Table of contents for Issue 431 in Camera

The two major new camera announcements from the last month or so could not be more different in their concepts and design philosophies. Sigma’s BF is a bold move and a radical departure from anything we’ve seen so far in full frame mirrorless cameras. Fujifilm’s GFX100RF is the camera it just had to build given the long heritage of its many rollfilm ancestors, but again it’s very much a go-it-alone approach. While Sigma has gone for Spartan minimalism, Fujifilm has created a camera which has the potential to be many things to many people. The BF is on test in this issue along with some analysis of Sigma’s thinking behind it, while as I write this, the GFX100RF has just arrived on my desk, ready for a test report which…

ULTRAZOOMS HAVE BEEN a bit of a Tamron speciality, but Sigma is now going further with its new 16-300mm f/3.5-6.7 DC OS Contemporary for the ‘APS-C’ sensor size and which has an effective focal range of 24-450mm. Sigma says it’s the world’s first mirrorless lens with a zoom ratio of 18.8x for ‘APS-C’ cameras. It spans wide-angle to supertelephoto in the one lens which boasts pretty decent close focusing capabilities, delivering a reproduction ratio of 1:2 – that’s half life size – at the 70mm focal length. It’s still 1:3 at the wide-angle end and 1:4 at the maximum telephoto focal length. What’s more, it’s a pretty compact lens with a barrel length of around 121 millimetres and weighing in at 610 grams (both these measurements vary slightly according to…

For all the reasons outlined in the main text, the Sigma BF isn’t going to be anybody’s first choice as a video camera because it lacks a bunch of features that are on the ‘must have’ list. For some of them, there are work-arounds, but why do this when there are plenty of full frame mirrorless cameras with video-making capabilities as a priority? Sigma itself says that the BF is primarily targeted at photographers, but that said, it’s still well enough equipped for you to make good-looking video clips The headline act is 6K res (6016×3384 pixels) at 24, 25 or 30 fps with 10-bit 4:2:2 colour using the HEVC/H.265 codec and LongGOP compression, or with 8-bit 4:2:0 colour with the AVC/H.264 codec. Both the codec options are also available…

Now with a new name and a new title sponsor, the World Food Photography Awards originally launched back in 2011 and has steadily grown to attract many thousands of entries from all over the world. It is open to both amateur and professional photographers. Food is, of course, a vital part of life and so it’s a huge subject with many diverse aspects from production to presentation to consumption. This is reflected in the competition’s many categories which include Bring Home The Harvest, Food In Action, Food For Celebration, Politics In Food, Food For Life, and Moments Of Joy. The Claire Aho Award For Women Photographers category is named after who a trail-blazing Finnish photographer. Claire Aho (1925-2015) was given her first camera at the age of ten, and she…

SUPERTELEPHOTO ZOOMS LOOK set to become a must-have in a full frame mirrorless system perhaps to counter what’s on offer with the cropped sensors. Sony has taken a different approach to Sigma with its new FE 400-800mm (the first lens in the mount to reach 800mm), opting for a slower maximum aperture in order to reduce the lens’s size, weight and cost. Consequently, the FE 400-800mm f/6.3-8.0 G OSS weighs in at 2.475 kilograms and is 34.6 centimetres in length. Zooming is performed internally so the barrel length and balance always remains the same. Focusing is performed internally too. Hand-held shooting is assisted by optical image stabilisation which gives up to four stops of correction for camera shake by itself and up to stops when combined with IBIS. Furthermore, the…

SONY CONTINUES ITS seemingly non-stop expansion and revision of its FE mount lens system which now boasts well over 70 models. Launched along with the FE 400-800mm supertelephoto zoom at the recent CP+ Show in Japan, the FE 16mm f/1.8 G ultra-wide prime is designed for both photography and video-making. Despite the short focal length and fast aperture, it’s still a compact lens measuring 75 millimetres in length and weighing only 304 grams. It has a weather-sealed construction along with a fluorine coating on the front element to help repel moisture, grease and dust. The aperture collar can be switched between click-stopped or continuous adjustment (the latter for finer exposure control when shooting video), and there’s an iris lock to prevent accidental switch between auto and manual aperture control. There’s…

Current to 1 June: Exhibition. If Only We Could Take The Time: Contemporary Australian Photography. This exhibition considers how the impulse to observe, to record and to share continues to propel photographic practice in Australia today. Works by Ying Ang, Katrin Koenning and Anu Kumar. Entry is free. Gallery hours are 10.00am to 5.00pm daily. For more information visit https://www.portrait.gov.au Current to 1 July: Exhibition. Student Life: Max Dupain At The University Of Sydney. Max Dupain (1911-1992) documented student life at the University in the early 1950s creating a brilliant and frequently hilarious series of candid photographs. At the Chau Chak Wing Museum, University Place, University Of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006. Entry is free. Museum hours are 10.00am to 5.00pm ion weekdays and 12.00pm to 4.00pm on weekends. For more information…

SIGMA BF $3,995 body only, recommended retail price Type: Enthusiast-level mirrorless digital camera with L bayonet lens mount. Focusing: Automatic hybrid phase/contrast detection via the imaging sensor. Manual switching between one-shot and continuous AF modes. Subject recognition and tracking for humans (with face/eye detection), animals (dogs and cats with eye detection) or humans + animals. Area modes are 1-Point AF and Area AF. AF+MF full-time override. Sensitivity range is EV -5.0 - 18 (ISO 100 and f/1.4). AF and manual focus assistance via distance scale, distance read-out, image magnification (full screen or picture-in-picture, 2x, 4x or 8x) and focus peaking displays (White, Black, Red, Yellow, Cyan, Blue or Magenta). Manual focus collar on supported lenses can be switched between linear and non-linear operation Metering: 256-point multi-zone and spot measurements. Metering…

While Nikon implies that the Z5II is more a photographer’s camera than anything else, it actually has an impressive suite of video features and is capable of more than just occasionally grabbing a few clips. The ‘EXPEED 7’ processor’s speed steps it up to 4K UHD using the full sensor width (i.e. oversampled from 6K) at 24/25/30 fps and at 50/60 fps with a 1.5x crop. This can be with 10-bit 4:2:2 colour using the H.265 codec or in H.264 with 8-bit colour. More interestingly, the camera records 12-bit N-RAW footage internally and to V90-speed SDXC memory card which is a first for a Nikon Z mount camera (the Z6III, for example, uses a much faster CFexpress Type B card for this). The N-RAW frame rates with the Z5II aren’t…

NIKKOR Z 35mm f/1.2 S $4,899 Format: Full frame. Angle-of-View: 63 degrees (diagonal on full frame). Construction: 17 elements/15 groups. Seven special elements – three with extra-low dispersion (ED) characteristics, one aspherical type with extra-low dispersion (ED) characteristics, and three aspherical types. Minimum Focus: 30 centimetres. Maximum Reproduction Ratio: 1:5.0. Aperture Range: f/1.2 to f/16. Overall Length: 150 millimetres. Maximum Diameter: 90 millimetres. Filter Diameter: 82 millimetres. Weight: 1060 grams (without the lens hood). Lens Mount(s): Nikkor Z. Features: Weather-sealed external construction; ‘Meso-Amorphous Coat’, ‘Nano Crystal Coat’ and ‘ARNEO Coat’ anti-reflection multi-coatings; two stepping motors (STM) AF drive (with internal focusing using dual focusing groups), 11-blade diaphragm, manual focus collar switchable between linear and non-linear operation, multi-function control ring, AF/MF switch, two ‘L-Fn’ focus hold/multi-function buttons. Bayonet-fit lens hood supplied.…

The Microdia ExeCable Tweed PD100W USB C to USB C PD cable is available in either 1.3 or 2.6 metre lengths. These cables also feature the reinforced triple-braided heat-resistant nylon covering, and enable high-speed data transfer at up to 480 Mbps and fast recharging at 100W. Microdia’s aptly named Fruitywire Liquid Silicon range of USB C to USB C cables is available in 1.3 or 2.6 metres and a variety of funky colours such as Lavender which is shown here. The coverings are a food-grade, non-toxic, eco-friendly liquid silicon for which enhances both flexibility and durability. Data transfer speed is up to 480 Mbps and charging speed up to either 60 or 100W. Microdia’s SNAPPower Aluminaire LCD is a magnetic wireless power bank with a 10,000 mAh capacity and 35W…

In photography necessity has always been the mother of invention and a number of very pressing needs gave rise to the Rolleiflex twin lens reflex camera, a design that survived for 70 years. The story begins in 1905 when a young German engineer, Reinhold Heidecke, joined Voigtländer – then a manufacturer of telescopes and binoculars – to start a new camera design department. In 1909, an 18-year-old called Paul Franke also started working at Voigtländer, as an unpaid apprentice, and this was to be the start of a long-term working relationship. Franke only stayed at Voigtländer for two years and he eventually ended up running a photography shop in Berlin where many of his customers were soldiers fighting in World War I. They continually requested a portable and easy-to-use camera…

AFTER WE APPLAUDED the current fashion for retro camera designs – as exemplified by the Nikon Zf and the OM System OM-3 – what to make of Sigma’s pared back BF? Sigma says it has deliberately stepped away from any conventional camera design elements in the pursuit of “radical simplicity” and the idea of “an everyday camera” that also works as an alternative to a smartphone”. Of course, with a price tag just shy of $4000 before you add a lens, the BF is anything but “everyday” and, as a full frame L mount mirrorless camera, it’s up against some pretty serious competition. But there, I suspect, is where many of us reviewers are going wrong and – but I’m conceding only possibly – missing the point of the BF.…

PRIMARILY AIMED AT professional video-makers and cinematographers, the Nikkor Z 28-135mm f/4.0 PZ is the company’s first full frame power zoom. Of course, it can also be used for still photography, but the motorised zoom operation – which is adjustable for speed – is a feature most beneficial when shooting moving pictures. There is, in fact, a choice of 11 zooming speeds to suit different creative requirements. However, a manual zooming collar is retained and its direction of rotation can be set to either left or right. As zooming is performed internally, Nikon says the lens is designed to minimise shifts in the centre of gravity when zooming, and that its supports a variety of video accessories such as follow-focus controllers and matte boxes. The optical construction comprises 18 elements…

If you were thinking that Sigma’s next move in mirrorless cameras would be a full frame version of the fp, then think again. If you were thinking that Sigma’s next mirrorless camera might finally showcase a full frame Foveon sensor, then you’d be wrong again. In fact, it’s almost certain that absolutely nobody outside Sigma saw the BF coming. It’s like nothing we’ve ever seen before and it demands you completely reset the way you think about a contemporary mirrorless camera. Accepted conventions have to be tossed out of the window, similarly long-held traditions and, indeed, the very essence of what you think you might need or want. Presumably, just like Sigma when the idea of the BF was originally floated, you need to start with an open mind and…

NIKON Z5II $2,699 body only, recommended retail price Type: Enthusiast-level digital mirror-less camera with Nikon Z bayonet lens mount Focusing: Automatic via 299 points (89 percent vertical/96 percent horizontal frame coverage) using hybrid phase/contrast detection. Area modes are Pinpoint, Single-Point, Dynamic Area AF – Small, Dynamic Area AF – Medium, Dynamic Area AF – Large, Wide Area AF Small, Wide Area AF Large, Wide Area AF – Custom 1 and 2 (with 77 shape/size options from 1x1 to 21x13 points), Auto Area, 3D Tracking and Subject Tracking. Manual or auto (AF-A) switching between one-shot and continuous modes. Body/head/face/eye detection for humans, body/head/eye detection for animals (dogs, cats and birds), subject recognition for cars, motorcycles, bicycles, trains and aircraft. Auto subject detection. Adjustable tracking sensitivity. Sensitivity range is EV -10 -…

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 no longer supply 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 be confirmed) are used. If a feature is irrelevant to…