In this week’s episode of DPReview TV, Chris compares the Nikon Z7 II and Sony a7R IV for landscape photography, with a close look at their displays, image quality, lens lineups and more.
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Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
Matt Woods was relaxing on his balcony in Bondi Beach, Australia, when he decided to launch his DJI Mavic 2 Zoom drone and capture some footage. To his horror, he discovered a lone spear fisherman in the water using a speargun to ward off an aggressive mako shark. The ordeal lasted 30 minutes, until help arrived.
Woods, 36, took off from his beachside balcony around 4:00 pm. He expected to capture some scenic footage of the swimmers and surfers that frequent the beach on a daily basis. Occasionally he would spot whales but up until that moment, he hadn’t witnessed a shark.
‘I spotted the shark straight away as there was a big bait ball of fish and as I got closer I could see it was also circling the diver in the water,’ Woods revealed to the UK’s Daily Mail. ‘The diver was fending the shark off and poking it with his spear gun. The shark then went after his float that is attached to the diver. He was charging it and trying to bite it, thrashing it about.’
Instead of being a helpless bystander, Woods took action. He grabbed his girlfriend’s cell phone and alerted nearby lifeguards to the conundrum before he resumed filming the battle. After clearing swimmers close to the shore from the water, lifeguards arrived to the scene on jet skis to rescue the beleaguered swimmer – roughly 30 minutes after Woods’ initial phone call.
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| This grainy image reveals the fisherman using his spear to fend off the aggressive, predatory shark. |
‘I felt as if we helped as best we could,’ he revealed. ‘We got on the phone to the lifeguards straight away… while I stayed over the shark on my drone the whole time so we could guide them in. I was pretty happy once the lifeguard came out and I could see the diver had managed to scramble onto the rocks and reef.’
Woods went out to the scene after the ordeal and attempted to locate the diver and show him the footage. He wasn’t able to find him. While there have only been nine recorded attacks from mako sharks on humans, since 1580, experts say the sharks are sometimes attracted to fishermen, in particular, if they’re carrying dead fish.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
Hasselblad has released the third video in its ongoing ‘Hasselblad Home’ series, showcasing how the Swedish company produces and tests its X System medium format cameras inside its Gothenburg headquarters.
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Throguhout the four-minute video, Hasselblad shows the five-step production and testing process it uses to ensure all X System cameras are properly constructed and programmed to get the best image quality possible. The first step in the process is a cosmetic check to ensure the camera body itself is undamaged from the manufacturing process. If it clears the cosmetic check, that camera is assigned a serial number, which will follow it until it reaches the hands of the customer.
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With the serial number assigned, it’s onto installing the software of the camera and completing more assembly of the main camera unit. Hasselblad says it tests each sensor independently — by capturing over 700 test shots — and uses that data to create a calibration profile that is then installed on the camera that specific sensor unit is installed in. The camera will apply that specific calibration profile to each image before data is saved to the recording media.
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From there, it’s onto the digital unit test, wherein Hasselblad workers adjust focus, remove dust and apply other quality control measures before moving onto the final photo quality test. Using both studio scenes and color charts, Hasselblad tests the image quality of each camera using both automated and manual verification to ensure no anomalies are seen in the resulting photographs.
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The video is yet another unique look into a process usually hidden within the factory walls. Regardless of whether or not you own — or have even shot with — a Hasselblad, it’s hard not to respect the level of precision and attention to detail that goes into each camera unit before it’s packaged up and shipped off.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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Canon Inc. and Canon Marketing Japan Inc. have announced their plans for the upcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic games. Canon will set up a photo service center for professional photographers at the Main Press Center (MPC). The MPC is where international press gathers during Tokyo 2020.
Canon’s photo service center will ensure professional photographers are well-equipped to capture iconic imagery during the games. In addition to providing Canon’s best cameras and lenses, the photo service center will offer photographers a network of service and support.
’Thus far, Canon has provided on-site support for press photographers, including camera and lens maintenance and technological support, behind the scenes at major sporting events around the world,’ Canon said. ‘The Tokyo 2020 Games are no exception—there too, Canon will apply its professional support know-how acquired over its long history to provide flexible and appropriate support for photographers and the various requests and equipment troubles they may have.’
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| Credit: Canon |
Located at the Tokyo Big Sight Convention Center, Canon’s photo service center will be the largest photo service center during the event. Canon is a Gold Partner for Tokyo 2020, supplying still cameras and printers.
The photo service center will operate under a principle of ‘zero downtime,’ ensuring photographers won’t miss their opportunities to capture iconic moments during the games. Canon writes, ‘Canon will provide speedy maintenance service, equipment repairs and loaning of replacement equipment so that photographers can always be ready and in the best possible condition.’
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| Canon 1DX Mark III |
Equipment on hand will include DSLR and mirrorless cameras and lenses, including EOS-1DX III and Canon EOS R5 and R6 cameras. Many lenses will be available, including Canon’s telephoto and super-telephoto optics, ideal choices for sports photography.
Spectators will be sure to see many white lenses in photographer bays and around the events. Canon’s white lenses are iconic, and their origins are traced back to the 1970s. Canon writes, ‘Canon developed the signature white of its lens barrels as a tool for photographers at international sporting events. The first such lenses* produced by the company, the FD600mm f/4.5 S.S.C. and FD800mm f/5.6 S.S.C. large-diameter super-telephoto lenses, were released in June 1976.’
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| Credit: Canon |
White paint reflects heat better than black paint. This is especially important on large lenses, such as telephoto optics. When a lens heats up, the increasing temperatures can adversely affect optical performance.
To learn more about Canon’s services at Tokyo 2020, including Canon’s robotics, read the company’s announcement.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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Venus Optics has announced the release of the Laowa 14mm F4 Zero-D lens for Canon and Nikon DSLR camera systems.
The lens is constructed of 13 elements in 10 elements, including two extra-low dispersion ale nets and two aspherical elements. Like other Laowa ‘Zero-D’ lenses, the lens features near-zero distortion, despite its wide angle of view.
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It’s also the first lens to get what Venus Optics called a focusing scale adjustment system, which allows you to calibrate the infinity point of the lens to ensure it’s exactly at the infinity mark based on the specific camera model you’re using it on. Venus Optics has shared the below tutorial showing owners what the calibration process looks like:
The lens features an integrated CPU for electronic control of the aperture with Canon EF mount camera bodies and an aperture coupling for Nikon F mount camera bodies. Other features includ a minimum focusing distance of 14.5cm (5.7″), uses a five-blade aperture diaphragm and uses a 67mm front filter thread.
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Below is a gallery of sample images, provided by Venus Optics from a range of photographers:
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As for measurements, the lens comes in at 72.5mm (2.85″) in diameter for both the EF and F mount versions. The Canon EF mount version measures 75mm (2.95″) long while the Nikon F mount version is 73mm (2.87″) long, while weighing 320g (11.3oz) and 360g (12.7oz), respectively.
The lens is available to order on Venus Optics’ website for $ 499.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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JPEG, the lossy compression standard for images used on the Internet and digital cameras, might receive a much-needed upgrade by year’s end. The creators of JPEG XL claim their free open-source format offers up improvements that will result in a significant reduction in global bandwidth and storage costs.
The JPEG image format was first developed by researchers at the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in the 1980s. Over the years, due to its many advantages over other formats of the time, it became the go-to format for photos on digital cameras and the World Wide Web. At the time, it was revolutionary, cutting down on the time it took for images to load (think 5 seconds compared to minutes) and could store up to 50 images, rather than 1, on a memory card.
For almost 30 years, this standard, which uses data compression to keep files small, has remained largely unchanged and unchallenged, even after several unsuccessful attempts. That, however, could change. Several formats introduced in the past to replace JPEG, including JPEG 2000, JPEG XR, Google’s WebP, and even HEIC have fallen short of widespread adoption. JPEG XL is hoping to rewrite that script.
JPEG XL can take existing JPEG files and transcode them, losslessly, to reduce their size without compromising their quality. A single JPEG XL file can be stored on a server and serve both JPEG and JPEG XL clients. A JPEG XL file can also be restored to the initial JPEG through backwards compatibility without compromising the file.
The format will benefit photographers by including a wide color gamut, HDR (high dynamic range), and high bit depth images.
The format will benefit photographers by including a wide color gamut, HDR (high dynamic range), and high bit depth images. Support for printing, large panoramas, 360-degree imagery, and image bursts is also available. Optimized for responsive web environments, it’s also addressing current Internet user needs on a wide range of devices such as tablets and smartphones.
‘JPEG XL further includes features such as animation, alpha channels, layers, thumbnails, lossless and progressive coding to support a wide range of use cases including but not limited to photo galleries, e-commerce, social media, user interfaces and cloud storage,’ reads the official overview. What the creators promise is superior image quality, a codec ratio smaller than the typical 20:1 to 50:1, and encoding plus decoding without hardware acceleration on mobile devices.
The standard has four specifications which will be combined to make JPEG XL the standard, going forward, by the end of 2021, so long as the project doesn’t encounter any setbacks. Even if it gets set in stone before the end of the year, it may take time for it to be compatible on all the applications and platforms available. To find out if your browser supports JPEG XL, you can check here. Those interested in the coding system can check out the white paper.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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On July 1st, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a new rule that will penalize companies making false or misleading claims about where their products are manufactured. As a result, marketing departments slapping the ‘Made in USA’ label on their products, and advertising them as so, will need to prove that they are ‘all or virtually all’ made in the United States.
This change could affect certain brands in the photography world, including drone manufacturer Autel, who proudly claims certain drones of theirs are ‘Made in the USA, with foreign and domestic parts and labor’ – many of those components being manufactured in Shenzen, China, the same region where DJI, who has received criticism and even been blacklisted for its ties to the Chinese government, produces its popular UAVs.
Even if this new ruling prevents Autel from saying its products are ‘Made in the USA’ on any level, their CEO Randall Warnas told us ‘this has not been something that [Autel has] needed for [its] success, and will be fine however the ruling turns out.’
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| Autel’s Evo II Dual drone, which it claims is ‘Made in the USA, with foreign and domestic parts and labor.’ |
There’s an important distinction to be made when labeling a product ‘assembled in America’ as opposed to ‘made in America,’ as this thorough article written by Jeremiah Karpowicz of Commercial UAV Expo explains. Historically, the FTC has struggled to uphold its standards, without being able to dole out consequences. But this latest ruling could change that.
In light of the ruling, we contacted both Autel and DJI for comment. DJI chose not to comment on the matter, but Warnas said:
‘The FTC is doing the right thing by making “Made in USA” mean something, and more clarity on how this can be accomplished is appreciated. Globalization over the past few decades has been accelerated with the Internet and cell phones that keep information at our fingertips at all times. As the world shrinks, we will surely encounter more blurring of these lines that the FTC is trying to address.’
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) initially took effect in 1994. Congress had given the FTC authority to penalize fraudulent ‘Made in the USA’ claims but it would take effect after the Commission issued an official rule. That last part never came to fruition as it turned out to be a bipartisan issue – some in Congress thought those making these fraudulent claims shouldn’t be fined.
‘The final rule provides substantial benefits to the public by protecting businesses from losing sales to dishonest competitors and protecting purchasers seeking to purchase American-made goods,’ said Commissioner Chopra.
The FTC released a notice of proposed rulemaking on June 20th and received over 700 comments—most of them in favor of of the FTC enforcing their ‘Made in the USA’ standards. Commissioners Rohit Chopra and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, joined by Chair Lina Khan, issued a statement outlining the implications of this new rule. Small businesses, who otherwise may not be able to afford legal recourse from imitators who manufacture products outside the U.S., but claim that they’re ‘Made in the USA,’ will have an advantage now that the Commission can seek civil penalties up to $ 43,280 per violation.
‘The final rule provides substantial benefits to the public by protecting businesses from losing sales to dishonest competitors and protecting purchasers seeking to purchase American-made goods,’ said Commissioner Chopra. ‘More broadly, this long-overdue rule is an important reminder that the Commission must do more to use the authorities explicitly authorized by Congress to protect market participants from fraud and abuse.’
In order to legally display a ‘Made in the USA’ label on a product, businesses must adhere to the following three components:
It’s unclear whether these new guidelines would prevent Autel from continuing to claim its products are ‘Made in the USA.’ Autel didn’t confirm whether or not this will change any of its plans going forward, but it will undoubtedly make Autel and others think more critically about applying the ‘Made in USA’ label going forward when global parts are used to manufacture the hardware, considering there’s now a financial penalty hanging over their heads.
The Made in the USA Labeling Rule, which will be published in the Federal Register, can be viewed here.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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Chris and Jordan have spent a few days with a pre-production sample of the new Panasonic Leica DG 25-50mm F1.7 up in Canada. They’ve taken it out and about everywhere from the streets of downtown Calgary to more intimate social gatherings. Jordan loves this lens for video, but take a look at their collection of still images to find out why Chris recommends it for photography, too.
Check out Chris and Jordan’s sample images from the Panasonic Leica 25-50mm F1.7
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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ACD Systems, the maker of image software like Photo Studio and Photo Editor, has launched a free beta version of its all-new photo editing software, Gemstone.
Gemstone is a new standalone multi-document interface, similar to Adobe Photoshop. Gemstone features a layered image editor and up-to-date RAW image support. Gemstone will include a combination of all-new features and familiar features from ACDSee’s Photo Studio and Editor products, including:
Beyond these features, Gemstone offers full RAW development support for more than 500 camera models. The multi-document interface (MDI) allows users to have multiple documents open simultaneously and supports split view. Images can be edited across multiple layers, allowing users to perform complex adjustments and add layered effects within a non-destructive workflow.
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| Gemstone can work with RAW images from more than 500 cameras. Credit: ACDSee |
‘We are expecting tens of thousands of users to try Gemstone and provide input. Gemstone is complete with a multi-document interface, layered editor, and RAW support. We are excited to share what we have built so far, and what is to come,’ said Frankl Lin, COO and CTO at ACD Systems.
The Gemstone beta is available now for free. You can download the beta by signing up here. To run Gemstone, you must be using Windows and have an Intel or AMD processor with 64-bit support. 4GB of RAM is required, although 8GB is recommended. You must have a DirectX 10 compatible graphics adapter. For the full list of system requirements, visit the Gemstone product page. ACDSee expects the full Gemstone product to release this fall.
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ACDSee has published numerous videos providing an overview of Gemstone, which can be seen below.
Alongside product overview videos, ACDSee has published a Gemstone beta review with professional photographer Alec Watson. In Watson’s review, you get a great look at Gemstone’s user interface, layers, RAW editor, and more. You can even see Watson use a sharpening adjustment layer, something not available in Photoshop. He calls Gemstone ‘super easy to use’ and gives it a thumbs up.
That is, of course, just one photographer’s opinion in a video published by the manufacturer. If you want to try Gemstone for yourself, visit ACDSee.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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Fujifilm has announced it will no longer sell Fujichrome Velvia 100 in the United States due to regulations put in place by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The announcement, posted to Fujifilm’s website, cites a new regulation under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), which prohibits the processing and distribution phenol, isopropylated phosphate (3:1) (PIP (3:1)) (CASRN 68937–41–7, a chemical that is found in very trace amounts in the layers of Fujichrome Velvia 100 (Fujifilm claims less than 0.0003% is found in the emulsion).
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| A screenshot of Fujifilm’s announcement. |
The European Chemicals Agency says PIP (3:1) is found in various consumer products, including ‘lubricants and greases, coating products, adhesives and sealants, polymers, photo-chemicals and hydraulic fluids.’
While Fujifilm refutes the harm this chemical does to the environment, saying ‘Fujifilm believes that the trace amount of PIP (3:1) in the FUJICHROME Velvia 100 Professional films pose[s] no risk to the environment,’ they are still obligated to adhere to the ban, which will go into effect on September 5, 2021. Despite not being required to stop working with PIP (3:1) until September, Fujifilm says it has discontinued Velvia 100 effective immediately.
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| A 3D rendering of phenol, isopropylated phosphate (3:1). |
It should go without saying that U.S. retailers will likely still have some of the emulsion available until their respective stocks are completed. As such, if you’re in the U.S. and want to get your hands on some of the last legally-available Velvia 100 before the ban, you might want to act fast. Just be sure to read the Safety Data Sheet Fujifilm has provided in regards to handling the film.
This discontinuation doesn’t affect other regions, so if you’re outside of the U.S., no need for concern. Also, while you could purchase it outside of the U.S. and attempt to bring it back (or have someone ship you some), it probably isn’t worth the risk considering it could be confiscated while going through customs.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)