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Nikon Z 35mm f1.8 S Review

12 Aug

Introduction

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85%
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Nikon has spent the last year steadily filling out its Z-mount lens range, and a handful of further optics should expand the line to nine native options by the end of the year. But the Z 35mm F1.8 S is one of a trio of optics unveiled right at the start of the system – and with a classic focal length and usefully wide aperture, its appeal should be broad.

As with the Z Nikkor 50mm F1.8 S that was launched at the same time, Nikon is keen to stress that this isn’t any ordinary 35mm F1.8 lens, but rather one that’s been designed specifically for superior optical performance to match high-resolution sensors, such as the Z7’s (and presumably those of future bodies). It’s neither the smallest lens of its kind nor the cheapest, but being part of a new generation of optics, we should perhaps expect it to deviate a little from what we’re used to.

This is currently the widest prime lens available for the Nikon Z system, although it will soon lose that status to the Z 24mm F1.8 S, on Nikon’s roadmap for later this year.

All pictures by Matt Golowczynski unless otherwise noted.

Key specifications

  • Focal length: 35mm
  • Aperture range: 8-16 (In 1/3 EV stops)
  • Filter thread: 62mm
  • Close focus: 0.25m (0.82ft / 9.8in)
  • Maximum magnification: 0.19x
  • Diaphragm blades: 9 (rounded diaphragm)
  • Hood: HB-89 petal-shaped hood (supplied)
  • Length / Diameter: approx. 86 x 73 mm (3.4 x 2.9in)
  • Weight: approx. 370g (approx. 13.1oz.)
  • Optical construction: 11 elements in 9 groups

In contrast to Canon’s cavalcade of pro-grade, big, pricey, fast aperture L-series lenses for its new RF mount, Nikon seems intent on courting enthusiasts with a solid lineup of smallish, fairly affordable (all sub-$ 1,000 so far) F1.8 primes (plus the more pro-focused Z 24-70mm F2.8 S). With the just-announced Z Nikkor 85mm F1.8 S joining the F1.8 lineup, and the 24mm and 20mm F1.8 both also in the pipeline (the 20mm is slated for 2020), it’s clear that Nikon believes F1.8 is a sweet spot.

Nikon cites four factors in particular that should make the Z Nikkor 35mm F1.8 S’s overall optical performance shine. The first is high resolving power, which is credited in part to the optics used but also to a multi-focusing system to keep things consistent wherever you happen to be focusing in the scene.

There’s no Vibration Reduction system in the lens itself, but both current Nikon Z-series bodies offer in-camera stabilization

A pair of extra-low dispersion elements help to banish chromatic aberration, as well as three aspherical lenses to combat spherical aberration and distortion. Those low-dispersion elements are also behind the second claim, namely reduced axial (longitudinal) chromatic aberration, which is often an issue with fast-aperture prime lenses of this sort.

The third claim is superb point reproduction of point light sources at night (ie minimal coma and spherical aberration) while the final claim regards natural bokeh, with nine rounded diaphragm blades in the design to help keep out-of-focus points of light circular. Incidentally, these are the same four claims made for the Z 50mm F1.8 S that was developed and launched at the same time, late last year.

The Z 35mm F1.8 S is sealed against dust and moisture at several key points (shown here in yellow).

Nikon’s venerable anti-reflective Nano Crystal Coat technology has also been employed in order to boost light transmission and minimize flare and ghosting, and this is joined by multi-layered Super Integrated Coating that serves much the same purpose.

There’s no Vibration Reduction system in the lens itself, but both current Z-series bodies (and presumably most if not all future models) have been furnished with their own sensor-based Vibration Reduction systems. In the absence of any VR switch or programmable buttons on the lens barrel, that also means that Vibration Reduction is controlled through the menu (you can’t assign this to any function or customizable buttons).

The lens comes with a petal-shaped hood as standard, and a lens wrap is thrown into the box too.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Panono angers remaining customers by deciding to start charging for its stitching service

12 Aug

When we first saw the first prototype of the Panono 360-degree camera after its launch on Indiegogo in 2013, it looked like an impressive hardware and software product that had the potential to revolutionize some areas of photography.

However, it took almost three years for us to hold a production version in our hands, and although we found a lot to like in our test, by 2016 the number of competitors in the 360-degree camera market had grown exponentially, making it a lot more difficult for Panono to compete in the relatively new market for 360-degree cameras.

It’s probably fair to say that since then the path of Panono has been rocky. In May 2017 the original founders filed for bankruptcy. In July of the same year the company was sold to Swiss-based private equity investor Bryanston Group AG after only managing to deliver around 400 cameras to its backers.

Anyone who took up the offer back then could be forgiven for feeling tempted to smash their Panono camera against a wall, as the company has decided to start charging for its cloud-based stitching service.

In December 2017 the new owners contacted about 2,000 Indiegogo backers who received neither refund or camera during the original crowdfunding campaign, offering them to buy the camera at production cost. In addition they would get unrestricted access to Panono’s cloud features.

Anyone who took up the offer back then could be forgiven for feeling tempted to smash their Panono camera against a wall, as the company has decided to start charging for its cloud-based stitching service. In an email to users the company announced that from September 1st, 2019 the previously free service will cost Panono users €0.79 per image.

This is especially frustrating to users like photographer Nico Goodden, who voiced his discontent on Twitter, as there is no offline alternative to the Panono cloud stitching and the files recorded by the camera are not compatible with any third-party services, leaving users without any alternatives.

If it’s the Panono’s 108MP resolution you are after, there aren’t currently many affordable alternatives, but still it’s hard to recommend the camera to anyone at this point. It looks like charging for a service that is an essential element of the product and was always understood to be free to buyers of the camera, could be the final nail in the coffin of a once promising project.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Fujifilm GFX 100 review

11 Aug
Gold Award

90%
Overall score
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The Fujifilm GFX 100 is the 100 Megapixel medium format camera that the company has been promising since Photokina 2018. It’s a dual-grip mirrorless camera that uses the GF lens mount. The addition of on-sensor phase detection for faster focus and in-body image stabilization significantly expands the range of photography it can apply itself to.

This combination of high resolution, image stabilization and on-sensor phase detection looks to not only drive home its large-sensor advantage over full-frame, but also expand the types of photography to which medium format can be easily applied, making it potentially the most flexible bigger-than-full-frame camera ever. In many respects we found it is, but this still leaves it as a very specialist camera.

  • 102MP BSI-CMOS 44 x 33mm sensor
  • On-sensor Phase Detection
  • 5-axis image stabilization
  • Continuous shooting at up to 5 fps
  • 4K video with 4:2:2 10-bit HDMI output
  • 5.76M-dot removable OLED viewfinder
  • 16 or 14-bit Raw capture

The Fujifilm GFX 100 was launched with a recommended price of $ 10,000, including the electronic viewfinder.

What’s new and how it compares

The camera’s 102 Megapixels are what attracts the attention, but the GFX 100 brings a lot more than that.

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Body and handling

The GFX 100 uses a twin-grip design, and no dedicated dials which radically changes the way the camera handles. The duplication of control isn’t always successful.

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Operations and controls

The GFX 100 brings the well-polished interface from the Fujifilm X-T3 but adds an even greater degree of customization.

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Image Quality

The GFX’s large modern sensor and 100MP resolution offer impressive results, but there’s a DR price to pay for its improved focus.

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Autofocus

The GFX 100 is no sports camera, but its AF system is pretty snappy if compared to other medium format cameras

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Video performance

We wouldn’t suggest buying the GFX 100 for video, but if you need to shoot 4K alongside stills work, it’s a remarkably capable machine.

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Conclusion

The GFX 100 offers superb image quality and the supporting tools to widen the range of circumstances in which you see its full potential. It’s still pretty niche, though.

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Sample galleries

We’ve been shooting the GFX 100 in a range of circumstances, to see how adaptable it is.

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Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Canon PowerShot G5 X II sample gallery

11 Aug

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With a pop-up EVF, 24-120mm equiv. lens and a pocketable form-factor, the Canon G5 X Mark II just begs to be taken on adventures. We brought it along on trips to the great outdoors, ferry rides, walks around the block and much more. Take a look at how it performed.

See our Canon PowerShot G5 X Mark II sample gallery

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Canon files patent application for eye-controlled AF system for mirrorless cameras

11 Aug
The item labeled ‘10’ in the figure is described in the patent application’s text as an LCD screen, showing this patent is specifically made with a mirrorless camera in mind. Item number 15 is a light-splitter that will redirect the image of the camera operator’s eye to a dedicated lens and CCD sensor, which is detailed in the next illustration.

Canon has been on a roll with the patent applications recently. In addition to the wireless charging solution for cameras, Canon has also filed a patent application in Japan for an eye-controlled autofocus system for mirrorless cameras.

Japanese patent application 2019-129461 details a system for mirrorless cameras that will use the camera operator’s eye to determine the focus point of the camera, a system not much different than the Eye-Control system first seen in Canon’s EOS 5/A2E camera back in 1992.

Items 13a and 13b are described as infrared light sources that would illuminate the eye. Item 16 is a lens, which will focus the image of the eye onto item 17, a dedicated CCD sensor for tracking where the eye is looking.

According to the patent’s text, the system would use infrared light sources and accompanying sensor to capture and calculate the direction of the camera operator’s line of sight. The resulting information is then used to adjust the focus point, including any corrections that would be made in the event the calculations were unable to get a definitive read on the line of sight.

One area where the eye-controlled autofocus system struggled on the EOS 5 (as well as the EOS 3, EOS Elan II E and EOS Elan 7NE) is when the user would be wearing glasses or contacts. It doesn’t appear as though the patent specifically addresses this issue, but newer prediction algorithms and other technological improvements could potentially rid an eye-controlled autofocus system of this issue.

Examples of the eye-controlled autofocus system at work, including details on how it would account for times when the camera operator’s eye isn’t able to be captured/detected.

As with all patent applications, there’s no guarantee this eye-controlled autofocus will ever see the light of day. But, if Canon did it over 25 years ago, there’s little reason it can’t do it with today’s technology.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Canon PowerShot G7 X III sample gallery

11 Aug

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Though it lacks some of the bells and whistles that the G5 X II offers, the Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III adds a newer 1″ sensor design and some useful upgrades to an already impressive compact. Faster readout speeds make it possible to shoot up to 8.3 fps with continuous autofocus, and video shooters will now find 4K/30p and direct YouTube streaming on a camera that was already popular among vloggers.

Take a look at some of our first shots from the G7 X III and keep an eye out for our full analysis soon.

See our Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III sample gallery

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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DJI teases new release for Tuesday, Mavic 2 Pro+ and Zoom+ expected for 2020

11 Aug

DJI recently posted a teaser video to its official YouTube channel announcing a new product release, slated for this Tuesday. While the brief 15-second clip doesn’t reveal much about what’s to be expected for August 13th, DroneDJ was the first to report on the public FCC filing for the DJI OSMO Mobile 3.

An upgrade from the OSMO Mobile 2, released one and a half years ago, the newest phone stabilizer from DJI features an updated folding design on its arm and will be 80 grams lighter than its predecessor. It also comes equipped with Bluetooth Low Energy 5.0, and sturdier, more flexible gimbal motors to support the trend of wider and heavier smartphones. New dimensions of 286x126x98mm make it larger than the OSMO Mobile 2 but it is designed to fold down to almost half its height for convenient transport.

Undoubtedly, consumers are anticipating DJI’s next drone release. It has been almost a year since the original Mavic 2 Pro and Mavic 2 Zoom were introduced to the public. Once again, DroneDJ was first to report on plans for a Mavic 2 Pro+ and Mavic 2 Zoom+ thanks to an attentive reader. A special section of DJI’s website titled ‘EU Declaration of Conformity’ lists both planned drones at the top.

This past May, DJI announced plans to implement both helicopter and airplane sensors in its consumer-grade drones starting January 1, 2020. Known as ADS-B sensors, they will enable drone pilots to detect and avoid nearby aircraft. It would only make sense that DJI would release the Mavic 2 Pro+ and Zoom+ to coincide with this important development. The EU will also implement a common set of drone regulations in June, 2020.

While specs have not been made public, one would at least hope that the foldable, compact drones offer up the ability to capture 4K/60p video like Autel’s competing EVO.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Blackmagic Design unveils the Pocket Cinema Camera 6K

11 Aug

Blackmagic Design has unveiled the Pocket Cinema Camera 6K (BMPCC6K), an EF-mount cinema camera with a 6K Super 35 (S35) sensor, a step up from the Four Thirds sensor found inside Blackmagic Design’s Pocket Cinema Camera 4K (BMPCC4K).

At the core of the camera is a 23.10 x 12.99mm Super 35 sensor with Dual Native ISO (400 and 3200), 6144 x 3456 pixel resolution and 13 stops of dynamic range. It can shoot in 10-bit ProRes or 12-bit Blackmagic RAW formats.

The S35 sensor will shoot up to 50 fps at 6144 x 3456 16:9 or 60 fps at 6144 x 2560 2.4:1 and 60 fps at 5744 x 3024 1.9:1. There is also a high frame rate option that shoots 120 fps at 2.8K 2868 x 1512 1.9:1 as well as a true anamorphic 6:5 mode that shoots in 3.7K 60 fps (3728 x 3104).

A comparison from the BMPCC6K product page highlighting the difference in the depth of field between the Four Thirds sensor inside the BMPCC4K and the roughly APS-C ‘Super 35’ sensor inside the BMPCC6K.

The EF mount on the BMPCC6K will feature full electronics so Canon’s EF lens lineup can communicate with the camera for focus and aperture control, as well as Image Stabilization support. In addition to using Canon’s EF mount, the BMPCC6K also uses the same Canon-style LP-E6 battery as its predecessor. Blackmagic rates this for 45 minutes of runtime and can be charged via external battery packs through the onboard USB-C connection.

Recordings can be captured as 10-bit Apple ProRes files in all formats up to 4K or 12-bit Blackmagic RAW in all formats up to 6K. The BMPCC6K features both a CFast and SD UHS-II slots, as well as a USB-C port for storing to external media. Blackmagic Design says ‘Customers can use regular SD cards for HD or higher performance UHS-II and CFast cards for native 4K or 6K when using Blackmagic RAW. Imagine capturing over an hour of full resolution 6K images on a single 256GB SD UHS-II card.’

Notably, though, the manual recommends CFast or USB-C-connected SSD storage for the camera’s high res, high frame rate output, as most of the compression options exceed the 90MB/s guaranteed speeds of the latest V90 UHS-II cards.

A full-size HDMI connection is included for monitoring footage and outputting 10-bit video, including HDR. Other connections include a mini XLR connection with 48 volt phantom power, a 3.5mm microphone input, a 3.5mm headphone output and a locking DC power connection.

On the rear of the BMPCC6K is the same five-inch touchscreen found on the BMPCC4K, which displays the Blackmagic OS, a proprietary operating system designed specifically for Blackmagic Design’s cameras.

The BMPCC6K utilizes Blackmagic Design’s Generation 4 Color Science, first introduced on the URSA Mini Pro G2. In Blackmagic Design’s own words, ‘Blackmagic Generation 4 Color Science uses a complex dynamic 12-bit gamma curve designed to capture more color data in the highlights and shadows, so they get better looking images.’

Other features include still frame capture up to 21.2-megapixels, remote camera control via Bluetooth, localization for 11 languages and a built-in timecode generator for synced multi-camera shoots.

The BMPCC6K is available now for $ 2,495 from resellers around the globe.

Press release:

Blackmagic Design Announces New Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K

Fremont, CA, USA – Thursday, 8 August 2019 – Blackmagic Design today announced the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K, a new handheld digital film camera with a full Super 35 size 6K HDR image sensor, 13 stops of dynamic range, an EF lens mount and dual native ISO up to 25,600 for incredible low light performance. This new model builds on the popularity of the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K but has a larger Super 35 sensor size with 6K resolution, allowing higher image quality. The EF lens mount model works with a wide range of lenses from companies such as Canon, Zeiss, Sigma and Schneider.

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K is available immediately from Blackmagic Design resellers worldwide for US$ 2,495.

The elegant design of the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera packs an incredible number of high end digital film features into a miniaturized, handheld design. Made from lightweight carbon fiber polycarbonate composite, the camera features a multifunction handgrip with all controls for recording, ISO, WB and shutter angle right at their fingertips. Because it’s an advanced digital film camera, the sensor is designed to reduce thermal noise allowing cleaner shadows and higher ISO. Plus the large 5 inch LCD makes it possible to get perfect focus at 4K and 6K resolutions.

Featuring a larger 6144 x 3456 Super 35 sensor and EF lens mount, the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K lets customers use larger EF photographic lenses to create cinematic images with shallower depth of field, allowing creative defocussed backgrounds and gorgeous bokeh effects. This means that customers can shoot in 6K and then in post production zoom and re-frame to allow wide shots and close ups to be created, all from a single camera and without losing image quality.

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K and 6K both have an incredible 13 stops of dynamic range which means they preserve more detail in the lightest and darkest areas of an image than simple video cameras can. This allows customers to set exposure for an indoor scene such as a cafe and still retain the details of bright outdoor light coming through a window. Customers even get more colors than the standard DCI-P3 colorspace used for feature films.

The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera features dual gain ISO up to 25,600, which means both the 4K and 6K models are optimized to minimize grain or noise in images, while maintaining the full dynamic range of the sensor. The native ISO of 400 is ideal for scenes with on-set lighting. The gain is set automatically as they adjust the ISO setting on the camera, so it’s easy to capture great images when they don’t have time to set up lights.

The new 6K model will shoot up to 50 fps at 6144 x 3456 16:9 or 60 fps at 6144 x 2560 2.4:1 and 60 fps at 5744 x 3024 17:9. For higher frame rates they can window the sensor and shoot up to 120 fps at 2.8K 2868 x 1512 17:9. Customers can even work in true anamorphic 6:5 using anamorphic lenses in 3.7K 60 fps at 3728 x 3104.

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera records using standard open file formats so customers don’t have to waste time transcoding media. Recording works in industry standard 10-bit Apple ProRes files in all formats up to 4K or 12-bit Blackmagic RAW in all formats up to 6K. Best of all media files work on all operating systems plus customers can format media cards and disks in HFS+ for Mac and ExFAT for Windows.

The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera features built in CFast and SD UHS-II card recorders, and a USB-C expansion port for recording direct to an external media disk. Customers can use regular SD cards for HD or higher performance UHS-II and CFast cards for native 4K or 6K when using Blackmagic RAW. Imagine capturing over an hour of full resolution 6K images on a single 256GB SD UHS-II card.

Blackmagic RAW is a revolutionary new format designed to capture and preserve the quality of the sensor data from their camera. Video formats such as H.264 are highly compressed, plus add noise and weird artifacts, causing original sensor detail to be lost forever. Blackmagic RAW eliminates this problem and gives them stunning images with incredible detail and color throughout the production pipeline from camera to edit, color and mastering. It also saves camera settings as metadata so customers can set ISO, white balance and exposure in camera or override them later while editing, all without any loss of quality. Blackmagic RAW files are also small and fast to use making them easy to work with.

The rear of the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera features a large, bright 5 inch touchscreen that makes it easy for customers to frame shots and accurately focus. It’s like getting a built in Blackmagic Video Assist with their camera. The touchscreen displays critical information while shooting, as well as menus for setting up the camera and intuitive touch to focus controls. On screen overlays show status, a histogram, focus and peaking indicators, levels, frame guides, playback controls and more.

With the advanced Blackmagic OS, customers get an intuitive and user friendly camera operating system based on the latest technology. The interface uses simple tap and swipe gestures to adjust settings, add metadata and view recording status. Customers also get full control over advanced camera features such as on screen focus and exposure tools, 3D LUTs, HDR, metadata entry, timecode, Blackmagic RAW settings and more.

Featuring the same Generation 4 Color Science as the high end URSA Mini Pro G2, the Pocket Cinema Camera delivers stunning, accurate skin tones and faithful color in every shot. Blackmagic Generation 4 Color Science uses a complex dynamic 12-bit gamma curve designed to capture more color data in the highlights and shadows, so they get better looking images. The color science also handles some of the complex Blackmagic RAW image processing, so color and dynamic range data from the sensor is preserved via metadata which customers can use in post production.

The camera includes a full size HDMI connector for monitoring with support for HDR and clean 10-bit output. There’s also a mini XLR connection with 48 volt phantom power for attaching professional microphones, a 3.5 mm video camera style microphone input, headphone connection and a professional locking DC power connector.

Digital film cameras shoot logarithmic colorspace to preserve the dynamic range, which is great for later post production, however when these files are viewed on a monitor they can look flat and washed out. 3D LUTs solve this problem because they allow customers to apply a “look” to the monitor so customers get an idea of how the finished images will look like when editing. The Pocket Cinema Camera works with industry standard 17 and 33 point 3D LUT files, or customers can work with the built in LUTs such as Extended Video, Film to Video, Film to Rec.2020 and more.

Professional cameras include professional features and customers also get a built in timecode generator, allowing shooting with more than one camera while keeping perfect sync. Simply plug in an external timecode generator such as Tentacle Sync into the 3.5 mm audio jack and the camera will automatically detect timecode and lock the internal generator. Now each camera can start and stop recording and all the shots from all cameras will have the same matched timecode. Imagine shooting a music festival with multiple roving cameras. Best of all the new DaVinci Resolve 16.1 will automatically find and sync the shots from all cameras so they don’t need to waste time sorting through thousands of shots.

The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera uses standard removable LP-E6 type batteries and also features a locking DC power connector so they never have to worry about losing power in the middle of a shoot. The included AC plug pack can power the camera and charge the battery at the same time. The USB-C expansion port can also be used to charge the battery from portable battery packs, mobile phone chargers or a laptop computer. Customers can even add an optional Blackmagic Pocket Battery Grip that lets customers use 2 batteries to dramatically extend the power of the camera.

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K and 6K models include a full version of DaVinci Resolve Studio, which is the same software used in Hollywood for creating high end feature films, episodic television shows, commercials and more. DaVinci Resolve features a revolutionary new cut page with intelligent editing tools and innovative new features designed to help customers quickly find the footage customers want, edit it together and output it fast. In addition to the new cut page, customers also get DaVinci’s legendary professional editing, advanced color correction, audio post and visual effects tools, all in a single software application.

“The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K features incredible new 6K imaging and EF lens support that customers have asked for,” said Grant Petty, Blackmagic Design CEO. “It has all of the great features customers love from the 4K model, but now adds an EF lens, increased 6K resolution for even higher quality images and more. Plus, with the built in Video Assist features, customers don’t have to purchase and carry around extra equipment. DaVinci Resolve Studio is also included, making it an incredible all in one solution that enables anyone to be creative and tell a story.”

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Features

  • Use for independent films, documentaries, blogs and more.
  • Designed from carbon fiber polycarbonate composite.
  • Multifunction grip allows single hand operation.
  • 2 models with 6K at 6144 x 3456 and 4K at 4096 x 2160.
  • Compatible with MFT or EF lens mounts.
  • Wide 13 stops of dynamic range for film looks.
  • Up to 25600 ISO for incredible low light performance.
  • Records full resolution up to 60 fps or 120 fps windowed.
  • Standard open file formats compatible with popular software.
  • Built in SD, UHS-II and CFast card recorders.
  • Features incredible quality Blackmagic RAW recording.
  • Built in 5″ touchscreen allows accurate focus when shooting 6K.
  • Blackmagic OS as used in URSA Mini and URSA Broadcast cameras.
  • Includes Blackmagic Generation 4 Color Science.
  • Features full size HDMI for monitoring with status overlay.
  • Professional mini XLR input with 48 volt phantom power.
  • 3D LUTs can be applied for both monitoring and recording.
  • USB-C port allows recording directly to external disk.
  • Built in timecode generator for sync muli-camera shoots.
  • Supports still frame capture up to 21.2 megapixel.
  • Localized for 11 popular languages.
  • Supports remote camera control via Bluetooth.
  • Powers via 12V DC input and can recharge via USB-C.
  • Includes full DaVinci Resolve Studio for post production.

Availability and Price

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K is available now for US$ 2,495, excluding duties, from Blackmagic Design resellers worldwide.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Samsung Galaxy Note 10 hands-on

11 Aug

Hands on with the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+

On Wednesday, Samsung announced the latest generation of its Galaxy Note series and for the first time, the Note is offered in two sizes: the 6.8″ Note 10+ and the 6.3″ Note 10. If you want everything the Note offers but don’t love a massive phone, you now have the option of a slightly less massive phone!

We had the opportunity to get our hands on the new phones at Samsung’s launch event in New York. Take a look at what’s new in the Note series.

Triple cameras for all!

Both the Note 10 and Note 10+ share a nearly-identical rear triple camera array with the S10 series. That’s a 12MP main camera with F1.5/F2.4 dual apertures and a 27mm equivalent field-of-view, a 12mm equivalent ultra-wide 16MP F2.2 camera and a 52mm equivalent 12MP tele camera with F2.1 aperture – slightly faster than the F2.4 tele lens in the S10 series. Both the main and tele rear cameras are optically stabilized. While the main camera has a dual pixel sensor design for fast AF, the tele lens utilizes masked phase-detect pixels, which we’ve found on prior Samsung models to offer a sub-par autofocus experience.

The Note 10 (above) lacks one key camera feature Note 10+ offers: a Time-of-Flight camera for better depth-mapping and live bokeh effects in video mode (more on that later), and presumably better augmented reality experiences.

Front-facing camera

Both the Note 10 and 10+ use a hole punch-style front-facing camera. There’s no dual selfie camera on either model (the S10+ and S10 5G models had accompanying RGB depth and ToF flight cameras, respectively), just a 10MP 26mm equiv. lens with F2.2 aperture. This camera does not feature optical stabilization, but the sensor is a dual pixel design for fast autofocus.

Video recording

The Note 10 and 10+ are capable video shooters as well. The rear camera can record 4K UHD video at up to 60 fps with optical stabilization only, and up to 4K/30p with optical lens stabilization and electronic image stabilization (for very steady footage). The rear camera can shoot HDR10+ video for playback on HDR TVs; however, there’s no mention of HDR capture in video. The AMOLED displays on both Note 10 devices are HDR10+ certified, which isn’t surprising given the high contrast ratio, brightness and wide (P3) color gamut of Samsung OLED displays.

Both devices are capable of super slow motion video, with 960 fps capability in 720p mode, and 240 fps capability in 1080p.

Live focus video

The Note 10 and 10+ offer something first introduced by the S10 5G: live shallow depth-of-field effects for video recording. Users can change focus between background and foreground on the fly, and adjust the level of blur to taste.

We’ll be curious to test if the Note 10+ has a better implementation of live focus video thanks to its ToF camera.

Video depth-of-field effects

Not only can you blur the background behind your subject, you can add a few different effects like black-and-white backgrounds, out-of-focus highlight overlays, and this red/blue stereoscopic treatment. Maybe 3D cameras aren’t dead after all?

Still photo depth-of-field effects

Background blur effects are also available for still photos – a feature introduced in the S10 and recently added to the S9 series via software update. As in the S10, the Note 10 and 10+ provide the ability to add effects as you’re shooting or after-the-fact.

S Pen, headphone jack and other curiosities

Other highlights on the new phones include the ability to control certain functions by gesture via the updated S Pen. Samsung will open up its ‘Air actions SDK’ to invite third party developers to make use of this way of interacting with the phone. And sadly, the 3.5mm headphone jack has left the building – the USB-C connector will allow for wired audio connections.

The Galaxy Note 10 starts at $ 950; the Note 10+ starts at $ 1100.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Rode announces Lavalier GO microphone for its Wireless GO system

11 Aug

Rode has announced the Lavalier GO, a ‘professional-grade’ lavalier mic designed specifically for use with its Wireless GO system.

The Lavalier GO microphone is a 4.5mm omnidirectional microphone that features a gold-plated 3.5mm TRS jack that will work with Rode’s own equipment, as well as most other recording devices with 3.5mm TRS jacks. Its signal to noise ratio is 67 dB with a sensitivity of -35 dB (17.8mV @94dB SPL) and a dynamic range of 83 dB.

The cable is Kevlar reinforced and the Lavalier GO comes with the microphone, a clip to attach it to clothing, a pop shield and a pouch to carry it all in. The Rode Lavalier GO is available for $ 79 at authorized Rode retailers (Adorama and B&H). The Rode Wireless GO system is sold separately for $ 199 at authorized retailers (Adorama, B&H) as well.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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