There just aren't a lot of ultra-wide full-frame prime lenses to choose from. There are plenty of zoom lenses to choose from, however, compact dedicated ultra-wides are in short supply. Cue Sigma to save the day with its brand new Contemporary series 17mm lens. But is this the hero we were looking for?
Arriving in stores only weeks apart and at the same price, the Panasonic S5 IIX and Sony ZV-E1 are full frame, video optimized cameras designed for creators. Obviously, I had no choice but to compare them!
The Insta360 X3 recently improved after the company released a free firmware update that adds mobile-to-desktop reframe data syncing, turns the 360-degree camera into a simple plug-and-play webcam, and enhanced PureShot image quality.
Adventure or travel photographers will sometimes find themselves in rather extreme environments. Alaska, Iceland, Antarctica, or even Yellowstone National Park in the winter can be very cold. So, does Haukland's Parka Pro Photography Jacket successfully combat low temps and wet weather?
As a parent, you hope that your children will emulate your best traits, but also blaze new trails and achieve greatness beyond their own. You hope that lessons will be learned from your own mistakes and that your weaknesses will not be theirs. Is the Nikon Z9 a proud parent?
One of the most frequently asked sets of questions I receive from other photographers is: What print lab do you use? Which online photo printing service is the best quality? Who prints the best quality photos?
When I reviewed the Laowa Argus 35mm f/0.95 I was struck by how bad it was, but also how good it could be. Normally, I rate a lens based on how well it handles flare, how sharp it is, and how well it controls chromatic aberrations. Going by the above criteria, the Argus should have failed spectacularly.
The Nikon Zfc is a crop sensor mirrorless digital camera designed to replicate the classic Nikon FM2 Film camera, often considered one of the best 35mm film cameras of all time. While the system looks amazing and definitely brings a huge hit of nostalgia, does it live up to that legacy?
When it comes to macro photography, having the right lens is critical for achieving the best possible images. As such, the updated $547 HD D FA Macro 100mm F/2.8 ED AW from Pentax brings a refreshed optical formula optimized to work better with larger megapixel DSLR's but, sadly, not much else.
Check out our first YouTube video with Chris and Jordan, and the full written review!
Every time I review a Leica digital rangefinder, the major argument against buying one becomes a matter of price versus practicality. How can I recommend a camera that is neither affordable nor versatile?
The Jackery booth at the Consumer Electronics Show was attention-grabbing, with solar panels and battery power systems laid out in various outdoor dioramas. Each setup was designed to highlight Jackery’s Portable Power System and its Solar Generator line.
The Insta360 Flow is a gimbal for smartphones that, on paper, looks like the perfect solution for vlogging, YouTube creators, and social media influencers. The Insta360 Flow’s promise is artificial intelligence (AI) tracking in a compact gimbal that can be folded and taken anywhere.
Dramatic, restrictive, and humbling are three words I'd use to describe the Carl Zeiss 16mm f/8 Hologon Ultra-wide lens that I shoot adapted to Leica M film cameras.
When you set up a webcam, you usually park it in one ideal spot and leave it. The Cyber Acoustics CA Essential Webcam Flex looks to change that by changing all the angles.
OWC’s Thunderbolt Go Dock not only solves the problem of ports and connectivity but also provides a go-anywhere solution that creatives can use daily on their desktop or when traveling.
External editing keyboards and decks are huge time savers. Move the critical features of an editing or creative tool to a compact editing surface, and workflow productivity climbs.
Somehow, 2023 has turned into quite the year for monochrome cameras. Leica, though, is no stranger to the format and the M11 Monochrom is just the latest in a series of excellent additions to the space.
At this point in the "Tablet Debate", the argument about who makes the best tablets for photographers will shift back and forth between Xencelabs and Wacom depending on who you talk too and what deep-down preferences they have. While Wacom may have reigned supreme for a very long time, it's hard to deny that with the launch of the $1,899 Pen Display 24 Studio Series, Xencelabs has officially given Wacom a reason to worry.
The Vivo X90 Pro isn’t the brand’s top device, given there’s a Pro+ version out there, but this phone isn’t one to take lightly. Vivo isn’t shy about the credibility and relevance it wants in the market, even if its phones aren’t all that visible in North America yet.
The Xiaomi 13 Pro may be a successor to the previous 12 Pro, but it’s just as easy to argue that it’s more a continuation of the 12S Ultra that was only released in China. That was the first to use the Type 1 (13.1 x 9.8mm) Sony IMX989 sensor -- the same one from the popular Sony RX100 -- only customized to Xiaomi’s liking.
It’s easy to overlook a good third-party photography app on a smartphone because they just keep popping up, but Varlens may be one worth keeping close by at all times.
When Sony and Sigma released lenses with nearly identical specifications (or at least nearly identical target customers), photographic gear scheduling marked a rare alignment. Photographically speaking, the concurrent launch of these two similar lenses is the equivalent of a full solar eclipse—incredibly rare and also amazing to see.
The Sony ZV-E1 represents the (current) pinnacle of the company's efforts to radically pivot the camera division to stay ahead of changes in the photography and video markets. It is largely successful in that endeavor.
Last week, Adobe made waves by announcing the beta release of its new text-to-image generative artificial intelligence (AI) model, Firefly. Adobe says its new platform wasn't built using stolen images, but rather, as Adobe boasts, Firefly has been trained using Adobe Stock images, openly licensed content, and public domain content.
A little while ago, when Apexel asked me to review the 200X LED Lens microscope adaptor, I told them I was interested in both the microscope and the macro lens kit. Due to stocking issues, they were able to send the microscope adaptor.
Really Right Stuff is a company that is well-known for producing some of the highest-quality tripod and accessories for creatives, and the recently updated PG-02 MK II Pan-Tilt Tripod Head is no exception.
I have a special interest in manual focus 50mm lenses. It began with a Praktica film SLR that was bundled with a 50mm f/2.8 Meyer-Optic Görlitz lens. Next came a Canon Ftb SLR with a 50mm f/1.4 FD SSC lens. This lens had a noticeable improvement in image quality along with a much better anti-reflection coating.
The Z30 mirrorless camera is Nikon's third APS-C (DX) system that takes advantage of the Z-mount. While clearly marketed at content creators, vloggers, and social media influencers, the compact system has everything a solo-operating content creator needs to get up and running for video and photo.
I received a request from Apexel to review a phone accessory that connects to microscopes, telescopes, or binoculars. I replied to inform them that I had none of those pieces of equipment but I might be interested in reviewing a macro or microscope attachment to mobile phones.
Can a mid-range smartphone that focuses more on gaming also deliver something worth capturing with its cameras? The Poco X5 Pro acts like it’s up for the job, only to then force a lot of compromises.
The new Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K G2 successfully carries on the company’s tradition of providing affordable creation tools dedicated to video and cinema creation.
Wacom's Cintiq Pro 27 might be expensive, but it is one of the most immersive, accurate, and stable display tablets ever.
DJI’s RS 3 Mini is a scaled-down version of the popular RS line of gimbals that supports a lighter payload and has scaled-down motors and a more petite frame to accommodate today’s lighter mirrorless cameras -- but doesn't skimp on features.
Samsung stuck with a familiar look in the Galaxy S23 Ultra, but it’s what is underneath that counts and it pushes the phone’s camera forward as a tougher competitor.
Sony’s new Sony 50mm f/1.4 GM is a compact, fast, and high-resolution lens in Sony’s upper-echelon G Master lineup, and it joins Sony’s already flush 50mm focal length lineup.
CFexpress has finally come into its own and multiple companies are now producing a wide variety of capacities at a range of prices. But with so many choices, which one should you buy?
Zhiyun's FiveRay F100 LED light sticks have a solid level of power, are easy to maneuver, are affordable, and can perform a wide variety of lighting tasks. They're great lights, marred mainly by frustrating controls.
The Viltrox AF 75mm f/1.2 doesn't slot neatly into Viltrox's existing prime lens lineup for APS-C cameras (and currently for Fuji X-mount) - in fact, I'd call it an aberration, an experiment, possibly even a mistake. But what a wonderful mistake.
The OnePlus 11 isn’t a debut by any means. OnePlus has been selling phones in various markets for years, but this one marks a shift in approach to being fashionable and credible -- not to mention cheaper -- while also dealing with its branding challenges in a place where Apple, Samsung, and Google reign.
Canon’s M50 APS-C camera was introduced in February of 2018 when Canon had yet to truly enter the mirrorless camera market, and its tiny new APS-C Canon EOS R50 is more than just a replacement for the M50.
With the introduction of the R50 and the R8, Canon further teeters on the edge of having too many cameras rather than too few.
Sigma’s 50mm f/1.4 DG DN Art takes its place as the latest lens in Sigma’s venerable high-end lens line and is a welcome addition thanks to excellent performance and a low cost of entry.
Why do we raise a camera? Hit the shutter, look down at the image? What drives us to be recorders of memory? Do these memories matter? Who will see them? What will they think?
RODE's NT-USB+ is a modern update on a microphone that was one of the best desktop podcasting mics you could buy for the past several years. This new version makes necessary upgrades without taking away from what made the original great. It's an all-around win.
There are now tons of pen tablet makers out there and the options have given new users far more power to choose from a wide variety of styles, features, and obviously prices. The new $40 Veikk Voila L gives beginners an impressively competent "bare-bones" pen tablet to learn on for scant little investment.
Excire Foto positions itself as able to help photographers tag, organize, and search their images quickly, including the capability to search through images to the level of discerning if subjects in them are smiling or not. It sounds powerful, but how helpful is it really?
Low-cost lenses started appearing in the market in the last twenty years or so, with prices coming down steadily. When I saw another inexpensive lens in an article a couple of months ago, it grabbed my attention not with its price but with its core feature. It was a shift lens. An 18mm, fixed-aperture at f/8, shift lens at $119 was worth trying.
Apple’s Mac mini has always been positioned as the company’s affordable desktop machine, an alternative to the low-end iMac for those that don’t need or want the iMac’s display. It’s a machine that has sometimes seemed to languish while other Mac models got performance upgrades. That has changed.
You don’t often come across a phone with a retractable portrait camera, but that’s one of the signature features of the Tecno Phantom X2 Pro. Is this just a gimmick seeking credibility, or a credible point of contention compared to others?
Apple got so much right when it launched the M1 Max MacBook Pro in 2021 that it didn't need to do much to make a compelling successor other than beef up the performance. And, honestly, that's exactly what the company did in the M2 Max MacBook Pro.