And You Thought Today’s Cameras Look Great

And You Thought Today’s Cameras Look Great

God bless the French. This is probably the most extensive, most beautiful and most bizarre collection of cameras you’ll ever lay eyes upon. It’s impossible to find your own favorites from the Collection Appareils, an online vault of the most amazing cameras assembled by a French guy named Sylvain Halgand. It’s an astonishing encyclopedic collection […]

It’s Getting Crowded in the Full-Frame World

It’s Getting Crowded in the Full-Frame World

Still too early to write off the DSLR world, isn’t it, especially the DSLR full-frame or FX world or whatever you want to call the digital equivalent to film’s 35mm standard. Who would have thought a few years ago, when smaller mirrorless Micro Four Thirds and APS-C formats were making serious inroads, who would have […]

Mythbuster: Professionals Use Large Sensors

Mythbuster: Professionals Use Large Sensors

Could as well write: professionals never use Micro Four Thirds. There’s a lot of misinformation wandering around the business of technology. Fact is, as we all know, Micro Four Thirds, the pioneer of a truly digital imaging system, has grown into a formidable contender. Be it stills or video, only the practiced eye can tell […]

Prelude to an Obituary? Nikon’s Latest Financial Results

Prelude to an Obituary? Nikon’s Latest Financial Results

Can it get any worse? Another huge loss and forecast drop for Nikon, the camera industry’s number two whose authority no one would have questioned only a few years ago. From the latest financial report for Q1, 2014: Net sales for the three months ended June 30, 2014, decreased by 61,536 million yen (25.7%) year-on-year […]

Does the Camera Brand Matter?

Does the Camera Brand Matter?

Buying a camera and or owning a camera system says as much about a person’s character as the partner, pet, car or house the person has. Deciding which camera or system to shoot with is in fact a highly intimate, deeply personal choice that’s quite meaningful to read and understand a person’s character. You shoot […]

Photokina 2014 Preview — What to Expect?

Photokina 2014 Preview — What to Expect?

Photokina 2014, world’s biggest photography show, is around the corner. Taking place mid-September in Cologne, Germany, all major players use the stage to show off their latest and greatest gear. What’s in store for this year’s biennial Photokina? More DSLRs by Canon and Nikon? New curved and organic sensors? Compelling reasons to upgrade? Let’s have […]

Here’s How to Revamp Your Portrait Photography

Here’s How to Revamp Your Portrait Photography

Say what you want, despite huge advancements in technology and an abundant choice of photographic gear and possibilities, despite so many more choices the human being to this day remains photography’s most fascinating and rewarding subject/object. Here are a few suggestions on how to improve your portrait photography. Right, you’re a purist and use camera […]

Shortest Ever Fujifilm X-T1 Review

Shortest Ever Fujifilm X-T1 Review

It’s been quite a ride for the Fujifilm X series so far. Launched in March two years ago with the groundbreaking X-Pro1, the family of X cameras seems to grow faster than any of the competitors’ — despite sales being not that strong. The choice is yours, there’s the X-E2, X-A1, X-M1 and the series’ […]

On Moore’s Law and Camera Size

On Moore’s Law and Camera Size

Don’t get me wrong, am an admirer and fervent user of these compact new system cameras that are technological proof of Moore’s law, the law that says the number of transistors on integrated circuits doubles approximately every two years in a computer. And with cameras becoming, in fact, more and more computerized, one of the […]

It’s Still a Canon World

It’s Still a Canon World

Canonites and non-Canonites alike may deplore Canon’s lack of innovation. World’s market leader in cameras and imaging technology churns out serious gear at snail’s pace while the likes of Sony, Fujifilm and Olympus keep on innovating to gain new market share. For Canon, it seems, photography is not so much about innovation. It’s more about […]

Retro Done Right? It’s No OM-D, Not a Df, It’s a Fujifilm!

Retro Done Right? It’s No OM-D, Not a Df, It’s a Fujifilm!

It boasts hints of the OM-D and has the distinct flavor of Nikon’s Df. This rugged piece of machinery resists water, dust and temperature, sports an impressive 2.36 million dot OLED viewfinder (claiming to possess world’s highest magnification for a digital camera), the shutter time lag of 0.05 seconds is absolutely negligible and a whole […]

New Camera News — The Lighter Side of Capturing Light

New Camera News — The Lighter Side of Capturing Light

This is one of the lucky finds that happen about once every lifetime. You may argue that photography and humor don’t mix, not to mention satire! Right, photography’s a serious business. But only if we take ourselves way too seriously. That’s where New Camera News comes in, an ingenious photography site dedicated to “the lighter […]

Old Star Rising

Old Star Rising

By BENGT NYMAN It’s easy for the casual camera user to have deeply felt ideas about what a camera should look and perform like. However, the technology behind a well functioning camera is hidden to most and produces a marketable product only when properly combined and perfected. To support my claim I will make examples […]

Fujifilm Finds Its X Niche and Meet the 360° Bublcam

Fujifilm Finds Its X Niche and Meet the 360° Bublcam

Interesting article by the New York Times on Fujifilm finding its niche as digital camera sales sputter: old-style cameras that mask a high-tech core. For certain work you can’t replace a D800 or 5D Mark III. But it’s just not that much fun. Et voilà the state-of-the-art and retro-looking Fujifilm X series, designed by Masazumi […]

Sony A7R and a Ton of Legacy Lenses — Full-Resolution Sample Images

Sony A7R and a Ton of Legacy Lenses — Full-Resolution Sample Images

By KAREL VAN WOLFEREN Unlike what happened in some other Asian cities, Japanese photographers did not rush out en masse to get hold of that full-format camera (digital’s new medium format) miraculously squeezed into a palm-sized mirrorless body when it went on sale in Tokyo on November 15. There was no one else besides me […]

Canon and Nikon at the Crossroads

Canon and Nikon at the Crossroads

Yes, both Canon and Nikon recently cut their sales forecast as camera users are tired of buying nearly identical camera updates and more and more people switch to phones. But let’s not forget, Canon still estimates a massive $3.6 billion operating profit for the year. Nikon’s situation is worse with a 41% drop in operating […]

Hands-On With the Retro Nikon Df (f for Fusion)

Hands-On With the Retro Nikon Df (f for Fusion)

First off: the Nikon Df is a kind of trinity between D4, Leica M and good old film. Right, of the D4 that costs $6k and Leica $7k. And I am the only one excited?! Online commentaries are rather condescending, accusing Nikon of too much and not enough retro for the sake of retro. But […]

The Nikon Df File

The Nikon Df File

Non-mirrorless and pentaprism are not yet dead after all. Nikon makes a bold statement with the Nikon Df — photography’s heritage isn’t dead at all. You might not want the latest, bestest sensor — albeit three years old, its sensor rocks. Maybe what’s here is already perfect enough. Right, you bet this camera is an […]

The Sony A7(R) File

The Sony A7(R) File

+++ The File is continuously updated with the latest A7(R) reviews and hands-on reports. See further below. +++ Sony, in another bold move, raises the bar a full-frame and demolishes the status quo: its long rumored, eagerly anticipated and latest imaging device is palm-sized, takes interchangeable lenses, has a very responsive focus system, large bright […]

Coming Your Way: The Lens Wars

Coming Your Way: The Lens Wars

By BENGT NYMAN Camera manufacturers insist on proprietary lens mounts to favor the sales of their own lenses. Proprietary autofocus communications and algorithms contribute to this protection. Even proprietary electronic shutter controls do. However, this is all about to be turned on its head. Nikon has probably been restricting when and how Sony can enter […]

Olympus OM-D E-M1 Full Resolution JPEG and RAW Sample Images

Olympus OM-D E-M1 Full Resolution JPEG and RAW Sample Images

Here some quick first impressions after I played bit with the Olympus OM-D E-M1. Talk evolution rather than revolution. While the body is slightly larger than that of the original OM-D, the E-M5, it doesn’t feel that much bigger. With the battery grip and 12-40mm F2.8 attached it’s a comfortable package. Less stylish than it’s […]

The Olympus OM-D E-M1 File

The Olympus OM-D E-M1 File

If you see the advantages of Micro Four Thirds, if you like compact gear, innovative imaging technology and all of this packed into a state-of-the-art body with cutting edge design and contemporary finishes, then you should give Olympus’ new flagship camera, the OM-D E-M1, a very good look. Not cheap at $1,399 the body and […]

Revolutionary: Startup “Digilusion” Announces Upgradable Cameras and Digital Backs to Revive Old 35mm Film Bodies

Revolutionary: Startup “Digilusion” Announces Upgradable Cameras and Digital Backs to Revive Old 35mm Film Bodies

Dream camera? Right, this sounds too good to be true. A Japanese startup company partially financed by Chinese (!) venture capital today announced a dream come true for any photographer: “Digilusion,” a newcomer still fighting for the right to the company name and Web domain, released a widely ignored statement claiming to revive the long-held […]

The Future of Camera Design

The Future of Camera Design

Cameras haven’t really come a long way since the days of Karl Nüchterlein, inventor of the first SLR for the mass market, and Oskar Barnack, father of 35mm photography who sealed the fate of large format cameras. Since them, camera design didn’t evolve much for decades. The Konica Autoreflex gave us workable exposure automation, but […]

Quality Trumps Size? Portability vs. Image Quality Obsession Revisited

Quality Trumps Size? Portability vs. Image Quality Obsession Revisited

Each job requires a different set of tools. A camera good enough for one job may be completely inadequate when shooting a more demanding job that requires better accuracy and more speed. It’s only normal to long for a jack-of-all-trades equipment that can do it all. Fact is, size still promises better performance. Today’s mirrorless […]

The Importance of a Camera’s Mojo

The Importance of a Camera’s Mojo

Am moralizing again. This may sound like heresy to some of you, but I’m rather concerned about a camera’s mojo than absolute top-end specs. Here is why. Money can buy amazing quality these days. Be it for a thousand or several thousand dollars, the choice of awesome gear is yours. You can spend even 10k++ […]

From Camera Obscura to the Age of X — What Is It With Camera Names!

From Camera Obscura to the Age of X — What Is It With Camera Names!

We’re currently living at the threshold of a new camera age. Well that’s what camera names suggest. It’s the age of cameras with a “1” in their name, symbolizing the start of a new era, doesn’t it. Take the Sony RX1, the Fujifilm X-E1 after the X-Pro1, the Nikon 1 series or Samsung NX1000. Add […]

Canon EOS M Video Review: The Good, the Bad — and the Ugly?

Canon EOS M Video Review: The Good, the Bad — and the Ugly?

I’m doing some traveling right now with two exciting cameras in my bag — two M cameras to be more precise: a Canon EOS M and the Leica M Monochrom (with the stellar 28mm Cron and 50mm Lux). Both mirrorless, both totally different beasts. The other day, however, when going skiing, it was a no-brainer […]