I don’t know about you, but here outside my window at the 50th parallel north, spring has arrived in full force. At least, that’s what the Nuthatch outside my window has been persistently announcing since early morning. If you’ve been in a deep winter’s photographic slumber, it’s time to charge your batteries, blow the dust off your lenses, and format your cards. The biggest harvest of the year is about to begin – not just for farmers, but for wildlife photographers!
Recent Announcements
- CP+ Trade Show Announcements: This is one of the biggest weeks of the year for camera and lens announcements! We’ve already posted articles about many of the most exciting new products. Read them here if you missed them: Sigma BF camera, 300-600mm f/4, and 16-300mm lenses; Panasonic S1R II; Zeiss 50mm f/1.4 and 85mm f/1.4 Otus; and the Sony 16mm f/1.8 and 400-800mm f/6.3-8. Which of these are you most excited about? For me, it’s the Sigma 300-600mm f/4.
- DxO PureRAW 5: The main upgrade in this version is the introduction of the third-generation DeepPRIME. In addition to its traditionally strong demosaicing and noise reduction capabilities, it now promises significantly improved suppression of chromatic aberration and faster image processing. While PureRAW has always worked well on autopilot, the fifth generation now allows you to adjust the Force Details and Luminance sliders for specific areas of the image. Another UI enhancement is the ability to save your favorite settings as presets. And finally, Fujifilm shooters will benefit from the new X-Trans sensor-tailored DeepPRIME XD3 X-Trans Beta engine. The price? A new license costs $120, while upgrading from DxO PureRAW 3 or 4 will set you back $79. Availability from April 15.
- New lenses and mount options from Viltrox: Viltrox unveiled a trio of lenses at its CP+ booth. The most exciting announcement is the highly anticipated Viltrox AF 35mm F1.2 LAB FE. However, Nikon shooters will have to wait a little longer before this lens makes its way to the Z-mount – just like the previously announced Viltrox AF 135mm F1.8 LAB FE. Another interesting addition is the Viltrox AF 85mm F1.4 Pro FE, currently only announced for Sony. In the Viltrox hierarchy, the “Pro” line sits just below the “LAB” line, promising an even more attractive price point. Finally, there’s the Viltrox AF 50mm F2.0, which will be available for both Sony and Nikon. Pricing and other details have yet to be announced, but as usual, Viltrox is expected to keep their lenses wallet-friendly compared to the original alternatives.
- Elevation Lab AirTag Camera Plate: This carbon fibre composite, Arca-Swiss compatible tripod plate can hide an AirTag in its hidden slot, making it part of your camera. It attaches via a CNC-machined stainless steel security Torx screw, making it far less likely that a thief will simply toss the AirTag into the nearest trash can. You can only hope that, if necessary, you will find a willing and courageous hand of the law to seize your camera from the thief and return it to its rightful owner. For $20, it’s worth a shot.
- Viltrox Camera Battery Charging Case Power Bank: A charging case and power bank in one. Weighing 320g, this case can hold and charge up to two batteries simultaneously. Compatible with Nikon EN-EL15, Fujifilm NP-W235, Canon LP-E6 and Sony NP-FZ100. A built-in LCD screen keeps you informed of charging status and current battery capacity. According to the manufacturer, a full charge via the USB-C PD 30W port takes about 80 minutes. When inserted into the case, your camera’s batteries can serve as a power source, providing 5500mAh (40.7Wh) of backup power (batteries not included). The price is set at $70.
The Rumor Mill
New Venus Laowa lenses set for CP+ reveal
Laowa has teased a sneak peek of new lenses via Instagram. Of the upcoming releases, the one that piques my curiosity the most is the 15mm f/4.5 Wide Angle Macro. Other soon-to-be-released lenses include the video-focused Ultima 12-120mm T4, which covers Super35 and uses an ARRI PL mount, and the Proteus Zoom, with specifications yet to be announced. On the photography side, we can also expect a 35mm f/2.8 Tilt-Shift and an 8-15mm Fish-Eye. Stay tuned for more details.
Via Venus Laowa
Schneider Kreuznach & LK Samyang collaborate on a new lens
Legendary lens manufacturer Schneider is collaborating with Samyang on a new wide-angle zoom lens, the AF 14-24mm f/2.8. This zoom range and aperture will be very familiar to Nikon shooters. However, unlike Nikon’s version, this new release supports standard 77mm screw-on filters, eliminating the need for bulky and expensive 112mm adapter-mounted filters. Pricing is expected to be competitive, although the lens is currently only expected for Sony cameras. Let’s hope for a wider range of mounts in the future.
Via Photo Rumors
Leica SL cameras are rumored to get a new standard zoom lens.
It remains unclear what focal length range this new zoom will cover. Two possibilities are on the table, both featuring a constant f/4 aperture: 28-105mm and 24-105mm. Leica is likely to take advantage of the L-Mount Alliance, so this lens could take inspiration from either the Sigma 28-105mm f/2.8 DG DN Art or the Panasonic Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 Macro O.I.S.
Via Leica Rumors
Good Deals and New Sales
In the introduction, I encouraged you to clear your memory cards in preparation for the upcoming spring season. But if you also find yourself needing to expand your storage capacity, here’s my selection of the most interesting options at great prices this week.
SDXC
- Kingston 256GB Canvas React Plus UHS-II was $315, now $180
- SanDisk 256GB Extreme PRO UHS-II was $103, now $63
- SanDisk 256GB Extreme PRO UHS-I was $51, now $30
CFexpress Type B
- Exascend 1TB Essential Series was $469, now $390
- Sony 240GB CFexpress Type B TOUGH was $198, now $148
- ProGrade Digital 800GB CFexpress 4.0 Type B Iridium was $390, now $330
CFexpress Type A
- Sony 320GB CFexpress Type A TOUGH was $648, now $398
- Sony 960GB CFexpress Type A TOUGH was $478, now $498
And below are five great cameras all on sale this week:
- Nikon Z9 was $5,497, now $4,997: Still one of the best and most versatile cameras available today. In addition to the $500 discount, you also get the Nikon MC-CF660G CFexpress Type B memory card ($767), arguably the best card you can put in the Z9’s slot.
- Nikon Zf was $1,997, now $1,797: If you’re looking for the perfect intersection of style, performance, and a full-frame sensor at a reasonable price, look no further.
- Panasonic Lumix G9 II was $1,898, now $1,698: When looking for the best photo-oriented Micro Four Thirds camera, this one is my winner, at least if we factor price into the equation.
- Nikon Z6 III was $2,497, now $2,197: The best viewfinder and image stabilization (not only) among Nikon cameras. Excellent ergonomics and finally a great autofocus. All of this in a relatively compact package at a reasonable price.
- Nikon Z5 was $1,397, now $997: No fancy features, yet still a quality camera providing a below-$1000 ticket to the full-frame world, and access to great Nikon Z lenses.
Other Pages of Interest
Wolves on Canada’s Ellesmere Island… Brazil’s landscape undergoing an apocalyptic transformation… Bolivia’s La Paz with one of the world’s highest golf courses. These and many more fascinating subjects are featured in the recently released selection of the best images from this year’s Sony World Photography Awards 2025 Professional category.
As a teacher, I was captivated by the simple yet highly understandable explanation of the physical principles behind how aperture size affects depth of field. Tim Klein also uses wonderfully simple analog teaching tools, such as a magnetic board and a piece of string. If you’re not entirely clear on concepts like the circle of confusion and depth of field, this four and a half minute video will change that.
For anyone who enjoys video games, or wants to practice the art of landscape photography from your home, the new game Lushfoil Photography Sim will be available starting April 15. From the trailer, it looks like you’ll be able to freely explore virtual landscapes in South Tyrol in Italy, South West Australia, Kyoto and Yamagata in Japan, Southern Iceland, Haute-Savoie in France, the Annapurna Region in Nepal, Northern England in the UK, and the East China Sea. Naturally, you’ll be equipped with a DSLR camera featuring all standard functions. The main point of the game is still unknown. I’m also not entirely sure about the lens selection, so whether this game is suitable for wildlife photographers remains to be seen.
Photo Theme Challenge, Week #91
Last week’s theme was soft, and you can see the results in this thread. Thank you to everyone for your submissions! This week’s theme is wild animals, and you can submit your results in this thread by Saturday, March 9, 2024!
Week #90 Results
Let’s check out some of the shots we received for the “soft” theme, starting with rjbfoto’s photo:
The softness of the snow emerges from the vastness of the individual crystals!
PRG Lagarde’s photo:
All the elements of the photo fade into soft bokeh, which makes the presence of the small fly all the more delightful when you notice it.
Finally, AndrewGusew’s photo:
The softness goes especially well with the minimalism!
Thanks everyone for submitting their photos in the challenge, and we hope to see more next week in the wild animals theme.
A new wide-angle macro will be very welcome, Libor! I think this one might only be 0.5x but I’m not sure. But even 0.5x at 15mm will still provide some amazing perspectives.
Exactly as you write, I don’t actually need a real macro. Even 0.5x magnification would be very welcome. I can see myself crawling after butterflies, lizards, spiders and snakes :-)
Wondering if PureRaw 5 will support Nikon Z8 HE*. PureRaw 4 does not. Waiting to hear back from DXO Support.
PureRaw 5, it only suppots the raw file
Hi Libor,
I remember your observation about Z6iii autofocus not sticking to the subject as good as even ZF. In this article, you mention “finally great autofocus”. Is the issue fixed?
After photographing with the Z6 III and the Z9 in direct comparison I do not understand any discussions on the quality of the Z6 III AF sticking to any subject including birds. I mean it is to me brilliant and on the level of the Z9 when considering that the camera has fewer pixels and will, therefore, identify birds later in the frame. There is no “issue” at all. The camera clearly gets any job done. The latest firmware updates on the Z6 III are video focussed (shutter angle, power zooms, etc.) and dealing with noise patterns (flickering) when taking Nraw video just below the second gain point (which is something I would never recommend to do). I hope this helps.
Thank you Michael for your experience. I am very happy that I can confirm it. With the current firmware, AF has gained significantly in confidence and I really no longer notice the issue I mentioned in my “first impressions” with the Z6 iii. At the moment it is a very capable all-round camera that has the potential to satisfy a very wide range of photographers. Honestly, if I were choosing a camera today, it is very likely that I would choose the Z6 iii. Is it perfect? Of course not. The blackout-free viewfinder, resolution, auto-capture and a few other things the Z8/9 has I would miss, but half the price and compact size are very strong arguments for me to overlook some things.
Pricing is a funny old thing.
I thought the Z6III was about 2/3rds the price of a Z8 – or put another way, a Z8 costs about the same as a Z50II and Z6III put together.
The Z6III doesn’t really have an adequate crop mode, so for wildlife photography it rather leaves you short on focal length – here noting the price of Z-mount long glass, other than the (sizeable and weighty) 180-600.
It’s a difficult one, but I think the only camera that it’s worth trading a D500 for is a Z8. And that’s quite a jump.
If you’re a non-action photographer on the other hand, a used Z7 is a bargain. And a used 24-70 and a Tamron 70-300 make a pretty decent combo.
Libor, the picture of the nuthatch is just stunning. It may be my favorite of all that you have shared with us.
Thank you so much, Elaine. I knew that this Nuthatch was somewhere in my archive, singing a sad song about wanting to be edited and published. Thanks to your kind response, I’m glad I finally listened to that call.