Lexar has revealed what it says is the world's thinnest portable SSD: Muse. Measuring just 3.8mm at its thickest point, tapering down to an incredible 1mm at the edges; its card-like profile means this SSD should slip effortlessly into a tight jeans pocket.

Alternatively, Lexar supplies a MagSafe-compatible magnetic sleeve so the SSD can be attached to the back of a phone, without significantly increasing the device's overall thickness. This set-up is ideal if you use your phone for shooting video, as it enables footage to be recorded directly to the SSD, with none of the bulk and inconvenience associated with more conventional external storage.

Lexar has achieved such a slim profile through the use of a custom ultra-thin PCB, along with high-density NAND stacking and an integrated component layout that makes efficient use of the space inside. A precision-machined unibody metal enclosure complements Mac products and gives a premium feel, while also ensuring strength and adequate heat dissipation.

An unusual feature of Muse is its cable connection. Rather than using a conventional USB-C socket, Lexar has instead designed a new SnapLink Magnetic Cable that connects to a recessed pad of Pogo Pins on the rear of the SSD. N52-grade neodymium magnets guide alignment and help hold the cable securely in place.

Despite its super-svelte profile, Muse is capable of read speeds up to 1050MB/s, and a maximum 1000MB/s write speed. This performance enables compatible iPhones to record Apple ProRes 4K video at up to 120fps directly to the drive.

The Lexar Muse will be available in 512GB and 1TB capacities. Pricing has yet to be announced, and availability is scheduled for Q4 2026.

At first, you think the camera is the most important thing in your photography world. Then, you realize it’s the lenses. But if you’re a landscape or macro photographer, you’ll quickly learn that the tripod is just as important (if not more). And you either learn that the easy way or the hard way.

Buying the best tripod for photography is a rite of passage for the beginner photographer. You’ve got the camera and the kit lens, so you go out and buy a camera bag and a tripod. But more often than not, the tripod is a cheap, plasticky implement that’s – for lack of a better word – completely useless…

A beginner might not understand the foibles of a cheap tripod until it’s too late. In fact, they might merrily capture soft shot after soft shot without realizing that they deserve better. I myself made this mistake; I didn’t know what camera shake was when I started, and I certainly didn’t realize it could happen on a tripod. In fact, I blamed my camera or myself when it was my tripod all along.

Cheap tripod, cheap performance

Anything can be bought cheap if you’re in the right place at the right time, of course. When I say cheap, I mean cheaply made. You know, the kind of unbranded tripod you can pick up from Amazon or a department store or comes bundled with your camera. These kinds of tripods might look inviting enough, but they are usually an absolute nightmare to use.

I’m talking about being hard to adjust and refine: knobs that never seem tight enough, axes that stutter as you try to tilt or pan to refine your composition. Weak legs that wobble or don’t even splay wide enough for secure outdoor use. Legs that catch when you try to extend or collapse them. And light payloads that are entirely inadequate for longer zoom lenses or bigger cameras when it comes time to upgrade.

Tripod red flags

Let’s talk about how you identify a cheap tripod.

• Plastic components: The main thing I’d advise you to look out for is an abundance of plastic components, particularly plastic threads. In my experience, plastic threads simply cannot be tightened enough to prevent slippage, and on top of that, they can easily wear or even break over time.
• Leg braces/struts: Another giveaway is plastic struts between the legs. A quality tripod doesn’t need any extra stability; it will stand firm with the legs splayed out. If a cheap tripod has plastic struts, assume that the legs aren’t particularly sturdy to begin with. Don’t get me wrong, some expensive heavy-duty video tripods do feature struts, but they’re designed to be as stable and heavy as possible.
• A poor quality head: Do not ignore the tripod head. A tripod is only as good as its head. You can have a sturdy trio of legs, but if the head is plasticky and cheap and suffers from many of the problems I listed earlier, you’re in for a frustrating ride, and your photography will suffer.

A quality tripod, on the other hand, will just feel effortlessly sturdy. Threads boast good friction to prevent overtightening, joints move smoothly and intentionally, legs can be splayed to varying degrees and are stable, setting up and collapsing the device feels effortless, and it features a quality head.

Is cost the compromise?

You’re probably thinking, great Mike, but what about the cost? I’m not suggesting that you pay hundreds of bucks for a tripod, but I am suggesting that you reframe the way you think about budgeting for kit. A lot of photographers will pay around $100 / £100 for a lens and consider it a bargain. You can pick up a quality tripod for a similar price.

The Manfrotto Element MII Aluminium Tripod is selling for $132.95 at B&H Photo and £99 at Wex Photo Video. This is a tripod I used for years. As long as you don’t exceed the 8-kg payload and are using lenses up to 200mm, it will serve beginner photographers very well indeed. And trust me, the difference between a tripod like the Element MII from a reputable brand and a cheap tripod is huge.

The only reason to spend more is if you’ve reached a point where you have identified specialist needs. For example, general tripod usage tends to favor portability over stability, but a serious macro photographer may wish to invest in a larger, sturdier tripod since the effects of camera shake are more prevalent at higher magnifications. A travel photographer or landscape photographer who hikes may be happy to pay more for a lighter carbon fiber tripod. And so on.

You may also wish to turn to the used market. Most tripods don’t tend to hold their value in the same way that cameras and lenses do, so you could end up with a real bargain on used marketplaces. So, there you have it. Tripods aren’t the most exciting bits of photography kit in the world, but a good tripod is worth its payload in gold.

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Check out the best tripods for photography and the best ball heads for tripods. On the subject of tripod heads: Are you using the right tripod head for landscape photography?

There’s a trend going around on social media for adding fake film edges on digital photos – but a new remake of a popular camera is meant to not only keep the full, authentic film frame, but also use every millimeter of film for the photo down to the edges. The Lomography Sprocket Rocket is a compact camera that shoots panoramic images so wide that it’s meant to shoot right through that iconic film border.

Any 35mm film camera can retain that iconic border with the sprocket holes and film name without digital fakery – just ask the lab to include the film rebate or full frame in the scans. (Or, of course, scan your own film).

But what’s unusual about the Sprocket Rocket is that those iconic edges are actually part of the photo. Instead of the classic black border, the camera shoots right through to the edges of the frame, so the sprocket holes go right through the image. The camera is built to shoot 3:1 panoramic photos on 35mm film rolls, shooting 18 exposures per roll instead of the more traditional 36.

The Lomography Sprocket Rocket isn’t new – the original launched in 2011 as the first wide-angle 35mm camera meant to use those sprockets. But Lomography has refreshed the camera with two new space-inspired models, the Starlight and Ultra Violet, bringing a catchy metallic silver and deep purple to the camera.

Like the original, the new Sprocket Rockets are fully mechanical cameras, with no batteries required. The manual wind also has a reverse gear, allowing photographers to re-shoot a roll for surprise double exposures.

The camera uses a 30mm lens that can shoot at f/10.8 or f/16. Shutter speed can be set to 1/100 or bulb, with a hot shoe slot to add in an external flash.

And while the Sprocket Rocket is meant to take full advantage of those film sprockets, an optional frame insert helps photographers frame the shot with a clean border when desired.

The new color options come in at the same price point as the original – $69 / £45 / AU$69 / CA$69.

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Read the original Sprocket Rocket review, or browse the best 35mm film to load inside.

Panasonic full-frame mirrorless cameras have been through quite a downsizing regime since the Lumix S system was first launched back in 2019. The diminutive but perfectly capable Panasonic Lumix S9 is currently the smallest of the group, the lack of a viewfinder helping to enable a particularly svelte and slender build. Naturally, that advantage is lost if you mount a big clunky lens on your slimline, lightweight body.

To keep everything in well-matched proportion, Panasonic has already released a couple of desirable lightweight full-frame lenses, ideally suited to the Lumix S9. The Panasonic Lumix S 18-40mm f/4.5-6.3 launched as the world’s smallest and lightest zoom lens, complete with an intriguing zoom range that packed big viewing angles into its small build. Then there’s the Panasonic Lumix S 40mm f/2 prime lens, neatly bridging the gap between 35mm and 50mm optics and proving itself to be very versatile.

The new Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5 that I’m reviewing here is virtually identical to the 18-40mm zoom and 40mm prime in size and weight, giving an appealing symmetry and synergy to the trio. As a compact yet wide-angle prime lens, the 20mm is geared to walkabout, street and travel photography, landscapes, cityscapes and architectural interiors, and maybe even a bit of stargazing. It’s also pretty ideal for taking selfies, vlogging and video content creation. Who said that prime lenses lacked versatility? All in all, the S 20mm aims to be one of the best L-mount lenses and best lenses for the Lumix S9, and certainly one of the most lightweight and affordable.

Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5: Specifications

Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5: Price

The Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5 comes with a price tag of $499 / £429 / AU$TBA. That makes it a bit pricier than the Panasonic Lumix S 40mm f/2 at $399 / £349 / AU$699 but less expensive than the Panasonic Lumix S 18-40mm f/4.5-6.3 at $548 / £519 / AU$899.

For further price comparisons, the faster and more sophisticated Sigma 20mm f/2 DG DN | C unsurprisingly costs more at $769 / £589 / AU$1,200, whereas the ultra-thin (half-inch) but relatively basic Viltrox AF 28mm f/4.5 pancake lens is super-cheap at $99 / £90 / AU$149. I’d say that the Lumix S 20mm is fairly priced but not bite-your-hand-off value for money.

Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5: Design & Handling

Available in either black or silver, the Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5 is seriously lightweight. When I picked up the retail box I thought it was empty. Lifting the lid was the only thing that convinced me there was actually a lens enclosed. It’s really small too. Talking in numbers, it measures 69x41mm / 2.6x1.6in and weighs just 142g / 5oz. Both the size and weight are virtually identical to those of the S 18-40mm zoom and S 40mm prime.

I know what you’re thinking. Okay, I don’t, but I’m guessing it’s something along the lines of flimsy lightweight lenses being cut to the bone and having plastic mounting plates. Well, think again. The Panasonic is a tough little cookie, with a dust, splash and freeze-resistant design. Not only does it include weather-seals and a metal mounting plate, it even has a keep-clean fluorine coating on its little front element and some advanced handling finery.

It almost goes without saying but the Panasonic is an autofocus lens, employing the usual stepping motor to drive the requisite elements. It’s a fully internal system, so the front element neither extends nor rotates during focusing. That’s a bonus for handling, especially if you’re using a rotation-specific filter like an ND-grad or circular polarizer. However, the angle of view might be a bit too wide for effective use of a polarizer, as you tend to get an uneven strength of effect across the frame.

Focusing is typically quick and extremely quiet, ideal for both stills and videography. Further video credentials are that the lens is designed to suppress focus breathing, so the field of view doesn’t change when you alter the focus setting. For manual focusing, there’s a control ring with a nicely ridged and grippy surface.

The image below shows how well proportioned the lens is, in relation to the Lumix S9 body. Another small measurement, as written on the side of the barrel, is that the minimum focus distance is a mere 0.18m or 0.59ft, as measured from the image sensor in the camera body. Suffice it to say that there’s some serious close-up potential. That’s great as far as I’m concerned, as I love getting in really close with an ultra-wide-angle lens, to exaggerate the perspective effect. It also puts selfies and vlogging firmly on the agenda, as there’s no problem shooting yourself from arm’s length.

I’ve seen all too many ‘compact’ lenses that use downsizing as an excuse to strip out important features. There’s none of that here, and I’m glad that Panasonic resisted the temptation to do away with an AF/MF focus mode switch. One of my pet hates is having to rummage around in camera menus to make the change, when a simple switch on the lens makes it so much quicker and easier. It’s present and correct in this lens.

As well as the AF/MF switch, there’s also the bonus of a customizable function button. This really is something unexpected on such a small lens but it’s completely in keeping with the design of the companion 40mm, ensuring further similarities in handling characteristics. It’s neat being able to swap between the two lenses without any adjustment to your creative flow. I like that it’s placed on the diagonal, making it easy to get at in both landscape and portrait orientation shooting.

I’d usually use the function button for autofocus-hold/lock but an interesting alternative is Panasonic’s ‘crop zoom’ facility. This enables you to apply a crop factor on the fly, gaining a longer ‘effective’ focal length, albeit with a loss in megapixel count. It’s similar to using the APS-C crop mode featured in many full-frame cameras, although the amount of crop on offer depends on the specific Panasonic camera body.

As I mentioned earlier, the lens has a sturdy metal rather than plastic mounting plate. It comes complete with a weather-seal gasket to guard against the ingress of dust and moisture through the joint between lens and camera body. And as I’d expect nowadays, the electronic data contacts are gold-plated.

Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5: Performance

Just how much can you squeeze into a really small lens? Quite a lot as it turns out, because the S 20mm has a properly wide field of view. Swap from a typical 24-70mm standard zoom to this lens and the difference is more than obvious as soon as you put your eye to the camera’s viewfinder (not the Lumix S9 actually has one). This makes the lens something of a vlogger’s delight, for which the vari-angle screen of the S9 comes in very handy, with its front-facing facility. The bottom line is that you can capture yourself at arm’s length while shoehorning a lot of the background into the frame, to set the scene. That said, the lens doesn’t go as wide as the same-sized S 18-40mm zoom.

Sharpness is excellent in the central region of the frame but drops off towards the edges and corners when shooting wide-open at f/2.5. Edge-sharpness doesn’t really come on song until you stop down as far as f/8. With the sibling S 40mm lens, I found that I only had to stop down to f/4 for much-improved edge-sharpness. Even so, I’d say that the S 20mm delivers perfectly adequate edge-sharpness at f/4 and f/5.6, even if it’s not entirely great. Sharpness across the entire frame is impressive at f/8 and f/11. Overall, levels of sharpness are very good, considering that the lens crams so much viewing width into such a small and lightweight package.

A bonus for shooting architectural interiors and starry skies is that the f/2.5 aperture can pull in a fair amount of light. Okay, it’s not as fast as many prime lenses but the 20mm is still a little faster than a ‘trinity’ f/2.8 zoom lens. And for reasonably well lit interiors, you can shoot at middling aperture settings for a greater depth of field, and still not need to push your camera’s ISO setting very far, as demonstrated in the image below.

Autofocus proved quick and consistently accurate throughout my testing period. I was impressed by the lens’s sharpness, clarity and color rendition, but there is one sizeable fly in the ointment. Make that two flies… Ghosting and flare. The front optical element is quite small and it’s recessed from the front of the lens barrel. On top of that, there’s a ridged sloping surface that acts as a lens hood of sorts. With that in mind, I wasn’t expecting the lens to be as susceptible to ghosting and flare as it turned out to be.

Panasonic doesn’t supply a hood with the lens, nor does it sell one as an optional extra. You can get around the problem by shielding the lens from stray light with a spare hand, but I reckon you’d be well advised to buy an after-market hood that screws into the 62mm filter attachment thread. Shooting against the light with no hood mounted on this lens can often give rise to the kind of result shown below.

Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5: Sample Images

The following gallery of sample shots was taken at the East Somerset Railway in the South West of England. It’s a delightful historic railway that’s run as a charity by a friendly bunch of volunteers, and is well worth a visit. Weather conditions were very pleasant on a sunny, late summer morning. The collection of photos was taken outdoors and inside the station buildings and nearby engine shed.

Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5: Lab Results

We run a range of lab tests under controlled conditions, using the Imatest Master testing suite. Photos of test charts are taken across the range of apertures and zooms (where available), then analyzed for sharpness, distortion and chromatic aberrations.

We use Imatest SFR (spatial frequency response) charts and analysis software to plot lens resolution at the center of the image frame, corners and mid-point distances, across the range of aperture settings and, with zoom lenses, at four different focal lengths. The tests also measure distortion and color fringing (chromatic aberration).

Sharpness:

Sharpness in the central region is superb, even wide open. We'd expect a marked reduction in sharpness as you move out towards the corners of frame, as this is inevitable when shooting our large, flat test chart at such a close distance. However, sharpness drops off particularly steeply with the Panasonic 20mm, especially at larger apertures - you'll need to stop down to f/8 to get decent sharpness across the entire image frame.

Fringing:

Fringing is very well controlled at all apertures and across the whole frame - it won't be visible in general shooting.

Distortion: -5.52

The lens produces significant barrel distortion, but this is corrected automatically by firmware.

Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5: Verdict

I’m mostly impressed with the Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5. For me, the main attraction is that it shoehorns a generously wide viewing perspective into a compact and incredibly lightweight build. The combination is all I could wish for when picking a prime lens for walkabout, street and travel photography. And while it’s superlatively lightweight, the Panasonic doesn’t skimp on features and build quality. Handling extras include an AF/MF focus mode switch and customizable function button, while the construction includes a metal mounting plate and multiple weather-seals.

Although lacking any zoom facility, it’s a very versatile lens, catering to landscape and cityscape photography, architectural interiors, selfies, vlogging and much more besides. I’d give it full marks for sterling performance wrapped up in a diminutive and travel-friendly construction, but I’ve knocked the rating down a bit because edge/corner-sharpness is a little lacking at wide apertures, and the lens is very susceptible to ghosting and flare. Stop down a little and shield it with a spare hand against oncoming light, or buy an aftermarket hood, and you’re good to go.

Alternatives

The Panasonic Lumix S9 is something of a fashion icon in its own right, adored for its slimline dimensions and snazzy colorways (I’ll take the dark olive). But the appeal of the body beautiful is rather lost if you need to hang a big clunky lens off it. To keep everything in the right mix and match proportions, there’s already the Panasonic Lumix S 18-40mm f/4.5-6.3, which launched as the world’s smallest and lightest zoom lens, and the dinky little Panasonic Lumix S 40mm f/2 prime. Now there’s the new Panasonic Lumix S 20mm f/2.5, to literally widen your options.

So what exactly are your options with the new S 20mm lens? The wide-angle perspective is ideal for walkabout, street, and travel photography, as well as for landscapes, cityscapes and architectural interiors. With its fairly fast f/2.5 aperture, astrophotography is another possibility, so it’s already sounding like you might be covering a lot of ground with this lens. That’s why it’s so nice that the big viewing angle is shoehorned into such a small, lightweight build.

Available in black or silver, the new S 20mm prime looks the part on any color of Lumix S9 camera body, but its beauty is more than skin deep. The 20mm and 40mm primes and the 18-40mm zoom have virtually identical dimensions and weigh next to nothing, the S 20mm measuring a mere 69x41mm / 2.6x1.6in and weighing just 142g / 5oz. And proving that ultra-lightweight lenses don’t have to be flimsy, the S 20mm matches the design of the S 40mm in having a dust, splash and freeze-resistant construction complete with a weather-sealed metal rather than plastic mounting plate.

Another bonus is that both of the S20mm and S40mm lenses have the same handling characteristics, so swapping between them won’t throw any spanners in your creative flow. Despite being so small, they pack an AF/MF focus mode switch, customizable focus ring and a customizable function button. The last of these will often be used for AF-Lock but Panasonic’s new Crop Zoom feature is a tempting alternative.

I’d add vlogging and video content creation to the ‘can-do’ list of the lens. Its ultra-wide viewing angle is great for presenting to camera at arm’s length, making the most of the Lumix S9’s fully articulated screen.

On top of that, the lens has a really short minimum focus distance of 0.18m, just 7 inches as measured from the camera’s image sensor. It’s also designed to suppress focus breathing, adding to its video credentials. All in all, it looks a very versatile and highly desirable little lens, with an attractive price tag of $499 / £429 / AU$TBA.

Shipping is expected to start in October and the S 20mm is already destined to be one of best lenses for the Lumix S9.

The Ricoh GR IV compact camera is so popular that finding one in stock can be a challenge – but the GR series is turning 30 this year, and new details on Ricoh’s promised special edition have finally emerged.

Earlier this summer, Ricoh teased that a GR IV anniversary edition was coming, with subtle design changes that reflect how little the compact camera series has changed over the last 30 years. Now, Ricoh has announced just when that special edition is coming – October 21 – and how current GR shooters can deck out their current camera with special edition accessories.

The Ricoh GR IV Anniversary Edition feels almost like playing a spot-the-difference game. The design changes are meant to be subtle in honor of how loyal the GR series has remained to a compact, classic design over the last 30 years.

The shutter release and the buttons on the back of the special edition have been recolored in a gray inspired by the original GR1. The compact camera will also use a ring cap – a removable protective ring around the lens barrel – that has a diamond-cut texture to it. When the camera powers off, the special edition will also display the GR 30th anniversary logo.

But, the special edition camera will also be paired with several new accessories – and most of those accessories will also be available separately. That will allow photographers using standard editions of the popular camera to refresh their camera with a 30th anniversary look, without buying a completely new camera.

Those accessories include a finger strap made from real leather with the anniversary engraved into the side. A new steel gray hot shoe cover with a 30th anniversary logo engraved into the top will also be available.

Ricoh will also be launching a limited edition set of pins, with a special badge set that honors the different cameras across the 30-year history. 14 of those badges look like retro compact cameras, while there’s also a pin for the GR logo and the 30th anniversary logo.

The special edition camera – which will only have 6,000 available worldwide – will ship with all those accessories, including the strap, hot shoe cover, and complete pin set. But Ricoh says the hot shoe cover and strap will also be available separately.

The set of retro camera pins will also be available on its own, with one catch – only those who buy the camera will get the GR logo and the 30th anniversary logo, the separate pin set only includes the 14 pins shaped after each retro camera. Individual camera pins will also be sold as single badges.

While the September 16th announcement feels much more complete than the company’s teaser from July, Ricoh still has yet to reveal one detail: The price. With the limited edition restricted to 6,000 cameras, fans can expect the price to sit above the standard GR IV cost.

The special edition camera is expected to be available beginning on October 21.

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The 30th anniversary edition isn't the only camera Ricoh is working on right now – read about the upcoming Ricoh GR IVx, or compare the different Ricoh GR options.

Joseph, an 11-year-old photographer from Marlborough, UK, has just won the top prize in the Scavenger Hunt photo contest with a beautiful image of a hare in a harvest field looking straight into his camera lens.

Captured with a 20.4MP APS-C camera and a 150-400mm super telephoto lens, Joseph's winning image is now the new cover of the latest edition of The Week Junior Science+Nature magazine.

The theme of the 2026 competition was "Focus on Nature" and Joseph's image left the judges in awe. "Immediately we thought 'here's our winner', the symmetry of this shot is amazing and the direct eye contact and battered ear gives it such character," explained the competition judges.

Winner of The Week Junior Science+Nature Photo Contest

Tech information
Camera: OM System OM-1 Mark II
Lens: Olympus M. 150-400mm f/4.5 TC
Exposure: 1/100sec, f/5.6, ISO 320

See the winning images
All photographs by the winners and runners up will be exhibited at the Photography and Videography Show at Excel London from March 13-16, 2027.

The young photographers' work will go on public display alongside prize-winning images from professionals.

The Week Junior Science+Nature Photo Contest

Every year, The Week Junior Science+Nature Scavenger Hunt Photo Contest invites young photographers aged 16 and under to put down their screens, go outside, track down 10 hidden treasures and capture the beauty of nature for a chance to win prizes, Canon camera gear and even a future magazine cover.

For more information, visit The Week Junior Science+Nature's website.

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Browse the best cameras for kids and the best cameras for beginners.

Looking for competitions to enter? Here are 10 global photo contests now open for entries from September 2026 to February 2027.

The Nikon Z8 has just received a new firmware update. Something I really appreciate about Nikon is its dedication to supporting cameras long after their release, and over the years the ‘Big N’ has rolled out big updates, including mammoth upgrades for the Z8 itself. But not every firmware update can be ground-shaking. Firmware Version 3.11, as reported on by Nikon Rumors, is a quality-of-life upgrade; it fixes a few problems, but doesn’t introduce anything new.

As always, unless any of the fixes are vital to your workflow, I recommend letting new firmware updates sit for a week or two before installing them yourself, just to ensure no teething problems are reported. If it’s been a while since you last updated your Nikon Z8’s firmware, installing this latest update will automatically install all prior updates, such as the big Firmware Version 3.00.

Nikon Z8 Firmware Version 3.11 fixes:

• Unsupported features would sometimes become selectable when wirelessly connected to NX Tether.
• The [High-frequency flicker reduction] setting would sometimes change when [High-frequency flicker reduction] and another role, such as [Protect], were assigned to the same custom control.
• The camera would sometimes stop responding during shooting if certain operations were performed after settings were made in [Manage Picture Control].

You must also ensure that you know how to update your Nikon camera’s firmware and that you maintain good practice. Nikon makes it clear that you should only update the firmware of your Z Series camera with a Z-mount Nikkor lens or Nikon FTZ adapter attached. Updating firmware with a third-party lens attached has been known to cause a camera malfunction.

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Check out the best Nikon camera and the best Nikon Z lenses. Plus, here are the best lenses for the Nikon Z8.

Canon's Dual Pixel 3D has formally been announced – and it's an amazing piece of software that enables you to take 3D photographs with a standard Canon camera. You don't need any of the VR fisheye lenses or anything else; the software uses the Dual Pixel photosites, built into standard EOS sensors, to spatially map a third dimension onto your two-dimensional photographs.

I first saw this technology back at CP+ 2025, where it was being demonstrated with an EOS R5 a slightly spooky doll against a white background. Then I saw it again this year at CP+ 2026, where it had been used to photograph dogs, cats, owls and hedgehogs using the R5 Mark II and R6 Mark II.

Now the tech has been revealed in its final form, with Canon using a selection of food and floral photography to showcase what it's capable of. This was perhaps always the best use for Dual Pixel 3D, as it feels tailor-made for things like ecommerce applications, but obviously we're at the ground floor of what can be done with it – and industrious photographers will no doubt put it to all sorts of unexpected use.

The full list of compatible cameras and lenses has also been unveiled, spanning everything from brand-new bodies like the Canon EOS R8 Mark II to older entry-level models like the EOS R10, and L-series glass like the RF 24-70mm f/2.8 L IS USM to the bargain RF 50mm f/1.8 STM.

So how exactly does the tech work? I asked a Canon engineer in while I was in Japan, who was showing me the tech on the OG R5. "This Canon camera has a Dual Pixel sensor. That means two photodiodes in one pixel.

"Currently, we are using that for the autofocus. However, we can use that pixel to [produce] 3D. So we can take a photo as RAW data – we call it DPRAW, the extension is .CR3 – and then we made special application software for 3D."

ABOVE: Canon's full suite of 3D tech, shown at CP+ earlier this year

The algorithm converts your two-dimensional photograph into OBJ or GLB formats, or even an MP4 video if you don't want to mess around with an interface (whether its 3D glasses or a simple mouse or touchpad) to turn and manipulate your image.

And it really does only need a camera! "Yes, you just need [the] application software. We also sell Dual Fisheye [lenses], but you have to pay more. But this is regular [camera and lens]. Many solutions, so you can try [the app] and then move to Fisheye [if you like the technology]."

There are some limitations to the tech, such as too much bokeh (background blur) and blind spots created by shooting too close. So Canon has a number of recommendations, such as shooting at f/5.6 or wider with at a distance of 5-10 times the focal length.

The Dual Pixel 3D software will be available from October 08 and is currently Windows-only, requiring Windows 11 64-bit 24H2 or later.

You can find out more at the official Canon USA page with more examples, instructions and settings at the Canon Japan page.

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Take a look at the best Canon cameras, along with the best Canon RF lenses – but if you want to use Dual Pixel 3D, make sure to double-check the compatibility table above!

Digital photo frames have evolved greatly over the years. On early devices, you had to transfer a bunch of images onto a memory card to plug into the back. Later models enabled you to do everything over Wi-Fi, uploading images remotely from a companion smartphone app. Displays have improved over time too, with small desk-based models giving way to bigger displays taking pride of place on the mantelpiece.

But even now, the majority of current digital photo frames suffer from two main drawbacks. Firstly, there's no disguising the fact that you're looking at a glowing, electric screen. Secondly, being electronic devices, they need to be plugged into a power outlet. So while many frames can be wall-mounted, there will be an unsightly cable trailing from the frame to the nearest mains socket.

Swiss company InkPoster aims to change all that with its range of 'ePaper' frames that use an E Ink display that emits no light of its own, but semi-permanently 'charges' embedded electronic pigments to reflect light instead, resulting in a much more natural-looking display that is hard to distinguish from a professionally printed artwork.

In addition to this reflective display, the other chief advantage of E Ink is that electricity is only used when the display changes; once set, it will continue to show the same image without drawing any electrical charge, so an artwork can be displayed indefinitely. It's a bit like the displays used in e-readers such as the Amazon Kindle, only much, much larger and in vibrant color.

But as with any new technology, these large E Ink displays are currently very expensive, and this is reflected in the prices of InkPoster's art frames (more than simple digital photo frames; they come with access to a large library of paintings, posters, and photographs). The question is: are they worth it, and do they deserve a place among the best digital photo frames that money can buy?

InkPoster Tela 28.5": Specifications

InkPoster Tela 28.5": Price

I hope you're sitting down. The InkPoster Tela 28.5" is a high-end frame with a high-end price, retailing for US$2,399 / £2,399 / AU$5,150. There is also a larger Tela 40.5" that goes for $3,900 / £3,900.

Other InkPoster models are the lower-resolution Affresco, which comes in 13.3" (£$650 / £650 / AU$1,099) and 31.5" ($1,750 / £1,750 / AU$3,750) sizes. Or if you're feeling really flush, there's the Duna 40.5" at $6,000 / £6,000, which basically has the same size and specs as the 40.5" Tela, encased in a plush all-metal frame.

The Tela's price puts even the MorningBlues T2 30" art frame in the shade, which has a list price of $1,499 / £1,499 (but is often discounted), though that's a far more commonplace LED-based screen rather than the E Ink display here. I've also tested the $500 Aura Ink, another e-ink display, though this one is a much more compact 13.3" and is more comparable to the smaller InkPoster Affresco model.

Whichever way you look at it, the entire InkPoster range is made up of expensive high-end products, largely because the underlying E Ink tech is in its infancy. While it's the Tela 28.5" I'm looking at here, you may find the Affresco models a little more affordable, so you'll find the pricing across the range below.

InkPoster Tela 28.5": Design & Handling

Many of the digital photo frames I've reviewed can be described as minimalist, typically encasing the display within a deep art-paper-like mount finished off with a contrasting black frame, and InkPoster follows this design ethos, but takes things to a whole new level. That black frame is really slim, that white mount is really deep, but most telling of all, there are no buttons, touch bars, or any other controls on the device whatsoever. It and it really does look and feel like a genuine artwork.

I'll admit that when I first removed it from its from its box to power it up for the first time, it took a while to figure out where to plug in its USB-C charging cable. I eventually discovered it hidden under a subtle panel on the underside of the frame that pops open with a push to reveal the socket, charging light, and on/off switch.

The InkPoster Tela is designed to be wall-mounted, but weighing in at 16.5lb [7.5kg], a regular picture hook won't do it, and the frame comes supplied with a sturdy mounting kit to secure the artwork to all manner of surfaces.

With no controls on the frame itself, everything is controlled through the companion InkPoster app, which has a huge selection of built-in artworks, ranging from classic poster art, renowned masterpieces, and beautifully shot photographs, all optimized to make the most of the e-ink display. It also enables you to upload your own photographs and set up slideshows to automatically cycle through your chosen images.

InkPoster Tela 28.5": Performance

Once charged up, you can put the supplied USB-C charger away for a year or so, as the built-in battery should keep it going for up to 12 months with normal usage. The frame only draws any real power from the built-in 25,000 mAh battery when changing the displayed image. It also links to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, which use negligible power.

The ePaper display is built around a Sharp IGZO panel. Unlike regular LED or LCD panels, this doesn't emit light, but is a purely reflective technology. There is no backlight, and the display is entirely lit by ambient lighting. Turn the lights off, and you won't see anything at all. This gives a far more natural viewing experience than we're used to with the vast majority of digital frames, where you're essentially looking at a computer monitor display. Even auto-dimming frames often struggle to successfully match a room's ambient lighting, looking too bright at night or not bright enough during the day.

Changing the image takes several seconds, with the screen flickering and flashing as it builds up the image with layers of color, a bit like a printing process. Bold, bright images work best, and there is a huge library of all sorts of genres to download to the frame that have been optimized for the display. The frame can display images in portrait or landscape format, though it doesn't 'know' which orientation it's in, so it's up to you to upload suitable images.

Obviously, with several seconds and a lot of flashing and flickering between image changes, this frame does not support video. It takes a good 30 seconds for the new image to settle, as you can see in the video clip below.

Everything is controlled via the InkPoster app, which is pretty straightforward to use. Once you've linked to your frame via Bluetooth and connected it to your WiFi network, you're presented with thousands of artworks. You can choose from a number of collated 'Collections', including classic Swiss advertising posters from yesteryear (fittingly, as InkPoster is based in Switzerland), vintage European railway posters, Japanese woodblock art, Impressionists, pre-Raphaelite art, among others.

You can also search the vast number of downloadable artworks by artist, genre, subject, or whatever else takes your fancy. If you're a cat lover, you'll find dozens of photographs, paintings, and posters of your feline friends, for example. Tapping a heart icon adds a picture to your favorites to make finding it again easier, and once you've decided on your chosen artwork, a button uploads it to the frame.

You can also select your own photographs from your phone's library. The frame has a 3:4 (or 4:3 in landscape orientation) aspect ratio, which is the same as most smartphones, but you can crop images to best fill the frame in whichever orientation you're going to mount it, and make basic edits to brightness, contrast, and saturation. Images are then stored in your 'private' library in the app, which you can upload to the frame as you would any of the other supplied artwork. It's not as sophisticated as some other digital photo frame apps when it comes to managing photographs, but it does integrate well into the way other art is handled.

As well as uploading artworks individually as and when the mood takes you, you can also set up slideshows to automatically cycle through selected art at a duration of your choosing, from anything from a minute apart to a whole month before displaying the next image. You do only get 15 images per slideshow, and there's only one for portrait and one for landscape orientation.

The more frequently you change the artwork, the more frequently you'll have to recharge. After my initial experimentation, I settled on changing it daily, with the changeover happening overnight.

InkPoster Tela 28.5": Verdict

This is an exceptional digital frame that displays natural-looking images that really do look as if they have been professionally printed and mounted into a stylish art frame, which can be hung wherever you like, without the need to be in close proximity to a mains outlet (or having an ugly cable trailing to one).

The oversized display wouldn't look out of place in a gallery, and in addition to the ability to upload your own images, you get access to a vast library of thousands of pieces of artwork optimized for E Ink tech. It's probably not the best option if all you want to do is display casual snaps of the kids, but it's very well suited to professionally taken images, so I can see this in photographers' studios, as well as well-to-do residences and upmarket establishments.

But there are no two ways about it: it is an extremely expensive device, costing several times as much as most digital photo frames on the market. I'm sure the technology will become more affordable over time, but in the meantime, you'll need very deep pockets.

Alternatives

The famed British photojournalist Ian Berry died last weekend, aged 92, following a short illness. His wife Kathie revealed on Instagram that he died peacefully, in the early hours, just as they were about to fly to the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia.

His career reads like a highlights reel of 20th century history: Sharpeville, the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, the Vietnam War, Northern Ireland's Troubles, the fall of apartheid.

But talk to the man himself, as Digital Camera Magazine did back in 2011, and what came across was a refusal to be precious about any of it, including the equipment that made it possible.

Film to digital

At that stage, still working in his 70s, Berry described his kit bag without a hint of gearhead sentimentality. Two Leica M8.2 rangefinders, a 28-50mm lens, a Nikon D700 for SLR work and, tucked in alongside it, an old 70-300mm Nikon zoom he called "more of an amateur lens", but which kept anyway because "it delivers great results while feeling very light in my bag".

He'd started learning photography in 1952 and like many of his era, took his time to switch to digital. "I thought I'd shoot film forever," he explained. "But a few years ago I did a BBC show where they gave me a Nikon DSLR to try. I just treated it like a film camera, never checking the image on the back as I didn't know how to! I loved it and quickly bought one."

That last habit wasn't nostalgia; it was a deeply ingrained working method. "I have a good idea of what I've got, and rather than checking images all the time, I'd prefer to be moving on and getting my next shot," he said.

Trial by teacup

The best story in that interview was a small, funny one. When Henri Cartier-Bresson was deciding whether to sign him to Magnum Photos in 1962, Berry met him in a Paris bistro, laid out his prints, and drank coffee while Cartier-Bresson ordered tea.

Magnum told him afterwards that Cartier-Bresson had hated him; it turned out he only judged photographers by contact sheets, not prints. Berry went back at a later date, showed contacts and, for good measure, ordered tea for himself too.

That instinct for reading a room helped put him in the right place, at the right time as a photojournalist. In 1960, the South African magazine Drum sent him to Sharpeville, a township in Gauteng province. When trouble began on the streets, he ignored orders to leave and stayed close enough to capture police opening fire on a crowd of protesters, killing dozens.

Drum's owners refused to publish them, in case the magazine was closed down, so an agency placed them with LIFE and Paris Match instead. They were used in court to prove that police had lied, and to clear protesters of affray charges.

Berry's advice to youngsters, passed down from his Magnum colleague Elliot Erwitt, was blunt: "Always keep your copyright... when you're older you can live off your archive." Yet he himself never retired.

Asked in 2011 if he planned to, he'd laughed the question off: "What would I do? I'm still healthy, I can go off and do stories." And indeed he continued working well into his old age. A good life, well lived. He will be missed.

There are camera repair videos, and then there is this. Leica has released an official video documenting the complete restoration of a Leica I, also known as the Leica A, taking viewers inside one of the most important cameras in photographic history as it is stripped down, repaired and brought back to working condition some 100 years after it was made.

Better still, this isn't a quick five-minute promotional film: the entire process runs for around two and a half hours, showing the restoration virtually from beginning to end. If you have even the slightest interest in Leica, mechanical cameras or simply watching somebody who really knows what they are doing work on something extraordinarily valuable, make sure you watch the full repair video below.

Above: watch the YouTube video that shows the restoration process

The Leica I dates back to 1925, when it was manufactured by Ernst Leitz, and it helped establish the 35mm format as something photographers could genuinely carry with them rather than being tied to considerably larger cameras. The Leica name itself famously comes from combining "Leitz" and "camera", although the business would not formally become the Leica Camera company we know today until many decades later. The particular Leica I featured in this restoration is even more interesting because it belongs to the Leitz family, adding another layer of provenance to a camera that was already approaching museum-piece territory before anyone began reaching for a screwdriver.

After around a century, however, even a Leica eventually needs some attention. The biggest problem with this particular camera was its ageing cloth shutter curtain, which had deteriorated to the point where countless tiny pinholes had appeared across its surface. That might sound insignificant, but inside a film camera those holes mean unwanted light reaching the film, alongside potential problems with the shutter mechanism itself.

Leica's answer is not simply to replace one obvious component and send the camera on its way. The restoration begins with an almost complete disassembly of the camera, removing the mechanical assembly from the outer body before systematically cleaning decades of accumulated dirt and old lubricant from the components within.

And this is where the video becomes dangerously addictive for anyone who enjoys mechanical engineering. At around the 25-minute mark, the base plate and gearing are cleaned before fresh lubricant is carefully applied. The process then moves into the heart of the camera, with the front and rear shutter curtain mechanisms removed, serviced, and fitted with a newly prepared curtain.

Later, the winding shaft is cleaned and lubricated, before the mechanism undergoes the painstaking shutter-speed adjustment required to make sure this century-old camera is actually operating as it should. By the time the video reaches its final stages, the internal assembly is returned to the body, the lens is fitted, and the exterior is cleaned, leaving a Leica I that not only looks remarkably good for its age but is once again a functioning photographic tool.

There is something wonderfully romantic about watching all this happen, particularly at a time when so much modern technology is effectively considered disposable once manufacturers stop supporting it. Here is a camera built around 100 years ago being dismantled, repaired, adjusted, and returned to service by people who still possess the knowledge required to understand every spring, roller, gear, and screw inside it.

That longevity is one of the things that continues to make old mechanical Leicas so fascinating. This isn't merely a restoration video about an antique camera; it is a demonstration of what happens when manufacturing, repairability, and craftsmanship are treated as things worth preserving.

A century after the Leica I helped change photography forever, the fact that one can still be revived and potentially used to make photographs today might be the most impressive specification of all.

Best-seller lists hint at what cameras are trending – but where those cameras are sold plays a crucial role in analyzing the top camera trends. In one such list from Japan, a three-year-old budget mirrorless steals the top spot – again – while just one full-frame contender makes the list.

According to BCN+R, the best-selling interchangeable lens camera in Japan for August 2026 is the Canon EOS R50. All top three spots are taken up by budget-friendly APS-C models, with the Sony ZV-E10 II taking second and the R50’s faster sibling, the R10, coming in third.

Larger sensors don’t make an appearance until the fourth-place spot, where the one-and-only full-frame model on the list, the Sony A7 V, sits. APS-C sensor cameras continue to dominate the remainder of the top ten, with the one exception being the Micro Four Thirds Olympus PEN E-P7 in eighth.

The Sony A7 V has been leading multiple best-seller lists in Japan since its launch – and another August bestseller list from Map Camera put the A7 V at number one. So why does the Sony A7 V sit outside the top three from BCN+R?

BCN+R is a major retail aggregator in Japan that analyzes sales data from multiple stores in the nation, including Amazon Japan. Map Camera, meanwhile, is a specialty retailer dealing specifically in camera gear.

That distinction is an important one – general retailers tend to sell more beginner cameras than specialist camera stores. Amazon’s best-selling cameras, for example, also tend to skew towards budget and beginner cameras compared to dedicated camera stores.

Cameras with more accessible price points always tend to outsell pro models – just look at the CIPA data where crop sensor continues to ship far more than full-frame. But this is particularly true when looking at well-known retailers that sell across multiple categories, like Amazon.

The tendency of such lists to skew towards budget models makes the Sony A7 V’s fourth-place spot all the more impressive – particularly considering that the fifth generation is the most expensive in the A7 series to date. The Sony A7 V hits a sort of sweet spot between image quality and speed by mixing a 33MP full-frame partially stacked sensor with 30 fps bursts and impressive subject recognition autofocus.

While the A7 V may have risen up the list, lower-priced cameras have a clear advantage on the latest rankings. The number one Canon EOS R50 is such a popular budget model that it also topped the best-seller list for the first half of 2026 as well. The R50 mixes a 24.2MP APS-C sensor with a simple, beginner-friendly design.

Three Canon are big sellers in Japan

The R50 isn’t Canon’s cheapest mirrorless camera – that honor goes to the R100. But the R50 keeps an accessible price point with features that feel less basic, including a smarter autofocus system with subject recognition and a 15fps electronic burst speed that’s more than double the speed of the R100.

Canon’s budget mirrorless cameras take up three spots in the top ten list. The R50’s more advanced sibling slides into the third-place spot – the Canon EOS R10. The R10 houses the same sensor as the R50, but offers faster burst speeds and more physical controls. The video-oriented version of the R50, the Canon EOS R50 V, also finds a home on the list in seventh place.

Sony's crop sensor, vlogger cams, and the A7 V all make the list

Sony has four cameras on the list, including the A7 V. The Sony ZV-E10 II, a mirrorless camera that’s geared more towards beginner vloggers, sits in second place, and the original ZV-E10 in sixth place. While built to work with both video and stills, the ZV-E10 series’ missing optical viewfinder also makes it one of the more compact beginner mirrorless cameras.

Two stills-focused Sony crop-sensor mirrorless cameras also make the list, with the more affordable A6400 in fifth place and the pricier but faster A6700 in ninth place.

Compact and retro designs remain popular

The only OM System (formerly Olympus) camera on the list is from the popular PEN series, the Olympus PEN E-P7, which sits in eighth place. The camera maker unveiled the new OM System PEN on September 09, which brings weather-sealing and stabilization to the popular series. With that new launch, it will be interesting to see how different the September trends lists look.

Fujifilm has just one model on the BCN+R August list, but in keeping with the same theme, it’s one of Fujifilm’s most affordable mirrorless cameras, the X-M5. Without a viewfinder, the X-M5 is also one of the brand's more compact choices.

BCN+R actually has two different August trending lists – in addition to the one that mixes all the different color and kit lens variations together, the aggregate also tracks best-sellers broken down by color and kit lens. On that list, it’s the Canon R10 with an 18-150 kit lens that takes the top spot, but the R50 appears on the list four different times for different colors and kit lens options, making it the top model when combining all variations.

BCN+R best-selling interchangeable lens cameras for August 2026

1. Canon EOS R50
2. Sony ZV-E10 II
3. Canon EOS R10
4. Sony A7 V
5. Sony a6400
6. Sony ZV-E10
7. Canon EOS R50 V
8. Olympus PEN E-P7
9. Sony A6700
10. Fujifilm X-M5

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Browse the best cameras for beginners or the best cheap cameras.

Canon has given the popular R8 a retro-inspired makeover – and fixed some of the complaints about the entry-level full-frame camera at the same time. The Canon EOS R8 Mark II brings the same well-loved sensor and processor as the original, but adds in-body stabilization and overhauls the ergonomics.

Inspired by the 1985 film SLR T80, the Canon EOS R8 Mark II takes on a design with sharper angles without sacrificing the actual feel of the camera, keeping a good-sized grip and even adding the must-requested joystick.

I shot some portraits and wildlife with the Canon EOS R8 Mark II to see if Canon has found the ideal balance between features, ergonomics, and price.

Canon EOS R8 Mark II: Key specs

Canon EOS R8 Mark II: Price

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II is expected to list for $1,899 body-only and $2099 with the 24-50mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM lens in the US. In the UK, the body lists for £1,729 and the kit for £2,119.

That’s notably higher than the original R8’s list price, which started at $1,499 / £1,699. In the US, that price later rose to $1,649 after tariff increases.

Despite being higher than the earlier generation, the R8 Mark II is Canon’s most affordable full-frame mirrorless with IBIS, and among competitors, the price still fares fairly well. The Nikon Z5 II comes in at a similar price point at $1,846 / £1,599. While the Sony A7C II comes in at $2,498 / £1,999, Sony has kept older models around with IBIS, like the A7 III, which is $1,998 / £1,499 retail.

Another worthwhile note? Canon plans on keeping the original R8 around for a bit as a budget alternative.

Canon EOS R8 Mark II: Design

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II is Canon’s first retro-inspired mirrorless camera, but where most retro bodies find inspiration from 1970s-era cameras, Canon is taking a dramatically different approach. The R8 Mark II is inspired by the Canon T80, a film SLR that was introduced in 1985 and discontinued less than two years later.

Taking inspiration from the mid-1980s, the R8 Mark II doesn’t scream retro but rather has a more subtle nod to the old camera, with a more angular pentaprism and a more angular cut.

While I was surprised at Canon’s first choice of a retro camera, what I love about the R8 Mark II is that despite the slight retro nod, the body still does what Canon does best – and that’s to create a very comfortable grip.

Retro cameras tend to have small and, in some, even nonexistent grips, but the R8 Mark II still has a very healthy grip that still managed well even with a 100-400mm lens mounted on the front.

I’m a petite person, and my hands wrap nicely around the grip without my pinky falling off the bottom. The R8 Mark III will have an optional extension grip that will leave more room for larger hands.

But the Mark II also fixes one of the biggest ergonomic oversights of the original and adds a joystick. While it’s not uncommon for entry-level models to do without, once you’ve used an autofocus joystick, it’s hard to go back to the old, clunky method of adjusting with the menu arrow keys.

That joystick is joined by a handful of key shortcut buttons and a nice tilt-enabled touchscreen. The screen uses a hinge at the side, which allows the screen to fully face forward for vlogging and selfies, along with being angled for high and low-angle shots.

The electronic viewfinder also juts out a bit from the body, and I love that my nose didn’t feel squashed up against the screen.

At the top of the camera, the R8 Mark II has two control dials, one placed horizontally and paired with an on/off switch, and the other arranged vertically within easy reach of the index finger. The top is completed with a classic mode dial (sorry, no retro dials here), an Fn button, a dedicated record button, and, of course, the shutter release.

There’s just a single SD card slot on the R8 Mark II, which is on the grip side and separate from the battery compartment at the bottom. (That battery door, by the way, is far enough away not to be blocked by a tripod quick release plate.)

On the opposite side of the grip, the R8 Mark II has ports for mic, headphones, a cable release, micro HDMI out, and USB-C.

Despite all of these changes, the R8 Mark II remains relatively lightweight. The camera weighs 546g / 19.26 oz once fully loaded with a battery and memory card. That is a little bit more than the 461g / 16.26 of the first generation, but I think that added IBIS system is well worth the slight increase in weight.

The Mark II also carries dust and weather seals, with the same level of sealing as the original.

Overall, while I think some may be disappointed that the retro take is subtle, the Canon ergonomics that fans already know and love are still in play here – and it even gains the joystick over the predecessor.

Canon EOS R8 Mark II: Performance

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II carries the same 24.2MP full-frame sensor and Digic X processor as the original-generation camera. That leaves the second generation with similar image quality to the original, outside of enhancements like fewer blurry shots thanks to the new in-body stabilization.

The lack of a sensor upgrade may disappoint some, but the 24.2MP resolution on a full-frame camera remains very capable. The resolution is still similar to similarly priced competitors such as the Nikon Z5 II and Panasonic Lumix S5 II, though options like the Sony A7C II sit at 33MP. Detail may not be as impressive as Canon’s pricier bodies, but the R8 Mark II strikes an excellent balance between detail and noise for the price point.

Dynamic range also fit right in with what I expected. I was able to recover quite a bit of detail in the shadows on RAW files from backlit, underexposed shots of birds.

Like the sensor, the Dual Pixel II autofocus system matches much of the specs of the original, except the Mark II sees a low-light boost, rated down to -7.5 compared to the -6.5 from the original.

The autofocus overall locked on quickly and managed to keep up with moving subjects. The R8 Mark II managed to freeze birds in midflight, though it dropped some frames. What made the autofocus all the more impressive was the fact that I was using a more affordable telephoto – the 100-400mm f/5.6-8 IS USM.

Subject detection locked onto human eyes well. Animal detection did well on uncluttered backgrounds, but the animal eye AF sometimes struggled to find the eye of some birds and also struggled when shooting with a few stray branches in the way, locking on to tree branches instead of the bird more than I would have liked.

Like the original, the R8 Mark II can shoot at 40 fps with the electronic shutter (but just 6 fps with the mechanical shutter). Even more impressively, those high-speed bursts didn’t come with a long wait to process shots, and I was able to photograph birds without waiting for the camera to catch up. Canon says the buffer improved 30 percent for RAW files over the previous version and 58 percent in JPEG, and it’s a noticeable, welcome improvement.

While the sensor and autofocus may be a match with the original, the new in-body stabilization is impressive. Working with a telephoto that shoots at only f/8 at 400mm inside shadowy branches was a good test for the camera’s image stabilization. I shot this photo at just 1/60th of a second at 400mm:

While I don’t mind that Canon kept the same sensor – at least at this price point – one of the annoyances from the original R8 that isn’t fixed on the update is the battery life. The R8 Mark II carries the same 220-shot (370 in power-saving) rating for battery life while using the viewfinder. Those specs tend to be conservative estimates – I shot more than 350 shots and still have plenty of battery remaining. But for long shoots and travel, picking up a spare battery will be a must.

Canon EOS R8 Mark II: Image Samples

Early Verdict

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II keeps the solid image quality of the first generation – while fixing all but one of our complaints. The camera now has in-body stabilization, a key move to keep up with competing options. A joystick creates fantastic ergonomics, while the memory card door is no longer in an awkward spot blocked by tripod plates.

The only complaint from the original Canon didn’t fix? It has the same battery life – so many users are going to want to factor in the cost of a backup battery.

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II delivers an excellent balance between performance and price. The autofocus and burst speed are excellent – though the animal eye AF doesn’t do as well at picking up a bird in a mess of branches as I would have liked.

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II is an ergonomically lovely camera that packs in a lot of tech for the price point.

Alternatives

So, it's here – the long-awaited and endlessly-rumored retro camera from Canon. Except, it's not a retro camera at all.

In fact, take the new EG-2 grip (which is, crucially, optional) off the bottom of the new Canon EOS R8 Mark II and most people wouldn't even twig that there was anything "retro" about it – though there's definitely some distinct visual grammar going on.

And there's the rub. The R8 Mark II, despite all the camera rumors (and my own pestering of Canon execs), is not a retro camera as we know it. There's no contrasting black-and-silver chassis, no throwback dials, no Canon AE-1 tribute act.

Again, put it 99% of people's hands and – while they'll notice the sharp, aggressive lines and new grip (replete with new texture) – they probably wouldn't identify it as being anything other than a modern mirrorless camera.

But slap that grip on the bottom of the body and it reveals itself: the silhouette from yesteryear that, if you know, you know.

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II isn't a retro camera, but its design has been directly informed by the company's heritage – specifically taking inspiration from the Canon T80, along with a few flourishes from other SLRs like the A1 and AE-1.

And that heritage is completely optional. Attaching the grip adds the unmistakable "slash" to the silhouette – the cherry on top of the angular lines and the boxier bump where once sat a pentaprism. The design is distinctive enough to tell you that this is something special, but understated enough not to be gauche.

The move is typically Canon. It's not the retro camera that everyone expected – and certainly not the camera to which most would pay tribute. But like Commissioner Gordon said: it's the not the hero we deserve, but the one we need right now.

The T80 was important, in that it was Canon's first ever autofocus SLR. (The quirky lens you see on this page, with the red inner ring and motor unit that sticks out like an overdeveloped deltoid, is one of just three "AC" autofocus lenses designed specifically for it.) It was a landmark camera, but a stopgap product and one not very fondly remembered.

Still, the homage is there for those who recognize it. The most hardcore of homages to the most faithful of followers. This isn't a disruptive, fanfare product – it's Canon doing what Canon does: trying something different enough to be a bit exciting, but familiar enough not to upset the locals. Canon has, after all, been burned before when going too far off piste.

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II adheres to the aesthetic of the wider product line, but adds a dollop of secret sauce for those who recognize the flavor. And for that reason, I think it might be the most exciting camera that Canon has released this generation.

Not for the tech – though the 40fps burst, 6K-oversampled 4K and 7.5 stops of stabilization certainly merit excitement – but because it's a link to the past. An acknowledgement that photographers don't just want capable black boxes that take inspiring images – they want those boxes to be inspiring, too.

And, as one of the few people to proudly own a T80 (a camera that was discontinued after only 14 months on the market), I'm grateful that this piece of history hasn't been forgotten. Now, if Canon makes a throwback AC-inspired lens with a hump on the side to go with the new camera, we'll really be talking…

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Take a look at the best Canon cameras, along with the best film cameras – including the Canon AE-1 (though sadly not the T80). You can also check out the best retro cameras, most of which are more overt than the R8 Mark II.

Canon’s first mirrorless to take on a retro-inspired design is here – but the new Canon EOS R8 Mark II goes beyond a subtle 1980s look. Announced late on September 15, Canon’s more budget-friendly full-frame body now crams in stabilization and an autofocus joystick.

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II continues much of what fans already loved about the first generation, including the same 24.2MP full-frame sensor and Digic X processor. But Canon is also bringing in-body stabilization to the entry-level full-frame series in the second generation, with stabilization rated to 7.5 stops at the center and 7 stops at the edges.

That makes the R8 Mark II Canon’s lightest full-frame body with IBIS, despite the addition pushing the weight up slightly over the predecessor, bringing the body to 546g / 19.26 oz with the battery and a memory card.

But the second generation also adds a joystick to the camera’s ergonomics. That, along with the stabilization and fixing the odd placement of the SD card slot, fixes some of the biggest asks from the first generation.

With the same sensor and processor, design is a key upgrade for the Mark II. Canon has long been rumored to be making a retro-inspired mirrorless camera. The R8 Mark II brings a more subtle take on the trendy retro design, taking the sharp angular top of the 1985 Canon T80 without straying too far from the look and feel of Canon’s modern mirrorless.

Taking inspiration from a clunky 1985 camera rather than a 1970s era camera, however, means the R8 Mark II doesn’t skimp on the camera grip like many retro remakes. The body still has plenty of grip to wrap my hands around, and the camera also launches with an extension grip built for larger hands.

Outside of adding two of the biggest asks from the original – IBIS and a joystick – the tweaks throughout the Mark II are as subtle as the retro nod. The Dual Pixel II autofocus system carries much of the same specs – including subject recognition – but comes with algorithm enhancements and an improved low-light rating at -7.5 EV over the original’s -6.5 EV. The camera also borrows the people priority registration from pricier models like the R3 and R6 Mark III.

Canon says a number of the photographers who picked up the original R8 are creators coming to an interchangeable lens system from a smartphone for the first time. The R8 Mark II caters to those creators using Creative Assist, with in-camera explanations and adjustments inside the auto mode.

Canon also added 16 new color filters for JPEGs, including two options inspired by film. These new color filters are separate from Picture Styles, have adjustable levels, and also work for video.

Video specs top out at an uncropped 4K resolution oversampled from 6K at up to 60p. Enhancements include a new cinema view, an autofocus mode built for close-up product demonstrations, enhanced image stabilization settings, and a new Auto White Balance response and lock to control white balance transitions. Video creators can also assign a button on the camera to defocus the shot at a preset speed.

Canon says the original R8 will remain available as a budget option to the second generation, as the Mark II does come in at a higher price point than the original.

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II is set to retail for $1,899 / £1,729 / AU$2,529 body-only and $2,099 / £2,119 / AU$2,859 with the 24-50mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM kit lens. In comparison, the original Canon EOS R8 launched at $1,499 / £1,699 / AU$2,299, though tariffs in the US later pushed the list price to $1,649.

The optional extension grip for the camera retails for $99 / £89 / AU$169.

The camera is expected to begin shipping in late October.

More on the new Canon EOS R8 Mark II

Dive into Canon's latest launch with the Canon EOS R8 Mark II review, ore read about Canon's new Speedlight. Or, browse all the Canon favorites with the best Canon cameras.

Alongside the Canon EOS R8 Mark II that was launched today, Canon is also releasing an update of its EL-5 flashgun. The new Canon Speedlite EL-5 (Ver. 2) only differs from the original in one way – and that is to get a significant boost in its wireless radio control range.

The new Mark II hotshoe flash can now be controlled from up to 50 meters away (164 feet) - a 66% boost in range, compared to the 30m (98ft) that the original version was capable of.

Announced in 2022, the Speedlite EL-5 was the first Canon strobe to be specifically designed to work with the 21-pin multifunction connection shoe found on the most recent Canon EOS R mirrorless cameras (see full list of compatible models below).

Other than the radio range, the other features remain the same on the Ver.2 version of the EL-5. It has a zoom head with coverage from 24-200mm – with a corresponding maximum flash output of 28.7-60 (m/ISO100). A built-in wide panel can be used to extend the coverage enough to use a 14mm lens (with a corresponding Guide Number drop to 14.8 (m/ISO100).

Offering both E-TTL II and E-TTL dedicated exposure, this flashgun also offers a wide range of manual power settings - from full right down to 1/1024sec, in one-third of a stop steps. A strobe feature allows you to set a flash burst frequency between 1-500Hz.

The built-in radio transmitter can control up to 15 Speedlites wirelessly, and model the lighting using the adjustable built-in white LED lamp.

The flash is powered by a rechargeable LP-EL Li-ion pack that can deliver up to 350 flashes at full power on a single charge, with an approximate recycle time of 1.2 seconds.

The Speedlite EL-5 v.2 flashgun is due to go on sale from late October for $379 / £399.95 / AU$639.

Compatible models

These are the Canon mirrorless models that have a 21-pin multifunction hotshoe connector that will be compatible with the new Speedlite EL-5 Mark II…

• Canon EOS R1
• Canon EOS R3
• Canon EOS R5 Mark II
• Canon EOS R6 Mark II
• Canon EOS R6 Mark III
• Canon EOS R6 V
• Canon EOS R7
• Canon EOS R8
• Canon EOS R8 Mark II
• Canon EOS R10
• Canon EOS R50
• Canon EOS R50 V

See our full guide to the best Canon flashguns

Nikon announced the return of the Nikon Tour back in May, complete with stops across ten US cities, and it’s just announced the second leg of the road trip, whereby the distinctive yellow Nikon SUV will be stopping off at the remaining five cities: Dallas, Nashville, Baltimore/Washington DC, Philadelphia, and Boston.

Nikon Tour 2026 dates (second leg):

• Dallas: Sept 25–27
• Nashville: Oct 2–4
• Baltimore/Washington DC: Oct 23–25
• Philadelphia: Oct 30–Nov 1
• Boston: Nov 6–8

The grand tour

Thus far, the Nikon Tour has attracted 1,300 attendees, providing an opportunity to get hands-on with the latest Nikon kit, partake in photography workshops, and connect with both Nikon Ambassadors and like-minded photographers, filmmakers, and creatives.

The best thing about the Nikon Tour is that all of this is entirely free. For the first time, Nikon has scheduled specific programming days: Intro to Photography, Nikkor Z Lens Day and ZR Day, catering to beginners, enthusiast photographers and video creators, respectively.

According to Kristen Pritchett, Nikon’s marketing events and experiential manager: “The first half of the Nikon Tour was incredibly successful in bringing our community together and providing meaningful ways for creators of all levels to connect, learn and experience Nikon gear firsthand”.

Nikon is also partnering with SanDisk, enabling attendees to use the brand’s CFexpress cards on Nikon ZR Days, with content then being uploaded to the cloud. There will also be the opportunity to partake in SanDisk giveaways at select Nikon Tour events.

The second leg of the Nikon Tour will begin on September 25 at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden, with Nikon Creator Danny Batista. Future tour dates will also include Nikon Ambassadors Brandon Woelfel and Mike Mezeul, as well as Nikon Creator Rick Southers.

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We have just spotted the best-ever deal on the Nikon Z6 II - which is now just £921.97 from Amazon direct. Sure, the Nikon Z6 III has landed – but let's be honest, we don't always need the newest model to get quality results (and the new camera costs almost twice as much).

The Nikon Z6 II is a fantastic full-frame mirrorless camera that delivers great performance at an unbeatable price (especially with this deal).

The Z6 II features a 24.5MP BSI CMOS sensor for sharp, high-quality images with great dynamic range. It is powered by dual Expeed 6 processors, which means faster performance, better autofocus tracking and improved low-light handling. With 273 hybrid autofocus points, the Z6 II tracks fast subjects including humans and animals.

A huge upgrade over the original Nikon Z6 is the two memory card slots, which can be a real game changer and push the camera into professional-grade category. With this, you can shoot client work or important events like weddings with peace of mind in case of card failure.

The Z6 II is getting on for six years old - but its age now mean that this powerful mirrorless camera is now a great deal, thanks to this big price reduction.

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At the beginning of the month, I reported on the Dyson CameraJet, a new toothbrush that puts a 100,000-pixel camera in your mouth so you can effectively jet wash your teeth. And now, a photographer has taken said toothbrush out and about on a photo walk. Talk about filling the frame!

The whole thing has been distilled into a Reel by @allthegearnoskill that highlights the tiny lens that’s just beneath the brush head, stating, “if there’s a camera… there’s a way to take photos, so let’s go!” The video proceeds to show imagery captured by the toothbrush, and it’s rather interesting to see.

Firstly, the images are rather warped, but I’m actually surprised at how clear they are – this is a 100K-MP camera after all. The other thing that’s noticeable is the quirky color science, producing a decidedly filmic look. In fact, the purple-hued imagery reminds me of Lomography’s Lomochrome Purple XR film.

And while $500 might seem like an awful lot of money for a toothbrush, it’s an entry-level price point for a camera nowadays. You’re looking around that price for a Canon EOS R100, and before you point out that the Canon is an interchangeable-lens camera, the brush heads are removable, so technically, it’s an interchangeable-lens camera, too... right?

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Wildlife photographer Rodrigo González Pairoa faced challenges when capturing birds in Albatross Islet, Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica, Chile. Now his image of a Black-browed Albatross, shot with a full-frame DSLR that was released 14 years ago, was honored as the winner of the Birds Without Borders category in the 2026 Audubon Photography Awards.

Pairoa recalls the situation, "It was almost ​​​​impossible to keep the camera steady. In the remote Almirantazgo Sound, the biting cold, ever-changing light, and unpredictable wind forced me to readjust my stance and refocus after every blast of photo."

The albatross was calm and Pairoa was able to approach it slowly.

He explains, "In an almost comical moment, it tilted its head, as if observing me with the same curiosity with which I was photographing it. I filled the frame with its face, revealing the dark outline around its eye and the sculptural texture of its plumage.

"In that brief moment, the wind ceased.

"The resulting image captures a fleeting moment of silent, intimate connection with an iconic species of the Southern Seas. I hope that whoever views it feels that same sense of ​​​​closeness."

Birds Without Borders Winner

Contest: Chile and Colombia
Species: Black-browed Albatross
Location: Albatross Islet, Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica, Chile
Gear: Nikon D600 + Nikon AF-S 300mm f/4D IF-ED
Exposure: 1/1600 sec, f/11, ISO 400

Bird Lore
The Black-browed Albatross is one of the smaller and most widespread albatross species. It breeds on islands in the sub-Antarctic and southern oceans, and ranges at sea as far south as the Antarctic continent and north to offshore waters of Brazil and Australia.

While the birds might seem free to wander the seas of the world, studies show that individuals from different nesting colonies tend to migrate to different regions of the ocean outside the breeding season. Those from South Georgia Island, for example, mostly move to waters off southern Africa, while those from the Falklands favor the seas east of South America.

Judge’s Take (Claudio Contreras Koob)
"This image caught the judges’ attention because it offers an almost abstract view of the albatross.

"The skillful use of a modest background, which does not distract the viewer, allows the eye to instead follow the lines and tones that lead us to the albatross’s piercing gaze, the focal point of the composition."

The Audubon Photography Awards is a competition celebrating photographers who use their skills to highlight the beauty, challenges and threats facing birds across Chile, Colombia, Canada and the United States. You can explore all 2026 winning images here.

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Rock up to any major sporting event and you’re likely to see massed ranks of pro photographers with their ‘great white’ super-telephoto lenses. The lenses on parade have several things in common, beyond their white paint jobs that are applied to minimize the build-up of heat when you’re shooting for long periods under a glaring sun. Equally common traits are that these lenses are very big, hugely heavy and massively expensive, sometimes costing as much as most of us would expect to pay for a decent family car.

All of this makes the new Sony FE 400mm an absolute trend-bucker. Pick one up and it just doesn’t seem to make sense. Sure, it’s physically long and finished in white, but this lens is so relatively lightweight that it almost feels like Sony has built some kind of anti-gravity device into the design, or at least stripped out most of the glass. For comparison, the FE 400mm f/2.8 is considerably longer, has about 50 per cent more girth and is almost 2kg heavier at approximately three times the weight. Bearing in mind that the f/2.8 lens is marketed as ‘the lightest in its class’, it goes to show just how much weight loss we’re talking about in the new lens, which is advertised as being ‘the lightest of its type in the world’.

There’s a similar slashing in terms of purchase price, making the new FE 400mm f/4.5 much more affordable as well as being highly desirable. All in all, it aims to be one of the best Sony telephoto lenses, best lenses for sports, best lenses for bird photography and wildlife, and best lenses for safari, while also being outstanding value for money.

Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS: Specifications

Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS: Price

Feel the need for speed? It’s going to cost you, with the Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS selling for an eye-watering $12,999 / £10,490. The new FE 400mm f/4.5 is only 1.33 f/stops slower but still looks and feels a properly pro-grade lens with most of the same handling luxuries. And yet this lens is massively more affordable at just $2,699 / £2,579 / CA$3579, little more than the veteran Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS zoom at $2,799 / £2,149. Skip the G Master credentials, and there’s also the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS at a less expensive $2,099 / £1,599.

A tempting alternative prime is the Sigma 500mm f/5.6 DG DN OS Sports, available in L-mount as well as Sony E-mount options, selling for $2,999 / £2,779. The Sigma is also a relatively compact and lightweight option at a very keen selling price, but it’s still nearly 40 per cent heavier than the Sony lens, trading a longer focal length for a slower f/5.6 aperture.

Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS: Design & Handling

You need strong arms and a fat wallet for a top-end lens like the Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS, which weighs in at 2,895g / 6.38lb and carries a price tag detailed above. Set your sights a little lower and this new f/4.5 lens still boasts a reasonably fast aperture (at least in super-telephoto terms) but in a much more manageable and affordable package. It sneaks in at just under a kilogram, with an official weight of 995g / 2.19lb, making it suitable for even lengthy periods of handheld shooting, rather than relying on a monopod or tripod to take the strain.

And for when size matters, or rather the lack of it, the lens measures 108x265mm / 4.3x10.4in, compared with the much larger dimensions of the f/2.8 lens at 158x359mm 6.2x14.1in. With a girth of only about two-thirds, the f/4.5 lens has a regular 95mm front filter attachment thread, rather than a 40.5mm drop-in filter arrangement near the rear.

The front element shown in the picture above has a fluorine coating to repel moisture and grease, and to aid easy cleaning. Move further back along the extensively weather-sealed barrel and there’s no shortage of handling exotica, which I’ll come to in a moment. Dip inside and you’ll find not one but two XD (eXtreme Dynamic) linear motors that power the fully internal focusing mechanism. Autofocus speed and tracking is designed to cope with 120fps shooting and 240p video capture. The lens shares its top-ranking autofocus system with the much pricier f/2.8 lens, along with switchable full-time DMF (Direct Manual Focus).

Another feature shared with Sony’s top-dollar telephoto primes is an additional, customizable control ring, or ‘function ring’ positioned just in front of the main focus ring. You can assign the secondary ring to various functions but a favorite is Power Focus, which delivers smooth, motorized manual focus transitions when shooting video. One thing that’s featured in the pricier lenses but is lacking in this one is that you don’t get a Preset focus facility with optional confirmation beep.

Moving to the forward end of the black section in the lens barrel, just in front of the focus ring and function ring, there’s a rank of four function buttons. Again, these are customizable but the most popular assignment is AF/L (Autofocus Lock). You can therefore easily lock the focus position and the fact that there are four buttons at 90-degree intervals around the whole barrel means that one of them will naturally fall under the thumb in any shooting orientation.

The further you get into the design of the lens, the more it looks and feels like Sony’s top-end super-telephoto primes, just with a drop in size and radical weight loss. As I’ve mentioned, Preset and Beep switches are absent but you do get a bank of five switches for AF/MF focus modes, full-time DMF on/off, an autofocus range limiter, OSS (Optical SteadyShot) on/off and three selectable OSS modes. These include regular static and panning modes, while Mode 3 delivers adapted stabilization in the viewfinder that makes it easier to acquire and track erratically moving subjects in shooting scenarios like sports, action and wildlife.

If you happen to need even more powerful telephoto reach, the lens is compatible with Sony’s 1.4x and 2.0x teleconverters. The 2.0x version might cramp your style with its 2-stop impact on aperture rating, but the 1.4x will extend your focal length to a mighty 560mm while giving you a still entirely workable aperture rating of f/6.3. Intriguingly, that’s the same as the aperture rating of Sony’s simultaneously launched and extremely similar Sony FE 600mm f/6.3 GM OSS prime, which is physically only marginally longer than this 400mm lens and has a virtually identical weight.

Another viable alternative for gaining extra reach is to switch your Sony full-frame camera body to APS-C crop mode. And with the most high-res ‘R’ models, you’ll still get plenty of megapixels to play with. The lens’s lightweight build also makes it feel relatively at home on one of Sony’s APS-C format camera bodies. Both of these approaches will give you an ‘effective’ 600mm focal length but without the narrowing of aperture from using a teleconverter.

Ghosting and flare can impact the image quality of long telephoto lenses but the Sony has a couple of things in its arsenal to put up a good fight. The first is Nano AR Coating II, which is a high-tech, nano-structured coating designed specifically for lens elements that have a large diameter or are strongly curved. The other is a highly efficient hood, which is very well made and features a release button so that it stays locked in place until you want to remove it.

Even with the combination of optical and in-camera stabilization, a tripod or monopod can help to keep everything steady, as well as bearing the (albeit lightened) load. As I’d expect, the lens comes complete with a tripod mounting ring, that ensures an equally good balance for both landscape and portrait orientation shooting, as well as easy swapping between the two. A simple locking knob enables smooth and easy rotation, and firmly fixes the lens at any position.

Unlike with many lenses that feature tripod mounting rings, the collar is not completely removable. Instead, only the foot detaches, as shown in the image below. The foot itself has both sizes of standard 1/4in and 3/8in mounting threads and once removed, there’s only a small stub that remains. Unlike the stub featured in some other lenses of its type, this one takes up very little additional space and doesn’t impinge on handheld shooting.

The hefty FE 400 f/2.8 has additional attachment screws in its mounting plate, to ensure sufficient strength, rigidity and durability. Those aren’t necessary in this lens, because it’s so much more lightweight. Even so, the metal mounting plate is very durable and features a weather-seal gasket and gold-plated electronic contacts.

The lens is very slim for its type but still necessarily quite long. I’m glad that Sony has seen fit to include a high-quality carrying bag as part of the package. And as a further bonus, the carrying bag has a smart, space-saving design.

Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS: Performance

I tested the FE 400mm with a Sony A7R V camera body, which puts great demands on the autofocus speed and resolving power of any lens, with its revamped AI-powered autofocus system and 61MP image sensor. I found that when shooting lakeside birds that were darting around and moving their heads quickly and erratically, the lens was able to take full advantage of the A7R V’s advanced recognition and tracking abilities, with sufficient speed to ensure a really high hit rate of sharply focused images.

The focal length itself is a serious performance factor in that it gives sufficient telephoto reach to cover an awful lot of distance. Naturally, it’s a major bonus when shooting action sports, where you’re confined to a spectator’s area or (if you’re really fortunate) a designated photographer’s spot. It’s equally advantageous for shooting birds and wildlife, where you can’t physically get as close as you might like without invading their personal space, scaring them away, or being attacked by some of the more ferocious examples. As well as shooting birds with the lens, I used it at a heritage railway site, and was pleased that I was able to get the shot below from a long way down the line.

Moving onto resolving power, I was again impressed that the lens is able to capture immensely fine detail and texture. There’s also excellent clarity and contrast, with powerful resistance against ghosting and flare. Color rendition is very natural and the lens is capable of a tight depth of field, along with a smooth and dreamy quality of bokeh. Suffice it to say that all of the essential ‘image quality’ boxes are well and truly ticked.

Unwanted aberrations are kept to negligible levels, with very good control over distortion and color fringing. These attributes are demonstrated in the image below, which shows a lack of distortion and no visible color fringing around the high-contrast transitions of the window and door frames.

Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS: Sample Images

When taking the sample shots for the following gallery, I started off at the East Somerset Railway in the South West of England. It’s a delightful historic railway that’s run as a charity by a friendly bunch of volunteers, and is well worth a visit. Next, I moved on to the Chew Valley Lake, also in Somerset, to test the lenses by shooting some lakeside birds. Finally, I took them on a stroll around the picturesque town of Stockbridge in Hampshire. I took all of the sample shots at the widest available aperture of f/6.3, which is the sternest test of the lens but often needed to enable sufficiently fast shutter speeds.

Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS: Lab Results

We run a range of lab tests under controlled conditions, using the Imatest Master testing suite. Photos of test charts are taken across the range of apertures and zooms (where available), then analyzed for sharpness, distortion and chromatic aberrations.

We use Imatest SFR (spatial frequency response) charts and analysis software to plot lens resolution at the center of the image frame, corners and mid-point distances, across the range of aperture settings and, with zoom lenses, at four different focal lengths. The tests also measure distortion and color fringing (chromatic aberration).

Sharpness:

You’ll often need fast shutter speeds to freeze action in sports and wildlife photography with this type of lens, so I feel that wide-open sharpness is an important performance factor. The Sony really delivers, with stellar sharpness even at its widest aperture, not just at the center of the frame but right out to the edges and corners.

Fringing:

Color fringing is entirely negligible, again not just at the center of the frame but deep into the corners. Performance is excellent in this respect, throughout the entire aperture range.

Distortion: 0.67

Technically, there’s just a hint of pincushion distortion but it’s of a very low order and will generally go unnoticed in ‘real-world’ shooting. And that’s without any input from automatic in-camera correction.

Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS: Verdict

The Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS is a dream come true as far as I’m concerned. Some photographers say that if you can’t shoot at 200mm, you’re just not close enough. I’m not one of them. I love shooting action, sports, wildlife, birds, aircraft and plenty of other subjects where it’s simply not possible to get as close as I might like to. I love that this Sony lens really covers the distance, without weighing me down. It’s very compact for its type and I can comfortably shoot handheld for long periods of time without feeling any strain.

The pricing of the lens also makes it massively more affordable than most top-flight super-telephoto primes. Couple that with epic performance in terms of super-fast and consistently accurate autofocus, along with stellar sharpness, clarity and color rendition, and you have a real winner of a lens. The quality of bokeh is very appealing as well, and the lens keeps all unwanted aberrations to an absolute minimum. I feel that Sony has pulled off something a masterstroke with this lens. It’s absolutely fabulous.

Alternatives

Like countless others of my generation, I was glued to the first ever series of Star Trek on TV. An iconic quote that’s stood the test of time (fittingly from an episode called ‘The Naked Time’ comes from Scotty in the engine room of the USS Enterprise… “I can’t change the laws of physics.” Well, it seems Sony has just got one over on Scotty with its new 600mm super-telephoto prime lens.

Compared with Sony’s FE 600mm f/4 lens, the new FE 600mm f/6.3 is only about half as big and less than a third of the weight. That’s a major achievement, considering that the older lens was renowned for being ‘the lightest in its class’. Yet the new one is a whole 2kg lighter, weighing in at just 995g / 2.19lb, making it ‘the lightest of its type in the world’.

Another plus side is that the new lens is certainly no lightweight in terms of its aspirations to top-end performance, aiming to be one of the best Sony telephoto lenses, best lenses for sports, best lenses for bird photography and wildlife, and best lenses for safari. And just wait until you see what they’ve done with the price. It’s only a fraction of the cost of its 600mm f/4 sibling.

Sony FE 600mm f/6.3 GM OSS: Specifications

Sony FE 600mm f/6.3 GM OSS: Price

What is the price of a top-class 600mm prime lens? We’re talking ‘family car’ money here, with the Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS costing a monstrous $14,099 / £11,999. That puts it well beyond the reach of most of us. It’s remarkable that this new 600mm f/6.3 lens is only 1.33 f/stops slower but massively more affordable, costing a ‘mere’ $3,699 / £3,609 / CA$4999. That’s only about a quarter of the asking price.

But before we get too carried away, consider that the very capable Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS matches the new prime for aperture rating at the long end of its zoom range, while also adding the flexibility and versatility of a zoom lens, for a relatively ‘cheap’ $2,099 / £1,599. That said, the zoom lens lacks G Master credentials. Getting back to prime time, there’s the Sigma 500mm f/5.6 DG DN OS Sports in both Sony E and L-mount options, which also undercuts the FE 600mm at $2,999 / £2,779, while having a faster aperture rating and nearly as much telephoto reach.

Then there’s Sony’s own new Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS, which looks and feels almost identical to the 600mm lens, again has some seriously strong telephoto reach and a faster f/4.5 aperture. This lens is significantly less expensive to buy at $2699 / £2,579 /CA$3579. Overall, you might feel that the FE 600mm f/6.3 is a bargain, or not, depending on which way you look at it. Let’s see what you actually get for your money.

Sony FE 600mm f/6.3 GM OSS: Design & Handling

Life can be a strain with a lens like the overarching (overwhelming?) Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS. It’s big and burdensome, with vital statistics of 164x449mm / 6.5x17.7in. That’s almost half a yard long and it tips the scales at a back-bending 3,040g / 6.7lb. Handheld shooting for any length of time is pretty impractical. With the new lightweight FE 600mm f/6.3 long periods of handheld shooting turn from being a non-starter into a no-brainer.

The new contender is much shorter and slimmer, at just 108x265mm / 4.3x10.4in, and weighs a mere 995g / 2.19lb. That’s less than the weight of some 24-70mm standard zoom lenses that I’ve owned in the past, and more than 2kg / 4.4lb lighter than the FE 600mm f/4. Indeed, the new lens is less than a third of the weight of its chunky sibling. The relatively skinny design also enables the inclusion of a regular 95mm front filter attachment, instead of the need for a rear drop-in filter holder.

As I’d hope for in any lens that’s geared to action, sports and wildlife photography, this one is extensively weather-sealed and has a fluorine coating on its front element. Beneath the skin, there are dual XD (eXtreme Dynamic) linear motors that power the fully internal focusing mechanism, just like in Sony’s top-dollar 600mm prime. Autofocus speed and tracking is designed to keep pace with 120fps shooting and 240p video capture. And if you still feel the need to focus manually, there’s a switchable full-time DMF (Direct Manual Focus) mode.

Just in front of the focus ring there’s another control ring, again also featured in Sony’s recent top-flight telephoto primes. The secondary customizable ‘function ring’ can be assigned to various functions but one of my favorites is ‘Power Focus’. It’s great for ensuring smooth manual focus transitions when shooting video, thanks to its motorized nature.

The middle section along the length of the lens barrel is colored black and plays host to the main shooting controls. As well as the focus ring and function ring, there’s a rank of four function buttons. Maintaining the theme, these buttons are customizable but I’d generally use them for AF/L (Autofocus Lock). I like that there’s a full set of four of them, placed at 90-degree intervals around the barrel, so one of them naturally falls under the thumb in any shooting orientation.

It would be unreasonable to expect every single feature that you get on the top-dollar 600mm lens to be replicated here and sure enough, there are no Preset or Beep on/off switches. Oh well, never mind. There are still plenty of positives though, including a bank of five switches for AF/MF focus modes, full-time DMF on/off, an autofocus range limiter, OSS (Optical SteadyShot) on/off and three selectable OSS modes. The stabilization modes in question include both of the regular static and panning modes, plus a third mode that stabilizes the viewfinder image in a way that it that makes it easier to track erratically moving subjects.

Should you feel the need to photograph something in the next county without driving there, the lens is compatible with Sony’s FE teleconverters. The 2.0x version naturally bumps up the focal length to a mammoth 1200mm, but with the usual catch of a 2 f/stop narrowing of the aperture, which shrinks to a disappointingly small f/13. The 1.4x teleconverter will likely prove more practical, equating to an 840mm focal length with a widest available aperture of f/9.

To gain extra telephoto reach, it’s also perfectly viable to switch to APS-C crop mode, especially with one of Sony’s ultra-high-res full-frame cameras, which would still give you a healthy megapixel count. And given the relative lightweight build of the lens, you could even mount it on an APS-C format Sony camera body. In both of these cases, you’d get an ‘effective’ 900mm focal length without the aperture reduction of using a teleconverter.

Long telephoto lenses can be particularly susceptible to ghosting and flare, which can degrade image quality. This one offers two-fold resistance with Nano AR Coating II, along with a very effective hood. First up, the high-tech, nano-structured coating is designed specifically for lens elements that have a large diameter or are strongly curved. The hood has a circular profile and is sufficiently long to do an efficient job, as well as being well made and featuring a lock/release button.

Building on its lightweight design, the combination of optical and in-camera stabilization makes handheld shooting entirely viable, but a tripod or monopod can still come in handy to keep things steady. True to type, the lens features a tripod mounting ring that ensures an equally good balance for both landscape and portrait orientation shooting. It also enables quick and easy swapping to any desired orientation, having a simple locking knob and smooth action.

As with a fair few other telephoto lenses, the tripod ring isn’t completely removable and only the foot can be detached. The foot itself features both standard sizes of 1/4in and 3/8in mounting threads. With the foot removed, there’s only a very small stub that protrudes from the lens. It doesn’t really add to the size of the lens and doesn’t impair handheld shooting.

The mounting plate of the relatively huge and heavyweight FE 600 f/4 features additional fixing screws to enhance strength and rigidity. That’s unnecessary for this relatively lightweight lens, so it has Sony’s more regular mounting plate which still includes a weather-seal gasket.

Despite its downsized design and build, the lens takes up most of the length (height?) of my camera backpack, leaving relatively limited space for all my other paraphernalia. I’m pleased therefore that Sony includes a nicely tailored and stylish looking bag with the lens.

Sony FE 600mm f/6.3 GM OSS: Performance

Throughout my time testing the FE 600mm, I paired it with a Sony A7R V camera body. This camera places big demands on the resolving power and autofocus speed of lenses, with its 61MP image sensor and tenacious AI-powered autofocus system. The lens definitely proved up to the task. I spent some time shooting lakeside birds that were very skittish and moved very erratically, but the lens took full advantage of the A7R V’s advanced recognition and tracking abilities. Autofocus speed proved a match for birds that were rapidly moving their heads around, or darting along the banks.

As a performance factor, I couldn’t help but be impressed by the lens’s generous super-telephoto reach. It covers a whole lot of distance for action, sports and wildlife photography, especially when you’re limited to a spectator’s area or a birding/wildlife hide. That oversized reach can make all the difference between getting the shot and missing it. As a case in point, I was shooting at a heritage railway site, and was able to get the shot below from a long way down the tracks. It would have taken quite a few minutes to walk up the line for a closer shot with a lens that had less telephoto reach, during which time the photo opportunity would have passed.

In terms of sharpness, the lens is able to do justice to Sony’s highest-resolution cameras like the A7R V, with their abundance of megapixels. It can capture plenty of fine detail and texture, along with superb clarity and contrast, although the simultaneously launched FE 400mm f/4.5 proved a little sharper in our lab tests. True to its claims, resistance to ghosting and flare is very good. And although the aperture rating of f/6.3 certainly isn’t ‘fast’, its combination with a 600mm focal length enables a tight depth of field, along with pleasantly smooth bokeh.

The lens also exhibits very good control over unwanted aberrations, with color fringing and distortion being of a very low order. Again, our lab test results weren’t quite as excellent as from the FE 400mm f/4.5, but were very impressive nonetheless. The image below serves as a graphic demonstration, the regular geometric shapes and high-contrast transitions of the window and door frames revealing minimal distortion and fringing.

Sony FE 600mm f/6.3 GM OSS: Sample Images

When taking the sample shots for the following gallery, I started off at the East Somerset Railway in the South West of England. It’s a delightful historic railway that’s run as a charity by a friendly bunch of volunteers, and is well worth a visit. Next, I moved on to the Chew Valley Lake, also in Somerset, to test the lenses by shooting some lakeside birds. Finally, I took them on a stroll around the picturesque town of Stockbridge in Hampshire. I took all of the sample shots at the widest available aperture of f/6.3, which is the sternest test of the lens but often needed to enable sufficiently fast shutter speeds.

Sony FE 600mm f/6.3 GM OSS: Lab Results

We run a range of lab tests under controlled conditions, using the Imatest Master testing suite. Photos of test charts are taken across the range of apertures and zooms (where available), then analyzed for sharpness, distortion and chromatic aberrations.

We use Imatest SFR (spatial frequency response) charts and analysis software to plot lens resolution at the center of the image frame, corners and mid-point distances, across the range of aperture settings and, with zoom lenses, at four different focal lengths. The tests also measure distortion and color fringing (chromatic aberration).

Sharpness:

Sharpness is very good even when shooting wide-open at f/6.3, and holds up well right out to the edges and corners. That’s an important point to me, as I often tend to want shutter speeds that are as fast as possible to freeze motion when shooting action, sports and wildlife with this type of lens. However, the sibling FE 400mm f/4.5 proved a little sharper in our lab tests, across the whole image frame.

Fringing:

There’s fairly little in the way of color fringing, which will generally go unnoticed in real-world shots, even with automatic in-camera correction disabled. Optically, fringing isn’t quite as minimal as with the FE 400mm f/4.5 lens but in-camera correction completely eliminates it.

Distortion: 0.96

As with color fringing, there’s only minor pincushion distortion. Again, you’ll rarely notice it even with automatic in-camera correction disabled, and if you enable the auto fix, the Sony effectively becomes a zero-distortion lens.

Sony FE 600mm f/6.3 GM OSS: Verdict

The Sony FE 600mm f/6.3 GM OSS has a lot going for it. I love the incredibly compact, lightweight design and build of the lens, making it a painless pleasure even for long periods of handheld shooting. Moreover, the speed and accuracy of the autofocus system coupled with the highly effective optical image stabilization ensure an epic hit rate, where practically every shot is a keeper. Handling is sublime, not only because of the manageable weight but also because of the plethora of buttons and switches for its advanced focusing and stabilization modes. Meanwhile, the weather-sealed build quality is reassuringly robust.

My only caveats are that while the f/6.3 aperture rating certainly isn’t slow for modern super-telephoto lenses, it’s definitely not fast either. It’s merely modest. You can generally enable sufficiently fast shutter speeds for freezing the action in sports and wildlife photography, to which the lens is tailor-made, but often this is at the expense of needing to push your camera’s ISO setting further than you might wish. And while the lens seems epic value for money compared with the top-flight Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS, it looks comparatively expensive up against its sibling Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS and the Sigma 500mm f/5.6 DG DN OS Sports, both of which are also relatively compact and lightweight for their type.

Alternatives

Bright telephoto primes tend to sit at a luxury price point only the most serious wildlife and sports photographers can reach for – but Sony’s new telephoto prime lenses are nearly 4x cheaper than the brand’s brightest. Unveiled on September 15, the Sony FE 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS and FE 600mm f/6.3 GM OSS bring two popular telephoto focal lengths to a more reasonable price point – and a lighter profile.

Sony already has both a 400mm f/2.8 and a 600mm f/4, but the new primes narrow down the aperture by around 1 and ⅓ stops in order to create a more portable – and less pricey – optic.

The 400mm comes in at 994g / 35oz – and the 600mm is only 1g heavier. That’s a major weight loss over the 2895g / 102.2 oz 400mm f/2.8 and the 3040g / 107.3 oz 600mm f/4. Both lenses are also designed with more glass towards the rear of the lens in order to create better balance on the camera body, with the 400mm using 22 elements in 16 groups and the 600mm using 24 elements in 17 groups.

I’ve worked with 600mm f/4 lenses before – and immediately scheduled a chiropractor adjustment afterwards. The new Sony primes don’t quite have the melt-like-butter background of an f/2.8 and an f/4, but it’s far more feasible to hike with.

In fact, I hiked two miles, and I had both the 400mm and the 600mm on me at the same time. Time constraints – and not exhaustion – only prevented me from going farther. Working with the two new prime lenses felt more like carrying around a 70-200mm f/2.8 than a luxury telephoto prime.

While both lenses are lighter and more affordable than Sony’s brightest telephoto primes, the optics are still stabilized – and still a card-carrying member of the more high-end GM series. I found they were still plenty sharp, and still had room to crop even when mounted on the A7 V and not an R-series model.

That sharpness is going to be a key deciding factor on these lenses. After all, the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS matches the 600mm’s aperture rating and comes in at a lower price than the prime. But, in our lab tests, the 600mm prime won in sharpness, particularly at the corners.

The 400mm is even sharper than the 600mm, even when shooting wide open.

Sony says that both lenses use two linear XD motors and are capable of keeping up with bodies that have 120 fps autofocus calculations. I didn’t find anything to the contrary on my hike – a few birds had too many branches in the way for the autofocus to pick up on, but even birds in flight had relatively few misses.

While the new telephotos are compact, they still carry a set of controls that will feel familiar to photographers who have used other Sony telephotos. There’s a large set of switches including the focus range limiter, four focus hold buttons, and a custom function ring.

As part of the GM series, both lenses are also built with dust and moisture seals, along with a fluorine coating on the front element.

Sony says that both optics are still compatible with Sony’s 2x and 1.4x teleconverters.

The Sony 400mm f/4.5 GM OSS is set to retail for $2,699 / £2,579 / AU$3,999 – while that’s certainly not a cheap lens, that’s nearly a quarter of the cost of Sony’s 400mm f/2.8, which sits at $12,999 / £10,490 / AU$16,999.

The Sony 600mm f/6.3 comes in slightly higher for that added reach at $3,699 / £3,609 / AU$5,599. Again, that’s not cheap unless it’s being directly compared to the 600mm f/4 GM OSS, which goes for $14,099 / £11,999 / AU$19,299.

Both lenses are expected to begin shipping in October.

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Take a look at the best Sony E-Mount lenses or the best lenses for bird photography.

Leica has released a fresh round of firmware updates for a surprisingly wide selection of its M cameras, covering both the M10 and M11 generations, and while the update itself is fairly small, there is one very specific reason Leica owners may want to install it: support for the new new Leica Summicron-M 66 f/2.

For the current generation, firmware version 2.6.4 is available for the Leica M11, M11-P, M11-D and M11 Monochrom, as well as the Leica M EV1. Leica has also pushed new firmware to several cameras in the older M10 family, including the M10, M10 Monochrom, M10-P, M10-P ASC, M10-R and M10-D. Depending on the camera, the firmware version differs, but the important addition across the updates is the same: a lens profile for the Summicron-M 66 f/2.

Leica's own release notes for firmware 2.6.4 are refreshingly short. Under the rather optimistic heading of "NEW", there is essentially one addition: "Lens Profile: Summicron-M 66 f/2." There is also an advisory recommending the use of UHS-II SD cards with the M11-generation cameras, with Leica noting that UHS-I cards can cause technical issues in rare cases, but as far as actual new functionality goes, this update really is about that new 66mm lens.

And I have to admit, there is something wonderfully ambitious about releasing firmware support across this many cameras for a lens that only 660 people in the world will ever be able to buy new. The Leica Summicron-M 66 f/2 is not exactly destined to become the next 35mm Summicron that appears on the front of every other M camera you see. Leica is producing just 660 examples worldwide, making this one of the most exclusive modern M lenses the company has produced. Still, new firmware is new firmware, and if you happen to be one of those 660 owners, it is certainly nice to know that everything from an M10 to an M11-P is ready for it.

The Summicron-M 66 f/2 itself is one of Leica's more interesting releases of recent years. Announced earlier this month, it forms part of the company's Classic Line and is a modern reinterpretation of the incredibly rare Elcan 66mm f/2 developed by legendary optical designer Dr Walter Mandler at Ernst Leitz Canada during the late 1960s. The original lens was created for the US Navy for covert reconnaissance photography, and Leica says only around 200 examples were produced, making originals exceptionally rare today.

That rather unusual 66mm focal length also sits in an interesting position within the M system. It gives photographers something tighter than the traditional 50mm standard lens without pushing all the way into more conventional short-telephoto territory. Leica describes the new lens as combining soft bokeh with high contrast when used wide open, while stopping down reveals the high resolving power that was fundamental to the design of the original Elcan. There are some wonderfully eccentric historical details too, including an aperture ring that rotates in the opposite direction from standard M lenses.

There is also something quite pleasing about Leica extending support for the lens back to the M10 generation rather than restricting it to its newest cameras. The M11 family gets firmware 2.6.4, while the older bodies receive their respective firmware packages, meaning photographers who have held onto an M10, M10-R, or M10 Monochrom are not being left behind simply because they are using an earlier digital M. For a camera system built around lenses that can remain useful for decades, that feels appropriate.

Of course, for the overwhelming majority of Leica M owners, installing this firmware is unlikely to result in any noticeable change whatsoever. The chances of casually stumbling across a Summicron-M 66 f/2 are going to be fairly slim when the entire worldwide production run amounts to just 660 lenses. But that almost makes the update more entertaining.

Leica has gone to the trouble of updating two generations of digital M cameras to accommodate one of the rarest lenses in its current catalog, and there is something very Leica about that. You may never own the lens the firmware was designed for, but at least your camera is ready should one unexpectedly fall into your hands.

DJI has opened pre-orders for its new Osmo 360 II, and while there are several different ways to buy the company’s latest 360-degree camera, there is one bundle that immediately stands out to me.

The DJI Osmo 360 II Adventure Combo is available to pre-order in the UK for £639 at Wex, Clifton Cameras, and Park Cameras. I think this is easily the package to go for.

At the time of writing, those wanting the cheaper Standard Combo will have to head directly to DJI, where it is priced at £509.

That additional £130 for the Adventure Combo might initially sound like quite a jump, but you are getting accessories that I suspect most serious Osmo 360 II users would end up buying anyway. The package includes three Osmo Extreme Battery Plus batteries in total, the Osmo Multifunctional Battery Case 3 and a 1.2m Dual-Direction Quick-Release Invisible Selfie Stick, alongside the protective pouch, lens cap and other essentials.

For action, travel or longer days of filming, having three batteries ready to go is going to be considerably more useful than relying on a single battery, while the Invisible Selfie Stick is almost an essential part of getting the most from a 360 camera. Bought separately, those additions quickly add up, which is why I think the £639 Adventure Combo represents the better overall deal.

The camera itself is also a significant step forward. The Osmo 360 II offers what DJI describes as 1-inch 360-degree imaging and can now record native 8K 360-degree footage at up to 60fps, giving creators considerably more flexibility when reframing footage after it has been captured.

DJI is also quoting up to 14.5 stops of dynamic range, while the camera can capture 120MP HDR 360-degree still images and offers 10-bit recording with D-Log M for anyone who wants greater control over colour grading. There is an f/1.9 aperture alongside the new AI SuperNight 2.0 mode for low-light shooting too, making this a camera designed to work well beyond bright daytime action footage.

One of the biggest practical improvements, however, might have nothing to do with resolution. The Osmo 360 II now uses ultra-hard, scratch-resistant lenses that you can replace if they get damaged, which is a huge improvement for a camera designed to attach to bikes, helmets, cars, selfie sticks, and just about anything else you can think of.

It also offers 105GB of usable built-in storage, NFC Quick Connect, DJI’s Spotlight Follow subject framing, and up to 100 minutes of 8K recording, while weighing just 183g. DJI has also retained compatibility with its wider Osmo ecosystem, including its quick-release accessories and direct connection with OsmoAudio products.

If you simply want the Osmo 360 II itself and already have compatible accessories, the Standard Combo makes sense, and at £509 it saves a decent amount of money. But for anyone buying into DJI’s 360 system for the first time, I would spend the extra and go straight for the Adventure Combo.

At £639 from Wex, Clifton Cameras, Park Cameras and DJI, the additional batteries, charging case and Invisible Selfie Stick turn it into a much more complete package straight out of the box. With native 8K/60fps capture, replaceable lenses and a much stronger set of accessories, the Osmo 360 II Adventure Combo looks like the version that really shows what DJI’s new 360 camera can do.

Whether you're a seasoned photographer, a beginner just getting started or someone who loves capturing beautiful moments, submitting your images to photo competitions is one of the best ways to gain exposure and recognition.

Entering competitions isn't just about winning – though prizes and publicity are great bonuses! It's also a chance to dive into your archives, rediscover your best images and refine your personal style. Many photographers say competitions were the stepping stone that helped them build a name, grow their audience or land their first big feature.

And with so many open calls across all genres – there's something for everyone. So, here's a list of photography competitions with open calls that are accepting submissions from September 2026 until February 2027. It's a small selection to spark inspiration, but there are countless others out there...

The 2026 Arnold Newman Prize

Deadline: September 23

Open to: Photographers of all levels aged 18 years and older

Fee: $65

Focus: New Directions in Photographic Portraiture

Prizes: $20,000 Grand prize, three finalists receive a $500 stipend each, all artists recognized in the Top Ten will be included in the online exhibitions hosted by Maine Media, Top Ten will be featured in a professionally produced publication celebrating the work of the Prize recipient, three Finalists, and six additional photographers recognized in the Top Ten.

AAP Magazine #61: Street

Deadline: September 29

Open to: Photographers of all levels

Fee: Early bird: $30 for 3 images, Regular: $35

Focus: Street photography

Prizes: $1,000 in cash awards, publication in AAP Magazine #61, extensive press coverage, and international exposure

Botanical Photographer of the Year

Deadline: September 30

Open to: Photographers of all levels

Fee: Free

Focus: Britain and Ireland's wild plants

Categories: Intrepid: Plants in wild, hard-to-reach, or dramatic landscapes, Inquisitive: Close-up shots highlighting the fascinating and minute features that are often used in ID, Inclusive: People interacting with plants, urban botany, or community recording, Open: For entries that fall outside the above.

Special: Young Botanical Photographer of the Year for an entry into any category, aged 18 or under

Prizes: To be announced

Fine Art Photography Awards

Deadline: Early deadline: October 11, Final deadline: February 14

Fee: Amateur: Early deadline: 19$ single image, $24 series; Professional: $24 single image, $29 series, category fee: $10

Open to: Photographers of all levels

Amateur & Professional categories: Abstract, Architecture, Conceptual, Experimental, Fashion, Fine Art, Landscape, Nature, Night Photography, Nudes, Open Theme, Panoramic, People, Photojournalism, Photomanipulation, Portrait, Seascape, Street Photography, Travel, Wildlife / Animals

Prizes: Amateur: Grand Prize $2,000, Professional: Grand Prize $3,000

Travel Photographer of the Year

Deadline: October 12

Open to: Photographers of all levels

Fee: From £14, entry is FREE for young photographers aged 18 and under

Portfolio categories: Adventures & Journeys, Cultures, Traditions & Celebrations, Landscapes – Nature & Urban, Wildlife, Sealife, Birdlife

One Shot categories: In Nature, People of the World, Street, Travel in Black & White,

Special Awards: Travel Photographer of the Year, Young Travel Photographer of the Year, Travel Image of the Year, Rising Talent Award, People’s Choice Award

Prizes: Cash prizes from £1,000 to £200, industry portfolio reviews, media exposure, and more

Wellcome Photography Prize

Deadline: October 21

Open to: Photographers of all levels

Fee: Free

Focus: Issues on health, science, and the human experience

Categories: Striking solo photography, A storytelling series, The marvels of scientific and medical imaging

Prize: £10,000 for each Category Winner, 22 entries from across the three categories will be awarded £1,000 each, extensive international media coverage

Insta 360 Global Awards

Deadline: October 30

Fee: Free

Open to: Photographers and videographers of all levels

Requirement: Entries must be shot on Insta360 or Antigravity products

Format: Videos: 30sec-3min MP4/MOV, single image only under 20MB

Categories: Street, Travel, Life, Portrait, Sports, Night

Prizes: $150,000+ prize pool with over 100 winners to be announced

World Sports Photography Awards

Deadline: November 23

Fee: Free

Open to: Photographers of all levels

Eligibility: Up to 10 images taken between December 2025 – November 2026

24 categories: American Football, Athletics, Baseball, Basketball, Combat Sports, Cricket, Cycling, Equestrian, Football, Golf, Gymnastics, Ice Hockey, Motor Sports, Nautical, Other, Racquet Sports, Rugby, Skate, Special, Swimming & Diving, Tennis, Urban & Extreme, Venues, Views & Crowds, Winter Sports

Prizes: Prizes are provided by sponsors of the World Sports Photography Awards, details TBA

Sony World Photography Awards

Deadline: November 27 (Student), January 5 (Youth + Single Images), January 12 (Series)

Fee: Free

Open to: Photographers of all levels

Competitions: Series (previously Professional competition), Single Image (previously Open competition), Student, Youth

Categories: up to 10 different categories depending on competition

Prizes: Cash prizes up to $25,000, top-tier Sony equipment, and global exhibition opportunities

OPPO Photography Awards

Deadline: December 31

Open to: Photographers and videographers of all levels, shooting with OPPO, OnePlus, or realme devices

Fee: Free

Theme: "Super Every Moment"

Categories: Me, Journey, Video, Zoom, Live, Snap

Prizes: $76,500 prize pool across 38 awards

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For even more inspiration, browse the best photography awards and contests.

This versatile RF telephoto lens is an incredibly compact, high-quality all-rounder, and now, thanks to this unbeatable Amazon deal, it’s even harder to resist.

This top-rated Canon RF 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM is now just £1,499 at London Camera Exchange. With this offer, you save £270 off its regular price of £1,769.

So, if you've been waiting for the perfect moment to get Canon's smallest full-frame telephoto lens, that moment is now.

The Canon RF 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM is the shortest (FF) 70-200mm ever – and yes, it's as compact as it sounds – it's only barely bigger than a beer can. This lens redefines portability, fitting comfortably in a sling bag, even when mounted on your camera.

Perfect for portraits, sports, wildlife, events, and even landscapes, it's an all-around telephoto that can easily become your go-to workhorse lens.

Whether you're just getting ready or investing in something that will serve you for years, this lens delivers great value thanks to its versatility, sharpness, and built-in image stabilization (up to 7.5 stops!).

The center sharpness remains superb across the entire zoom range, from 70mm to 200mm. The corner sharpness is good, but not as crisp as the EF version.

While this lens doesn't support teleconverters, the reach you get will cover most subjects in a quality way, and with Canon's advanced stabilization, it's equally strong for stills and video.

It comes at a premium price – often around 50% more than its DSLR counterpart. So, if you're looking for a single telephoto lens that does (almost) everything and travels light, this one absolutely earns its spot in your kit.

If you've been considering Canon's smallest full-frame telephoto lens, this is your chance to get it at a solid discount.

If you are a Canon shooter or want to become one, check our guide to the best Canon cameras, along with the best Canon telephoto lenses and best Canon superzoom lenses.

If you love shooting the DSLR way, the Nikon D850 is a full-frame camera that truly delivers – combining high resolution, impressive speed, and incredible value.

And right now, the Nikon D850 is available for just $1,996.95 at B&H. With this, you save a massive $600 off its regular $2,596.95 price.

This full-frame DSLR powerhouse offers 45.7MP resolution and up to 9 fps – ideal if you are a pro or serious amateur. With its versatility and speed, the D850 is perfect for a wide range of photography styles...

Best DSLR for megapixels: Nikon D850

Now, let's talk about why the Nikon D850 is such a big deal. Beyond this great price, it's a versatile powerhouse made for all kinds of photography and videography – nature, landscapes, weddings, fashion, sports – you name it.

The camera's performance is so broad that it can easily handle nearly any shoot you throw at it. The only thing holding it back from being a top-tier 4K filmmaking tool is its contrast-based autofocus in live view mode.

Designed with professionals in mind, the 45.7MP D850 also has a strong following among serious amateurs. With this deal, it's a chance to get a professional-grade Nikon DSLR without breaking the bank.

Speed-wise, it's impressive too. The D850 shoots at up to 6fps (frames per second) at full resolution, buffering up to 51 compressed 14-bit RAW files. To hit that top speed, you'll want the MB-D18 Multi-Power Battery Pack and EN-EL18B battery (the same used in Nikon D5). It's an investment of approx. $446.95, but worth it if you need that extra burst of speed.

Its closest rival from Canon, the EOS 5D Mark IV, is solid – but the D850 beats it in resolution, shooting speed, and full-frame 4K video. And with this deal, you're getting a pro-level camera for a fraction of the list price.

If you shoot portraits for a living, August Sander is a name you should know. His decades-long People of the 20th Century, for one, is a landmark in the discipline's history.

An attempt to catalogue a cross-section of society by trade and social type, it set the template that Diane Arbus, Bernd and Hilla Becher, and ultimately portraiture in general would build from.

If, for instance, you've ever shot a series of subjects against the same plain background, in the same pose, to emphasise the differences between them, you're standing on Sander's shoulders.

Precisely because he is so legendary as a portraitist, though, the breadth of his work as a whole is often overlooked. And so seeing images like those on this page – a hard working, weathered farming couple, an outlandish artistic trio, a hand gripping a walking stick – is a breath of fresh air.

They form part of a new exhibition marking the 150th anniversary of his birth. August Sander: On His 150th Birthday draws mainly on the foundation's own holdings, which have housed the world's biggest Sander archive since 1992.

Alongside his famous portraits, visitors also get to experience early images from his Linz period and commissioned photographs from the Westerwald region that few people have ever seen.

It is, in short, a chance to see just how many different registers Sander could work in. Formal document, social observation, personal affection; all united by an eye for structure that made even a farming couple leaning on hoes look epic.

Substance over style

What quick becomes clear is that Sander's genius was never really about a fixed style, so much as a fixed method applied to constantly shifting subjects.

A group of musicians, gathered together with their instruments and dogs, has none of the stiffness you'd expect from studio work of the period; a mother and child portrait evokes real tenderness within the formal pose. Elsewhere, artists pose in an almost confrontational manner that could pass for a still from a much later decade.

Sander wasn't just cataloguing "German types" but also paying close attention to everyone in front of him. This extended to small details, as seen in two of the featured series, Studien, der Mensch (Studies, the Human Being) and Mensch und Maschine (Man and Machine), where the hand recurs as a central motif.

Cologne, where Sander lived and worked for more than 30 years, gets attention too: a newly exhibited group of images, made between 1930 and 1942/43, documents his own family home and studio. A companion publication from Schirmer/Mosel pairs this body of work with six radio talks Sander wrote and delivered for West German Radio in 1931; all six play in the exhibition space.

The show also touches on Sander's single trip abroad, several weeks in Sardinia in 1927 with the writer Ludwig Mathar, while a monitor presentation pairs his Rhine and Siebengebirge landscapes with recent images by photographer Gerhard Fleischer, who's spent years since 2014 tracking down Sander's work.

August Sander: On His 150th Birthday runs at Die Photographische Sammlung/Stiftung Kultur der Sparkasse KölnBonn, Cologne, until 24 January. Admission is €7.50 (concessions €4.50), with free entry on the first Thursday of every month.

Instant film portable photo printers allow photographers to have their digital files and get real instant film too. The Fujifilm Instax Link Wide 2 brings oversized instant film into the mix – all with seamless connectivity and simple USB-C charging.

I tried the Instax Link Wide 2 with photos of every sort from smartphone snapshots to pro mirrorless photos – and found the portable printer has a near-perfect blend between charm and quality.

Specs

Price

The Instax Link Wide 2 retails for about $180 / CA$240 – that’s surprisingly less than the original was going for in the US just ahead of the update’s launch, as the original was selling for about $235. But, as a larger format printer, the Link Wide 2 is understandably a bit higher priced than the Link Mini+ and Link Mini 3.

Film is going to need to be factored into the cost as well. In the US, a pack sells for between $23 - $29, which is about $1.15 - $1.45 each image. In the UK, a 20-pack of Instax Wide sells for about £19, making each print about £0.95 each.

Design

The Link Wide 2 feels about the size of a desktop external hard drive, or for a more retro comparison, a bit larger than a portable CD player. While larger than the Mini series printer, the photo printer doesn’t feel too obtrusively sized, thanks in part to a very simple design.

The front has an eye-catching textured pattern and an Instax logo that lights up when powered on (or charging). One side has two buttons – a power-on and an Fn button for checking the battery level – the other has a simple USB-C port for recharging.

The back opens up to install the film cartridge. Installation is simple – just match the yellow on the printer to the yellow on the film pack.

Prints spit out of the top.

But, it’s been nearly five years since the original Wide Link came out, and there’s one key usability upgrade to the design – rather than the ols Mico-USB, the Link Wide 2 uses the wildly available USB-C cord for charging.

Performance

Devices that rely on a Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connection tend to be prone to connectivity issues – but I had no issues at all getting the Link Wide 2 connected to my phone. The printer connected to the app on the first try, and the app walked me through the simple connection steps without needing an instruction manual.

I’ve owned and loved a handful of Link Mini-sized printers, but after trying the Link Wide 2, I’m going to have a hard time going back to the smaller prints. The Link Wide 2 spits out images that are about twice as big as the Mini film type. Instax wide is about 62mm by 99mm – or 86mm by 108mm if you include that classic white border.

I used images from several different cameras to test out the Link Wide 2, including the new Instax Pal 2, iPhone shots, and images from mirrorless cameras.

Prints are sharper than I had expected. The prints are just the right size to get enough detail while still keeping the classic instant film format.

Colors hit an excellent balance between being true to the original image and having a bit of film-like color – after all, what’s the point of printing on instant film if you don’t want a bit of that retro charm? Part of that color prowess is the ability to swap between two quality modes. Instax Natural is going to have more of that imperfect instant film look, while Rich mode gets a bit closer to the colors and contrast of the digital version.

I did run across an occasional faint line on the bottom of the images. When working with instant film, this usually hints at an error in the rollers that break loose the chemical packets to develop the film. Positioning the printer upright rather than flat with the cartridge side down improved these lines a bit, but I did still get an occasional line on the bottom of the print. These lines didn’t appear in every image, but tended to be most noticeable in lighter colored images.

Many of the features that are new to the Instax Link Wide 2 are app-based updates. One such feature is the new Photo Mixer. This is a mode that automatically assembles a collage for you, including cutting out some images – which I suspect is AI-based. The collages can be remixed up to five times, and those edits can also be tweaked.

Like the earlier Link Wide, the app also allows for adding a QR code so prints can double as a photographer’s business card. Those QR codes can also save locations, messages, and sound clips.

The printer can also print without an app from two supported cameras – the newly announced Instax Pal 2, or the Fujifilm X-T30 III. Firmware took away the Instax direct printing option on a handful of cameras, which is disappointing, so other Fujifilm cameras will have to wirelessly send to a smartphone, then print from there.

Verdict

The Instax Link Wide 2 turns digital photos into real, oversized instant film. The print quality has the ideal balance between preserving the color and sharpness of the original while still having a bit of real film charm to it.

I love the oversized Wide format, which is about twice as wide as Instax Mini.

The app experience is seamless, with the printer connecting on the first try and automatically connecting on subsequent prints. I did miss the widespread camera-to-printer compatibility that Fujifilm previously had. The Wide, for now, only connects app-free with the X-T30 III and Pal 2. Other cameras need to send to a smartphone first for printing, which is a bit disappointing as someone shooting with a previous-generation Fujifilm mirrorless.

My biggest complaint is that the prints occasionally pick up a stray line or two on the bottom of the image – likely a roller issue.

The Link Wide 2, while convenient and charmingly retro, is also a pricier way to get prints than ordering 4x6s from a photo lab, as film packs cost about $29 / £19 for 20 prints.

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Fujifilm’s Instax portable photo printer series is the photography equivalent of having your cake and eating it too, converting digital photos into real instant film prints. But the latest in the series goes oversized – and finally gets USB-C charging.

The Fujifilm Instax Link Wide 2, announced late on September 14, brings the same oversized Instax Wide format of the original printer launched in 2021. But the second generation moves from the old micro-USB to USB-C charging. That’s a welcome change as USB-C becomes the standard – and mico-USB cords more annoying to dig out.

Besides the change to the charger port, the printer has a refreshed design that doesn’t need a stand to sit upright. The Instax logo on the front doubles as a light that signals battery life and connection status. Loading the film remains simple – pop open the back and match the yellow on the printer to the yellow mark on the film cartridge.

Much of the printer’s updates come in the form of the Instax Wide Link app, rather than the printer itself. A new Photo Mixer feature automatically creates a collage from selected photos. The feature generates a collage that will even cut out some of the photos for you and add themed text and backgrounds based on what’s in the photographs. The app will generate up to five remixes and those collages are also possible to edit.

The app also retains the ability to build your own collages, including using different templates. QR codes allow creators to put links, audio, and hidden messages inside their prints, while the app remains packed with editing tools and stickers.

While the iOS and Android app can print from nearly any camera, two cameras can connect to the printer without needing a smartphone at all. The Instax Pal 2, which was announced alongside the new printer, and the Fujifilm X-T30 III can print directly from the camera menu.

Surprisingly, in the US at least, the Link Wide 2 comes in at a slightly lower list price than what the $235 first generation was selling at prior to the launch. The printer is set to begin shipping in late September for $179.99 / CA$239.99.

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The compact camera is back with a vengeance – but Fujifilm’s new option redefines “compact” entirely. Weighing just 41g – less than 2 oz – the Fujifilm Instax Mini Pal 2 is a tiny retro camera that fits in the palm of my hand yet comes jam-packed with retro viewfinders and controls.

Looking absolutely nothing like the original Instax Pal, about the only thing that the Pal 2 has in common with the original is that it's tiny – and it doesn’t print out Instax without buying a separate printer.

The Instax Pal 2 feels like a cross between the popular Instax Mini Evo and the Kodak Charmera. I tried out the Pal 2 – and I think this tiny cam may be a fit among fans of retro digicams.

Specs

Price

The Instax Pal 2 retails for $169.95 / £144.99 / CA$219.95 / AU$249.

That makes the Pal 2 one of Instax’s more affordable digital options, coming in under the price of options like the Instax LiPlay+ and the Instax Mini Evo.

But, that does put the camera above the price of keychain cameras like the Kodak Charmera – and the Pal 2’s small size is inevitably going to draw a lot of comparisons to the viral keychain camera.

Design

I hate to admit this, but I may have gone into total fangirl mode when I opened a shipping box to find the Instax Mini Pal 2 inside. This camera is tiny; it’s retro and, frankly, it’s adorable.

The second generation of Instax’s Pal series looks nothing like the bubble-shaped original. Instead, the Pal 2 feels like a cross between a retro compact camera and a keychain camera. Weighing just 41 g – that’s less than 1.5 oz – the Pal 2 is small enough to disappear into the palm of my hand.

Despite the tiny size, Fujifilm has managed to cram an abundance of controls and features, including an actual optical viewfinder at the back. As much as I love having a real optical viewfinder, the viewfinder isn’t entirely accurate, catching more on the edges of the frame than what’s shown in the viewfinder.

The top of the camera is oozing with retro goodness. On the right-hand side, there’s a toggle that feels reminiscent of a film wind lever that switches between different Instax framing options, or enters the burst mode to create short photo animations.

On the opposite side, there’s a rotating dial that switches through different film simulations and a button on top of that for accessing the menu options.

Sandwiched between the lever and control wheel is a small LCD screen. By default, this screen displays the film simulation mode, but the screen does have a live view mode in the menu. Placing the screen at the top rather than the back allowed me to shoot with the camera like a waist-level finder when I didn’t want to use the viewfinder. That, to me, is one of the best design features – that the Pal 2 has not one but two shooting styles, and both feel very retro.

At the bottom of the camera, there’s a small toggle, this pops out a USB, so the Pal 2 plugs directly into a smartphone or computer as if it's a thumb drive, no cord needed, and can plug directly into a USB-C block for recharging.

The Pal 2 doesn’t come with a keychain loop like the original, but there’s a small slot for looping in a wrist strap – and one is included in the box.

All of those features are wrapped up in a classic silver-and-black design reminiscent of retro cameras – and other Instax cameras like the Mini Evo.

Naturally, as a tiny camera, the memory card slot is the microSD sort – but there’s enough memory built in for about 100 photos, and considering no cord is needed for a quick smartphone transfer, that’s more than enough for most.

The battery life will last almost until the internal memory fills up. I shot around 70 photos with the red battery life indicator popping up towards the end. That’s not fantastic, but the Pal 2 is a budget cam, and there’s a built-in charger, so it’s easy to charge.

Performance

The Pal 2 is built for style and size rather than high-end specs. The sensor is a small 1/3.06-inch type. But I was surprised to find that the Pal 2 can shoot at 10MP, which gives it an edge over (much, much) cheaper tiny cameras like the Kodak Charmera.

The Pal 2 is a camera that feels purpose-built for the retro camera trend. The camera feels like it would fit right in with the trend of buying up early 2000s compact cameras. The image quality isn’t going to beat out a modern smartphone, not by a long shot, and it’s not going to beat out compacts with larger sensors. I would put the photo quality above the Kodak Charmera, but not as good as the Camp Snap CS-Pro.

While the camera does just hit that two-digit megapixel count, images still feel very much like a low-fi camera. Look too close, and the images feel more like oil paintings than photographs. But, the size is still sufficient for things like sharing on Instagram – where photos get downsized to 1080 pixels anyways.

The resolution is also more than enough for prints from the new Instax Wide 2, announced on the same day – but the small sensor and 10MP resolution isn’t meant to print out oversized wall hangings.

The small sensor suffers in low light conditions, creating noticeable grain and muddled details much faster than cameras with even a 1/2.3-inch sensor.

The lens is a 28mm equivalent that’s not too wide but not too close and should adapt well to basic street and landscape shots to portraits.

The camera shoots in programmed auto, with an exposure compensation option tucked into the menu. I was relieved to see the option to adjust the exposure somewhat, as the camera’s tiny sensor has a limited dynamic range.

The Pal 2 has a tendency to overexpose, particularly outdoors. Frames that include both bright sun and shadowy patches will end up with overexposed highlights without any user intervention, but that exposure control rescued many of my shots.

Naturally, as a camera coming for Fujifilm, there are several built-in film simulations. There are six profiles built in, but the Instax Pal app can swap to another set of six filters. Along with a standard color profile (which Instax dubs “Pure"), there’s a black-and-white mode, one for built-in lens flares, a soft mode with diffusion, a muted tones option, and a cool color profile. That was plenty of options to play with, though I did miss the double exposure mode found on the Instax Mini Evo.

The camera can also shoot with a film frame added, resizing and fitting a classic digital border around for frameless, Mini, Square, and Wide Instax formats. I didn’t use this feature much, as those frames are easy to add in the Instax Pal app later on, so I found myself wishing I could control exposure compensation with the top lever instead.

The Pal 2 also has a “burst mode” but unlike a typical burst setting, this mode creates short animations.

Speed adds to the Pal 2’s retro feel – which is to say that the camera is a bit slow. There’s a noticeable shutter lag between pressing the shutter and when the photo is taken, so there’s an extra challenge for photographing moving subjects like pets and kids.

Like the original, the Instax Pal 2 is one of the few cameras that carry the Instax name – but doesn’t actually have a printer built in. The Instax Pal 2, however, can connect directly to an Instax printer (or hybrid Instax camera) without a smartphone and print directly from the camera.

I tried the Pal 2 with the new Instax Link Wide 2, which is a good fit for the camera’s wide aspect ratio. The resolution is plenty for printing on Instax Wide, and using real film for those prints levels up the retro charm more than the camera’s built-in presets.

Verdict

The Instax Pal 2 is low on tech and high on retro charm. This is hands-down the cutest little retro camera that I’ve ever used.

But beyond the fact that it's tiny enough to nearly disappear in the palm of my hand, I loved the dual viewfinder options with the classic optical viewfinder and the top-placed screen that feels like a waist-level viewfinder. Add in the toggle and dials, and this tiny camera is just oozing with classic vibes.

Built-in film looks add to the charm, and the built-in port means easy smartphone transfers without packing a cord.

The Pal 2, however, is more of a camera for nostalgia than pixel peeping. The small sensor is a challenge in mixed lighting, and details tend to look more like muddled paintings pretty quickly. The camera is definitely one for getting the look of an older digicam rather than the look of a modern camera.

There’s some shutter lag to contend with and a few other minor annoyances, like the optical viewfinder not being quite accurate. I also wish the exposure compensation was built into a physical control rather than the menu. It’s also one of the few Instax cameras that doesn’t actually print on instant film – you need to buy a separate printer for that.

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Compact cameras in retro designs are trending – but Fujifilm’s newest camera takes both trends to the extreme. The Fujifilm Instax Pal 2 is a camera tiny enough to disappear in my palm, yet is jam-packed with classic controls and not one but two viewfinders.

Fujifilm sent me the Pal 2, and when the package arrived, I had no idea what was inside. When I opened the box, I probably sounded like a fangirl backstage at a concert. The Pal 2 is tiny and, frankly, adorable.

Weighing 41g – that’s less than 1.5 ounces – the Pal 2 is absolutely tiny, yet carries an utterly classic look complete with a lever and a dial.

But despite the small size, Fujifilm has managed to fit not one, but two retro-styled viewfinders on this camera. The first is a classic optical viewfinder, not a screen, just a classic cutout.

The Pal 2 also has a tiny one-inch screen at the top that doubles as a waist-level finder. Of course, a real retro waist-level finder was optical too, but managing to fit both an optical viewfinder and a waist-level, albeit electronic, viewfinder is engineering genius.

The Pal 2 looks so unlike the original Pal that I’m a bit surprised Fujifilm didn’t give it a different name. The original was a bubbly little thing that had a keychain hook, no screen, and no controls beyond a shutter button.

The Pal 2 has a lever reminiscent of a film wind lever that switches from standard to shots with a digital Instax frame around them. A dial on the opposite side of the top screen switches through the different built-in film simulation presets, which include black-and-white, a soft diffusion look, and even a mode that digitally adds lens flare.

Using the app, those default presets can be swapped out for a different collection, with the camera supporting six different effects at a time.

As one of Instax’s more affordable digital options, the Pal 2 is as tiny on specs as it is on size. The sensor is a 1/3.06 size that shoots up to 10MP. While that’s small, that’s notably better than the specs on the popular Instax Mini Evo.

The resulting photos are more for the trend towards early 2000s digital cameras than for the modern look – it’s not going to shoot better photos than a smartphone. I’d put the image quality above the Kodak Charmera, but behind the Camp Snap CS-Pro.

There’s, disappointingly, some shutter lag to the Pal 2 that can make it challenging to get perfectly timed shots. There’s also a “burst mode,” but this new mode is built to create a flipbook-style animation out of up to 10 frames.

One of the things that the Pal 2 shares in common with the original is that it's one of the few Instax products that doesn’t actually use instant film. The camera is too small to fit in a printer. Instead, there’s built-in Bluetooth that connects directly to Instax printers without needing a smartphone, including the Instax Wide Link 2 that Fujifilm also announced on September 14.

While the Pal 2 doesn’t need a smartphone to print, the tiny cam does connect to the Instax Pal app. Beyond the wireless connection, I didn’t even need a cord, as there’s a pop-out USB-C that plugs into a smartphone just like a thumb drive. There’s even enough built-in memory for up to 100 photos in addition to a microSD card slot.

Of course, the design isn’t the only thing that’s different from the first generation – the price sits a bit higher as well. The Pal 2 is expected to retail for $169.95 / £144.99 / CA$220 / AU$249. Shipping is estimated to begin in late September.

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