The Mofage POCO Variable ND adapter is a brand-new drop-in filter Adapter that allows you to control your image in many different ways. It has a huge promise and delivers on a lot of stuff. But there are some things about it that really made me think about the more philosophical side of filming video. Especially because Mofage has created a product with tried and true competitors who have put a hefty price on similar adapters....

Introduction With the Milky Way season already under way in Eastern Australia, we know there will be hundreds of photographers pointing their cameras at the night sky on those cloudless, moonless nights attempting to capture the magnificence of the Galactic Core.With years of experience capturing the night sky, we have learned a great deal about setting up to capture some stunning images, but the one aspect to Astrophotography and Nightscaping we have learned is most important, and often most rewarding and enjoyable, is PLANNING....

With the introduction of Rode’s ambisonic microphones like the VideoMic Soundfield and more recently the Rode NT-SF1, recording ambisonic sound has come down in cost quite dramatically, making it available to a much wider audience. Ambisonic audio is essentially audio that’s recorded in a 360° spherical array around the microphone. It’s useful for VR, but it’s also handy for regular flat video filmmakers, too. As a manufacturer of ambisonic microphones, Rode has naturally amassed a rather large collection of 360° audio recordings, and they’ve released them all at their Ambisonic Sound Library covering everything from ambient background noise to specific sounds and effects completely free, under a Creative Commons license....

“Does anyone have an iPhone charger?” a person asks in a panic. Others shrug their shoulders because they have a house full of chargers – but they’re all USB-C. This is no longer going to happen. Well, at least not in Europe. The European Union has reached a landmark agreement that wants to unify various consumer electronics and make them feature a USB-C charging port. Yes, this includes the iPhone and AirPods, and it should happen by 2024....

Nikon has released a new Version 3.0 firmware for the Nikon Z9 mirrorless camera. Yes, that’s right, they’ve announced a release. They haven’t announced that they’re going to release it in a week – I don’t understand why some camera manufacturers have started doing that lately. Anyway, the new firmware boasts over 20 new features, and enhancements to make it “more flexible and intelligent”. New features include a faster, smarter and more reliable autofocus – which they’ve needed, given some of the comparisons I’ve seen against Sony and Canon – and new zoom controls, including a simulated crop-zoom in-camera in real-time while recording, even with primes....

Did you dream as a child that you can walk or run on air? Benjamin Von Wong was wondering what it would be like, and he got a chance to experience it and capture it with his camera. He and his team defied gravity in the new Nike campaign. They created fantastic images that alter the reality, but they also experienced what it’s like to run on air. It took creativity, courage, lots of safety equipment and thorough planning....

Although Nikon’s official 100th birthday isn’t until July 25th, they’re starting the celebration early. And why not? 100 years is nothing to sniff at, so why limit it to just one day? Nikon Corporation, founded in 1917 as Nippon Kōgaku Kōgyō Kabushikigaisha (Japan Optical Industries Corporation) was founded when three leading optical manufacturers merged to form a single company. Over the next few decades, they produced optical lenses (including those for early Canon cameras), binoculars, microscopes and inspection equipment....

Nikon has officially announced the new Nikon Z30, its entry-level APS-C Z mount mirrorless camera. As the de facto replacement for the Nikon D3x00 series DSLRs, the Z30 actually offers a little more. Being targeted primarily toward video content creators and vloggers, the Z30 offers a flippy-out LCD and shoots 4K UHD video at up to 30 frames per second and 1080p at up to 120fps. The 20.9-megapixel sensor it contains lets you shoot video for up to 125 minutes and can capture raw stills at an impressive 11 frames per second with full autofocus and exposure....

At CES 2019 in Las Vegas, Nikon announced that Z series of lenses is going wide: NIKKOR Z 14-30mm f/4 S is the latest addition to the Z family. It’s not only the first ultra-wide lens for the Z system but also the world’s first ultra-wide full-frame lens that lets you attach filters on the front. NIKKOR Z 14-30mm f/4 S is aimed at both photo and video shooters who want a compact system, yet high image quality....

Expert Imaging and Sound Association Awards (EISA) has announced its selection of the best photo gear of 2019. Nikon Z 6 was proclaimed the Camera of the Year, but there are a few more awarded cameras in other categories – all of them mirrorless. EISA has been around since 1982. At the time, the editors-in-chief from five European photo magazines came together to select “The Camera of the Year.” In 1989, another 10 photo magazines had joined the group, and the association has grown ever since....

When I made the move from Nikon to Sony, dust became an issue for me. I was not only moving from one brand to another but also from a DSLR to a mirrorless system. While my Nikons were not immune to sensor dust, it was never a big issue. I suspect that the mirror protected the sensor from stray particles. With the mirror gone1, dust seemed to be magically attracted to the sensor every time I swapped a lens....

For American rock band OK Go, boundary pushing music videos have become the standard. They’ve done the long one-shot takes with crazy optical illusions, shot with a massively co-ordinated cast of dancers, and they’ve even levitated in zero G. Now, they’ve done it again with their latest music video for new song, The One Moment. The entire video, again, is shot as a single take. The main action in the video took only took 4....

The selfie-centric Olympus Pen E-PL9 has been announced. This entry-level Micro Four Thirds camera from Olympus has seen a couple of nice new updates over the previous generation Pen E-PL8. For a start, there’s 4K UHD video, as well as 120fps slow motion at 720p (a first for the Pen line of cameras). It has a redesigned grip to help get a more confident hold on the camera, especially when shooting selfies, with a new internal popup flash....

Unfortunately, Topaz Remask masking technology is very good, super precise and easier to use with complex selections than Photoshop. It’s hard to resist not to use this software. Remask is great for several cases: Masking simple hard edgesMasking hair/fur against complex backgroundMasking translucent objects Retouching: Alexey Adamitsky | Photography: Tim Tadder Despite it’s benefits as masking software compared to Photoshop it has a number of shortcomings and today I want to talk about them in hope that Topaz Labs will make an effort to address these issues....

The day I’ve anxiously awaited has finally come: Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards has announced its winners for 2021. And as always, they didn’t disappoint. This year’s overall winner is a photo of a Golden Silk Monkey I named “The Nutcracker,” I guess you can tell why. But of course, there are other hilarious photos that will make your day, so let’s dive right in and see all of this year’s category winners....

Sadly, it’s nothing new that tourists or photo and video enthusiasts harm natural parks and nature in general only to take the shot. But the recent rule violation in Joshua Tree National Park is pretty impressive – not in a good way. English parkour team Storror visited the national park to film promo videos for their team and clothing line. They didn’t only break one rule, but the disrespectful and wrongful actions kept coming one after another....

There are quite a few action cameras available right now. With the recently launched DJI Osmo Action, the market has become even more interesting. We’ve seen how it performs against its biggest competitor, GoPro Hero7 Black. But what if we compare it to other action cameras? In this video from Philip Bloom, you’ll see a side-by-side comparison of some of the most attractive action cameras currently available, including the latest one from DJI....

The royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle sure caused a lot of attention all over the world. Many photos have been taken and published, but one of them went viral on social media, showing the newlyweds holding hands from above. The photographer behind the image is Yui Mok, a staff photographer at Press Association (PA). He answered the questions on Twitter and revealed how he took this photo which received so much attention....

If you were one of those kids who would dismantle every toy to see what it was like on the inside, you certainly discovered plenty of cool and interesting things. But have you ever seen what a golf ball looks on the inside? Photographer James Friedman became interested in discovering it, and he captured dozens of golf balls cut in half. Turns out there’s quite a colorful inside in each of the tiny white balls, and James shows it in a gorgeous abstract series of photos he named Interior Design....

Photographer Jingna Zhang has lost her case accusing artist Jeff Dieschburg of copyright infringement. The Luxembourg courts ruled on December 7th that the artist was not infringing on Zhang’s work due to “insufficient originality in the photo”. Jingna Zhang has responded to the ruling, saying that she is “devastated by the copyright ruling in Luxembourg today, which stated that my work lacks originality and therefore will not receive copyright protection in Luxembourg....