Equipment

Photographers use all kinds of equipment to craft their art, from cameras and lenses to lights and accessories. We cover the latest news and information on the tools of the trade in the photography industry.
A computer monitor displays an image of a person working at a desk in a room filled with plants and various items. Below the monitor, a camera and a small computer device are placed on a wooden surface.

The Best Monitors for the Apple Mac mini and Mac Studio

Apple's redesigned M4 Mac mini and powerful Mac Studio are amazing computers for photographers and video editors, delivering excellent performance for the price. However, neither ships with a display, leaving customers to decide, "What's the best monitor for my Mac mini (or Mac Studio)?" PetaPixel offers three great options.

Two black camera lenses with yellow marking details stand on a stone surface. The background features a soft-focus landscape with mountains and a clear sky.

Zeiss’ Otus ML Lenses Promise Photographers Something Entirely Different

Zeiss made its long-awaited return to the traditional photography space by reintroducing its beloved Otus series for full-frame mirrorless cameras. The Otus ML 50mm f/1.4 and Otus ML 85mm f/1.4 lenses channel a classic, manual-focus photographic workflow that most first-party lenses eschew in favor of clinical sharpness, digital lens corrections, and perhaps most notably, blazing-fast autofocus. For Zeiss, this is the Otus ML's strength, not its weakness.

Two pairs of colorful binoculars with textured grips are displayed on white cylindrical pedestals. One pair is blue with black accents and the other is green with black accents, both featuring a red logo in the center.

Leica’s Colorful New Binoculars Promise Performance and Style

Like many companies that make photographic lenses, Leica has its hands in many pies, including projectors, rifle scopes, and binoculars. It is the lattermost group that Leica updated today, launching four compact binoculars in the new Leica Ultravid Compact Colorline range.

A person holding a silver camera toward the viewer, with an out-of-focus background of water. The photo features the text "PetaPixel Reviews" on the bottom right.

Sigma BF Review: Riding The Knife’s Edge of ‘Too Simple’

One of the most fundamental lessons taught in any art form is to strip away the excess; to streamline and distill down to its essence, only the most essential parts. We see this in many art forms such as sculpture, writing, and even photography, and now we have it in a camera. But is it possible to go too far?

A white Epson printer on a wooden surface, featuring an extended paper tray. The printer has a small digital display screen on the right, showing icons for copy, print photos, and various prints.

Stop Battling Anti-Consumer Printers and Just Buy an Epson EcoTank

For the past two years, The Verge's Editor in Chief Nilay Patel has recommended the same Brother laser printer as the best option on the market, even going so far as to renew that guide with an entirely new story that includes a very funny AI-generated text section. However, I disagree with Patel and Brother's anti-consumer practices are making the publication doubt that choice, too.

A Sony Alpha 7R camera with a visible E-mount sensor. The camera body is black with textured grip on the left side and control dials on top. The brand logo is shown on the viewfinder area in white.

Why an APS-C Lens Might Be the Right Choice for Your Full Frame Camera

I often see questions on forums about the focal length of lenses and how they work on cameras of various sensor sizes. Is a 35mm lens really 50mm on an APS-C camera? No, it’s still 35mm, but the field of view (FOV) is narrower on the APS-C camera because the sensor is narrower.

A Sony camera is placed on a stone surface in the foreground, with a leather strap attached. In the background, a person in a grey beanie and black jacket is leaning on the surface, slightly out of focus. The overlay text reads "PetaPixel Reviews.

Viltrox 25mm f/1.7 Air Review: Performance Without Price

Viltrox is steadily expanding its line of lenses and I’ve committed to making 2025 the year that I review more of them. Viltrox lenses have earned a glowing reputation and I very much enjoyed the 135mm f/1.8. But the latest 25mm f/1.7 comes in at an incredibly low price of $179. Can a lens this affordable make a favorable impression or is it too good to be true?

A Nikon Z series mirrorless camera, displaying the lens mount and sensor, set against a colorful, blurred background.

Nikon’s New Z6 III Firmware Appears to Fix N-Log Flickering Issues

Nikon released firmware updates for its Z6 III and Z8 cameras this week, adding an assortment of new video-centric features and improvements. One of the changes added to the Z6 III in firmware version 1.10 is "Reduced noise in dark areas of N-Log videos." While just a single line in the firmware notes, this is a huge deal.

A Zeiss Otus 1.4/50 camera lens on a wooden surface. The lens is in focus with visible aperture and focus markings. The background is blurred, and there's a "PetaPixel Hands-On" graphic at the bottom right.

Zeiss Otus ML 50mm f/1.4 First Impressions: Still Legendary?

I distinctly remember when the Zeiss Otus 55mm f/1.4 lens first entered the market. It was a lens designed to project a larger circle of light onto the sensor and therefore it was huge. As bulky as it was, this oversized design enhanced the overall sharpness of the lens, especially toward the corners, and quickly cemented itself a legendary status. However, the Zeiss Otus lenses were designed for DSLR cameras and it has been six years since the 100mm Otus was released. A lot can happen in six years and the other manufacturers have had plenty of time to catch up in terms of optical performance.

A camera lens with a hood sits on a wooden surface. The brand name appears on the lens. A detached lens cap lies nearby. Text on the bottom left reads "PetaPixel Reviews.

Sony FE 16mm f/1.8 G Review: Worthwhile Compromises for Compactness

Alberta, Canada, has been pounded by polar vortex after polar vortex, pushing daytime temperatures down to -25 Celsius before any wind chill factors in. As Alberta-born Canadians, Jordan and I can brave the frigid temperatures for the sake of the show, but with our lavalier microphones refusing to hold a charge and our camera EVFs running at eight frames per second, we pressed on to review a fascinating little lens on what we knew would be a taxing day.