Another long awaited lens from the Sigma ART series has arrived – the new Sigma 135mm f ART.  It looks nearly identical to the 85 ART, though just a tiny bit smaller in every dimension.  Optically it pushes the envelope…
Staying in the World’s Largest Log Cabin A Visit to Le Château Montebello There are a few evocative things in the minds of human beings. Perhaps it is a white sandy beach along azure waters on an island somewhere. Maybe…
 APS-C shooters can be forgiven for feeling like they sometimes get left out in the cold when it comes to quality development for their platform. Canon, for example, has an interesting dichotomy. Many of their lens releases for full…
 I’ve already done a full review of the new Tamron SP 150-600mm f VC USD G2 lens in the late fall of 2016, but at that time the lens was just coming to market and my review time was…
So, for the first time I have my hands on an autofocusing Zeiss with image stabilization.  Only one problem:  it is made for a camera system (Sony E-mount) that I don’t own!  That hasn’t cooled my enthusiasm for this beautiful…
 There are few lenses more indispensable to photographers as a 70-200mm f lens. Though large, heavy, and expensive, these lenses can be found in the bags of many, many photographers, both professional and amateur. They are just so versatile!…
I’ve been looking forward to spending some time with the new Rokinon (Samyang) SP 14mm f lens.  I owned the less expensive Rokinon 14mm f lens, and found it a pretty amazing optical instrument for the price.  It did have a…
Tamron 10-24mm f Di II VC HLD Image Gallery Tamron’s newest lens is a replacement for its wide angle option for APS-C (crop sensor) cameras – the Tamron 10-24mm f Di II VC HLD.  The new version of the lens…
Tamron SP 70-200mm f VC G2 Image Gallery Ever since the announcement of the new Tamron SP 70-200mm f VC USD G2 lens I’ve been excited to get my hands on one.  That was particularly true when I started having…
 These days I am becoming a photography minority. Why? Because I rarely use my phone to take photos or videos. I have tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of photography equipment that I perversely insist on using to take…
Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f/2 SL-II I’ll readily admit to having a weakness for compact, well made manual focus lenses.  I’ve considered the Canon EF 40mm f pancake lens to be an excellent value lens, but I’ve been disappointed in the…
 Ludicrous Mode American automaker Tesla has become one of the darlings of the auto industry with their high performance electric vehicles. One of the ironic aspects of Tesla’s Model S sedan is the ability to unlock “Ludicrous Mode”. Ludicrous…
 Those of you who regularly follow my work might know that I have a bit of a love affair with Mont Tremblant, Quebec. I’ve visited the area a number of different times in a variety of seasons, stayed at…
Korean lens maker Samyang has settled into a certain niche in the past: they develop manual focus only lenses (with a few Sony exceptions) with highly competitive optics, consumer grade builds, and inexpensive prices. Well, a few of those things…
The Carl Zeiss company definitely knows how to make premium lenses with beautiful optics…and very expensive price tags.  Few lenses typify this more than the extravagant Otus series.  The Otus 1.4/55mm, 1.4/85mm, and now 1.4/28mm are all wide aperture premium…