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5 Ways to Apply Artistic Expression for Memorable Photography

21 Dec

The post 5 Ways to Apply Artistic Expression for Memorable Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jeremy Flint.

Rickshaw rider, Kathmandu, Nepal © Jeremy Flint

Photography can be a wonderful way to express your creativity and artistic flair. Artistic expression is all about you and allowing yourself the freedom in your photography to satisfy your visual curiosity. Fundamentally, it is a means to fuel your imagination and a way of being artful, according to your mood. The subject matter is entirely your choice, whether you decide to capture wildlife, landscapes, architecture or abstract scenes.

You can apply photography techniques that inspire you, from motion blur to creative arrangements. Alternatively, work with what you find.

Here are 5 ways you can use artistic expression in your photography to capture some memorable shots:

1. Sharpness and blur

Freezing the action of your chosen subject can be achieved with short exposure times and result in sharper images. Photography doesn’t have to be about capturing the beauty of a scene in its sharpest and most natural form. You can be playful in your creations and apply a bit of artistic blur from time to time. Adding artistic blur is a great way to put some art and movement into your photographs.

Sharp images are dynamic and provide an obvious and real static representation of a scene. However, using blur can make an image more compelling. Using a slower shutter speed helps to provide motion and movement to photographs while adding drama and vitality.

Hyena Pan, Tanzania © Jeremy Flint

2. Light trails at night

At nighttime, as darkness falls, lights come on and provide excellent subjects to capture. Roads become lit by light trails from vehicles that give unique patterns.

© Jeremy Flint

Fairgrounds are great for artistic shots. This is due to their unique atmosphere, as well as the fairground’s color and excitement. Be inventive and artistic in your approach to capturing these scenes. Look for elements such as the vibrant and attractive Christmas lights and car light trails as shown in the image below.

London Xmas Lights © Jeremy Flint

3. Shoot a silhouette

While many shots taken during daylight hours tend to show all details in an image, get creative by shooting a silhouette. You can achieve a silhouette by mainly photographing a subject’s outline and making it featureless against a bright background.

Stonehenge, Wiltshire, UK © Jeremy Flint

In the image example here, I have used the famous landmark of Stonehenge in the UK with a vibrant sky behind. Make sure you choose a strong subject for a silhouette such as the distinct shape of a person or animal. The best way to shoot a silhouette is to position your subject in front of a bright background and to expose for the background, rendering your subject dark and underexposed.

© Jeremy Flint

Silhouettes are an interesting way to convey drama and energy into your images and makes them stand out.

4. Shoot an abstract

Abstract photography can be made up of several characteristics. Usually, abstraction takes place when a photographer focuses on a section of a natural scene isolating it from its context. This could be a color, texture, line, shape, geometry, symmetry or reflection of a scene. The photographer changes our perception of the real and familiar subject or object. The viewer doesn’t immediately recognize it.

Abstraction facilitates a move away from the specific, the concrete and the obvious. You achieve abstraction by isolating, or eliminating an object and its texture, shape, and form. Color and tones can become strong elements in an abstract photograph.

Slot Canyon, Arizona, USA © Jeremy Flint

Details can be used to create abstract photographs by moving closer to our subjects. Alternatively, you can achieve abstraction through movement. Through subject motion, photographer motion, camera movement or a combination of any of these, information gets reduced, and impressions are created. For example, moving the camera upwards or downwards when photographing trees leaves behind colors, patterns, and lines.

5. Find patterns

Patterns are a wonderful way to add interest to your abstract photography. Our day to day visual life consists of patterns, shapes, and textures that evoke a certain mood or atmosphere.

We are visually drawn to patterns because they provide us with a graphic element that looks appealing and interesting.

© Jeremy Flint

Photographing patterns can make for good compositions. For example, you could show a small area of a broader subject. Macro lenses can be used to get in close and add more interest.

Conclusion

Learning to apply artistic expression in your photos can be a great way to create intriguing and unusual images that make a viewer stop and think about your image. Try out the 5 techniques outlined above and share your images with us below.

The post 5 Ways to Apply Artistic Expression for Memorable Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jeremy Flint.


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Sony fixes data loss issues with firmware v2.10 for a7 III, a7R III cameras

21 Dec

In October 2018, Sony released firmware version 2.0 for its a7 III and a7R III mirrorless cameras. Two months later, in early December, firmware version 2.0 was removed from Sony’s website unexpectedly, due to an issue where some users were experiencing lost data when using an SD card that had already been used multiple times.

Specifically, Sony cited the following reasons for pulling firmware version 2.0 for the a7 III and a7R III cameras:

  1. In rare cases, your ?7R III or ?7 III model may stop functioning while writing RAW data onto an SD card that has already been used multiple times.
  2. With the ?7R III, taking a picture while using the Auto Review function may occasionally cause the camera to stop responding.

At the time of the firmware removal, Sony said it would ‘provide updated system software addressing the above issues in mid-December.’ Well, mid-December is here and as promised, Sony has released an update fixing the aforementioned issues.

Firmware version 2.10 features the same upgrades and features as firmware version 2.0, while addressing the data loss and Auto Review issues that plagued the update.

Users can upgrade to firmware version 2.10 for the a7 III (Windows, macOS) and a7R III (Windows, macOS) mirrorless cameras on Sony’s website.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Rogue drones cause chaos at London’s Gatwick international airport

21 Dec
Aircraft stands at the North Terminal — Martin Roell from Berlin, Germany CC BY-SA 2.0

London’s Gatwick airport has been in a state of perpetual disruption since Wednesday, December 19, after ‘rogue drones’ forced officials to close down the runways. According to Transport Secretary Chris Grayling, the drones would reappear each time officials attempted to reopen the runaway, leaving the airport in a state of ‘chaos.’

Grayling explained to the press that officials were dealing with a ‘very serious ongoing incident in which substantial drones have been used to bring about the temporary closure of a major international airport.’

Gatwick was forced to ground flights around 4PM ET / 2100 GMT after two drones were seen flying in the airport’s airfield. More than 20 police units are searching for the individual(s) responsible for the drones, according to Reuters, and The Guardian now reports that Army officials have responded to aid with the situation.

Eurocontrol, the European aviation agency, at this time states that Gatwick will not reopen until 10PM local time at the earliest. Though police sharpshooters are on site, they were not authorized to shoot down the drones due to the risk of a stray bullet causing injury. Tens of thousands of passengers traveling over the holiday season have been impacted by the closure and more than 800 flights have been cancelled.

Gatwick airport chief executive Stewart Wingate has released a statement on the matter, saying in part:

Although not for today, these events obviously highlight a wider strategic challenge for aviation in this country which we need to address together with speed – the aviation industry, Government and all the other relevant authorities. It cannot be right that drones can close a vital part of our national infrastructure in this way. This is obviously a relatively new technology and we need to think through together the right solutions to make sure it cannot happen again.

Nations around the world have scrambled to develop regulations covering consumer drones and the potential risks they pose, including possible damage to commercial aircraft. Many countries have restricted the use of drones in the airspace near and above airports to avoid collisions during takeoff and landing.

Earlier this year, the University of Dayton Research Institute published a controversial video showing the damage a small drone caused to an airplane wing in a simulated environment. Though there haven’t been any substantial incidents resulting from drone-plane collisions, there was a helicopter crash earlier this year that may have resulted from a wayward drone.

A number of methods for deterring and capturing unauthorized drones have been developed, but few are in use. Existing methods include net-based drone take-down launchers and systems that disrupt a drone’s ability to communicate with its operator. No single, universal, rapidly deployable system has been developed, however.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Google photos expands album limit to 20,000 photos and videos

20 Dec

In early October this year Google announced Live Albums for Google Photos. Live Albums is an automated way of creating albums in your Photos accounts. The system is capable of identifying specific people and pets in your images and moving them into dedicated albums, without the need for any user interaction.

However, it seems with the new feature the limit of 10,000 images and video per album was way to low. Turns out, people take a lot of pictures and videos of their favorite people and pets.

Thankfully the limit has now been bumped up and family or pet albums, as well as all other albums, can now contain up to 20,000 image and video files. The change has been confirmed by Google to Android Police and documented in the support pages.

The new limit should prevent the need to remove content for a while, but in the event space is at a premium, users can choose to exclude older photos in the album creation process to fee up a little space.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 500mm F4 D II ED lens with rare grey color appears on eBay

20 Dec

A new eBay listing details a rare grey Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 500mm F4 D II ED lens in ‘very good’ condition with included case and accessories. According to the auction listing, the lens is fully functional with only ‘minimal to moderate’ signs of use on the barrel. ‘The glass is clean,’ according to the seller midwestphotoexchange, an authorized Nikon seller with a 99.8% positive rating with more than a thousand transactions. ‘The aperture blades are oil and corrosion free, and their action and control are snappy.’

The lens features the Nikon F mount and is compatible with all of the company’s SLR and DSLR models, though the seller warns it won’t meter on camera bodies made before 1977. The telephoto lens was manufactured in Japan at an unknown date and notably features a grey body overlaid with a prominent, bright red Nikon logo.

The lens is offered with a CT-502 hard case, HK-28 lens hood, both the front cover and rear cap, lens and case straps, and an extra drop-in filter holder. The seller, who will ship the item from Columbus, Ohio, is offering the lens bundle on eBay with the Buy it Now price of $ 3,995 USD, though the listing also allows interested buyers to make an offer on the item.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Why we haven’t taken a stance on in-body stabilization vs OIS – and why that has changed

20 Dec

DPReview has never taken sides in the row over whether image stabilization should be provided in-body or in the lens. But we’ll now list the absence of in-body stabilization as a Con in our camera reviews. We’ll explain what’s happened to change our stance.

For at least the last decade, our internal policy has been to have no preference between in-body and in-lens stabilization. It’s an approach that was sometimes seen as fence-sitting but was driven by two logical precepts:

Our primary reasoning was based on our guiding principal that it makes more sense to concentrate on the photographic impact, rather than which technology was used. For many years, a majority of users bought DSLRs that came with a stabilized lens and had essentially the same experience as those users who bought a camera body with stabilization. The in-body advocates talked a good game about ‘every lens being stabilized’ but we didn’t hear reports from thousands of distraught DSLR buyers wondering why their shots were blurry.

There are genuine advantages and disadvantages to both approaches

Secondly, there are genuine advantages and disadvantages to both approaches. As a broad generalization, in-body stabilization does a better job of correcting the translational movements that affect close-up and wide-angle photography, while in-lens designs cope better with the large pitch and yaw corrections needed with long focal lengths. So why would we give credit for one and ignore the benefits of the other?

The result was close enough to a wash that we felt it was inappropriate to have a preference.

So what’s changed?

That’s now changed, again for two main reasons. The first is prevalence: for our review Pros and Cons, we tend to recognize a new feature as a Pro if it’s rare or exceptional but then acknowledge its absence as a shortcoming, once it’s become a common (and hence expected) feature. So, for example, we started off seeing USB charging as a ‘Pro’ (with an associated ‘Con’ if it was used as an excuse to leave an external charger out of the box), when it first appeared. But, now that it’s become commonplace, it’s the absence of USB charging that would be seen as a negative.

Now that Ricoh, Olympus, Panasonic, Sony, Fujifilm and Nikon all offer in-body IS on at least some of their interchangeable lens cameras, its omission starts to look like a factor we should highlight to would-be buyers.

The second factor is the growth in importance of video. There may have been little difference in performance between in-lens and in-body stabilization when it came to stills, but the same can’t be said for video. Watch TV or movies and you’ll see all sorts of camera movements, but what you won’t tend to see is roll: left-and-right rotations that cause the horizon to tilt. In-lens stabilization can correct for pitch and yaw but it can’t correct for roll: which gives in-body stabilization an immediate advantage.

There may have been little difference in performance between in-lens and in-body stabilization when it came to stills, but the same can’t be said for video

We’ll still test each camera to see how well its IS works: our approach of assessing effect, rather than technology means we’ll check whether digital stabilization in concert with in-lens stabilization provides a good degree of correction. But don’t be surprised if you see Cons highlighting the lack of in-body stabilization in our future reviews.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Nikon Japan officially lists the D5500 and D7200 as discontinued

20 Dec

The Nikon D5500 and D7200 DSLRs have officially been discontinued, according to the Nikon Japan website.

It’s been rumored for some time now, but as reported by Nikon Rumors, Nikon Japan has confirmed both APS-C cameras are discontinued on its website.

The D5500 and D7200 were launched in January and March 2015 and were superseded by the D5600 and D7500, respectively. Another fun bit of trivia is the D5500 was the first Nikon DSLR to feature a touchscreen when launched.

As Nikon’s APS-C lineup dwindles, it’ll be interesting to see how much Nikon invests into its crop sensor DSLRs going forward. Nikon Rumors also notes there hasn’t been much hearsay in the rumor mill regarding any potential APS-C mirrorless systems.

It’s also worth noting that while listed as discontinued by Nikon Japan, the D5500 is still available for purchase at Adorama and currently listed as back-ordered on B&H, while the D7200 is still in stock at both Adorama and B&H.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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How to Deliver Digital Images to Your Clients

20 Dec

The post How to Deliver Digital Images to Your Clients appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Mark C Hughes.

Whether you are an enthusiast, beginner photographer or an established professional, all photographers produce images. Regardless of whether you are sharing or selling images, or working on a commission, you need to get your image to the destination. Beautiful images need a delivery method in a format that people can use. That’s where things can get technical and a bit tricky.

Santa’s little helper

Considerations

There are many considerations to factor into how and what you provide to your client, including how to get them into your client’s hands as quickly as possible. Everyone has busy lives and getting together can be difficult.

For the image itself, you need to consider format, file size, resolution, and color space. Are you sending proofs? Are you using a watermark?

Once you have decided that, the next question is the delivery method. For people selling their images, consider what you want to happen after you send your client their images. Do you want to sell prints or albums after an initial proof set? What about images for social media?

Christmas is often a time crunch for delivery of images

So many details

In this age of digital media, it seems easier than ever to deliver digital media. But, is it? Nowadays, modern digital cameras create high-resolution images anywhere from 16-megapixels to 50-megapixels. Larger megapixel images correspond into larger file sizes. The problem with higher resolution image files is it taxes our ability to send and receive the images. So, where do you start? Let’s consider the file size and space followed by delivery options.

Modern digital cameras produce high-resolution images

File size and format

There are many file formats: jpeg, tiff, png and more. As you advance as a photographer shooting in RAW becomes commonplace. RAW shooters often dismiss shooting in jpeg. However, the reality is jpeg is probably the number one format people consume digitally. It is important to remember that most people consume images on digital platforms (few people print images anymore).

Size is the enemy of large-scale delivery

Although RAW is a preferred file format for shooting because of the flexibility it offers in post-processing, it is an impracticable format for digital delivery. Firstly, RAW images need a RAW processor to be able to view them. Secondly, RAW images record exactly what your camera sensor sees. They require some form of post-processing to make them look finished. Finally, the file sizes are enormous.

JPEG at quality level 10

JPEG at quality 2

Not all professional photographers avoid JPEG images. Some high-volume photographers often shoot only in JPEG and many photographers shoot in both RAW+JPEG. School photographers, for example, deal with the logistical nightmare of taking very few images of uncooperative children intended for parents with high expectations. In these cases, the logistics of image delivery is the ultimate priority. If image ordering and delivery are too complicated, there are no orders. Shooting in JPEG mode allows photographers to address this issue. Similarly, some sports photographers shoot in JPEG to allow for quick delivery.

Image consumption

The first step in addressing digital delivery is to consider the end use of the images. If the images are for social media distribution, small file sizes are your best option. If the images are too big when used on a website, the images load too slow, damaging the site speed, and ranking. These limits change with time and technology. However, for the time being, there are reasonable limits to image size you need to work within.

Similarly, many social media platforms (like Facebook or Instagram) automatically downsample your images to a manageable size. Meaning, larger images are unnecessary because that extra data gets discarded.

Instagram is where many images will end up being posted

The format

Printing

When you are printing images, you should consider your image size in both dots-per-inch (DPI) and width and height resolution (pixels). Printers generally use 300dpi (or ppi) as their resolution for printing to paper. This guide is the actual printer resolution which prints in dots, rather than pixels. A handy guide to figure out your photo resolution for printing is this: if you would like to print your photo at 8″ x 10″ at 300dpi; your photo needs to be 2400pixels x 3000pixels (8 x 300 = 2400, 10 x 300 = 3000). You take your size dimensions and times them by 300 (dpi), to come to your pixel size. That means, if your photo is 2400pixels x 3000pixels and only 72dpi, it is fine for printing at 8″ x 10″ at 300dpi. The file size of an image at this size can range from 3-7megabytes, depending on the amount of detailed information in the image. The more fine details it has, the larger the size.

Digital

For digital delivery for social media consumption use JPEG. While it is an old standard, it is the most reliable and compatible image format for all computers (Mac, Windows, and Chrome). It is a compressed format so you can make small file sizes. However, you should be aware that jpeg is a lossy format, which means that every time you edit and resave the image, you lose data in the image. As a final product, this isn’t a problem as long as you don’t edit the image.

There are other formats, that may be technically better; however, they are not as well used or practical. Most cameras offer JPEG as an image file format.

For most social media platforms, the maximum size you really need is 1500 pixels on the long edge. If someone decides to print your image, at the 300 dpi printing resolution, it is relatively small at only 5 inches (remember, 1500 divided by 300 is 5″). When saving your JPEG images, to reduce your overall image file size, reduce the quality number. The quality number is between 1 and 12. 1 is the lowest quality, and 12 is the highest.

Physical media

Gone are the days of recording CDs and DVDs for clients. Most computers aren’t equipped with readers anymore, and both mediums don’t offer much storage. What’s worse is that writable CDs and DVDs are not a permanent medium and degrade over time.

USB memory sticks are smaller, offer larger storage capacity and are more flexible. Memory sticks can be personalized to your brand and allow you to physically hand over the fruits of your labor to your client. Not the fastest delivery mechanism, but the one-on-one contact is excellent for further sales or connections with your client.

USB Media

Basic digital delivery

If you are only sending one or two images, attaching them to an email is an option. However, there are limitations to the size of an email you can send. Email can be unreliable because each email provider and ISP has different attachment limits and they change from time to time. Some platforms allow you to send large files (up to 10-megabyte files), but your recipient’s email provider may not accept the image and often has limits. Emails not received may take a while to bounce back, and your client won’t even know you tried to send them something.

Email as a delivery mechanism

Digital document delivery

Digital delivery of electronic files is not new and has been problematic for many businesses. These businesses need to send documents in digital format to their clients, but these documents are not necessarily image-specific. They are broadly divided into two methods – FTP links or document repositories.

Digital File Repository

FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol and is intended for transferring digital documents. There are many free services for transferring documents, however, you don’t see the images until after they are completely received.  Some examples of FTP services include Sharefile, WeTransfer, TransferNow, and Send Anywhere.

WeTransfer allows for digital file sharing

Some services allow a cloud-based location for your digital files. From the cloud, they can be used to create links for people to pick up documents. Some examples of these services include Google Drive, Dropbox, and OneDrive. These services are great but sometimes require logging in or creating accounts on the platform to allow you access to the images. Often they have a limited amount of space for free, or you can upgrade to more space for a fee.

These services work well, but they aren’t just geared toward photographers solely for image delivery. They transfer documents, and images are simply a type of document.

Photography-specific image delivery

For image specific delivery methods, there are two different approaches.  Firstly, you can use a customized website that allows for a gallery to be set up with your website.  This feature is set-up in the back-end of your website. Secondly, you can use a photography-specific gallery system. These systems allow for the delivery of images with lots of bells and whistles.

A photographic website from Format

Using the back end of your website to create galleries can be a great way to deliver but can be complicated to set up and maintain. Custom-built websites are costly, and any changes usually result in extra charges. More recently, there are some excellent website builder services such as Squarespace, Format, Smugmug, WIX, and WordPress that all provide great pre-made templates for websites that allow you to create galleries for your clients.

I have personally used Squarespace, Smugmug, and Format, however, there are many great platforms. However, you may also be limited to the amount of space you have with your web hosting, and storing large printable files may fill this space quickly.

Pixieset Website Gallery

Another option is photography-specific image delivery systems. These delivery systems are designed with the needs of wedding photographers in mind. There is a need for digital delivery of images in a slick, easy to use and easy to navigate website. Additionally, wedding photographers want a proofing gallery that allows visitors to select favorites, download images for social media, purchase high-resolution images or get prints.

These image-proofing services include such brands as Pixieset, Shootproof, PicTime and Pass Plus. I personally really like this method because it allows for the simple uploading of images into pre-configured galleries that simplify the delivery of images to clients. They look slick, and they let your clients see the images, all while letting you control what they download and how they download. You can also set up galleries for clients to see photos but not necessarily download them. These are all paid services, but if you are frequently delivering images, this method is excellent. I use Pixieset, but Shootproof and PicTime are also good services.

Conclusion

Taking beautiful photographs is often what most photographers focus on; however, the final product is the image delivery. With digital images, there are lots of technical considerations regarding the delivery of images to your intended recipients.  Knowing the format, size, and delivery mechanism simplify your ability to deliver your photographs quickly and efficiently.

What systems have you tried out? What works for you? Let us know in the comments below.

 

 

 

The post How to Deliver Digital Images to Your Clients appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Mark C Hughes.


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Lensrentals tears down the Canon 400mm F2.8L IS III

20 Dec
Photographs kindly provided by Lensrentals

Roger Cicala, founder of Lensrentals, has torn apart the 400mm F2.8L IS III to see what Canon has done to remove 2.2lbs of weight from the third-generation super telephoto lens.

It’s only been a few weeks since Cicala shared Lensrentals 50mm F1.2L RF lens teardown, but as he hinted at in that teardown, it’s time for Canon’s much larger larger lens to get the signature treatment.

‘We tend to not publish tear-downs of super-telephoto lenses. They’re big and heavy, always well made and well engineered, like you would expect in something that costs as much as a used car,’ says Cicala in the teardown post. ‘But when the new 400mm f/2.8 lenses were released we decided it was finally time to publish a teardown of one. Largely, because they are amazingly light (you see what I did there? largely light?) and we were really interested in how they did that.’

Cicala also says he’s interested in doing a direct comparison between Canon’s latest 400mm F2.8 lens and its Sony counterpart. So it’s safe to say a Sony 400mm F2.8 teardown is just around the corner as well.

The small spring-loaded mechanism used to help lock the lens in place while rotating inside its collar.

The first order of business for Cicala and team was to remove the lens collar. While it might seem like a small detail for such a massive — and expensive — lens, the collar itself is quite complicated in its own right and often one of the first things that can break, due to an internal clicking mechanism that helps lock the lens into place at 90-degree intervals while rotating it on a tripod. As expected, the tripod collar assembly was solid and fairly straightforward — good news for photographers who prefer a more DIY approach to fixing smaller issues like a stuck collar tripod.

From there, it was onto the drop-in filter, which was probably the easiest part of the lens to remove. Cicala says ‘we really, really, really like [the drop-in filter] Because instead of being a proprietary $ 200 filter, it’s a holder that you can attach any 52mm filter to.’

With the easy stuff out of the way, now it was onto the lens itself. Without giving away all of Lensrentals findings, it’s worth pointing out a few details discovered during the teardown.

One of the adjustable screws can be seen in the internal structure of the lens (surrounded by red)

Starting with build quality, Cicala says that despite being light, the ‘inner, weight-bearing barrel is very sturdy magnesium alloy.’ It was at this point in the teardown Cicala noticed two adjustable elements integrated into the lens. The first is a set of screws found just in front of the rear element group, while the other was a set of adjustable collars where the two halves of the lens are joined together.

Regarding the image above, Cicala says ‘a couple of interesting things are in this image […] First, you see the two barrel halves are joined without shimming and held tightly together with 12 large screws – it’s a very strong joint with interlocking pieces. Also, as we saw with the RF 50mm f1.2 teardown, there are springs going down to the focusing ring, we assumed to put tension on a ball bearing ring for a smooth focusing feel in this electronically focused lens. We assumed wrong.’

A little deeper into the build, Cicala and team come across the image stabilization unit. Cicala notes the unit is roughly 2cm thick and full of various electromagnets, springs, sensor inputs and optical elements.

A look inside the intricate image stabilization unit.

In his 50mm F1.2L RF teardown, Cicala said the USM motor used by Canon in its fast prime is the exact same one used in the 400mm F2.8L IS III. Sure enough, that’s been confirmed again with this teardown, complete with the tension spring that continues to leave Cicala and team bamboozled.

A profile view of the ultrasonic motor in all its glory.

‘This is really interesting information, that the same motor and electronic focusing system is used in both lenses,’ says Cicala in the blog post. ‘Obviously, there is a business advantage in using the same subsystem in several lenses. But putting the same electronic focusing system in this EF lens makes me think that going forward Canon lenses may have a lot of internal similarity in either RF or EF mount. Converting the Canon 400mm f/2.8 to an RF wouldn’t be quite as simple as a different rear element and an RF bayonet mount, of course. The additional electronics for the RF Control Ring would have to be stuffed in here and probably some optical tweaks made, but the core structure could be very similar.’

Further disassembly of the USM section also revealed it’s the section of the lens that contains the aperture assembly. From there, it was onto the front optical elements of the lens, some of which were held in place by another adjustable element, which included screws to account for centering and tilting.

The aperture assembly shows all nine aperture blades in action.

After a little more work, the focus ring comes off and bears the various springs and more adjustable components. Cicala and team come up with a theory or two as to why the tension spring is there and what it does, but a definitive purpose is still unknown. Cicala says ‘one day we’ll spend 4 or 5 hours playing with them and figure it out. But don’t tell Canon that; they get aggravated when we do void-the-warranty stuff.’

In the conclusion section titled “So What Did We Learn Today,’ Cicala shares a few of his final thoughts regarding the teardown. The first thing Cicala mentions is the movement of the optical elements inside the glass. Canon said when it announced the 400mm F2.8L IS III that it had moved elements more towards the mount of the lens to create a better center of gravity and that proved to be the case. Also, Cicala says that ‘Despite being far lighter, it’s still very solidly built with a very strong frame, tons of big screws holding everything together, and no weak joints that we can see […] It’s what we expected; Canon’s been building super telephotos for a long time.’

The USM is also elaborated on. Cicala says it’s a very likely possibility Canon will continue to use this motor for all electrically focused lenses, or at least in lenses with a hefty amount of glass in the focusing element.

Overall, it appears as though the 400mm F2.8L IS III is roughly what Cicala was expecting from Canon. A well-built lens with plenty of adjustments in a tightly packaged frame. As interesting of a teardown as this was though, Cicala says the more interesting teardown will be the Sony 400mm F2.8 G lens. ‘Hopefully, it is awesome and for once the Sonyfans* won’t line up 6 deep to explain how what I find is wrong again.’

To see the full teardown in all its glory (and to discover the footnotes on what Sonyfans* means), head over to the Lensrentals blog and take in every bit of detail.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Day 3 delivery from The Photography Express

20 Dec

The post Day 3 delivery from The Photography Express appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.

Day 3 Photography Express

The difference in your photos could be like Night and Day after you’ve learned the secrets from the next two deals brought to you by The Photography Express.

Want to go straight to the deals?

  • Grab our Night Photography Course at 50% off
  • Grab the Recipe to Successful Sunrise and Sunset Photography for 75% off

When photography is all about capturing light it can be really frustrating to get an amazing photo when you’re shooting in almost no light, or directly at it! If blurry night photography and fuzzy sunrises and sunsets are your nemeses, then the next 24 hours is your chance to change that.

Deal #5 Our Stunning Night Photography Course re-launched with NEW Bonuses

Thousands of our readers have already taken this course to learn about taking breathtaking photos at night with Jim Hamel. And anyone who is doing (or completed) our 31 Days to Becoming a Better Photographer will know what a fantastic instructor he is.

This stunning (yes, it deserves repeating!) course includes 8 learning video modules and 11 practical “field work” videos that will show you exactly how to take beautiful night shots. And we’re re-launching it with a BONUS module that includes:

Night Photography

  • 54 page Guide to Shooting the Night Sky (downloadable PDF)
  • Bonus video on photographing Fireworks (just in time for New Year’s Eve!)
  • Bonus video on photographing the Milky Way

Now $ 49 USD (Save 50%) for the next 24 hours only!

Take me to the deal

If you’ve already done our Night Photography course make sure you revisit it for those new free bonuses in module 20!

Deal #6 The Recipe to Successful Sunrise and Sunset Photography

These shortcut secrets for 22 amazing sunrise and sunset scenes are brought to you by dPS partner Brent Mail Photography.  Get Brent’s proven, step-by-step recipes for 22 different types of sunrise & sunset photo opportunities, and you’ll also get his Amazing Sunset Photography course too.

printable Sunrise/Sunset Photo Recipe Cards

Carrying Brent’s printable Sunrise/Sunset Photo Recipe Cards in your camera bag (or on your phone), and following their easy instructions, is the surest way to get a perfect image. And it’s the quickest and easiest way to master sunrise and sunset photography once for all. PLUS you’ll also get 7 action-packed video lessons and the RAW images from Brent’s sunset shoots in his Amazing Sunset Photography course – completely free!

Now $ 39 USD (Save 75%) for the next 24 hours only!

Take me to the deal

We hope these two offers bring some new excitement and challenges to your photography in 2019!

Both deals come with money back guarantees (dPS 60 days and our trusted partner Brent Mail Photography 30 days), so you can easily buy now to secure the deal and if you don’t think they’re for you, you’ll get refunded.

Don’t miss the next two deals – sign up here for The Photography Express!

Disclosure: We receive a commission from our partners if you buy via our promotion, but it is at no cost to you. In fact, you’re getting an even better price than usual!

The post Day 3 delivery from The Photography Express appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.


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