Digital Photography Review Newsletter: Thursday, 27 November 2014

	Digital Photography Review Newsletter Thursday, 27 November 2014 The most popular weekly photography newsletter, with over 300,000 subscribers
Welcome to the 537th Digital Photography Review newsletter. I write this at the end of Wednesday, as we're racing to get the last of our seasonal buyers' guide content updated ahead of tomorrow's Thanksgiving holiday here in the USA. We're also continuing to work on a short series of video product reviews, featuring professional photographers using cameras in real-world situations - and me making a fool of myself to one degree or another. The second in this series, featuring the Samsung NX1 can be found linked below. What to Buy and Why: 2014 Buying Guides Updated! We've been devoting a lot of time over the past few weeks toupdating our various roundups and buying guides ahead of the busy holiday season. As Tanksgiving comes around again here in the USA we've published major updates to our existing 2013 content, to bring everything up to date. You can see our complete portfolio of buying guide content by following the links below. We hope you find it useful. Read our in-depth buying guide content - updated for 2014 . Real-world test: Going pro with the Samsung NX1 As often as we can, we like to put the cameras that we test into the hands of working photographers to find out what they think. Recently we gave the new Samsung NX1 to Jordan Stead, staff photographer at SeattlePI.com, and ventured out to nearby Carkeek Park in Seattle to photograph the seasonal salmon run. Jordan gave the NX1's hybrid AF system and 28.2MP BSI-CMOS sensor a good workout. The fast-moving salmon proved to be excellent test subjects, and only one camera was harmed in the making of this video (and it wasn't the NX1). We hope you enjoy this video as much as we enjoyed making it! Watch our video review of the Samsung NX1 Canon EOS 7D Mark II shooting experience Canon's successor to the EOS 7D was a long time coming, but the 7D Mark II appears to have all the makings of a DSLR worth the wait. Offering a 20.2MP APS-C CMOS sensor, Dual Pixel AF with 65 phase-detect points and more robust weather-resistance, the 7D II is a formidable follow-up indeed. Our full review is well underway and we've just updated our first impressions with a detailed shooting experience. Read about our experience shooting with the Canon EOS 7D Mark II   Small change: Samsung NX mini review The Samsung NX mini is truly tiny, offering a 20MP 1" sensor inside a highly compact body which features a 180-degree tilting LCD and extensive connectivity features. The mini's touch-sensitive display is the camera's primary interface for changing shooting settings, and an interchangeable lens mount should make this the ideal combination of versatility and point-and-shoot simplicity. Read our review to find out how it shapes up. Click here to read our review of the Samsung NX mini Nikon D750 shooting experience The Nikon D750 is a full-frame DSLR that mates features from the D810 with a 24MP sensor, providing a faster frame-rate than any non-pro full-frame Nikon DSLR since the D700. Its comprehensive still and video photography specifications are aimed directly at enthusiasts and full-frame upgraders. We've made a significant update to our D750 first impressions review including a shooting experience and studio scene analysis. Click here to see how the Leica X compares against its peers What's coming up? We're getting ready to publish a lab report on the Canon EOS 7D Mark II, and work continues on the Nikon D810 and Samsung's new NX1. We've also got some more exciting new video content on the way, so keep an eye on our homepage! Barney
News updates Ten things you need to know about the Sony Alpha 7 II Published on Wednesday, November 26, 2014 11:27:00 PM GMT Sony announced the Alpha 7 II last week relatively quietly, introducing a new member to its full-frame mirrorless family. The a7 II brings 5-axis in-body stabilization to a full-frame camera for the first time, claiming 4.5 stops in shake reduction. Other updates include improved ergonomics - you can see these for yourself in our hands-on overview of the a7 II. Here's what you need to know about Sony's newest Alpha camera. Read more Read full story → Small change: Samsung NX mini review Published on Wednesday, November 26, 2014 9:31:09 PM GMT The Samsung NX mini is truly tiny, offering a 20MP 1" sensor inside a highly compact body which features a 180-degree tilting LCD and extensive connectivity features. The mini's touch-sensitive display is the camera's primary interface for changing shooting settings, and an interchangeable lens mount should make this the ideal combination of versatility and point-and-shoot simplicity. Read our review to find out how it compares Read full story → 2014 Consumer DSLR Roundup Published on Wednesday, November 26, 2014 6:05:00 PM GMT Despite the emergence of the mirrorless class, the market is still dominated by conventional DSLRs. Large sensors, optical viewfinders, and sizable grips make them comfortable choices for many aspiring photographers. We cover seven consumer and mid-level models in this roundup. Find out which we recommend. Read more Read full story → Sony announces US pricing for full-frame Alpha 7 II Published on Wednesday, November 26, 2014 3:00:00 PM GMT Sony Electronics has announced US pricing and availability for its recently announced Alpha 7 II camera. The a7 II is the world's first full-frame mirrorless camera with in-body image stabilization (5-axis, no less), and also offers improved controls, focusing performance, and video specs. It will be available on December 9th for $1700 body only and $2000 with the 28-70mm F3.5-5.6 FE lens. We'll be getting our hands on a beta version shortly and will post samples as soon as possible. Read more Read full story → Not dead yet: Sony announces three A-mount lenses Published on Wednesday, November 26, 2014 3:00:00 PM GMT Among all of the excitement around the a7 II, Sony quietly announced a new A-mount lens last week. The 70-300mm F4.5 – F5.6 G SSM II lens for A-mount offers faster AF tracking, a new Nano AR coating, and weatherproofing, and will be available in February for $1150. The company also announced the development of Vario-Sonnar T* 24-70mm F2.8 ZA SSM II and 16-35mm F2.8 ZA SSM II A-mount lenses, which will arrive next Spring with similar improvements. Read more Read full story → 2014 Enthusiast Compact Camera Roundup Published on Wednesday, November 26, 2014 12:37:00 AM GMT We're updating our 'What to buy and why' camera roundups to include new models introduced in 2014, and first up is the enthusiast compact camera class. These cameras may be a bit too big to fit in your pocket but most are compact enough to be considered appealing alternatives to heavier, bulkier, interchangeable lens camera systems. Read more Read full story → Hasselblad introduces Stellar II luxury enthusiast compact Published on Tuesday, November 25, 2014 8:03:00 PM GMT Hasselblad has announced the Stellar II, an enthusiast compact 'not intended to be judged against other cameras'. According to Hasselbad. the Stellar II has been 'conceived and crafted exclusively for aficionados, collectors, and connoisseurs'. Like other recent Hasselblads, the Stellar II is essentially a rebadged Sony camera - the Cyber-shot RX100 II in this case. Available grip finishes include olive, walnut, padouk, and carbon fiber. You can pick one up for yourself at an MSRP of $2395/€1650. Click through to feast your eyes (just don't judge) Read full story → Nikon D750 shooting experience published Published on Tuesday, November 25, 2014 6:33:23 PM GMT The Nikon D750 is a full-frame DSLR that mates features from the D810 with a 24MP sensor, providing a faster frame-rate than any non-pro full-frame Nikon DSLR since the D700. Its comprehensive still and video photography specifications are aimed directly at enthusiasts and full-frame upgraders. We've made a significant update to our D750 first impressions review including a shooting experience and studio scene analysis. Read more Read full story → Panasonic DMC-CM1 to go on sale in UK Published on Monday, November 24, 2014 5:58:00 PM GMT Panasonic has announced that its DMC-CM1 'compact camera with smartphone technology' will be sold in the UK. Originally the company had marked out France and Germany as the only countries to get the device, but citing 'high demand' it has included a limited number of UK stores to stock it. Read more Read full story → Readers' Showcase: Portraits and People Published on Sunday, November 23, 2014 5:00:00 PM GMT DPReview members are a talented group and we've been highlighting their photography in a series of readers' showcases. Recently we asked the Portrait & People Photography forum to share their favorite shots. They responded with excellent work both in and out of the studio, and we've picked a few of our favorites to share. See gallery Read full story → Flickr Wall Art expands to include Creative Commons images Published on Saturday, November 22, 2014 8:32:53 PM GMT Flickr Wall Art now allows users to order prints from more than 50 million photographs, the service has announced. This follows Wall Art's arrival in October, and moves to include all applicable freely-licensed Creative Commons images, licensed artists images, and a curated selection of content from NASA. Read more Read full story → Behind the Shot: Clouds over Skagsanden Published on Saturday, November 22, 2014 1:00:00 PM GMT In this article, nature photographer Erez Marom shares the story of his panoramic shot 'Clouds over Skagsanden', taken earlier this year in the Lofoten Islands in Arctic Norway. His article covers everything from preparing to shoot at the location, to the shoot itself through to final post-processing of the resulting image. Click through to read Erez Marom's article 'Behind the Shot: Clouds over Skagsanden' Read full story → Google Nexus 6 DxOMark Mobile Report Published on Friday, November 21, 2014 9:35:00 PM GMT The Nexus 6 is Google's showcase phone for Android 5.0 'Lollipop' and the first Nexus device made by Motorola. It comes with a dual-LED ring flash, a 13MP sensor with a fast F2.0 aperture, optical image stabilization and 4K video recording. DxOMark Mobile put the Nexus 6 through its image quality tests and has just published the results. Read more Read full story → Canon EOS 7D Mark II shooting experience added to first impressions review Published on Friday, November 21, 2014 1:34:29 AM GMT Canon's successor to the EOS 7D was a long time coming, but the 7D Mark II appears to have all the makings of a DSLR worth the wait. Offering a 20.2MP APS-C CMOS sensor, Dual Pixel AF with 65 phase-detect points and more robust weather-resistance, the 7D II is a formidable follow-up indeed. Our full review is well underway and we've just updated our first impressions with a detailed shooting experience. Read more Read full story → Lighting equipment manufacturer Metz files for insolvency Published on Thursday, November 20, 2014 7:31:02 PM GMT German television and photographic equipment maker Metz has filed for insolvency according to German media. Metz is known for producing high-end lighting equipment including flash units, studio flashes, and video lights. Approximately 600 jobs will be affected by the company's financial situation. Read more Read full story → Sony announces Alpha 7 II full-frame mirrorless camera with 5-axis IS Published on Thursday, November 20, 2014 5:49:00 AM GMT Sony has announced its Alpha 7 II, which the company has managed to keep very close to its vest. The big story on this 24MP full-frame mirrorless is its 5-axis sensor-shift image stabilization - the first that we've seen in a full-frame camera. Sony claims that this IS system can reduce shake by 4.5 stops using the CIPA standard. The Hybrid AF system has also been improved upon, offering 30% faster speeds and a 1.5X improvement in tracking. The a7 II also sports a larger grip, new front dial, and sensibly relocated shutter release. Read more Read full story → Fujifilm announces macro tubes, tethering software and X-series firmware availability Published on Thursday, November 20, 2014 5:00:00 AM GMT Fujifilm has unveiled two macro extension tubes for its X-series interchangeable lens cameras, as well as a launch date for the previously-promised Fujifilm X-T1 firmware. More firmware updates are also announced for the X-E2, X-E1, X-Pro1 and X-30, as well as the introduction of tethering software for PC. Read more Read full story → Lume Cube is a high-power external lightsource for your smartphone or GoPro Published on Thursday, November 20, 2014 1:02:36 AM GMT Just announced by a company of the same name, the Lume Cube is an off-camera lighting option that can be used with a smartphone or GoPro Hero action camera. Thanks to its silicone shell it is water resistant and a 1/4-inch thread makes it mountable on a tripod or other camera support. Additionally, it can be attached to most surfaces magnetically or using a suction-cup. Lume Cube is controlled via an Android or iOS smartphone app. Read more Read full story →
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