Canon and Sony News for Nov 2018 (Page 3)
Image quality, vignetting, flare and distortion test results along with specs, measurements and standard product images have been added to the Nikon Z 24-70mm f/4 S Lens page.
With a general purpose focal length range, moderately wide max aperture, small size and light weight, this lens is sure to be a popular favorite for Nikon Z-series camera owners.
The Nikon Z 24-70mm f/4 S Lens is in stock at B&H | Amazon | Adorama | WEX.
Rent the Nikon Z 24-70mm f/4 S Lens from Lensrentals.
From 5DayDeal:
As stated on the sales page, your email receipt, the pre-purchase FAQs, and the Terms & Conditions agreed to at checkout, you have until November 30, 2018 to download all your digital products and access/register for all online products. Log into your customer account to complete your downloads and access/register for products.
The clock is ticking, as all the links provided to you as a part of the bundled product will expire November 30, 2018.
Some of the products you received require a discount code/license in order to claim the item. Check your e-mail receipt for those unique codes. You can also access your 5DayDeal Customer Account to get your unique code - just click 'orders' and then the order number.
From the New York Times:
It takes time, passion and obsession to make great work. But you also need the opportunity to have your work seen in the first place. And since we at Lens believe only the quality of work should matter — not your connections or bank account — we are again bringing together 160 talented photographers with 75 top photo editors, publishers, curators, gallery owners and video producers, for the 7th annual New York Portfolio Review on March 30 and 31 in New York City.
Applications are now open for the free (as always) review, which is produced by The New York Times Lens column, the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York and United Photo Industries. Participation is open to anyone over 18 years old, and all types of photography will be considered. But remember, the deadline is Dec. 10 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time.
Now a mainstay of photo events in the United States, the review convenes the photographic community to meet, trade ideas, help each other — and have fun.
The first session, on Saturday, March 30, will be for photographers 21 and older. Each participant will receive six private critiques. The second session, on Sunday, March 31, will be solely for photographers 18 to 27 and will consist of at least four private critiques for each participant, as well as free workshops on how to best present, promote and publish photographs. We will screen all applicants and choose 100 participants for Saturday and 60 for Sunday.
Please note: Photographers who attended last year’s review are not eligible to apply. Those who attended once in previous years can apply for this year’s review, but they must submit new work. Those who have already attended the review twice cannot apply.
Once photographers are selected, they will submit their top choices for reviewers of their work. We will match participants with as many of those reviewers as possible.
To enter, send no more than 20 photos total, from one or two projects, using the form here. The files should be JPEGS, 1,200 pixels across and 72 D.P.I. We will inform those who are accepted by Jan. 15, 2019. Be sure to triple-check the email address you submit, because in past years some people were accepted into the review, but couldn’t be contacted with the good news because of a typo in their address. Don’t be that person.
Below the submission form is a partial list of reviewers who will be at the New York Portfolio Review.
From Canon USA:
Bringing DIY to the Fingertips of Consumers with New Photo Paper Options, Including Restickable and Magnetic Photo Paper
MELVILLE, N.Y., November 13, 2018 – Coco Chanel once said, “In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different” and to encourage the spirit of originality, Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, announced today three new consumables for select PIXMA series printers. Restickable Photo Paper, Magnetic Photo Paper and Photo Paper Plus Glossy II 3.5 inches x 3.5 inches, provide a myriad of opportunities for users to create and decorate their personal space.
"The art of expression is a person's most valuable asset in life," said Kazuto Ogawa, president and chief operating officer, Canon U.S.A., Inc. "Therefore, we felt it was imperative to provide consumers with the opportunity to bring their own imaging creations to life, ones that feel authentically unique to their individual personalities with the new line of consumables.”
Ideal for decorating personal gadgets, labeling items throughout the home or adding a little decorating “zhuzh” to a classroom or college dorm, Restickable Photo Paper is that extra detail that can stick and re-stick. Available in 4 inches x 6 inches, the restickable photo paper is compatible with Canon’s inkjet printers released from June 2013, including the new PIXMA TS9521C, PIXMA TS9520, PIXMA TR4520, PIXMA TS9220 and PIXMA TS6220 Printers, allowing users to print their own photos, graphics or text to fit their restickable needs.
The force is strong with Magnetic Photo Paper. Available in 4 inches x 6 inches size, users can stick their creative prints onto any magnetic surface throughout the home, in the office or even a school locker. Compatible with Canon inkjet printer models manufactured from June 2013 through today, magnetic photo paper provides users the ability to step away from the traditional picture frame and create imaginative ways to display their memories.
The Photo Paper Plus Glossy II makes it hip to be square and perfectly mimics your social media pages, bringing them to life. The square photo paper is 3.5 inches x 3.5 inches – eliminating the need to cut down traditional photo paper to fit square spaces – making it ideal to decorate throughout the home, attach to notebooks and even to your personal gadgets – which is #nifty. The Photo Paper Plus Glossy paper is compatible with the Canon PIXMA TS8220, TS6220, TS9520 and TS9521C Printers.
The new consumables are currently available for purchase at an estimated retail price of $5.99 for the Restickable Photo Paper, $7.49 for the Magnetic Photo Paper and $7.99 for the Photo Paper Plus Glossy II.
B&H has the following products available for preorder:
Image quality test results have been added to the Nikon Z 35mm f/1.8 S Lens page.
The moderately wide angle 35mm focal length is a favorite of many photographers, making the Z 35mm f/1.8 S an ideal candidate for the Z-mount's prime lens debut.
As these are the first results posted using the Z 7, Z 7 image quality is also under the microscope here. The f/5.6 test nicely shows off Z 7 image quality. Looks very good. The Nikon Z 7 vs. D850 comparison shows the two essentially the same.
The Nikon Z 35mm f/1.8 S Lens is in stock at B&H | Amazon | Adorama | WEX.
Rent the Nikon Z 35mm f/1.8 S Lens from Lensrentals.
Whenever you do commercial work (product or art photography), accurate color balancing is essential. I highly recommend incorporating an X-Rite ColorChecker Passport into your workflow whenever accurate color is a priority. [Sean]
From the Adorama YouTube Channel:
Welcome to Ep 141, in this episode David Bergman shows you how to use a gray card and a color checker to get accurate color in your images.
Related Products at Adorama:
In this video, Benjamin Warde demonstrates how to use Lightroom Classic CC's soft proofing option to [help] ensure prints look like they do on your screen.
B&H carries Adobe Photography Plan subscriptions.
Just posted: Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS III USM Lens Review.
When you know which lens you should use, it will quite often be this one. When you are not sure which lens you need, this one will often get the job done.
The Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS III USM Lens is in stock at B&H | Amazon | Adorama | WEX.
Rent the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS III USM Lens from Lensrentals.
From Tokina:
Thank you for using Tokina lenses.
We have thoroughly tested all current Tokina interchangeable lenses (Canon EF mount) with the Canon EOS R mirrorless camera and the Canon EF-EOS R mount adapter.
The results confirm that the current Tokina lens models showed no issues in general operations, with the following exception:
Issue: the image Cropping/Aspect ratio would be fixed at "1.6x (Crop)" and cannot be set at "Full (3:2)".
We are currently preparing a firmware to fix the issue, which will be specifically notified about in due time.
Furthermore, when using Tokina APS-C format lenses (Tokina DX lenses), in case the Cropping/Aspect ratio is set otherwise, it is necessary to reset it on "1.6x (Crop)" manually. When shooting with a different Cropping/Aspect ratio setting, vignetting is likely to occur.
For any questions about compatibility of Tokina interchangeable lenses with Canon EOS R mirrorless cameras, please contact us via contact form.
Nikon has released its financial results for Q2 2019 for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2019. As for the year-over-year results for the imaging side of its business, Nikon says:
"Imaging Products Business decreased its profit because of the initial cost for new products such as full-frame ML cameras and lenses launched in September."The full details can be found below.
- Financial Results (PDF:284KB)
- Financial and Business Data (PDF:183KB)
- Presentation Material (PDF:1.56MB)
- Financial Results for the 2Q of the Year Ending March 31, 2019 (PDF:964KB)
- Reference Data (PDF:1.06MB)
For those familiar with Photoshop, you'll feel right at home with Photopea, a photo editing solution that has many of the same basic tools as Photoshop but runs in your internet browser window.
Using Photopea, you can open and edit PSD, XCF, Sketch, XD, CDR as well as popular image file formats and save them as PSD, JPG, PNG or SVG files. And yes, it supports layers and masks.
I must admit to being very skeptical when I was first introduced to this in-browser editor, but it didn't take long for me to be impressed by its functionality and design. Of course, it's not as full-featured as Photoshop CC, but it's still one of the coolest things I've seen in a while. I highly suggest you bookmark the page and keep it handy for those times you need to do some quick editing on a machine where Photoshop isn't (or otherwise can't be) installed. [Sean]
From X-Rite:
X-Rite, the leading brand of color management solutions for the photography and video, announces an exclusive offer in partnership with MZed. Consumers will receive either a free full course ($199 value) with the purchase of an i1Display Pro, i1 Filmmaker Kit or ColorChecker Video XL; or free course module ($79 value) with the purchase of a ColorChecker Passport Video or ColorChecker Video. Both the full course and the modulecan be streamed or downloaded. Offer expires December 31st, 2018.
To claim a free course/module from MZed, just follow these simple steps:
- Go to http://www.xritephoto.com/mzed-promo.
- Fill in required info and upload a proof of purchase.
- Once verified, an email will be sent with a special link.
- Click the link to get your course or module and download/stream through MZed for free.
The Mastering Colorfull course (or module) will be free to use with no subscription charges. Customers will have 45 days from their purchase date to submit a redemption request. This offer is available in the U.S. and Canada until December 31st, 2018.
The EOS R represents Canon's initial foray into the mirrorless camera market and many may be wondering how it stacks up against Sony's feature-packed, budget-priced a7 III. If you fall into that group, read on as we compare these two cameras.
Sony a7 III & Canon EOS R Shared Primary Features
- Mirrorless camera technologies
- Metering Range: EV -3 to EV 20
- Shutter Speed Range: 30-1/8000, Bulb
- 4K Video Recording: 4K (16:9) 3840 x 2160 at 30p
- USB 3.0, HDMI mini out (Sony: Type D, Canon: Type C) , External Microphone In / Line In (Stereo mini jack), Headphone socket (Stereo mini jack)
- Operating Environment: 32–104°F / 0–40°C
Primary Advantages of the Sony a7 III:
- Compatible with more native-mount lenses
- Sensor Stabilization: 5-axis Optical In-Body Image Stabilization vs. 5-Axis Movie Digital IS Image Stabilization
- Tracks eye in Single-Shot and Continuous AF vs. One Shot only *
- More Metering Zones: 1200-zone vs. 384-zone
- Higher ISO Setting: 204800 vs. 102400
- Better Dynamic Range
- Wider Exposure Compensation: +/- 5 EV vs. +/- 3 EV
- Faster x-sync: 1/250 sec vs. 1/200
- Faster Burst Shooting: 10 fps vs. 8 (One Shot mode), 5 with AF Tracking
- No crop-factor in 4K vs. 1.75x crop
- Better Slow Motion Video: 1920 x 1080 at 120 fps with sound/AF tracking vs. 720p at 60 fps with no sound/AF tracking
- Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and NFC vs. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth only
- Dual Memory Cards: Memory Stick/SD (UHS-I) + SD (UHS-II) vs. SD (UHS-II) only
- Higher Battery Life: 610 shots vs. 370
- Slightly Smaller: 5.0 x 3.9 x 3.0" (126.9 x 95.6 x 73.7mm) vs. 5.35 x 3.87 x 3.32" (135.8 x 98.3 x 84.4mm)
- Lower cost
Primary Advantages of the Canon EOS R:
- Higher Resolution: 30.4 MP vs. 24.2
- More AF Points: 5,655 points vs. 693
- More Sensitive AF: EV -6 to +18 vs. EV -3 to +20
- Faster AF in One Shot mode
- Wider Auto ISO Range: ISO 100-40000 vs. 100-12800
- Higher Resolution Viewfinder: 0.5" (1.27cm) OLED EVF, 3.69m-dots vs. 0.5" (1.3cm) OLED Tru-Finder EVF, 2.36m-dots
- Larger, Higher Resolution LCD: 3.15" Touch Screen (8.01cm) Clear View LCD II, 2.1m-dots vs. 2.95" (7.49cm) Touch Screen TFT, 921.6K dots
- Vari-angle LCD vs. tilt only
- Top LCD vs. none
- Higher Bit-Rate 4K Video: 480 Mbps (ALL-I) vs. 100 Mbps
- Larger RAW Buffer: 47 RAW images vs. 40
- Manual focus guide/focus peaking vs. focus peaking only
- Better performance with adapted lenses
- Better/more intuitive menu system
- Better grip
Who should opt for the Sony a7 III?
If you're looking to upgrade to a full frame camera and don't already have a large collection of Canon lenses, or otherwise want to get more serious about photography and prefer to skip on an APS-C sensor body, the Sony a7 III has a lot to offer, including a very reasonable price tag. Sony's IBIS (In-Body Image Stabilization) technology enables up to 5-stops of camera shake compensation with any lens that's mounted to the camera and represents huge advantage for the a7 III. Those shooting static subjects in low-light situations or when using a narrow aperture to obtain a desired depth of field, especially when a non-stabilized lens is mounted to the camera, will greatly appreciate the a7 III's sensor stabilization.
Are you a wedding photographer? The a7 III's dual memory card slots can protect once-in-a-lifetime images from being lost due to a corrupted memory card, and the camera's higher dynamic range could come in handy for events needing great exposure latitude. Another a7 III features that wedding/event/festival photographers will surely appreciate include is its significantly longer battery life compared to the EOS R.
Fast action shooters will be able to capture a higher percentage of peak-action shots with the a7 III's 10 fps burst rate with AF tracking compared to the EOS R's 5 fps under the same circumstances, while the camera's eye tracking AF will ensure that the subject remains properly focused. Note: The a7 III's continuous burst rate drops to 8 fps with viewfinder Live View (for easier subject tracking) in use.
Videographers who want to shoot slow motion video can utilize the a7 III's 120 fps Full HD frame rate to capture smooth, slow motion video with sound and AF tracking. The EOS R's resolution at 120 fps tops out at 720p and sound recording/AF tracking is not supported. Want to get the most out of your high quality, wide angle lenses when shooting in 4K? The a7 III samples the entire width of the full frame sensor when shooting in 4K, meaning your wide angle lenses produce an uncropped field of view, perfect for capturing expansive views. Recording in 4K on the EOS R, on the other hand, results in a 1.75x crop factor for your lenses. That means that a 16-35mm lens mounted to the EOS R produces a full frame equivalent field of view of 28-61.25mm in 4K mode.
Who should opt for the Canon EOS R?
If you're highly invested in the Canon EOS system but want to give mirrorless a try, getting the Canon EOS R will allow you to gradually build up a mirrorless kit, taking full advantage of the new RF lenses coming down the pipeline, while being able to fully utilize your existing DSLR lenses in the meantime.
Speaking of lenses, at this time, Sony has 43 FE lenses that can natively fit on the Sony a7 III. Of those, 25 cover the entire full-frame sensor. Other lenses (such as Canon EF) can be used on Sony cameras via adapters, but adapted lenses don't perform nearly as well as their native counterparts on Sony alpha-series cameras. However, while the currently announced pool of Canon RF lenses is small by comparison, Canon's EF-EOS R adapters allow nearly full functionality with EF/EF-S/TS-E and MP-E lenses (EF-S lens use results in a cropped recorded image). With Canon EF-series lenses performing similarly to RF lenses on the EOS R, the pool of lenses available for EOS R customers considerably increases. In fact, if you add up all the different EF/EF-S/TS-E and MP-E lenses which have been produced since the EF mount was introduced and add the announced RF lenses, you'd have more than 175 lenses to choose from, 149 of which cover the entire full frame sensor.
From an ergonomics perspective, the EOS R features a deeper grip and raised buttons that are easier to find without having to look at the body. The new Multi-Function Bar may take some getting used to (some may not like it), but many photographers will find the Control Ring found on the new RF lenses helpful for changing a preferred setting. For those used to glancing at a top LCD to check camera settings, the EOS R has you covered.
Landscape photographers can enjoy the benefits of the Canon Drop-in Filter Mount Adapter EF-EOS R with their EOS R to enable a circular polarizer or variable ND filter to be used with any of their EF-series lenses. With most ultra-wide angle lenses being incompatible with front filters, the Drop-In Filter Mount Adapter will prove to be a vital component of many landscape shooters' kits.
If you're a portrait shooter, you'll likely prefer the EOS R's faster AF performance in One-Shot mode compared to the Sony a7 III which defocuses/refocuses with every shot even if your subject hasn't moved. Those shooting portraits will also enjoy the bokeh-accentuating, shallow DOF (Depth of Field) capabilities that Canon's RF and EF mounts offer, including lenses featuring extremely wide f/1.2 apertures.
Vloggers and those shooting self-portraits will find the EOS R's vari-angle LCD much better for self-framing compared to the a7 III's tilt-screen.
* Canon claims a future firmware update will enable Eye AF with AI Servo mode.
Summary
The Canon EOS R and Sony a7 III are both incredible cameras at good-value prices and either can be a great option for most needs.
Relevant Info
From Flickr:
On November 1, 2018, we announced how we’d begin bringing Flickr back to its roots: an active, photo-sharing community. This meant upgrading our Pro accounts and changing Free accounts to encourage photographers to use Flickr again for interaction and inspiration and not just for backup storage. A big part of that inspiration comes from those of you who have shared your photography with Creative Commons licensing. And from historical, governmental, and nonprofit organizations that have shared amazing photos via The Flickr Commons. Those photos, and your ability to share them, are important to us. That hasn’t changed.
Those photos aren’t going anywhere. To understand what does change, though, we first need to understand what The Flickr Commons and Creative Commons are.
The Commons Difference
The Flickr Commons is for photos that come from institutions that want to share their digital collections with as many people around the world as they can. These tend to be historical images whose copyright has expired or government images that are automatically in the public domain since taxpayers have technically already paid for them.
Photos from NASA, The Smithsonian, The National Archives UK, and The British Library, for example, have been shared in The Flickr Commons. As part of The Flickr Commons, all these organizations already were Pro or have received a free Pro account from us, so they have unlimited storage.
The Creative Commons (CC) organization has developed a suite of licenses that give individual photographers or groups great tools for licensing their photography for others to freely use. The photographer keeps their copyright and gives the public an easy way to use their images as long as the license terms are followed.
The Flickr Commons and Creative Commons are different, thus our storage changes affect each differently (or not at all).
Are Commons Photos Being Deleted?
No. And once more for good measure: no, Commons photos are not being deleted.
The Flickr Commons photos (those uploaded by the archival, governmental, etc. institutions we are working with) are safe. We are extremely proud of these partnerships. These photos won’t be deleted as a result of any of our announced changes. The only reason they’d disappear is if the organization that uploaded them decided to delete them.
Photos that were Creative Commons licensed before our announcement are also safe. We won’t be deleting anything that was uploaded with a CC license before November 1, 2018. Even if you had more than 1,000 photos or videos with a CC license. However, if you do have more than 1,000 photos or videos uploaded, you’ll be unable to upload additional photos after January 8, 2019, unless you upgrade to a Pro account.
Bottom line: Flickr Commons photos will not be deleted. Anything uploaded with a CC license before November 1, 2018, won’t be deleted, but users will need to upgrade to Pro to upload more than 1,000 photos or videos.
What About Non-Profits?
We know and understand that there are groups out there that work hard to scrape together every nickel and dime to run their organization. And we want to help remove any stress that may come from finding a place to host photos. We’ve worked with 501(c)(3) charitable organizations for years at SmugMug to provide them with unlimited, free storage, and we’ll be doing the same at Flickr.
Organizations such as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), 350.org, and Second Harvest are already using Flickr to share photos of the amazing work they do. And now we’ll be working with them to ensure Pro isn’t a cost they need to worry about.
In fact, you can fill out the form from this page with information about your 501(c)(3) organization or international charity, and we’ll work with you to get your free Pro account set up.
The Future of the Commons
Freely licensed photos are deeply important to us. After SmugMug acquired Flickr, one of the first meetings we had was with Ryan Merkley, the CEO of Creative Commons. We want to keep that partnership alive and strong, and we are actively working on how to grow it for the future.
“We’ll be working with Flickr to look for ways to continue growing and archiving the commons,” Merkley said. “When Flickr users apply CC licenses to their works, they are inviting everyone to use their works freely and with very few restrictions. That’s an incredible gift to the world, and that generosity should be acknowledged and preserved into perpetuity for everyone to enjoy.”
Whatever changes come in the years going forward, the importance of these photos will always matter to us. We not only want to preserve the photos we have, we want to keep partnering with organizations such as libraries, museums, and government agencies to contribute to The Flickr Commons as well. And we will continue to work hard to keep these photos safe and available for the world to view and enjoy.
From Benro:
The Benro RedDog R1 is a 3-axis gimbal stabilizer with a unique swivel handle designed for different filming angles and compact for travel.
Unlike other gimbal stabilizers, which allow for straight holding only, the Benro R1 allows for both Upright and Carry handling modes. Upright Mode is suitable for high angle and medium angle filming. Carry Mode is best for low angle filming. Combining these options will help you get the most out of your stabilizer. "The R1 has a great balance to it especially when using the swivel handle for waist height and low to the ground shots. It is much more comfortable to hold and operate for long shoots or multiple takes and we think that today’s filmmakers and content creators will love this unique feature," says Brian Hynes, Benro’s USA Brand Manager.
Ideal for cameras up to 2.9 lbs, the R1 features CNC machining with an innovative design. It’s collapsible handle, makes it perfect for traveling light. The R1's ergonomic silicon grip provides comfortable handling at all times. By turning the button on the handle, you can quickly and easily convert your R1 from high angle to low angle mode, making it simple to track low moving objects, or achieve a low 360°shot comfortably by putting less strain on your wrist, and giving you incredible results.
Universal Follow Mode
With Universal Follow Mode (Pink), it provides smooth camera movements towards the direction your aiming. You would use this mode when circling around a subject, or making several dynamic camera movements following a subject
Locked-down mode
Locked-down mode (Blue) keeps the camera locked on a subject while moving the gimbal. With this mode you can replicate movements similar to a jib or slider.
Horizontal follow mode
Horizontal follow mode (Red) provides smooth movement based on where you move the camera horizontally. You would use this mode when doing a lot of dynamic panning movements around corners.
By using the directional button in conjunction with these modes, you can flawlessly control your movements. The threaded receiver allows for additional attachments, giving you even more flexibility with your shots. The companion smart phone app allows you to calibrate your R1, operate it remotely, adjust parameters, update the firmware create a panorama or create a beautiful time-lapse with dynamic motion.
For advanced camera control you can directly operate the photo shutter/focus, video record, and zoom for Sony and Panasonic cameras making filming more convenient. The underside of the Benro R1 handle has a ¼”-20 threaded hole for mounting the stabilizer to a tripod. This allows you to connect the camera at a particular spot while still using the various modes such as Pan track or Lock mode.
The Benro R1 is ideal for multiple camera types such as: mirrorless, smartphones and action cameras. Boost your production value while traveling light and compact, with the Red Dog R1 Stabilizer.
Features & Benefits
- Swivel Handle – The unique swivel handle is designed for different filming angles and is compact for travel.
- Long Battery Life – The R1 will last for 12 hours on a single charge.
- Smartphone App – Calibrate your R1, remotely control your stabilizer and camera, and upgrade your firmware all via the Benro Red Dog App.
- Three Shooting Modes – Your R1 has 3 modes: Universal Follow Mode, Locked-Down Mode and Horizontal Follow Mode. Each mode allows you to control how the gimbal functions for different shooting scenarios.
- Quick Storage Case – The included carrying case allows you to retain the individual axis positions which will save you a lot of setup time at your next location.
The Benro R1 is currently available for $399.00 USD.
B&H has the Benro Red Dog R1 Handheld Stabilizer available for special order.
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