Canon Announces the R1 and the Crowd Goes WILD

It’s been rumored that during the “Olympics year” that the fine folks at Canon would announce its flagship mirrorless camera body. Granted, some of us thought it would have been announced sooner, but instead we ended up getting the R3*. Not that the R3 isn’t a great camera body, but it didn’t quite sit in the usual branding and SKU of Canon being a “flagship.” With this announcement, what are we as consumers and pro-sumers expecting to get win an R1?

Image via Canon

What to expect in the R1

In Canon’s press release, the company spoke in generalities. But it’s safe to say, the body will be an upgrade over the existing R series camera bodies. Not necessarily in megapixels, but definitely in performance.

“This camera employs the newly developed image processor DIGIC Accelerator in addition to the pre-existing processor DIGIC X. The new image processing system, composed of these processors and a new CMOS sensor, enables large volume of data to be processed at high speeds and delivers never-before-seen advancements in Auto Focus (AF) and other functions.” - Canon

This says a lot considering how fast the current cameras are. I’ve not shot on an R3 as of yet, but the R5 and R5 C* that I own are ridiculously fast on capture and writing to my card. Not to mention the video capabilities. When the Canon R3 was announced, the lower megapixel count (24) wasn’t ideal for some portrait photographers, but the video capability of 6K 60fps and 4K 120fps makes videographers drool. I would assume this new body would have something close to that. At the very least, 4K 120fps for great slow motion action sports. And maybe 30 megapixels for image stills. Better yet, what about pricing? My guess would be $7000. Considering the last flagship (a DSLR) was roughly $6500 for the 1DX III. New tech, would probably cost a little more now a few years later. Right?

What are you thoughts? Interested in the new body? Happy with your current camera body? What are you shooting with these days and if you’re thinking of an upgrade, would it be to this or another camera body. Let me know.




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Free Headshot Retouching Tips and Q/A: Creator Office Hours

Hey there, y’all. This week on my lil’ Office Hours, I decided to focus on a particular topic that’s been in my inbox a few times. That’s headshot photography. In particular, headshot retouching. Check it out below. I hope this helps photographers get rolling in their headshot photography journey. Please reshare the video far and wide.

Tools mentioned include:

Wacom Intuos Tablet*

Canon R5 C*













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Nikon Acquires RED and It's A Good Thing

Recently, Nikon acquired RED Digital Cinema and camera nerds went wild. Nikon being a company that has made some positive noise in the photography side of camera tech made a big push to get RED - a cinema monster in the industry. Some say it was part of getting RED its case regarding a patent dispute. I don’t know, but I do think it’s an interesting move and is going to be good thing for us as the consumer. . .eventually.

I sat down with the dude known as “Ohdoctah” to talk about this Nikon and RED stuff.

I Want the Canon RF 100-500mm Lens

A couple of weeks ago I suffered a loss to my photography kit. My old telephoto 400mm lens’ autofocus motors died. This REALLY bugged me as it was right as baseball season was starting. It was also creeping into the warmer weather which is when I focus on wildlife photography. Pissed off and frustrated, I decided to go rent a new lens to handle an upcoming baseball game shoot. I’m glad I did.

When I went to my local camera/rental shop, I checked out the telephoto options and found that an RF mount lens was available. This meant I could use my Canon R5 C* for the long shots instead of my 1DX II*. The wonderful staff suggested the Canon 100-500mm RF telephoto lens and had high praise for it. I trust these guys, so I gave it a shot.

First impressions

WOW this lens is LIGHTWEIGHT. The size of this lens in its widest focal length is pretty compact at 8-inches. The build quality is great. It doesn’t feel cheap and has the Canon “L” designation for professional-grade build quality. It weighs roughly 3-pounds when holding it in your hands alone. Slap the lens onto a Canon mirrorless body and it’s barely noticeable in the short term.

Image quality

The image quality on this lens is UNBELIEVABLE. It’s such a sharp lens. I’m not sure what Canon has done, but the RF mount lenses are always sharp, but I was surprised at how sharp this telephoto lens is. It’s ridiculous. Having image stabilization built in is definitely helpful. When I shot the baseball game, I started out with the lens connected to my monopod. Just a force of habit. When shooting long focal lengths at 300mm or more, I stabilize my camera and lens with a monopod because you’re much more prone to capturing blurred images at those focal lengths. This is because micro jitters from you or your camera are magnified. Since the lens is so light, I boldly decided to try shooting handheld. Maaaaan did it workout perfectly for me. Again, the built-in image stabilization system in the lens helps a lot. The USM autofocus on this lens is snappy in all focal lengths. My only suggestion would be to make sure your mirrorless camera’s autofocus AI is set to “people” and face detection when shooting sports. I didn’t upload the highest resolution version of the pics below, but they’re still pretty stellar in quality.

Concerns

The weight of this lens is great. The size is “good.” When you zoom to a tighter focal length the lens telescopes to 11-inches. Unfortunately. I wish this wasn’t the case. It’s not a deal-breaker, but it’s something I wish was addressed for the price point. To Canon’s credit, the telescoping functionality can be manipulated to be a smooth, quick motion or your can make it a stiff motion. If you tighten down on the lens for a stiff motion, this will eliminate the inadvertent telescoping issue when you’re just walking around with the lens on your hip or shoulder.

Image credit Canon USA

The other concern is the aperture. At f/4.5-7.1, many would scoff. At f/5.6 is where most shooters would want to top out on aperture. But even at f/7.1 I found something magical happens with this lens. I really can’t explain it. You don’t lose as much light as expected. My friends at the local camera store said that Canon did something really right or really wrong, because they noticed the same performance. The folks at Digital Picture explains this technicality quite well. Over my head, but it definitely works. Let’s just say that f/7.1 at 500mm isn’t really f/7.1. And no, f/4.5 isn’t particularly wide open, but it’s adequate with today’s high ISO performance in cameras. The background compression looks great in all of my images regardless of the aperture.

You can get the 100-500mm RF lens from Canon for $2899, but at the time of writing this, the lens has a discount* going. I need to save up for this lens. I not only want it, I NEED it.


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New G-Series Lens Announced From Sony

Sony continues its push of offering great image quality to hybrid shooters be it photography or video. Today Sony announces a new G-series 24-50mm f/2.8 lens for all of its E-mount, Sony shooters.

Image credit - Sony

Why does this matter?

So a new lens is announced. “What’s the big deal,” you ask? Well first, what’s big about this is the focal range and aperture. This focal range is ideal for both photography and video. Being an f/2.8 lens also offers great performance in low-light scenarios.

Speaking of the f/2.8 aperture, the aperture blades are important. In this new lens, Sony is offering 11 aperture blades. In entry-to-mid-level lenses, you’ll get seven aperture blades in most instances. Sometimes nine blades. These additional blades offer a much nicer looking bokeh effect while shooting wide open as well as helps reduce diffraction.

Lastly, the main reason this is big news is the weight of the lens. Sony states that the new G-series lens will come in at 440g, or 15.5oz for us uncivilized folks. One of the primary selling points of a mirrorless camera is the reduced body size and weight. I always thought this selling point was a bunch of bunk because most pro-grade lenses were freakin’ HEAVY compared to camera bodies, so the total camera package would still be considered heavy. But, I’m no marketing genius, so what do I know?

You can request your new lens from Sony for $1099 with delivery set for sometime in May 2024. Let me know if you decide to order one.

Getting The Shot

I recently shot the family holiday photo and asked if anyone would be interested in a breakdown on how the shot was captured. Below you’ll find the list of items I mentioned in the video that may be helpful for you in your shot planning. Thanks for watching.

Dazne Light Kit*

Stella Pro CLX 10*

A-Clamps*

Platypod*

Gels*

*Affiliate link used. Affiliate links allow me to earn a small commission as a content creator if you purchase items using the affiliate link. Thank you for your support.

Sony Alpha Deals For August on Mirrorless Cameras and Lenses

Sony has announced several discounts on its Alpha camera bodies and lenses for its “Summer Sale.” This includes discounts on the high megapixel A7R IV camera. Select lenses are discounted and Sony is also offering a few bundles of bodies and lens combinations.

Image: Sony

You can order from Adorama* as well as the Sony site. Right now, the A7R 1IV is listed at $500 off at $2999.* The A7R IV is the first Sony mirrorless camera I actually liked. The body felt great in my hands and of course the image quality is stellar.

Others on the list include:

  • A7 III (body only) $200 off at $1798*

  • A7R III (body only) $600 off at $2198*

  • 24-70mm f/2.8 G Masters E-mount lens $200 off at $1998*

  • 35mm f/1.8 OSS E-mount lens $100 off at $373*

  • A7R IV with FE 24-105 G OSS e-mount lens $800 off at $4096

See more on the Adorama* site on the main page featuring sales and deals.

*Affiliate link used. Affiliate links allow me to earn a small commission as a content creator if you purchase items using the affiliate link. Thank you for your support.