The first thing any photographer wants to know about a piece of gear is how well it works. Camera equipment is expensive, which is why photographers spend so much time sifting through reviews before making purchasing decisions. For some of the more specialty lenses, photographers test the waters with accessories like wide-angle lens converters. These are much cheaper than buying Continue Reading
The post Do Wide Angle Lens Converters Work? appeared first on Photodoto.
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If you’re the kind of photographer who likes to archive every single Raw file and video clip they’ve ever shot, Seagate’s upcoming new 18 and 20TB hard drives might just be what you’ve been waiting for.
According to a report from AnandTech, drive maker Seagate has confirmed it will release an 18TB hard drive in the first half of 2020 and follow up with a 20TB unit in the second half of the year.
The 18TB drive will come with the same nine-platter design already used in Seagate’s 16TB Exos drive and use conventional magnetic recording (CMR). However, shingled magnetic recording (SMR) will be used for the 20TB drive. This technology increases the storage density, and therefore capacity, of a drive by partly overlapping the magnetic storage tracks. This leaves the previous track narrower but allows more data to fit within the same platter.
Dave Mosley, CEO of Seagate, said the following:
“We are preparing to ship 18 TB drives in the first half of calendar year 2020 to maintain our industry capacity leadership. We are also driving areal density leadership with our revolutionary HAMR technology, which enables Seagate to achieve at least 20% areal density CAGR over the next decade. We remain on track to ship 20TB HAMR drives in late calendar year 2020.
Currently, Seagate’s largest drives offer a 16TB capacity and are aimed at the enterprise and NAS markets. The new 20TB drive will also use heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) technology which temporarily heats the disk material, allowing for data to be written to smaller regions.
This much storage likely won’t come cheap. Seagate’s current 16TB Exos drive will set you back around $ 420, so the new versions will, at least at the time of launch, likely be more expensive than that.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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Motion smoothing, the controversial TV setting that uses interpolation to reduce motion blur, will be addressed with a previously announced television feature called Filmmaker Mode. During CES 2020, the UHD Alliance offered an update about this setting, revealing that Samsung, Kaleidescape and Philips/TP Vision will offer Filmmaker Mode on some of their 2020 television models.
Filmmaker Mode was first announced by the UHD Alliance in August 2019 with support from directors like Martin Scorses, Christopher Nolan and Rian Johnson. The goal of this setting is to present movies in the way they were intended by the filmmaker, including with the original frame rates, aspect ratios and colors.
Below is a brief video explainer of motion smoothing, provided by Vulture:
Motion smoothing has proven controversial among consumers and filmmakers alike. Though the technology is effective at reducing motion blurs, many viewers complain that it adds an unwanted visual effect that makes the content less enjoyable to watch. Most modern TVs, including many budget models, now offer motion smoothing as a standard feature, though some manufacturers make it possible to disable the setting.
In addition to the manufacturers announced at CES, Vizio, Panasonic and LG were previously revealed as companies that will also offer Filmmaker Mode on select television models starting in 2020.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
Can you recall the last time you saw an advertisement for what looked like the PERFECT burger? Remember that mouth-watering feeling you experienced? Sorry to say this, but that burger was far from being perfect, or real. And, while this may be a disappointing truth as a customer, as a food photographer, you can use it to your advantage. Food Continue Reading
The post 4 Yummy Tips On How To Master Food Photography appeared first on Photodoto.
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Editor’s note: Links have been updated and are now linking to the proper white papers once again. It appears Canon changed the URLs, causing a permission error.
Canon has released a pair of white papers on its new 1D X Mark III that dive into the details of the still and video technology inside its latest flagship camera system.
The still and video white papers are 59- and 21-pages long, respectively, and cover nearly every piece of tech inside the 1D X Mark III, complete with accompanying charts, graphics, tables and more. From details on the new square pixel AF detectors and their faster readouts to the Canon Log optoelectronic transfer function used in the video, these white papers cover it all and then some.
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| One of many charts/illustrations in the video white paper showing the Canon Log OETF for video captured with the 1DX Mark III. |
You can find the still image white paper and video white paper on Canon’s 1D X Mark III product page. They’re viewable in the browser or available to download as PDFs.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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The Phantom boasts an iconic, instantly recognizable design that marked DJI’s foray into the consumer drone business back at the start of 2013. Since then, the product line has been upgraded 4 times. The DJI Phantom 4 series became especially popular with the commercial drone operator sector when the Pro line was introduced in November 2016. The camera has a 1″ 20MP CMOS sensor plus 4K/60p video, along with 5 directional obstacle sensing and 4 directional obstacle avoidance – amongst other upgrades.
The Phantom 4 Pro V2.0 was introduced in May 2018. There isn’t much difference from the previous model in the Phantom 4 series except for the addition of an OcuSync transmission system and low-noise propellers. When all versions of the Phantom 4 series were sold out, some for over half a year at the time, the company made an unfortunate announcement. ‘Due to a shortage of parts from a supplier, DJI is unable to manufacture more Phantom 4 Pro V2.0 drones until further notice. We apologize for any inconvenience this might cause and recommend our customers explore DJI’s Mavic series drones as an alternative solution to serve their needs,’ read an official statement from DJI last April.
In a statement to DPReview regarding the re-launch, Patrick Santucci of DJI said:
‘DJI is excited to announce that the Phantom 4 Pro V2.0 will again be available for purchase on January 6, 2020. This popular and versatile drone had been temporarily out of stock because of a shortage of parts from a supplier. DJI sets high standards for the extremely advanced components in our products, which require advanced lead time and technical precision to manufacture. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused our customers, and we thank them for their patience as we ensure the Phantom 4 Pro V2.0 will continue to meet their high expectations.’
Much of DJI’s efforts over the past 18+ months have been focused on the Mavic series – from the Mavic 2 line to the sub-250-gram Mini. A Mavic 3 is rumored to be released in the coming months. This is why it came as a shock that DJI announced the return of its Phantom 4 Pro V2.0 drone earlier this week. Some enthusiasts have taken to the drone forums to predict a forthcoming Phantom 5 successor, despite rumors being all but dismissed at the same time the V2.0 was initially discontinued.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
The post Change of Perspective in Photography – Start from the Top appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ana Mireles.
You’d be surprised how a simple change of perspective in photography can take your images from amateur to pro. Pay attention to any magazine, advertisement, exhibition, etc., and you’ll notice how almost none of the photographs were taken at eye-level.
1/30 sec. f5.6, ISO 800
Just by changing the point of view, you can completely transform an image. You can play with size, proportion, depth, and many other characteristics. One of the most important aspects, however, is that you are showing the viewer the subject from a point of view that is out of the ordinary.
There are many angles you can choose from, in this article I’m going to focus on positioning yourself above the subject. Now let’s see a couple of choices for you to get started.
As the name suggests, this shot means that you should be highly elevated and therefore watching your subject from a flying bird’s perspective. With small subjects or even a portrait, you can just climb on a chair or a tree. However, for landscapes, you can go up a building or tower. There are lots of touristic places that have high scenic viewpoints for you to practice.
1/400 sec. f5.6, ISO 100
You don’t need any specific gear for it but there are some things to consider regarding your settings:
If you are really enjoying a higher photographic perspective, you may want to consider buying yourself a drone or looking into aerial photography.
A change of perspective in photography is not only a good practice to improve your skills, but it can also be used creatively. Here are some ideas for you to try using the bird’s eye perspective:
1/400 sec. f13, ISO 400 with a tilt-shift effect done in PS
The top-down name is quite clear. It means that you’re looking down directly onto the subject. Of course, this is also a perspective a bird could have, however, it’s a camera angle in its own right. For this, your focal plane has to be parallel to the subject.
You don’t need special gear. You can achieve this with any camera – even with your smartphone – which is probably why it’s so popular for food and still-life photography on Instagram. It’s also very popular for drone photography.
However, there are some accessories that can be useful:
Flat lay is a very popular term for blogs and social media, especially Instagram. It refers to a composition of objects laid onto a flat surface. There are many contests and challenges online, look for them with the hashtag flat-lay. Join them and practice your top-down skills.
Because there’s almost no depth with the top-down perspective, you have to make the most out of the two dimensions you have to work with. Instead of it being a limitation, get creative and use composition, colors, and shapes to improve your designer skills.
2 sec. f22, ISO 800
A change of perspective in photography can give you lots of opportunities to improve and create fun and innovative images. You don’t need to buy any extra equipment or learn any new techniques, all you need to do is move around your subject. I hope you have fun and if you feel up to it keep on exploring with these extra articles:
The post Change of Perspective in Photography – Start from the Top appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ana Mireles.
The post The Canon 1D X Mark III Is Officially Announced, With 20 FPS and a New Processor appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.
Well, it’s finally here:
The Canon 1D X Mark III – the camera that wildlife and sports photographers have been waiting for, and that will rival the upcoming Nikon D6 just in time for the Summer Olympics.
The Canon 1D X line is far out of the price range of most photographers. Yet it still inspires constant discussion. Probably because it shows the peak of 35mm photography and, most importantly, what Canon can do when it really lets loose.
So what does this action photography powerhouse include?
As expected, the Canon 1D X Mark III will feature a new full-frame Canon sensor, though the 20.1 megapixels of resolution is almost identical to that of the 20.2 megapixel Canon 1D X Mark II. This is hopefully a sign that Canon has made great strides in low light performance (and Canon’s website claims that the 1D X Mark II offers “even better high-ISO image quality that the previous version”).
The Canon 1D X Mark II was a top-of-the-line low light performer, which means that the Canon 1D X Mark III has a lot to live up to; if Canon has actually managed to improve low light performance, the 1D X Mark III’s high-ISO capabilities will be truly impressive.
Also new in the 1D X Mark III is the processor, Canon’s DIGIC X. With the DIGIC X, you’ll be able to shoot at 16 frames per second using the optical viewfinder and 20 frames per second in Live View. Of course, these speeds are useless without a capable AF system, but Canon promises great strides in that area, too. The 1D X Mark III will feature a 191-point AF system that can “follow subjects across the…AF array like no EOS DSLR before it.” This should certainly please sports photographers, and wildlife photographers, too.
Live View autofocus is an area where Canon has repeatedly managed to stand out, and it looks like the 1D X Mark III should continue this trend. The camera body includes Canon’s famed Dual Pixel AF, with Eye Detect AF and 525 AF zones.
Also included in the Canon 1D X Mark III are dual CFexpress card slots, a 1000 RAW image buffer, a 2850-photo battery life, and impressive video capabilities (UHD 4k video at 60p).
So if you’re a professional sports or wildlife photographer looking for the next flagship camera, or you’re really looking to take your action photography to the next level and you have a limitless budget, then take a look at the Canon 1D X Mark III. The camera will drop in February for $ 6499 USD, and is currently available for preorder.
The post The Canon 1D X Mark III Is Officially Announced, With 20 FPS and a New Processor appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.
The post 6 Great and Free Photo Editing Apps on the OnePlus Phone and Android appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Megan Kennedy.
As a OnePlus user and a photographer, you can bet I’ve spent a good deal of time wading through the many photo-editing apps free to download through Google Play. Here, I take a brief look at 6 great (and free) editing apps on the OnePlus phone.
Relatively new to the scene, you may never have heard of the OnePlus before. One Plus Technology (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd. (referred to as OnePlus) is a Chinese phone manufacturer founded in December 2013. Known for its slogan never settle, OnePlus released the OnePlus One smartphone in 2014. Since then there have been numerous incarnations of the OnePlus family, the most recent being the OnePlus 7T Pro.
OnePlus smartphones run on the Android operating system (OS). That means that most editing apps accessible to the OnePlus phone are available to all other smartphones with an Android OS (like the Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy range for example).
While I’ll be exploring the next couple of editing applications on my own OnePlus phone, the apps I go into are available for all Android systems.
My (slightly beaten up) OnePlus 5T
VSCO (Visual Supply Company), is both a photo-editing and social media app aimed at the photographically-inclined. Sometimes compared to Instagram, VSCO is best known for its high-quality filters. The basic VSCO version is free, but only 10 filters are available without paying $ 7.99 a month (or $ 31.99/year) for a VSCO membership.
While the filters that are available for free are definitely a cut above (and certainly worth the download), users looking for cheaper alternatives may turn elsewhere for greater flexibility. Personally, I’ve found that more often than not, the 10 free filters suit my needs just fine. The quality and variety of the free filters make VSCO my go-to for a quick filter fix.
Bonfire Photo Editor Pro is an app paired with an easy-to-use layout. However, it’s the sizeable variety of features that come with Bonfire that makes this app especially attractive.
Along with standard filters, Bonfire has numerous options that allow you to add artistic effects to your photos. Pop art, oil painting, and impressionist presets are all available, as well as, skin smoothing filters and adjustment settings like contrast, vibrance and brightness.
If you are after a casual editor or a way to play around with arty effects, Bonfire Photo Editor Pro is a fun option.
Loaded with heaps of presets and manipulation tools, Snapseed is marketed as a free, professional-grade photo editor. Exposure adjustments, lens effects, filters, a healing tool, and a correction brush all come packaged within the Snapseed app. Plus, a double exposure function enables the combination of two or more photographs to create a ghostly image effect.
With over 100 million downloads, Snapseed is a favorite among photographers and casual users alike. Snapseed was one of my first editing apps on the OnePlus phone. It has since earned a spot in my most frequently used apps tray.
Although many features in PicsArt are in-app purchases, the app still supports basics like cropping, filters, artistic effects, facial definition and drawing without cost. What sets PicsArt apart, however, is the AI-generated filters available for free. Called Magic, the PicsArt effects transform an image to fit themes like Flora, Highlight and Plein Air.
Immersive and intelligent, photographers may not find professional uses for these effects, but they are great fun to mess around with.
For editing apps on the OnePlus phone, Adobe Photoshop Express is extensive. Features like perspective correction, noise reduction, filters, effects (including artificial light leaks and bokeh effects), exposure adjustments, text options, and blemish removal are all found on the user-friendly UI.
The app has over 90 filters available, with substantial variation within each grouping.
To cater to social media trends, Photoshop Express has a collage function and the option to add stickers and borders to images. It also includes an extensive range of aspect ratios for cropping your images to precise dimensions.
With plenty of filters and adjustments at the ready, Fotor is great for getting the most out of an image. The app comes with standard essentials like contrast, sharpness, shadow, highlight, and color temperature adjustments.
In addition, scene filters optimized for specific lighting conditions and subjects streamline the editing process. An intuitive focus function adjusts blur in aperture increments and a range of borders and stickers and a collage function meets social media design trends.
There are plenty of editing apps on the OnePlus phone (and for phones running the Android OS generally) to download. With so many options for free, it can take a bit of experimentation to figure out what works best for your process.
The apps I’ve listed are my personal top 6 – if you have a favorite app that isn’t on the list, go ahead and mention it in the comments below! Happy editing!
The post 6 Great and Free Photo Editing Apps on the OnePlus Phone and Android appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Megan Kennedy.
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Canon has been showing a small range of concept cameras for a couple of years now at various shows. One of them, the clip-on Canon IVY REC actually became a reality, following a crowdfunding campaign. The company doesn’t say too much about these concepts officially, but uses shows like CES to get feedback and gauge interest in these unconventional products aimed at a younger, more active, less enthusiast marketplace.
At this years’ CES show in Las Vegas we took a look at Canon’s current range of concept cameras. Click through for more details.
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First up is a pair of ‘wearable’ cameras. A dual-lens model (shown here with a blank plate where the lenses would be: it’s about the same size as a large divers or GPS watch) that would feature twin medium-wide and medium-tele focal lengths, similar to options provided by many modern smartphones. The camera can be attached to whatever you want: from your wrist like a watch, to the strap of a backpack, or even some existing structure (Canon suggests a tent).
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The second of the two models features a 180-degree lens, making it suitable for capturing point-of-view video and stills of activities like snowboarding or skateboarding. The idea with both cameras is to ‘free’ the user from bulky equipment, straps or the need for additional camera supports. Or to avoid handling (and risking the safety of) your phone.
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The second concept is a single camera with a modular lens system capable of tele, wide and closeup imaging. It’s hard to tell scale from this photograph but the camera is about 13 cm (5″) long. As such, like the other concepts, it’s reasonable to assume a smartphone-sized sensor.
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This rough working prototype demonstrates the basic concept. In its normal configuration, the lens module is unfolded from the body like the blade of a pocket knife, in which position it offers a wide-angle field of view. Note the joins in the middle of the ‘blade’ section: they’re key to the camera’s other functions…
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With the first lens module removed (they’re attached via magnets) the lens is converted into an extreme macro, capable of very closeup imaging.
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And with both removable lens modules unclipped, the lens becomes a telephoto.
Of all the concept cameras being displayed by Canon at CES, this one seems the least practical for casual photographers, but for remote use or evolved into some kind of home security solution, it could work.
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This is a camera we’ve seen before, but last time we clapped eyes on it it was at a much earlier stage of development. This is a compact, variable telephoto stills / video camera which puts extreme telephoto performance literally in your pocket. The user can switch from 100mm, 200mm and 400mm equivalent focal lengths using the zoom button, and images are captured with a full press of the larger pill-shaped button in the middle of the control cluster.
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An electronic viewfinder serves for image composition and menu browsing. The knurled ring underneath the finder is diopter correction.
We’re told that this model is pretty close to being finalized. Working samples exist, and it may become a shipping product relatively soon.
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This is another concept camera that we’ve seen before, and has been developed to the point where it appears to work as intended. This is an ‘Intelligent Capture’ AI camera, designed to automatically track human subjects and shoot images without human interaction. The ‘ICC’ can be controlled by voice, and intelligently captures ‘good scenes’ and sends only the most interesting shots to your smartphone, via an app. I can’t vouch for that last bit, but it certainly does seem to do a good job of identifying and moving to track faces.
Anyone remember the Sony Party-Shot from ten years ago? It’s a similar concept.
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The final concept camera is one about which we know very little: it’s an augmented reality device intended to be worn around your neck. Presumably this is a ‘life vlogging’ camera for active photographers and fans of extreme sports. Though who knows, it could also have applications for first responders if it’s tough enough.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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