Indholdsfortegnelse for March 2021 i Smart Photography

The Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA) of Japan has released statistics for 2020 showing the true impact of the pandemic in the imaging industry. Total digital camera shipments were down 41.6% by volume to 88,86,292 units and 29.4% by value to 4 billion dollars. Compact cameras and D-SLRs accounted for most of these losses. Mirrorless cameras were also not spared and showed a 25.9% decrease in volume. Nevertheless, in 2020, mirrorless cameras sales overtook D-SLR cameras in units (2.93 million versus 2.37 million). The silver lining was that the average unit sale price of mirrorless cameras continued to rise and left D-SLRs far behind (over 800 dollars for mirrorless and under 400 dollars for D-SLRs). This probably saved the industry in 2020. 2021 is expected to be a year…

Venus Optics has announced the release of four Laowa lenses for L mount camera systems. First in line is the Laowa 4 mm f/2.8 Fisheye lens. It is made of 7 elements in 6 groups, with a seven-blade aperture diaphragm and aperture range from f/2.8 through f/16. It features a minimum focussing distance of 80 mm, measures 25.5 mm in diameter, 45.2 mm in length and weighs 135 g. This lens will be available for purchase at a price of USD 199. The next lens is Laowa 9 mm f/2.8 Zero-D lens. It is constructed of 15 elements in 10 groups, including 3 extra-low-dispersion elements and sports a ‘Frog Eye Coating’ design for repelling water and dirt from the front. It also features a seven-blade aperture diaphragm and has a…

Canon recently launched a crowd-funding campaign on Makuake, a Japanese crowd-funding site, for its AI-powered camera PowerShot Pick. According to reports, the camera combines Canon’s optical, video processing, and artificial intelligence technology to study a scene, identify the subjects and click multiple snaps. The camera sports a compact and portable body with the option to mount over a Velbon tripod, offered by Canon as a part of the campaign. The device features a 1/2.3-inch 12MP CMOS sensor paired with a 19-57 mm equivalent zoom lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.8. It comes with in-body image stabilisation, records to a microSD card, measures 90 mm in height and weighs 170 g. The device is designed to automatically click images but can also be manually controlled using voice commands and keywords.…

Nikon has announced the development of a stacked CMOS image sensor with a total pixel count of approximately 17.84 million pixels that realises high-resolution imaging with 1000 frames per second, HDR characteristics of 110 dB and 4K x 4K. According to Nikon, this sensor uses a fine-pitch layered connection technology that can handle 2.7 um pixel sizes, making it possible to control the top chip with an image sensor directly from the logic circuit of the bottom chip. It also has a wide dynamic range of 134 dB for shooting 60 frames per second. As of now, no information has been shared by the company regarding the kind of equipment that will carry this sensor.…

Canon has announced the achievement of a new lens-manufacturing milestone with the production of the company’s 150-millionth RF and EF series interchangeable lens for EOS cameras—an RF70-200 mm f/2.8 L IS USM telephoto zoom lens (released in November 2019). According to reports, the production of interchangeable RF and EF lenses for Canon EOS-series AF (Autofocus) single-lens reflex film cameras began in 1987 at the Company’s Utsunomiya Plant and has since expanded to a total of four manufacturing bases, including Canon Inc., Taiwan; Canon Opto (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.; and Oita Canon Inc.in southern Japan. The company reveals that its EF lens production passed the 10-million-unit mark in 1995 and crossed the 50-million-unit threshold in 2009. In April 2014, the company celebrated its achievement of having manufactured 100 million interchangeable lenses. Canon’s…

Realme has introduced the newest additions to its X series family, the X7 5G and X7 Pro 5G. The X7 5G is powered by the latest MediaTek Dimensity 800U chipset, benchmarking at 340,000+. Equipped with a 16.3 cm Super AMOLED screen with a punch-hole camera display, the smartphone features a ‘fast’ fingerprint sensor and a touch sampling rate of up to 180Hz. It comes with 50W SuperDart Charge which reportedly charges its 4310 mAh battery up to 100% in 47 minutes. The 64MP AI Triple camera set-up comprises a 64MP main camera, an 8MP 119° ultra-wide-angle, and a 2MP macro camera. Boasting a sleek, lightweight body and a design inspired by outer space, the realme X7 5G will be available in two colours i.e. Space Silver and Nebula, priced at…

Born and raised in Mumbai, Kushal is a professional photographer who has undertaken a wide array of projects across India as well as abroad. His professional projects range across a variety of domains such as real estate, fashion editorials for brands, shoots with fashion bloggers, travel and lifestyle, as well as weddings. He is also the Co-Founder of Two And Half Productions (wedding photography). Kushal is passionate about photographing Cityscapes and Landscapes across the globe. IG: @kushalized Website: www.kushalized.com What sparked your interest in photography? How did your journey begin? Since childhood, my parents always used to click my photos on a Kodak Film Camera. Back then, I loved being in front of the camera. Slowly as time passed, my interest shifted to seeing the world from the lens of…

The Concept The New Humanity is the lens with which Lavazza looks at the world around us and the future that awaits us, and it takes shape in a new concept that transversally contaminates all the company’s activities in its different souls, in a coherent and integrated path. And the first expression of this new conceptual path was the advertising campaign “Good Morning Humanity” signed by Armando Testa and launched in May which repeats the significant words of Charlie Chaplin as a testimony to the need to find and accept each other, and to move forward together. This strong content, a strong creative approach and contemporary language have contributed to spreading the universal values of tolerance, progress and sustainability. All messages that are the basis of the brand’s vision. The…

Ashok Kandimalla has been in the photographic field for over three decades and has extensive experience in both film and digital photography. Being an electronics engineer by profession and a photographer, he possesses a unique and deep insight into the technical aspects of digital photography and equipment. He has published more than a 100 articles on photography and some of his writings have also been published in the well-known international magazine Popular Photography. An avid collector of photographic books and vintage cameras, Ashok has a keen interest in the history of photography and a passion for sharing his knowledge on photography through teaching and writing. He is the only Indian photographer to be featured on the Nikon Centenary website. He is presently working as a Management and Engineering consutant. He…

Camera type: Digital Mirrorless, interchangeable lens Recording media: CFexpress Type-B/SD card (UHS II compatible) Compatible lenses: Canon RF lens group (EF, EF-S lenses with adapter) Lens mount: Canon RF mount Imaging sensor: CMOS, full frame, approx. 45 megapixels (effective) Low Pass filter: Yes Colour Space: sRGB, Adobe RGB Picture Style: Auto, 7 presets, User defined 1-3. White Balance: Auto, 6 presets, Custom, Colour Temperature Auto WB: Choose between ambience priority and white priority Viewfinder type: OLED Colour Electronic VF, approx. 5.76 M dots AF type: Dual Pixel CMOS AF AF working range: EV -6 to 20 (f/1.2 lens) AF methods: Face + Tracking, Spot, 1-point, Expand AF-area, Zone, Large Zone AF Metering modes: Evaluative, Partial, Spot, Centre-weighted average Exp. control modes: Scene Intelligent Auto, Flexible- priority AE (Fv), Program (P),…

Operating system: iOS 14 SIM: Dual SIM (nano-SIM and eSIM) Screen: 6.7-inch, Super Retina XDR Processors: A14 Bionic, Neural Engine Main camera system: Triple camera with Ultra-wide, Wide and Telephoto cameras Total optical zoom: 5x Night mode scanner: LiDAR Portrait mode: Yes, with bokeh and depth control Image stabilisation: Wide: Optical (Sensor shift) Telephoto: Optical (Lens shift) Raw mode: Yes, Apple ProRAW Image formats: HEIF, JPEG Video recording: HDR with Dolby Vision up to 60 fps, 4K at 24 fps, 30 fps or 60 fps TrueDepth (Front) camera: 12MP camera f/2.2 aperture Power source: Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery, Storage capacity: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB Dimensions (W x H x D): 78.1 x 160.8 x 7.4 mm Weight: 226 g…

Display: 6.8-inch Edge QHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X Infinity-O Display Display resolution: 3200 x 1440, 515 ppi HDR: Yes, HDR10+ certified Refresh rate: Adaptive, 120Hz (10-120Hz) Front camera: 40MP with Phase Detection AF, FOV 80°, f/2.2, 0.7 µm Rear camera: Quad camera Ultra Wide: 12MP Dual Pixel AF, FOV 120°, f/2.2, 1.4µm Wide-angle: 108MP Phase Detection AF, FOV 83°, OIS, f/1.8, 0.8µm Telephoto 1: 10MP Dual Pixel AF, Optical 3x, FOV 35°,OIS, f/2.4, 1.22µm Telephoto 2: 10MP Dual Pixel AF, Optical 10x, FOV 10°,OIS, f/4.9, 1.22µm Total zoom: 100x Space Zoom (including 10x Super Resolution Zoom including digital zoom) AF sensor: Laser AF CPU: Samsung Exynos 2100 5nm 64-bit Octa-Core Processor Core details: 3 x ARM Cortex-A78 at 2.81 GHz, 4 x ARM Cortex-A55 at 2.21 GHz and 1 x ARM…

WE ARE GLUED TO THE GLOBAL IMAGING INDUSTRY Our team is updated with all the benchmarks and road blocks that the field of photography and imaging across the globe experiences. This helps us record the changes in the global perspective, thus making us the first to predict which products will be a rage in the Indian markets. WE’RE IMPARTIAL Loyalty towards our readers is a given, and their best interests are always on our mind. Every verdict is honest and not influenced by advertisers or personal favourites. So when we say a product is a ‘BEST BUY’, then, it is just that! OUR TESTS ARE CONDUCTED BY EXPERTS All equipment go through a series of tests at the hands of our experts. Our reviewers are experts in the field of…

Fujifilm has announced the release of Fujinon GF 80 mm f/1.7 R WR Lens, an AF-capable f/1.7 interchangeable lens for Large Format camera systems, including Fujifilm GFX System digital cameras, in March 2021. The lens features nine rounded diaphragm blades and comprises of 12 lens elements in nine groups, including one aspherical element and two Super ED elements. It comes with a DC motor that reportedly drives the focus group of six lens elements, including the aspherical element, even when the lens is wide-open at f/1.7 and when depth of field is extremely shallow. Measuring 99.2 mm in length and weighing 795 g, it has filter thread size of 77 mm. It sports weather-resistant seals at 10 locations on the lens to protect it against dust and water and can…

Panasonic has introduced a new interchangeable telephoto zoom lens, the Lumix S 70-300 mm f/4.5-5.6 Macro O.I.S. (S-R70300), based on the L-Mount system, for the Lumix S Series Full-frame Digital Single Lens Mirrorless Camera. The 70-300 mm boasts high descriptive performance and beautiful bokeh throughout the entire zoom range, along with high-speed, high-precision AF and Dual Image Stabiliser (IS). The alignment of the 17 lens elements in 11 groups, including one ultra extra-low dispersion (UED) lens, two extra-low dispersion (ED) lenses and one ultra-high refractive index (UHR) lens, reportedly suppresses axial chromatic aberration at the tele-end and chromatic aberration of magnification at the wide-end. The company reports that its UHR lens, achieves ‘uniform image quality from the centre to the edges of the image, while contributing to an overall smaller…

ON1 has announced the availability of its Professional Plugin Bundle for Capture One software. This is an addition to the existing plugin support for Adobe Lightroom, Adobe Photoshop, Affinity Photo, Corel and Apple Photos. The Plugin Bundle includes support for ON1 Effects 2021, Portrait AI 2021, Resize 2021 and HDR 2021. Together, these softwares provide creative photo editing tools such as multiple filters, AI masking, local adjustments, LUTs as well as portrait retouching tools for face, skin and eyes along with resize and fine-tune options. It also includes controls for removing ghosting, auto-aligning images, reediting HDR files, bringing out shadow and highlight details etc. The ON1 Professional Plugins for Capture One are available along with 14-day free trials, with each additional plugin costing USD 69.99. Users are also given the…

Leica has launched a wide-angle lens for the Leica SL-System, the APO-Summicron-SL 28 f/2 ASPH. Owing to the L-Mount standard, the latest lens from Leica is reportedly compatible with cameras made by other partners of the L-Mount Alliance that have been equipped with the Leica-developed lens mount. The lens features apochromatic correction and is constructed of 13 elements, including 6 aspherical lens surfaces. It has a minimum focussing distance of 24 cm and maximum magnification of 0.2x. The autofocus drive utilises a stepping motor with DSD (Dual Syncro Drive), reportedly enabling the AF to travel the entire focussing range in around 250 milliseconds. It also comes with a manual focus ring in the form of an embedded ring magnet with alternating north-south polarisation which changes the polarity of the magnetic…

Canon has released its financial reports for the year 2020, revealing a drop in its net sales but an increase in profits for its Imaging Systems business. The reports suggest that while the unit sales of interchangeable-lens digital cameras were below those of the previous year as the market continued to shrink and a decline in demand was caused by COVID-19, the shift to mirrorless models accelerated, particularly for full-frame mirrorless models, due to the introduction of the new EOS R5 and EOS R6. These factors resulted in total sales for the business unit of JPY 712.2 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 11.8%, while income before taxes increased by 43.1% year-on-year to JPY 71.1 billion. Looking ahead, Canon has reported that it will strive to achieve its second consecutive year…

Poco has announced the launch of its latest smartphone M3, available in three colours variants i.e. Cool Blue, Power Black and Poco Yellow. It comes with a 16.58 cm FullHD+ display with 19.5:9 tall body aspect ratio and a 2340 x 1080p resolution. To offer protection against accidental drops, it comes with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 on the front and anti-fingerprint textured back for a secure and sturdy grip. It also includes a case and screen protector (pre-applied) in the box and features a 3.5 mm headphone jack, an IR blaster and stereo sound. The device comes with a 6000mAh battery along with an 18W fast charger and weighs 197 g. It features 6GB of LPDDR4x RAM, UFS 2.2 high-speed storage along with Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 processor and Adreno 610…

Ranjit is an avid traveller and trekker. “I’ve been travelling for decades in the search of new landscapes through family trips, solo trips, or at times through treks. My interest in photography is solely driven by the passion to capture and share the magical moments I feel blessed to have come across, during my landscape explorations. The sheer diversity of the landscapes keeps me awed, inspired, humbled and thirsty for more. Of all the places I’ve travelled, the mystique Himalayas offer an unparallelled and soulful experience. Balancing the hectic corporate job responsibilities can, at times, get very challenging. But all the affection, encouragement, and support I receive from my family and friends, particularly from my wife and mother, have been pivotal in my photography journey.” says Ranjit. His work can…

Satavisa is a teacher from Sodepur, near Kolkata. “Travelling to wild locations and unknown destinations excite me. Photographing wildlife and birds has allowed me to come close to nature and feel the thrill that nature often unfolds. I have been into bird and wildlife photography since 2016. I initiated photography with a Nikon D7100 and currently, I am using a Nikon D500. I have been to several National Parks and wetlands of our country like Ranthambore, Corbett, Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Sariska, Bharatpur, Manglajodi, Nalsarovar, Little Rann of Kutch, Dandeli etc. It is a great joy for me to photograph the animals and their behaviours, in their natural habitat. As a teacher, I try to increase the love, compassion, consciousness and awareness among my students regarding their immediate ecology and the wildlife…

Final Rankings Recommended ..................... 75-80% Best Buy.....................81% and above D-SLR/ILCC Design & Build Quality.......... (out of 20) Key Features ....................... (out of 20) Ergonomics......................... (out of 20) Performance Autofocus ......................(out of 5) Metering.........................(out of 5) Noise control..................(out of 5) Distortion/Sharpness......(out of 5) LCD/Viewfinder ..............(out of 5) Auto White Balance........(out of 5) Value for Money ............ (out of 10) Grand Total ................. (out of 100) LENSES Design & Build Quality.......... (out of 20) Key Features....................... (out of 20) Ergonomics......................... (out of 20) Performance Autofocus ......................(out of 5) Sharpness......................(out of 5) Distortion control............(out of 5) Aberrations ....................(out of 5) Darkening of corners......(out of 5) Extra Features ................(out of 5) Value for Money................... (out of 10) Grand Total ....................... (out of 100) COMPACT CAMERAS Design & Build Quality.......... (out of 20) Key Features…

Sensor Size: 17.4 x 13.0 mm Image Sensor Type: 4/3 Live MOS Sensor Effective pixels: Approx. 20.3 million Dust reduction: Supersonic Wave Filter Lens Mount: Micro Four Thirds Storage media: SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I / II) File Format: Still: JPEG, Raw (12-bit lossless compression), Raw + JPEG, Max. recorded pixels: 5184 x 3888 Image Stabilisation: Built-in 5-axis sensor-shift image stabilisation, Compensation steps 4.5 (In-body IS) AF system: High-speed imager AF with contrast detection Focussing point: 121 points Focussing point selection: All target, Single target (Normal), Group target (9-area) Focus mode: Single AF (S-AF), Continuous AF (C-AF), Manual Focus (MF), Single AF (S-AF+MF), AF tracking (C-AF+TR) Face detection AF: Available Eye detection AF: Available Peaking function: Available Metering system: TTL Image Sensor Metering Metering modes: Digital ESP (324-area multi pattern), Centre-weighted average, Spot…

We have been witnessing a constant and steady scaling up of brands in the smartphone market for the last few years. While players who started with the budget segment move to a mid-priced segment and mid-price brands rapidly start testing the waters at the premium markets, the existing premium players like Apple and Samsung are busy carving out a luxury segment, catering to the crème-de-la-crème of the society. Make no mistake though; they are not leaving the premium segment yet, with carefully placed models in that segment, and even in the mid-priced market. We would call the S21 Ultra, Samsung’s luxury model, packing a surplus of everything in a stylish body. Design & Build Quality The Galaxy S21 Ultra features a classic minimalistic design. The camera bump is rather unconventional,…

1 Mamiya, the famous Japanese medium format camera manufacturer, was taken over in 2015 by: a) Bronica b) Phase One c) Hasselblad d) Leaf 2 The Minolta XE-1 was heavily inspired by: a) Leica’s R3 b) Zeiss Contax c) Exakta RTL d) Voigtlander Bessamatic 3 The Orion Seiki Company initially made cameras under the brand name of Phoenix. It later switched to another brand. Which one? a) Olympus b) Pentax c) Mamiya d) Miranda 4 The Nikkorex F was made both by Nikon and: a) Minolta b) Pentax c) Ricoh d) Petri 5 In 2020, a camera that takes only black and white pictures was launched. Who made it? a) Leica b) Canon c) Olympus d) Panasonic 6 Which was the first Canon D-SLR to feature spot metering? a) Canon…

Exceptionally beautiful images Respected Editor, I was really overwhelmed with the SP issue of Feb’21. The Kaleidoscope images in particular were amazing and exceptionally beautiful. The ‘Roti making’ picture on page number 87 was out of the world, with its natural lighting and awesome picturisation. Moreover, I learnt a lot from the ‘create a backdrop’ article. Keep up the great work. With thanks, S. Prasanna Eye-catching images Dear team SP, The cover image of the latest issue was really very eye-catching! It was very refreshing and joyful for me to watch the small bundle of joy on the cover. The image was so beautifully captured and the baby looked just so adorable. I was compelled to find out which section of the magazine covered that image, hence ended up reading…

Huawei has introduced the new Mate X2 smartphone, building upon two of its previous foldable phones. The Mate X2 opens from the inside, and when folded, looks quite like a regular smartphone. The outer side features a 6.45” OLED screen with 2700 x 1160 pixel resolution, while the inner display features an 8” screen with 2480 x 2200 pixel resolution. The camera system sports a 50MP Ultra Vision Camera, a RYYB telephoto, 100x digital zoom and a 2.5 cm macro lens. The Ultra Vision camera is wide-angle, includes OIS, and has a maximum aperture of f/1.9 and the 16MP Cine Camera (ultra-wide angle) has an f/2.4 aperture and OIS. The 3x camera has a 12MP sensor, an f/2.4 aperture and OIS while the 10x SuperZoom has an aperture of f/4.4,…

Sightron has announced the release of the KamLan KL 32 mm f/1.1, a high-speed lens designed for APS-C cameras. The lens has been constructed with 9 elements in 7 groups, using 5 high-refractive glass. It uses an 11-blade circular aperture diaphragm and has a minimum focussing distance of 40 cm. It has a clickless aperture range of f/1.1 through f/11 and uses a 62 mm front filter thread. It measures approx. 92 mm long, 70 mm in diameter and weighs 601 g. The Kamlan KL 32 mm f/1.1 is currently available for Sony E-mount, Canon EOS-M, Fujifilm X and Micro Four Thirds camera systems at an MSRP of JPY 32,000 (USD 300).…

Nikon has released its third quarterly financial report. The company has revealed that in its Imaging Products Business, efforts were taken to expand sales of mid to high-end products for the professional and hobbyist segments by launching the Z 7II and Z 6II, full-frame mirrorless cameras of new products in the Z series, and by expanding the product line-up of interchangeable lenses for mirrorless cameras. Nevertheless, reports suggest that the unit sales of digital cameras overall fell amidst the shrinking market, resulting in decreased revenue and profits. As for the business environment for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2021, Nikon says that the digital camera market is forecast to continue to shrink. The company also says that it will continue its efforts to expand the sales of mid to…

Ankita is the founder of the wedding photography and filming company WeddingNama and the director of its parent company Photonama Studios Private Limited. Ankita completed her post-graduation in photography from National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad. Part of her training was conducted in the University for the Creative Arts, Farnham, UK. She is a mentor and ambassador for brands like Harman Technology, Profoto and Nikon. Her work has taken her all over the world apart from various Indian locations. Her works have been exhibited in international exhibitions. She has also won many national and international awards like Junebug destination photo of the year, Junebug Best wedding photo of the year, Fearless Awards, Gold in WPJA, Best wedding photo in ISPWP, Best Wedding Photographer at Great Indian Wedding Awards (GIWA), and…

• 2018 Photoblogger of the Year (Gujarat Tourism & ICIT) • Pro Travel Photographer. Photo Jurist. Photo Educator. SPEAKER (Architectural & Travel Photography): • • TBEX Europe 2016 (Stockholm) •TBEX Asia 2016 (Manila) •TBEX International 2017 (Jerusalem) •TBEX North America 2017 (Huntsville, AL) TBEX Europe 2018 (Ostrava, Czech Republic) WINNER: •India’s Biggest Blogging Contest - Cox & Kings’ Grab Your Dream (Season 2) • National Geographic Traveller’s GetOutThere Photo Essay Contest Web: http://travelu.re Goa has seen the most extended and persisting influence of non-native faith imposed on the locals. This has placed the region at a strange crossroad of peaceful coexistence of religions. While many Hindu temples existed here, innumerable Portuguese churches sprang up all around the region. Even the military forts housed shrines – both Hindu and Christian. Many…

Camera type: Digital Mirrorless, interchangeable lens Recording media: CFexpress Type-B/SD card (UHS II compatible) Compatible lenses: Canon RF lens group (EF, EF-S lenses with adapter) Lens mount: Canon RF mount Imaging sensor: CMOS, full frame, approx. 45 megapixels (effective) Low Pass filter: Yes Colour Space: sRGB, Adobe RGB Picture Style: Auto, 7 presets, User defined 1-3. White Balance: Auto, 6 presets, Custom, Colour Temperature Auto WB: Choose between ambience priority and white priority Viewfinder type: OLED Colour Electronic VF, approx. 5.76 M dots AF type: Dual Pixel CMOS AF AF working range: EV -6 to 20 (f/1.2 lens) AF methods: Face + Tracking, Spot, 1-point, Expand AF-area, Zone, Large Zone AF Metering modes: Evaluative, Partial, Spot, Centre-weighted average Exp. control modes: Scene Intelligent Auto, Flexible- priority AE (Fv), Program (P),…

Smartphone segments are expanding beyond the premium and flagship categories and the Pro series of iPhones fairly justify that segment and pricing. And for those who do not have such deep pockets, luckily, Apple has kept a few more segments populated including the SE, XR and 11. Being a photography magazine, we are committed to review the device with the best camera in the series. So here we have the iPhone 12 Pro Max on our test bench. Design & Build Quality The latest iPhone 12-series brings a feeling of déjà vu to Apple fans because the company has revived a design that debuted with the iPhone 4 and continued till the 5S. The flat bezel was one of the design elements that set iPhones apart from the herds of…