Dustin Abbott has been published in such publications as PhotoPlus, Photo News, Popular Science, American Photo, Pro Photographer, and Photography Week magazines as well as the Globe and Mail newspaper. He has been featured as a guest on many photography blogs and has had either articles or photos published in local magazines in multiple countries. He writes on a regular basis as a free-lance writer for PhotoNewsFlash, Alien Skin Software Blog, CanonRumors, B&H Explora eZine, and has also written for Photography Masterclass Magazine, Henry’s Photography Blog, PhotoNews Magazine, Digital Photography School, the Zeiss LenSPIRE blog, and Pro Photographer magazine. His lens reviews are respected around the world and can be seen on YouTube, too.
Every year there are a select number of lens announcements that I find personally exciting. I reviewed no less than 15 lenses last year, and this is the fifth already this year, so a lot of gear passes through my…
“Pristine” This is the word that comes to mind when I consider both the condition of the snow (just know that I had to trudge through some DEEP stuff to get this image…my ankles are still cold as I type!)…
Great First Impressions Confession: this was one of my most anticipated lens reviews of the year (Tamron’s upcoming 15-30mm f VC is another). This lens has been referred to as “the unicorn” in various internet forums because it has been…
High Challenge, High Reward In the fall of 2013 I reviewed a manual focus only ultra wide angle lens. I noted in that review that an ultra-wide lens is a challenging tool to use for many photographers because the extreme…
One More 50mm The Zeiss Makro-Planar T* 2/50mm is both the fourth 50mm lens I have reviewed in a year as well as the fourth lens from Zeiss that I have reviewed this year. So, from both perspectives I have…
The Elephant in the Room Before we can get to the “what” of this lens, we first have to pause to answer the “why” of this lens, as the first question for many when they become aware of this lens…
Worth the Hype? Expectations mingle with skepticism when you approach such an extreme instrument as the Zeiss Otus 85mm f Planar T* ZE. It more than doubles the price of its competitors (even those with larger apertures), and sets a…
The Zeiss 50mm f Planar T* is an interesting lens. The last 12 months has been somewhat of the year for 50mm prime releases. Both the Sigma 50mm f ART and the Zeiss Otus 55mm f released to a lot…
I was excited when the Samyang/Rokinon Tilt-Shift 24mm f ED AS UMC Lens was announced as it seemed like a perfect fit for the manufacturer. Tilt-shift lenses are, by nature, manual focus only, and Samyang/Rokinon have made their reputation by…
Korean lens maker Samyang is the lens equivalent of another Korean brand – Kia Though being a relative newcomer compared to the established Japanese and German giants, Samyang has managed to cause quite a stir in the lens community…just as…
“I wanna have it all…” Can Tamron deliver on the promise of having wide angle and telephoto in one reasonably small package? Many amateur photographers want the image quality that DSLRs promise without the stunning expense and heavy weight of…
Out of the Blue I participate in a few Canon communities on the internet, and the rumor mill is continually at work in these environments. People who love gear love to see new gear released. They will argue the merits…
The travel lens/superzoom category is a fairly hotly contested category in the crop sensor market. This stands to reason; a person can enter the DSLR crop sensor market at a fairly reasonable price. Even an entry level full frame camera,…
I recently reviewed the new Tamron 28-300mm f Di VC PZD Lens, an all-in-one or “superzoom” lens for full frame sensors. I noted that this lens would be a great travel option, and intimated that I trusted it enough that…
Full frame camera users rejoice! You finally have an affordable (and viable) option in the all-in-one category. There have been a few budget options in the past (including one with an identical focal length from Tamron), but they offered what…
This review is unlike any that I have done previously. It is my first Zeiss review, and other than the new $4000+ Zeiss 55mm f Otus Distagon, this is probably the best Zeiss lens currently available. Those of you are…
A Canon Underdog? I have a soft spot for underdogs. That probably serves me well, as I often review Tamron and Rokinon products, and these are manufacturers that are long time underdogs. So as I hold this beautifully made Canon…
Tamron’s Game Changer Update: February 7th, 2014. This lens has caused a serious stir not only amongst reviews but at retail. Reviews since mine have strongly concurred with my conclusions. Many people have experienced backorders in countries around the world,…