Photography Life

A shooting star! Quick, make a wish! I still remember hearing those words as a child whenever I was out walking in nature at night. A few weeks ago, I was standing with my friend Petr at the edge of a harvested wheat field, beyond which the silhouette of the 14th-century Trosky Castle stood out against the dark sky. And since it was after midnight on August 12, the astronomical phenomenon known as the Perseids was just reaching its peak in the sky. When, after a few hours, I had finally exhausted my list of wishes—even the most trivial ones—I fell asleep briefly under a plum tree. Not so for my Nikon Z9, however. It kept taking one photo after another until the sky began to brighten.

Gentle tendrils of vines surround the trunks of trees, trunks covered by mosses and lichens and ants. Sunlight filters weakly through the foliage and struggles to reach the forest floor. Once in a while, the stillness is permeated by the raucous and jarring calls of chachalacas and toucans.

“How beautifully the leaves die in the fall.” This quote from Czech actor, writer, and photographer Miroslav Horníček comes to mind every autumn when the leaves begin to change color. Unfortunately, I’m not much of a landscape photographer, so this time I’ve made an exception and used a photograph by Spencer, who is much better at it than I am. There’s another reason, too. Most likely, just as I’m writing this photography news, Spencer is searching for visually pleasing compositions of fall scenery for the participants of our popular Colorado Fall Colors workshop.

According to a frequently cited analysis published a few years ago, people around the world take 93 million selfies and portraits every day. Other estimates are as high as 500 to 900 million! Unsurprisingly, 85mm lenses are among the best-selling prime lenses. And, of course, every smartphone today comes with a mandatory “Portrait” mode that mimics the bokeh of classic fast lenses. Photographing faces has simply become a defining phenomenon of our time. In the vast majority of cases, however, these are human faces, which I think is a shame. After all, animal faces have so much to offer in their diversity of colors and shapes. Let’s take a closer look.

This week, I got so lost in my archives of photographs taken with various DSLRs that I nearly succumbed to nostalgia. I even started browsing used camera gear websites to see if a nice, well-preserved Nikon D4 might pop up. But then there are moments when you ask yourself, “How on earth would I have been able to photograph this with a DSLR?” Like the super-low-light photo below, which pressed even a modern camera’s autofocus performance to the limit.

Just a few years ago, it looked as though the days of compact fixed-lens cameras were numbered and that smartphones with increasingly sophisticated cameras would soon run them over. But then the 40-megapixel Fujifilm X100VI appeared and unleashed an avalanche that is still rolling down the valley today. With its retro design and advanced features, it managed to hit exactly the right emotional string, and almost three years after its introduction, Fuji still can’t keep up with demand. I recently managed to get my hands on a Fujifilm X100VI for a short test, giving me a chance to sample what lies behind its enduring popularity and see whether it lives up to its reputation.

Explaining what an L-bracket is for would probably be like taking owls to Athens. But as you surely know, an L-bracket is an extremely useful accessory for anyone who frequently shoots with a tripod, not only in landscape but also in portrait orientation. With that in mind, what does the recently announced Field Bracket from Peak Design bring to the table? That’s what we’ll find out in this review.

Do you know the difference between a beautiful portrait on the cover of a fashion magazine, and a beautiful portrait on the cover of National Geographic? There’s usually a powerful story behind the latter. It’s similar with wildlife photography. In this genre, too, you can simply skim the surface and show pretty faces, or you can dig a little deeper. What do I mean by that? Learn as much as you can about the species in your own backyard or in the country you’re planning to visit on a photo trip, and look for interesting stories.

Before diving into the latest photography news from the past week, I have a little riddle for you. The landscape you see in the image below was created neither by geological processes nor by human hands. It is the work of a family of animals that decided to settle in this wild-looking habitat. For a long time, these animals were extinct across much of Europe, but now they are beginning to reclaim places from which they were driven out centuries ago. So, any guesses yet? You’ll find out more soon in an upcoming article and on our YouTube channel. But for now, let’s get to the news roundup.

For the longest time, I used a lightweight shoot-through umbrella as my flash and video light modifier. Unfortunately, a few months ago, my umbrella started falling apart and I needed a replacement. Today, I’ll tell you about its successor, the K&F Concept LK07 Octagonal Softbox, a Bowens-mount light modifier with a diameter of 60cm.