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Z Cam launches budget E2-F6 and E2-F8 6K and 8K cinema cameras for pre-order

Chinese company Z Cam has launched its new full-frame 6K E2-F6 and full-frame 8K E2-F8 cinema cameras for preorder. The models, which were first introduced during NAB 2019, follow the previously launched E2 4K, offering consumers budget-tier high-resolution versions of the company’s professional cinema camera. Both models will start shipping in October.

The Z Cam E2-F6 and E2-F8 are cube-shaped cinema cameras sold without accessories, making the total cost to set up a fully workable cinema camera higher than the models’ respective $ 4,995 and $ 5,995 prices. Both the E2-F6 and E2-F8 are available with EF / PL lens mounts, and both models likewise feature Gigabit Ethernet connectivity, ZRAW support and full-frame CMOS sensors.

The E2-F6 model can shoot 4K / 120fps and 6K / 60fps footage with 15 stops of dynamic range, whereas the E2-F8 model can shoot 4K/6K/8K at 30fps with a claimed 14 stops of dynamic range. Both models feature 5G and 802.11n WiFi with an external antenna port, built-in stereo microphone, 3.5mm audio-in and audio-out stereo sockets, HDMI 2.0 Type-A, USB-C, two serial ports and aluminum alloy construction.

The E2-F6 is slightly smaller than the E2-F8 at 91.2 x 99.2 x 89.1mm (3.5 x 3.9 x 3.5in) versus 91.2 x 99.2 x 99.1mm (3.5 x 3.9 x 3.9in) — the company hasn’t disclosed the weight of either camera model. Both models can record in 8-bit H.264 and 10-bit H.265 with a max 300Mbps bit rate and 24-bit 48kHz audio. Likewise, both models are compatible with Sony NP-F series batteries, but they’re not included with the cameras.

Both the Z Cam E2-F6 and E2-F8 are available to order through B&H Photo.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

August 16, 2019
Meike adds Canon RF, Nikon Z mount options to its manual focus 85mm F2.8 macro lens

Hong Kong-based company Meike has launched new Canon RF and Nikon Z mount options for its full-frame 85mm F2.8 macro lens. The lens — which is currently available in Sony E, Fuji X, MFT, Canon EF and Nikon F mount systems — is a manual macro lens with an F2.8 to F22 aperture, 55mm filter size, 0 to 1.5x magnification, and 25cm (9in) minimum focusing distance.

The lens is constructed of 11 elements in 8 groups and comes in at just 500g (1.1bs). Like its previous full-frame counterparts, the is features an all-metal body alongside three manual adjustment rings for focus, macro focus, and aperture.

The 85mm F2.8 macro lens for Nikon Z and Canon RF is currently listed on the Meike website. No pricing information is available for these two new models, but the current versions currently retail for $ 269.99.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

August 16, 2019
Three Mistakes That Kill Image Quality (and How to Avoid Them)

The post Three Mistakes That Kill Image Quality (and How to Avoid Them) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Adam Welch.

We all want to make the highest quality photographs we possibly can, right? Hopefully, you just gave a very slow yet very serious head nod in agreement to that statement.

There are a host of factors that play into the final quality of your digital images. Even the phrase “image quality” seems to be the best way to sum up all the pieces that have to come together for us to consider our photographs to be of high quality. Sharpness, composition, color balance and contrast are a few variables that jump to mind along with a multitude of others that we can and cannot control.

In this article, we’re going to look at three mistakes that you could very well be making with your photography right now which could be sabotaging your image quality before they ever leave your camera. Luckily, all of these mistakes are easily remedied once you realize they exist. Let’s get started.

Shooting “wide open” all the time

Make no mistake, from a lens standpoint, we live in an extraordinary time. Lens manufacturers have evolved to the point where we currently see extremely well-constructed optics with beautiful sharpness capable of shooting with relatively enormous apertures.

Not even a decade ago, you virtually could not find a “fast zoom” lens with a maximum aperture wider than F/4 for less than a $ 1,000US – at I least I never did.

Now, it has become blissfully common to acquire an outstanding F/2.8 or wider lens without taking out a second mortgage on your home.

This new age of lens evolution comes with a few caveats, though. Just because your lens is a low-light beast capable of shooting at F/1.4, doesn’t mean that is an ideal aperture for every situation. You see, lenses have certain “optimum apertures” which provide the sharpest results for that particular lens.

In most cases, the widest aperture of your lens, while providing the best light gathering and arguably the best bokeh, is usually the worst optical setting for your lens. The widest aperture setting of your lens often makes nasty little image problems more apparent. Chromatic aberrations, edge softening, and vignetting all become more pronounced when you shoot wide open.

The solution:

Stop down your lens, even if it’s only by a stop or two. You’ll lose some light, but you will also likely see a markedly visible increase in image sharpness and overall quality. While it’s true that not all lenses are created equal (some show shockingly fantastic performance even at their widest apertures), the outcome will probably only become better if you stop down.

A good F/1.4 lens will be great at F/2.8 and likely outstanding at F/4. If you’re worried about losing that “creamy” bokeh, you may be surprised to see how little background blur you lose with a couple of stops on the wide end of your aperture. It depends on the relative distance of objects in the scene as much as it does on the aperture.

So if you’re suffering from a lack of sharpness and heavy vignetting try stopping down that lens and observe your results.

Poor body mechanics

No matter your gear, conditions or subject matter, if your camera is moving unintentionally, then your images will likely never be as technically qualitative as they could be. Camera shake robs sharpness and can make an otherwise strong image unusable.

Some of us can naturally hold our cameras more steady than others. In-camera or in-lens image stabilization can help, and of course, a trusty tripod is always a good shooting companion.

All of those things aside, simply being conscious of your body mechanics can go a long way to improve the quality of your photographs. At the same time, a bad grip on the camera and poor bodily positioning can cost you a photo.

The solution:

Whenever you’re shooting handheld, be mindful of how your hands grip the camera and the position of your arms and legs. Keep a flat-footed stance with your legs about shoulder-width apart. If you’re using a DSLR or other interchangeable lens camera, grip the camera body firmly with your right hand with your left supporting the lens. Also apply slight opposing pressure (push with the right, pull with the left). Tuck your arms in close to your body for maximum stability.

This will work to help steady your shot. Along those same lines, gently press the shutter button instead of sharply pushing down, which can lead to the camera jerking.

Elbows tucked, solid grip and lens support.

Bonus tip:

Be mindful of a handy little formula called the “Reciprocal Rule.” This rule will help you approximate the slowest shutter speed based on your focal length to avoid moderate camera shake. The Reciprocal Rule is incredibly simple:

So, if you’re shooting with a 50mm lens, the slowest shutter speed you should use would be 1/50th of a second. Shooting at 100mm? Your slowest shutter speed should be 1/100th of a second and so on and so forth. This is not an ironclad rule but it is a highly practical one.

For more ways to obtain sharper images be sure to check out my other article 4 Simple Ways to Get Sharper Photos

Neglecting your settings

As simple as it sounds, not being cognizant of your camera’s settings is one of the most frustratingly preventable image quality killers that you will ever encounter. Consistently out of focus images? Check that your viewfinder diopter is adjusted to your eyesight – especially if you wear corrective lenses. Are your photos suddenly pixelated at high magnification? Make sure you haven’t accidentally changed your camera’s resolution (happens more than you might think) to a lesser megapixel count.

These are just a couple of points to consider, but there are many more. The bottom line is that if you aren’t continuously aware of what your gear is doing, not only are being a sloppy photographer, but you are also limiting yourself and your work for virtually no reason at all.

The solution:

Brace yourself for a huge surprise! Just kidding.

The easiest way to fix a neglectful mindset towards your shooting is to force yourself to remain vigilant. This means constant checks of your deep camera settings such as image and video resolution/format, camera firmware, and micro AF lens adjustments. Sure, keeping track of all these things isn’t an immersively fun experience, but neither are bad photographs.

Do yourself and your photos a favor and never fall into the trap of complacency when it comes to your camera’s settings.

Summing up…

We all could be better at doing the things we love. Each one of us, no matter how experienced or accomplished, will always make mistakes with our photography. The only way we can prevent those image quality mistakes from constantly occurring, and improve the quality of our photos is to make sure we are aware that anything is wrong in the first place. If you do not see the quality of images you would like, the first step towards finding out the problem is realizing that there is one. From there it’s just a matter of working the problem until you resolve it or significantly mediate it.

Put the tips we’ve listed here to work, and you’ll see your image quality improving immediately.

Oh and remember, we’re all in this together! Feel free to share any other tips for image sharpness, or if you have a sticky little issue with your picture quality, feel free to let us know in the comment section, and hopefully, the community can help!

The post Three Mistakes That Kill Image Quality (and How to Avoid Them) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Adam Welch.

Digital Photography School

August 16, 2019
Nitecore announces ‘world’s first’ smart battery for Sony full-frame mirrorless cameras

Nitecore has announced the NFZ100, the world’s first ‘smart battery’ for Sony full-frame mirrorless cameras, including the a7 III, a7R III and a9 systems.

Like most ‘smart’ electronics, the unique feature of the NFZ100 is the ability to manage and monitor the battery with an accompanying smartphone app. Nitecore NNERGY, as it’s called, is available to download for free on both Android and iOS devices.

Once installed and connected to the NFZ100, the NNERGY app will let you monitor the battery health, battery level, battery voltage and other real-time battery information. Nitecore even offers a dedicated ‘Storage Mode’ within the app that will discharge the battery to 70% to help maximize its lifespan if it won’t be in use for some time.

Individual batteries can be labelled with three-digit identifiers to ensure you can tell them apart inside the app. There is even an option to upgrade the firmware of the batteries as Nitecore further develops its technology. Yes, you read that right, you might soon need to update the firmware of your camera batteries, not unlike you do your camera itself.

The NFZ100 batteries feature 2,280 mAh capacity, which Nitecore estimates is good for 500 still photos when shooting with the Sony a9. Voltage is 7.2V, giving it a power rating of 16.4Wh.

Other features include overcharge protection, over-discharge protection, overcurrent protection, over voltage protection and short-circuit protection. The batteries weigh 82.5g (2.91oz) and measure 52 x 38.7 x 22.5mm (2.05 x 1.52 x 0.89in).

The Nitecore NFZ100 doesn’t appear to be available to purchase through any online retailers as of now and no current pricing information is available. DPReview has contacted Nitecore and will update this article with more information if we get a response.

In the meantime, you can find out more information on Nitecore’s website.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

August 15, 2019
Your Canon DSLR Might Be Hacked; Here’s What You Should Do
The post Your Canon DSLR Might Be Hacked; Here’s What You Should Do appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.

Do you use a Canon DSLR?

If so, watch out. Because hackers can exploit your camera and hold your images hostage.

Seriously.

Let me explain:

Ransomware is malicious software that hackers can use to infect your camera. Once the ransomware gains access to your camera, it encrypts your images, making them completely inaccessible to you.

That’s when the hacker makes a demand:

If you ever want to see your photos again, you must pay a sum of money. In return, the hacker will give you an encryption key, which allows you to break the encryption and access your images.

In other words:

The hacker holds your images hostage. And if you want them back, you have to pay the ransom.

For some, ransomware might not be news. Ransomware attacks have been going on for decades.

Except it was only this year that a company called CheckPoint demonstrated the hackability of Canon cameras. CheckPoint realized that Canon’s Picture Transfer Protocol (PTP) could be easily exploited by hackers through a USB connection or, more disturbingly, over Wi-Fi.

Then CheckPoint carried out a ransomware attack on a Canon 80D, and they did it over the camera’s Wi-Fi connection. The attack required absolutely no interaction with the camera owner.

CheckPoint shared their findings with Canon, prompting the company to produce a security advisory that warns consumers of the dangers of a “third-party attack.” Read the full security advisory on the Canon website.

Canon is now working hard on a patch for this vulnerability and has already produced a firmware update for the Canon 80D.

Meanwhile, Canon has released recommendations for other camera users:
- Ensure the suitability of security-related settings of the devices connected to the camera, such as the PC, mobile device, and router being used.
- Do not connect the camera to a PC or mobile device that is being used in an unsecure network, such as in a free Wi-Fi environment.
- Do not connect the camera to a PC or mobile device that is potentially exposed to virus infections.
- Disable the camera’s network functions when they are not being used.
- Download the official firmware from Canon’s website when performing a camera firmware update.
So for owners of the Canon 80D, I suggest you update your camera. You don’t want to remain vulnerable.

And for anyone else with a Canon camera, keep an eye out for Canon firmware updates. This is especially critical if your camera features a Wi-Fi connection, which can be exploited much more easily than a USB connection.

Do you own a Canon with a wif-fi connection? Will you be updating your firmware?

The post Your Canon DSLR Might Be Hacked; Here’s What You Should Do appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.

Digital Photography School
August 15, 2019
Tamron 35-150mm F2.8-4 Di VC OSD sample gallery

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The Tamron 35-150mm F2.8-4 is being marketed as a dedicated portrait lens, offering focal lengths appropriate for both traditional long lens portraiture as well as wider-angle environmental portraits and lifestyle shots.

It’s the kind of lens that might find a place in the kitbag of a wedding shooter as well as a street photographer. We’ve been shooting the 35-150mm on the Canon EOS R for a few days, and we’re pretty impressed. Check out our sample gallery via the link below.

Take a look at our Tamron 35-150mm F2.8-4 sample gallery

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

August 15, 2019
Photographer creates an exact replica of The Apollo 11 Hasselblad used by NASA

Photographer and self-described ‘space nerd’ Cole Rise has detailed his creation of a replica of the Hasselblad camera used by NASA’s Apollo 11 astronauts. The model is precise down to the finest details, including the camera’s serial number and labels. The creation process, as explained by Wired, was a lengthy one, involving the acquisition of a Hasselblad Apollo camera prototype, NASA archival photos and more.

NASA engineers had heavily modified a Hasselblad 500 EL camera for the Apollo 11 mission, including adding motors, removing the focus screen and mirror, and adding heat-resistant aluminum paint, among other things. Rise spent four years working on his replica of this camera, a process that involved machining many of the components himself, in addition to salvaging select parts from a broken Hasselblad MK-70 camera.

In addition to the modified Hasselblad 500 EL camera, the Space Camera Co. website also shows his replica of NASA’s Hasselblad 500C camera, which had been modified by NASA engineers in collaboration with an RCA contractor. Rise worked on his 500C replica before the Apollo 11 camera, saying on the Space Camera Co. website:

By going through the tedious process of remaking this camera, you begin to uncover its secrets and the thought processes that went into making it space-worthy. It was the seed that eventually cemented Hasselblad’s relationship with NASA as the de facto space camera maker. And it was the project that taught me the skills required to eventually make a functional lunar camera.

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Rise is making multiple 500C replicas for private collectors and creating a documentary that details his work. Rise’s website lists the Apollo 11 Hasselblad camera replica as currently on display in Le Marais, Paris.

Photo credits: Photos by Cole Rise, used with permission

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

August 15, 2019
Skylum teases AI Sky Replacement filter for Luminar 4.0

Skylum plans to launch Luminar 4 this Fall, an upgrade for its popular photo editing software. The company recently announced that one of the major features that will be included in the latest version of the software is the AI Sky Replacement Tool. Skylum has been developing its artificial intelligence technology for years and is confident in the accuracy they provide photo editors.

The video above, published yesterday, walks us through the user interface. However, their Director of Education hosting the short clip warns that the feature is still in beta version and the layout may look different when it is released for public use. The AI Sky Replacement Tool takes photos with basic, bland skies and makes them more interesting with a variety of templates including moody clouds and majestic sunsets.

Enhancing the sky on a photo is a pretty straightforward process. Photo editors simply select the AI Sky Replacement filter from the filters catalog on the right-hand side, adjust the camera amount slider, and next use the texture slider to select different skies. One user in the videos comment section pointed out that using the same selection of skies could create a repetitive effect for photographers across the board. Fortunately, Skylum will allow users to upload their own sky files.

As the video clip illustrates, the AI Sky Replacement Tool automatically detects the sky, identifies its angle, and applies a replacement to make the photo more dynamic while maintaining a realistic look. The software is able to detect exactly where the sky begins and ends. The author walks through a few examples where the artificial intelligence employed can detect columns on a building and semi-transparent areas found with trees and shrubbery. Accent AI can be used to life foreground shadows as well.

The AI Sky Replacement tool is one of the many AI tools that will be released with Luminar 4 this Fall. For those who want to be the first to know about updates, and when it’ll be released, email sign up is available here.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

August 15, 2019
How to Use Lightroom Mobile to Speed Up Your Workflow

The post How to Use Lightroom Mobile to Speed Up Your Workflow appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.

One of the common complaints about Lightroom Classic is that it’s just not as fast as some photographers expect. When I get back from a session with hundreds of RAW files to process, the thought of going through each of them one-by-one is enough to give me a headache. The few seconds it takes Lightroom to load each photo for flagging or cropping can be enough to make you want to quit photography altogether! Fortunately, if you subscribe to Creative Cloud you have options. In this article, you’ll learn how to use Lightroom Mobile to dramatically increase the speed of your workflow.

One of my favorite aspects of the Adobe Creative Cloud subscription is how you can take advantage of many of the features of Lightroom Mobile even if you don’t store your primary images in the cloud. You can store bite-size previews of your images from Lightroom Classic in your Creative Cloud account, which you can then load on a mobile device for editing.

After you finish editing on your mobile device, all the changes will be automatically synced back to Lightroom Classic on your computer. I use this technique all the time now, especially for culling and cropping after a long photoshoot. I think you might find it incredibly useful as well.

Sync with Lightroom

The first thing you need to do is enable syncing between Lightroom Classic and your Creative Cloud account. Click on your name in the top-left of the Lightroom Library module and choose “Start” under “Sync with Lightroom.”

This will then enable you to start syncing your edits. One thing to note is that if you have a basic 20GB Photography plan, the photos you sync will not count against your storage quota. That is only for images you upload directly to Lightroom Mobile or Lightroom CC, as well as any documents you have stored in your Creative Cloud Files.

After Sync is enabled, you can selectively sync any individual collection by clicking the arrow icon just to the left of its name.

This will start uploading previews of each image to your Creative Cloud account. While this is happening you can see the upload status by looking above your name in the top-left corner.

Completing the initial synchronization will take a few minutes or more depending on the speed of your internet connection. The individual preview files being uploaded are quite small, but if you sync an album with a few thousand images it might take longer than you expect.

One thing to note is that you can only sync collections that have been created manually by you. Smart albums, which are created dynamically according to rules you specify, are not possible to sync with Lightroom Mobile.

Edit on Lightroom Mobile

When the sync operation is complete, load Lightroom Mobile on a phone or tablet and the collections you synced will show up in your Albums list.

If you have never used Lightroom Mobile before you’re going to be amazed at how quickly you can perform operations like moving from one photo to the next, flagging/rejecting, cropping, or pretty much anything else you might do in Lightroom Classic.

Upon loading your images into Lightroom Mobile, you can quickly swipe between them to check for focus and composition. Simple gestures like swipe up on the left to assign a star rating and swipe up/down on the right to mark a picture as Pick or Rejected make the editing process much faster than Lightroom Classic. A few taps will let you quickly crop, rotate, and make basic exposure adjustments.

As far as individual features go, the two programs are almost the same. However, the mobile version has an interface designed around touch instead of a mouse/keyboard combo. This means some things don’t behave quite how you might expect, but once you get the hang of things, it’s not bad at all.

Lightroom on an iPad, even a basic version and not an iPad Pro, is extremely fast, fluid, and easy.

Since the images synced between Lightroom Classic and Lightroom Mobile are small previews and not full-resolution originals I would recommend against using the latter to check for accurate focus or do highly detailed adjustments. I find Lightroom Mobile most useful for just the basics like flagging and cropping, but your own usage might vary.

Lightroom on a mobile device lets you access almost all of the editing options on the desktop version, but I prefer to use it for just a few basics.

Sync back to Lightroom Classic

The beauty of this entire process is that as soon as your edits are applied to a photo, you don’t have to manually re-sync anything. Any edits you make automatically copy back to your original Lightroom files on your desktop. All you have to do is load up that program, wait for automatic sync to finish, and your pictures are ready for further edits.

Ever since I started using this Desktop->Mobile->Desktop workflow for my initial culling and cropping, I have found myself enjoying the whole process. I’ll sit back on my sofa or relax with a drink at the kitchen table while rapidly flipping through pictures on my iPad for the first round of edits. I’ll then return to my desktop, and the rest of the editing is much less stressful.

Finding the best photos out of a batch of 600 is much, much faster when using Lightroom Mobile.

This may seem a bit overwhelming at first. However, once you try this process, you will be surprised at how easy it is.

What about you? Do you have any other tips for speeding up your Lightroom workflow? Share them in the comments below!

The post How to Use Lightroom Mobile to Speed Up Your Workflow appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.

Digital Photography School

August 14, 2019
Video: Max Lowe takes the Panasonic Lumix DC S1R to Hawaii

Aloha! In this video, award-winning photographer Max Lowe goes to Hawaii to meet adventurer and educator Austin Kino. Austin has sailing in his blood, and on this trip he takes Max out onto the water, on a photographic journey around the Orchid Isle.

To capture the experience, we gave Max a Panasonic Lumix DC-S1R, and the entire video was shot with its companion camera, the Lumix DC-S1. Check out our video to see how Max – and the cameras – got on.

Sample gallery

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This is sponsored content, created with the support of Amazon and Panasonic. What does this mean?

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

August 14, 2019