Reviews

Expert reviews of the latest digital cameras, lenses, lighting products, accessories, phones, photography-editing software, and more. PetaPixel tests state-of-the-art products in the photo industry and provides insights and recommendations for photographers to make informed purchasing decisions.

Amber X Review: A Personal Cloud for On-The-Go Photographers

Over the last two years, I’ve been working to improve my habits of backing up my photos. I started first by creating a RAID backup on my computer, then adding a large external HDD for a local backup, and eventually getting a subscription cloud backup from Backblaze.

The NVIDIA RTX 4090 is Amazing, and Photographers Should NOT Buy It

When NVIDIA reached out to ask if we wanted to try the new RTX 4090 GPU, we almost said "no." Most of our readers are photographers, and most photo editing simply doesn't require a top-tier GPU. But we did say "yes" because we wanted to answer a different, more relevant question: do photo editors need a GPU at all? And if so, how much do you need to spend to get top-notch photo editing performance?

Tamron 50-400mm Review

Tamron 50-400mm f/4.5-6.3 Di III Review: Not Your Average All-In-One

At first glance, the Tamron 50-400mm f/4.5-6.3 Di III VC VXD seems like Frankenstein’s monster of lenses. Super-telephoto lenses that provide a relatively wide focal length are uncommon and generally awful. Making a lens with such a wide range of focal lengths is complicated, yet Tamron made one that performs well across the zoom range.

Surface Pro 9

Hands-On With Microsoft’s New Surface Pro 9 Laptop

After some brief hands-on time with Microsoft's two new laptops that were unveiled today, the Surface Pro 9 is a more attractive product for the photographer and videographer due to the Intel 12th Gen processor, and the portable form factor is more practical for photographers on the go.

Sony Airpeak S1

Sony Airpeak S1 Drone Review: A Rare, Utter Flop for Sony

When you think about a product from Sony, whether it be one of their popular cameras to a TV, most consider them to be at the top of the list in terms of quality and functionality. Sony’s first drone, the Sony Airpeak S1, however, is not going to be part of that list. In fact, it’s about as far away from the top as you can get.

Laowa 12-24mm f/5.6 C-Dreamer Review: Not Quite a Dream

Venus Optics has continued to expand on an already extensive list of ultra-wide-angle lenses with the addition of the Laowa 12-24mm f/5.6 C-Dreamer for full-frame mirrorless systems. Where many ultra-wide lenses can be big, bulky, and incredibly pricey, this new "slow" lens becomes even more impressive with its relatively small $649 price.

Fujifilm X-H2S First Impressions: A New Standard for APS-C

The Fujifilm X-H2S has many new and vastly improved features and capabilities, all in a package that’s different than the X-T lineup of cameras with traditional control dials. I’ve had a few days with my Fujifilm X-H2S and here’s my experience with their new flagship APS-C camera.

Retouch4Me Review

Retouch4Me Review: AI Retouching That Actually Works

Some may enjoy editing, but most photographers will agree that actually taking the photos is the best part of the job. So finding a way to speed up and reduce the amount of time spent at the computer is more than welcome, which is where Retouch4Me comes into play.