Tabla de contenidos para September - October 2020 en Camera

YOU’D HAVE TO say that since the launch in September 2018, Canon’s progress with its full-frame mirrorless camera system has been slow and steady, especially compared to the activities of, for example, Sony or Fujifilm. So… now prepare for lift off. Canon has been releasing snippets about its EOS R5 flagship for around four months which was, apparently, a bit longer than anticipated due to issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic. But now the EOS R5 is here – much more highly specced than even Canon’s hints had suggested – and it’s accompanied by an enthusiast-level sibling, the EOS R6. Canon Australia’s senior product manager, Brendan Maher, describes the next step in the EOS R system’s development as “a bit of crescendo for us” and says it represents the culmination…

ALONG WITH THE two new EOS R camera bodies, Canon has launched four RF mount lenses and two teleconverters (1.4x and 2.0x). The newcomers extend the RF mount system to 15 lenses (plus the extenders) and significantly increase the telephoto capabilities. The most interesting of the four are two prime supertelephotos that are very much the products of thinking outside the box. The new RF 600mm and RF 800mm have a fixed aperture of f/11, allowing for a significant reduction in size, weight and, of course, cost. Both the RF 600mm f/11 IS STM and RF 800mm f/11 IS STM have full autofocusing and built-in optical image stabilisation, and both are compatible with the new teleconverters which, in the case of the 2.0x model, will give 1,200mm and 1,600mm respectively.…

THE FIRST OF the Olympus OM-D Micro Four Thirds mirrorless cameras to reach its fourthgeneration version is the entry-level E-M10. The E-M10 Mark IV keeps the same compact body as its predecessor, but is now even lighter and steps up to a 20.3MP LiveMOS sensor. It still uses the TruePic VIII generation engine, but there has been a number of improvements to specifications, including extending IBIS correction to 4.5 stops, and up to 15fps burst shooting with the camera’s electronic shutter. Olympus says the performance of the continuous autofocusing has been upgraded to give more reliable subject tracking. There are both face and eye tracking modes, and silent shooting is also available with all exposure modes. In keeping with current trends, the E-M10 Mark IV has both Wi-Fiand Bluetooth wireless…

NEARLY LOST AMID all Canon’s EOS R system news is the arrival of a new pro-level A3+ inkjet photo printer. The imagePROGRAF PRO-300 adopts the same branding as Canon’s wider-format professional models, taking over from the PIXMA name which is predominantly used on consumer-level products. The compact PRO-300 replaces the PIXMA PRO-10s and incorporates a number of upgrades and new features, including new formulations for both photo black and matte black inks designed to enhance the reproduction of blacks on glossy and fine-art media. There are separate lines for the photo and matte black inks with automatic switching based on the media that’s loaded. The PRO-300 uses Canon’s Lucia PRO pigmented ink set with 10 colours, plus a Chroma Optimizer clear ink to reduce bronzing. A new nozzle recovery system…

Photographer Luke Tscharke Location Lion Rock, Australia Camera Alpha 7R IV Lens FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Settings ISO 100 / F11 / 1.6s Photographer Craig Parry Location Chobe National Park, Botswana Camera Alpha 7R IV Lens FE 600mm F4 GM OSS Settings ISO 400 / F4 / 1/2500 If you have an eye for fine detail, Sony’s Alpha 7R III and Alpha 7R IV offer an exceptional combination of high resolution and high speed, providing photographers with cameras that are purpose-built to help them realise their creative visions. Every photographer wants their images to reflect exactly what they had in mind and saw in the viewfinder, and the Sony Alpha 7R III and Alpha 7R IV have been designed to deliver the highest possible level of image quality via their…

With first the X-H1 and then the X-T3, Fujifilm made its X mount mirrorless camera system much more appealing to videomakers and this was backed up by the introduction of Fujinon cinema lenses. The X-T4 carries on the good work as it inherits the X-T3’s video goodies unchanged, but with a few upgrades, and all the operational benefits of the in-body image stabilisation, the fullyarticulating monitor screen (with its increased resolution) and the higher-capacity battery. None of the X-T4’s new video features are major items, but add to the overall versatility and operational convenience. Chief among these is the retention of separate and dedicated video and stills camera setups with easy switching between the two via a selector positioned beneath the shutter speed dial and including a dedicated Quick Menu…

It’s no doubt deliberate that Canon has gone for maximum bragging rights with the EOS R5’s video capabilities given that Sony, in particular, is making so much headway in the full-frame mirrorless camera category. But Panasonic is here as well, both with a bucket-load of expertise when it comes to video. Additionally, there’s the heritage of the EOS 5D Marks II, III and IV in the video world to uphold, so the R5 boldly goes were no Canon ILC has gone before… well, in terms of 8K video, were nobody has gone before. The headline act is 8K Cinema RAW video recording internally – in the 8K DCI format at 8192x4320 pixels – 30/25fps (or 24fps) with 12-bit colour and using the full width of the sensor (i.e. no cropping).…

Micro Four Thirds mirrorless cameras have been popular with video makers because they’re compact, lighter weight and very portable, making them particularly suited for fast, handheld shooting. Additionally, the sensor size has inherently greater depth-of-field which can be advantageous when shooting video. With its long history in making pro-level video cameras, Panasonic has been the most successful here, especially with its GH series Lumix cameras, but Olympus has had a few successes as well and has been working hard to improve the video appeal of its OM-D products. The E-M1 Mark III essentially adopts all the E-M1X’s video capabilities so there are quite a number of improvements over the Mark II, including the addition of OM-Log recording and Full HD recorded at 100 fps (PAL) for slow-mo effects. The sensor’s…

THE LEGENDARY LEICA M line of rangefinder cameras continues with the launch of the M10-R. The new camera shares the same body and basic feature set of the 24MP M10, but has a 40.8MP full-frame sensor that's essentially the colour version of M10 Monochrom’s CMOS imager. It brings the M10 family up to five models, joining the M10, M10-P, M10-D and M10 Monochrom. To squeeze out even more performance, the M10-R’s sensor doesn’t have an optical low-pass filter. The native sensitivity range is equivalent to ISO 100 to 50,000, and JPEGs can be captured in one of three image sizes while RAW films are recorded in the Adobe DNG format with 14-bit colour at 7864x5200 pixels. As with the standard model, there’s no provision for recording video, so the M10-R…

OLYMPUS has released a utility program for computers running Windows 10 which will enable a number of its OM-D system mirrorless cameras to operate as webcams. The supported cameras are the E-M1X, E-M1 Mark III, E-M1 Mark II, E-M1 and E-M5 Mark II. The free download is available at https://learnandsupport.getolympus.com/olympus-om-d-webcam-beta. LEICA has released the promised firmware upgrade that adds an ultrahigh resolution multi-shot capture mode to the SL2 full-frame mirrorless camera. The new ‘Multishot’ mode captures eight frames made with half-pixel shifts to give an image size of 187MB in the Adobe DNG RAW format. The camera also simultaneously captures an image at the sensor’s effective resolution of 47MP. The firmware upgrade also adds a couple of minor feature additions and corrections for bugs, including improved detection of M mount…

IF THE NIKON Z 6 is too much camera for you and the Z 50 just isn’t enough, it’s likely Nikon has hit the sweet spot with the Z 5. In fact, it looks like the Z 5 – essentially the entry-level fullframe Nikon Z mirrorless body – has all the makings of a potential best-seller given its appealing combination of features and pricing. It costs roughly $600 less than the Z 6, which means polycarbonate back and bottom plates, rather than a full magnesium alloy construction, but it’s still weather sealed. The top panel info display on the two higher-end models has been replaced by the traditional mode dial, but this is likely to be a plus for some potential buyers. The Z 5 doesn’t have the same full-frame…

Due to the social distancing requirements demanded by the COVID-19 pandemic galleries, exhibition spaces and museums are only allowing limited admission or are open for shorter times. However, many are still staging online events or virtual tours. Check with the individual venues for which exhibitions are open for physical visits and any changes to opening hours. Current to 28 February 2021: Exhibition. Wildlife Photographer Of The Year 2019. Winners and finalists – 100 images in all – displayed on special light panels. At the Australian National Maritime Museum, 2 Murray Street, Darling Harbour, Sydney, NSW 2000. Ticketed event. Museum hours are 9.30am to 5.00pm daily. For more information and bookings visit https://www.sea.museum/whats-on/exhibitions. Exhibition open and also available as an online tour. Current to 30 May 2021: Exhibition. National Photographic Portrait…

It’s just as well we can’t see into the future because, if we could, a great many worthy projects wouldn’t get off the ground. Too hard. Too expensive. Too risky. There’s little doubt that Peter Adams might have thought twice about A Few Of The Legends had he known it would end up taking more than 35 years to complete, cost close to $500,000 to produce, involve around 250,000 kilometres of travel (much of it overseas) and generate 42,000 film negatives (plus countless digital files). It all began in 1983 as Peter was making the transition from cinematography to photography (at a time when the opposite was far more common) and had just completed a photography course. The celebratory lunch ended with a game of photographic trivial pursuit where the…

The Picture The Mount Dutton railway ruins on the Oodnadatta Track in South Australia – like all of the cottages on the old route – are rapidly deteriorating and deserve to be seen before they are lost forever. It was 1:30pm with an eerie yellow light more akin to dawn. The brooding, threatening sky and an intriguing subject made for a dramatic combination. The entire situation was based on luck and on the need to just ‘be there’. The Photographer A dedicated and enthusiastic landscape photographer for many decades, Trevern Dawes has contributed images (and articles) to a great many magazines and books (including a number of his own publications). He is currently this magazine’s resident expert on digital printing techniques and an experienced tester of photo printers. The Equipment…

WINNER “How’s the serenity?” would have undoubtedly been Darryl Kerrigan’s (The Castle) response to this supremely tranquil landscape study by Lex Rudd. Light and weather combine with a beautifully balanced composition to create an image that you just want to keep drinking in. The location is Lake Moke near Queenstown in New Zealand, and Lex used a Nikon D7200 DSLR fitted with a Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.0 DC Macro OS zoom lens. HIGHLY COMMENDED Photographing lightning is always a challenge, but John Walker added to it by picking a location that required climbing over a lot of barbed wire fences in the dark at two o’clock in the morning. It was well worth the effort because this eight-second exposure at f/8.0 and ISO 800 captures a spectacular strike which fills the…

OWNERS OF FUJIFILM’S X or G mount mirrorless cameras now have some new flash products to consider. The EF-60 is a new on-camera flash unit with a metric guide number of 60 (ISO 100), an auto zoom flash head – covering the angles of view of 24mm to 200mm (35mm equivalent) – and a white LED modelling light. The EF-60 also supports HSS (high-speed flash) sync which uses a pulsed output to enable flash photography with shutter speeds of up to 1/8000 second. It also allows for RF remote control and triggering using the Nissin Air System (NAS), so Fujifilm has also released the EF-W1 wireless commander unit. The EF-W1 allows for flash control in one-third stop increments in both the TTL auto and manual modes. With the latter, the…

FIRST ANNOUNCED ALONG with the E-M1X at the start of 2019, Olympus says the M.Zuiko Digital ED 150-400mm f/4.5 TC1.25x IS PRO zoom will be launched during the Northern Hemisphere’s winter (so around year’s end for us). The standard focal range is equivalent to 300-800mm on an M43 sensor, but this lens also has a built-in 1.25x teleconverter to extend the longest focal length to the equivalent of 1000mm. There’s a two-thirds stop light reduction, which means the widest aperture is still f/5.6. Additionally, there’s a matched 2.0x teleconverter which gives the equivalent of a 600-2000mm supertelephoto zoom. The inclusion of optical image stabilisation – which will work along with the five-axis IBIS systems in the higher-end OM-D camera bodies – means handheld shooting is possible, even at 2000mm. The…

ALL THREE OF Fujifilm’s current GFX series medium format mirrorless cameras benefit from new firmware upgrades which are the most extensive since the system was launched three years ago. All three get the newer Film Simulation profiles which were introduced on the X mount mirrorless cameras launched over the last year or so, including Classic Neg (all models), Eterna (for the GFX 50S and GFX 50R) and Eterna Bleach Bypass (GFX 100). The Smooth Skin Effect function has been added to the GFX 50S and 50R, while the GFX 100 gains the Colour Chrome Blue processing that was introduced on the XPro3. There are enhancements to autofocusing performance, including improved face/eye detection accuracy and tracking stability, a new auto mode for focus stacking (to automatically determine the number of frames…

A powerful and emotional photograph, titled After Exodus, and taken by Bangladeshi photographer K. M. Asad, has won the overall prize in the Pink Lady® Food Photographer Of The Year 2020, the world’s premier celebration of the art of food photography and filmmaking. The picture was taken in the vast Rohingya refugee camp which is home to more than one million people in Cox’s Bazaar, Bangladesh. Poignantly, the camp has now been placed in lockdown in an attempt to prevent the spread of coronavirus. “This moving image really speaks to our times,” says Caroline Kenyon, founder and director of the Awards. “The world is in the grip of Covid-19 and normal life, whatever that may be, has stopped for all of us. These Rohingya refugee children remind us of the…

With every development of Leica’s digital M series rangefinder cameras, the traditional and the contemporary seem to co-exist more harmoniously with each other. We say “co-exist” because the two elements aren’t really integrated like they are in the Fujifilm X-Pro3, which is really the only other digital camera that’s anything similar in concept (although it’s not a rangefinder design). The Leica M10-R has its traditional identity, which is where it works pretty much like a film camera, and its digital identity which surfaces when it’s switched to live view. In fact, in live view, the M10-R is basically a contemporary mirrorless camera, albeit a very bespoke one. The first digital M, the M8, was a pretty idiosyncratic machine, although ironically it now has a growing number of fans for just…

Wow, you’re thinking, that X-T3 didn’t hang around for very long, did it? Look, here’s the X-T4 already. Rest assured the X-T3 remains very much alive and well in Fujifilm’s X mount line-up and, no, we’re not returning to the bad old days early in the digital era of model lifespans measured in months rather than years. Fujifilm is essentially taking a page out of Sony’s book and adding new models that simply expand the choice. So the X-T4 joins the X-T3 instead of replacing it, offering an expanded feature set at, of course, a higher price point. Nor, incidentally, is it the replacement for the X-H1, with Fujifilm giving assurances there will be an X-H2. The X-T3 is already a pretty capable camera and has to be high on…

Just as it did with the very first – and very momentous – EOS interchangeable lens camera launch back in 1986, Canon has unveiled two new EOS models simultaneously. But this is 2020 and we’re talking about the next stage in the development of Canon’s EOS R full-frame mirrorless camera system. However, it believes the new pro-level EOS R5 (and its enthusiast-level sibling, the EOS R6), represents a “new era”, which is certainly true in terms of Canon’s ability to compete much more aggressively in this sector, primarily with the ‘interlopers’, Panasonic and Sony. Another thing is certain with the R5 – Canon has got its old mojo back. There’s no doubt the DSLR-versus-mirrorless debate hasn’t made things easy for either Canon or Nikon compared to the camera makers that…

While Olympus’ OM-D flagship, the E-M1X, is primarily targeted at sports photographers, and anybody else who needs lots of speed and a killer autofocus system, it also has many features with much wider appeal. Additionally, for a Micro Four Thirds format mirrorless camera, the E-M1X is a big beast – although obviously substantially more compact than its full-frame rivals – so that’s likely to deter buyers as well. The good news is that now you can have most of the clever features that were introduced with the E-M1X in a much smaller and lighter package, the E-M1 Mark III. It’s the sort of size that photographers who like the portability benefits of the M43 format will expect, and there’s also a new, compact PRO series 12-45mm standard zoom to go…

www.teds.com.au DIGITAL SLR CAMERAS BUYER’S CHECK LIST SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2020 THIS CHECKLIST is designed to allow direct comparisons between different camera models, listed here in price order within each brand. The published prices are mostly supplied by the distributors as recommended retail prices (RRPs). However, some distributors are no longer supplying RRPs to the media so it has become necessary to determine an ‘estimated street price’ derived from the range of prices for a model published by retailers. Where this has been necessary, the letter ‘E’ appears at the start of the entry. A dot appearing in a column indicates that the feature is available on the camera model listed. Where a specification or product detail hasn’t yet been published or confirmed, the letters TBA (to be announced) or TBC (to…