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Imaging Resource Photography Newsletter
Imaging Resource Newsletter #332
Issue Volume 16, Number 17 - 22 August 2014

Newsletter News  

Welcome to the 333rd edition of The Imaging Resource Newsletter!

If you've noticed a new design for this edition of the newsletter, that's because we've finally upgraded our old newsletter application! 

Besides presenting a prettier face, the new system will save us hours of trouble dealing with delivery problems. More importantly, it will let us customize the newsletter to different audiences...

Look for more improvements over the next several months!
 

Newsletter Overview

Up first is our completed review of the Sony RX100 III where we render our final opinion on this impressive premium compact.

Last issue saw the second Shooter's Report for the Panasonic GH4, and this time around, we've finished off this review, too, and rendered our final verdict.

Last up in the review section is a review for the brand new Canon 16-35mm f/4L IS L-series ultra-wide to wide-angle EF zoom lens -- sure to please both landscape photographer and HD-DSLR shooters alike.

In our Feature section, Dave Pardue and Dave Etchells present the winners for our July Photo of the Month competition, which saw a lot of excellent shots from many long-time submitters.

On a sadder note, we've lost a long-time member of the digital photography community, Uwe Steinmueller, who passed away earlier this month. Dave Etchells, our publisher and Editor-in-Chief wrote a personal note, which we've included in this newsletter.

In the Quick Hits section, there's another handful of test shots and sample gallery images. Up first is the new Pentax 645Z medium format camera. This ultra-high-res camera is simply stunning in the image quality department. So good, in fact, that we had to dust off our test target! We've also included sample galleries for the budget-friendly Samsung NX3000 and an updated gallery for the Nikon D810!

As Photokina quickly approaches, new camera announcements are beginning to arrive. The first such arrival is the new Sony A5100, which serves as a replacement for the super-compact NEX-5T. We've got this camera down in our lab now, so be sure to check our First Shots for all your pixel-peeping pleasure.

And finally, we share some of the most popular news stories from the past couple weeks, including: an in-depth comparison analysis of the Canon 6D vs. the Nikon D610, an amazing video stabilizing and stitching algorithm from Microsoft Research, a unique hyperlapse tour of Pyongyang, North Korea. Last but not least, the US Copyright Office weighs in on the "monkey selfie" debacle.

Happy reading!

Table of contents

  • Get Social with IR
  • Sponsors
  • Reviews
    • Sony RX100 III Review
    • Panasonic GH4 Review
    • Canon 16-35mm f/4L IS Lens Review
  • Features
    • The beauty of summertime: We crown our July Photo of the Day monthly winners
    • Goodbye to a friend: Uwe Steinmueller - 8/8/14

Get Social With IR


If you want to stay up-to-date with the latest camera and photography news, get notified when IR posts its latest camera or lens review, and much more, get social with us on your favorite networks by: By doing so, you'll also support our efforts to deliver the best camera and photography content on the planet. (Google in particular appears to pay lots of attention to Google+ in deciding site/page relevance for its search results, so "circling" us there and +1-ing our site and pages would be an especially big help.) Thanks! We appreciate it!
 

Sponsors


This issue is sponsored in part by the following companies. Please show your appreciation by visiting the links below. (Visiting our sponsor's links really helps support this newsletter; sponsors pay attention to where the clicks come from. Thanks in advance for your clicks!) And now a word from our sponsors:


Sigma

Sigma's approach to photographic equipment is based on quality, craftsmanship, value, customization and responsibility to photographers and the environment. All encompassed in our breakthrough, award-winning Global Vision lenses:

All designed to deliver the highest optical quality and performance.

CAMERA REVIEWS

Sony RX100 III Review

Is this the best compact camera money can buy?

by Mike Tomkins

In a very competitive market that's been eaten alive by the camera phone, it's hard for a compact camera to stand out from the crowd. That's precisely what Sony has managed with its RX100-series cameras, though. Now in its third iteration, the line started with the original RX100 in mid-2012, followed by the RX100 II last year, and now the Sony RX100 III. To date, these three closely-related cameras have seen no close competition -- other than from each other, that is.

But if you're looking for the best compact camera in town, competition between these three cameras is fierce, and the decision which to buy is a tough one. We've been unusually well-placed to try and make that call for you, though. Between the Imaging Resource team, we personally owned both earlier cameras, so we could make a careful, side-by-side comparison, shooting the same subjects with all three models, and under the same conditions.

In my three in-depth shooter's reports, I took the Sony RX100 III with me on some really cool shoots, taking the pocket-friendly little beauty with me in a vintage Ford Trimotor aircraft, and on a spontaneous road trip to coastal Virginia. Finally, I followed up with an in-depth look at stabilization, flash, video, and the newly-added PlayMemories Camera Apps, answering reader questions along the way. The final verdict, though, had to wait just a little while, as some t's still needed crossing, and some i's dotted by Technical Editor Zig Weidelich, who was on a very well-deserved vacation in Europe.

Now that Zig's back in the hot seat, we've completed everything that remains, and finalized our Sony RX100 III review, complete with our much-anticipated verdict. So which camera should you order -- the RX100, RX100 II, or their brand-new sibling? Read our Sony RX100 III review conclusion, look at all our in-depth test results and image quality comparisons, and find out which is the best compact camera that money can buy!

Panasonic GH4 Review

A GH3 on steroids with 4K, high bitrate HD, 12fps burst and faster AF!

by William Brawley

We've just put the finishing touches on our Panasonic GH4 review, and boy, what a camera! Its predecessor, the GH3 earned heavy praise from us for its performance, especially with its video recording chops. And now with the GH4, Panasonic has taken the GH3 and made it even better: 4K resolutions, high bitrate Full HD, faster 12fps burst shooting and quicker autofocus system with their new DFD technology.

From the exterior, the Panasonic GH4 might not look all that much different than just a GH3 with a new badge, but the interior has undergone some serious revamping. The sensor, while keeping the same 16 megapixel resolution, has slightly improved dynamic range, and a new extended ISO of 100 is available. Other areas received a nice performance boost as well. Autofocus performance is excellent, especially when using Panasonic lenses, as the camera incorporates Panasonic's new DFD technology, and the GH4 now gets a 49-area AF grid (up from 23 on the GH3). And thanks in part to its new quad-core image processor, burst shooting and buffer performance is impressive: 12fps without continuous AF.

Of course, the GH4 is not just a stills camera, it's a hybrid. The GH3 made a huge splash in the HD-DSLR, or rather, "HD-DSLM" market, and the GH4 improved upon its already-impressive set of video features and image quality. The big story with video on the GH4 is, of course, 4K. Offering both Cinema 4K and Ultra HD/4K resolutions, the GH4 is ready, out of the box, for all your ultra-high-res video needs, and suffice it to say, video from the GH4 is amazing.

Of course, no camera is without its flaws, however in the case of the GH4, they are altogether quite minor. Ready to learn all about Panasonic's latest flagship mirrorless camera? Head on over to our Panasonic GH4 review, see how the GH4 handles with our Shooter's Report, or skip to the end for our final verdict and rundown of pros and cons. Is the GH4 going to earn a place in your camera bag?

Canon 16-35mm f/4L IS Lens Review

An impressive ultra-wide zoom with IS that’s perfect for your HD-DSLR

by William Brawley

Just as Canon introduced a stabilized f/4 variant to it's traditional 24-70mm f/2.8L zoom lens, the same has happened with their popular 16-35mm full-frame L-series optic with the new Canon 16-35mm f/4L IS. Sacrificing a little bit of light-gathering power with a narrower aperture, Canon instead opted for image stabilization, which not only helps with low-light shooting, but Canon video shooters will undoutbedly appreciate the smoother, less shaky footage when filming off a tripod.

Now, the new Canon 16-35mm f/4L IS lens just left our testing lab, and like most Canon L-glass, it's another impressive lens. Not only is it very well-made, as is typical of L-series lenses, the performance is equally first-rate, particularly if used on an APS-C camera. Overall, the lens is very sharp, especially in the centers, though there is some corner softness on full-frame cameras when shooting wide open. It's another great lens from the "Big C," and for those that don't need the brighter f/2.8 version and want to save $500, the f/4 IS model is a solid choice.

Head on over to SLRgear to read the full Canon 16-35mm f/4L IS review, complete with our in-depth report, final conclusion as well as our full range of test results and sample images.

The Canon 16-35mm f/4L IS is currently available for purchase for around $1,199, and can be purchased at one of our trusted affiliates: Amazon, Adorama and B&H. Purchasing this lens, or any other item, at one of these retailers helps support this site and keeps the reviews coming!

In the meantime, check out some sample photos shot by our senior lens technician Rob Murray using the Canon 1Ds Mark III. You can view more sample photos, plus download the full-resolution files, over at our Flickr page.

FEATURES

The beauty of summertime: We crown our July Photo of the Day monthly winners

by Dave Pardue

Photography is fun any time of the year, but the summer sure is a good time to catch the light. And while there's no guarantee that all of these contest-placing images below were actually shot in the summer months, they all seem to share a vibrancy that lends itself to a summertime theme.

We're proud to crown our contest prize winners and worthy runners-up for the month of July. Thanks so much to everyone who enters our Photo of the Day contest, and congratulations to the winners this month! The top three winners all receive gift certificates from Adorama of $300, $200 and $100, respectively. Please keep the wonderful submissions coming our way!

Below are the winning images from July with comments from our publisher Dave Etchells:

First place • Suspended Above Water by Linn Smith • Canon 5D II
Linn's name will be familiar to IR POTD-watchers, and for good reason: She's been the source of many beautiful shots over the years. We all loved this one, it's a gorgeous composition. The gradation of color, tone, and the ripples in the water create a strong horizontal theme, subtly supporting the strong horizontals in the bird's neck and legs. The wings create a graceful counterpoint, and the bird's reflection in the water nicely balances the weight of the bird's body above. The framing is also great, with the bird flying into and across the frame, rather than being statically posed in the center. An absolutely gorgeous shot, congrats (again), Linn!
 
Second place • Morning fishermen by Graeme Chow • Nikon D800E
This is a beautiful, very dramatic shot, but we were a little afraid that, by ranking it highly, we're going to get flooded with highly saturated images next month! (Don't try this at home! ;-) We're generally not huge fans of cranked-up color, but felt in this case that it was OK, as it added drama and worked well creatively. With that comment out of the way, this is a really great composition. The lines of the nets and angles of the fishermen's (fisherwomen's too?) bodies create strong leading lines pointing to the sun. The foreground shadows also reinforce this. Once our eye's on the sun, though, the strong tonal and textural (for lack of a better word) contrast of the fishermen's heads and torsos draw our eyes back down again. The strong leading lines also stand out against the dominant horizontal elements in the background of the waves, horizon, distant mountains, and even the shading in the sky. A really well-done shot from another regular here at IR POTD. Big kudos, Graeme!
 
Third place • Close Family 5011 by Karen Celella • Canon 7D
Wow, this must be "regulars" month at IR, Karen's another frequent contributor. How can you not love this shot? It goes a lot beyond just "cute", though; it's an excellent composition. The dark mass of the mom's back directs your eye to the cubs, and their stacked heads curves and makes a line with Mom's neck and head. There's also a nice layering, both of the cubs' heads and Mom's haunch, back, the top cub's body and Mom's head. A really delightful composition! The colors are so similar, we might have darkened the background just slightly, to provide more separation, but that's also something where just a smidge too much could result in an unrealistic-looking photo. A really lovely shot from Karen, congrats for having the eye to see it, and the patience and prowess to capture it!
 
First runner-up • Whoa... by Melissa Anderson • Canon 70D
Guess what? Another great shot from a frequent contributor! (Honestly, we don't usually have this many regulars piled up in a single month's winners.) What a great shot! The competition this month was very close, we almost wished we could hand out four top prizes, but we decided long ago there'd be three winners and two runners-up, so Melissa's great pic is one of the latter this time. I can't imagine the number of shots, and the bird-in-flight tracking skills required to get a shot like this! Not just to catch the two birds in such great poses, but to have them so perfectly aligned. Of course, maybe this is a composite of two images, but you know what? That'd be perfectly OK! Creating fine-art pictures is every bit as legitimate as simply recording them, at least in our book. However Melissa arrived at it, the composition here is exceptional. I'm a bit at a loss for words to describe it, but the way the lower birds tail wraps under that of the upper bird, and their beaks help enclose the negative space between them leads us to see them as almost a single object. Perhaps it's the tension between that perception and the obvious fact that they're two very separate objects that generates such visual interest. However described, this is a really gorgeous shot by Melissa - Congrats again on your great eye, patience, and skill! 
 
Second runner-up • Crimson Clover Sunset by Jeff Curtis • Canon EOS 600D
OK, can we have five full winners this month? Just this once? Please? - I probably appreciate this shot more than most, because I've always been interested in wide angle photography, but usually fail miserably at it. There wasn't any EXIF data for this shot, so it's possible it wasn't in fact shot at wide angle (looking at it again, it doesn't actually seem to be), but it solves a fundamental issues that often trips me up, namely how to gracefully include a lot of near foreground with background elements.  The nature of the subject helps with that here, but it's a skillfully-done shot, regardless. Among other things, the judges loved the sense of depth in this shot. I could go on about textural, color and tonal contrasts, leading lines, etc, etc, but will instead just leave readers to let the serenity of Jeff's image take them away from whatever cares, troubles, or stress might be affecting them. An absolutely beautifully-done image, Jeff!

For anyone wanting to know more about our competition please visit this news story which describes our contest and also offers some useful tips to help you succeed. To see camera and exposure information on this month's winners or to visit previous months please visit our POTD winner's gallery.

[Ready to submit a photo of your own? Just click here! And to compliment these photographers on their submissions or offer your own analysis, please use the comments section over on IR.]

Goodbye to a friend: Uwe Steinmueller - 8/8/14

by 

This is a sad and difficult post to write; I just learned yesterday that my friend Uwe Steinmueller passed away from a heart attack, back on the 8th of this month.

I can't even remember the first time I met Uwe, but it was at least 10 years ago, at some camera-company event introducing a new model. I subsequently saw him at many similar events and trade shows over the years, and counted him as a friend, although we saw each other only infrequently.

Uwe was a person I was always glad to see. Regardless of whatever might have been happening in his personal life, Uwe was always upbeat, friendly, and energetic. More than anything, though, he was truly passionate about photography. It was all-consuming for him and his wife Bettina, a remarkably guileless and caring person herself. The two always worked together, and most (perhaps all?) of their photos are signed Uwe & Bettina Steinmueller, or B&U Steinmueller. They worked so closely and collaboratively that they didn't consider any of their photos as belonging to one or the other individually. I don't think I've ever seen two people whose lives were more closely intertwined on a daily basis.

Uwe and Bettina's particular passion was for fine art landscape photography, and Uwe was unusual for not only having an excellent eye for composition, tone, and color, but at the same time having such a deep understanding of photography's technical aspects, particularly in the digital world. For him, intimate understanding of the technical side was critical for extracting the most information possible from image files, and then translating a great photograph into a great print.

Uwe Steinmueller was a leader in the world of fine art photography, and a friend I was always glad to see.

Uwe was an early and strong proponent of raw-based workflows, and did a great deal to educate other photographers on the topic. (Including writing a book with Jürgen Gulbins on the subject back in 2006 which is still in print.) Now, it's just one of those things everyone knows: Shoot and process from raw for the best image quality. Ten years ago, though, few people really understood this. More than any other single person I can think of, Uwe played a big part in making the benefits of raw processing common knowledge.

Uwe was always eager to share his knowledge, and he wrote a number of books and ebooks over the years, several of which are still available on Amazon* (Only two remain in print, but Amazon still has stock for several others.)

Uwe was a master of Photoshop, always seeking ways to get the best out of his images. He collected a number of the Photoshop filters he developed, and put them on the Digital Outback Photo website, where people can try them out and purchase them. The filters cover things like optimal sharpening, detail extraction, high-quality image upsizing, texture blending, luminosity masking, plus free tools for manipulating stacks of images, split toning, splitting luminance and color to manipulate the two separately and more. I don't know Bettina's plans for the site, but it's still up as of this writing, and I would expect any funds from filter sales would go directly to her.

Most recently, Uwe developed texBlend, an iOS app for blending textures between photos. It sells for only $1.99 on the iTunes Store.

My hope in mentioning Uwe's books, filters, and texBlend app is that some of you might purchase them, giving Bettina a little extra support at what must be an unimaginably difficult time. Uwe's life, accomplishments and contribution to the photography world went far beyond books and filters, though. Everyone who ever met him came away blessed. Besides being a never-failing advocate for the art of photography, he was an incredibly nice guy as well. I'll miss him.

(If you knew Uwe as well, or were touched by his work in some way, through his books, or all the knowledge he shared on his website, please share your thoughts and memories over in the comment section on the article page...)

* Note: I've attached Imaging Resource's affiliate ID to the Amazon link above. I'll pass any affiliate fees we receive from the link along to Bettina if I'm able to make contact with her. If not, I'll donate anything received to an educational or charity-oriented photographic organization in Uwe's name. (I don't have a current email address for Bettina, if anyone reading this knows one, could you pass it along by sending it to web@ our domain name? - Thanks!)

QUICK HITS

Pentax 645Z First Shots: Medium-format, maximum image quality—is it time to clean our Still Life scene?

Following are 1:1 comparison crops of our lab test target at ISO 100 showing the Pentax 645D and 645Z:

Pentax 645D • ISO 100 • default NR
 
Pentax 645Z • ISO 100 • default NR

Stay tuned, as the Pentax 645Z leaves the lab and heads to our Knoxville office and the ultra-experienced hands of our senior editor Mike Tomkins. Shooter's reports to follow! In the meantime, you can check out the major differences relative to its predecessor, head over to our Pentax 645Z vs 645D page.

[quick links: Pentax 645Z • Lab Samples • Comparometer]

PS: We weren't joking about needing to clean our Still Life scene because of this camera. Our technical editor Zig Weidelich took one look at the ultra high-res 645Z images and said "Time to dust our test-targets, guys." 

Interested in what a $500 kit can buy you today? Samsung NX3000 sample gallery posted

 
1/200s / f/4 / 90mm eq. / ISO 200 / 60mm f/2.8 macro lens

Nikon D810 sample gallery: 24 new real-world images from one seriously high-res, full-frame DSLR

by 

It's been a bit of a frustrating week here in Knoxville, Tennessee, but my fortune has finally changed! The reason for my frustration was pretty simple: I've had the Nikon D810 sitting on my desk, just begging me to go out and do some shooting -- but every time I've been free to do so, the weather hasn't been playing ball. And then finally, despite a weather forecast that was the most ominous all week, the sun peeked through the clouds yesterday afternoon.

I wasted no time grabbing the D810 and a couple of lenses, and heading for my car. With the changeable weather we've been having lately, I wasn't sure how long the sun would last, but it turned out that I got in a good couple of hours shooting before dark clouds appeared once more: Plenty of time to familiarize myself with Nikon's incredibly high-res DSLR, and to get some nice, real-world Nikon D810 sample photos that will accompany my first Shooter's Report. (That should be landing later this week, incidentally.)

 

For my initial batch of shots, I wanted to get a feel for the Nikon D810's fine detail capture, so I stuck at around the sweet spot for the lenses I had to hand -- f/5.6 with both the AF-S Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8G ED and AF-S Nikkor 85mm f/1.8G. And man, is there ever a lot of detail in some of these shots! Rendering also looks very nice, and the D810's metering system seems uncannily accurate so far, with very few shots indeed needing any exposure compensation.

Weather permitting -- and it's looking promising right now -- I'll be heading out with the D810 again tonight for another round of shooting, this time in low light, both low-sensitivity long exposures, and some high sensitivity shots as well. If you have any requests for features you'd like me to test, leave them in the comments below!



For all 24 new images in both JPEG and .NEF raw formats -- as well as a raft more shots taken a couple of weeks ago by my colleagues Rob Murray and Dave Pardue -- check out our updatedNikon D810 gallery! While you're waiting for our low-light gallery images, you can also get an idea of performance across the entire ISO sensitivity range from our Nikon D810 lab test images. And don't forget to check back for the first section of our Nikon D810 Shooter's Report, coming soon!

NEW PRODUCT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Sony A5100 replaces NEX-5T, puts A6000’s hybrid autofocus in an even more affordable body (First Shots posted as well!)

by 

Earlier this year, Sony knocked the ball out of the park, launching one of the most popular compact system cameras we've seen to date -- the Sony A6000. Now, it follows up with the Sony A5100, a more affordable sibling to that model, and it will clearly be hoping to repeat its success. (And we've already been hands-on with the camera, so you can see our Sony A5100 first shots immediately!)

Although its name might suggest it to be a followup to the A5000, the Sony A5100 actually replaces the NEX-5T, the final Sony camera to sport the now-retired NEX badge. As such, the A5100 will sit in between the existing A5000 and A6000, replacing neither, but providing an alternative to both.

Compared to the A5000, the Sony A5100 provides a significant step forward in terms of sensitivity, performance, and autofocus. It also offers a little more resolution, a higher-res monitor, and an uprated movie mode. The main differences from the A6000 are a lower pricetag, reduced burst rate, and the lack of a viewfinder or hot shoe. Interestingly, though, the Sony A5100 boasts a couple of movie features that its more expensive sibling lacks, as you'll see in our preview.

Available from September 2014, the Sony A5100 is priced at US$550 body-only. A kit with Sony E PZ 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 OSS lens is priced at US$700. Find out more in our just-published Sony A5100 preview, complete with first shots fresh from the Imaging Resource lab!

Curious to see how the A5100 compares to its siblings? Check out our comparison pages for the Sony A5100 vs the A5000 and the Sony A5100 vs the A6000, or check out how the Sony A5100 compares to its predecessor the NEX-5T. These are our database-driven advantage comparisons, stay tuned for editorial comparisons as we work through the A5100 review.

Ready to pre-order? Place your order for the Sony A5100 at one of our trusted affiliates below. Your order for the A5100, or any other product from these retailers, helps support this site!

POPULAR NEWS ON THE SITE

At http://www.imaging-resource.com/news you can keep track of the photo news on our main site. Among the most popular stories over the last couple of weeks:

Next Issue

We'll see you next on September 5th, with a regularly scheduled edition (and lots more news and analysis to share)!

Signoff

That's it for now, but between issues visit our site for the latest news, reviews, or to have your questions answered in our free discussion forum. Here are the links to our most popular pages:

Newsletter Archive: http://www.imaging-resource.com/cgi-bin/dada-nltr/mail.cgi/archive/irnews
Daily News: http://www.imaging-resource.com/news
SLR Gear: http://www.slrgear.com
New on Site: http://www.imaging-resource.com/new-on-ir
Review Index: http://www.imaging-resource.com/camera-reviews
IR Photo Contest: http://www.dailydigitalphoto.com
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Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/imagingresource
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/IR_Lab

Happy snapping!
Dave Etchells & the IR Editorial Team

[email protected]
(Please use this email address for any questions or other correspondence; it's the only one we're checking these days for Newsletter-related reader emails.)

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