Announced in June 2018, the RX100 VI is the latest iteration of the Sony’s RX100 series of pocketable high-end compact cameras. The last few years haven’t been kind on point-and-shoot cameras with smartphone cameras now the tool of choice for most casual photographic situations. This has nearly eradicated the point-and-shoot camera market, but one niche segment remains seemingly unscathed: advanced bridge cameras like the Sony RX100 VI. With its large 20.1-megapixel stacked 1-inch imaging sensor, the RX100 VI captures more…
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Nikon Z7 Firmware Update Wishlist
Without a doubt, camera firmware is one of the most important parts of any modern digital camera, and this is especially true for mirrorless cameras that have a lot more electronics compared to DSLRs. The Nikon Z7 is Nikon’s first attempt at getting into the mirrorless market. Considering that it is a first generation camera of its kind for the company, it is already highly capable and solid, something that cannot be said about other mirrorless camera launches we have…
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Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM Review
The 70-200mm focal length f/2.8 lens has become a staple in the photography world with each camera manufacturer offering their variant on this now classic design. The history of the autofocus-capable 70-200mm f/2.8 lens within the Canon universe stretches all the way back to 1989 with the introduction of the Canon 80-200mm f/2.8 L lens, whose high quality and innovative design went a long way in cementing Canon’s strong market position heading into the 90’s.
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Camera Memory Card Compatibility Guide
With so many new cameras out today, it might be difficult to figure out exactly what type of memory cards they can support. Some cameras have a single memory card slot with particular specifications, while others have dual memory card slots, sometimes with completely different specifications. We decided to make a comprehensive table with popular modern cameras and their memory card slots along with their specifications, in order to make it easy for our readers to decide what memory cards…
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Best Entry-Level DSLRs of 2018, Ranked
At the beginning of the year, I had a chance to test several entry-level DSLRs side by side and review which ones were the best. Today, I’d like to circle back and rank some of these cameras for photographers who are trying to decide on a DSLR, either for yourself or as a gift; it’s that time of year, after all. Hopefully this list gives you a good idea of which camera will be right for you.
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Nikon Z7 Review
This is an in-depth review of the Nikon Z7, the first iteration of a high-resolution mirrorless camera that Nikon released in August of 2018. The camera was announced together with the 24 MP Nikon Z6 and the 24-70mm f/4, 35mm f/1.8 and 50mm f/1.8 Z-mount lenses. One could argue that Nikon’s entry into the mirrorless market took too long, but many Nikon shooters waited patiently for this highly-anticipated system to see the light of the day. With over 100 million…
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Tokina 300mm f/4 ATX Review
Recently, as I packed my cameras for a trip, it dawned on me how much the contents of my camera bag have changed since the first days of my photographic journey. With all the professional grade Canon cameras and lenses neatly tucked in my bag, it was easy to forget that it wasn’t so long ago when my camera of choice was an entry-level DSLR (Sony A100) and a consumer-grade telephoto zoom lens in the form of the Tamron 70-300mm.…
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How to Update Firmware on Fujifilm Cameras
If you own a Fuji X-Series camera and you aren’t regularly upgrading the firmware you may be missing out on a number of features that your camera has to offer. Firmware is the software that is operating your camera, and it is responsible for a surprising percentage of your camera’s functionality. While hardware such as the processor and the sensor get all the attention, they wouldn’t do much without the software that controls them. This is true with any manufacturer,…
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Fuji X100F Review
This is an in-depth review of the Fujifilm X100F camera, which was released by Fuji on January 19, 2017. The X100-series cameras have been very popular since they were introduced to the market and the X100F is the fourth iteration of the product. Sporting a 24.3 MP X-Trans CMOS III sensor, a fast X-Processor Pro image processor, an improved 91-point AF system and an updated button layout with joystick autofocus control for easier AF point selection, the X100F is the…
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Colorado Mountains with the Nikon 58mm f/1.2 Noct
Now that Nikon is releasing a 58mm f/0.95 Noct for their Z system, it’s worth taking a look back at their older Noct lens – the 58mm f/1.2 – if only for curiosity’s sake. This is one of Nikon’s most famous lenses, especially for portraiture and nighttime photography, where its output is difficult to match. Recently, for a memorable week of photography, I had a chance to bring the 58mm f/1.2 Noct into the mountains and aspen groves of Colorado.
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Fujifilm X-T3 First Impressions
Until the release of the Fujifilm X-T3 I would have told you that my Fuji camera lineup was complete for a while. The release of the X-T2 two years ago wasn’t enough to make me part with my X-Pro2 and I’ve since picked up the X-H1 as well. But when the T3 was announced I found the new specs compelling enough that I decided to try it out. After shooting with it for a little more than a week, I…
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Nikon 45mm f/2.8D PC-E Review
This is an in-depth review of the Nikon 45mm f/2.8D PC-E, also known as PC-E Micro Nikkor 45mm f/2.8D ED, a special purpose normal-angle lens designed for architecture, commercial, macro, and nature photography. “PC” stands for “Perspective Control”, but I will refer to this type of lens as “tilt-shift” in this article.
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Comparing 5 Top Wide-Angle Astrophotography Lenses
If you want to shoot sharp photos of stars, it helps to have the right lens for the job. After all, a good lens during the day might be a dud for resolving pinpoint stars in a photo’s corners at night. Here, I’ve tested five popular wide-angle lenses for astrophotography: the Laowa 12mm f/2.8, Rokinon 14mm f/2.4, Samyang 14mm f/2.8, Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8, and Irix 15mm f/2.4. How do they compare?
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Nikon Z 24-70mm f/4 S Performance Overview
To follow up on yesterday’s post about my initial impressions of the Nikon Z7 and 24-70mm lens, I’m including a number of additional sample photos and image quality crops in this article to answer some reader questions about how well the 24-70mm performs with the Z7. This includes vignetting comparisons versus the Nikon 24-120mm f/4 for the F mount, as well as 100% crops to test sharpness for daytime and Milky Way photography.
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Nikon Z7 First Impressions and Sample Photos
I’m sure you already know that we’re going to test the Nikon Z7 camera to its limits here at Photography Life. We have six orders coming our way in total, and we plan to put each copy through its paces while we travel to Jordan and Turkey throughout October. So far, one copy has arrived, and I’ve shot with it in Colorado for the past couple days. Here, I wanted to share my first impressions and sample images.
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Recommended Fuji X100F Settings
The Fuji X100F is the fourth in Fuji’s line of X100 cameras – the X100, X100S, X100T, and X100F. Although it has a refined design and fairly intuitive menu, the camera’s large number of options and controls can make it overwhelming for new buyers. Hopefully, this guide will help clear up some confusion and explain how to use the Fuji X100F, including our recommended settings for each option in the menu.
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Lens Mounts Explained
With Nikon and Canon having recently launched brand new mirrorless system mounts and talking about their benefits, there seems to be quite a bit of confusion among photographers in regards to camera lens mounts. This is especially true for things like “throat size” and “inner diameter”, where different measurements are used to wrongly quantify a mount’s potential. Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation out there regarding mounts and their exact sizes, which is why I decided to write a…
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Sony FE 2x Teleconverter Review
Released in 2016 alongside the Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS and Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter, the Sony FE 2x Teleconverter is an essential addition to Sony’s full-frame E-mount lineup. Given the relative lack of dedicated telephoto options available to the mount, the Sony FE 2x Teleconverter dramatically enhances the versatility of the lenses it is compatible with: the Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS, the Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS and the recently released Sony 400mm f/2.8 GM…
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Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM Review
Frequently overshadowed by their more versatile brethren, macro lenses rarely receive much fanfare upon their release. Nonetheless, it is their function as close-up-photography specialists that makes them essential for a range of photographic pursuits like product photography, print reduction and close-up photography of living subjects. This role has made macro lenses a vital element of a camera manufacture’s lens catalog. Their niche design means that that new macro lenses are released rather infrequently, but all major manufactures have at least…
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Canon EOS R vs Sony A7 III vs Sony A7R III
Now that Canon has officially announced its first mirrorless camera, the Canon EOS R, many photographers will be interested to compare it against the latest generation of Sony full-frame mirrorless cameras, particularly the Sony A7 III and A7R III. At $2299, the Canon EOS R fits between the two Sony cameras in price, although it is positioned closer to the A7 III (at $1998). With the Canon name and the company’s famous Dual Pixel AF technology, it promises to be…
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