Canon and Sony News for Jun 2018

 Saturday, June 30, 2018

Oneida Falls is one of my Rickets Glen favorites and I always stop to photograph it when in this state park. Yes, I have numerous images from this location. But, different days bring differing water flows, foliage and lighting. And, I frequently bring differing gear and creativity.

On this day, the excellent little Sony a7 III was what I was using and a compact Sony FE 16-35mm f/4 ZA OSS Lens was the lens option I selected from several I had along with me.

This is a subtle HDR image and I captured enough bracketed exposures to significantly brighten the darker areas. However, I liked the natural brightness accentuating the near and distant falls (especially in higher resolution versions).


A larger version of this image is available on Flickr.

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Posted to: Canon News, Sony News   Category: Photo Tips and Stories
Post Date: 6/30/2018 7:30:00 AM ET   Posted By: Bryan
 Friday, June 29, 2018

Image quality test results showing resolution have been added to the Sony a7R III Review and the Sony a7 III Review (this review will be completed soon).

Here are some comparisons:

Sony a7R III compared to the Sony a7 III
Sony a7R III compared to the Canon EOS 5Ds R
Sony a7R III compared to the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV
Sony a7 III compared to the Canon EOS 6D Mark II

The Sony a7R III is in stock at B&H | Amazon | Adorama | WEX. Rent one from Lensrentals.

The Sony a7 III has been so incredibly popular that it is sold out everywhere. This camera is available for preorder at B&H | Amazon | Adorama | WEX. The a7 III is eBay, but at the premiums being charged, you should probably just get the a7R III. Preorder right now from one of the trusted retailers just mentioned to get the best spot in the a7 III preorder line.

Or, rent one right away from Lensrentals.

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Posted to: Sony News   Category: Camera Gear Review News
Post Date: 6/29/2018 7:44:00 AM ET   Posted By: Bryan

The Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens is now available for preorder from the following retailers:
B&H | Adorama | Amazon

Have you been looking for the perfect sports lens to go along with your Sony a9? This may be just what you've been looking for.

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Posted to: Sony News   Category: Preorders
Post Date: 6/29/2018 9:05:15 AM ET   Posted By: Sean

From Nikon:

TOKYO - Nikon Corporation (Nikon) is pleased to announce the 37th Nikon Photo Contest. Held since 1969, the Nikon Photo Contest is a premier international photo contest that provides an opportunity for photographers around the world to communicate and to enrich photographic culture for professionals and amateurs alike.

It has been almost 50 years since the first Contest was held in 1969, and over its long history, photographers from around the world have participated and shown their support for it. To date, more than 410,000 photographers have submitted over 1.62 million photographic works to the Contest, making it a truly international event.

A total of 21,511 photographers from 170 countries and regions submitted 76,356 works to the previous (36th) Contest, marking a new record in terms of the number of countries and regions from which entries were submitted.

Read success stories about the winners of the previous Contest, and view past award-winning works at the following website:

Nikon Photo Contest 2016-2017

Details including information on how to apply will be released on the Nikon Photo Contest website starting from September 2018.

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Post Date: 6/29/2018 5:50:32 AM ET   Posted By: Sean
 Thursday, June 28, 2018

Canon Europe has launched its latest campaign, in collaboration with elite Parkour athletes Storror. Filmed in the historic city of Istanbul in Turkey, the campaign encourages people to try a new experiences for the first time and capture it on a Canon camera.

London, UK, Monday 25th June 2018 – The challenge saw the seven-strong UK based group jump, vault and climb over a combination of obstacles, including the Galata Bridge, the domed cupola rooftops near Süleymaniye, culminating with a leap onto the roof of a passenger ferry, carrying them to the cargo seaport of Haydarpasa on the Asian side of the Strait, to successfully complete the challenge.

Storror filmed their adventure exclusively using a variety of Canon cameras and lenses, which included the award-winning EOS M50 and an EOS C200 cinema camera. The EOS M50 mirrorless camera was selected due to its lightweight and compact body, fast autofocus and seamless connectivity to social media, making this the perfect choice.

The elite athletes have earned a loyal following on social media, with over 1 million subscribers to their YouTube channel alone. Over the years, the free-runners have travelled to over 78 countries and are unique in the way they shoot, direct and edit their own material. Storror’s Drew Taylor has previously helped choreograph action scenes in blockbuster movies such as Kingsman 2: The Golden Circle and Dr Strange starring Benedict Cumberbatch.

Lee Bonniface, Marketing Director, Canon Europe said: “We are delighted that we were able to support Storror become the first Parkour group to cross continents. We challenged them to attempt something bold and capture their experience to inspire others to do the same. Whilst we don’t expect everyone to be quite as daring, every day can produce a first and Canon will help you capture it.”

Drew Taylor from Storror, said: “When Canon Europe challenged us to do something for the first time, we came up with the idea of using Parkour to cross continents. Rather than making things easy for ourselves, we took things to the next level, creating something that had never before been attempted, by doing it over moving boats and vehicles and traversing through the busy streets of Istanbul.” He added: “Canon Europe also provided us with the awesome EOS M50 to use, which is lightweight and has great autofocus, perfect for fast moving parkour. We were able to connect the cameras to our smartphones for a quick and easy upload to our social channels.”

On location in Istanbul with Storror was Samo Vidic, a highly acclaimed sports photographer and Canon ambassador. Samo used a selection of Canon equipment to photograph and capture Storror’s first, which included the EOS M50, EOS 5D MK IV, EOS 1DX MK II and an EOS C200.

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Posted to:    Category: Canon Europe News
Post Date: 6/28/2018 6:49:52 AM ET   Posted By: Sean

The Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II USM Lens is in stock at the following retailers:
B&H | Adorama | Amazon

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Posted to: Canon News   Category: In Stock Notics
Post Date: 6/28/2018 6:20:49 AM ET   Posted By: Sean
 Wednesday, June 27, 2018

From the Profoto YouTube Channel:

John Russo has spent more than 20 years as a photographer to the stars. Over this time, he has perfected his approach to light and his ability to connect with people. The alignment of these two elements of his work has culminated in stunning celebrity portraits.

B&H carries the Profoto D2 and Profoto light modifiers.

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Post Date: 6/27/2018 11:23:40 AM ET   Posted By: Sean

From Sony:

New Large Aperture Super-Telephoto Prime Lens is World’s lightest in its class, with outstanding AF performance, innovative optical design and exceptional image quality

SAN DIEGO, Jun. 27, 2018 – Sony – a worldwide leader in digital imaging and the world’s largest image sensor manufacturer – has today announced the highly anticipated FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS large aperture super-telephoto prime lens (model SEL400F28GM).

The product of extensive research and testing, Sony’s new FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS lens is the first large aperture super-telephoto prime to join the E-mount lineup. This exciting new lens produces brilliant image quality with extraordinary focusing speed and precision, while also boasting the lightest weight in its class and an extremely balanced design. It’s the ideal choice for professional sports, wildlife and nature photographers, and a perfect complement to Sony’s extensive lineup of high-speed E-mount bodies including a9, a7R III and more.

“We’re extremely excited and proud to officially introduce the new 400mm F2.8 G Master prime lens,” said Neal Manowitz, Vice President of digital imaging at Sony Electronics. “The latest in our flagship series of G Master Lenses, this new lens offers exceptional image quality and an innovative lightweight design that will give professionals a level of flexibility with a 400mm lens unlike anything they’ve ever experienced. Combined with the unmatched shooting speeds and autofocus capabilities of our full-frame E-mount cameras, it will allow them to capture and create in ways that were never before possible.”

World’s Lightest 400mm F2.8 Prime with Ideal Balance for Monopod or Handheld Shooting

Weighing it at only slightly more than 6 lbs., the new FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS lens provides a level of portability and handheld maneuverability that has never before been achieved in a lens of its class. The remarkably light weight of this lens is achieved through an innovative optical design that includes three fluorite elements, with a reduced number of elements deployed at the front of the barrel, as well as the liberal usage of durable magnesium alloy components.

Repeated field tests and evaluation by professional photographers across the world have led to a lens design that is not front-heavy, reducing moment of inertia that resists rotation by up to 50% as compared to the SAL500F40G , ensuring quicker, more precise panning when shooting handheld or on a monopod.

Fast, Precise Autofocus

To best take advantage of the rapidly evolving shooting and focusing speeds of Sony’s latest cameras, the FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS lens features two newly developed high-speed XD (extreme dynamic) Linear Motors that drive the lens’s focus group, achieving up to a 5x improvement in moving-subject tracking performance. These motors are supported by specially developed motion algorithms to minimize lag and instability, and control noise levels, resulting in exceptionally quick, accurate and quiet autofocus performance. This allows the lens to capture dynamic, fast moving athletes or wildlife with ease.

G Master Image Quality and Bokeh

A member of Sony’s flagship G Master series lenses, this new large aperture super-telephoto prime lens features an incredible level of image quality and detail, with outstanding contrast and resolution maintained all the way to the corners of the image. The unique optical design includes three fluorite elements that help to minimize chromatic aberration and suppress any amount of color bleeding. The lens has also been coated with Sony’s original Nano AR coating to suppress any unwanted reflections, glare, or ghosting.

In addition to the impressive resolution, the lens features an 11-blade circular aperture mechanism that allows it to produce extremely natural and beautiful background defocus or ‘bokeh’.

The new FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS is compatible with Sony’s 1.4x and 2.0x E-mount tele-converters, producing outstanding imaging performance at extended focal lengths while maintaining fast, precise AF performance.

Durability, Reliability and Control

To withstand the harsh conditions of sporting events and wildlife photography, Sony’s new FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS is built with a durable magnesium alloy and a strong, lightweight carbon fiber hood. The lens is also dust and moisture resistant , and its front element is coated with fluorine to resist dirt and fingerprints.

There is also an ample number of hard controls on the lens, including customizable focus-hold buttons in four different locations on the lens barrel, which can be programmed for control of features such as Eye AF functionality, if desired. There is also a ‘Full-Time DMF’ switch to immediately engage manual focus at any point, and a focus ring that features Linear Response MF for fine, responsive manual focus. Additionally, the new lens includes built-in optical stabilization for dynamic action and three different ‘Mode’ settings, including a brand new Mode 3 setting with an advanced algorithm that ensures easier framing when following moving subjects. It also features a function ring with selectable ‘Preset’ and ‘Function ’ settings, which is a first for any Sony lens.

The FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS includes a drop-in filter slot that accepts ø 40.5mm ND and other filter types, as well as the optional VF-DCPL1 Drop-in Circular Polarizing Filter. The VF-DCPL1 filter can be rotated to achieve the desired polarization while installed in the lens.

a9 System Software Update to Support FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS

The latest system software update (Version 3.00) for a9 (ILCE-9) provides support for the new FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS (SEL400F28GM) lens to optimize optical image stabilization performance, and enables continuous shooting with auto focus tracking, even when aperture is greater than F11.

The update also provides added option to input the camera serial number to the Exif data, a feature that has been strongly requested by professional sports photographers and photojournalists. Additionally, several other updates to the a9 camera have been implemented with the new firmware, including improved auto focus speed in low light conditions, enhanced continuous AF performance when tracking a moving subject, and reduced release time lag when shooting with flash.

Pricing and Availability

The new FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS large aperture super-telephoto prime lens (model SEL400F28GM) will ship in September for about $12,000 US and $16,250 CA. The optional Drop-in Circular Polarizing Filter (model VF-DCPL1) will ship in December for about $400 US and $550 CA.

Note: Preorder links will be posted to this site's news section when available.

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Posted to: Sony News   Category: Sony Announcements
Post Date: 6/27/2018 10:34:18 AM ET   Posted By: Sean

Nope, that's not a typo; you read the headline correctly. Sony has been a master of marketing over the past several years, but their latest stunt may be their greatest yet.

Unbelievably, Sony found a half-bodied, floating man to be the centerpiece of their a7 III marketing campaign. Don't believe me? Well, we have proof. Check out the final official product photo found on the Sony a7 III + Lens Kit listings at B&H and Adorama (the same picture can be found in the body-only listing at B&H). Click on the photo so that it appears large and centered in your browsing window. Notice anything odd about the image?

Sony a7 III Official In Use Product Photo Floating Man

Why they didn't crop the image lower to showcase this interesting casting decision is unclear, but what the photo shows is pretty obvious. What we're seeing is an unprecedented levitation technology being utilized by a man with nothing below the jacket line.

Note that this is as official as a marketing image gets. A cropped version of the same picture is displayed on Sony.com's a7 III page.

Sony a7 III banner image

We were so intrigued by Sony's casting decision that we decided to interview the now-famous brand amabassador, Kenny Torso, seen above.

Q: So, Kenny, how did you end up doing marketing for the Sony a7 III?

“Well, I was doing carnival shows in the midwest – The Amazing Floating Kenny – when a Sony representative found me. We got to talking and one thing led to another, and suddenly I was the face of their budget-friendly a7 III.”
Q: That’s awesome. Did you get to use the camera much while shooting images for the marketing campaign?
“Oh yeah, the camera’s awesome. And its light weight is great for me, personally. I tried shooting with a traditional DSLR, but it made levitating really difficult. With an a7 III, I can float anywhere I please.”
Q: Isn’t it kind of odd that Sony didn’t go all out in featuring your special abilities in the campain? I mean, being able to levitate is pretty rare.
“Yeah, I thought their choice of a brick wall was kind of odd. I mean, I can float over difficult terrain, the kind you see in those captivating sunrise mountain images. But Sony wanted an urban theme. Go figure.”
We wish Kenny the best of luck in his endeavors and look forward to seeing more (or, rather the same amount) of him as Sony releases future mirrorless cameras.

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Posted to: Canon News, Sony News   
Post Date: 6/27/2018 10:00:21 AM ET   Posted By: Sean

Just posted: Breakthrough Photography Night Sky Light Pollution Filter Review.

Check out this interesting tool for photographing the night sky in areas affected by light pollution (where most of us live).

The Light Pollution Filter is in stock at Breakthrough Photography.

What do you think? Are light pollution filters important for photographing the night sky?

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Posted to: Canon News, Sony News   Category: Camera Gear Review News
Post Date: 6/27/2018 8:05:20 AM ET   Posted By: Bryan
 Tuesday, June 26, 2018

From Tokina:

To celebrate the launch of new FíRIN 20mm F2 FE AF, we launched a great GIVEAWAY CAMPAIGN with a unique Grand Prize - one winner can get both Tokina FíRIN 20mm AF and MF versions! Experience the advantages of both lenses according to your shooting style and your video review will be shared on our channels for all Tokina fans to watch.

The Second Prize is no less worth a try, as the winner will still have the chance to choose between FíRIN AF or MF version! And the Third Prize is also great as you can get one of Kenko best selling products: Kenko DG Extension Tube Set for Sony E-mount cameras.

This great chance will last only until July 14th, and time is already running out.

Access the campaign page NOW to get all necessary information and enter the GIVEAWAY. We wish you good luck!

Enter the Giveaway

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Posted to: Sony News   Category: Tokina News
Post Date: 6/26/2018 2:16:59 PM ET   Posted By: Sean

From the Adorama YouTube Channel:

In Ep 121 David Bergman shows you what happens when you shoot through a lens that is detached from the camera body.

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Post Date: 6/26/2018 7:45:26 AM ET   Posted By: Sean

Just posted: Tamron 70-210mm f/4 Di VC USD Lens Review.

The price of this lens is especially attention-garnering.

The Tamron 70-210mm f/4 Di VC USD Lens is in stock at B&H | Amazon | Adorama | WEX.

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Posted to: Canon News, Sony News   Category: Camera Gear Review News
Post Date: 6/26/2018 7:31:36 AM ET   Posted By: Bryan
 Monday, June 25, 2018

Bryan often notes how just about any focal length can be useful for landscape photography. In this CDLC article, landscape photographer Erin Babnik supports that idea with intriguing landscape images taken with ultra-wide angle lenses, super telephotos and everything in between.

by Erin Babnik

There is a lot of truth to the old idea that we tend to see the world in terms of what we know about it. If we know that a location offers a photogenic vista to the north, then it can be easy to overlook the wonderfully gnarled trees to the south. Similarly, the compositions that photographers see most easily are usually those that fit well within the average field of view of two human eyes at a standing height—it’s the way of seeing that we know best. With only a little shifting or focusing, our eyes at that height can take in scenes that fall within the range of a 24-105mm lens quite nicely, and it is no wonder that focal lengths in this range are most traditional for landscape photography. Nonetheless, compositions that fall well outside these limits have the potential to evoke the more abstract qualities of human perception, such as the ability of our brains to combine certain visual stimuli and to isolate others. For the photographer who would like to emphasize the ‘mind’s eye,’ extreme focal lengths have a lot to offer.

Read the entire article on the Canon Digital Learning Center.

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Post Date: 6/25/2018 10:38:05 AM ET   Posted By: Sean

From Canon USA:

MELVILLE, N.Y., June 25, 2018 – The average smart phone user has 630 photos stored in their phones1 – that’s a lot of memories captured with no place to go. Creating photo books to showcase all those memories is a great idea and thoughtful gift but the process can often feel daunting and time-consuming without the right application. Today, Canon U.S.A. Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, is excited to announce the launch of the new hdAlbum EZ v2.0 app, using our proprietary EAGiAL-M2 technology to automatically arrange images directly from your compatible mobile device3 to make the photo book creation process a fun hobby and creative outlet.

The imaging experts at Canon have completely redesigned the hdAlbum EZ app with the v2.0 update for a virtually seamless customer experience, allowing users to navigate the mobile interface with ease and convenience. The redesigned software creates attractive layouts for the user, creating beautiful photo books using 20 to 50 of their favorite images. It can also be linked to Facebook, Instagram and Verizon Cloud accounts.

“Canon is committed to offering time-saving solutions and creating intuitive platforms for imaging creation,” said Kazuto Ogawa, president and COO, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “The newly redesigned hdAlbum EZ v2.0 software provides a streamlined user experience for consumers to capture and share their memories with friends and families while leveraging the high-quality printing capabilities Canon is known for delivering.”

Starting at $14.99, Canon photo books take less than a week (approx. 3-5 business days) for production. Canon hdAlbums are ideal gifts or keepsakes for life’s biggest moments such as graduations, family vacations, newborns, engagements, weddings and more – you can learn more about the photo books and the redesigned app by visiting the dedicated website.

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Posted to: Canon News   Category: Canon USA News
Post Date: 6/25/2018 10:30:17 AM ET   Posted By: Sean
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