Is the Sony FX30 Solid Value for the Money?
Today, I’m taking a look at the new Sony FX30, the latest entrant in Sony’s cinema line.
Today, I’m taking a look at the new Sony FX30, the latest entrant in Sony’s cinema line.
Short telephoto macro lenses are tremendously useful, able to offer great portraits in addition to detail shots. Normal macro lenses offer a 1x magnification factor, but the TTArtisan 100mm f/2.8 2x Macro Tilt Shift doubles the magnification factor and adds tilt-shift capabilities as well, making it one of the most versatile lenses out there, at least on paper. Can it hold up in practice, though? This excellent video review takes a look at the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from it in practice.
You are a professional photographer as soon as you sell a print or get any money for your photography. Excelling at that requires taking on tasks and responsibilities, some of which apply to amateur photographers too. However, there's much more to it than many people imagine.
Camouflaged to the max, Morten Hilmer is going full stealth mode on his farmland with the brand new Nikon Z8 for wildlife photography. Join Hilmer as he captures some magnificent wildlife with this new offering from Nikon.
Photoshop is a tremendously complex and multilayered program, and as such, it can be easy to overlook some of its less obvious features. Blend if is one such feature, but despite its somewhat hidden location, it is one of the most of useful tools at your disposal. This fantastic video tutorial will show you everything you need to know about Blend if, including how it works and some of its most useful applications.
The beauty of artificial lighting is that you can create looks that simply would not be possible using only the sun. One of the greatest technical challenges for a photographer is lighting a group portrait so that every individual is well lit but so the overall look is still sculpted and compelling rather than flat and two-dimensional. If you would like to really take your portrait lighting to the next level, check out this awesome video tutorial that will take you behind the scenes of a cinematic magazine cover photo shoot and show you how to do it yourself.
Topaz recently released its new Photo AI software, which deals with noise, sharpness, and resolution. I have been using it and it's seriously impressed me. If you want to see it work its magic on old pictures, take a look inside.
Pricing can be an extremely tricky things for photographers to master, and even small mistakes can add up to big losses over time. This fantastic video tutorial features an experienced commercial photographer discussing a common and easy-to-make mistake, how to recognize it, and how to fix it.
There are two kinds of light sources for video: LED lights and panels. Both have advantages and drawbacks. Which is the best choice when you’re on a budget? Should you choose an LED light or an LED panel? I made my choice, but now, I have my doubts.
Do you have a lens, camera, or a drone that you no longer need or use? Reluctant to sell via online marketplaces? Perhaps it's time for an upgrade and you want to earn some extra money to put towards the latest and greatest gear. MPB values your camera, and I will show you how.
Recently, rumors have swirled regarding the release of the Canon EOS R5 Mark II mirrorless camera, the follow-up to the company's wildly popular EOS R5. It seems as though that release might take a bit longer than initially thought, but in the meantime, EOS R5 users will likely get to enjoy a major upgrade to their cameras' capabilities.
The camera can be seen as most impactful when it's used to document life in its rawest form. Every day, photographers grab their camera and head out to create a photograph for many reasons. It could be for a client on a commercial set. It could be a wedding photographer. It could be a landscape photographer. All these approaches hold their own sort of gravitas. However, when a camera is used to capture events that help the viewer understand our reality and our history, it could be said the camera is at its most powerful. Photojournalism holds this gravitas.
Editing images is no easy task to undertake. Using editing software such as Lightroom or Capture One requires quite a bit of learning and getting used to. However, even if you know how to use editing software, you still need to edit images in such a way that enhances their beauty, rather than destroys it. Essentially, you need to know the why behind the how. Here are some mistakes I made when editing pictures because of not knowing the why.
It used to be that wedding photographers had to carry expensive top-level optics in order to ensure they could reliably deliver professional shots. However, in recent years, third-party and mid-tier lenses have made remarkable steps forward, and it is now possible to save both your back and your bank account by purchasing more modest options and still be able to deliver excellent images. This excellent video discusses some of the best options out there for Sony users.
In the world of photography today, it is pretty common that the relationship between creative concept and photography skill is intertwined and very much expected from a photographer. In this article, we’ll dive deeper into this discussion between these two relationships to see how photographers can unleash their artistic potential and bring their work to the next level and how one skill affects the other skill. Everything from the spark of inspiration from the basis of creative concepts to the technical skills required for project execution will be discussed in hopes of achieving balance between creativity and technical skill to push a photographer’s work to a greater height.
When starting out in photography, you are immediately blasted with dozens of potential cameras you can buy. Picking the right one can be one difficult task. When buying a camera, you are not only investing in a device, but rather in a system of lenses, accessories, and much more. This is why picking the first camera is often a very important choice. In this article, we will see which cameras are the best for beginners. The last one might surprise a few of you.
Fujifilm's X100 series of cameras is now in its fifth generation, and it remains one of the most beloved cameras on the market, all but guaranteeing that we will see a sixth version at some point. What would photographers like to see in the next iteration? This interesting video features a photographer discussing his thoughts on the topic.
Understanding how different elements of the frame "rank" relative to each other is fundamental to creating balanced photos that draw the viewer's attention in the right direction in a pleasing and intuitive manner. If you would like to improve your landscape photography, check out this fantastic video tutorial that discusses the idea of visual hierarchy in the genre and the different elements it includes.
Like most photographers, I own more than one camera bag. There is my main bag, my video gear bag, my small kit bag, my rolling bag for airplane travel, and that one, never-been-used, just sitting in the back of the closet, camera bag of unknown origin.
If you asked many photographers what magical device they would love to have, an adapter that turns manual focus lenses into autofocus ones would probably be near the top of many lists. For Sony shooters, there is the Techart PRO Version II, which allows Leica M lenses to autofocus on E mount mirrorless cameras, and this awesome video review takes a look at the adapter and the sort of performance you can expect from it in real-world usage.
There’s nothing like having a neat and efficient workstation, and for on-the-go digital creatives, this means having a laptop that you can bring everywhere is obviously a must. However, when in your personal workspace, having a docking station to bridge it with all your peripherals makes a huge difference in your workflow.
Datacolor’s new Spyder Checkr Photo is a sized-down version of the original Spyder Checkr professional color reference tool while also being a vast improvement over the previous smaller version, the Spyder Checkr 24.
The Nikon NIKKOR Z 85mm f/1.2 S lens offers its users some of the best optical performance and image quality the company has ever put into a lens, making it a highly desirable option for a wide range of shooters, particularly portrait and wedding photographers. Can it offer what it promises in practice? This excellent video review takes a look at everything you can expect from it.
Is CineStiil’s new 400D a replacement for Fujifilm’s legendary Natura 1600 film? Many devotees of Fujifilm’s high-speed color negative film would find this an absurd proposition, but bear with me.
News recently broke that Viltrox, a brand known for their affordable lenses, has stopped manufacturing for the Canon RF mount after rumors that Canon had asked them to pull their products. Canon recently confirmed that news, and it certainly raises questions about the future of third-party lenses for their mirrorless cameras.
In photography, faster lenses are better, aren’t they? Many struggle to see the benefits of having a range of f/4 lenses. But, if you start using them, you’ll realize there are good reasons for challenging that assumption.
Once upon a time, Sigma was a brand thought of by many as the compromise lens if you couldn't afford the household names. Times have changed, though, and Sigma has gone beyond offering competitive lenses to making remarkable lenses and even some notable industry firsts. Being a photographer who works heavily in product work, I decided to put the Sigma 70mm f/2.8 DG Macro Art lens in a shoot-off against the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro, and the results were... well, read on and find out for yourself!
As a photographer, how many times have you wished you had a portable power source in remote locations? Whether for outdoor lighting or simply to power some tools, this 1,200 W power station might just be what you were wishing for.
If you are using Lightroom Classic for your photo editing, you have the possibility to use the presentation module. This module makes it easy to create a slideshow and export it as a video file. Try Premiere Pro if you want to take your slide shows to the next level.
A good pair of binoculars are often invaluable to photographers. There are many important things to learn about buying them. Here's what led me to the OM System Olympus PRO binoculars, why they are my perfect choice, and why my old ones were a mistake.
Tamron has released some mightily impressive lenses in the last years, including some that push the boundaries of design, such as the 35-150mm f/2-2.8 Di III VXD. The company recently announced the 50-400mm f/4.5-6.3 Di III VC VXD, which offers a huge range of focal lengths all in one package. What sort of performance and image quality can you expect from it? This great first look video takes a look.
Olympus has been assigning the Zuiko name to its range of high-quality lenses since 1936. Zuiko-branded lenses were made for SLR, rangefinder, and automatic point-and-shoot cameras in medium format, 35mm, and even half-frame formats. Assessing the best of anything in photography leads to vivid debate and lots of room for subjectivity. Here are my 5 reasons why I believe Olympus knocked it out of the park with their Zuiko range, and when you look at all factors are the best film lenses ever made. Be sure to leave a comment to let me know your thoughts.
If you would put your trust on just one tripod for all the shooting requirements that you commonly face, what features are non-negotiable for you? Let’s see if this carbon fiber tripod from Benro would fit that description.
When it comes to landscape photography (or really, any genre), there is a time when you grow more comfortable with the technique and creative process, but somehow, your output stagnates. This excellent video tutorial will show you why that often happens and what you can do to fix it.
Telephoto lenses are very useful in landscape photography, but the fact that they are commonly heavier and/or bulkier can sometimes be concerning. How do you know which one is worth carrying around?
7Artisans has become well known for producing some of the most affordable lenses available to photographers. While that sometimes means significant compromises in performance or image quality, their 15mm f/4 lens offers rather impressive results while still coming in at a very low cost. Is it the right lens for you? This excellent video review takes a look at everything you can expect from it.
These two wide angle third-party prime lenses are both ultra-fast, with a maximum aperture of f/1.4. But which of the two should you go for?
Do you think your editing skills can match the pros? Check out these five masking techniques that the pros use in Photoshop to see if you're as skilled as you think you might be.
If you are new to photography, you might be wondering about fundamental differences between lenses. Many beginners are drawn to fisheye lenses, which offer a different perspective on the world and the ability to get a massive field of view in one frame. So, what is the difference between a fisheye lens and a more standard rectilinear model? This excellent video tutorial will teach you what distinguishes them.
Does this affordable video editing software live up to expectations? Definitely. If you want a powerful but easy-to-use app, then look no further.
We're always looking to bring our lives a little more joy and since most of us are chained to our desks throughout the day, I've decided to review the t13 highest-rated desk toys on Amazon.
One of the first techniques every new photographer loves to try is the long exposure. Long exposures can improve image quality by helping to reduce noise, and they can be a wonderfully powerful creative tool that can entirely change the look of an image. If you are new to photography and wondering how to get started with long exposures, check out this great video tutorial that will get you up and running in no time.
Most photographers drool over 85mm f/1.4 lenses for portrait work, and while those are certainly a lot of fun, they might not actually be the best choice for you. This awesome video will show you why you should consider a 100mm macro lens for your work.
We live in an age of instant gratification, and as such, it can be hard to have the patience it takes to develop and master a skill over the course of several years, and photography certainly is not immune to that. There is a temptation to throw money at the problem, and while that shiny new camera or lens will certainly be fun to play with, it will not make you a better photographer. This insightful video discusses seven reasons why.
Is it a graphic tablet, a monitor, or both? Let’s take a look at the implications of what a 22-inch pen display can offer for your editing and retouching workflow.
At over $15,000, the Nikon Nikkor Z 600mm f/4 TC VR S sits at the very top of the lens mountain in terms of price, but does it also bring performance and image quality to match? This great video review takes an in-depth look at the lens and if it can justify that massive price tag.
The digital age and the ability to crop our photos however we want instantly has reduced the attention placed on aspect ratios. Nonetheless, aspect ratio has an important impact on many factors of your image, ranging from composition to printing. This excellent video tutorial features an experienced landscape photographer discussing the effect aspect ratio has on images and how to leverage it to improve the quality of your photos.