Our Favorite Gear of 2014

There were a modest number of new products announced during the last twelve months. Most of the newly announced products were interesting or impressive for one reason or another, but only a handful made us smile every time we touched the gear. Below you'll find our top picks for the gear released in 2014.

Favorite Gear of 2014 (In Order of Release)

• Sigma 50mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art Lens – The highly anticipated big brother of the highly successful Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art lens, the 50mm f/1.4 Art left us awestruck with its OTUS-like, wide-open image quality. The lens is solidly built, looks great, and focuses quickly. For anyone looking for the highest quality 50mm autofocus lens, look no further – the Sigma 50mm f/1.4 Art lens is in a league of its own.

• Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM Lens – Announced in May alongside the EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM, the EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM became Canon's first wide angle, full-frame zoom lens with image stabilization. Once we got our hands on lens, we were immediately impressed with its corner to corner image quality. With remarkable image quality, an excellent IS implantation and a 77mm front filter size, this lens is proving to be an essential tool for many landscape photographers and DSLR video shooters. It has quickly become one of Bryan's favorite lenses to travel with.

• Canon EOS 7D Mark II DSLR – How about a 1D X autofocus system in a rugged, crop-sensor body that can shoot at 10 frames per second? Want a Dual Pixel Sensor allowing for great autofocus in video mode? Done.

  The original EOS 7D was a very popular camera for Canon shooters. So popular, in fact, that Canon kept producing it as a "current" camera for well over four years. The good news for Canon fans was that the EOS 7D's successor was worth the wait – the EOS 7D Mark II is an awesome camera. With a 65-Point All Cross Type AF system, 150,000-pixel RGB+IR 252-zone metering sensor, 10 frames-per-second burst rate, built-in intervalometer, Dual Pixel sensor and increased weather sealing, this will be the top camera choice among wildlife and sports shooters who can't justify the investment in Canon's top-of-the-line full-framer, the EOS 1D X. That said, the 7D II will also make a great second camera investment for anyone using an EOS 5D III as their primary body. For what it's worth, both Bryan and I have invested in EOS 7D IIs for our own personal imaging kits.

• Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM Lens – Considering that the original Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM was first released in 1998, there's no wonder why there was such a pent up demand for an upgrade. Last month, Canon finally announced the aging lens's successor – the 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM – to much fanfare and excitement. With this lens in-house, it's impressed us with its image quality, improved IS system, and fast and accurate AF. Good things come to those who wait; and in this case, the long wait has led to a great lens for sports and wildlife shooters.