Last May, the large-format F-Zero Camera hit Kickstarter, promising to "bend the laws of physics" and enable photographers to shoot at effective apertures of f/0.3-0.6. The campaign proved successful, and its creator, Nick Salazar, says all backers have received their cameras. As a result, the F-Zero is now available to the general public.
Many camera manufacturers choose to support, or at least turn a blind eye to, third-party lens makers. Some even wholeheartedly embrace them. However, Canon has infamously taken a stance to deny third-party manufacturers access to its RF mount. The fascinating twist is that many companies were beginning to produce manual and autofocusing lenses before the crack-down, creating an exclusive market of very rare lenses that hit the streets before the curtain fell.
While there are physical limitations to lens apertures, through the use of adapters, photographers can seemingly bypass the laws of physics and make very, very fast glass.
The Canon 65mm f/0.75 is a rare lens that was designed for X-Ray imaging, and it's one of the fastest lenses ever made. Photographer and weird lens tester Mathieu Stern got his hands on one and decided to see what using the lens is like for both photos and videos.
Given how much more it costs to buy an f/1.4 prime compared to an f/1.8, beginners in particular often ask if the upgrade is worth it. Build quality and optical quality being equal, is the difference in light gathering capability and depth of field noticeable? Can you really tell?
By carefully applying blur to a portrait, you can make it look like it was shot with a shallow depth-of-field using a fast (and expensive) lens. Here's a 12-minute tutorial by PiXimperfect that teaches the key to creating this faux blur in a realistic way.
Instagram just released a new camera format called "Focus" that brings the magic of iPhone Portrait Mode-style portraits to single-camera smartphones.
Brazilian photographer Charles Oliveira recently put the Mitakon Speedmaster 85mm f/1.2 lens through its paces using his Nikon D600. Announced back in 2015, this is a Chinese lens that offers 85mm f/1.2 at a relatively affordable price of $799.
Professional looking, shallow depth of field portraits are now available to a lot more people. Earlier today, Apple released its first major iOS 10 update, and included in that update is their much-anticipated fake bokeh "depth effect" Portrait mode for iPhone 7 Plus.
Apple released iOS 10.1 to public beta testers today, and it includes one of the most anticipated features they showed off during their iPhone 7 keynote: the "Portrait" mode that fakes a depth of field effect.
When you focus your camera, the area around the focal distance will also be in focus. But this can fall off to blur quickly or slowly. The acceptable amount of in-focus area around what's you are focusing on is called depth of field.