The end of the crop-frame camera is nigh, for anything except special markets at least. Sony’s new A7 and A7r are camera with full-frame sensors. That’s right: full-frame SLRs, only without the “R”. (But with an extra, different “R” in the A7R… Perhaps the R stands for “recycle”?).
Way back in 2009, I reviewed the Lightscoop, a miraculous mirror which reflects your camera’s built-in flash up an off the ceiling, effectively turning the whole top surface of the room into one giant soft light source. The only thing I didn’t like about it was the fact that it was bulky and tricky to carry with you.
Now there are two new Lightscoops, both of which are a little more portable,
Maybe you have an iPhone, an SLR, and perhaps a couple of weird old lenses that don’t fit either of them. Fear not, my gadget-hoarding friend, for the answer is nigh. It’s called the Beastgrip, and it attached pretty much anything to anything else.
Apparently Nikon’s D600 was already pretty much perfect, because the new D610 that replaces it is little more than a tweak. Let me put it this way: If Apple released a “new” iPhone with such a minor spec bump, the company would be “finished.”
DP review has tested the iPhone 5S’s camera and – surprise – it’s awesome. At ten long pages (all requiring a click to reach, as is DP Review’s annoying style) it’s an epic read that you’ll probably want to add to your Instapaper queue, but you can always skip to the conclusion and read the rather amusing list of “bad” points that the reviewers have come up with to make the article “balanced.”
The new GoPro Hero3+ makes jumping out of an airplane in a squirrel suit just a little bit more tempting. The new camera is smaller, faster and apparently much better.
The Nikon AW1 might look look as awesome as the Nikonos, Nikon’s previous waterproof camera (pictured below), but it is the first interchangeable-lens camera I can remember since that iconic design that can be taken underwater without a housing. And having tried out underwater photography with an iPhone and a blurry-lensed case this summer, I can totally see the appeal of doing it with a proper camera.
iOS 7’s Photos and Camera apps have been completely redesigned. Or rather, the Photos app has, with the Camera app getting some great updates, but changing very little functionally (A good thing, too – it was always easy to use).
So what’s changed? Pull up a beanbag, put on your favorite Barry White playlist and pour yourself a glass of delicious wine, while we take a look at everything new.
Product managers at Nikon and Canon must be getting pretty worried about their bonuses right now – First of all they’re still being squeezed by cellphone cameras at the low end, and now even their high-end compacts look absurd in the face of Fujifilm’s latest offering, the X-A1. It’s a camera which costs around the same as Nikon’s P and Canon’s G cameras ($600), only it comes with an APS-C sensor and an interchangeable lens.
If you happen to have a bunch of Four Thirds lenses lying around, and your in the market for a new camera, then Olympus has you covered: The new OM-D E-M1 is an SLR-style body which will accept old Four Thirds lenses, as well as new Micro Four Thirds lenses. And more importantly, they actually work, and focus at a decent speed.
There’s something beautifully absurd about the Hasselnuts Kickstarter project, which mounts your iPhone on the back of a Hasselblad 500-series film camera and uses it as an 8MP sensor for a camera that – in analog form – was considered hi-resolution enough to take photos on the moon.
Then again, if you do have an old Hassy lying around, then why not drop $250 just to get it working again?
Viewfinders are the new fast lenses, or something. At least according to Nikon, which has put a proper viewfinder back in its P-series cameras with the new P7800. And when I say proper, I mean “proper” – the viewfinder isn’t a nice bright optical one but an electronic model.
At last, the Sony QX “lens cameras” are officially official. They’re a pair of regular compact cameras built-into lens-shaped bodies, and they’re made to pair with your smartphone, using it as both a viewfinder and a controller.
The lenses connect via Wi-Fi, and if you’re using an Android phone then they’ll pair with it using NFC.
The details follow:
With such a comprehensive leak now revealing the entire “lens camera” lineup in detail, it seems foolish to actually wait for an official launch to get all excited over the news of Sony’s totally left-field cellphone accessories. They’re actually standalone cameras, only the camera part is housed inside the lens, and they clip onto your smartphone, using it as the viewfinder and brain over a wireless connection.
The “Kúla Deeper” might sound like yet another technique ex-Policeman and legendary love-machine Sting has learned in order to drive the ladies wild, but it is in fact an add-on for any DSLR that makes shooting 3-D pictures and movies easy.
Yes, in theory those 3-D videos and pictures could be of Sting removing Roxanne’s red dress in slow motion, for eight hours at a time, but you could also use its powers for good.
The second piece of Sony news today (along with the neat new NEX 5T) is the Alpha A3000, an SLR-style mirrorless camera for the crazy, crazy low price of $400. Take that, entry-level Canon Rebel bodies.
Good morning folks, and welcome to the latest episode of [_____] is the new [_____]. Today we’re taking a look at Sony’s brand new NEX–5T mirrorless camera, which proves that [Wi-Fi] is the new [large sensor]. Or that [NFC] is the new [Wi-Fi]. Or something.
You know how it’s almost impossible to keep track of all the photos you take with your iPhone, iPad, and your regular camera? Imagine if you had another device that clipped to your clothes and captured video and stills all day long. It would be a nightmare of organization, right?
Then again, if you’re, say, a photographer who regualarly gets harrassed by police and “security” “guards,” then having an always-on camera capturing the 65-degree slice of life in front of you might actually turn out to be rather useful.
RayFlash’s new ringflash adapter is called the Universal, and it is. Well, almost. There are actually two different sizes, so you’ll have to choose the “Universal” model that fits your camera.
I kid. Kinda. The Universal part of the name actually refers to the flash-hole, which can now accommodate pretty much any flashgun, not just the handful of Canon and Nikon strobes that the old RayFlash supported.
If you take a trip to the local laboratory supply store, and then follow it up by dropping into the vintage camera shop (or just a thrift store) then you could make your own beautiful lamp, just like those fashioned from dead photo gear by the Taiwanese Ystudio. It sure beats the usual crap you get from Ikea.
I saw a kid at the airport the other day, carrying a Fujifilm Instax camera, and I wondered what the hell kind of cruel trick her parents were playing on her. That thing is hideous.
But if she’d been carrying the new retro-style Instax Mini 90, I’d have been all “WTF?”
In camera years[1], Canon’s G-Series is now drawing a pension and should really be scratching out a will. And when a product line is so successful and so mature, it gets hard to improve on it. The G15 had a big sensor, a fast ƒ1.8 lens and a handy front control dial, as well as all the rugged capability that made the G-Series last this long.
The new G16 adds very little, but it get one hugely handy update: Wi-Fi.
It was only a matter of time before somebody put a SIM card inside a camera. That camera is the Q, comes from Sweden and is – according to the pitch – “world’s first social camera.”
But is it too late?
Having been teased and tempted by so many similar gadgets in the past, I can’t quite believe that the DigiPod could ever be real. But the folks at Indiegogo at least seem to have some faith in the new pitch on their site. The DigiPod is a little insert which slips into your film SLR and turns it digital.
I don’t know what I like most about MindShift’s new Contact Sheet: its name or its purpose. The Contact Sheet (named after a sheet of photographic paper showing all the photos from a roll of film, printed by putting the film right on top of the paper and flashing it with light) is a kind of fancy lightweight tarp for photographers.
