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The Digital Photography Review Newsletter
The most popular weekly photography newsletter, with over 400,000 subscribers
Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Welcome to the 690th Digital Photography Review newsletter.

It's almost the end of the year, which means it's time to take a look back over the past 12 months and remind ourselves of all of the cameras, lenses and accessories that were released. This is the third year that we've run the DPReview Awards, and the quality of gear shortlisted was as high as ever.

You'll find a link to the DPR Awards below, and don't forget to have your say, by voting in our readers' polls. Voting closes on December 18th, so don't delay!

DPReview Awards 2017 - our favorite gear, rewarded

This year, plenty of amazing cameras, lenses, accessories and other products came through our doors. As 2017 winds down, we're highlighting some of our standout products of the year. Check out the winners of the 2017 DPReview Awards!

Check out the winners of this years' DPReview Awards

Olympus 17mm F1.2 Pro sample gallery

The Olympus 17mm F1.2 promises to open up new possibilities for Micro Four Thirds shooters seeking shallow depth-of-field and smooth, 'feathered' bokeh. Take a peek at our extensive sample gallery.

Check out our gallery of samples from the Olympus 17mm F1.2 Pro

Have your say: DPReview Readers' Choice Awards 2017

We're well into annual roundup territory and that means it's time for you, out there in our community, to have your say. What piece of kit have you been most impressed by this year? We've broken the announcements down into seven categories, in which you can vote for what you think have been the best cameras, lenses and smartphones.

Vote in our Readers' Choice Awards

2017 Buying Guides and Gift Ideas

We've been updating our comprehensive collection of camera buying guides, arranged both by price, and by use-case. Whatever kind of photography you enjoy, we'll help you find something to suit your needs — and your budget.

Click here to check out our comprehensive series of buying guides

Barney

News updates
Published Monday, December 11, 2017 9:59:00 PM GMT

Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme is under fire today after video and photos seem to show him purposely kicking photographer Chelsea Lauren in the face during last night's performance. His apologies, so far, have not gone over well.

Published Monday, December 11, 2017 8:11:00 PM GMT

Customer feedback has convinced the makers of the light-field camera to consider open-sourcing the pictures.lytro.com platform it discontinued last week.

Published Monday, December 11, 2017 7:26:00 PM GMT

Hot on the heels of the Lensrentals and LensProToGo merger, gadget rental service Lumoid has announced that it is shutting down for good.

Published Monday, December 11, 2017 6:30:00 PM GMT

Smartphones once again dominated Flickr's most popular cameras of 2017, making up half of all uploads, but it's not all bad news for 'real' cameras. In fact, DSLR use is on the rise again.

Published Monday, December 11, 2017 5:55:00 PM GMT

NiSi Filters has announced a new variable ND filter that offers 1.5 stops and 5 stop of density variation and, at least according to the company, doesn't suffer from the dreaded X-effect at its most extreme settings.

Published Monday, December 11, 2017 5:35:00 PM GMT

National Geographic photographer Paul Nicklen and the Sea Legacy team were filming through tears, as they documented some of the final hour of a starving polar bear's life. The resulting video is haunting.

Published Monday, December 11, 2017 2:00:00 PM GMT

This year, plenty of amazing cameras, lenses, accessories and other products came through our doors. As 2017 winds down, we're highlighting some of our standout products of the year. Check out the winners of the 2017 DPReview Awards!

Published Monday, December 11, 2017 12:00:00 PM GMT

Maybe you want better photos in low light. Maybe you're tired of digital zoom. Whatever the reason, if you're looking for a capable, beginner-friendly camera to grow and learn with, we've got you covered.

Published Sunday, December 10, 2017 2:00:00 PM GMT

The Olympus 17mm F1.2 promises to open up new possibilities for Micro Four Thirds shooters seeking razor-thin depth-of-field and smooth, 'feathered' bokeh. Take a peek at our extensive sample gallery.

Published Sunday, December 10, 2017 12:00:00 PM GMT

Are you a speed freak? Hungry to photograph anything that goes 'zoom'? Or perhaps you just want to get Sports Illustrated-level shots of your child's soccer game. Keep reading to find out which cameras we think are best for sports and action shooting.

Published Saturday, December 9, 2017 2:00:00 PM GMT

Still yearning for an Aperture replacement? Here's a quick overview of RAW Power, a Raw image editor for iOS that pairs with the Mac application introduced in 2016. Take a look at some of its capabilities.

Published Saturday, December 9, 2017 12:00:00 PM GMT

Video features have become an important factor to many photographers when choosing a new camera. Read on to find out which cameras we think are best for the videophile.

Published Friday, December 8, 2017 7:41:00 PM GMT

The public art installation featured blurred portraits, ostensibly captured by the artist under that same underpass... except they weren't. They were actually portraits of comedians, pulled from the 2015 Edinburgh Fringe Festival program.

Published Friday, December 8, 2017 7:06:00 PM GMT

Edelkrone has upgraded its SliderOne with a SliderOne Pro and introduced a new generation of Wing and Wing Pro models, all while simultaneously improving the app that controls its entirely lineup.

Published Friday, December 8, 2017 6:29:00 PM GMT

Affinity Photo for iPad, one of the first full-featured Raw editors designed specifically for tablet use, has been named Apple's Best iPad App of 2017. And what's more, it's currently 50% off!

Published Friday, December 8, 2017 4:49:00 PM GMT

VSCO Messages allows VSCO X subscribers and free users alike to share text, images, photo editing 'recipes', VSCO journal entries and more.

Published Friday, December 8, 2017 4:21:00 PM GMT

Flickr has revealed their top 25 photos of 2017, and there are some truly stunning shots in the mix.

Published Friday, December 8, 2017 3:00:00 PM GMT

Testing of the Canon G1 X Mark III is well underway, inside of the studio and out. We've just added it to our test scene comparison tool, where you can take a look at its performance side-by-side against peers like the Sony Cyber-shot RX100 V.

Published Friday, December 8, 2017 2:00:00 PM GMT

Whether it's a trip to the beach for some snorkeling or scrambling up a 10,000 ft volcano, the Olympus Tough TG-5 proved to be a great travel companion for Jeff. That's why it's his 2017 Gear of the Year.

Published Friday, December 8, 2017 12:00:00 PM GMT

Last year, the DJI Mavic Pro and the Phantom 4 Professional took top honors in our end of year buying guide. Read on to find out who it this year for beginners, consumers, prosumers, and professionals at a price tag less than $2,000.

Published Thursday, December 7, 2017 11:13:00 PM GMT

Meyer Optik Goerlitz is resurrecting yet another classic lens. This time, the company has set its crowdfunding sights on the Primoplan 75mm F1.9, a lens originally manufactured in a run of just 2,000 back in the 1930s.

Published Thursday, December 7, 2017 6:44:00 PM GMT

Resource Travel's Brandon Cunningham recently joined The Giving Lens for a 10-day adventure in India. A trip he won't soon forget, to a country that left him in "sensory and soul overload."

Published Thursday, December 7, 2017 6:07:00 PM GMT

Meet the new Freefly Movi, a handheld gimbal stabilizer designed by cinema stabilization pros for use with the iPhone. Freefly is calling this little beast "the world's most portable, adaptable, and intuitive cinema robot."

Published Thursday, December 7, 2017 3:58:00 PM GMT

Qualcomm's latest high-end mobile chipset offers higher frame rates and a wider color gamut, among other important camera improvements you can expect to see in next year's flagship smartphones.

Published Thursday, December 7, 2017 3:47:00 PM GMT

Photographer Josselin Cornou recently got trapped in a blizzard in the Snowy Mountains of Australia with his Fujifilm GFX 50S and new Tamron 15-30mm F2.8 lens. Find out how they held up to 110km/h winds and -15°C temperatures.

Published Thursday, December 7, 2017 2:00:00 PM GMT

While film nostalgia reaches an all-time high, Seattle-based pro photographer Sofi Lee is turning back to 'digicams' made between 2008 and 2011.

Published Thursday, December 7, 2017 12:00:00 PM GMT

The fixed prime lens camera market may be a bit niche, but it's here that you'll find some of the best cameras you can buy. Sensors ranging from APS-C to full-frame are designed to match their lenses, which cover ranges from 28-75mm equivalent, so image quality is top-notch.

Published Wednesday, December 6, 2017 8:40:00 PM GMT

With a capacity of 512GB, Samsung's new UFS chips take built-in storage on smartphones to desktop-PC levels. Will this eliminate the need for microSD slots?

Published Wednesday, December 6, 2017 8:31:00 PM GMT

Photographer Josh Rossi decided to go big for this year's Christmas card, so he recreated the Star Wars: The Last Jedi poster using himself, his wife, and their two kids.

Published Wednesday, December 6, 2017 7:38:00 PM GMT

In response to a NY Times article about how some traffickers were using Instagram as part of the illicit animal trade, Instagram has added a content advisory screen that pops up to warn users any time they search for hashtags "associated with harmful behavior to animals."

Published Wednesday, December 6, 2017 7:28:00 PM GMT

Kodak is expanding its instant photography lineup today with the release of the Kodak Mini Shot Instant 10MP camera. A tiny little digital camera that spits out either 2.1 x 3.4-inch or 2.1 x 2.1-inch prints.

Published Wednesday, December 6, 2017 7:02:00 PM GMT

Huawei'e next high-end smartphone could be the first to take computational imaging to the next level with a triple-camera that spits out 40MP files.

Published Wednesday, December 6, 2017 4:57:00 PM GMT

Landscape photographer Spencer Cox recalls the single most rewarding—and frightening—landscape photography experience of his life: photographing a sandstorm.

Published Wednesday, December 6, 2017 4:41:00 PM GMT

Photography app developer Sebastian de With showed off the power of shooting Raw with the iPhone X in a recent article, pointing out some of the advantages and disadvantages of the format when using a smartphone.

Published Wednesday, December 6, 2017 4:00:00 PM GMT

AI-powered photo editing is advancing a lot faster than anybody expected. Watch as this NVIDIA AI transforms night into day, rain into sunshine, and a summer's day into a bleak winter landscape.

Published Wednesday, December 6, 2017 2:00:00 PM GMT

A full-production Canon G1 X Mark III review unit rolled into our office last week. Take a look at some of our first full-resolution sample images while the testing continues.

Published Wednesday, December 6, 2017 12:00:00 PM GMT

Long-zoom compacts fill the gap between pocketable cameras and interchangeable lens models with expensive lenses, offering a great combination of lens reach and portability. Here's a look at the category's current offerings and which ones we like best.

Published Tuesday, December 5, 2017 7:50:00 PM GMT

Lifeprint's new model can still print Apple Live Photos and video stills you can view in full via augmented reality, only now they're 3 by 4.5 inches in size, compared to the original version's 2 by 3-inch prints.

Published Tuesday, December 5, 2017 7:06:00 PM GMT

As Lytro completes its pivot into the professional video market, the Lytro desktop app is now the only tool for interacting with Lytro's light field images off-camera. Bye bye social media support.

Published Tuesday, December 5, 2017 6:50:00 PM GMT

The Pinhole Pro S comes in two flavors. The S11 is an 11mm lens with a 120 degree FOV designed for mirrorless cameras, while the S36 is a 37mm lens with a 60 degree FOV designed for DSLRs.

Published Tuesday, December 5, 2017 5:42:00 PM GMT

These backpacks come with all sorts of built-in tech: from LED strips soldered into the straps, to a built-in power bank for charging your cameras (or other devices) on-the-go.

Published Tuesday, December 5, 2017 4:49:00 PM GMT

Researchers have developed a new Neural Network called Deep Image Prior that can restore damaged images and enhance low-resolution ones, using only the original image itself as a guide.

Published Tuesday, December 5, 2017 3:23:00 PM GMT

Lensrentals and LensProToGo have joined forces, forming a strategic partnership "to create the strongest photo and video equipment rental company in United States."

Published Tuesday, December 5, 2017 3:00:00 PM GMT

If you come to Idaho looking for incredible landscapes to photograph, you won't leave disappointed. We spent a few days with Resource Travel Editor and Idaho resident Michael Bonocore road tripping through his amazing state – and capturing the journey with the Canon EOS 6D Mark II.

Published Tuesday, December 5, 2017 1:00:00 PM GMT

The Nikon D850 appeared destined to tower over the camera world like some colossus until the Sony a7R III emerged like some rival kaiju. Now we've had a chance to shoot both cameras in a variety of situations, which wins the battle of the behemoths?

Published Tuesday, December 5, 2017 12:00:00 PM GMT

The very best digital cameras on the market will cost you at least $2000. That's a lot of money, but generally speaking these cameras offer serious enthusiasts and working pros the highest resolution, best build quality and most advanced video specs out there. Here are our picks in the group.