Nikon News (Page 7)
From the Adorama YouTube Channel:
Flash duration is an important concept to understand. The duration of your flash can vary widely based on the gear you use and the power settings you're using. In this episode, Mark Wallace explains flash duration, how to measure it, and why it's essential to understand. Mark explains the difference between T5 and T1 flash duration measurements.
Gear Used
Through 10:00am Eastern Time, B&H has the Pelican Hardigg BB0090 BlackBox 9U Rack Mount Case available for $999.95 with free shipping. Regularly $1,299.95.
Product Highlights
- Holds up to 100 lb of Gear
- Roto-Molded Polyethylene
- Shock Mounts Provide 2.0" Sway Space
- 24" Rugged Steel Rack Frame
See today's full list of B&H Deal Zone Deals for excellent savings opportunities.
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While this entire B&H video is worth watching if you're interested in what the newly introduced EOS-1D X Mark III has to offer, you may want to skip to roughly the 3:10 mark to see the new AF-On Smart Controller in action. As the 1-series's number of focus points grew, using the traditional joystick to switch between AF points became less practical.
The new AF-On Smart Controller seems to be a great solution to the AF selection issue, enabling very fast movement between AF points.
The Canon EOS-1D X Mark III is available for preorder at: B&H | Adorama | Canon USA Store | Amazon USA | WEX
From Nikon USA:
Nikon Asserts Commitment To Optical Superiority With The Announcement Of Cutting-Edge Z Mount, F Mount and COOLPIX Products
NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S Redefines a Quintessential Photographer Favorite for the Z System; AF-S NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR is a Ground-Breaking Pro Super-Telephoto Zoom Lens; COOLPIX P950 Packs an 83X Optical Zoom to Bring the World Closer
LAS VEGAS -- CES BOOTH #14018 – Today, Nikon Inc. announced three new innovative products that affirms the imaging brand’s commitment to bringing optical excellence to all levels of customers. First, the new NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S is the latest in the ever-expanding Z mount lens line, giving users of Nikon Z series mirrorless cameras an indispensable workhorse lens for capturing action and portraits. For professional sports and wildlife photographers, the new AF-S NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR is an enticing high-performance, professional super telephoto F mount NIKKOR lens. Finally, the COOLPIX P950 is a powerful new addition to Nikon’s superzoom bridge camera lineup, offering creators a spectacular 83x optical zoom and a myriad of innovative features to take their creativity to new heights.
“Nikon continues to innovate and push the boundaries of what’s possible in imaging and lens technology,” said Jay Vannatter, Executive Vice President, Nikon Inc. “The new NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S takes advantage of the next-generation optical system offered by the Nikon Z mount to create a versatile 70-200mm lens with astounding sharpness and clarity, cementing this S-line lens as a staple for those who demand only the best from their lenses.”
The NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S – Astonishing Details, Uncompromising Zoom
An essential pro-level telephoto zoom lens re-imagined to take advantage of the optical potential of the Z series, the NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S is the latest addition to Nikon’s rapidly growing lineup of mirrorless lenses. The NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 represents a pivotal lens for the Z series and a must-have for those shooting action, weddings, events, news, wildlife and portraits. Equipped with a versatile focal range, fast f/2.8 aperture and an impressive 5 stops of built-in optical VR image stabilization1, the NIKKOR Z 70-200mm gives mirrorless shooters the flexibility to capture astoundingly sharp images and videos in a variety of scenarios. Additionally, multimedia and content creators using the lens will appreciate the stepping motor (STM) for extremely quiet autofocus operation and reduced focus breathing.
The NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S demonstrates the technological benefits of the Nikon Z mount to reinvent a classic lens, while including new features to make this photographer favorite even more superior for Z series users. Parfocal support maintains focus when zooming, while a reduced minimum focus distance (0.5m wide, 1.0m telephoto) vastly increases versatility for photos and video. When used in combination with the in-body stabilization of the Nikon Z 6 and Z 7, the NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 promises unparalleled stability with additional optical stabilization. Like other S line lenses, the NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 boasts a premium optical design complete with a 9-blade diaphragm as well as Anti-Reflective Nano Crystal and ARNEO coatings for maximum image quality in any light, with a Fluorine coating that resists dirt and smudges. In addition to a rugged weather sealed design the lens is ready to tackle any assignment with a dedicated Info Panel, two customizable Function buttons and an additional custom control ring.
The new NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S and AF-S NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR are the first Nikon lenses to feature the newly developed SR (Short-Wavelength Refractive) lens element, a specialized-dispersion glass lens featuring characteristics that greatly refract light with wavelengths shorter than that of blue. By controlling short-wavelength light that is difficult to compensate, the lens can more effectively collect light of various specific wavelengths and achieve highly precise chromatic aberration compensation.
AF-S NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR: Impressive Reach, Incredible Speed, Absolute Versatility
The all-new AF-S NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR is a versatile, professional lens for the Nikon F mount with a large focal range and fast constant aperture. It’s ideal for sports, wildlife and portrait photographers seeking a bright and fast telephoto lens that offers sharp image quality across a wide range of focal lengths. Thanks to its extensive 120-300mm focal range, the NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8 provides users with a pro-level single lens solution, replacing the need to carry multiple lenses. With Nikon’s reliable weather-sealed construction, the NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8 is equipped to handle any shooting scenario whether on the sidelines or in the wilderness.
Users will appreciate the constant f/2.8 aperture which offers incredible low-light capability and depth of field that draws emphasis to a subject. The impeccably sharp image quality, beautiful bokeh and enhanced AF performance of the NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8 offer speed and sharpness reminiscent of a prime. Engineered with Nikon’s cutting-edge technologies, the AF-S NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR is the first NIKKOR F mount lens to adopt Nikon’s new SR lens element as well as Nikon’s anti-reflective ARNEO coat to deliver superior chromatic aberration compensation and effectively reduce ghost and flare. The built-in VR function provides an effect equivalent to a shutter speed 4.0 stops1 and includes a Sport VR mode for rapidly moving subjects.
Ready for professional use, the lens is sealed to resist the elements and is engineered for maximum usability, even when handheld. The zoom ring, focus function buttons, tripod collar ring and controls are all designed to ensure superior operability for more comfortable shooting.
COOLPIX P950: 2,000mm Zoom Power, 4K UHD Video & More
With an unbelievable 83x optical zoom NIKKOR lens, the 16-megapixel COOLPIX P950 is a powerful new addition to Nikon’s superzoom bridge camera lineup, which delivers unprecedented image quality from extreme distances. Beyond the staggering 24-2000mm lens, the COOLPIX P950 packs an advanced feature-set complete with Nikon’s renowned NIKKOR optics and advanced stabilization technology with 5.5 stops of VR image stabilization, allowing stargazers and birdwatchers to capture high-quality photos or 4K UHD videos at extreme distances with ease. Plus, by using the COOLPIX P950’s 166x** Dynamic Fine Zoom for far-away subjects and Macro Shooting capabilities to get as close as 0.4 inches, adventure-seekers can bring the unimaginable closer than ever.
Users can rely on the P950 to photograph life’s most unique subjects with incredible accuracy and focus thanks to its Target Finding AF capabilities, 7 fps continuous shooting and ISO sensitivity up to 6400. A great option for photographers of all skill levels, the COOLPIX P950 features user-friendly controls alongside an intuitive menu system and a 2359k-dot EVF, making it easier to review and capture one-of-a-kind shots. Using dedicated Bird-Watching and Moon Modes, photographers can effortlessly snap photos of their world and beyond. The new P950 also adds RAW (NRW) photo recording, an enhanced high-resolution electronic viewfinder and Nikon SnapBridge2,3,4 to seamlessly share images or remotely control the camera.
The COOLPIX P950 is also equipped with an accessory shoe to enable compatibility with a variety of useful accessories, including the optional DF-M1 Dot Sight, which helps users locate subjects and compose shots from far-away distances.
Pricing and Availability
The new NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S lens and COOLPIX P950 will be available in February for suggested retail prices (SRP) of $2,599.95* and $799.95*, respectively. The AF-S NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR lens will also be available in February for a suggested retail price (SRP) of $9,499.95*.
Preorders
Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR - B&H | Adorama
NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S - B&H | Adorama
Nikon COOLPIX P950 - B&H | Adorama
Specifications, equipment and release dates are subject to change without any notice or obligation on the part of the manufacturer.
1. Based on CIPA Standard. This value is achieved when attached to an FX-format digital SLR camera, with zoom set at the maximum telephoto position.
2. The camera’s built-in Bluetooth capability can only be used to connect the camera to a compatible smart device running the SnapBridge app, and to take advantage of SnapBridge features.
3. This camera’s built-in Wi-Fi capability can only be used with a compatible iPhone, iPad, and/or iPod touch or smart devices running on the Android operating system. The Nikon SnapBridge application must be installed on the device before it can be used with this camera.
4. Using the SnapBridge App System Requirements:
- Android 5.0 or later or 6.0.1 or later
- A device with Bluetooth 4.0 or later (i.e., a device that supports Bluetooth Smart Ready/Low Energy) is required.
- The SnapBridge app is available for compatible iPhone, iPad and/or iPod touch, and for smart devices running the AndroidTM operating system. The app can be downloaded free of charge from Apple’s App Store and GooglePlayTM. SnapBridge can be used only with compatible cameras.
-Android and Google Play are trademarks of Google Inc.
-Wi-Fi and the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED logo are registered trademarks of the Wi-Fi Alliance. The N Mark is a trademark or registered trademark of NFC Forum, Inc. in the United States and in other countries. The
Bluetooth word mark and logos are registered trademarks owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and any use of such marks by Nikon corporation and its Affiliates is under license.
*SRP (Suggested Retail Price) listed only as a suggestion. Actual prices are set by dealers and are subject to change at any time.
** At the maximum image size. The maximum zoom ratio varies by image size. Dynamic Fine Zoom magnification is calculated from the maximum wide-angle position of the optical zoom.
Versatility Meets Agility: The D780 Is A New Kind Of DSLR For A New Breed Of Creator
The New Nikon D780 Will Exceed Expectations with the Ultimate Combination of Speed, Powerful Performance and Premium Features at an Uncompromising Value
LAS VEGAS - CES 2020, BOOTH #14018 – Today, Nikon Inc. unveiled the D780, an exciting new FX-format DSLR that makes vast improvements to the highly-revered D750, Nikon’s most popular full-frame DSLR ever, while inheriting pro-level features from the powerful D850 and flagship D5. The much-anticipated D780 delivers the most sought-after features to give enthusiasts and professionals an agile camera for capturing high-resolution photos and 4K UHD video with the added benefit of fast, accurate phase detect autofocusing. While the D780 retains the rugged reliability of its predecessor, the camera has been turbocharged with Nikon’s latest EXPEED 6 processor, touch operability, advanced autofocus capabilities, extensive video features, a valuable assortment of in-camera creative options and much more. The new D780 is more than a worthy successor to the beloved D750, it’s a proven performer that transcends any creative endeavor.
Nikon cameras and lenses are world-renowned for their usability, reliability, performance and impressive image quality. With the addition of the innovative new Z mirrorless system, together with a robust and proven lineup of DSLR’s and decades of the finest NIKKOR lenses, Nikon is uniquely positioned to fulfill customer’s needs no matter how they want to capture still images or video.
“The Nikon D780 is not only a huge leap in technology over the D750, but it also integrates Nikon’s latest cutting-edge technologies to offer the best video feature-set and imaging capabilities in a full-frame DSLR,” said Jay Vannatter, Executive Vice President of Nikon Inc. “A demand exists for a successor to the D750, which offers the unbeatable combination of versatility, image quality and value.”
Perform Beyond Expectations
The Nikon D780 sets a new benchmark in DSLR performance, vastly improving upon the capabilities of the D750 by incorporating the newest technology and some of the popular features seen in the Z series, making it powerful and versatile enough to capture anything from fast-action sports to beautifully detailed night skies. The D780 is a seriously capable camera and offers the distinct advantage of being comfortable in the hands of a photo enthusiast, as well as being a popular pro-grade tool for weddings, wildlife, and production environments.
- High Resolution Image Quality: Offering the optimal balance between resolution and file size, the D780 is equipped with a 24.5-megapixel backside-illuminated (BSI) FX-Format CMOS sensor to deliver superb image quality, fantastic dynamic range, beautiful color reproduction, stellar low-light ability and sharp clarity to excel in a wide array of shooting scenarios.
- EXPEED 6 Processing Power: Designed with Nikon’s most advanced EXPEED 6 image processor, the D780 is packed with the same powerful processing engine as the Nikon Z 6 and Z 7, allowing for noticeable increases in speed. In addition to greater energy efficiency, EXPEED 6 delivers improved low-light performance, 4K UHD full-frame video with full pixel readout, and enhanced image clarity.
- Wide ISO Range: The D780 retains the low-light ability that made it a photographer’s favorite for wedding receptions and nighttime photography, producing clean files with minimal noise effortlessly. Whether capturing a dimly lit dance floor, a stage performance or an astounding astro-landscape, users can rely on the D780 to retain ultimate clarity in even the most challenging lighting scenarios. The camera offers improved ISO performance across the entire range, which now goes up to 51,200 and is expandable to 204,800.
- Blazing-fast speeds: The D780 keeps pace with the fastest action, offering shooting speeds of up to 7 fps1 at full resolution and shutter speeds as fast as 1/8000 or as long as 900 seconds2. Whether shooting the split-second action of motocross, or a bride’s walk down the aisle, the D780 lets you capture content with confidence when you only get one chance.
- Two Powerful AF Systems Optimized for Any Shooting Style:
--- When shooting through the optical viewfinder (OVF): Nikon’s proven 51-point AF system is paired with an enhanced AF algorithm inherited from the flagship Nikon D5. 15 cross-type AF sensors maximize accuracy, and the camera uses an upgraded 180K-pixel Advanced Scene Recognition System, which analyzes the scene to ensure balanced exposures and accurate color reproduction. The AF system can reliably track rapidly moving subjects such as wildlife, yet also improves on its surreal ability to nail focus in challenging light, to -4EV in this mode.
--- In Live View: For the first time in a Nikon DSLR, the D780 is infused with mirrorless technology, featuring the same 273 point3 focal plane Hybrid AF system employed in the Nikon Z 6, enabling broad coverage of approximately 90% of the frame. The system offers extremely fast, smooth and accurate AF in Live View and when recording video, a huge benefit for multimedia production. This is also Nikon’s first DSLR to feature Eye-Detection AF4, enabling a real-time tracking of multiple eyes in a scene to help ensure tack-sharp focus for portraits and candid shots.
- Silent Shooting: When operating the electronic shutter in Live View, the D780 can shoot continuously without shutter noise at up to 12 fps. Silent shooting is ideal for documenting sensitive moments like a live performance, a wedding ceremony or discrete street photography.
- NIKKOR Lenses: When combined with an extensive catalog of world renowned NIKKOR lenses, the versatile D780 knows no boundaries in taking on any artistic challenge.
Video Features for Creators
The D780 delivers the best video capabilities of any Nikon DSLR, incorporating technology found in the Nikon Z 6 mirrorless camera.
- Full-Frame 4K video at 30 fps: Incorporating an FX-format BSI sensor and on-sensor phase detect AF, the D780 is capable of similar video capture functions of the Nikon Z 6, capturing full-frame 4K UHD video at 30 fps with full-pixel readout for absolute quality. A variety of other frame rates and resolutions is also selectable, including Full HD/120p for ultra-smooth motion in videos and epic slow-motion capture.
- Flexible workflow: The D780 offers 10-bit output with N-Log5 or HDR (Hybrid Log-Gamma) support, raising the bar for video functionality and flexibility in post-production.
- Advanced Cinematic Functions: Users can enjoy more creative freedom when capturing video with the D780 thanks to its host of advanced shooting modes, including focus peaking, highlight display (zebra stripes), interval timer and in-camera time-lapse movie file recording.
Advanced Creative Features
The D780 sports an innovative and useful feature-set that empowers professionals to explore their creative potential by affording a more efficient workflow coupled with unique effects.
- In-Camera Creative Filters: With a wide-array of in-camera Creative Picture Controls and a Special Effects Mode, the D780 enables users to effortlessly add elements of personal flare to their photos and videos. Additionally, many of these popular special effects can be captured as a JPEG while simultaneously shooting an unaffected RAW image for more editing freedom.
- Focus Stacking: Like the D850, the D780’s Focus Shift feature will appeal to macro, product and landscape photographers seeking extreme depth-of-field, by enabling the user to capture a series of shots at different focus distances and use third party software to generate a highly-defined image consisting of only the areas in focus.
- More Flexibility with Multiple Exposures: New to the D780 is the ability to create a multiple exposure with non-consecutively shot images, giving photographers the capacity to superimpose images in-camera, even when captured from two entirely different locations and times.
- Easy Wi-Fi6 and Bluetooth7 Connectivity: The D780 offers seamless image-sharing to a smartphone or tablet when connected to the Nikon SnapBridge8 app using the camera’s built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. With the latest SnapBridge app, it’s easy to download videos, RAW files or remotely control a camera from your phone or tablet.
Built Like a Nikon
- New Touch Operability: Like the Nikon D850, the new D780 features a bright, tilting 3.2-inch LCD enhanced with touch operability to provide a more optimal user-experience.
- Robust Design: Sporting a durable build with extensive weather-sealing, the D780 retains its role as a reliable tool to handle unpredictable conditions when working in the field.
- Energy-Saving Performance: The D780 can capture 2,260 shots on single charge** which is a significant increase in battery life compared to the D750, making it the ideal companion for photographers embarking on a day-long outing.
- On-The-Go Charging: With versatile USB Type C compatibility users can charge in-camera and transfer files more conveniently than ever.
- Dual Card Slots: Featuring two UHS-II SD card slots, the D780 provides professionals with a safety net and the ability to record multiple file formats simultaneously.
Price and Availability
The Nikon D780 will be available in late January for a suggested retail price (SRP) of $2,299.95* for the body-only configuration, and $2,799.95* for single-lens kit configuration with the AF-S NIKKOR 24-120mm f/4G ED VR lens.
Preorders
Nikon D780 - B&H | Adorama
# # #
Specifications, equipment and release dates are subject to change without any notice or obligation on the part of the manufacturer.
All Nikon products include Nikon Inc. limited warranty. Images are for illustrative purposes only. All Nikon trademarks are trademarks of Nikon Corporation. Nikon Authorized Dealers set their own selling prices, which may vary. Nikon is not responsible for typographical errors.
1. With continuous-servo AF (AF-C), manual (M) or shutter-priority auto exposure (S), a shutter speed of 1/250 s or faster, and other settings at default values.
2. When Custom Setting d6 Extended shutter speeds (M) is set to On.
3. With recording of still images using the FX (36×24) image area and single-point AF. 231 focus points with movie recording.
4. With live view photography in auto-area AF mode.
5. Footage is recorded only to the external device; it cannot be recorded to the memory card inserted in the camera.
6. This camera’s built-in Wi-Fi capability can only be used with a compatible iPhone, iPad, and/or iPod touch or smart devices running on the Android operating system. The Nikon SnapBridge application must be installed on the device before it can be used with this camera.
7. The camera’s built-in Bluetooth capability can only be used to connect the camera to a compatible smart device running the SnapBridge app, and to take advantage of SnapBridge features.
8. Using the SnapBridge App System Requirements:
- Android 5.0 or later or 6.0.1 or later
- A device with Bluetooth 4.0 or later (i.e., a device that supports Bluetooth Smart Ready/Low Energy) is required.
- The SnapBridge app is available for compatible iPhone, iPad and/or iPod touch, and for smart devices running the AndroidTM operating system. The app can be downloaded free of charge from Apple’s App Store and GooglePlayTM. SnapBridge can be used only with compatible cameras.
Wi-Fi and the Wi-Fi logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of the Wi-Fi Alliance. N-Mark is a trademark or registered trademark of NFC Forum, Inc., in the United States and/or other countries.
Bluetooth word mark and logos are registered trademarks owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and any use of such marks by Nikon Corporation and its Affiliates is under license.
iOS is a trademark or registered trademark of Cisco Systems, Inc., in the United States and/or other countries and is used under license.
Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPad and iPod touch are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc.
Android and Google Play are trademarks of Google Inc.
*SRP (Suggested Retail Price) listed only as a suggestion. Actual prices are set by dealers and are subject to change at any time.
** Measured in accordance with CIPA standard.
Image quality test results have been added to the Nikon Z 85mm f/1.8G S Lens page.
I think you are going to like this lens. Go make some comparisons.
The Nikon Z 85mm f/1.8G S Lens is in stock at B&H | Adorama | Amazon USA | WEX
Rent the Nikon Z 85mm f/1.8G S Lens from Lensrentals.
For many households, Christmas brings with it many decorations with a tree being the primary one. Installing the tree is often a large job, the result is generally beautiful, and capturing memories of the annual tree is worth the small amount of effort required to do so.
Help the Christmas tree photo from the start by selecting a great looking tree that fits nicely in your space. "Great" is as seen in your eyes. We have a tall ceiling over our tree's location and our tree height is limited to what I can haul home and make stay upright in the tree stand. Another limitation is that the top of the tree must be reachable using only a step ladder (scaffolding is not an option) and with our space not being large in width, it is nice to have enough space to be able to walk around the tree. The kids always want taller and the parents always want shorter. The parents can better tolerate taller if narrower enters the equation. With a narrow tree, height becomes easier to manage (except for the road clearance issue faced when hauling it home across the back of the SUV's Hitch Haul).
When decorating the tree, ensure that the strands of lights are all the same brand and model, or at least that all of the strands share the same bulb color and brightness. I learned that lesson a few years back when I needed to combine multiple exposures to balance out the brightness differences of our dual-brightness tree.
Do you have windows in the frame with your tree? If so, consider photographing during the blue hour which is really the blue minutes as there will likely be only a couple of minutes of ideal exterior brightness to balance with the indoor light levels, giving your images that extra wow factor. Shooting through that ideal time period will ensure the perfect minute is captured. You likely photographed a tree in the same location at the same time a year ago. Reviewing the EXIF information from a prior year's perfect photo will provide a close estimate of the perfect time for the blue minute shot this year. Then ensure you are set up and ready for that minute to arrive.
While reviewing images from prior years, look at the angles you captured to learn what works well and what doesn't. Repeat and avoid those compositions as makes sense. Also, check the camera settings used for the previous images for guidance on this year's camera settings. Note that changing out strands of lights can change the needed settings due to differing brightness.
Often, turning off all of the lights (or at least the brighter ones) in the house, aside from the Christmas lights, will result in the ideal lighting. If there are windows in the image, watch for reflections in those. Block any problematic reflections (such as the numbers on the microwave display) and take advantage of positive ones (such as the Christmas lights). For the image shared here, a couple of Post-It Notes were placed over the thermostat display. Note that double-pane windows may create double reflections.
With only the Christmas lights providing illumination, the environment is dark. While I like to use a wide aperture lens, I don't use a wide aperture for the Christmas tree photo. Stopping a wide aperture lens down to f/16 or so makes each light into a little starburst and stopped down wide aperture lenses tend to produce the best stars. The narrow aperture also makes it easy to keep the entire scene in focus.
Unless your lights are far brighter than ours, you can expect to need a long exposure at f/16. I usually use 30 seconds and sometimes bump the ISO up modestly to keep from having to wait for even longer exposures. Thus, a tripod is needed along with either a remote release or the self-timer used. I don't mind if the individual lights become slightly blown (pure white), but if an extra-bright decoration is in the frame, I will sometimes exposure bracket with an additional image captures.
Long exposures raise another problem for some of us. While most Christmas tree displays will be motionless, they may not always be perfectly so. Unless your Christmas tree is on a concrete floor, there is likely the potential for the floor to vibrate at least slightly when walked on. Hanging ornaments will likely be the first indicators that the floor has vibrated and if swinging, they will be blurred in 30-second exposures. Planning this shoot for when the rest of the family is not home (or is in bed) is a good idea. You might need to stand very still behind the camera for a couple of minutes before capturing the shot.
Think about the camera angle. A completely level camera is often desired for interior photography such as this and adjusting the camera height and distance from the tree provides the composition desired.
For this year's tree photo, I opted to use the Canon EOS R and RF 15-35mm F2.8 L IS USM Lens. The R's 30 MP resolution was very adequate for my needs and the RF 15-35 delivers impressive image quality. In addition, the 15mm focal length was very attractive for this image capture — and it became even more attractive during post processing. Despite being very careful to level the camera, I still managed to get a slightly tilted (0.6°) image. Straightening an image requires cropping (or creating missing details) and the 15mm angle of view gave me just enough additional angle of view to make that adjustment comfortable. Note how little barrel distortion is showing in this uncorrected image.
As soon as the perfect light was captured behind the windows, I pulled the couch and ottoman out of the way and pressed the shutter release of a second camera that was already set up, providing a completely different image.
From my family to yours, we wish you the merriest, joy-filled Christmas ever!
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 100
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Sorry - I broke the previous post sometime today - here is the correction
Image quality test results have been added to the Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S Lens page.
Go make some comparisons.
The Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S Lens is in stock at B&H | Adorama | Amazon USA | WEX
Rent the Nikon Z 24mm f/1.8 S Lens from Lensrentals.
When first arriving at a beautiful waterfall, it usually seems obvious to frame it nicely and press the shutter release. After getting that basic (though often important) image on the card, it is time to look for variations and these often incorporate foreground elements.
The last image I posted from Ricketts Glen State Park, On the Ledge at R. B. Ricketts Falls in Ricketts Glen State Park, illustrated the use of interesting rock in the foreground of a waterfall image. Another great waterfall composition strategy involves finding an attractive cascade below the primary falls. Moving in close to those lower cascades increases their relative size, balancing their overall weight in the image.
With good water flow (it was raining on this day), R. B. Ricketts Falls turns into a double falls with streams converging into the pool at the base of their falls. The camera position utilized for this image combined the white water of twin cascades to create an X-factor.
As I've said before, one has to work hard to have a bad day at Rickets Glen State Park but conditions made this an especially great day at this awesome location. The Breakthrough Photography circular polarizer filter was a crucial part of the kit on this day, cutting the reflections left by the wet conditions, leaving richly saturated landscape that provided inviting photo opportunities everywhere I looked. The Canon EOS 5Ds R and the Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L III USM Lens were the only camera and lens that came out of my BackLight 26L on this day. They were perfect for the needs encountered on this day.
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
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From the Adorama YouTube Channel:
On cold winters day, being in a warm studio is very appealing. In this video photographer Gavin Hoey shows you how to add warmth to a small home studio shoot by making use of a warm tone wooden background, fabric flooring and and orange colored gel. Gavin also balances the brightness of the flash with 200 battery powered Christmas lights to create a festive feeling portrait.
After the shoot Gavin takes you into Photoshop to do some fine tuning and covers non-destructive cloning to hide the fairy light battery boxes with extra LED's and adds a creative lens flare effect.
Relevant Products Used
From SIGMA:
Firmware update for SIGMA’s interchangeable lenses for CANON EF mount
Thank you for purchasing and using our products.
We would like to announce that a new firmware update for SIGMA’s interchangeable lenses for CANON EF mount listed below is now available.
For customers who own the SIGMA USB DOCK and applicable products listed below, please update the firmware via SIGMA Optimization Pro.
* Before updating the firmware using the SIGMA USB DOCK, please ensure to update SIGMA Optimization Pro to Ver. 1.5.0. or later for Windows / Ver. 1.5.1. or later for Macintosh
Applicable product
- SIGMA 28mm F1.4 DG HSM | Art for CANON EF mount
Benefits of the update
- It has optimized the operation of the aperture control when the lens is used in combination with SIGMA MOUNT CONVERTER MC-21 EF-L.
Applicable product
- SIGMA 24-70mm F2.8 DG OS HSM | Art for CANON EF mount
Benefits of the update
- It has improved the AF performance when the lens is used in combination with SIGMA MOUNT CONVERTER MC-21 EF-L.
Applicable products
- SIGMA 150-600mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM | Sports for CANON EF mount
- SIGMA 500mm F4 DG OS HSM | Sports for CANON EF mount
Benefits of the update
- It has optimized the operation of Mode 2 in Optical Stabilizer when used in combination with the SIGMA MOUNT CONVERTER MC-21 EF-L.
SIGMA Optimization Pro Download page
Firmware update for interchangeable lens for Sony E-mount
Thank you for purchasing and using our products.
We are pleased to announce that a new firmware update for interchangeable lens for Sony E-mount is now available.
Applicable products
- SIGMA 40mm F1.4 DG HSM | Art for SONY E-mount
- SIGMA 70mm F2.8 DG MACRO | Art for SONY E-mount
Benefits of the update
- It has improved the AF performance.
To update the firmware, please refer to this link.
* Before attaching the updated lenses to the camera body, please remove the battery pack from the camera and put it back in again.
Just because the skies are white doesn't necessarily mean that they should be kept out of the frame. While cloud-covered white skies are sometimes welcomed, especially for the broad even light they provide, they are not usually my favorite for image backgrounds and I often avoid the inclusion of white skies in image backgrounds. However, they can be used to create a sometimes-desirable pure white high key background.
Getting this background is not difficult. Simply find a good subject and align it with the white sky. Note that your camera's meter will want to make a white sky grey (especially if the subject is a white goat) so some positive exposure compensation (or a manual exposure) will likely be needed for such images.
On this day, my daughter and I were chasing mountain goats high in the Rockies and as you have already figured out, the skies were white. The thick cloud cover meant that we could photograph the goats from any angle offered to us without concern for shadows but any sky in the photo was going to be white. Getting into a position that allowed the entire background to be sky and allowing that background to become pure white created a nice portrait.
The versatile and optically-impressive Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM Lens was a great lens to have for this trip. It was the only lens I used for photographing the goats.
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
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From the Godox Photo Equipment Co. Ltd YouTube Channel:
Volodya Voronin is an action, adventure and sports photographer, mainly focusing on extreme sports. Sometimes he gets to dangerous places like mountains and abandoned buildings and works in some really harsh conditions. For him, easy to use, compact flash units from Godox were a good choice for these condition. In this episode of Godox Photography Class, he will show you how these super cool images full of action were all shoot using the Godox AD200Pro and AD600Pro.
Today I'm sharing a small project I took on, meeting a need that didn't seem optimally met otherwise: Do-It-Yourself Rigid Camera Rain Cover.
As I needed this accessory, I thought you might also, thus I'm sharing. This camera cover was inexpensive and easy to make. Feel free to share any ideas you have for improvements.
From the Adobe Photoshop YouTube Channel:
Welcome back to 3, 2, 1…Photoshop! In this episode, Adobe Evangelist Julieanne Kost shares how to create a simple stop motion animation using Photoshop. Watch this video to learn how to make your static images come to life.
B&H carries Adobe Photography Plan subscriptions.
Using a new camera often brings acclimation factors and despite having used the Sony a7R IV for a couple of months prior, I was still acclimating to this camera's enormous 120MB uncompressed RAW file size. We were staying ahead of this big old 12-point buck and it finally cooperated perfectly, walking toward us with the sun was at our backs. While capturing images of him approaching, I was greeted by the memory card full message in the viewfinder.
I had filled a 256GB memory card just as the perfect scenario was unfolding. While another memory card was immediately available, the pause was just long enough to miss the pinnacle of the action. Ironically, the workshop participant shooting next to me filled his Nikon D850's 256GB card at almost the exact same second. While we missed some images, the humor of it is realized and that memory is at least of some value. The lesson here is to monitor card capacities closely — or buy cards with enough capacity to outlast any use given to the camera.
Fortunately I had some good pictures from this buck encounter. When the buck was farther away, I preferred a horizontal camera orientation, keeping more of the grass field in the frame. As the deer approached, the horizontal framing became too tight and switching to the vertical orientation shared here made complete sense for the vertically shaped subject.
The vertical vs. horizontal camera orientation is a choice we are always making. Sometimes the choice is easy and sometimes it is not.
One consideration is how the image is going to be used and which orientation is required for that use. If your goal is to get the image on a magazine cover, going vertical is a good choice. Another big consideration is the aesthetics of the scene. Some scenes look better in one of the orientations.
If the horizontal vs. vertical orientation choice does not have a straightforward answer, shoot both. It is often easier to decide when using a computer display and keeping images shot in both orientations may be the right choice.
While the Sony a7R IV's uncompressed RAW file size has required some acclimation, it has not been hard to acclimate to this camera's 61 MP resolution.
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 640
6020 x 9030px
From Nikon:
December 16, 2019 – MELVILLE, NY – Nikon Inc. is pleased to announce the release of firmware Ver. 2.20 for the Nikon Z 7 and Z 6 full-frame mirrorless cameras. This firmware update offers several improvements that make these cameras even more powerful, including the addition of support for the next generation memory card, CFexpress. Additionally, Nikon has announced that beginning today, service to install RAW video output functionality will be available for those wishing to add enhanced professional video capabilities.
Support for CFexpress, the New Standard for Speed and Durability
Updating Z 7 and Z 6 firmware to Ver. 2.20 enables the use*1 of CFexpress*2 cards. CFexpress cards are robust and reliable, and support even faster data transfer than XQD cards for a smoother and more efficient photographic workflow.
CFexpress cards use a similar form factor to XQD, eliminating the need to physically modify the camera's memory card slot. After upgrading, users will be able to use CFexpress as well as XQD cards in their camera interchangeably. In addition to the Z 7 and Z 6, CFexpress memory card support will be added to the Nikon D5 (XQD-Type), Nikon D850 and Nikon D500 digital SLR cameras in the future.
Initially, only limited CFexpress card types are fully supported and the number of supported cards will continue to expand as additional cards are tested and certified (Type B CFexpress cards manufactured only by Sony Corp. Availability date for the cards may vary by market).
RAW video output function (4K UHD and Full HD)
Developed in conjunction with Atomos, this capability enables recording of RAW video, which has greater flexibility for color grading compared to other video formats.
With this upgrade, 12-bit 4K UHD or full-HD RAW video can be recorded*3 to select models of Atomos video recorders*4 connected to a Z 7 or Z 6 camera via a HDMI connector. As RAW video is not subjected to in-camera processing, all information that is outputted from the image sensor is preserved. This abundance of information can later be used in post-production.
The RAW video output capability upgrade can be installed at a Nikon service center and will incur a fee but will be included free of charge as part of Nikon Z 6 Filmmaker’s kit bundles. Those customers in the United States who have already purchased a Nikon Z 6 Filmmaker’s kit (Product #13545) will be eligible to have the fee waived (proof of purchase required). For more details about the Nikon Z 6 Filmmaker’s kit, please visit here.
For additional technical information, equipment requirements and instructions on requesting the RAW video output upgrade, please visit: www.nikonusa.com/RAWvideo.
Price and Availability
The firmware update Ver. 2.20 which enables CFexpress functionality is available now, free of charge. Please visit The Nikon Z series Firmware update page to download and find more information.
The RAW video output upgrade is available starting today and will require installation by a Nikon Service Center. A $199.95* fee will apply.
The information contained herein is accurate as of the date of this press release.
Specifications, equipment and release dates are subject to change without any notice or obligation on the part of the manufacturer.? Trade names mentioned in this document are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
All Nikon products include Nikon Inc. limited warranty. Images are for illustrative purposes only. All Nikon trademarks are trademarks of Nikon Corporation. Nikon Authorized Dealers set their own selling prices, which may vary. Nikon is not responsible for typographical errors.
*1 Type B CFexpress cards manufactured by Sony Corp. only. Operation is not guaranteed with cards from other manufacturers (as of December 2019).
*2 CFexpress is a trademark of the CompactFlash Association.
*3 With the Z 7, full-HD RAW video can be recorded using the FX-based movie format, and 4K UHD RAW video can be recorded using the DX-based movie format.
When the Z 6 is used, recording of either 4K UHD or full-HD RAW video is possible with both FX- and DX-based movie formats.
See the cameras' Technical Guide, available from the Download Center, for details on differences between Z 7 and Z 6 specifications.
Nikon Download Center (https://downloadcenter.nikonimglib.com/en/index.html) *4 The Atomos Ninja V supports Nikon RAW video output, and records videos in ProRes RAW format. Operation is not guaranteed with recorders other than the Ninja V (as of December 2019). RAW video output from a Nikon camera is supported by Ninja V firmware Ver. 10.2 and later.
See the Ninja V firmware download site (https://www.atomos.com/firmware/ninja-v).
*5 See our website for instructions on requesting the RAW output options activation service (www.nikonusa.com/RAWvideo).
*Pricing and availability of the service will vary by region Ninja V® and ATOMOS® are registered trademarks of ATOMOS.
Apple® is a registered trademark of Apple Inc.
Final Cut Pro® is a registered trademark of Apple Inc.
ProRes RAW® is a registered trademark of Apple Inc.
Please speak with Nikon customer service for further details.
Just posted: Wimberley MH-100 MonoGimbal Gimbal Monopod Head Review.
Monopod users can put one of these on their Christmas list. Looking for a gift your photographer friend or family member does not already have? This unique head is just hitting the market and is a great gift option.
The Wimberley MH-100 MonoGimbal Gimbal Monopod Head is in stock at: B&H | Adorama | Amazon USA
Please share this review with your friends!
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by Sean Setters
Whether for Christmas/Hanukkah, Independence Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Veterans Day, MLK Day, or in this case, Thanksgiving, holiday events offer exciting opportunities for documenting family traditions, personal relationships, physical development, and all the joys togetherness brings.
This Thanksgiving, I filmed my family throughout the day, focusing much of the camera's attention on my 14 month-old daughter, Olivia Jane. My hope is that she will enjoy watching videos such as these as she matures, with an eager fascination to see what life was like long before her long-term memory kicked in.
Of course, there's a ton of video filming options available, and while my own video kit is continuously evolving, the following items were what I used while filming that day:
- Canon EOS R
- Canon Mount Adapter EF-EOS R
- Canon EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM
- Canon EF 40mm f/2.8 STM
- DJI Ronin-S Gimbal Stabilizer
- Deity Microphones V-Mic D3 Pro
Having only purchased the Canon EOS R about a month before Thanksgiving, this event was my first experience producing video with the camera. Overall, I came away impressed by the camera's performance. The EOS R was just small enough to allow the battery grip to be used with the DJI Ronin-S Gimbal, a feature I appreciated as I didn't have to continuously watch my battery levels throughout the day. Of course, using the battery grip increased the size/weight of the setup, but I didn't find use of the battery grip to be burdensome, especially as filming was limited to relatively short segments throughout the day.
As I don't have any RF mount lenses yet I defaulted to my favorite EF-S/EF-series lenses, the lenses I have historically utilized while filming with a gimbal – the Canon EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM and Canon EF 40mm f/2.8 STM. Why use two of Canon's most inexpensive lenses for filming video? Because 1) they're small and light, 2) can be swapped out for one another with very little need for rebalancing the gimbal, 3) their optical performance is surprisingly good, 4) the f/2.8 aperture is wide enough allow for relatively low ISO use when the shutter speed is set to 1/60 second (twice the frame rate of 30 fps), and 5) the lenses' STM AF systems do a very good job transitioning focus between subjects when the camera is set to a subject (face) tracking mode. Note that because the full-frame camera gives me a 38.4mm full-frame equivalent angle of view while using the EF-S 24mm STM, I set the camera to crop mode while using the EF 40mm STM to provide a noticeably different angle of view.
In a previous video, I had used lavalier mics with a couple of Tascam DR-10L Micro Portable Audio Recorders and really enjoyed the results, but this larger family event necessitated the use of a different audio recording solution as I needed to record a number of people. This need motivated my newest audio recording acquisition – the Deity Microphones V-Mic D3 Pro Shotgun Microphone. Looking online, you'll find numerous videos hyping this microphone's performance and value; the hype is well deserved. This is an excellent shotgun microphone, it is reasonably priced, and I'm really glad it's now part of my kit for run-and-gun applications.
So, those are the items I'm now relying on to record family videos in addition to the occasional for-hire filming request (the Tascam DR-10Ls also come in handy for the latter) and are certainly worth consideration when documenting your own family's memories.
Everyone loves lighthouses and lighthouse images, right? After awaking to a 4-something AM alarm for three days in a row, I was finally treated to some morning sunlight at the Bass Harbor Lighthouse. While some cloud drama would have been welcomed, the white sky created by the solid cloud cover present on the previous two mornings was not as photogenic.
When the sky is clear at sunrise/sunset, there are some expected parameters for landscape photography. One is that the first/last light will be very warm in color and another is that pastel colors will show in earth shadow and the Belt of Venus above it low in the sky opposite the rising/setting sun. These two parameters combine very nicely.
I don't always require myself to use a completely level camera (tilt and roll) for landscape photography but did so in this case, primarily to keep the sides of the lighthouse from leaning. Adding to that compositional constraint was the desire to have the reflections availed by the foreground tidal pool included in the frame. The lighthouse reflection was the primary interest and it was very tightly framed between the surrounding rocks, further limiting the camera position to within that narrow line. With the rocks being indicative of the Maine coastline, having them close and emphasized seemed logical and led to this final camera position.
Should circular polarizer filters be used for all landscape photographs? While CPL filters are easily my most-used filters and I very frequently use them for landscape photography, this was a time when using the effect provided by this filter was a detriment to the final look. Cutting the reflections on the rocks and in the tidal pool created a dark, flat, lifeless look to the foreground rocks and water, detracting significantly from the result. It didn't take long to determine which look was preferable.
Wet dark-colored rocks absorb a lot of light even without a CPL filter and two exposures were combined to ensure that details were retained in those rocks in the final image.
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 100
9504 x 6336px
These two brown bears are having a heart to heart in a salmon stream in remote Katmai National Park, Alaska.
Notice the high contrast of the splashing water? Camera AF systems also notice splashes and will often jump to focus on any bright water drops in front of a subject. In this case, the splash was well below the focus point and not an AF issue.
The Christmas special offer on the Brown Bear Chasing Salmon, Remote Katmai National Park, Alaska instructional photo tour is still in place. Sign up along with a spouse or friend and save $500 on the second admission price for this bucket list-grade trip.
Dates: Thu, September 17 to Fri, September 24, 2020
If this trip is calling you, I need to hear from you as soon as possible. Contact me to sign up!
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 1600
5148 x 7722px
From Adobe:
Record Fourth Quarter Contributes to 24 Percent Year-Over-Year Annual Growth
SAN JOSE, Calif.--Adobe (Nasdaq:ADBE) today reported financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year 2019 ended Nov. 29, 2019.
In its fourth quarter of fiscal year 2019, Adobe achieved record quarterly revenue of $2.99 billion, which represents 21 percent year-over-year growth. In fiscal year 2019, Adobe achieved record annual revenue of $11.17 billion, which represents 24 percent year-over-year growth.
"Adobe's phenomenal performance in Q4 capped a record fiscal 2019 with revenue exceeding $11 billion,” said Shantanu Narayen, president and CEO, Adobe. "Adobe’s vision, category leadership, continuous product innovation and large and loyal customer base position us well for 2020 and beyond."
“Adobe delivered another year of strong revenue growth and expanding profitability resulting in record earnings," said John Murphy, executive vice president and CFO, Adobe. “We are bullish about our opportunities and our ability to continue to deliver strong top- and bottom-line growth."
Fourth Quarter Fiscal Year 2019 Financial Highlights
- Adobe achieved record quarterly revenue of $2.99 billion in its fourth quarter of fiscal year 2019, which represents 21 percent year-over-year growth. Diluted earnings per share was $1.74 on a GAAP-basis, and $2.29 on a non-GAAP basis.
- Digital Media segment revenue was $2.08 billion, which represents 22 percent year-over-year growth. Creative revenue grew to $1.74 billion and Document Cloud revenue was $339 million. Digital Media Annualized Recurring Revenue (“ARR”) grew to $8.40 billion exiting the quarter, a quarter-over-quarter increase of $539 million. Creative ARR grew to $7.31 billion, and Document Cloud ARR grew to $1.09 billion.
- Digital Experience segment revenue was $859 million, representing 24 percent year-over-year growth.
- GAAP operating income in the fourth quarter was $970 million, and non-GAAP operating income was $1.27 billion. GAAP net income was $852 million, and non-GAAP net income was $1.12 billion.
- Cash flow from operations was a record $1.38 billion.
- Remaining Performance Obligation was $9.82 billion, a quarter-over-quarter increase of $1.05 billion.
- Adobe repurchased approximately 2.8 million shares during the quarter.
Fiscal Year 2019 Financial Highlights
- Adobe achieved record annual revenue of $11.17 billion in fiscal year 2019, representing 24 percent year-over-year growth.
- The company reported annual GAAP diluted earnings per share of $6.00 and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share of $7.87.
- Digital Media segment revenue was $7.71 billion, with Creative and Document Cloud achieving record annual revenue of
- $6.48 billion and $1.22 billion, respectively. Digital Media ARR grew by $1.69 billion during the year.
- Digital Experience segment revenue was $3.21 billion, representing 31 percent year-over-year growth, and subscription bookings grew by more than 20 percent during the year.
- Operating income grew 15 percent and net income grew 14 percent year-over-year on a GAAP-basis; operating income grew
- 23 percent and net income grew 15 percent year-over-year on a non-GAAP basis.
- Adobe generated a record $4.42 billion in operating cash flow during the year.
- The company repurchased 9.9 million shares during the year, returning $2.7 billion of cash to stockholders.
A reconciliation between GAAP and non-GAAP results is provided at the end of this press release and on Adobe’s website.
Adobe Provides Fiscal Year and First Quarter 2020 Financial Targets
The following table summarizes Adobe’s fiscal year 2020 targets.
| Adobe fiscal year 2020 revenue | ~$13.15 billion |
| Digital Media segment revenue | ~19 percent year-over-year growth |
| Digital Media annualized recurring revenue (ARR) | ~$1.55 billion of net new ARR |
| Digital Experience segment revenue | ~16 percent year-over-year growth |
| Digital Experience subscription revenue* | ~18 percent year-over-year growth |
| Digital Experience subscription bookings** | >20 percent year-over-year growth |
| Tax rate | GAAP: ~11% | Non-GAAP: ~11% |
| Share count | ~486 million shares |
| Earnings per share | GAAP: ~$7.40 | Non-GAAP: ~$9.75 |
* Includes revenue from SaaS, managed service, ratable term, usage based, and subscription service offerings for Digital Experience
** Includes annualized subscription value of SaaS, managed service, term and subscription service offerings under contract for Data & Insights, Content & Commerce and Customer Journey Management solutions
The following table summarizes Adobe’s first quarter fiscal year 2020 targets.
| Adobe Q1 fiscal year 2020 revenue | ~$3.04 billion |
| Digital Media segment revenue | ~19 percent year-over-year growth |
| Digital Media annualized recurring revenue (ARR) | ~$360 million of net new ARR |
| Digital Experience segment revenue | ~15 percent year-over-year growth |
| Tax rate | GAAP: ~5% | Non-GAAP: ~11% |
| Share count | ~489 million shares |
| Earnings per share | GAAP: ~$1.76 | Non-GAAP: ~$2.23 |
B&H carries Adobe Photography Plan subscriptions.
Just posted: Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD Lens Review.
Tamron has released another winner with this lens.
The Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD Lens is in stock at B&H | Adorama | Amazon USA | WEX
Rent the Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD Lens from Lensrentals.
From Sigma:
The SIGMA Corporation is pleased to announce the launch schedule of “FF Classic Prime Line” , a new series in the SIGMA CINE LENS.
FF High Speed Prime Line has been offering the highest resolving power in its class, that is compatible with 8K shooting with large format sensors, while achieving outstanding compact design. Based on this product line, the FF Classic Prime Line incorporates more non-coated optical elements to achieve unrivaled expression. It retains the high resolution capability that SIGMA CINE LENS is well known for, and offers a unique combination of low contrast and artistic flare/ghost in the image. As with all other lenses from the FF High Speed Prime Line, it creates beautiful bokeh effects to improve creativity.
FF Classic Prime Line has implemented newly developed coatings on the glass elements and offers consistent T value across the lineup (14mm and 135mm at T3.2 and the rest of the lenses at T2.5). This will greatly contribute to the effective workflow in post production. Furthermore, it is compatible with the communication protocol of Cooke “/i Technology”, thus an ideal tool for shooting and editing with the latest technology, such as VFX. A special coating is implemented on the front and rear elements so that the lens durability is ensured as with all other cine lenses from SIGMA.
“Classic Art Prime” is a new solution from SIGMA that is required for the most advanced technology for classical expression. The “look” that FF Classic Prime Line can offer will enable cinematographers to explore new possibilities in movie creation.
- Launch: December, 2019
- Only sold as a set of 10 primes.
* From conventional cine lenses, it is not possible to apply for the Mount Conversion Service for this “FF Classic Prime Line”.
Common specifications
- PL mount (/i Technology compatible)
- Image circle diameter: FF 43.3mm
- Illumination circle diameter: over 46.3mm
- Focus ring: Marked in feet
- Number of diaphragm blades: 9 (rounded diaphragm)
B&H has the SIGMA Cine FF Classic Art Prime 10-Lens Set available for preorder.
Looking for a lens to carry while hiking? You likely want a compact and lightweight model but do not want to substitute image quality to get those properties. The Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD Lens and its sibling 28-75mm f/2.8 Di III RXD Lens are great choices and both are quite remarkable lenses overall.
This afternoon in Acadia National Park found the 17-28 RXD along with a Sony a7R IV in a MindShift Gear BackLight 18L on top of Bald Mountain anticipating a great light show at the end of the day. Unfortunately, that show mostly did not happen. The weather forecast did not hold true and as can be seen in this image, thick clouds ruled the sky.
Just when we thought there was no hope for seeing a sunset, a tiny hole appeared in the clouds and awesomeness shined through. I dropped the tripod into the nearest location that looked compositionally promising and shot a several frame bracket, ensuring that one image had bright foreground detail captured at f/11 and the darkest of two others had a tiny bit of color remaining in the sun. The latter two images were captured at f/22. While f/22 results in softer image quality than f/11, it delivers a larger, better quality starburst effect and the clouds nicely hide the softness in the portion of f/22 capture used in the final image. Note that changing the aperture changes the starburst including the orientation of the star points. When bracketing such images, be sure that most of the images containing the starburst are captured at the same aperture to avoid an awkward appearing composite.
By the end of the first bracket capture, the warm sunlight was no longer reaching the foreground and after a second bracket at a slightly adjusted camera position, the sun was completely cloud-blocked again. The foreground lighting was better in the first set of images and cropping those from the bottom gave me a result similar to those captured in the adjusted camera position.
I seldom use ISO settings above 100 when photographing daylight landscape but you will notice that a setting of 800 was used for this image. Along with the heavy clouds came very strong winds and I was estimating the exposure duration that could be tolerated between gusts. The Really Right Stuff TVC-24L Mk2 Carbon Fiber Tripod and BH-40 Ball Head held solid and I probably could have used longer exposures — though sun time may not have permitted that.
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 800
9251 x 6167px
B&H has the Tascam DR-05X 2-Input / 2-Track Portable Audio Recorder with Onboard Stereo Microphone available for $89.99 with free expedited shipping. Regularly $119.99.
The great thing about this audio recorder is that it's relatively small and supports plug-in power, meaning you can attach a lav mic and slip it in your pocket for excellent-sounding audio that can be synchronized in post.
Product Highlights
- Speech, Sound Effects & Music Recording
- Onboard Omni Mics, Built-In Speaker
- 3.5mm Mic/Line Input w/ Plug-In Power
- Built-In Tuner, EQ & Reverb
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From Adobe:
Feature summary | Lightroom (December 2019 release)
Easily contribute photos and videos to a Lightroom shared album
New in Lightroom desktop and mobile
View and contribute photos to any shared group album, using Lightroom desktop and mobile (iOS and Android), in addition to Lightroom on the web. First, click the 'View album' button in the email invite that is sent by the album owner. Then, open the app and click the icon. Under section Shared with You, you can view the album(s) that are shared with you.
If the album owner has provided contribution rights, you can add photos by doing the following: (On desktop) Right-click (Windows)/Control-click (macOS) the album under Shared with You and select Set "
Alternatively, select one or more photos in All Photos or one of your own albums. Then, in the left panel, navigate to the desired Shared with You album and drag and drop the photos into the desired shared album in the left panel.
(On mobile) With a Lightroom shared album selected, tap Add photos from the options menu or tap the import icon in the lower-right corner of the screen, and select photos to contribute.
To learn more, see:
- View or contribute to a group album on desktop
- View or contribute to a group album on iOS
- View or contribute to a group album on Android
Directly import photos from a camera or SD card
New in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
You can directly import photos and videos from an SD card or other attached media into Lightroom for mobile (iOS). Your iOS device should be running on iOS 13.2 or later to support this feature.
For more details, see Import photos and videos from a camera or SD card in PTP mode.
Export photos in the format of your choice
New in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
Select the photos you want to export and click the Share icon to quickly access the Export screen. You can export edited photos as JPEG, TIF, DNG, or as the original photo with applied settings. Moreover, you can access export setting options such as JPG Quality, Output Sharpening, Color Space, and File Naming.
For more details, see Export photos from iOS.
Support for new cameras and lenses
New in Lightroom/Camera RAW
Newly Supported Cameras
| Camera | Raw image filename extension | Minimum Camera Raw plug-in version required | Minimum Lightroom version required | Minimum Lightroom Classic version required |
| Canon EOS M200 | CR3 | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Canon EOS Ra | CR3 | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Google Pixel 4 | DNG | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Google Pixel 4 XL | DNG | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Leica SL2 | DNG | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Nikon Z 50 | NEF | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Sigma fp | DNG | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Sony a9 II (ILCE-9M2) | ARW | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Zeiss ZX1 | DNG | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
Newly Supported Lens Profiles
| Manufacturer | Lens | Lens mount | Minimum Camera Raw plug-in version required | Minimum Lightroom version required | Minimum Lightroom Classic version required |
| Canon | Canon RF 15-35mm f/2.8 L IS USM | Canon RF | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Canon | Canon RF 24-70mm f/2.8 L IS USM | Canon RF | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Canon | Canon RF 70-200mm F2.8 L IS USM | Canon RF | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Canon | Canon RF 85mm F1.2 L USM DS | Canon RF | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Sigma | SIGMA 16mm F1.4 DC DN C017 | Canon M | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Sigma | SIGMA 30mm F1.4 DC DN C016 | Canon M | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Sigma | SIGMA 56mm F1.4 DC DN C018 | Canon M | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Sigma | SIGMA 105mm F1.4 DG HSM A018 | Sony FE | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
| Zeiss | ZEISS ZX1 (DNG + JPEG) | Zeiss | 12.1 | 3.1 | 9.1 |
Other enhancements
Lightroom for mobile (Android)
View profiles of people who have authored interactive tutorials. In the Home view, tap an author's name from a tutorial's thumbnail to access their profile where you can find a collated list of their tutorials. For more information, see Find tutorials and posts from author's profiles.
B&H carries Adobe Photography Plan subscriptions.
On this day's schedule was giving some great gear a workout and the Sony a7R IV and Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD Lens combination were chosen. These were packed in MindShift Gear BackLight 18L along with a Really Right Stuff TVC-24L Mk2 Carbon Fiber Tripod with a BH-40 Ball Head mounted and the very early AM hike to Dream Lake ensued.
I don't like to be the second person at a popular location and some may say that I arrived too early for this one. The extra time ensures adequate setup time with some starry sky photography included. The extra time also means that very warm clothes were needed, especially with the wind often encountered here.
I love perfectly still water surfaces in the shade and the mirror reflections those surfaces create. This morning did not provide such and the mentioned wind was relentless.
Between reviewing long exposure, high ISO image captures and the light becoming bright enough for the foreground rocks to be visible, this composition was settled on. I wanted the closest round rock centered between the mountain peak reflections with a clean border around it and the other foreground rocks. The camera was leveled for both roll and pitch. I seldom want a camera that is not leveled for roll when photographing landscape and in this case, I also chose to avoid an upward or downward camera angle that would have caused the straight tree trunks to tilt inward or outward respectively. The focal length was selected to be inclusive or exclusive of details in the scene and the camera height was selected for the final composition. The color balance disparity of the warm first light of the day hitting the mountain mixed with cool shade in the valley below is natural and I love it.
The final image is the result of combining two images using manual HDR blending. As is often the case, those exposures were different with the sunlit areas captured darker (f/11, 0.4 seconds, ISO 100) and the shaded areas coming from brighter settings (f/11, 30 seconds, ISO 200).
As you likely noticed, the longer exposure is dramatically longer and includes a 2x-brighter ISO setting. This exposure was needed to compensate for a 6-stop Breakthrough Photography X4 ND filter (great gift idea) being used. The longer exposure this filter permitted allowed the water to be smoothed, averaging out the reflection details in the lake surface ripples, giving the mountain reflections some definition. A third image (another darker one) was pulled in because some of the trees were less motion-blurred than in the primary image.
The aforementioned gear all performed excellently. It was a superb choice for this event. Of course, the bottom line is that Dream Lake and its rocks rock!
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 200
9504 x 6336px
From the Adorama Youtube Channel:
If you're looking for a dramatic, low key portrait idea then Gavin Hoey has you covered with this amazing rim light tutorial. Starting with two bare flashes, Gavin walks you through how to improve the photo by softening the light with a stripbox .
Once you've mastered the basic lighting technique, why not give Gavin's advanced lighting tutorial a go. Getting perfect rim lighting on a bubble is the challenge and Gavin has some great tips to help nail the look. He also has some top Photoshop advice to add extra bubbles after the shoot.
Product Used
From Canon USA:
Firmware Version 1.6.0 incorporates the following improvements and fixes:
- Support for the RF 85mm F1.2L USM DS lens has been added.
- Corrects a phenomenon in which the function or setting value assigned to the control ring may change when the control ring is operated in Eco mode.
- Corrects a phenomenon in which the camera may stop operating properly during “auto transfer” when using Camera Connect with a Wi-Fi connection.
- Corrects a phenomenon in which high-speed synchronization with use of an external flash may not operate properly depending on the camera’s setting for C.Fn2 “Set shutter speed range”.
Download: Canon EOS R Firmware Version 1.6.0
Smart people told us long in advance that the planet Mercury was going to pass in front of the Sun for many hours on 11/11/2019 and that the transit was going to be visible across a huge swath of the world, including my location on that date, falling during my Shenandoah National Park Workshop.
My first thought regarding photographing this event was that I could take a picture of the Sun anytime and simply use the paint brush tool to drop in Mercury planets wherever desired. While the result would look fine, it wouldn't be nearly as fun or as phsychologically rewarding as experiencing the event firsthand and capturing the real thing. Photographing the Sun is easy and a little black dot in front of it was going to be equally easy to capture so, I packed the required solar filter for the trip.
The Sun was not going to be our primary subject on this day, we didn't have time to shoot throughout the entire many-hour transit, and the cloudy sky made photographing it challenging during the few times we attempted to do so. Still, I wanted to show the entire transit in the final result. To fulfill that goal, I pieced a number of images together and then duplicated a Mercury planet to fill in the entire path across the Sun.
While the Mercury transit does not rise to the level of amazing as the recent solar eclipse, it was still fun to see and photograph.
When photographing the Sun, everything else in the frame is black unless there are clouds being brightly lit while darkening the Sun enough to even out the dynamic range. With black periphery being easy to create during post processing, framing the Sun a tightly as possible becomes the goal. Still, the Sun will not come close to filling the frame even at 1200mm, the longest most photographers will use, on a full frame camera. In a focal length limited scenario, higher pixel density on the imaging sensor means more resolution remaining after cropping and the Sony a7R IV has that. The Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS Lens and FE 2x Teleconverter were used to gain the 1200mm focal length.
Among the many images captured were some with a cloud-caused fiery haze surrounding the Sun. Adding some of these images into the Photoshop stack provided the option of including the haze in the final image as shared here.
Here is a question for you: Since I watched Mercury transit the Sun in an electronic viewfinder, did I really see it?
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 100
8216 x 5478px
From the Adorama YouTube Channel:
Join Host Seth Miranda @LastXwitness as we walks through Capture One 20 with a quick over view of some of the new features
Adorama carries Phase One Capture One 20.
In this Quick Look, AB Belinfanti shows us the RODE NTG5, the company's newest high-performing shotgun microphone.
B&H carries the Rode NTG5 Moisture-Resistant Short Shotgun Microphone.
It is generally much easier to photograph deer in a field or meadow than in the forest where tree trunks and branches create obstructions and chaotic backgrounds. However, the forest is where many deer spend large amounts of their lives. Heading into the forest may reduce the odds of getting good images but the increased challenge makes a successful in-the-forest image more rewarding.
While a 600 f/4 lens is an awesome choice for obscuring a distracting foreground and background via blur, the narrow angle of view can be challenging to use in the forest due to the obstructions. A farther away view results in a higher chance of trees and branches being in the way. Despite having a Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS Lens with me in Shenandoah National Park, I mostly used the Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS Lens. The images this lens makes are hard to beat and once one acclimates to 600mm f/4 images, it becomes difficult to be satisfied with anything less.
All 600mm f/4 and similar lenses are very expensive but the high price has one advantage: it is a barrier of entry, making it harder for those without such a lens to compete with those having one. In a world with an unimaginable number of images being captured daily, this lens' image quality is a differentiator and those able to make the investment should frequently make use of their advantage.
I was working ahead of this buck (with a somewhat unusual drop tine), looking for openings it might pass through. He came into this opening and cooperated nicely, looking toward the camera. After quickly capturing a few images with the currently-selected focus point, I changed the focus point to a more optimal position in the frame and captured another burst of images before the buck turned its head. I selected the image with the best deer pose (both ears forward and looking toward me) and stitched another of the images captured using the other focus point for a slightly wider overall image.
This image was captured on a bright cloudy day. Clouds act as a giant softbox, eliminating the harsh shadows often encountered in the woods. Images captured in cloudy weather often appear slightly cool and low contrast is also normal for images captured under cloudy skies. Adding a small amount of contrast and saturation and warming the color balance slightly brings the image to life.
The increased challenge, increased reward concept applies to many genres of photography. Welcome ways to increase your challenge!
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 2000
10272 x 6912px
Rocky Mountain National Park is very scenic but some locations within the park have better environments for elk photography than others. Elk go where they want to and little will stop them from doing so, but I have some favorite locations and usually will pursue the elk found in these. This elk was in one of my go-to locations, featuring a low, clean foreground and rocky mountain base in the background.
Elk are very large animals and that means relatively long distances are required to fit them in the frame of a long lens (and for personal safety). Longer subject distances mean increased depth of field and that means the background will be less diffusely blurred. The 600mm f/4 focal length and aperture combination creating a three-dimensional effect that makes the subject stand out from the background is especially valuable when photographing large animals such as elk.
After seeing how sharp the Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS Lens was (and experiencing how light it was), I opted to use this lens behind the ultra-high-resolution Sony a7R IV for all of my late summer and fall wildlife photography.
The bull in this photo was moving across the meadow in front of us and this great rut-characteristic chin-high pose was my favorite. The other images captured in this sequence provided a small additional amount of background that, with the lack of distracting details, I later decided to merge with the original image, creating a panorama. With the 61 MP resolution provided by the a7R IV, I didn't need the additional pixels. Moving back and cropping would have been easier from a post-processing perspective but moving back would have resulted in a missed opportunity in this instance (and the original framing would have been fine). Note that this capability likely exists in some of your images — be cautious when deleting the lesser images.
Images captured under a cloudy sky, including this one, usually readily accept some contrast increase and a modest amount was added to this image.
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 500
10594 x 6449px
Not having thumbs makes catching and handling slippery salmon very challenging for bears and very entertaining for those photographing the action. This bear is deploying one of its catching techniques, pinning the fish down for an easier bite.
What caught my attention in this photo is the colorful salmon tail splashing upward.
I'm getting into the Black Friday/Cyber Monday spirit with a special offer on the Brown Bear Chasing Salmon, Remote Katmai National Park, Alaska instructional photo tour. Sign up along with a spouse or friend and save $500 on the second admission price for this bucket list-grade trip.
Dates: Thu, September 17 to Fri, September 24, 2020
If this trip is calling you, I need to hear from you as soon as possible. Contact me to sign up!
ISO 2000
7924 x 5282px
B&H has a Nikon D610 Kit Bundle for only $896.95. The "Cyber Monday Savings" is listed at $1,100.00. Free next day USA delivery is included.
Here are the bundled items:
- Nikon D610 DSLR Camera
- Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G Lens
- Nikon MB-D14 Multi Battery Power Pack
- WU-1b Wireless Mobile Adapter
Sony a7R IV and Epic Rocky Mountain National Park Milky Way The Sony a7R IV and Sony FE 24mm f/1.4 GM Lens teamed for an epic Rocky Mountain National Park Milky Way on this September evening. While chasing elk in rut was our top priority during the RMNP workshops, photographing the night sky was also on the to-do list and a clear RMNP night sky never fails to wow us.
For the Milky Way to reach down close to its reflection requires the reflecting surface to have little obstruction above it. Large bodies of water have distant shores and that distant perspective usually results in lower shoreline sky obstructions. Small bodies of water are more likely to have a calm surface than large bodies but trees and mountains typically get in the way of the little-obstruction requirement. Mountains often bring elevation gain that tends to bring reflection-erasing wind.
This particular small mountain lake is set high enough for the southern view to open up to the sky while being protected from the wind for the perfect combination. I love pointed spruce treetops and always welcome their great character on the horizon. Reflections can be counted on to double the value.
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 6400
6336 x 9504px
Today is the day that those of us residing in the USA are celebrating our "Thanksgiving" holiday. As you probably guessed from the name, we set aside this day to give thanks for our abundant blessings. While we should always have a spirit of thankfulness, this day can give that state of mind a significant boost.
We are especially thankful for you, our extended family, and the support you continue to show. Thanks so much for that and we wish you a fantastic Thanksgiving!
B&H has the Godox AD400Pro Witstro All-In-One Outdoor Flash for only $419.00 after $230.00 instant savings.
We use the 600 version of this flash constantly in our studio. It works great. Like most of the deals I'm sharing today, this would be a great gift.
From Nikon:
Nikon Z 7 / Z 6 Firmware v.2.10
Changes from “C” Firmware Version 2.01 to 2.10
- Added supported for optical VR with NIKKOR Z DX 16–50mm f/3.5–6.3 VR and NIKKOR Z DX 50–250mm f/4.5–6.3 VR Z-mount lenses. Note that attaching these lenses disables the Mechanical shutter option for Custom Setting d5 (Shutter type) in Group d (Shooting/display) of the CUSTOM SETTING MENU, leaving a choice of Auto and Electronic front-curtain shutter options only.
- ISO sensitivity can now be adjusted using the lens control ring, and ISO sensitivity has been added to the options available for Custom Setting f2 (Custom control assignment) > Lens control ring in Group f (Controls) of the CUSTOM SETTING MENU.
- As of November 14, 2019, the aperture display in the lens info panel for NIKKOR Z 24–70mm f/2.8 S and NIKKOR Z 58mm f/0.95 S Noct lenses shows both the current aperture and adjacent aperture values in modes A and M.
- When On was selected for Auto ISO sensitivity control and an option that does not include “slow sync” was selected for Flash mode, shutter speed was formerly restricted to values between those chosen for Custom Settings e1 (Flash sync speed) and e2 (Flash shutter speed), but this has now been changed to match the behavior of digital SLR cameras, with the result that the minimum shutter speed now corresponds to the value selected for Auto ISO sensitivity control > Minimum shutter speed.
- Fixed an issue that in extremely rare cases resulted in the camera failing to correctly record movies with 1920x1080; 120p selected for Frame size/frame rate.
- Fixed an issue that occasionally resulted in “noise” in the form of white lines at the bottom of the display when the electronic viewfinder was on.
- Fixed an issue that in rare cases resulted in “noise” in the form of fine horizontal lines appearing throughout the frame in movies and the live view display.
- Fixed errors in the UTC time zones for the following three cities in the Time zone and date > Time zone display in the SETUP MENU:
- Caracas: was -4:30, is now -4:00
Casablanca: was 00:00, is now +1:00
Ankara: was +2:00, is now +3:00 - Fixed an issue that resulted in an incorrect date of creation being displayed in the Windows 10 “properties” dialogs for movies and time-lapse movies created with the camera, as well as copies created with camera movie editing controls.
Download: Nikon Z 7 Firmware v.2.10 | Nikon Z 6 Firmware v.2.10
One of the visual comparisons I wanted to create was that of the current mirrorless full frame 24-70mm f/2.8 lenses. I got that task done and thought you might also find the image interesting.
Canon RF 24-70mm F2.8 L IS USM Lens
Nikon Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S Lens
Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM Lens
Note that these lenses are aligned on their mounts, not their caps.
The same lenses are shown below with their hoods in place.
One of my favorite subjects to photograph is the Milky Way. The required long exposures provide plenty of time to simply watch the spectacular sky show (unless I'm running two cameras), taking in the awesomeness, and the pictures captured are usually among my favorites. I was blessed with the opportunity to photograph the Milky Way from several top-notch locations this year, including during the Rocky Mountain National Park and Acadia National Park workshops. The image shared here was captured from the coast of Acadia NP.
Seldom can the reflection of the Milky Way be seen in an ocean as the water movement completely blurs everything during the required long exposure. However, tidal pools are often still and can make great reflectors (though not at high tide) for a variety of coastal photography needs including reflecting the night sky. Adding value to this particular tidal pool was the low surrounding rock with good character, adding jaggedness to the rock line and its reflection.
To photograph the night sky, I usually want a wide-angle lens with an f/2.8 or wider aperture available with sharp wide-open image quality. The Canon RF 24-70mm F2.8 L IS USM Lens, with an EOS R behind it and a Really Right Stuff TVC-24L Mk2 Carbon Fiber Tripod and BH-40 Ball Head under it, met those needs superbly.
Photographing the Milky Way is easy and very addicting. This image was captured using the 2-second self-timer feature with settings of f/2.8, 15 seconds (longer exposures increase star trail length), and ISO 6400 (with a low amount of noise reduction applied). I opted to brighten the result a bit in post and brightened the foreground by an additional stop for a single-image HDR. Just after sunset, the sky still had some color in it and a slight saturation increase (+1 in DPP and +7 in PS) made those colors pop. Auto white balance was used. Increasing contrast via an S-curve adjustment always makes the Milky Way stand out.
As I was searching through the over-a-thousand images captured with the RF 24-70, selecting a few to share in the review, this one stood out as my favorite and thus I'm sharing it with you here. Add the RF 24-70mm lens to the list of good night sky lenses.
A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.
ISO 6400
4480 x 6720px
From the Adobe Photoshop YouTube Channel:
Welcome back to Photoshop’s newest tutorial series, #PHOMO! In this episode, Adobe Evangelist Paul Trani shares how to integrate text, logos or designs into your photos and make them look realistic within a scene using Photoshop. Watch this video for helpful tips and tricks to end those feelings of #PHOMO when it comes to design.
B&H carries Adobe Photography Plan subscriptions.
Skylum has officially released Luminar 4.
Luminar 4 works as both a standalone application or as a plug-in for Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Photoshop Elements, Adobe Lightroom Classic, and Photos for macOS Extension
Skylum's Luminar software has become quite popular. Browse the Luminar 4 home page to learn about the impressive-looking AI and other features built into this application.
Don't forget to use our coupon code THEDIGITALPICTURE to get a $10.00 discount.
From the Adobe Photoshop YouTube Channel:
Julieanne Kost shares all the new ways you can use the Warp tool to transform your images in Photoshop.
B&H carries Adobe Photography Plan subscriptions.
From the Adorama YouTube Channel:
In this episode, Mark Wallace explains how to create a simple gobo to create patterns on a white background for more interesting portraits. Mark also goes into detail about setting up lighting for beautiful portraits using an octobox, grid, and a white panel to bounce light. This episode is packed with lighting tips.
Gear Used
- Profoto B2 250 AirTTL To-Go Kit
- Flashpoint XPLOR 600 TTL Exclusive Kit
- Flashpoint Grid Set, for 8" Reflectors, Consists of 1 each: 10 deg., 20 deg., 30 deg.and 40 deg. Grids
- Profoto Air Remote Transceiver
- Profoto 2' Octagonal Off-Camera Flash Softbox
- Profoto Off-Camera Flash Speedring for Profoto B1 and B2
- Profoto 2' Octagonal Off-Camera Flash Softgrid
- Sekonic L-858D-U Speedmaster Light Meter
- Tether Tools Rock Solid 11" Articulating Arm with Center Lock
Suggested Accessory
From Canon Global:
TOKYO, November 8, 2019—Canon Inc. and Canon Marketing Japan Inc. announced today that Canon-brand equipment comprised an approximately 70% share of cameras1 used by press photographers at match venues during the knock out stage of Rugby World Cup 2019. Throughout the tournament, Canon has empowered professional photographers aiming to capture decisive moments and contributed to the success of the tournament.
Professional photographers demand comprehensive assistance from camera makers, including state-of-the-art technology, top-class performance, customized service and a strong support network.
Canon is active behind the scenes at a wide variety of sporting events, aiming to achieve "zero downtime" for professional photographers so they're never forced to stop and miss definitive moments of these intense competitions. For decades, the Company has built a reliable reputation and helped support journalists on the front lines through a wide range of services. Thanks to such efforts, Canon-brand equipment comprised an approximately 70% share of cameras1 used by press photographers at match venues during the knock out stage of Rugby World Cup 2019.
At each of the matches held between the 12 tournament venues, Canon has aimed to help realize a successful tournament as an official sponsor by establishing service stations within stadium grounds to provide fast maintenance and repair of equipment. In addition, the Company provided such services as on-site emergency repair and equipment loans.
Canon will continue striving to create competitive, highly reliable products and, through such on-site support of journalists as equipment maintenance, contribute to the further advancement of photographic and videographic expression.
Comment from Paul Gilham, Director of Getty Images, the official photo agency of RWC 2019, and camera service booth user
Getty Images is delighted to continue working with official Rugby World Cup Partner, Canon. Our photographers demand cutting edge technology and a camera they can rely on. Canon's amazing service and support during the tournament in Japan has ensured our photographers were equipped to capture the images that will tell the story of Rugby World Cup, creating a lasting legacy of iconic moments.1 Average of data obtained from the 8 matches of the knock out stage. Based on a Canon survey.
From the Adorama YouTube Channel:
Join Daniel Norton OnSet as he creates dappled patterns of light for a fun portrait look. Often times when we are using natural light, we see patterns coming through trees/fences etc and use that light to accent our portraits. With this technique you can do it in a consistently repeatable fashion.
Products Used:
- Chimera Frame for Frame/Panel Reflectors, 48x48”
- Chimera Pattern Holder
- Chimera Window Pattern Cucoloris
- Profoto A1
- Nikon Z6
- Nikon Nikkor Z 24-70 f/4
From the Adorama YouTube Channel:
Battery powered flashes are great for shooting portraits on location. There's plenty to choose from and they vary between small speedlights and bigger, more powerful monolights. In theory more power means more light and that's usually a good thing for location portraits but can a speedlight be used to light location portraits like a monolight? That's the question Gavin Hoey puts to the test in this video.
Gavin sets each flash the challenge of being used as a simple fill flash, creating dramatic skies by "over powering" the ambient light and finally getting some beautiful shallow depth of field portraits using HSS (high speed sync) flash. The results might surprise you!
Products Used
- Outstanding Sony EDU Back to School Deals at B&H – Save Up to 20% (or more) — The Sony FE 20mm f/1.8 G Lens is Only $618.40 (Save 31%)
- Also Looking Great: First Looks at Canon RF 400mm F2.8 L IS USM Lens Image Quality
- Gone: B&H has an Open Box Sony Alpha a1 Camera In Stock for Only $5,977.95 with 1 Year Warranty.
- Hot Deal and In Stock at B&H: Canon EOS 5Ds R — Only $1,499.00 (Save $2,400.00)
- Adorama Deal of the Day: Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 AFs Lens for Canon RF – Only $629.00
- Just Posted: Tamron 150-500mm f/5-6.7 Di III VXD Lens Review
- It is Again Time to Rent Something — Save 15% at Lensrentals!
- Canon Releases DPP 4.15.0, EOS Utility 3.13.30, Picture Style Editor 1.26.0
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