Innholdsfortegnelse for V76 Issue 2 i Pro Photo

Fujifilm X-T4 Has IBIS And 15FPS Shooting

If you liked both Fujifilm’s X-H1 and X-T3 X mount mirrorless cameras, but neither quite ticked all your boxes you should take a look at the new X-T4. It has much the same compact body as the X-T3 with the same retro-look styling and dial-based control layout, but the big deal is that the X-T4 now has in-body image stabilisation (which is one of the X-H1’s key attractions). The all-new and more compact IBIS unit has five-axis movement and can correct for up to 6.5 stops of camera shake, greatly extending the potential for handheld shooting with longer lenses or in low-light situations. Another significant upgrade is an increase in the maximum shooting speed up to 15fps with the mechanical shutter, while the top speed with the electronic shutter remains…

3 min

New Compact Standard Zoom Added To Olympus PRO Line

Arriving alongside the OM-D E-M1 Mark III is a new M.Zuiko Digital PRO series lens in the M43 mount. The M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-45mm f/4.0 PRO is the equivalent to a 24-90mm in the 35mm format and is both more compact and lighter than the existing 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO model (which, of course, is a stop faster). Being a PRO series lens, it has a weather-sealed barrel construction – with metal alloy barrel tubes – and insulation which enables shooting in temperatures down to -10 degrees Celsius. It measures just 70mm in length and weighs 254g which, Olympus claims, makes it the world’s most compact and lightweight standard zoom lens. The optical construction comprises 12 elements in nine groups which include no fewer than eight special types – one Super…

2020 TIPA WORLD AWARDS

Canon, Nikon and Sony are the big winners in this year’s TIPA World Awards which were recently announced by the Technical Image Press Association. Canon heads the list of awardees with wins in five categories, Nikon and Sony follow with four each, while Sigma and Fujifilm have each won three categories. In all, awards have been presented in 40 categories of imaging products, recognising excellence in the areas of design, technical innovation, capabilities and performance. The annual TIPA World Awards are judged by the Association’s member magazines which, currently, number 26 titles from around the globe, including sister publication Australian Camera. As magazine representatives were unable to travel this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, for the first time in the Awards’ 29-year history, judging was conducted online. TIPA member…

2020 SONY WORLD PHOTOGRAPHY AWARDS

Over its 13 years of running, the Sony World Photography Awards – organised by the World Photography Organisation – has grown into the world’s largest photography competition. This year a mammoth 345,000 entries from 203 territories were submitted across the 2020 Awards’ four competitions – Open, Professional, Student and Youth – and more than 135,000 were entered across the Professional competition’s 10 categories – the highest number of entries to date. A new Environment category has been introduced this year in recognition of the growing importance of this topic in both fine-art photography and photojournalism. This year’s finalist projects engage with a wide array of topics, photography techniques and presentation methods, covering personal subjects and observations, inventive approaches to storytelling and shedding light on little-known but critical issues. For more…

SPECS

Type: Professional interchangeable lens mirrorless digital camera with Sony E bayonet lens mount (FE mount). Focusing: Automatic via hybrid contrastdetection and phase-difference detection systems. 693 points with phase-difference detection, 25 points with contrast-detection. Focus points may be selected manually or automatically by the camera with Wide, Zone, Centre, Flexible Spot (Small, Medium or Large), Expanded Flexible Spot and Tracking (Wide, Zone or Centre) area modes. Focus frame can be in red or white. Focus area circulation and customisation. Real-Time Eye AF with Real Time Tracking – Face/Eye priority, right/left eye select, subject priority (Human or Animal) Switchable horizontal/vertical AF area. Focus area registration and recall. Single-shot and continuous modes with auto or manual switching, Direct Manual Focus override, auto tracking, face detection/recognition and eye detection. Adjustable tracking sensitivity (five levels…

5 min

On The Money LEICA SL2

AMIDST ALL THE HOOPLA associated with recent full-frame mirrorless cameras, it’s easy to forget that, after Sony, Leica was second into this category and the L Mount is its original fitting. Of course, it’s now shared with Panasonic and Sigma in the L Mount Alliance which, among other things, has to enhance the appeal of Leica’s products beyond its traditional customer base. Consequently, the new SL2 fits into a line-up of, currently, four other L Mount bodies supported by a wider and more diverse system of lenses. And, particularly with the SL2, you get the sense that Leica is fully aware it needs to present a more mainstream camera while preserving what makes a Leica camera a Leica camera. But if you’re thinking of buying into the L Mount, the…

17 min

Canon Teases With More Tasty EOS R5 Specs

In a third pre-launch press release Canon has released more details about its planned pro-level EOS R series mirrorless camera, the R5. Canon is really building anticipation for the camera it is now dubbing “The King”. The company says the R5 will “redefine the mirrorless category” and the latest information is related to its video recording capabilities which look to be on a par with the new EOS C300 Mark III Cinema camera. The key video specs are 8K RAW internal recording using the full sensor width at 25 or 30fps. There will also be the options of recording 8K video internally with 10-bit 4:2:2 colour in Canon Log (using the H.265 compression codec) or 10-bit 4:2:2 in HDR PQ (again with H.265). With 4K recording, both options will be…

Widest FE Mount Prime Yet From Sony

There’s little doubt Sony’s ever-expanding lens system for the FE mount is a contributing factor to the continued success of its Alpha series mirrorless cameras. The latest addition is a 20mm f/1.8 ultrawide prime which is also the newest addition to the G range of higher-performing optics. It’s currently the widest-angle model in Sony’s FE mount line-up and gives an angle-of-view of 94 degrees on a full-35mm format sensor. The FE 20mm f/1.8 G is a compact lens which measures 84.7mm in length and weighs in at just 373g, but it has a weathersealed external design with the addition of a fluorine coating on the exposed surface of the front element to help better repel moisture and grease. The optical construction employs 14 elements in 12 groups which include two…

MAKE A DATE

Due to the social distancing requirements demanded by the COVID-19 pandemic, public gatherings are currently banned around Australia and venues such as galleries, exhibition spaces and museums are closed, at least until 30 June. However, many are now staging online events or virtual tours, so we’ve left these diary dates in place. Check with the individual venues for what might be available. Current to 10 May: Exhibition. National Photographic Portrait Prize 2020. The 48 finalists and winners from the 2020 competition on show at the National Portrait Gallery. King Edward Terrace, Parkes, Canberra, ACT 2600. Telephone (02) 6102 7000. Gallery hours are 10.00am to 5.00pm daily. This exhibition will then tour Australia; visiting Griffith (19 June – 2 August), Cowra (8 August – 27 September), Beaudesert (19 October – 11…

AWARDS TIPA 2020

Canon EOS-1D X Mark III BEST PROFESSIONAL DSLR CAMERA “The flagship EOS-1D X Mark III is the highest performing DSLR ever created by Canon. It delivers new breakthroughs in autofocusing – with both the optical finder and live view – along with extensive and professional-level video capabilities. Innovations in the design of the mechanical shutter and mirror mechanism enable continuous shooting at 16fps. The sensor and imaging systems are new, delivering numerous benefits, including 20fps continuous shooting in live view, HEIF capture with 10-bit RGB colour and 5.5K 10-bit Canon Log video recording. Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS are on board, plus there’s an optional wireless transmitter for even faster transmission speeds.” Fujifilm X100V BEST PREMIUM COMPACT CAMERA “The X100V can be safely described as a ‘second camera for pros’, or…

7 min

Action Packed SONY A9 II

It’s been three years since Sony caused a stir with the launch of its original A9 mirrorless camera speedster. It set a number of specification targets for sports/action-orientated cameras and it’s taken all this time for the competition to get close. The A9 showed just how seriously Sony was working at being taken seriously in the professional camera market and, subsequently, it’s been the mirrorless brand making the most inroads into the stronghold of DSLR. It’s certainly been helped in this endeavour by a frenetic program of lens system building so the FE mount lineup is now not far off 40 models. Significant among the recent Sony lens arrivals are the 600mm f/4.0 and 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 which are, obviously, also aimed at sports photographers, joining the existing 400mm f/2.8 supertelephoto.…

19 min

Screen Saver BENQ SW270C PHOTOVUE

Buying a monitor dedicated to photography used to be an expensive exercise, with only a couple of brands to choose from. Now, though, the market has become much bigger thanks, in part, to the efforts of BenQ. It already had a big reputation in the gaming world, but then decided to get involved in the photo and video editing sectors, quickly gaining a reputation for affordable performance. There’s already been a couple of industry awards for BenQ’s photo monitors, the latest being the PhotoVue SW321C – recently judged the Best Professional Photo Monitor in the 2020 TIPA World Awards. However, BenQ’s newest offering in 27-inch photo monitors is the SW270C – essentially a 2K QHD version of the 4K SW271. The higher resolution displays may have glamour status right now,…

6 min

Making Movies

THE ORIGINAL SL WAS ACTUALLY a pretty decent video camera at a time when the photo-heritage brands really weren’t in the same ballpark as those with a consumer electronics background. Leica has gotten more serious about moving pictures since then – including establishing a dedicated cine lens manufacturing operation – and so the SL2 is will be able to hold its own against the likes of Panasonic and Sony. Both the tougher construction with enhanced weather protection and the adoption of in-body image stabilisation are likely to be attractions, but so are the sensor’s dynamic range and fullwidth sensor recording for both 4K DCI and 4K UHD with downsampling. What’s more, both the 4K resolutions are available at the 50, 25 and 24fps frame rates for PAL, while the faster…

Leica’s S3 Celebrates Being 64 (Megapixels, That Is)

First mooted at the 2018 Photokina, Leica’s new medium format DSLR is now a reality. The S3 keeps the same form factor as its predecessor with a weather-sealed magnesium alloy body, but it has a new 64MP (effective) Leica ProFormat CMOS sensor with dimensions of 30x45 millimetres. This represents a 71 percent increase in resolution over the previous model’s 37.5MP sensor, and Leica is claiming a dynamic range of 15 stops. There is no optical low-pass filter. The sensitivity range is ISO 100 to 50,000, while continuous shooting is at up to 3fps. The sensor is mated with Leica’s Maestro II generation engine and there’s a 2GB buffer memory. RAW images are captured as lossless compressed Adobe DNG files. On the video side, the S3 can now record 4K video…

Canon Unveils 3rd Gen C300 and 25-250mm Cine Zoom

While Canon continues to offer ever more capable hybrid photo/video cameras, its Cinema EOS range is specifically targeted at pro-level video makers and cinematographers. The latest addition to the Cinema EOS camera body line-up is the C300 Mark III and it’s accompanied by a new 25-250mm cine zoom with a built-in 1.5x teleconverter, giving a maximum focal length of 375mm. The third-generation EOS C300 (the Mark II model was launched in 2015) has a more modular design similar to that of the C500 Mark II with interchangeable viewfinders, handgrips/handles and expansion modules. It uses a completely new Super 35mm format CMOS sensor with Dual Gain Output (DGO) circuitry and a claimed dynamic range “exceeding 16 stops” to give superior HDR capture. Super 35mm is actually similar to APS-C in format…

Elinchrom Launches Next-Gen Compact Monoblocs

The studio flash market has changed out of all recognition over the last few years, but the compact monobloc is still arguably the most versatile tool when you need controllable lighting. Elinchrom’s new ELC series of models makes the most of the latest tech, including TTL exposure control, high-speed sync (HSS), RF wireless remote control and ‘smart’ active cooling which actually adapts to your shooting styles. There are two ELC models initially – the ELC 125 with 131 joules of flash power and the ELC 500 packing 522 joules. The ELC 125 has a power range of five stops so it can be wound down to just seven joules, while the ELC 500 has a seven-stop range to arrive at the same minimum output. These power adjustments can be made…

NIGHT LIGHT

Photography has been credited with many positive aspects, but helping to save a life is undoubtedly one of the rarer attributes. Yet for Denis Smith, discovering photography was a key element in turning his life around, following the collapse of his business. He candidly admits he was heading for a mental breakdown, and probably also a marriage breakdown. “In 2009, I was living in New Zealand, working in a very high-pressure sales role with a large corporate, and living the ‘high life’. In the aftermath of the GFC, my mental health suffered severely. Alcohol, drugs and debt were weighing me down." "Eventually it overwhelmed me. My wife, being from Australia, scooped me up and brought me to her home to heal. In the Barossa Valley I discovered the landscape and…

5 min

Making Movies

Like Panasonic, Sony builds a mirrorless camera that’s primarily targeted at video makers rather than photographers, so the rest of the A series line-up doesn’t get quite the same level of weaponry. That said, current models like the A7R IV are still pretty serious hybrids, but the A9 II’s primary audience is undoubtedly photographers, so it does what it needs to do in terms of video. This, of course, will be enough for anybody who is mostly shooting video clips as an adjunct to their stills work. The key omissions are S-Log and Hybrid Gamma Log (HLG) recording or 10-bit colour plus a 4K DCI option, but otherwise the A9 II has plenty to offer. The 4K UHD (3840x2160 pixels) recording uses the sensor’s full pixel read-out, so it effectively…

SPECS

Panel Type: 68.58cm centimetres (27.0 inches) IPS with white LED backlighting. Display Area: 596.7x335.6 millimetres (full scan). 16:9 aspect ratio. Native Resolution: 2560x1440 pixels (109 ppi). Viewing Angles: 178 degrees horizontal and vertical. Brightness: 300 cd/m² (typical). Contrast: 1000:1 (typical). Display Colours: 1.07 billion. Colour Range: 99 percent of Adobe RGB 1998, 100 percent sRGB, 100 percent Rec.709, 97 percent of DCI-P3. Internal Processing: 10-bits per colour. Height Adjustment Range: 15.0 centimetres. Mount Adjustments: -5.0-20 degrees tilt, 45 degrees left/right swivel, 90 degrees pivot (for portrait format). Connections: Display Port 1.4, two HDMI 2.0, two USB Type A (3.1/3.2 Gen.1 outputs), USB Type C (3.1/3.2 Gen.1 input/output), USB Type B (3.1/3.2 Gen.1 input), USB mini B, 3.5mm stereo headphone output. Features: BenQ ‘ Uniformity Technology’, 16-bit 3D LUT, SD memory…