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  • Filmborn film camera app updated with new presets, iOS 12 support and bug fixes

    Seattle-based Mastin Labs has released a large update for Filmborn, its camera app for iOS, adding additional film looks, free access to all current editing tools, support for iOS 12 and the three newest iPhone models and updates to the original film preset appearances.

    Filmborn provides iPhone users with true-to-film presets that give images captured by the phone a realistic film appearance. Users are able to create up to three in-app camera kits containing customized specifications, as well as adjust exposure and white balance using gestures and curves using Filmborn’s Custom Curves tool. Other features includes last photo review, live film previews, and highlight clipping.

    Version 1.4 update makes all of those tools free for users who purchase Filmborn. The app’s size and user interface have both been optimized, performance and responsiveness have been improved, and Mastin Labs has added haptic feedback for tool buttons when pressed in Camera view.

    A number of bug fixes are included with this update, most notable being a fix for the iPhone X telephoto lens issue users previously experienced. Filmborn now offers a lens toggle under Camera view for dual-camera iPhone models, as well. The iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR are all now supported by the app.

    The new preset packs available in Filmborn version 1.4.

    In addition to the app update, Mastin Labs has also added three new film preset packs to Filmborn’s store: Kodak Everyday Original, Fujicolor Pushed, and Portra Pushed. Filmborn is available to purchase from the iOS App Store for $ 2.99. Additional preset packs are available as in-app purchases for $ 1.99.

    Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Embracing Shadows in Photography – A Lesson for Light and Life

    The post Embracing Shadows in Photography – A Lesson for Light and Life appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.

    In this fantastic video by Sean Tucker, he takes a look at the ways shadows can be used in photography to create mystery and depth.

     

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    Shadows in film

    Throughout this process, he examines the work of cinematographer, Roger Deakins, and looks at stills from his films Skyfall, Bladerunner, Jarhead and Unbroken. Using these amazing film stills, he analyses how the Deakins uses color, backlight, selective lighting and loads of deep shadows to create mystery and mood in his images.

    According to Sean, many photographers say that using film as a point-of-reference for this type of photography is difficult because the same type of images cannot be captured in stills. As photographers, we simply don’t have access to million-dollar lighting set-ups and set design.

    Photographers who tell stories through shadows

    So, as part of this perspective, Sean also looks at photographers, Constantine Manos, Ray Metzker, Saul Leiter, and Trent Parke who manage to capture shadows in creative ways. These photographers manage to do this through the use of natural light and in the genres of landscape, portraiture and street photography. Through these images, they sculpt light, create character and tell stories with an interesting narrative. These images draw the viewer in and tell richer stories.

    In the video, Sean also discusses the limitations of cameras to see the full dynamic range of the eye. He shows us exactly how this theory works with our camera through a diagrammatic presentation. A helpful tool for those wanting to understand dynamic range.

    You may also find the following articles helpful:

    Add Impact to Your Photos by Including Shadows

    5 Tips for Mastering Shadows in Your Photography

    How to Use Shadow and Contrast to Create Dramatic Images

    24 Dark and Mysterious Shadow Images

    25 Shadow Images to Inspire You

    The post Embracing Shadows in Photography – A Lesson for Light and Life appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.


    Digital Photography School

  • Panasonic LX100 II: solid image quality in studio and real-world shooting

    We’ve been shooting with the LX100 II both in and out of the studio, as part of our ongoing review. We’ve written about the camera’s operation and handling, analysed the studio scene and the camera’s dynamic range, and expanded the sample gallery.

    Click here to read our expanded First Impressions Review

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    Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Hasselblad Phocus 3.4 update adds new shadow/highlights tool, adjustment layers, more

    Hasselblad has released an update to its medium format post-production program Phocus. Focus version 3.4 adds improvements across the board, including improved shadow and highlight tools, new adjustment layer tools, expanded live view options, new lens profile, and more.

    The enhanced Shadow Fill and Highlight Recovery tools have been ‘significantly enhanced.’ Hasselblad says the updated algorithm ‘enables photographers to fully utilize the dynamic range available in their images,’ although exactly how it’s changed remains a mystery. In the event the updated methodology isn’t what a user wants, or the a user is working with previously-corrected images, Hasselblad has also included the old algorithm under a selectable version option.

    Hasselblad has added Shadow Fill and Clarity options to the adjustment layer tools so they can now be used as local adjustments with the brush tool and linear and radial gradients. A new Detail tool has also been added under the exposure toolset. This new tool is used alongside the Clarity tool to fine-tune the local contrast in an image.

    Focus 3.4 also includes a new Live View Aperture option that lets users ‘to automatically open to the widest aperture possible or to use the selected aperture instead when activating live view.’

    Also new is an updated Noise Filter tool and additional lens profiles for the following lenses:

    • XCD 2,8/65
    • XCD 1,9/80
    • XCD 2,8/135 with X Converter 1.7

    To download Hasselblad Phocus 3.4, head over to Hasselblad’s Phocus download page.

    Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • First look: Skylum Luminar 3 adds support for photo libraries, Digital Asset Manager to follow

    Skylum Luminar 3’s layout.

    Luminar’s library is set to open soon, but expect construction to continue through at least next year.

    The long-awaited update to Skylum Software’s photo editor adds in-app photo library management, which the company says is the first step toward building out a complete Digital Asset Manager (DAM). Called ‘Luminar with Libraries’, this version more directly competes with applications that organize your photos, such as Adobe Lightroom Classic CC and Lightroom CC. Luminar 3 arrives December 18, runs on macOS and Windows, and is a free update for owners of Luminar 2018.

    This version more directly competes with applications that organize your photos, such as Adobe Lightroom

    That’s mixed news for photographers contemplating a switch from Adobe’s applications, especially since Skylum has been teasing a Luminar DAM for well over a year (and just barely hitting their promise to ship it in 2018). Acknowledging the situation, Skylum is making further updates to Luminar free throughout 2019.

    Luminar 3 is a free update for current owners of Luminar 2018. Owners of Aurora HDR, Photolemur, and legacy products can upgrade for $ 49 until December 18. New preorders cost $ 59 until that date, and $ 69 thereafter. There’s no subscription pricing model.

    Library vs Digital Asset Manager

    Here’s what Luminar with Libraries offers:

    • The Library component is integrated into the application, not existing as a separate app. It keeps track of all the images you throw at it in a browsable image gallery. Photos can be imported from cameras or memory cards, or you can point Luminar at existing folders on your hard disk. Unlike apps such as Apple Photos or Lightroom CC, Luminar doesn’t squirrel the images away to its own folder or container. It creates a central catalog file to track file locations and edits, but the originals remain wherever you put them in the first place.
    • In the Library, you can rate photos from zero to five stars, mark them as flagged or rejected, or apply any of five color labels.
    • You can create albums and populate them with photos.
    • A few shortcuts act like smart albums, revealing photos based on their capture dates, import dates, and recently edited dates.
    • In the Info panel, a limited set of EXIF data is shown, such as the camera, lens, focal length, ISO, aperture, shutter speed, and exposure compensation.
    • You can filter the library based on any of those attributes.
    Filter images based on the criteria the Library offers.

    Luminar with Libraries covers the basics of wrangling files and making them easily available for editing, but a full DAM provides a deeper level of interacting with one’s photos. Not included in this release is the ability to apply keywords or IPTC metadata, any kind of text-based search, a way to expose and take advantage of location data, or synchronization of images between computers or devices. The interface for importing photos relies on traditional Open dialogs instead of a way to preview the shots.

    Editing Changes

    Luminar 3 is still the same editor as it was before, with a few enhancements. Presets are now ‘Luminar Looks,’ which sounds like just a rebranding attempt, but actually rolls presets, LUTs, and some AI-enhanced operations into one-click actions.

    “Luminar Looks” isn’t simply advantageous alliteration, but a merging of presets, LUTs, and some AI processing.

    More significantly, the inclusion of the library into Luminar makes it possible to apply edits to one image and sync them among many other similar photos.

    Sync edits from one image to several similar shots.

    The Windows version includes improvements to Luminar’s color management to get consistent color among displays and devices, plus a host of bug fixes and performance boosts.

    What’s Next

    Skylum plans to release frequent updates throughout 2019 to add features and expand the library’s features. In its Luminar Roadmap, the company lists targets for the first half of the year that include:

    • Improved handling of Raw + JPEG image pairs (instead of treating each part separately).
    • The ability to create virtual copies of photos.
    • A Smart Search feature for locating shots “using keywords, EXIF information, and file names” (suggesting keyword support will be forthcoming).
    • IPTC core data editing and syncing among images.
    • Features that use AI technology “when editing skin on portraits, architecture, removing objects or simply applying masks on your images.”
    • A Lightroom migration tool.

    Although Luminar 3 won’t arrive with a fully-formed DAM, as many photographers were hoping, incorporating the photo library into the application is still a big deal. Melding the library and the editing tools in the same environment streamlines the overall workflow. It allows you to work on a range of images quickly, without the hassle of opening and saving individual images (and deciding where the edited versions live). It’s a big reason why people stick with Lightroom or use alternatives such as Capture One, Alien Skin Exposure, or ON1 Photo Raw.

    Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Xiaomi co-founder teases 48MP smartphone camera

    Earlier this year Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi announced it had established an in-house camera division. Now it seems the initiative is bearing its first fruits.

    Xiaomi co-founder and President Lin Bin has teased a smartphone with 48MP camera module on the Chinese social media platform Weibo. The image he posted shows a close-up of a rear camera with a ’48MP camera’ label next to the lens. Bin says he has used the phone for a few weeks and that it will be released in January.

    That’s not an awful lot of information, but it means the upcoming Xiaomi phone will feature the highest pixel count ever on a mobile image sensor. Nokia’s 808 PureView juggernaut came with a 41MP sensor and the much more recent Huawei Mate 20 Pro features a 40MP quad Bayer arrangement.

    Like the Nokia 808 PureView and Huawei Mate 20 Pro, the unreleased Xiaomi phone is likely to use its pixel count for high-quality digital zooming, pixel-binning for lower noise, and other computational trickery, rather than outputting enormous image files.

    The sensor in question could be the Sony IMX586 quad-Bayer model which was announced in July. At 1/2″ it’s large for a mobile sensor, but due to the high pixel-count, individual pixels still only measure 0.8µm. Samsung’s Bright GM1 is another option with very similar specifications.

    It’ll be interesting to see if the new Xiaomi will solely rely on the power of the 48MP sensor or add additional sensors, for example for tele, super-wide-angle or black-and-white shooting into the mix. We’ll know more in January.

    Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography

    The post Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Kevin Landwer-Johan.

    Whether you have just invested in your first camera, or you did so a while back, taking a measured approach to learning to use it will help you improve your photography.

    Woman Photographer at the Shopping Mall - Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography

    © Kevin Landwer-Johan

    Beyond camera skills, there’s a whole lot more to making great photos. Composition, lighting, timing, and relationship with your subject are all important aspects of photography. All are largely unrelated to camera tech.

    Photography is a journey. You can make it as long or short as you like. You can stick to a well-beaten path, (and create photos much the same as most people do,) or be more ambitious and scale lofty peaks. If you want to do the latter you better have a good idea of where you want to go and be ready to develop the necessary skills for the adventure.

    Where do you start and how do you become competent in both the technical and creative aspects of photography?

    Start with What’s Essential

    Camera manuals are notorious. They are often difficult to understand and the information can appear disjointed. However, these books provide you with valuable insight. To be able to create interesting photographs you need to have a good knowledge and understanding of your camera first.

    Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography Happy Photographer

    © Kevin Landwer-Johan

    Start with your camera manual. Read it in the language you most easily understand, (and ignore all other language options.) Don’t try and absorb it all at once. Spread out your reading over the first week with your camera in your hands. Take in a little at a time and practice it.

    Google and Youtube will often provide you with information about your camera that’s more straightforward. Search your camera make and model. Find one or two sources that cover it in depth and spend time studying it.

    Get a good grasp of the basics of how your camera works. Get to know it’s settings and functions. Learning these things will help you avoid a lot of frustration when you are taking photos.

    Concentrate on the Basic Functions

    Trying to learn all the intricacies of your camera right at the start can be confusing. Modern cameras are packed with more whistles and bells than you will ever need to use.

    Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography My First Camera

    © Kevin Landwer-Johan

    My first camera was a simple tool. I had no option but to learn to use it manually. It had no automatic functions. This was a great way to learn. Thirty years or so later as I was preparing to launch my photography workshops, I had to study how to teach using the auto settings. I had never used them.

    It’s a little like driving a car with an automatic transmission after learning in a manual shift car. Easy, because you’ve already mastered the essentials in manual mode.

    Personally, I think using manual mode gives you the freedom to become more creative with your camera. I encourage you to do this. If you don’t have the time or commitment, experiment with the auto settings on your camera and find one or two which suit you best. Don’t be distracted by the scene modes or the many other functions your camera has. When you are starting out these will just add confusion.

    Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography Camera Police

    © Kevin Landwer-Johan

    Be Regular

    Picking up your camera frequently and regularly is the one thing that will advance your photography. Make a habit of taking at least one photo a day. It only needs to take a few minutes.

    Once you form a habit you will find it easy to make more time for photography. As you become familiar with your camera you will start to enjoy it more. When this happens you will notice you are beginning to take better photographs. It can become addictive.

    Using your camera infrequently will lead to some frustration each time you do pick it up. You will have to think again which dials and buttons do what. You will not be familiar enough with the controls to use your camera with ease. Taking at least one photo a day will help you learn the camera controls and before long you will know them and use them intuitively. You don’t need to make a masterpiece each day, just try to improve a little at a time.

    Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography Example

    © Pansa Landwer-Johan

    Learn a Little More

    Studying – along with regular camera use – will accelerate your photography learning experience. Find a good book, online course or enroll in some classes.

    Look for a teacher or author whose style you like and would like to emulate. Some people who teach photography will have you concentrate heavily on the technical aspects of the craft. Others will encourage you to leave your camera on auto all the time and let the camera do the work. It’s your choice which path you choose to follow. I prefer to teach a mix of the creative and technical aspects of photography.

    Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography Monk Photographer

    © Kevin Landwer-Johan

    Building your technical ability is important. You need to understand your camera and how to manage the settings. Receiving some good teaching on the functions of shutter speed, aperture, ISO, focus and other essential controls will lead you to be more creative. Once you have learned these skills your mind will be freer to focus on the creative elements that make good photographs.

    Having a good grasp of composition, light, color, and timing is equally important for being able to make good photographs. Much of the creative side of photography is very subjective. You can study it and gain foundational knowledge. This will set you up towards developing your own personal photographic style.

    Without a balance between technical and creative study, you can end up unbalanced. This can lead to technically perfect snapshots or terribly exposed, out-of-focus ‘creative’ photographs.

    Three Helpful Tips to Help Your Progress

    Make a separate folder on your computer, somewhere you can access it easily. At least once a week, go through the photos you have made and choose a few of your favorites. Put them in this new folder. This is your portfolio. You don’t need to share it with anyone else (but it’s a good idea to.) It’s there so you can see your photographs improve over time.

    Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography Market Photographer

    © Kevin Landwer-Johan

    Having your work critiqued by a more experienced photographer helps. You may not always see what you have done wrong. You may look at your photos and know they are not great, but not be able to figure out why. This is where an experienced photographer can help you. A good critique will be positive and constructive but not shy away from pointing out changes which need to be made.

    Finding someone to mentor you is one sure way that will help your photography progress. Regular contact with a more experienced photographer who’s committed to helping you learn will accelerate the process. The feedback a mentor can provide is invaluable. A good mentor will teach and guide you. They will also set and assess assignments for you.

    Conclusion

    Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography Kevin Teaching

    © Pansa Landwer-Johan

    Like learning to play a musical instrument or losing weight, the level of your commitment will be reflected in the level of your success. The more committed you are to learning to use your camera well, the more successful you become.

    Frequent camera use and study will propel you more quickly to your goal. It’s your choice. Make regular study and camera use a daily habit. Go through and separate out your favorite photos once a week or so. You will be encouraged by the photos you are making. You will never achieve your potential by only occasionally picking up your camera.

    The post Taking a Measured Approach to Learning Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Kevin Landwer-Johan.


    Digital Photography School

  • Peel apart instant film returns in the form of ONE INSTANT

    In 2016, Fujifilm announced it would no longer produce its FP-100C peel apart instant film, citing a dwindling lack of demand for the product. The discontinuation effectively ended the peel apart instant film market, but a new Kickstarter campaign aims to change that. Florian “Doc” Kaps, founder of The Impossible Project, has unveiled ONE INSTANT, a new peel apart instant film expected to launch in 2019.

    Following Fujifilm’s FP-100C discontinuation, Kaps had pushed to save peel apart film via SuperSense, the company he founded after leaving The Impossible Project in 2013. The effort wasn’t successful at the time, but has ultimately proven fruitful more than two years later with the unveiling of ONE INSTANT.

    As Kaps explains in the video above, ONE INSTANT is a re-invention of peel apart technology featuring single-shot instant film packaged in a paper cartridge. More than two years of research and development went into the innovation.

    Kaps explains on the Kickstarter campaign:

    In spring 2016 Fuji announced termination of the world’s last instant packfilm production line. Since that day – more than 2 years ago! – we have been desperately searching for “impossible” ways to save this iconic film material. Just like we successfully did with the legendary Polaroid film by purchasing the last original factory in 2008 and restarting production the classic way.

    We failed! And honestly this was the best thing that could happen.

    The single-shot ONE INSTANT Type 100 glossy color ISO 125 film is ‘based on a new, radical concept,’ the team explains. The product is compatible will all classic Type 100 packfilm cameras and is made with original Polaroid P7 material that was acquired by 20×24 Studio.

    The team warns that ONE INSTANT “is truly really expensive to produce,” but they have vowed to bring down the cost when possible by optimizing production. The high cost is due to being mostly hand-made; the campaign explains how production takes place, saying:

    ONE INSTANT is a tiny, bespoke, dream-come-true MANUFACTORY in Vienna. ONE INSTANT film editions will be produced WITHOUT the need of giant machines, huge factory spaces and large teams. Our all new manufactory will just consist of a small beautiful darkroom for all production steps that need darkness (mainly the insertion of the negative into the lightproof paper cartridge), a beautiful daylight assembly room and of course our beloved all analog printshop for all paper work, cartridge punching, producing all our hand-made packaging and communication materials.

    Backers are offered multiple products to make a pledge for on the Kickstarter campaign, including various ONE INSTANT bundles that feature multiple packs, different box colors, and a Starter Kit that includes a mint condition Polaroid COLORPACK 2 camera. Film shipments to backers are expected to start in May 2019.

    Disclaimer: Remember to do your research with any crowdfunding project. DPReview does its best to share only the projects that look legitimate and come from reliable creators, but as with any crowdfunded campaign, there’s always the risk of the product or service never coming to fruition.

    Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Insta360 One X update brings HDR video and Google Street View integration

    Insta360 has released a software update for its One X 5.7K 360-degree camera. With version software version 1.1.0 the camera is now capable of capturing HDR video — previously HDR recording was only available for still images. The One X HDR mode makes sure highlight and shadow clipping in your 360-degree videos are kept to a minimum and should make for more natural looking footage, without minimal need for post processing.

    The second new feature in the update is Google Maps Street View Integration. One X owners can now use their camera to capture 360-degree content for Google Maps Street View and directly upload to Street View via the One X mobile app. The latter automatically converts video files into a series of evenly spaced 360 photo spheres for viewing on the Google platform.

    In addition the company has announced that the One X is now available in a bundle that is exclusive to Apple. The bundle includes a number of accessories, including Insta360’s Bullet Time handle that also serves as a tripod, a selfie stick that is rendered invisible by the camera software, two batteries, and a protective pouch.

    The Insta360 ONE X Camera Bundle is now available at Apple.com for $ 449.95. You can read our review of the Insta360 One X here.

    Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Review: The Wacom Intuos Pro is a workflow-boosting machine

    Wacom Intuos Pro
    $ 299.95 | Wacom.com

    When it comes to precision photo editing, a tablet may be the tool you never knew you desperately needed. Although the Wacom tablet has long been a favored tool of graphic designers and digital artists, it’s also an excellent piece of editing gear for photographers.

    The Wacom Intuos Pros allows you to return to your roots of putting a pen to paper to create an image – a tactile experience that many younger digital artists may be out of touch with. If you’ve spent a number of years editing with a mouse or trackpad there will undoubtedly be a a bit of a learning curve when it comes to using the pen, but with a little bit of practice you will likely find this device speeds up your editing process and make tools like dodging, burning and clone-stamping much more precise.

    Key features

    • 338 x 219 x 8mm / 13.2 x 8.5 x 0.3 in
    • 1.54lb / 0.7kg
    • Wacom Pro Pen 2 with 2 programmable buttons
    • 8192 pen pressure levels (up from 2048)
    • 8 Customizable ExpressKeys
    • Built-in Bluetooth connectivity and USB connectivity
    • Pen stand with 10 replacement nibs (tips)
    • Choose between ‘standard’ or ‘felt’ nibs for added friction
    • Mac and Windows compatible

    What’s new

    The Wacom Intuos Pro tablet is thinner and lighter than its predecessor, so it occupies less real-estate on your desk. Despite this, the active area is larger thanks to a slimmer bezel and he surface plate can be swapped for a variety of different textures depending on your preferences.

    The Wacom Intuos Pro is designed to imitate a large piece of paper

    The new version utilizes the Wacom Pro Pen 2, which comes with a weight base (shown below), and is slimmer than version 1 – It also features two programmable buttons and 8192 pressure levels (up from 2048). Wireless Bluetooth connectivity is also new to the Wacom Intuos Pro.

    Design

    The Wacom Intuos Pro is designed to imitate a large piece of paper. The user chooses the orientation of the tablet and how it will map to their computer screen – this makes it a great tool regardless of your computer setup or dominant hand. On one side of the tablet you will find eight customizable express keys and the touch ring. The power switch and the touch functionality switch are located on the side of the tablet near the express keys and the optional USB plugin is on the opposite edge of the tablet.

    The Wacom Pro Pen 2’s stand stores additional nubs. The pen itself has two customizable buttons – flip it upside down and you can use it as an eraser. The tablet itself has rubber grip on the bottom to keep it in place, and its slim profile makes it easy to travel with or store away when space is limited.

    In use

    It had been a number of years since I’d used a tablet for photo editing, and I can confirm that the learning curve was certainly there. But after a bit of practice with the pen and tablet I found the process of retouching scanned negatives in Adobe Photoshop to be more precise, faster and less taxing on my wrist than it would have been if I were using a mouse. Put another way, the difference between retouching with the Wacom pen vs. the mouse is like hand-writing a note with a fine tipped Sharpie vs a paint roller. The eraser is precise as well. I found it to be particularly helpful when creating multi-layer image compositions.

    The vast degree of pressure responsiveness in the Pro Pen 2 is something I really appreciated, especially when it came to dodging, burning and light retouching. Press hard and the results are more pronounced, use a lighter touch and everything is more subtle. If you are particularly heavy-handed you can adjust the overall sensitivity of the pen.

    The difference between the Wacom pen and a mouse is like hand-writing a note with a fine-tipped Sharpie versus a paint roller

    The buttons on the side of the pen make it easy to control the brush size. At first I found myself accidentally pressing them as I edited, but I eventually learned to slightly rotate the pen while I worked to avoid this problem.

    Also of note is that I observed no noticeable lag time between tablet and computer screen when it was connected via USB. The Bluetooth connection also seemed quite good, though I did notice a little bit of latency when using the paintbrush tool for extended periods of time.

    Of course, Photoshop is not the only application the Intuous Pro is good for; I also used the tablet to work on images in Adobe Lightroom. And while it was useful for cloning and healing, I found it to be a little unwieldy when making adjustments to the slider. Ultimately I think I still prefer utilizing the mouse and the keyboard shortcuts that have been burned into my muscle memory for Lightroom work.

    Bottom line

    If you’ve never used a tablet and pen setup – or if it’s been a number of years since you’ve picked one up – the Wacom Intuos Pro will take some getting use to. Give it time though, because if you are doing a lot of image retouching, image compositing or light graphic design work, this editing accessory will certainly boost your productivity. And the customizable functions will make it appeal to a large variety of users. In all, we think that this tool can help take your editing workflow and the final image results to the next level.

    What we like:

    • Pen delivers precise results
    • Pressure sensitive tip
    • Lightweight and travel friendly
    • Highly customizable
    • Excellent to use with Adobe Photoshop

    What we don’t like:

    • Somewhat laggy Bluetooth connectivity; not a huge problem for light retouching jobs, but could become problematic when making large scale image composites that require a lot of painting.

    Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)