Headline features for the Sony A7 V included a new ‘partially stacked’ sensor design for faster readout speed, improved video features and faster burst shooting. There’s also a new BIONZ XR2 processor which incorporates Sony’s latest AI technology, faster autofocus and AF tracking, improved color science with a claimed 16-stop dynamic range and improved AI-powered white balance control.
Don’t write off the Fujifilm X-T30 III as just a warmed up version of an old camera
It seems like the Fujifilm X-T30 has been around for YEARS, but actually it was first launched as recently as 2019. But then it was updated to the X-T30 II with some very minor alterations in 2021 in a move that suggested a camera being kept going for just that little bit longer. Then… nothing. It looked like the X-T30 II was just slowly winding down into obsolescence. But no. Now we have the X-T30 III, and this is a very interesting little camera for several reasons.
The Leica M EV1 is a Leica M with an EVF – SACRILEGE!
For those who don’t know, Leica M rangefinders are breed apart, a throwback to a camera design abandoned years ago by every other maker and about as far as you can get from a modern mirrorless camera. And yet, at a stroke, the Leica M EV1 has closed that gap and brought the Leica M design right up to date. So that’s got to be good, right? Well, not if you are Leica diehard.
Laowa 180mm f/4.5 1.5X Ultra Macro APO review
Verdict: 4.8 stars The Laowa 180mm f/4.5 1.5X Ultra Macro APO is special in a number of ways. First, it’s a macro lens with an extra-long working distance which can be an advantage for many subjects, second it can also be used as an everyday telephoto, third it’s really inexpensive! The Sony E, Nikon Z and Canon EF (not RF) versions also have a seamless AF option for distances beyond 1.5m. Best of all, the optical performance is superb.
What’s the single most important innovation in the new Nikon ZR?
The Nikon ZR is interesting for all sorts of reasons. For a start, it’s the first time Nikon and RED tech has been combined in a camera after Nikon acquired the RED cinema camera brand in 2024. That’s significant in many ways, not least because the ZR now incorporates RED’s own colour science and raw codecs. But that’s not it.
I have just one question about the new OM System 50-200mm f/2.8 IS PRO. Why is it so big?
I get it. Professional, constant-aperture telephoto zooms are always going to be big. I also get that this lens is in its own way unique, offering a constant f/2.8 100-400mm equivalent zoom range. But why is it bigger and heavier (and more expensive) than, let’s say, the Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II, a FULL FRAME LENS?
What is ‘equivalence’ in exposure theory, and why is it so important?
‘Equivalence’ is a rather dry, abstract term which doesn’t really tell you anything. What it means in photographic exposure, though, is that if you change one thing, like the shutter speed, then you have to make up for it by changing another, typically the lens aperture. Equivalence is at the heart of everything your camera’s exposure system does.
Hasselblad X2D II 100C announced with improved AF, dynamic range, IBIS
The Hasselblad X1D/X2D range has been like nothing else in photography. Expensive, over-styled (some might say, not me) and distinctly glitchy at first, it has evolved into this – an advanced medium format mirrorless camera that is as desirable as it is spectacular.
What is an internal zoom lens, and do you need one?
When Nikon launched its new Nikkor Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S II professional standard zoom for its Z-mount mirrorless cameras, it made a great play on its internal zoom mechanism. So what is this, and why is it so important now?
What is astrophotography? That depends on whether you’re an astronomer or a photographer…
To an astronomer, astrophotography is the photography of all kinds of celestial bodies, from star fields to constellations, clusters to galaxies. It also includes planetary bodies such as our neighbours in the solar system, and our own moon. It’s a pretty broad field encompassing a huge range of magnifications and specialized equipment and techniques. It’s a very scientific undertaking. Astrophotography for photographers is rather different.