites ever captured on camera: a female shark measuring over 20 feet long.

Priolite Brings 1/8000s Flash Sync to Pentax DSLRs

Shooting flash photography with a wide open aperture on a bright summer day can feel almost impossible sometimes. You have a collection of beautiful shots that could use flash, but due to the sheer amount of light coming into your lens your flash units can’t keep up with the situation. You may be able to use an ND filter to cut down on the light, but your flash units will also have to compensate in the process. Now, professional lighting company, Priolite, has a solution they say will allow …

The American Southwest in B&W

From the days of Jack Kerouac to the culture of Route 66, it is common knowledge that America is best experienced from its roads. That’s why I decided to grab a friend, rent a car and head off into America’s beautiful southwest to see what all of the fuss was about.

Hello Future: YouTube Now Officially Hosts 8K Videos

We can all agree on the fact that 4K is last year’s news and if you aren’t watching video at a resolution at least quadruple that resolution, then you might as well be watching in standard definition. Alright, maybe that's a tad bit extreme and premature, but if you do feel that way, then you’ll be happy to hear that YouTube now officially supports playback of 8K video.

Leica Camera Rifle Prototype Valued at Over $350,000

One of the "most unusual" Leitz accessories is up for auction. This year's WestLicht photography auction features a New York Leica Gun Rifle Prototype, a device that lets photographers shoot images sniper rifle-style. The starting price is €150,000, and it's expected to fetch up to €350,000 (~$394,000).

POV: Photographing World Leaders at the G7 Summit

The 41st G7 summit was just held in Schloss Elmau, Germany, where a group of the world's most powerful heads of state came together to talk about economic issues. If you've ever wondered what it's like to work as a photographer in a room with presidents, prime ministers, and chancellors, we've got a first-person view for you to experience.

Review: Capture Another Dimension with Samsung’s 45mm f/1.8 2D/3D NX Lens

From time to time, a lens will appear that we can’t help but develop a desire to test. Samsung released a 45mm f/1.8 NX lens, but neither the focal length nor the aperture are what make it attractive; this $500 lens can shoot photographs in not only two-dimensions, but three-dimensions. That’s right, this piece of kit brings 3D photos and videos to your Samsung NX series camera at the flip of a switch.

Magnum Selling $100 6×6 Signed Prints of Shots That ‘Changed Everything’

Magnum Photos continues to serve as an honored photographic cooperative with offices in New York, Paris, London, and Tokyo. Founding members of the cooperative include the legendary names of Robert Capa, George Rodger, and Henri Cartier-Bresson. This year, the association asked their members what they believed was “an image that changed everything”; and now, you can own limited signed prints of those photographs without breaking the bank.

There’s a New Free Browser-Based Film Emulator

Back in 2013, photographer Pat David released a large set of film emulations as open source color lookup tables. Software developer Jonas Wagner just took that data and turned it into a free online analog film emulator. It's a simple web app that lets you give any photo the look of a particular film stock.

Kate Middleton Shot Her Own Royal Baby Portraits

Did you know that quite a few members of the British royal family are passionate photographers? This past weekend, Prince William and Kate Middleton released a set of four portraits showing their two children. Rather than hire a photographer for the occasion, Kate, a photography enthusiast, shot the royal baby pictures herself.

Review: Polaroid’s ZIP Instant Photo Printer is the Perfect Pocket Companion

The Polaroid ZIP is an instant photo printer designed for printing out your favorite snapshots on the run; we got a chance to play around with one, and, to be frank, we are quite reluctant to send it back - we are having too much fun. The ZIP was designed to make use of ZINK zero ink paper and works with both iOS and Android smartphones via Bluetooth or NFC technology to create 2" x 3” full-color prints.

This Amazing Photo Shows a Surfer Above Water and Photographers Below

Photographer Sash Fitzsimmons captured this amazing photograph this past winter while working with surfer Billy Kemper off the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii. It shows Kemper catching a wave above the surface of the water while a team of surf photographers point their cameras at him from below -- Fitzsimmons straddles the divide, capturing both worlds in one shot.

Attending a Popular Event? Consider Leaving Your Camera at Home

Vivid is a festival of light and color thrown by the city of Sydney every year. Run by Destination NSW (the state’s tourism authority) and paid for by a mixture of state and business sponsorship, it’s an amazing looking event. At its core are the building takeovers in which they drop unique projection-mapped animations on some of the most famous structures in the world, located on one of the most famous harbours in the world.

ROL is Like the Tinder of Competitive Photo Sharing

If you like the idea of online photo sharing but dislike the idea of popular users getting all the attention, ROL is a new app you should check out. It's a competitive photo sharing service that focuses on promoting images based on their merits rather than on a photographer's follower counts.

Samsung NX500 Review: 4K Video and Big Technology Stuffed Into a Small Package

With Sony dominating the mirrorless camera market, other companies are looking to find ways to make their hardware stand out in comparison. Fujifilm has chosen to design their custom sensor array, Panasonic has focused on stunning video, and Samsung - well, they want to cram as much technology into a small package as they possibly can. The result is the NX500; and it is a real tiny camera with big promises.

Here’s a Bright Idea: Eco-Friendly Film Canisters

Like single serving coffee pods, film canisters aren't exactly the environment's best friend. One startup over in Italy is trying to change that. Called compagnia-imago, the company is trying to create a high-quality eco-friendly film canister that's biodegradable, compostable, an reusable.

Idiot Box: Portraits of Kids with Eyes Glued to a TV

In any given week, the average US child will watch more than a day's worth of TV. This subject is the focus of a new photo series by photographer Donna Stevens called Idiot Box. It's a set of portraits showing blank expressions on kids faces as they watch television in a dimly-lit room.

Testing the Image Quality of the Yongnuo 35mm f/2 for Canon EF

Here's a look at the optical quality of the Yongnuo 35mm f/2 for Canon EF. There’s only so much that can be tested at home without fancy gear (MTF charts and the like) so I did a few tests that gauge common aesthetic qualities, using techniques that are often recommended for testing at home.

My New Thoughts on Google Photos After Digging Around for a Week

Last week when Google Photos launched, I quickly tested it out and then wrote a post with my immediate initial reaction to the service. Much of my early disappointment centered around the fact that Google chose to limit the size of photos in the service to 16 megapixels. As a DSLR shooter this meant that a large portion of my library would be downsized with Google Photos. Bummer.

A Look at How the Top iOS Mobile Photo Editing Apps Stack Up

With many cameras now supporting integrated Wi-Fi connectivity, a good number of photographers are editing their photographs while still on the road. There is a variety of applications on both iOS and Android that offer different feature sets at varying price points. In this article, we'll take a look at some of the best offerings to help you pick out what may be the best solution for your circumstances.