June 2015 ~ camera news

TechRadar 10 best digital cameras you can buy in 2015

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 8:57 AM

The best camera you can buy isn't always the one that costs the most money. People want different things from their cameras, so while pros will want a powerful DSLR at the heart of an extensive system of lenses and accessories, it will be big, heavy, awkward and almost certainly not the 'best' camera for the rest of us.

Photography enthusiasts want the best combination of performance and versatility for their money, which could be a DSLR or a mirrorless camera – both take interchangeable lenses. Or maybe what you actually need is a high-end compact camera with the controls of a digital SLR in a body you can fit in your pocket? Or a long-zoom bridge camera capable of tackling just about any subject under the sun?

And the fact is that for many of us a camera is just a tool. As long the picture quality is good enough, the camera just has to be easy, affordable and effective. So we've picked the 10 best cameras you can buy right now across this whole spectrum of users, and along the way we'll explain the pros and cons of each type.

The top DSLR for quality conscious experts and professionals

Full-frame sensor

Super-high 36Mp resolution

Big and expensive

Only 5fps continuous shooting

The Nikon D810 has an ultra-high resolution full frame sensor and a surprisingly affordable price tag for a professional camera. In fact, many well-heeled enthusiasts have scraped up the cash to buy it too. It has no anti-aliasing filter in front of the sensor which produces even sharper fine detail. The D810 is a classic DSLR which shows the view through the lens via a mirror (which flips up at the moment of exposure) and an optical viewfinder, and it's at the centre of a huge range of lenses and other accessories for both amateurs and pros.

Read the full review:

Pro performance on an amateur budget, and perfect for action

10fps continuous shooting

Sophisticated hybrid autofocus

Fixed (non-articulating) screen

Pricey for an APS-C DSLR

One of the reasons the Nikon D810 is so expensive is its full-frame sensor. Most non-professional DSLRs, though, use smaller APS-C size sensors, which deliver quality that's almost as good at a much lower cost. This is the sensor size used in the Canon EOS 7D Mark II, which designed for sports, action and wildlife photography where speed and responsiveness are paramount. It's the first enthusiast DSLR to shoot continuously at 10 frames per second, matching the speed of professional DSLRs like the Canon-1D X and Nikon D4s but at a much lower cost.

Read the full review:

A mirrorless camera that looks and works like a top DSLR

Classic controls and handling

Excellent colours and image quality

16Mp not the highest resolution

Lens range still growing

Mirrorless cameras (also called compact system cameras) are really catching on. They take interchangeable lenses, just like DSLRs, but instead of using a mirror and an optical viewfinder they display the image captured 'live' on the LCD or, if they have on, in an electronic viewfinder. The Fuji X-T1 is one of our favourites. It looks, feels and handles just like a traditional 35mm film SLR and Fuji's excellent X-Trans sensor delivers rich, film-like colours and high levels of detail.

Read the full review:

The bridge camera for the photographer who wants quality too

Large 1-inch sensor

Very good lens

Big, heavy and not cheap

Not the longest zoom range

Bridge cameras, technically, are 'compact' cameras. Actually, they're not compact at all – this term simply means cameras with fixed, non-interchangeable lenses. The point about bridge cameras is that they have lenses with such a huge zoom range that they can still tackle almost any subject. The downside with most bridge cameras is that they have tiny 1/2.3-inch sensors – but the Panasonic FZ1000 is the exception. It has a much larger 1-inch sensor that delivers a big step up in definition, low light performance and picture quality in general. Other bridge cameras have a longer zoom range, but the FZ1000 delivers the best blend of zoom range and picture quality combined.

Read the full review:

Amazing big-sensor quality and classic controls in a pocket-sized camera

Micro Four Thirds sensor

Classic manual controls

12Mp resolution not the highest

Pocketable but only just

The LX100 is a compact camera of a different sort. It's designed for keen photographers who like all the manual controls and features of a digital SLR or compact system, but need a camera that can slip into a jacket pocket. Usually, this means you have to put up with a small sensor and reduced quality, but Panasonic a way to squeeze a Micro Four Thirds sensor into the LX100 – the same size used in Olympus and Panasonic mirrorless cameras. It also has a great 4x zoom with a fast maximum aperture of f1/7-2.8. This, combined with the big sensor, makes it great for low-light photography and creative shallow depth of field effects. It's not cheap, but it is brilliant.

Read the full review:

Get the DSLR look and feel in a super-small mirrorless camera

Super-compact metal body

Classic DSLR-style layout

Smaller sensor than APS-C rivals

Autofocus slows in low light

If you like the size of the Panasonic LX100 but not the fixed lens, there is an alternative. The Olympus OM-D E-M10 is only a little larger, and while it's barely a 'pocket' camera, it is nevertheless amazingly compact – it's dramatically smaller than any DSLR (and many other compact system cameras) and yet it has interchangeable lenses, a really good electronic viewfinder and looks and feels remarkably like an old OM 35mm SLR. Olympus and Panasonic use Micro Four Thirds sensors in their mirrorless cameras. These sensors are a little smaller than the APS-C sensors in rival cameras, but they don't give much away in quality and do allow super-compact designs like this.

Read the full review:

Cheap to buy, easy to use – the perfect 'starter' DSLR

Brilliant 24-megapixel sensor

Value for money

Simplistic external controls

Fixed screen

The D3300 is Nikon's entry-level digital SLR, so it would be easy to write it off as a novice camera for beginners. Don't. Its control layout is optimised for photography newcomers, true, but all the manual controls of a serious DSLR are still there in the menus and interactive on-screen interface, and inside the D3300 is one of the best APS-C sensors on the market, regardless of price. Nikon's 24-megapixel CMOS sensor has no anti-aliasing filter, so it delivers some of the finest detail you'll see outside of the professional full-frame camera market. The D3300 might look simple, but it's a terrific camera to learn and grow with, and it's excellent value for money.

Read the full review:

The perfect travel camera – small but versatile and with a big zoom

30x wideangle-to-telephoto zoom range

Manual controls and even raw files

Small sensor restricts quality

A touch-screen would have been nice

But despite all this talk of sensor size, image quality and high-end features, there are times when the most important thing is a camera cheap enough to buy, small enough to carry and versatile enough for what you want it to do. The Panasonic TZ70 (ZS50 is the US) is the perfect example. It's a pocket-size 'travel camera' with a massive 30x zoom range so that you can photograph a cramped and crowded souk one minute and distant minaret the next. The small sensor restricts the maximum image quality, but the results are perfectly good enough for sharing and printing and the TZ70 even has a viewfinder for times when there's too much glare to use the LCD.

Read the full review:

The alternative travel camera – it can go anywhere you can

Rugged, go-anywhere capability

GPS built in

Good but not great picture quality

Some rivals are 'crushproof' too

If you like your vacations to be a little more adventurous, or if you just like to spend time in the sea not the city, a waterproof compact camera might be a better choice. The Canon PowerShot D30 is our favorite because it's waterproof to a depth of 25m – that's really deep for any camera not in a professional waterproof housing. It's shockproof too, withstanding drops from heights of up to 2m, freezeproof (down to -10 centigrade) and dustproof. Why get a regular point-and-shoot compact when you can pay just a little more and get one that can stand anything you can throw at it? The D30 even has GPS built in, so your pictures have their location embedded within them.

Read the full review:

Cheap point and shoot camera that combines simplicity with style

Cheap and straightforward

5x zoom and smart finish

Picture quality average

Slow continuous shooting

Finally, if what you really want is just to get the best little camera possible for the smallest amount of money, we reckon you can't do better than the Sony W800. If you want to be picky you can criticise almost everything about modest little point-and-shoot cameras like this, from the small sensor and adequate-but-no-more image quality to the plastic build and simple controls – but the W800 camera take perfectly good snapshots without requiring any technical know-how and manages to look like a classy bit of kit despite its bargain price. It even has a 5x zoom and a standard HD video mode, and weighing just 109g, it'll slip straight into a shirt or trouser pocket.

Read the full review:

The best GoPro photos in the world, prepare to lose your breath

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 12:08 AM

Since GoPro launched its latest camera range in the GoPro Hero4 the photos being created are stunning. With it comes new 4K video speeds of 30 frames per second, a rear touchscreen display and two times faster image processing. The camera remains largely the same at 12-megapixels with an f/2.8 aperture - but the photos appearing online are breath-taking.

GoPro's decision to keep the camera the same shows that it's already very good. Thanks to the camera, and video stills, the internet is awash with stunning images from GoPros around the world. Finding them all is a bit of a job, so we've done it for you.

From surfing and skydiving to animal close-ups and stunning scenery, this gallery has some breath taking images that we only get to see thanks to the GoPro. No longer are rare wildlife photos restricted to pros who spend years awaiting the perfect shot – now thousands of GoPros are scanning the world all at once, constantly. We're only ever going to get more amazing shots to wow us.

For now enjoy this selection found mainly from Facebook, Flickr, GoPro and Photobucket.

If you've got photos taken on your GoPro you wish to submit then please or .

TechRadar MacPhun sees the world in black and white with Tonality Pro 1.2

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 5:56 PM

There are two ways to edit your photos. If you use a regular image-editor like Photoshop you need to know the effect you want to achieve and then work out how (the heck) to achieve it.

But Tonality Pro, like MacPhun's other Mac-only photo-editing apps, does it differently. It gives you dozens of possible treatments for your images that you might never have thought of, applies them with a single click and has a simple slider for reducing the strength of the effect.

If you want more control than that, Tonality Pro has an adjustment panel with a huge array of controls. Each effect is made up of a series of individual adjustments to Color Temperature, Tone, Clarity & Structure, Tone Curve, Split Toning and more. More complex effects can be created by 'stacking' adjustments using Tonality Pro's in-built Layers.

By selecting a preset effect and then examining the adjustments it applies, you can 'reverse-engineer' the effects and create your own.

Layers in Tonality Pro can be given 'masks' to control their effect, and the new luminosity mask option creates one based on the brightness values in the original image. You can use this to increase (or reduce) the power of the effect in brighter and darker parts of the picture.

It's now possible to open your Apple Photos library from within Tonality Pro, choose an image for editing and then share it back to your Photos library. Unlike iPhoto, Photos doesn't directly support external image editors, so this is a handy workaround.

There are seven new preset effects and MacPhun has added Force Touch control for adjusting the brush size on new Macbooks.

The Pro version adds support for Lightroom CC – you can even send raw files from Lightroom to Tonality Pro to preserve maximum quality, rather than just sending a Lightroom raw conversion as a TIFF file.

Tonality standard edition works solely as a standalone program. It's available from the Mac App Store for an introductory price of £9.99/US$12.99. Tonality Pro, however, can work both as a standalone program and as a plug-in for Lightroom, Photoshop and Aperture (nice to know third-party suppliers are still supporting it, even if Apple isn't!). The Pro version adds layers, 'zone system' contrast control, a histogram and sundry other enhancements. The Pro version costs £49.99/US$59.99 from the , and you can also upgrade from the standard version.

TechRadar DxO's new plug-in camera turns your iPhone into a DSLR (nearly)

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 5:56 PM

This isn't the first time someone's tried to make an add-on camera for smartphones. Sony's 'lens cameras' like the and clamp on to your phone, connect via Wi-Fi and pair up with your phone in a kind of symbiotic relationship. The camera has the sensor and the lens, but the phone controls it and offers live view and image playback via an app.

More recently, Olympus has released its own Olympus Air A01 product which works in exactly the same way, but this time using the company's Micro Four Thirds system, so that you can use different lenses.

The issue we had with the Sony camera was the sluggishness of the Wi-Fi connection and the effect this had on day-to-day picture taking, but the DxO one won't have any such problem because it just physically plugs in. You get a direct electronic connection and a physical mounting system at the same time.

The only reason for add-on smartphone cameras to exist is if they massively improve on the camera already built into the phone. Sony's lens cameras do this by offering a big zoom lens (QX30) or a big sensor for better quality (QX1).

The DxO One takes a slightly different approach. It relies on a much bigger sensor than the , a 20-megapixel 1-inch back-illuminated device of the type found in some serious, high-end compact cameras like the Sony RX100 and Canon G7 X. It also has a fast f/1.8 lens and small, neat body that fits the design rather well.

This bigger sensor should deliver better resolution, better dynamic range and better noise control at high ISOs than the iPhone camera – not to mention 2.5 times as many pixels.

DxO likens the quality to a DSLRs, which seems a trifle optimistic given that a typical DSLR's APS-C sensor is around three times larger, but DxO's expertise in image optimization, processing and correction could help close the gap.

The DxO One doesn't have a zoom lens, though. The fixed 32mm lens offers roughly the same angle of view as the iPhone camera, but it has a maximum aperture of f/1.8. This won't just make it better in low light – in combination with the larger sensor it should be capable of some nice shallow depth of field effects.

Take a look at our to see what we thought of the camera when we tried it out at DxO's press launch. We weren't able to test the picture quality, but the way it handles and connects to the iPhone seems well thought out.

The DxO One can be used as a standalone camera in fully automatic mode, but to get the full range of controls, live view and playback, you need it to be connected to your iPhone. It's actually a very powerful camera, with full program AE, aperture-priority, shutter-priority and manual exposure modes, full HD movies and the ability to shoot raw files as well as JPEGs.

The DxO one isn't cheap at £499/US$599, but this is no novelty iPhone accessory – it's a serious high-end compact camera designed for photographers who want to explore the potential of connected smartphone photography without the limitations of a smartphone camera.

iPhone Photography Awards: The amazing winning pictures

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 5:07 AM

The winners of the 8th annual iPhone Photography Awards have been announced and wow, are some of the shots absolutely stunning.

Founded in 2007 soon after the iPhone first launched, the awards looks to reward photographers who've ditched their camera in favour of the Apple smartphone.

This year saw thousands of images submitted by iPhone photographers from 120 countries around the world.

Winners are selected by jury members in a multi-step process and The Photographers of the Year are then awarded.

The three Photographers of the Year Awards this year go to Michal Koralewski of Poland, David Craik of the United Kingdom and Yvonne Lu of the United States.

The 1st, 2nd and 3rd places in 19 categories were awarded to 57 photographers.

"This year’s entries were especially impressive ranging from intimate, thought-provoking moments to stunning, captivating imagery," said IPPAWARDS creator Kenan Aktulun. "We’d like to congratulate all of our winners who once again showed the ability of the iPhone to take astonishing photographs."

And their prize? The three Photographer of the Year Award winners will receive an Apple Watch Sport. The first place winner in each category will be awarded a Gold Bar from the most recognisable private gold mint in the world.

You can check out the full list of winners at the website.

Ricoh GR II compact camera brings upgraded processing, large image sensor and smartphone support

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 5:07 AM

Ricoh has taken the wraps of its latest compact camera dubbed the GR II.

This compact system camera features a large 16.9-megapixel APS-C size CMOS image sensor for the best possible quality and 1080p video. That's combined with the GR Engine V for processing.

This has had a boost with a reprogrammed white-balance algorithm that should improve the precision of Auto White Balance. This should also allow for fine-tuning of the compensation programme which should prevent high-sensitivity noise.

This new system should also accommodate a wider variety of scenes and subjects thanks to new creative tools. These include six new effect modes: Clarity, Brilliance, Bright, Portrait, Vibrant and HDR Tone. That makes a total of 17 modes available.

The lens offers a f/2.8-16 aperture with a 35mm equivalent focal length.

For the more professional photographers out there the GR II also features a wireless flash discharge function for use with external flash units.

Ricoh has also put the work in to make sure the GR II takes advantage of anything your smartphone can add to the experience. The GR Remote is an app that allows for mobile control of the camera using the smartphone's touchscreen – just like on the camera's LCD panel.

Ricoh has also included Image Sync, incorporated in Pentax digital SLR models, to allow file sharing with other devices. This is ideal for viewing images on a larger screen, for example.

The Ricoh GR II will be available in mid-July and will cost £600.

TechRadar Canon defies conventions with its new G3 X compact superzoom

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 2:56 AM

The G3 X has been an open secret for some time and we've been featuring it for months on our page – but now Canon has announced it officially. The headline feature is its 25x optical zoom, offering the equivalent of 24-600mm.

There are lots of compact travel zoom cameras like the , say, that go even further, while top bridge cameras like the and offer 65x and 83x optical zooms respectively.

But the point about the G3 X is that it offers a big zoom range in conjunction with a much bigger (and hence better) sensor. Regular travel zooms and bridge cameras use titchy 1/2.3-inch sensors, and that restricts the kind of image quality they can produce, but the 1-inch sensor in the G3 X is four times larger. That means it should capture more detail, produce less noise and – potentially – offer increased dynamic range. It's not as big as the APS-C sensors in most digital SLRs and compact system cameras, but it's half way there.

This is the sensor used in the high-end compact, and we gave that camera 4.5 stars.

The key factor, of course, is going to be the quality of the lens. The 25x zoom range is not especially long on small-sensor cameras, but it's the first time we've seen one with this kind of zoom range on a camera with a 1-inch sensor. Even our favorite bridge camera, the mighty Panasonic FZ1000 (which also has a 1-inch sensor) can only manage a 16x zoom range.

That doesn't make the G3 X better straight away, though. For a start, the FZ1000 has a constant f/2.8 maximum aperture, where the G3 X lens has a variable f/2.8-5.6 lens. And where the FZ1000 has an electronic viewfinder built in, it's an optional extra on the G3 X – which is already pretty expensive.

The G3 X is pitched at enthusiasts and offers full manual control and the ability to shoot raw files, as you'd expect from a camera in this class.

It has a dust and drip-proof body, and it can shoot continuously at 5.9 frames per second. The larger should mean it delivers good image quality in low light, too – it has a maximum ISO 0f 12,800. It has Wi-Fi and NFC for remote camera control via a smart device and quick and easy cable-free image transfer.

The G3 X is very adept at movies, too – in fact it reads more like the spec list for a high-end DSLR, not a compact camera. It can shoot full HD at frame rates from 24p to 60p, and it offers manual control of shutter speed, lens aperture and ISO in movie mode. It has a socket for an external mic, as you'd expect, but it also has a headphone socket for monitoring audio during recording. And the Canon's 5-axis image stabilization operates in movie mode too.

For less serious film makers there's a Short Clip Movie mode which captures movies of 4, 5 or 6 seconds in length, and there's a Story Highlights Mode which can automatically assemble stills and video clips into shareable movies.

The G3 X does not easily fit, however, into any existing camera category. It doesn't have the chunky profile of a typical bridge camera, but it measures a pretty substantial 123.3 x 76.5 x 105.3mm (4.9 x 3.0 x 4.1 inches) and weighs a hefty 733g (26 oz). It might look a little like a long-zoom compact travel camera, but its size (mainly the length of the lens) puts it well outside that category.

The Canon PowerShot G3 X goes on sale in mid-July and will cost £799.

TechRadar The Ricoh GR II puts a DSLR sensor in a pocket-sized body

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 2:56 AM

The is the classic fixed focal length compact that camera buffs will dream of, the full-frame is almost as desirable and the has become an affordable modern classic – but why is the Ricoh GR so often overlooked?

It's beautifully designed pocket camera with a history that goes right back to the days of film. The current GR was introduced in May 2013, with an APS-C sensor, a fixed focal length f/2.8 lens and a body barely larger than a regular compact camera. It's smaller, more portable and cheaper than any of its rivals, and we liked the GR so much we gave it a . This new version builds on its abilities with new features and improved image quality.

Superficially, the 16.2-megapixel APS-C sensor in the GR II looks the same as the one in its predecessor, but Ricoh says it's tuned the image processing to offer better auto white balance adjustment and better noise reduction at high ISOs.

And while the lens specs are broadly the same, the new version has two 'high-precision' aspherical elements and one high-refraction low-dispersion element to produce what the company says is the best GR-series lens yet. It has a 9-bladed diaphragm for natural-looking 'bokeh' in out of focus areas and there's an optional conversion lens to widen the 28mm effective focal length to a super-wide 21mm.

The major additions are Wi-Fi and NFC, which were absent from the previous version. These allow remote control via Ricoh's GR Remote smart device app and Image Sync image transfer tool.

Ricoh has also added six new effects: Clarity, Brilliance, Bright, Portrait, Vibrant and HDR tone – this takes the total to 17. It also offers wireless flash control with compatible external flash units, and full HD movies at 30 frames per second.

The GR II is aimed at serious and discerning enthusiasts, so naturally it offers program AE, aperture-priority, shutter-priority and manual modes, and it can shoot raw files as well as JPEGs.

Other features include in-camera raw processing, dynamic range compensation for high-contrast scenes and an Interval Composite mode for long exposures which takes a series of exposures at fixed intervals but adds only the brightest parts of each to the overall exposure.

Like the GR, the GR II is a strongly-made little camera with a magnesium alloy body that measures just 117.0 × 62.8 × 34.7mm (4.6 ×2.5 ×1.4 inches) and weighs 251g (8.9oz). It's quite nippy, too, with an autofocus time as short as 0.2 seconds and a 1-second startup time. It can shoot continuously at 4 frames per second and Ricoh has increased the buffer capacity so that it can capture up to 10 raw files in a row. Its small size, unobtrusiveness and speed should make the GR II ideal for rapid-fire street photography.

It's not a major update over the previous version, but the addition of Wi-Fi and NFC keeps the GR II up to date with current technologies.

The Ricoh GR II goes on sale in mid-July at £599.99.

TechRadar 10 best DSLRs of 2015

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 11:55 AM

If you're serious about photography you're going to want a camera with interchangeable lenses. Compact system cameras are catching up fast, but most keen photographers still choose a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex).

The pros go for full-frame DSLRs with a sensor the same size as the 35mm film format, but DSLRs with smaller APS-C sensors (around half the size) can produce results almost as good at a fraction of the price.

With the DSLR design an internal mirror reflects the scene up into an optical viewfinder for maximum clarity, and the moment you press the shutter release the mirror flips up and out of the way and the shutter opens to expose the sensor at the back of the camera. It's a tried and trusted camera design that goes back decades.

Our favourite DSLRs aren't just the ones with the best features and the most power – we also rate cameras that are beginner-friendly, give you value for money and punch well above their weight. So whatever your level of expertise, and budget, we reckon you'll find the perfect DSLR right here.

Nikon's full-frame favorite combines sky-high resolution with solid build and value

The full frame Nikon D810 is the king of the DSLR jungle. It's got the highest resolution of any DSLR (until the Canon 5DS goes on general sale), it's built like a tank and handles beautifully. Best of all, the D810 doesn't cost the earth. It's expensive compared to APS-C DSLRs, but for a pro camera it's actually quite cheap, and Nikon has ditched the anti-aliasing filter usually placed in front of DSLR sensors in order to maximise its formidable resolution. If you're into sports, action and wildlife photography, the Canon EOS-1D X and Nikon D4s have faster continuous shooting speeds, but neither can match the D810's outright image quality – or its value for money.

Read:

As fast as pro DSLRs but priced for amateurs, the 7D Mark II ticks all the boxes

We've mentioned the formidable Canon 1D X and Nikon D4s because they have very high continuous shooting speeds – that's why they cost thousands. But then Canon launched the EOS 7D Mark II, a camera that brings 10fps shooting and a professional autofocus system to the amateur market. Now you can shoot action and sports like the pros, but at a price within the reach of enthusiasts. The 7D Mark II isn't just a high-speed specialists, it's a terrific all-round camera. It's tough, with an alloy body and weather-sealed controls, it has a great sensor with an advanced dual-pixel hybrid autofocus system, and it's powerful video camera too.

Read:

Versatile, powerful and capable of excellent results – perfect for enthusiasts

Or if you want the quality but you don't need the speed, take a look at the Nikon D7200. It's a lot cheaper than Canon EOS 7D Mark II and uses Nikon's latest 24-megapixel APS-C format sensor with no anti-aliasing filter to produce some of the sharpest images you'll see outside of professional full-frame cameras. The D7200 doesn't match the Canon's sheer speed, but it can still shoot at 6 frames per second for up to 100 JPEG photos or 27 raw files, and it uses a 51-point autofocus system taken straight from Nikon's pro DSLR range.

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Steady price drops make Canon's versatile mid-range DSLR a smart choice

Cheaper still is Canon's old-but-good EOS 70D that combines swivel-screen versatility with fast Dual-Pixel AF in live view mode and a speedy 19-point AF system when shooting through the viewfinder. The 70D can shoot continuously at 7 frames per second, so it's good for capturing action, and it offers many of the features of Canon's pro cameras – including an extra status LCD on the top plate and dual control dials – but in an affordable body. The EOS 70D was launched back in July 2013, but don't let that put you off. Its sensor is still one of Canon's latest, and it's age has simply pushed down the prices.

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Super-fast AF and shooting speeds show the true potential of Sony's SLT design

And don't overlook Sony's Alpha DSLTs, or 'Digital Single Lens Translucents'. These look and handle like regular DSLRs but use a fixed mirror and an electronic viewfinder instead. This means the camera's phase-detection autofocus system is available all the time and you don't have to swap to a slower sensor-based AF system in live view mode. The range has been re-invigorated with this A77 II update that brings super-fast autofocus, a swivelling screen and stunning 12 frame per second continuous shooting capability.

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Full-frame on a budget – the 6D's straightforward design has old-school appeal

But don't assume you need the latest tech to get a good camera. It's tempting to chase the biggest numbers and newest gadgets when choosing a camera, but sometimes the simple things count for more. The EOS 6D is Canon's cheapest full-frame DSLR, and compared to some of the other cameras around it, it's a simple-minded old-school relic. But that full-frame sensor delivers a subtle quality and a sense of depth that you only get from a big sensor, and the no-fuss specs will appeal to quality-conscious photographers who like to keep things simple.

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A full-frame DSLR with performance, versatility and value

Still in full-frame territory, if the price of the D810 at the top of our list is too rich for your blood, consider the Nikon D750 instead. It doesn't have that magnificent 36-megapixel sensor, but its 24-megapixel alternative still delivers top quality, especially at high ISO settings. The D750 is also a bit more versatile than the D810, with a faster 6.5fps continuous shooting speed, a handy tilting screen and a lower price – and you still get the enhanced autofocus system and Picture Control 2.0 options of the D810.

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Cheap cameras don't always bring compromise – the D3300 is basic but brilliant

At the opposite end of the spectrum, the D3300 is cheap as chips, has one of the sharpest APS-C sensors there is and a neat retracting kit lens. It's proof that you don't have to pay a fortune to get a great camera, and we say its sheer value for money makes it just as impressive as much more advanced (and much more expensive) alternatives. It has the same 24-megapixel non-antialiased sensor as the best of Nikon's APS-C format DSLRs, and although the controls are designed to be simple for novices, in the right hands the little D3300 is a match for cameras costing far more.

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Sony's bargain basement DSLR offers great value, especially with lens bundles

Meanwhile, for sheer value you can't do better than the Sony A58. It's the company's cheapest DSLT and it's been around for a little while, but the specs are still quite impressive, including a 20-megapixel APS-C sensor, 8fps continuous shooting and in-built SteadyShot image stabilization. Look out especially for twin-lens kits at a bargain price, and even triple-lens kits. It's a great way to get kitted out with a starter camera system for the least possible money.

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A rugged and powerful alternative to Canon and Nikon DSLRs

And let's not forget Pentax. The DSLR market may be dominated by Canon and Nikon, but Pentax is still turning out innovative and rugged DSLRs which are serious alternatives. The Pentax K-S1 and its novelty lamps is a bit odd, but the newer K-S2 is a proper, rugged DSLR for enthusiasts. Its weatherproof design makes it ideal for challenging outdoor photography, and even though Pentax bills it as a 'family' camera, its twin control dials, fully articulated LCD display and 20-megapixel non-antialiased sensor will appeal to more advanced shooters.

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Canon EOS 5DS and 5DSR 50-Megapixel Full-Frame DSLRs Launched in India

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 8:32 AM

Canon recently launched what it claims to be the highest-resolution full-frame DSLRs - the EOS 5DS and EOS 5DSR. These cameras boast of the same 50.6-megapixel 35mm full-frame CMOS sensor. Both the cameras have been launched in India, and are already available in the country. The body-only variants of the EOS 5DS is priced at Rs. 2,52,995 and the 5DS R will set you back by Rs. 2,65,995. Canon also pulled the wraps off another product - Canon XC10 4K professional video camera - and it is priced at Rs. 1,70,000.

The only difference between the two is that the EOS 5DS has an optical-low pass filter whereas the EOS 5DSR has a self-cancelling filter. What this essentially means is that the 5DS sacrifices optimum image quality for moire cancellation. Some of the other essential features of the camera includes 5fps continuous shooting speed. The cameras can operate in light sensitivity levels of ISO 100-6400 (extends up to 12,800). Both the cameras have a 61-point autofocus points and Dual Digic 6 processors. There 3-inch LCD has a resolution of 104k dots. The cameras can shoot 1080p video at 30fps. Canon has introduced a new cam-motor driven mirror mechanism to minimise mirror vibrations that causes image shake.

On the other hand, the XC10 4K camera is compact 4K camera that can also capture 12-megapixel images. It also has the ability to 8-megapixel still images in-camera from recorded 4K footage. It includes a Canon 10x wide-angle zoom lens with 2x digital tele-converter and optical image stabilisation. There is a new Digic DV5 signal processor which promises better image quality.

Talking about the cameras, Andrew Koh, Senior Director, Image Communications Products Group said, Canon India, "Rapid innovation is key to success in digital imaging industry and the launch of the EOS 5DS and EOS 5DSR cameras reassures our loyalists' trust in the brand, that is always ready to push beyond technology limits. Market insight and strong R&D enabled us to develop many new technologies for the sensor to be used in the EOS 5DS and EOS 5DSR bodies. These products truly meet the demand for high-pixel and high resolution, with no compromise on high image quality."

TechRadar Adobe launches Creative Cloud 2015 with a host of new features

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 8:54 PM

Adobe is calling Creative Cloud 2015 a 'milestone' release, with speed and technology improvements across its desktop and mobile applications. The larger changes, though, are deeper, and aimed more at professional designers and illustrators and publishing organisations.

Creative Cloud is a subscription-based service – you pay a regular subscription to use the applications and online services, rather than buying a software licence outright (different subscription plans are available for different types of user). This subscription model means that the CC 2015 update is free for existing subscribers.

One of the more important announcements for publishing companies is that CC 2015 now offers enterprise-level administration, security, collaboration and publishing tools for businesses and large organisations.

The other big story is the announcement of Adobe Stock, which the company says is 'the industry's first stock content to be integrated directly into the creative process. It offers 40 million photos, vector graphics and illustrations at savings of 'up to 33%', though you have to pay extra to have Adobe Stock added to your subscription plan.

The Photography Plan continues unchanged and includes both Photoshop CC and Lightroom CC. There are a few new tools and features. One is a new 'Dehaze' filter to 'eliminate' fog and haze, both in regular outdoor shots and underwater photography. The Dehaze filter is also added to Lightroom CC.

The Content Aware Fill tool in Photoshop CC has been extended so that it can now fill the edges of stitched panoramas – thought it's about time, since Photoshop Elements, Photoshop's cheaper sibling, has been able to do this for a while.

The Blur Gallery now offers 'additive' noise to make the results look more natural, so that the blurred areas aren't unnaturally smooth compared to the rest of the image.

Adobe also says that the Healing Brush, Spot Healing Brush and Patch tools are now much faster, thanks to improvements to Adobe's Mercury Graphics Engine.

Other improvements to Photoshop CC are aimed at designers and illustrators.

A number of major Adobe desktop applications get some useful improvements in CC 2015.

Photoshop CC also has a new Design Space work environment helps mobile app and website designers, and Artboards are designed for 'cross-device user experiences on a single Photoshop document'.

Premiere Pro CC has a new Lumetri Color Panel for powerful colour corrections, and a Morph Cut tool for smoothing out jump cuts in talking head shots, for example.

After Effects CC now has Uninterrupted Preview so that you can adjust composition and even resize panels with affecting playback. Adobe Character Animator uses a webcam to capture facial movements and dialog and apply them to pre-configured characters, and a new Chart tool offers customisation and sharing options.

Illustrator CC is now ten times faster and 'more precise' than the CS6 version, the last version available on the old Perpetual Licence.

InDesign CC benefits from the same Mercury speed improvements, now scrolling, paging and zooming twice as fast as before.

Dreamweaver CC has new responsive web design capabilities for websites that can adapt to different screen sizes automatically.

Adobe continues to migrate its mobile apps to the Android platform too, adding Android versions of Brush CC, Shape CC, Color CC and Photoshop Mix. The company has also updated some of it's iOS apps, including Adobe Comp CC, Photoshop Mix, Photoshop Sketch, Illustrator Draw, Brush CC, Shape CC and Color CC

A new Adobe Hue CC app is designed for videographers and film makers. Adobe says you can use an iPhone to capture the lighting and colours in a scene and then apply these llight and colour moods into a Premiere Pro CC or After Effects CC project.

Creative Cloud 2015 is available right now via the Creative Cloud app. Different subscription levels are available for different types of user, but here are three key options. Prices quoted are monthly payments based on an annual subscription

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Sony Cyber-shot RX10 II: Superzoom goes super fast (hands-on)

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 3:05 PM

The Sony Cyber-shot RX10 II bucks the trend in cameras. It's the size of a compact system camera or small DSLR, but has a fixed lens like a compact. It lacks the appeal of an interchangeable lens system camera, or the portability of a compact camera.

There aren't many high-end bridge cameras (as they were once called), with the RX10 II sitting in a category that's dominated mostly by superzooms that are affordable and practical, and in the majority of cases, not the most advanced cameras around.

But carrying a price tag of £1200 (gulp), this is a far cry from a £250 superzoom. It has an enthusiast, or pro, specification to start with, and not just in the price tag. Firstly there's the magnesium alloy body, meaning it's hardwearing, and secondly, it's dust and moisture protected, a desirable trait for those wanting to use a camera in all conditions.

As the name suggests, this is the second iteration of this model and the . It's a natural sibling to the excellent Sony Cyber-shot RX100 models, launching alongside the , and offers many of the same advancements.

We got our hands on a pre-production sample of the Sony Cyber-shot RX10 II, although we weren't able to test the outright picture quality of this new model as we weren't allowed to keep any of the shots we took in our brief hands-on session.

Like the RX100 IV, the RX10 II is really about the sensor. It carries a 1.0-type CMOS sensor that Sony has stacked with attached DRAM. That means the sensor has its own integrated memory to give it plenty of processing power, resulting in performance that's five times faster than the predecessor sensor.

Not only are you getting a large sensor - meaning lots of light for lots for great performance - but it's now able to operate much faster, bringing with it a range of high speed benefits.

There are fast shutter speeds up to 1/32000 sec meaning more flexibility in bright conditions and the shutter is anti-distortion too. Basically, because the sensor scan has almost no lag, it won't lead to the distortion you can get on fast moving objects with a normal sensor.

Then there's the benefits offered in video. Not only are you getting 4K video at 100Mbps, but the RX10 II offers longer durations of capture, up to 29 minutes of top quality 4K, making it better suited to video than the RX100 IV, that's limited to just 4 minutes at the top settings. Then there's the super slow-motion down to 1000fps, with a new HFR (high frame rate) setting on the mode dial.

This is all aided by the attached Zeiss lens. It's an f/2.8 constant lens, offering 24-200mm (35mm equiv), sitting in front of that enhanced sensor. If there's one criticism of the big lens, it's that it's rather slow to deploy, as it was before. This isn't like the speedy twist you might apply to a conventional zoom lens, but at least it powers out quietly. All that lens also makes this camera a little front heavy, but with a decent grip, it's not hard to keep stable.

It lends itself to using the EVF for every shot, not only due to the size of the camera, but the prominence of eyepiece. It houses an enhanced XGA OLED viewfinder which is wonderfully clear and sharp. There was a time that we accepted that EVFs were inferior to optical viewfinders and for the most part they are. But the RX10 II (and the RX100 IV) go some way to challenging that notion, there's no fuzz or grain, so it's great to use.

Away from the new sensor-enhanced functions, the RX10 II offers the same feature set as it did before. We'd expect the same performance, but it raises the same questions, and already we've identified some of the shortcomings that bothered us about the previous version of this camera. It's expensive and we're still trying to figure out exactly who will opt for this type of camera at that £1200 price, over a system camera that's the same size.

But if that's you, then the Sony Cyber-shot RX10 II is enhanced and we're certain it will be a great performer, offering a great lens and some great new shooting features.

It will be hitting shelves in summer 2015 and we'll bring you a full review as soon as we can.

Sony Cyber-shot RX100 IV: The best getting better? (hands-on)

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 8:04 PM

Some say that the compact camera is dead. They may be right, as more and more people use their smartphone as a primary camera, making the cheaper compact camera all but redundant.

At the same time, we've seen growing sophistication in high-end compacts, putting real shooting power in your pocket. The was one of the we saw in 2014 and now there's a new version, the RX100 IV.

This isn't just an incremental upgrade, however. Although the RX100 IV carries much the same design and functionality, it's really a story about a new sensor, or rather, a new way of supercharging the sensor.

The key to the RX100 IV's new powers is the stacked CMOS sensor. In this 1.0-type Exmor RS sensor, Sony has added a DRAM chip, increasing the readout speed five-fold and that's what really unlocks the new functions.

We got our hands on a pre-production sample of the RX100 IV and although we aren't able to judge the results (or take away any of the pictures we took), there's a lot of exciting stuff going on. Please excuse the black tape on the bottom of the camera pictured here - that was to stop us taking the SD card out.

As the sensor can capture faster, you have options for very fast shutter speeds, up to 1/32000sec, which means you can shoot directly into the sun, for example, without over exposing. Sony says you can shoot at EV19, meaning you'll be able to shoot at larger apertures in bright conditions, giving you more options for composition.

Sony is boasting that the RX100 IV has an anti-distortion shutter. What this really means is that you won't get strange effects on fast moving objects, because the information is processed so much faster by the sensor, so there's almost no lag as the sensor scans the subject.

One thing we did get to test was the new super slow-motion video option. We didn't have a wet dog or a bursting water balloon, but with a high frame rate position on the dial, it's easy to switch over and start capturing at 960fps, or whatever takes your fancy.

To make space on the mode dial, Sony has combined its auto shooting modes into the same place, presenting iA and iA+ as an option when you switch to the auto position.

Back to the slow-mo video and although you get wonderful slow-motion - something that seems to be "on trend" at the moment - there is a loss of resolution in the process. The samples we've seen, however, are very good, and there are a range of options to help you get the results you want.

One of the nice tricks is letting the camera constantly buffer this video using the video button to end capture rather than start. This means you just have to prepare the camera for capture, then hit to button once the event has occurred. It's great fun and although a regular feature on smartphones, we can't wait to see the results from the RX100 IV getting shared.

There's also the option for 4K video capture with no pixel binning, as well as the option to extract 17-megapixel stills from it as you are recording. It's going to be a great tool for both photography and videography and much of that comes down to the new faster sensor.

Aside from these sorts of fast sensor tricks, the RX100 IV offers the same great features the predecessor did too. That makes for a camera that has a great range of diversity, packing everything into a pocketable package, with a handy control ring on the front around the f/1.8 24-70mm Zeiss lens.

One of the highlights for us is the viewfinder. The OLED viewfinder has been boosted to XGA resolution, with 2.35million dots. It's great the way it packs away for display-only shooting, but from the time we spent using it today, it's sharp, bright and clear. Yes, it's on the small side, but for shooting in bright conditions, it's wonderful to use.

Of course the proof of the pudding is in the eating and we can't wait to snack on the RX100 IV's tasty treats some more. The Sony RX100 IV will be arriving in summer 2015 and has a guide price of €1150, about £840. That's a slight bump above the £650 of the RX100 III, so although you get a lot of attractive features, you're going to have to pay for them.

TechRadar Best cheap GoPro deals 2015: grab yourself an action cam

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 2:52 PM

No one expected GoPro to be so successful when it invented the action camera back in 2004. But here we are, and here you are thinking of buying one.

If you've landed here looking for a cheap GoPro - you might be disappointed as these things are the best of the best and don't come cheap. But we've rounded up all of the best GoPro deals so that if you do want to buy one, you can make sure you get the best possible price.

Well that's up to you. We've ordered the GoPros on this page in order of prestige - the best, most powerful and thus most expensive models are at the top but you'll probably find your perfect cheap GoPro deal further down the page.

The best of the best - the action camera superhero of 2015

GoPro Hero4 Black offers the best image quality of any other GoPro, plus a 2x more powerful processor that delivers super slow motion at 240 frames per second. High-resolution 4K30 and 2.7K601 video combines with 1080p120 and 720p240 slow motion to enable immersive footage of you and your world.

Yes this is the most expensive GoPro of them all, but it you want the best, this is it. If these prices are too high, see further down the page for deals on the other GoPros in the range.

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One step down but still a powerful current-gen action camera

Number 2 in terms of outright awesomeness, the GoPro Hero4 Silver is the first-ever GoPro to feature a built-in touch display. Controlling the camera, framing shots and playing back content is very convenient with this model - just view, tap and swipe the screen. It captures 1080p60 and 720p120 video, plus 12MP photos at 30 frames per second. It's not quite the best but it is cheaper than the GoPro Hero4 Black above.

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Last year's flagship could be yours for a bargain deal

This is last year's flagship model and it's 20% smaller and lighter than its best-selling predecessor, also delivering new features like SuperView. Combined with 30% longer battery life, 4x faster Wi-Fi, a sharper lens and compatibility with all GoPro mounts and accessories, the HERO3+ Black Edition was the most advanced GoPro just 12 months ago so if you can find a good deal, this could be the one to get for GoPro deal hunters.

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A superb action camera only missing some of the very high-end features

This model doesn't record in 4K but does offer 1080p60 video and 10MP photos at speeds of up to 10 frames per second. Built-in Wi-Fi enables you to use the GoPro App to control the camera remotely, preview shots and share your favorites on Facebook, Twitter and more. Compatible with all GoPro mounts, you can wear it or attach it to your gear for immersive POV footage of your favorite activities.

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A high quality action camera now available at some excellent prices

Down at the more basic end, the Hero 3 White doesn't offer any of the high end features like 4K and auto low light mode, but it does still record 1080p video at 30fps and 5MP stills at up to 3 frames per second. It's got built-in WiFi too so you can still use it with the GoPro app despite the low price.

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The value action camera still has a lot to offer

This is the bargain buddy of the GoPro roster, offering basic features but still the full GoPro experience in terms of accessories. It'll do you 1080p at 30fps and 720p at 60fps - if you're not too fussed about mega-high framerates and professional quality 4K video this GoPro could be your deal buddy!

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Our deals are checked every day to make sure all GoPro prices are up to date!

17 of the best astronomy photographs that are out of this world

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 11:01 PM

Just how good do you think you are at taking a picture of the night sky? That's the question thousands asked themselves earlier in the year and soon we will find out whose is the best thanks to the Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition.

The competition, now in its seventh year and run by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, showcases the best astronomy photos that capture the beautiful and spectacular visions of the cosmos, the vast galaxies millions of light years away, and the night sky taken much closer to home.

In all the over 2,700 spectacular images have been submitted from over 60 countries across the globe in the competitions nine main categories.

Those categories include everything from photographing the sun, the planets, galaxies, the moon, and even aurorae.

There are also two special prizes: The Sir Patrick Moore Prize for Best Newcomer is awarded to the best photo by an amateur astrophotographer who has taken up the hobby in the last year and who has not entered an image into the competition before, and Robotic Scope, acknowledges the best photo taken using one of the increasing number of computer-controlled telescopes at prime observing sites around the world which can be accessed over the internet by members of the public.

The overall winner will receive £2,500, with others receiving smaller cash prizes.

All the winning images will be showcased in the annual free exhibition at the Royal Observatory Greenwich from 18 September 2015.

In 2014, James Woodend from the UK won with his astonishing image portraying a vivid green aurora dancing across the Icelandic night sky and reflected symmetrically in the glacial Jökulsarlon lagoon of Vatnajökull National Park.

The winners of Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2015 will be announced at an award ceremony at the Royal Observatory on 17 September 2015. The winning photographs will be exhibited in the Astronomy Centre from 18 September 2015. Entry to the exhibition is free.

TechRadar The new Sony A7R II has specs you won't believe

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 8:47 PM

The A7R II is Sony's top compact system camera, though in appearance it looks like more like a small DSLR. It uses a mirrorless design, so the viewfinder on the top is electronic rather than optical. The A7R II is designed for professional photographers and movie makers, and it's a major upgrade over the original A7R, launched in October 2013.

The big story with the A7R II is its sensor. It has a resolution of 42.4 megapixels, which is the second-highest resolution of any full-frame camera, beaten narrowly by the 50-megapixel sensor in Canon's new EOS 5DS.

It beats the 36 million pixels of its predecessor, the A7R, and the Nikon D810, previously the highest-resolution DSLR on the market.

The 6 megapixel advantage the A7R II has over its predecessor will make a small but useful difference to the resolution, but just as important is Sony's decision to dispense with an anti-aliasing filter. Traditionally, these are used in front of sensors to reduce the risk of moiré or interference effects when photographing fine textures and patterns, but anti-aliasing filters also blur fine detail very slightly, and with today's high-resolution sensors it's clear that they're seldom necessary. Removing the filter gives the A7R II's sensor an edge – literally – when it comes to rendering fine detail cleanly.

It's also the world's first full frame 'back-illuminated' sensor. The electronic circuitry which normally sits over and around the photosites has been moved to the back of the sensor – the photosites are larger and can gather more light. As a result, the A7R II has a maximum ISO setting of 102,400 – that's two stops (2EV) higher than the old A7R.

Sony points out that photographers have traditionally had to choose between cameras with high resolution but low sensitivity in poor light, or those with high sensitivity but low resolution – the A7R II appears to offer both.

The sensor brings another innovation – no fewer than 399 phase detection AF points. This makes the A7R II's autofocus system 40% faster than its predecessor's. Phase detection autofocus works by comparing views of the subject from two slightly different positions, and the degree by which these views are 'out of phase' tells the autofocus system how far to re-focus and in which direction.

Previously available only on digital SLRs using separate AF sensors, it's now appearing in the form of on-sensor AF points which work in the same – and work alongside traditional sensor-based contrast AF to produce hybrid systems which combine both speed and accuracy.

Sony says its new AF system also offers the widest autofocus coverage for any full-frame camera. It has an 'advanced' motion detection algorithm which helps the camera shoot at 5 frames per second with autofocus tracking. It also works with Sony A-mount lenses via Sony's LA-EA3 or LA-EA1 adaptors.

The big news for videographers, though, is the A7R II's new 4K video capability. Sony already has a full–frame 4K camera in its range – the A7S – but unlike this model, the A7R II can save its 4K footage internally to a memory card. It can work with an external recorder, but it's not essential.

The A7R II supports both Super 35mm and full frame formats, and uses Sony's XAVC format to record 4K at 100Mbps and full HD at 50Mbps. For videographers, the 'bitrate' is a crucial guide to likely image quality.

The A7R II's high speed data transfer rates mean it can also shoot slow-motion footage at high frame rates – you can shoot 720p standard HD footage at 120fps for a 4x slow motion effect in playback.

The A7R II also inherits the 5-axis stabilization system first seen on the Sony A7 II, but specially tuned for the higher resolution sensor. It moves the sensor to compensate for any camera movement during the exposure, or while filming, and it means you don't need image-stabilized lenses – although it will work fine with stabilized Sony lenses.

Sony says it has also reduced shutter vibration by 50% compared to the A7R and the shutter now has a life expectancy of 500,000 shots – that's right up with the best professional DSLRs.

The original Sony A7R was impressive, but the specs of the A7R II are simply spectacular. The Sony A7R II will be available in August for $3,200 (about £2061, AU$4131).

TechRadar Big Brother is watching: Nest's nanny cam is just a week away

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 8:47 PM

Nest is making a on June 17, and now it looks like we know what it is: an internet-connected security camera, a la .

Around this time last year, Nest Labs, which is , purchased upstart Wi-Fi-streaming camera developer Dropcam for the healthy sum of $555 million. , who nabbed a few leaked shots of the unannounced camera, reports that the Nest Cam has been in testing under the facade of being the next Dropcam Pro.

The unit itself is quite sleek, similar to the Dropcam, but a bit easier on the eyes. The Nest camera is Wi-Fi and Bluetooth equipped, featuring 1080p streaming (possibly recording as well) and surely some surprises that will be announced on June 17.

Nest is best known for innovating the , which picks up on its user’s patterns and keeps the house at a comfortable temperature. The company is also responsible for developing smart smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.

It’s interesting to note that Nest was purchased by Google last year for $3.2 billion, and that Google is innovating a new Internet of Things, or IoT endeavor called . It’s likely on June 17 that we’ll also get a bit of clarity on how Nest, and possibly Dropcam fit into Google’s overarching plan to make a smart home. Google has stated that Nest is independently run, however, perhaps to avoid accusations that Google is trying to run your life.

It will be interesting to see what else Nest announces on June 17, and if we can get a better look at how Nest and Dropcam fit in the Google fold.

Leica Q Full-Frame Fixed-Focus Camera Launched at $4,250

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 7:27 PM

Leica's latest special-purpose camera - Leica Q - is aimed at wealthy street photographers who don't want to lug around heavy equipment or change lenses to capture images. The Leica Q is a full-frame compact camera with an attached fixed-focus lens. Its price of $4,250 (approximately Rs. 2,72,000) will definitely cause a few professional photographers to raise their eyebrows. If it is any consolation, Leica is also bundling a free copy of Adobe Lightroom 6.

The camera has a 24-megapixel full-frame CMOS sensor with the capability to touch a high ISO level of 50000. Leica claims that the sensor was built to work the best with the attached Summilux 28mm f/1.7 ASPH lens (image stabilised). Leica claims that this is the fastest lens on a compact camera and its closest competition, the Sony RX1, features a Carl Zeiss 35mm f/2 lens. Leica also states that the Q has the fastest AF speed for a full-frame compact camera.

The Leica Q's top plate is made of aluminium and the rest of the body is magnesium alloy. It has a 3-inch touchscreen LCD with a resolution of 1.04m dots. There's also a 3.68-megapixel electronic viewfinder. The camera can shoot 1080p video at 30/60 fps. Connectivity-wise the camera can do NFC and Wi-Fi.

The touchscreen can be used to focus manually by tapping on the screen. You can also manual focus by rotating the lens focus ring, and a locking function lets you switch between AF and MF. One can also add 35mm and 50mm cropping rings to the lens, the prices for which haven't been revealed yet. The Leica Q is available now in the US.

Sony A7R II, RX10 II, and RX100 IV Cameras Launched with 4K Video Capability

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 7:27 PM

Sony on Wednesday launched three upgraded cameras - the A7R II, RX10 II and RX 100 IV. The A7R is Sony's flagship mirrorless camera which packs in a lot of Japanese camera innovation. The RX 10 11 is a super-zoom bridge camera with a 1-inch sensor, whereas the RX100 IV is an upgrade to its superior range of compact cameras with a 1-inch sensor. The Sony A7R II is priced at $3,199 (approximately Rs. 2,05,000) and will be available in the US starting August. On the other hand, the RX10 II and RX 100 IV will be available next month in the US for $1,300 (approximately Rs. 83,000) and $999 (approximately Rs. 64,000) respectively.

The Sony A7R II mirrorless camera is a follow-up to the highly rated A7R. This camera has a full-frame 42.4-megapixel backlit illuminated CMOS sensor, which essentially boosts its low-light shooting capabilities. The sensor can go up to a whopping ISO level of 102400. It also has 399 phase detection AF points and 25 contrast detection points and Sony claims that the A7R II has a 40 percent faster autofocus response time compared to its predecessor. Also, files are also sent out from the sensor 3.5x faster.

Sony also adds the same 5-axis sensor-shift image stabilisation system present in the A7 II to the A7R II and removes the optical low pass filter to promote clarity over moire reduction. The Sony A7R II can shoot 4K full frame video. It can shoot 120fps high frame rate movie shooting in HD (720p). Some other features include a 0.78x viewfinder magnification, a silent shooting mode, as well as Wi-Fi and NFC connectivity.

Both the RX10 II and the RX100 IV include the world's first 1.0 type stacked Exmor RS CMOS sensor with advanced signal processing and an attached DRAM memory chip. This sensor apparently allows for 5x faster image data readout and shooting 40x super slow motion video. Both the cameras can shoot 240fps at a really high 1080p resolution. The sensor also allows the RX100 IV to perform 16fps continuous shooting, and capture at a blazing fast shutter speed of 1/32000 per second.

The RX100 IV has a 24-70mm (35mm equivalent) f/1.8-2.8 lens whereas the RX10 II has a 24-200mm (35mm equivalent) f/2.8 lens. The RX100 IV has a pop-up viewfinder apart from the 2.35m-dot electronic OLED screen, which is also present on the RX10 II. The cameras can also shoot 4K video.

TechRadar Smooth 4K video, a reality with Sony's new full-frame camera

Posted by Dien Nguyen on 5:46 AM

Since the introduction of the it was inevitable Sony would upgrade the rest of its line with new second generation models and at long last we have the A7R Mark II.

Sporting a similarly beefed up body, the Sony A7R Mark II brings with it a 5-axis image stabilized full-frame CMOS sensor. Sony has also upgraded the megapixel count of the sensor from 36.4 MP on the to 42.4 MP.

Along with being one of the highest fidelity sensors Sony has ever produced, the Japanese electronics-firm has also implemented some backside illumination technology to boost the ISO range to 102,400, which should help shooters to capture images in the dimmest of lighting situations.

With the new sensor in tow, the new Sony A7R Mark II can also record 4K (QFHD 3,840 x 2,160) footage at a maximum of 30p in the XAVC S 4K format.

Aside from the sensor improvements, Sony promises the A7R Mark II will be much faster compared to its predecessor.

Firstly, the autofocus system has been given a huge boost with 399 phase-detection AF points, which cover about 49% of the frame to make locking focus 40% faster. All Sony A7R users will know AF performance can be slower than molasses and so this speed boost should come as a boon for new users and those looking to upgrade.

Additionally, Sony has upped the data transmission speed from the sensor to by 3.5 times. The original Sony A7R signature thunderclap shutter slap has been dampened significantly. What's more, the Mark II's new shutter also produces 50% less vibration, which ought to make handheld long exposures actually possible with this high-MP camera.

The Sony A7R II full-frame interchangeable lens camera will be available in August for $3,200 (about £2061, AU$4131).

Aside from announcing a new megapixel king, Sony also introduced the latest version of its premium compact camera, the RX100 Mark IV.

Like its predecessor this Mark IV version comes with a familiar housing sporting the same 24-70mm (35mm equivalent) f1.8-2.8 lens. However, the sensor is a newer generation 20.1MP 1-inch Exmor RS CMOS chip coupled with a new DRAM chip to speed up processing and boost the burst rate up to 16 fps. The pop-up electronic viewfinder has also been upgraded to a 2.35 million-dot display from the original 1.44 million dots with the .

One of the coolest features to come to the RX100 Mark IV is the ability to record 4K footage in camera, though this Ultra-HD video recording capability is limited to a max of five minutes. The Sony RX100 IV can also record 40x super slow motion video at 960 fps, 480 fps and 240 fps.

Last but not least, the new Sony RX100 Mark IV is outfitted with a high-speed anti-distortion shutter that supports up to a maximum shutter speed of 1/32,000 second – clutch when trying to shoot with the aperture in the lens wide open on a sunny day.

The new Sony Cyber-shot RX100 IV compact will be $1,000 (about £644, AU$1,293).

In its final camera announcement, Sony has also brought forth a new RX10 Mark II bridge camera.

The new camera offers a 1-inch type stacked 20MP CMOS sensor that can shoot 4K videos up to 29 minutes long. Once again this is thanks to the improved readout speed provided by the newly installed DRAM chip.

Other new features include a new 2.35 million dot XGA OLED viewfinder, 14 fps continuous shooting speed, 40x super slow motion video mode and anti-distortion shutter supporting 1/32,000 second exposures.

Otherwise your looking at a very similar body design while the lens is still a Zeiss-branded 24-200mm equivalent f2.8 glass element. Later this July, the and Sony Cyber-shot RX10 II will also be available for $1,300 (about £837, AU$1,679).

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