Review

by David Cardinal

There is no question that Sigma has really upped its game with its new family of Global Vision lenses. I love the GV-version of the Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 OS HSM Lens, and continue to feel it is the world’s best lens for vehicle-based wildlife photography. This month I’ve had the pleasure of shooting with its new Sigma 24-105mm OS HSM Lens on both a Nikon D4S and a Nikon D7100. The short version is that the lens lives up to the Global Vision brand, but read on to see whether it might be the right mid-range zoom for you:

With apologies to various rock legends for ripping off their song title, that’s how I felt after shooting a concert yesterday with a review Nikon D4S. I wanted to stress the low-light shooting capability of the camera, so I deliberately brought a slower zoom (my really handy Nikon 70-200mm f/4 AF-S). That allowed me to be a little more maneuverable in the crowd, but forced me to bump my ISO way up. I picked ISO 25600 (I probably could have survived with half that, but I wanted to really push the envelope). In any case, the Nikon D4S delivered in three really major ways:

Adobe has taken Lightroom mobile, announcing a highly simplified version for the iPad that syncs seamlessly with your main computer’s Lightroom collections. It is well-designed and a joy to use. I’ve been working with it for the last week, and have posted my hands-on review on Extremetech. Frankly, the tablet I carry every day isn’t an iPad (it’s a Samsung Note 10.1 2014 Edition), but Lightroom mobile is one of the first apps that’s tempted me to bring an iPad along as well. It’s free to get started for anyone with a Creative Cloud or Photographer Program subscription from Adobe (you will need one of those, unfortunately for folks who’ve been buying Lightroom a la carte).

Nikon’s compact interchangeable lens camera line, Nikon 1, has met with decidedly mixed success. Its small-size, extensive features, and reasonable pricing have made it a popular backup or “pocket-size” alternative to a full-size DSLR. However, Nikon’s choice of a relatively-small 1” sensor in the cameras has reduced their image quality to that of a high-end point and shoot (like the Sony RX-100, that features the same size sensor). Now Nikon has decided to push its luck a little further, with the same small sensor packaged into the new, feature-rich Nikon 1 V3 …

Like many photographers, I rely on my portable speaker when I travel. When giving slideshows, it adds punch to the soundtrack compared to my laptop – and I can place it someplace more central instead of where I happen to be standing. When I’m in the field, there are times when we also use bird calls (only on private ranches, in a very limited way, with non-threatened species!), and having a remote speaker is a must. Recently, I’ve been working with a cool, new one from Tylt – the Tunz – that also combines a battery pack you can use to recharge your phone…

As if point and shoot cameras weren’t having enough trouble, Sony is now selling a mirrorless camera with an APS-C sensor for $350 with a 16-50mm lens. The Sony NEX-3N features a 16MP sensor and BIONZ image processor. You can jack the ISO up to 16000 (although with noise of course) and it shoots 60 fps video at 1080i.  

Featuring an excellent 1” sensor and Zeiss f/1.8 zoom lens packed into a solidly-made black metal cylinder, the Sony QX100 is a nice piece of hardware. Unfortunately awkward ergonomics and seriously deficient software leave it adrift as more of a curiosity or a niche product than any type of segment-defining breakthrough. Let’s look at what it does right, and wrong, and whether it still might be in your future…

Sometimes you just can’t be where you want to get the right angle on a shot. Or maybe you thought you were, but later you need to use the photo in a different way and want to move your perspective around. Photoshop has always offered some tools to do that, but today Adobe added a powerful new one – Perspective Warp. Using it you can shift the apparent point of view of an image around, even creating combinations of perspectives that could never have been captured in a single photo…

I’ve been shooting almost exclusively with the Nikon Df DSLR for the last month. When I crouch behind the retro-styled body and snap off shots that will be captured on the excellent D4 sensor, I feel like it could be the ultimate street photography camera. It is quick enough (5.5 fps), has world-class image quality, and is about half the size and weight of a Nikon D4. Besides, I figure it looks cool, and I certainly get some odd glances as if to say “is that a film camera you’re using?” My euphoria lasts until I need to change a setting. That’s where the retro design gets in the way. Read on and I’ll help you decide if the Nikon Df needs to be in your camera bag or in your collection…

Happy 2014, everyone. I wanted to start the year off right, so for our first review I’m covering a really slick camera bag I had the pleasure of using for nearly a month on my Southeast Asia photo tour. (If you’re in Las Vegas, you’ll see me with it at CES next week too). It is the new ThinkTank Retrospective 7, although many of the points in the review apply equally well to its siblings like the ThinkTank Retrospective 20, or the variety of other sized bags in the product line…

In the bad old days of early DSLRs, noise reduction was a vital piece of every workflow. With modern DSLRs, and even many smaller cameras, low-noise is the norm for most sensors in most conditions. But no matter what camera you have, there comes a time when you have to push its limits and bump up the ISO until you get visible noise. That’s when a high-quality noise reduction tool is a must.

As regular readers know, I’ve been putting together the pieces of a easy-to-travel-with “digital darkroom” based on a tablet and software. I’ve written about how a tablet with Photoshop Touch can do a great job of processing images, but was still missing a good solution for creating awesome slideshows without a computer. Fortunately, Photodex, makeers of my favorite desktop slideshow software Proshow Producer, has been hard at work at an excellent version you can use over the web.

As a Nikon shooter, I’ve been both tantalized and frustrated for nearly a decade with Nikon’s on-again, off-again approach to WiFi connectivity for its DSLRs. The original WT-1A was an expensive boat anchor in practice. Four generations later, the Nikon WT-5A is a huge improvement, but it is $570 and only works with the $6K Nikon D4. Those with lesser cameras like the Nikon D600 or Nikon D800 benefit from the incredibly small, inexpensive Nikon WU-1b. It’s fun for remote shooting, but is crippled – deliberately or just because of its limited hardware – in not offering remote focusing or camera setting adjustments. Fortunately there is now a middle ground…

For the last year, the Nikon D800 (and especially the Nikon D800e) have reigned as the highest-scoring camera in DxO’s extensive and widely-cited tests. For those willing to carry the moderately large 2.2 pound camera, and shell out $3K to buy one, you get massively sharp, colorful 36MP images. However, the Sony a7R is threatening to knock the Nikon D800e off its pedestal…

Nikon’s poorly kept secret of its classicly-lined Df photo-only DSLR is finally out in the open. The Nikon Df, harkening back to Nikon’s flagship “F"-Series” pro SLRs is now available for pre-order, and the specs are head-turning. It isn’t for everyone, but serious street photographers, classic photojournalists, collectors, and hobbyists should take a look.

I wrote up the camera and its features, along with new 50mm lens for Extremetech, so see what you think. If you decide to buy, you can pre-order in either Silver or Black for $2750, or in Silver with the new 50mm lens or Black with the new 50mm lens for $3000 from B&H.