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Camera Test: Canon EOS 5Ds
The 5Ds packs 50.6 million pixels
In this episode of How Many Pixels Can You Fit on a 35mm Sensor? we see Canon stuff 50.6 million into that familiar frame. While many people have loudly questioned the need, the Canon EOS 5Ds captures a massive amount of image detail. The previous pixel champs, Sony’s Alpha 7R (36.4MP) and Nikon’s D810 (36.3MP), trail it by more than 10MP each. Of course, Sony’s new A7R II comes closer with 42.4MP, but you’ll have to wait until next month for us to test that one.
The 10 best digital cameras in 2016
We pick the cameras offering the best features, the best quality, the best ideas and the best value
Along the way we'll explain some of the jargon and the differences between cameras, though if you need a bit more help deciding what kind of camera you need, you can get a lot more information from our special step-by-step guide: What camera should I buy?
On the other hand, you may already have a clear idea of the kind of camera you want, in which case you could go straight to one of our more specific camera buying guides:
New and exciting cameras are coming out all the time, of course, and we've got a whole bunch on our shortlist that we want to get in for a proper review, including the latest models from Nikon, Olympus, Canon and Fuji.
If you want to know what else might be coming along during 2016, take a look at our in-depth Camera Rumors 2016 article.
Dark Winter Wedding | Styled Shoot
Dark Winter Wedding | Styled Shoot
After months of planning, dreaming, designing, and organizing we
couldn’t be any more excited to share this shoot captured on film with
everyone. This concept is something we have wanted to bring to life for a
long time now, and with a team of incredible vendors, it happened. For
the inspiration we wanted to step outside of the box and create a dark,
moody shoot infusing brasses and golds with blacks, greys and reds.
Using the gorgeous backdrop of The Acre Orlando,
we were able to encompass winter inspiration with a trendy but non
traditional look. We are obsessed with Alexandra’s breathtaking Sarah Seven
gown and stunning free form bouquet! The deep and luscious details such
as the black candlesticks, elegant calligraphy of the menu, truffles
and berries added to this elegant affair. Using dark woods, deep colors
and bold statements we wanted to encourage the mystical feel of a dark
moody winter.
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Best Dslr Camera
Best Dslr Camera
Nikon Coolpix S7000 Review
Nikon Coolpix S7000 Review
Introduction
The Nikon S7000 was introduced at the same
time as a range of other new Nikon cameras in early February 2015. It
features a back-illuminated 20 million pixel CMOS sensor and a 20x
optical zoom which gives you an equivalent angle of view of 25-500mm in
35mm terms. There’s also full HD video recording, as well as inbuilt
Wi-Fi and NFC support for connecting the camera to your smartphone or
tablet. Other specifications include an EXPEED C2 processor, the ability
to create panoramas, a range of scene modes, a three-inch 460k dot
screen and the ability to charge the battery via a USB port. The Nikon
Coolpix S7000 costs £199.99 / $279.99 and is available in black, white,
pink or gold.
Fujifilm X70 Review
Fujifilm X70 Review
Introduction
The Fujifilm X70 is an advanced compact
camera with an APS-C sensor and a fixed 18.5mm F2.8 lens (28mm
equivalent). The X70 features a 16.3-megapixel APS-C sized X-Trans CMOS
II sensor with built-in Phase Detection pixels and no low-pass filter,
EXR Processor II image processing engine, a 180-degree 3.0-inch
1,040K-dot tilting touchscreen LCD, a lens control ring and an aperture
ring, 1080p movie recording at 60/50/30/25/24fps at a bit rate of
36Mbps, 49/77-point hybrid auto focus system with high-speed AF at
0.1sec, mechanical shutter and a silent electronic shutter for shutter
speeds up to 1/32,000 sec, built-in wi-fi connectivity, ISO range of
100-51,200, 8fps burst shooting, and in-camera time-lapse recording. The
Fujifilm X70 will be available in either Black or Silver for £549 /
$699. Four dedicated optional accessories are available - the BLC-X70
half leather case, the LH-X70 lens hood, the VF-X21 optical viewfinder
and the WCL-X70 wide conversion lens which gives a 21mm focal length.
Ease of Use
Available in silver and black or the more sober all-black version that we received for review, the Fujifilm X70 clearly inherits the classical DNA of its X-series siblings, with a pleasingly retro design that helps it stand out from the crowd.The Fujifilm X70 is a very well-built camera, with no discernible flex or movement in its chassis and sporting milled aluminium exposure compensation and shutter speed dials and aperture and focusing rings. It's the smallest and lightest APS-C sensor camera in the range, weighing in at 340g with the NP-95 battery and memory card fitted and measuring 112.5mm (W) x 64.4mm (H) x 44.4mm (D), making it well-suited to being slipped into a coat/jacket pocket.
The X70 sports a fixed 28mm-equivalent lens with a fast maximum aperture of F2.8. In combination with the extensive ISO range of 100-6400, the lens' 9-blade aperture and the large APS-C sensor, this makes it easy to throw the background out of focus and even achieve some lovely bokeh effects. The X70 is well suited to low-light shooting, allowing you to hand-hold the camera in places where you'd usually be reaching for a tripod (if allowed) or other support. Note that this camera does not feature built-in optical image stabilisation, although we didn't miss it too much due to the short focal length.
The clever ISO Auto Control setting allows you to set the default sensitivity, a maximum sensitivity (up to 6400) and a minimum shutter speed (1/30th is a good starting point), with the camera over-riding your ISO choice if it thinks you're being too ambitious whilst maintaining a shutter speed that won't introduce camera shake. The X70 also offers the ability to set three different ISO Auto Control settings, so you could customise one for landscapes, one for action, and another for low-light, and then be able to quickly change between them. Auto ISO is also available in the manual shooting mode, complete with exposure compensation, which has now been extended to +-3EV via the dedicated dial on top of the camera.
At the heart of the X70 is the 16.3-megapixel APS-C sized X-Trans CMOS II, a size that is used by the physically larger X100-series cameras. APS-C is a size that's more commonly used by the majority of DSLR cameras than by your average compact, being about 10x bigger than those found in most compacts, and also larger than those in most compact system cameras. It promises to deliver image quality at least on par with DSLRs, and as our test photos and sample images show on the next two pages, the X70 certainly lives up to that promise.
Front of the Fujifilm X70
The X70 is supplied with a push-on, lined metal lens cap to help
protect its lens, although there's no way to connect it to the camera,
leading to a few moments of "find the lens cap". There's a generously
sized hand-grip at the front of the X70 and a rubber thumb-rest on the
rear. Two small metal eyelets on either side of the body are used for
connecting the supplied shoulder strap, which isn't quite as luxurious
as the rest of the package. A metal tripod mount is positioned
off-centre from the lens towards the memory card / battery compartment,
so annoyingly you do have to remove the camera from the tripod to change
either of them.
The X70 utilises a leaf-shutter rather than the focal-plane shutter that DSLR cameras have. This is a small circular shutter that's built into the lens itself, the chief benefit being near-silent operation. To make the camera even less obtrusive, there's a Sound & Flash menu option which turns off the speaker, flash, AF-assist lamp and most importantly the artificially-created shutter-release sound, instantly making the X70 perfectly suited to candid photography.
The mechanical shutter has a top speed limit of 1/4,000th second, which means that we ran into some issues in bright sunlight when shooting in aperture and shutter priority modes at F2.8. The X70 doesn't feature a built-in Neutral Density filter, so you'll have to either stop-down the aperture and sacrifice some depth-of-field to avoid blowing out the highlights, or switch to the electronic shutter.
Fujifilm have added a completely silent electronic shutter to the X100T which provides a much faster top shutter speed of 1/32,000th second. This allows you to continue shooting at F2.8 in the brightest of conditions without having to resort to fitting a glass ND filter or using external flash and lights. There are some important caveats with the electronic shutter - the ISO range is restricted to 200-6400, you can't use the flash at all, and the slowest shutter speed is only 1 second, but overall it's a great addition that makes the X70 more versatile. The X70 also offers a a respectable close focusing distance of 10cms, so macro shooting certainly isn't out of the question.
The X70 utilises a leaf-shutter rather than the focal-plane shutter that DSLR cameras have. This is a small circular shutter that's built into the lens itself, the chief benefit being near-silent operation. To make the camera even less obtrusive, there's a Sound & Flash menu option which turns off the speaker, flash, AF-assist lamp and most importantly the artificially-created shutter-release sound, instantly making the X70 perfectly suited to candid photography.
The mechanical shutter has a top speed limit of 1/4,000th second, which means that we ran into some issues in bright sunlight when shooting in aperture and shutter priority modes at F2.8. The X70 doesn't feature a built-in Neutral Density filter, so you'll have to either stop-down the aperture and sacrifice some depth-of-field to avoid blowing out the highlights, or switch to the electronic shutter.
Fujifilm have added a completely silent electronic shutter to the X100T which provides a much faster top shutter speed of 1/32,000th second. This allows you to continue shooting at F2.8 in the brightest of conditions without having to resort to fitting a glass ND filter or using external flash and lights. There are some important caveats with the electronic shutter - the ISO range is restricted to 200-6400, you can't use the flash at all, and the slowest shutter speed is only 1 second, but overall it's a great addition that makes the X70 more versatile. The X70 also offers a a respectable close focusing distance of 10cms, so macro shooting certainly isn't out of the question.
Rear of the Fujifilm X70
Canon EOS 1200D Review
Introduction
The Canon EOS 1200D (also known as the
Digital Rebel T5) is the new entry-level model in Canon’s extensive
range of digital SLR cameras, replacing the 3 year old 1100D camera.
Aimed at first-time DSLR users, the Canon 1200D has an 18 megapixel
APS-C CMOS sensor, Digic 4 processor, 3-inch LCD screen, 3fps continuous
shooting, 9-point auto focus module, 63-zone iFCL exposure metering,
ISO 100-6400 sensitivity, on-screen Feature Guide, stainless steel
chassis and all-aluminium exterior, 1080p HD video capture with full
control over exposure, focusing and sound levels, and a new EOS
Companion smartphone app. The Canon EOS 1200D is priced at
£349.99 / €419.99 body only, or £449.99 / $549.99 with the stabilised
EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS II lens.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 Review
Introduction:
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 (also known as
the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS100) was announced at the start of 2016 and
features a 20.1 million pixel 1-inch MOS sensor. It’s also got a 10x
optical zoom which covers a 35mm equivalent focal length range of
25-250mm. The maximum aperture range is f/2.8-f/5.9.
Panasonic says that the TZ100 forms a new market in the compact camera arena, as its the first compact camera with a large, one-inch sensor, to also feature a notable (10x) optical zoom. That should make it ideal for travelling photographers who want the flexibility of different focal lengths.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 also has a new Venus engine, and the same 4K video and photo modes as found in some of Panasonic’s compact system cameras. That includes the ability to “post focus” and extract photos from 4K video files. A 0.2-inch, 1160k-dot electronic viewfinder is joined by a 1040k-dot touch-sensitive screen.
There’s not really any like-for-like competition with the TZ100 as it stands, but in terms of its size and shape, it’s reasonably similar to the Canon PowerShot G9 X.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 / ZS100 is available in silver or black for £549.99 / $699.99.
Panasonic says that the TZ100 forms a new market in the compact camera arena, as its the first compact camera with a large, one-inch sensor, to also feature a notable (10x) optical zoom. That should make it ideal for travelling photographers who want the flexibility of different focal lengths.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 also has a new Venus engine, and the same 4K video and photo modes as found in some of Panasonic’s compact system cameras. That includes the ability to “post focus” and extract photos from 4K video files. A 0.2-inch, 1160k-dot electronic viewfinder is joined by a 1040k-dot touch-sensitive screen.
There’s not really any like-for-like competition with the TZ100 as it stands, but in terms of its size and shape, it’s reasonably similar to the Canon PowerShot G9 X.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 / ZS100 is available in silver or black for £549.99 / $699.99.
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