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On Thin Ice: 10 Abandoned & Defrosted Ice Skating Rinks

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

At these abandoned ice skating rinks, hockey turns to hooky faster than frosty ice turns to lukewarm water. Kinda like Blade Runner but without the blades.

Berkeley Iceland opened with a bang on November 1st, 1940 when three-time Olympic skating champion and Hollywood actress Sonja Henie performed before a packed house. Sixty-six years later, the venerable rink closed and soon fell prey to vandals and graffiti artists. Fun fact: East Bay Iceland, the rink’s owner at and after closing, was Richard Zamboni, son of the inventor of the Zamboni ice resurfacing machine.

Bladeless in Bristol

The Bristol Ice Rink opened in 1966 and closed in late 2012 after a 46-year run… and a jolly good run it was! It’s estimated that over 10 million people from all across southwest England visited the rink, including Olympic Ice-dancing gold medalists Torvill and Dean. “It’s not a case of skating being dead and buried in Bristol,” explained rink manager Eddie Pearson, “but we’ve come to the end of our lease and there’s nothing we can do about it.”

Urbex explorer Beyond The Boundary did something, however, even if it was photo-documenting the doomed rink in April/May of 2013 and again later that year, just as building demolition was getting underway.

Poconope

The Pocono Ice-A-Rama rink at the couples-only Penn Hills Resort in Analomink, PA opened in 1962 and was promoted at the time as being the only indoor ice skating rink in the Poconos. Flickr user Kate McCann (k8mccann2) visited the long-closed resort/rink complex in 2014 and yeah, vacations in the Poconos aren’t what they used to be.

Akita Mañana

It gets pretty snowy in northwestern Japan so one would think winter sports & recreation facilities would attract a loyal local crowd. Well, think again: the Akita Ice Arena is most definitely closed and obviously abandoned. Imgur user plasticscissors visited the shuttered but not-quite-inaccessible arena in March of 2013 and was kind enough to post a host of images. Now you know what an iceless ice skating rink looks like – miles of plastic tiles.

Next Page – Click Below to Read More:
On Thin Ice 10 Abandoned Defrosted Ice Skating Rinks

Rolling Stop: 10 Abandoned Roller Skating Rinks

These abandoned roller skating rinks once saw social interaction mesh seamlessly with healthful recreation backed by a toe-tapping musical soundtrack.

Faded Starlight
(image via: …

Going Downhill Fast: 12 Abandoned Ski Resorts

These dozen doomed ski resorts, like most seasonal winter businesses, can fall off the financial cliff by something as ironically simple as a lack of snow.

Rainbow Basin Ski Resort – …

Tee’d Off: A Dozen Abandoned Golf Driving Ranges

Golf isn’t the hit sport it used to be and one consequence is the proliferation of abandoned driving ranges closed due to changes in recreational pursuits.

The good thing about …

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

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WebUrbanist

December 19, 2016
Shots from a drone help photographer take first place in Travel Photographer of the Year awards

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Joel Santos, Portugal Winner, Travel Photographer of the Year 2016/www.tpoty.com

Salt Desert, Danakil Depression, Afar, Ethiopia. This unique aerial photo shows the salt miners guiding a dromedary and donkey caravan through this desert’s unique salt patterns.

A photographer from Portugal has won the £4000 top prize in 2016’s Travel Photographer of the Year competition with a pair of portfolios of volcanic landscapes and, in contrast, a document of the life of fishermen in Ghana. Joel Santos is the first Portuguese winner of the competition, as well as the first to win with a set of images shot from a drone.

Winners of other categories in the competition went away with cash and accessories, while the best portfolios in the ‘Mankind’, ‘Land, Sea, Sky’ and ‘Journeys & Adventures’ sections won a Fujifilm X camera and lens. The Young Travel Photographer of the Year was Darpan Basak, a 14-year-old from India, while an 18-year-old from the USA, Courtney Moore, won the 15-18-year old category, and Ankit Kumar from India won the 14 and Under section.

The competition attracted entries from 123 countries, and a selection of the winning images will be exhibited in Hull, UK, between 18th May and 30th June, and again at the University of Greenwich, London, during August.

For more information and to see the winners in all categories visit the Travel Photographer of the Year website.

Press Release

ON TOP OF THE WORLD

Travel Photographer of the Year 2016 winners are revealed

From fiery lava flows to a magical, snow-swirled New York street scene that echoes an impressionist painting and from the imperious gaze of an elusive, endangered Iberian lynx to wonderfully minimalist images of West Kirby, England, the winning images in the 2016 international Travel Photographer of the Year awards (TPOTY) have been revealed, and they are stunning.

Photographers from 20 countries have won awards, and the winning images will go on show at TPOTY exhibitions at the UK City of Culture celebrations in Hull from 18th May to 30th June 2017 and at 10 Stockwell Street, Greenwich at the University of Greenwich, London from 4th August to 3rd September 2017.

Joel Santos becomes the first-ever Portuguese overall winner in the award’s 14-year history, beating photographers from 123 countries to take the title of Travel Photographer of the Year 2016. His winning entry features a delicate and intimate portfolio depicting traditional fishing in Ghana and – in another first for TPOTY – an aerial portfolio captured using a drone, giving a bird’s eye view of one of the hottest places in the world, Ethiopia’s Danakil Depression.

The Young Travel Photographer of the Year 2016 is 14-year old Darpan Basak from India, 18-year old Courtney Moore (USA) won Young TPOTY 15-18 and Ankit Kumar (India) won Young TPOTY 14 and Under.

In the portfolio categories, former overall TPOTY winner Craig Easton won ‘Land, Sea, Sky’, with two German photographers – Sandra Bartocha and Stephan Fürnrohr
– each being awarded ‘Best Single Image’ in the category. China’s Ruiyuan Chen took first place in ‘Mankind’, with Jeremy Woodhouse (UK) winning the award for Best Single Image, and Beniamino Pisati (Italy) won ‘Journeys & Adventures’, with Lluís Salvadó (Spain) winning Best Single Image.

In the single image categories, ‘Shaped by Light’ was won by Chinese photographer Biran Zhao, Michele Palazzo (Italy) won ‘Cities – Architecture & Spaces’ and Luke Massey (UK) won ‘Wildlife & Nature’.

Briton Alison Cahill came first in the New Talent award, and fellow Brit Rufus Blackwell won the HD video category Travel Shorts. Finally, Italy’s Marina Spironetti took first prize in Smart Shot, the category for images taken on a mobile phone or tablet.

Travel Photographer of the Year is judged by an international panel of judges that includes Deputy Editor in Chief, Fotomagazin, Germany, Manfred Zollner, champion jockey turned travel photographer Richard Dunwoody and Jerry Tavin (co-president of Glasshouse Images and founder of Young Photographers’ Alliance).

Awards and prizes
In addition to the significant international exposure that comes with winning TPOTY, Joel Santos receives £4,000, a selection of StaaG luxury leather travel goods and sterling silver accessories (worth over £1250), £500 to spend on the Páramo clothing of his choice, and a Plastic Sandwich personalized leather portfolio case.

For their success in Journeys & Adventures; Land, Sea, Sky, and Mankind, Beniamino Pisati, Craig Easton and Ruiyuan Chen each receive a Fujifilm X-Series camera and lens of their choice. The winner of the Best Single Image award in each portfolio category receives a giclée fine art print from Genesis Imaging.

Biran Zhao, Luke Massey and Michele Palazzo, the winners of Shaped by Light; Wildlife & Nature, and Cities – Architecture and Spaces will each enjoy a five or six- day winter or summer voyage for two people along Norway’s stunning coastline with Hurtigruten, and receive a Torres Insulator Jacket from Páramo.

Alison Cahill receives a set of luxury leather travel goods from StaaG, a personalized leather portfolio case from Plastic Sandwich, Photo Iconic tuition and a Páramo Halcon Traveller jacket for winning New Talent, while Marina Spironetti and Rufus Blackwell each win £500, a Páramo Halcon Traveller jacket and a Plastic Sandwich portfolio case, for winning ‘Smart Shot’ and the HD Video category respectively.

Young TPOTY winner Darpan Basak receives £500, Photo Iconic photography tuition and a Plastic Sandwich leather portfolio case. Each Young TPOTY age group winner receives £250 plus Photo Iconic photography tuition. The awarded photographers in Young TPOTY also receive destination guides from SNAPP Guides, as do certain awarded photographers in a number of other categories

To see all the winning images across all categories, visit the 2016 Winners’ Gallery at www.tpoty.com.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Joel Santos, Portugal Winner, Travel Photographer of the Year 2016/www.tpoty.com

Lake Bosumtwi, Ashanti, Ghana. The Ashanti people fish from the traditional wooden padua.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Courtney Moore, USA (age 18) Winner, Young TPOTY 15-18/www.tpoty.com

Island Beach State Park, New Jersey, USA. On a particularly windy day, this fox was sitting only a few yards away from the ocean as sand pelted against his fur.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Ankit Kumar, India (age 13) Winner, Young TPOTY 14 and Under/www.tpoty.com

Lake Natron Tanzania. A flock of Lesser flamingos take flight above Tanzania’s salt and soda Lake Natron.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Beniamino Pisati, Italy Winner, Journeys & Adventures portfolio/www.tpoty.com

Bayankhongor, Mongolia. Horses are present in all aspects of life in Mongolia. A popular saying is: “A Mongol without a horse is like a bird without wings”.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Alison Cahill, UK Winner, New Talent, Eye to Eye/www.tpoty.com

Son & Dad Barbers, George Town, Penang, Malaysia. Portrait of Elyas the head barber and owner of Son & Dad.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Craig Easton, UK Winner, Land, Sea, Sky portfolio/www.tpoty.com

West Kirby, Wirral, UK. A lone Buddhist monk walks around the boundary wall of the West Kirby Marine Lake.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Ruiyuan Chen, China Winner, Mankind portfolio/www.tpoty.com

Daliang Mountains, Sichaun province, China. Portraits of the ethnic Yi people, who live in great poverty.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Biran Zhao, China Winner, Shaped by Light/www.tpoty.com

Baiyu County, Ganzi, Sichuan Province, China. Every morning, the nuns walk around the mountain as practice lesson. Regardless of the season, they walk year after year, day in and day out.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Luke Massey, UK Winner, Wildlife & Nature/www.tpoty.com

Sierra de Andújar National Park, Andalucia, Spain. In 2001 there were less than 100 Iberian lynx left in the wild. Fifteen years later there are now more than 400, but it is still, unfortunately, the rarest cat in the world.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Rudi Sebastian, Germany Joint Runner-up Wildlife & Nature/www.tpoty.com

Berlin, Germany. In a small pond at the rural border of Berlin, male moor frogs in their bright blue mating colour try to mate with a common toad, which almost drowned. It took about 30 minutes before she managed to free herself and reach dry ground.

2016 Travel Photographer of the Year

Michele Palazzo, Italy Winner, Cities: Architecture & Spaces/www.tpoty.com

Flatiron Building, Manhattan, New York, USA. While walking through the Jonas snowstorm that swept across the East Coast, I captured this shot of the Flatiron Building against a backdrop of swirling snow.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

December 18, 2016
Trinity River Park: Huge New 10,000 Acre Urban Nature District for Dallas

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]

Designed to restore and augment the city’s floodplain, this new green recreation space features thousands of acres of forest as well as playgrounds, lawns and trails. Upon completion, it will be one of the biggest urban green space initiatives in the country.

In a state not exactly known for its greenery (or environmentalism), this project in Texas by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates is designed in part to address a critical and ongoing issue: flooding damage during severe weather events.”I believe we can create the most value and the greatest benefit to our citizens when we complete projects around nature,” said mayor Mike Rawlings of the project.

The park aims to serve both recreational and engineering purposes, shoring up the city against future floods while creating a great green asset for citizens and visitors. Developed in collaboration with government engineers, it will be part community resource but also (and critically) part infrastructural insurance against the effects of climate change.

The development is part of a larger series of projects along the flood plain and will link into over seventy miles of regional trails. At an estimated cost of $ 50 million, the park is not cheap but surprisingly inexpensive given its scope and aims. So far, a private donor has stepped forward offering $ 20 million of the funds needed, leaving a smaller bill for the city and state governments as well.

Pier 55 Park: Undulating Landscape to Hover Over Hudson River in NYC

Following the success of the hovering High Line, an elevated park set on re-purposed rail tracks, New York City aims to pull off another park space in an unused space, this time at Pier 55 …

Underline: 10-Mile Park to Trace Path of Elevated Rail in Miami

Following in the footsteps of the High Line (and Low Line) of New York City, the Underline project aims to take the underutilized space below Miami’s elevated MetroRail and transform it into a …

Disused 15-Mile Railway to Become Country-Wide Park in Singapore

An ambitious infrastructure conversion project in Singapore will turn 15 miles of a abandoned rail corridor into a continuous mixed-use trail-and-park system stretching from one end of the …

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]

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WebUrbanist

December 18, 2016
Flickr reveals its top 25 photos of 2016

Flickr’s top photos of 2016

The lonely tree. Photo by Tom Hall

Flickr staff sorted through billions of photos uploaded to the site to pick their top 25, taking into account social and engagement metrics to help determine which photos made the cut. They published the results this week in a blog post. Take a look at a few of the Top 25 here and head to Flickr to see the rest.

We’re looking for DPR readers’ best shots of the year to share in an upcoming article – if you’d like to participate, find out how you can submit your images for consideration.

Flickr’s top photos of 2016

Lake Mungo / Mungo National Park. Photo by Young Ko

Flickr’s top photos of 2016

Misty forest. Photo by Chris Frank

Flickr’s top photos of 2016

Spotlight. Photo by sedat y?ld?z

Flickr’s top photos of 2016

Braving the cold. Photo by Christophe Brutel

Flickr’s top photos of 2016

Rainbow Ride. Photo by Zachary Gertsch

Flickr’s top photos of 2016

Infinity. Photo by Niels Oberson

Flickr’s top photos of 2016

i.get.a.kick.out.of.you. Photo by .brianday

Flickr’s top photos of 2016

Tempest || Dubai. Photo by Elia Locardi

Flickr’s top photos of 2016

Freedom! Photo by Cyril Blanchard

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

December 17, 2016
Canon releases its TS compact and faster Pixma printers to US market
The Canon Pixma TS8020

Canon has announced that four compact Pixma printers it released in Europe will now be coming to the USA, with slightly different names. The new Pixma TS models are said to be smaller and quicker than previous versions, taking up less desk space and starting up in just six seconds.

The printing and scanning all-in-one devices offer wireless connections via regular Wi-Fi and through smartphone and Cloud apps – including Apple’s AirPrint. A range of control screen sizes are available across the series, with the higher end models featuring a touch-screen interface for printing and limited editing functions such as the application of filter effects.

Each of the models prints and scans with media of up to A4 in size, and after scanning a warning appears to remind users to remove documents from the scanning platen.

The devices are available now and are priced:

Canon PIXMA TS5020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer – $ 99.99 MSRP (white or gray)
Canon PIXMA TS6020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer – $ 149.99 MSRP (white or gray)
Canon PIXMA TS8020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer – $ 179.99 MSRP (black, white, red or brown)
Canon PIXMA TS9020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer – $ 199.99 MSRP (two-tone red/black or white/black)

For more information visit the Canon USA website.

Press release
Canon U.S.A. Introduces Four Compact PIXMA Wireless Inkjet All-in-One Printers

Proof that good things do come in small packages, Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, announced today four new PIXMA TS-series Wireless1 Inkjet All-In-One (AIO) printers. The PIXMA TS5020, PIXMA TS6020, PIXMA TS8020 and PIXMA TS9020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printers are more compact than their predecessors, but pack a big, high-quality punch for users. Perfect for tech savvy gadget lovers, creative crafters, passionate image makers, family projects and household printing needs; these small, sleek and sophisticated printers can fit in with any home décor.

“Canon U.S.A. is excited to bring a new series of PIXMA printers into families’ lives, helping to make their day to day more productive than ever” said Yuichi Ishizuka, president and COO, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “By decreasing the size, but increasing efficiencies and delivering crisp and clear results, we’ve made the printers in this series must-haves for every home.”

While these printers preserve what is valued from the previous series of PIXMA All-In-One printers, the new models are easy-to-use and cost-effective delivering print reliability and high-quality images. Additional new and exciting features make these printers:

Easy!
The new user interface (UI) includes a large, simplistic touch LCD screen making it easy to read and select functions such as copy, scan or print.
- PIXMA TS9020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer – 5 inch screen with touch panel and on-screen buttons
- PIXMA TS8020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer – 4.3 inch screen with touch panel and on-screen buttons
- PIXMA TS6020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer – 3 inch screen with touch panel and off-screen buttons
- PIXMA TS5020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer – 3 inch screen with off-screen directional pad and start/stop buttons
Compact!
The size of each new PIXMA model has been minimized, making the printer easy to store and take up less space on a desk.

Fast!
Each new PIXMA model in this series will be ready to print six seconds after it is turned on and the command is sent over from your laptop, smartphone or tablet. This is half the time than on select previous models.

Smart!
Wireless printing means you don’t have to plug in to print1. Each printer in this series features cloud printing capabilities through a compatible smartphone or tablet device, so PIXMA owners can print using the Canon PIXMA Cloud Link2 from virtually anywhere to link with various cloud services they use to print photos and documents. Further adding to the overall wireless capabilities of the PIXMA line of printers is Google Cloud Print, which allows users to send Gmail messages, file attachments and select Google Docs to the printer from any compatible devices.

After scanning a document or photo, the PIXMA TS9020, TS8020, TS6020, and TS5020 printers will show a reminder on the LCD screen to take the document with you to avoid misplacing important information.

The PIXMA TS9020 and TS8020 models are also able to print directly through NFC via Android devices further adding to the overall ease of use of these machines.3

Helps foster your creativity!
Through the LCD screen, the PIXMA TS9020 printer allows users to enhance their images with creative filters including options such as Monochrome, Antique, Sepia and Cinema Style. The PIXMA TS5020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer, PIXMA TS6020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer and PIXMA TS8020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer can utilize the same creative filters through the free Easy Photo Print+ web based software.4

Through PIXMA Cloud Link on the Canon PRINT app5 and the LCD screen on select models, Canon users can de-stress with a creative release by printing from over one hundred and twenty coloring pages available.

All of the printers are compatible with the new 5 inch by 5 inch paper option available today which is ideal for square prints and printing images from Instagram.

Along with the coloring pages available through PIXMA Cloud Link on the Canon PRINT app3, all Canon PIXMA wireless inkjet printers come with My Image Garden6 software. My Image Garden offers a variety of features designed to inspire and enhance creativity while empowering the sharing of images.

The PIXMA TS5020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer is $ 99.99 MSRP and the PIXMA TS6020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer is $ 149.99 MSRP. Both are available in black, white and gray. The PIXMA TS8020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer is $ 179.99 MSRP and is available in black, white, red, and brown and the PIXMA TS9020 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Printer is $ 199.99 MSRP and is offered in two-tone red/black and white/black.

For more information and the full list of product specifications, visit: shop.usa.canon.com/pixma-ts-series
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
December 17, 2016
Luminous Loops: Interactive Light Display Inspired by the Zoetrope

[ By SA Rogers in Art & Installation & Sound. ]

Take a seat inside this human-sized zoetrope, pull the bar back and forth and watch as fairytale imagery come to life around you. ‘Loop’ is the main installation at this year’s Luminothérapie, an interactive public art installation competition that takes place in Quebec each year. Developed by artists Olivier Girouard and Jonathan Villenueve in collaboration with Ottoblix, ‘Loop’ tells 13 different stories in each of the oversized illuminated circles placed along a street in Montreal.

The zoetrope, in case you’re not familiar, is a pre-film animation device that displays a sequence of images within a cylinder to produce an illusion of motion; users look through slits in the cylinder to watch it. ‘Loop’ takes this traditional object and updates it with interactivity and light, asking users to power the spinning cylinder themselves. A flickering strobe light illuminates the monochrome images lining the inside.

‘Loop’ took three months of design work and 800 hours of assembly to complete. One of the designers makes a living building Lego sets, while the other has been designing since he was just a child. Explaining how they came up with the concept, Olivier Girouard says Villanueve took inspiration from mechanical interventions at Berlin’s Technology Museum.

“Thinking of hamster wheels, we decided to build a vertical zoetrope. So we combined three mechanical elements: the railway push-car (like the ones made famous by Bugs Bunny cartoons), the music box and the zoetrope. We came up with the idea and sketched out the project just one week before the deadline for submitting proposals!”

“Our invention reminds me of the Chimera, the mythological three-headed beast born of the intersection of different universes,” says Villanueve. “I like this more or less unclassifiable hybrid machine. Is it a toy? A projection device? A kind of lighting? Looking at previous Luminothérapie pieces, we noticed that installations that were not only participatory but also collaborative, where participants had to act together to produce a result were – in our opinion – the more successful projects and the most appreciated by the public.”

Loop will light up the Place des Festivals in Montreal until January 29th, when it will take off on a tour of Quebec cities. Check out last year’s installation – a series of illuminated see-saws.

Living Light: Human Figures Dance Inside 3D-Printed Zoetrope

All it takes are a few highly focused beams of light and a spinning zoetrope to make a human figure spring to life, walking or even dancing in a barely-visible translucent circle. ‘Process and …

Luminous Illusions: 14 Interactive Spaces Made of Light

Step into three-dimensional blueprints made of light, gaze at flickering ghost ships and walk beneath artificial aurora borealis with this stunning set of interactive illuminated installations. …

Interactive Light Art Installation Operated by Smart Phones

A five-story ‘veil’ of light situated along the river Main in Frankfurt, Germany billows and contracts according to users’ finger movements on their smart phones. ‘Photophore’ was installed at …

[ By SA Rogers in Art & Installation & Sound. ]

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WebUrbanist

December 17, 2016
Canon advisory warns of counterfeit EF 50mm F1.8 II lenses

Canon has issued a service notice advising users of counterfeit Canon EF 50mm F1.8 II DSLR lenses that ‘fraudulently display the Canon logo’ and company trademarks. Canon became aware of these counterfeit lenses after customers began bringing them into company service centers seeking repairs.

According to the service notice, Canon was not involved in the design or manufacturing of these fraudulent lenses, which can be identified based on the ‘Canon Inc’ company name molded into the mount. Genuine Canon lenses feature a space between the words ‘Canon’ and ‘Inc’ while the counterfeit lenses do not feature this space.

The counterfeit EF 50mm lenses are made using electric circuits and parts on the interior, Canon warns, which fail to meet safety standards in multiple countries. Canon further advises that it isn’t liable for any issues that could result from using these fake lenses.

Via: Canon USA

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

December 17, 2016
‘Ethereal’ takes you to Iceland in 4K

‘Ethereal’ was shot by Evosia Studios in the remote Icelandic Highlands and took two years to put together. This video brings aerial cinematography together with time-lapse (a combination you don’t see too often) to produce some pretty darn amazing footage. Each frame was shot as a Raw photo with the DJI Inspire 1 drone. The individual photos were then processed using LRTimelapse, Lightroom and After Effects. The film was then edited in 4K/60p in Premiere Pro.

The end result is spectacular to say the least – turn off the lights and check this one out in HD to really take in the full experience.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

December 16, 2016
Sony FE 50mm F2.8 Macro Sample Gallery

$ (document).ready(function() { SampleGalleryV2({“containerId”:”embeddedSampleGallery_4532720281″,”galleryId”:”4532720281″,”isEmbeddedWidget”:true,”standalone”:false,”selectedImageIndex”:0,”startInCommentsView”:false,”isMobile”:false}) });

The Sony FE 50mm F2.8 Macro offers 1:1 magnification for a relatively minimal investment. We took it to our local conservatory and around the neighborhood to see how well it performs when getting extremely close to our subject. Click any of the images above to open them in our gallery viewer.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

December 16, 2016
Camera+ updated for dual-cam compatibility and Raw

Camera+, one of the most popular camera apps for Apple’s iPhone, has received a major overhaul and version 9 now supports some of the new features that were introduced with the latest iPhone 7 generation and iOS 10. With Camera+ 9 you can now use the iPhone 7 Plus dual-camera, and Camera+ will let you choose how the system behaves in low light. You can either force it to use the longer lens with its slower F2.8 aperture, or operate in the same way as Apple’s stock camera app and digitally zoom the wide-angle lens when light levels go below a certain threshold.

Raw support is another new addition. If you are using Camera+ on an iPhone 6s, 6s Plus, SE, 7, or 7 Plus, you can now save your images in the DNG Raw format. Those files can then be converted to JPEG using the new RAW Lab suite of editing tools.

Finally, some of the control elements, for example the control wheels, now provide haptic feedback. As far as we know, this makes Camera+ the only camera app to offer this feature. If this update sounds appealing, you can download the app now from the App Store for $ 2.99.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

December 16, 2016