Digital Photography Review Newsletter: Wednesday, November 4, 2015

The Digital Photography Review Newsletter for Wednesday, November 4, 2015

The Digital Photography Review Newsletter The most popular weekly photography newsletter, with over 400,000 subscribers Wednesday, November 4, 2015

Welcome to the 585th Digital Photography Review newsletter. This is the busiest time of year for DPReview, as we refresh our comprehensive camera roundups and update our annual gift guides ahead of holiday season* here in the US and around the world. As well as all that, we're also working hard to finish reviews of several major products, including the Sony a7r II, Canon EOS 5DS/R and Samsung NX500. In the meantime, here are some recent homepage highlights! Keeping up with the big boys? Shooting pro sports with the Sony a7R II On paper, the Sony a7R II is one of the best-specified cameras we've ever tested, and it is generating a lot of interest. We wanted to see whether the a7R II's impressive specifications live up to their promise in the real world, so we decided to subject it to perhaps the ultimate stress test: a professional sporting event. DPReview writer Jordan Stead headed to a pre-season NFL game to see what the a7R II could bring to the football field. Click here to read about how well the Sony a7R II performed when shooting professional sports Sunrise, sunset: Sigma 24-35mm F2 DG HSM Art gallery updated Sunset is coming early in the day again, and while that marks the start of a gray season here, the beginning of fall makes for some glorious golden hours. Recently, Tech Editor Rishi Sanyal ventured out with the Sigma 24-35mm F2 Art for a sunset portrait session. Take a look at our expanded real-world samples. View our gallery of samples from the Sigma 24-35mm F2 DG HSM Art PIX 2015: Brian Ach and getting the right shot Brian Ach has shot for just about every big-name publication you can think of. Rolling Stone, The New York Times, People and Time are all on his resume, and he's photographed his share of A-list celebrities, including a stint as Prince's official tour photographer. In short, he knows how to get the shot. But he argues there's an important distinction between getting a shot and getting the right shot, and it all comes down to context. Take a look at his PIX 2015 keynote in which he discusses his take on what makes a great shot. Watch Brian Ach speak about getting the right shot at PIX 2015   PIX 2015: Connecting kids with nature through photography The author of three photography-based children's books about creatures of the natural world, David Fitzsimmons joined us at PIX last month to speak about the importance of introducing children to the natural world. Built environments are the settings of more and more children's books lately, and kids living in urban areas often grow up without the exposure to the natural world that previous generations have had. His photo books bring the vibrant world of creatures big and small right into their laps, and in his talk he discusses his deliberate choice in style, the beginning of his project and its evolution into a book series. Click here to watch David Fitzsimmons speak at PIX Trashing the Dress: The anti-bridal wedding photography of John Michael Cooper John Michael Cooper is not your standard wedding photographer. Credited with starting the 'trash the dress' trend, his portfolio of high-fashion bridal photography contains the standard bread-and-butter wedding portraiture alongside more experimental images. Click here to read more about John Michael Cooper's work What's coming up? Roundups, roundups, more roundups, holiday gift guides and reviews of the Sony a7R II and Samsung NX500 are the things coming up soonest, and after that we'll be bringing you reviews of the Canon EOS 5DS/R and several more long-form 'field test' videos, showcasing the Sony a7R II, Canon EOS 5DS/R and Samsung NX500. I can't wait to show them to you! Barney * Because I know I'll get emails - there are numerous public holidays in the final quarter of the year, both religious and secular, around the world. Christmas is just one of them. Hence: 'holiday season'.

News updates 2015 Roundup: Interchangeable Lens Cameras around $500 Published Tuesday, November 3, 2015 10:47:00 PM GMT Interchangeable lens cameras come in all kinds of different shapes, sizes and prices, from the very reasonable to the eye-wateringly expensive. The around or less than $500 category is a place most first-time ILC buyers will likely find themselves. If you're considering an ILC in this category, you might be stepping up from a compact, or perhaps even your smartphone. Whatever the reason, there are plenty of excellent options for around or less than $500 that should satisfy the needs of many. Find out our best bets for the category. Read more Manfrotto introduces BeFree One, the smallest in the series Published Tuesday, November 3, 2015 7:33:00 PM GMT Manfrotto has announced a new travel tripod in the BeFree series. Only the second BeFree model, the BeFree One is designed to fold away into a compact form and to be lightweight for easy transportation. The aluminum model uses 4-section legs to collapse to just 32cm/12.6in from a maximum height of 130cm/51.18in. Read more Macro stick-on lens brings close-up capability to smartphones Published Tuesday, November 3, 2015 7:18:46 PM GMT Most smartphone cameras seriously struggle when it comes to macro photography. A number of accessory macro attachment lenses are available, but many of them are device-specific and bulky enough to discourage carrying every day. Now the makers of the 150x Micro Phone Lens microscope attachment have come up with an ultra-portable and very affordable solution compatible with virtually all smartphone cameras - a stick-on macro lens. Read more Fujifilm's latest financials show strong sales of Instax products, shrinking sales of digital cameras Published Monday, November 2, 2015 10:19:32 PM GMT It's the season for pre-holiday financial earnings reports, and Fujifilm's latest numbers tell a familiar story - digital camera sales are down on the whole, with steady sales of higher-end products. Despite that, Fuji's imaging solutions division saw an increase in operating income, up to 12.4 billion yen in the first half of the financial year, marking a 2.7x improvement year-on-year. Read more Manfrotto and Lastolite brands combine and launch new Speed-Lite softbox and Perspective Backgrounds Published Monday, November 2, 2015 6:34:43 PM GMT The accessory brands Lastolite and Manfrotto, both of which are owned by the Vitec Group, have combined to form the new brand 'Lastolite By Manfrotto'. The new brand name will eventually encompass the entire Lastolite product range, but for now it includes a new version of the Ezybox Speed-Lite softbox for hotshoe flash units and three new scene-painted backgrounds. Read more Sunrise, sunset: Sigma 24-35mm F2 DG HSM Art gallery updated Published Monday, November 2, 2015 1:00:00 PM GMT Sunset is coming early in the day again, and while that marks the start of a grey season here, the beginning of fall makes for some glorious golden hours. Recently, Tech Editor Rishi Sanyal ventured out with the Sigma 24-35mm F2 Art for a sunset portrait session. Take a look at our expanded real-world samples. Read more Trashing the Dress: The anti-bridal wedding photography of John Michael Cooper Published Sunday, November 1, 2015 1:00:00 PM GMT John Michael Cooper is not your standard wedding photographer. Credited with starting the 'trash the dress' trend, his portfolio of high-fashion bridal photography contains the standard bread-and-butter wedding portraiture alongside more experimental images. Read more PIX 2015: Connecting kids with nature through photography Published Saturday, October 31, 2015 12:00:00 PM GMT We've already introduced you to David FitzSimmons, so the topic of his PIX 2015 talk shouldn't be a big surprise. The author of three photography-based children's books about creatures of the natural world spoke on the importance of introducing children to the natural world. Read more DSCO by VSCO simplifies GIF-creation Published Friday, October 30, 2015 7:37:01 PM GMT Animated GIFs are more popular than ever and there are a number of apps available to help with their creation. Now VSCO, the company behind the successful VSCOCam app, has launched its contribution to GIF-making. Read more Tenba Cooper luxury canvas and leather bag collection introduced Published Friday, October 30, 2015 7:03:50 PM GMT Tenba has introduced the Cooper, a luxury leather and canvas bags collection. The new collection is styled after classic messenger bags, and is made from canvas alongside full grain leather trim and other high-end touches. Tenba created the bags with photographers' needs in mind, using Quiet Velcro to allow the bags to be opened silently when needed. Read more Nikon D810 firmware C 1.10 now available Published Friday, October 30, 2015 12:51:31 AM GMT Nikon has released updated firmware for its D810 DSLR, taking the software from version C 1.02 to C 1.10. The new firmware brings with it several changes, the majority of which are bug fixes. In addition to correcting issues, v1.10 adds an external recording control option for using the camera to start and stop third-party recorders connected over HDMI. Read more Sony's latest financial results show camera unit sales down, operating income up Published Thursday, October 29, 2015 7:46:00 PM GMT Sony has released its Q2 2015 financial results, posting a 3% decline year-on-year in imaging product sales on a constant currency basis. However, demand for high-value added models, favorable exchange rates and internal cost reductions led to a bump in that group's operating income - up to ¥25.9bn ($216m) compared to 20.1bn this time last year. Read more Snapseed for Android update brings DNG Raw editing Published Thursday, October 29, 2015 5:46:14 PM GMT Google has announced Snapseed version 2.1 for Android, introducing the ability to edit Raw DNG files. While quite a few high-end Android smartphones have allowed Raw shooting for some time, editing those files hasn't been easy. This update to the extremely popular Snapseed app will certainly change that. Read more  Leica T firmware 1.4 promises to boost AF speed and overall camera responsiveness Published Thursday, October 29, 2015 2:00:00 PM GMT Leica has released a major firmware update for its T (Typ 701) APS-C mirrorless camera. Firmware 1.4 promises to make autofocus twice as fast, and improves touchscreen responsiveness by three times. The company has also announced plans to release two new prime lenses for the T in 2016. Read more Lights, camera, action: Manfrotto Digital Director quick review Published Thursday, October 29, 2015 12:01:00 PM GMT Manfrotto's Digital Director, introduced in April, is a departure from its usual array of tripods and tripod heads. It's a device designed to hold an iPad Air tethered to a DSLR, providing a large live view screen, access to camera controls and wireless sharing options. Shooting with a large screen can be a revelation compared to using a 3" LCD, but the Digital Director is pretty pricey. Is it worth the cost? Read more PIX 2015: Brian Ach and getting the right shot Published Thursday, October 29, 2015 12:00:00 PM GMT Brian Ach has shot for just about every big-name publication you can think of, and he's photographed his share of A-list celebrities, including a stint as Prince's official tour photographer. In short, he knows how to get the shot. But he argues there's an important distinction between getting a shot and getting the right shot, and it all comes down to context. Read more Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark II sales to resume on November 7 Published Wednesday, October 28, 2015 9:42:07 PM GMT In early September, Olympus announced a pause in sales of the OM-D E-M10 Mark II due to an issue with the lens mount locking pin preventing some lenses from attaching to the camera body properly. Now the company has announced that the wait will soon be over - sales will begin again on November 7. Read more Samsung launches enormous 18.4-inch Galaxy View tablet Published Wednesday, October 28, 2015 9:21:52 PM GMT With smartphone screens growing larger and nearing what used to be tablet territory, it's probably natural that the latter are increasing screen size as well. Apple launched the 12.9-inch iPad Pro in September and now Samsung, which already has the 12.2-inch Galaxy Tab Pro in its line-up, has gone one step further and launched the gigantic Galaxy View with an 18.4-inch display. Read more Canon's Q3 financial results show increased profit, decline in ILC sales volume Published Wednesday, October 28, 2015 7:08:00 PM GMT Canon's Imaging Systems business has reported its third quarter sales fell by ¥26.5bn ($220m), compared to the same time last year. The company blamed a decline in worldwide demand for its interchangeable lens cameras 'due to market shrinkage,' with unit sales down 17% year-on-year, despite sales increases in Japan and Europe. Read more Studio tests and samples: Leica SL (beta) Published Wednesday, October 28, 2015 5:11:00 PM GMT It came out of nowhere, a brand-new full-frame professional level mirrorless camera and lens system: the Leica SL. It combines a new lens system (using the existing mount from the T) with an extremely high resolution viewfinder and a sensor based on the one used by the coveted Leica Q. Take a look at some preliminary (beta) studio test results from the Leica SL. Read more

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