ReviewsHead-2-Head Micro 4/3 Lens Review: Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 7-14mm f4 vs. Panasonic Lumix G Vario 7-14mm f4
Olympus and Panasonic engineer quality lenses for Four Thirds and Micro Four Thirds formats that match or surpass those available for APS and full-frame DSLRs. Both companies offer 7-14mm zooms that correspond to a 14-28mm lens on the 35mm format with an angle of view of 114-degrees. The fundamental difference between the Olympus 7-14mm and the Panasonic 7-14mm is that the Olympus has a standard Four Thirds mount and the Panasonic has a Micro Four Thirds mount.
Head-2-Head Lens Review: Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM vs. Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM
These two lenses represent a fairly classic "battle for speed" between two optics from a single manufacturer. The Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM lens sells for an MSRP of $419.95, and is a standard short-telephoto Canon workhorse. Canon's more exotic 85mm prime, the EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM, buys you an additional stop of exposure latitude, superior build quality, extremely high resolution, and what is described as a "silky-smooth" bokeh effect. Sporting an MSRP of $2199.95, and nearly twice the size and weight of the EF f/1.8, we evaluate whether Canon's "L-Series" glass warrants the near $1,800 upgrade.
Head-2-Head RAW Processor Review: Adobe Camera RAW vs. Phase One Capture One Pro
The RAW file is often described as the "digital negative", basic digital information that has to be processed to become a photograph. In fact, it's more accurately described as the "digital latent image", a term made popular as far back as the Zone System and Ansel Adams, describing the film in the camera, exposed to light, but not yet processed into a negative.
Head-2-Head Lens Review: Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM vs. Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM
Canon's EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM ($1699 MSRP) and EF 17-40mm f/4L USM ($839.99 MSRP) are two of the most popular "Ultra-Wide Zoom" lenses available for its mid- and upper-level DSLRs. The 16-35mm f/2.8 II is an update of the previous 16-35mm f/2.8 lens, and is said by Canon to offer a complete optical redesign for increased resolution and contrast. The 17-40mm f/4 is billed as a high-quality, budget-priced "L" lens by Canon, at a stop slower than the 16-35mm f/2.8 II and just a bit more than half the price. The question is, how do these lenses stack up optically?
News
Backlit CMOS in New Canon SD4000
The backlit CMOS sensor craze is dipping into more consumer-friendly markets. The Canon PowerShot SD4000 IS was announced with a 10-megapixel sensor and an f/2.0 lens that make up Canon’s “High Sensitivity System.” The SD4000 will be available at the end of this month for $349. 
Sony Flaunts Big Sensors, Little Bodies on New NEX Cameras
Sony announced its entry into the mirrorless interchangeable lens camera market with the unveiling of the alpha NEX-5 and NEX-3. The new digital cameras share a 14.6-megapixel APS-C-sized CMOS image sensor that Sony flaunts is much larger than its Four Thirds standard competitors. The camera bodies themselves, however, are marketed as miniscule with the NEX-3 being called “the world’s smallest and lightest interchangeable lens digital camera.” Read more
Ricoh Announces 28-300mm Lens for GXR
Ricoh expanded its GXR system camera offerings with today’s announcement of the Ricoh P10 Lens Module. The P10 comprises a 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 lens and a backlit 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor populated with 10 megapixels; it is the third module announced for the GXR system. Read more
Polaroid Making Comeback
“Polaroid instant photography is back,” declared the company in its April 28 press release. The company announced a film camera that instantly creates prints, called the Polaroid 300. The camera retails for $90 and prints business card-sized photos.
Read more
Olympus Improves AF on Pen Series
Olympus announced a firmware update that will quicken the auto focus speed of its Digital Pen series of interchangeable lens cameras. The new update also ensures that the E-P1, E-P2, and E-PL1 are compatible with newer Micro Four Thirds lenses. Read moreBlog
Just got this note from Phase One:
We are pleased to share with you the release of Capture One 5.1.1 on Thursday, March 25th 2010.
The release contains the following enhancements for Leaf backs:
OK, I\'m stealing a little thunder from our News Desk, but here\'s the news of the morning. C1 now has a better "Dust Tool". Ok, ok, other things too, but...
I\'ve had a few questions lately about the i1 Match software, and how to use it to run a monitor calibration. Here\'s a quick walkthrough:...
Working with lenses, and evaluating lens quality and performance can be, on the one hand, one of the easier things in photography to quantify. Optics is a...
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