The biggest news last week, at least for us at Photography Life, was the launch of our new forum. We’ve been missing this feature for a while, and it took some time to get it up and running. But now it’s finally online and the discussions are in full swing. It also finally opens up the possibility of sharing your photos with us. It’s great that we can enrich each other in this way. By the way, we have other interesting things cooking, so stay tuned for more news from our team.
Recent Announcements
- Pentax K-3 Mark III Monochrome: It features a 26 megapixel APS-C camera sensor without an antialiasing filter – and without color filters! It’s a dedicated black-and-white camera with impressive image quality and sensor sensitivity (the base ISO is 200). In addition, the exterior design reflects the camera’s monochrome concept with white backlighting and black-and-white menu screens. Price $2,200.
- Leica M11 Monochrom: It’s another black and white camera! This one has a 60 megapixel full-frame BSI CMOS sensor that’s free of a color filter array for sharper monochrome images, and a boosted base ISO of 125. The camera’s internal memory has been increased from 64GB to 256GB. Accompanying the camera is the refreshed Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 ASPH lens, available in black or silver. Pre-order for $9,195.
- DxO Modules for New Cameras and Lenses: New support for recent cameras and lenses throughout the DxO suite. The new cameras are the Canon EOS R8 and EOS R50. The new lenses are the Nikon Z 26mm f/2.8, Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3, Sony FE 20-70mm f/4 G, Canon RF 24-50mm f/4.5-6.3, and a few others. Personally, I’m very interested to know when DxO will release the modules for the Nikkor Z 400mm f/4.5. Anyone listening at DxO?
- The DJI Inspire 3: The DJI Inspire 3 is an impressive, feature-packed drone with a full-frame sensor, made for professional videographers. It delivers video quality up to 8K/75p ProRes RAW or 8K/25p CinemaDNG. Batteries provide up to 28 minutes of flight time and a flight speed of up to 94 kilometers per hour (58 MPH). In addition, the video transmission range is an impressive 15 kilometers. Available in late June for $16,499.
- Astrhori AH-M1 Light Meter: A useful device for film photography. Weighing only 48g, the Astrhori AH-M1 fits into a hot shoe compatible with most old cameras. It continuously tracks changing light levels in real time. It has two metering mode and is equipped with a 0.66-inch OLED screen. The built-in battery with USB-C charging lasts up to 12 hours. Price $69.
The Rumor Mill
ON1 Resize AI Version 2023.5 makes your smile clearer
If not in reality, at least in a photo. AI algorithms in the new Face Recovery technology from ON1 can recognize faces in photos and make blurry faces look clearer. It should be particularly useful for enlarging old group photos where some people’s faces may have motion blur. The Resize AI program also includes NoNoise AI, which removes unwanted noise from the enlarged photo. It will be available for download in May 2023. But you can pre-order it now right here for the reduced price of $60 ($40 off the original price).
The new Canon 300mm f/2.8 will actually be a zoom lens!
With a focal length of 300mm and a maximum aperture of f/2.8, many photographers have been waiting impatiently for this lens. According to the information on Canon Rumors, it looks like it will be coming soon – and it won’t just be a standard 300mm f/2.8. If the rumors are true, it will be a 100-300mm f/2.8 zoom! This would make it an exceedingly versatile piece of glass. Interestingly Sigma introduced a similar lens almost 20 years ago. But optics have come a long way since then, so I believe Canon will raise the bar significantly with this new lens.
Fujifilm prepares successor to medium-format GFX50R
May is the month when many babies are born. So it should come as no surprise that Fujifilm’s next generation is on its way. Interestingly, this newborn could be the second generation of Fujifilm’s GFX50R medium format camera. This relatively compact and affordable medium-format camera was discontinued some time ago and really deserves a successor. According to a source at Fuji Addict, this could be as early as May 24.
Photo Contest Corner
VILTROX Global Photo Contest 2023
- Topic: Any subject, taken with a Viltrox lens.
- Fees: Free
- Prize: The value of all prizes totals more than $15,000
- Deadline: June 10
- Topic: Architecture, People, Fine Art, Nature, Special, Editorial.
- Fees: Professional – Single image entry fee: $24 ($19 for non-Professional). Professional – Series entry fee (from 2 to 5 images): $29 ($24 non-Professional).
- Prize: Professional grand prize is $3,500. Non-professional grand prize winner will receive $2,400.
- Deadline: April 23
Good Deals and New Sales
A small, lightweight and relatively affordable combo for traveling – I’m talking about the Nikon Z6II with the Nikon Z 24-200mm f/4-6.3 VR lens. The body is currently on sale for $1,697 with a $300 discount. You’ll save an additional $100 on the lens, which is on sale for $797. In total, you can save up to $400 on this kit, which is a tempting price. By the way, as you may have read on our new forum, this combo is part of Spencer Cox’s bag.
The 16-inch MacBook Pro is on sale with a certain combination: the M2 Max processor, 38-core GPU, 64GB of Unified RAM and a 2TB SSD. It’s one of the highest-end laptops you can buy, and at $3999, it’s still not cheap – but it’s $300 off the usual price, which is unusual for an Apple product like this. A few other variations are also on sale, so check it out.
According to the information I received directly from the manufacturer, the Pergear 14mm F2.8 ultra wide-angle lens will soon be available at Amazon Germany at a price reduced by 35%. This means that compared to the regular price of €354.87, the lens will be available for €226.85. You can read what you can expect from this lens in Alex Coleman’s recent review. The lens is available for Z, RF, L and E mounts.
Other Pages of Interest
Most of us probably think of parrots as beautiful and colorful creatures. But their intelligence, hand-in-hand with their adaptability, is causing problems in some places where the birds are not native. Ecologists in New Zealand have had to take decisive action against several invasive species of parrot. You can read more about this in the article The Big Bird Ban.
The largest reptile I could find anywhere near me is barely the size of my arm. A significantly larger reptile that may be living somewhere near you was recently spotted by photographer Kymberly Strempack Clark. The American Crocodile she photographed in the Florida Everglades – known as Croczilla – is truly a giant, perhaps the largest of its kind in the wild. See for yourself in the photos and videos on her Instagram.
Remembering Wildlife is about to publish its eighth book focusing on a particular species. This time it will be the leopard. The organization’s goal is to create the most beautiful books on a species ever made, and then to sell those books to raise awareness of the plight facing that species and funds to protect it. The books are contributed by photographers with very big names, so in addition to doing a good deed, buying a book promises to be a really nice read.