Lens News

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Ron Leach  |  Jun 03, 2021  | 

Sparkling nighttime skies offer a great opportunity for capturing eye-popping images, but many photographers shy away from astrophotography because they think special gear and complicated techniques are required to do it right. If that sounds like you, the straightforward tutorial below will likely change your mind.

Ron Leach  |  Oct 14, 2021  | 

We all fall into a creative rut on occasion, and that’s often because we take the same approach to whatever we shoot. For portraits we typically reach for a short telephoto, and a wide-angle lens is usually our choice for landscape photography.

Ron Leach  |  Apr 11, 2024  | 

Unless you're shooting with a full-frame camera, crop factor is an important issue in a variety of ways. And to complicate matters, there are a variety of crop factors to consider, whether you're using an APS-C model, a high-end compact, a superzoom camera, or a pocket camera of various types.

Ron Leach  |  Nov 21, 2024  | 

Like it or not we live in an era where camera manufactures compete with each other for how much resolution their products offer. But there's a big difference between what you want and what you really need. That's why, budget notwithstanding, it's time to ask yourself how many megapixels are necessary for your style of photography.

Ron Leach  |  Jun 26, 2017  | 

The first thing many photographers do after investing in a new lens is to screw on a UV or haze filter. The idea is that these filters protect the front element of your lens from dirt and impact damage while improving contrast and eliminating atmospheric haze.

Henry Anderson  |  May 05, 2022  | 

When shooting portraits, is it better to use a zoom lens or a prime lens? It's a common question a lot of photographers, particularly those who are just starting out in portraiture, are bound to ask.

Ron Leach  |  Jun 09, 2016  | 

After seeing yesterday’s post about a new 1000mm telephoto lens Canon has in development, reader Jim Headley let us know he has a rare Birns and Sawyer Omnitar 1000mm f/4.5 telephoto for sale. The one-of-a-kind lens was commissioned by NASA in 1964 through Birns and Sawyer in Los Angeles and built by Astra in Germany.

The Editors  |  Jan 05, 2017  | 

Now that 2016 is done and dusted, we’ve had a chance to look back at all the cameras and lenses we reviewed this past year and have chosen ten of our absolute favorites. 

Peter K. Burian  |  Jan 01, 2009  | 

With the growing popularity of D-SLR cameras with sensors of various sizes, most of the manufacturers are working to expand their line of lenses. As expected, many of the latest products are “digital only”: designed for the majority of D-SLRs with the APS-C or Four Thirds size sensor. But (as specified in the text), some are multi-platform products suitable for all 35mm and digital...

The Editors  |  Jan 05, 2018  | 

Another year has come and gone, which means it’s time for Shutterbug to once again pick our favorite cameras and lenses of the past 12 months. With so much great photo gear to choose from in 2017, it was a difficult task. The below list though is a good summation of the cameras and lenses Shutterbug’s editors and writers most enjoyed shooting with last year.

The Editors  |  Jan 31, 2019  | 

Yes, we’re posting our annual favorite cameras and lenses awards of 2018 with only a day left in January 2019, but that just means determining the best photo gear for last year was harder than usual. And it was, especially with the raft of exciting new full frame mirrorless cameras that hit the market in the second half of last year.

The Editors  |  Jul 17, 2018  | 

Amazon Prime members – and you know who you are – you have until Wednesday at 2:59 am ET (or 11:59pm Tuesday PT) to take advantage of all the great photography gear deals out there for Amazon Prime Day.

Jason Schneider  |  Dec 24, 2020  | 

When Sigma decided to extend its esteemed Contemporary line of broad-spectrum lenses to include a full-frame 100-400mm long-range telephoto zoom, they handed their optical engineers a tough assignment: come up with a really long 4x zoom that delivers outstanding imaging performance and enhanced shooting flexibility in a compact, well-balanced, lightweight package optimized for handheld shooting. In other words, they wanted a lens that would expand the long tele zoom market by appealing to travelers, nature, wildlife, and street photographers, hikers, sports shooters and others daunted by the prospect of toting and hefting a ponderous telephoto zoom lens. 

Joe Farace  |  Oct 31, 2017  | 

Sigma’s 100-400mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM lens ($799) is part of their Contemporary series that the company says blends “refined optical design” with “compact and lightweight construction.” The lens is available for Canon, Nikon, or Sony DSLRs. Although as a DG lens it is designed for full-frame DSLRs, it can also be used with APS-C sensor cameras, where it produces an equivalent field of view of 150-600mm.

Jon Sienkiewicz  |  Nov 20, 2020  | 

Sigma recently introduced the 105mm f/2.8 DG DN macro lens for L mount and Sony FE mount mirrorless cameras. It focuses continuously down to life-size (1:1 reproduction ratio) at the minimum focusing distance of 11.6 inches and offers considerable versatility beyond macro applications. We took a thorough look at the Sigma 105mm f/2.8 DG DN macro lens in a Sony mount for this hands-on review.

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