Sigma is making a "lens that has never existed before"
Sigma has revealed that it is working on a slew of new lenses – which isn't all that surprising, for a lens manufacturer. However, it has singled out and teased one lens in particular: "a telephoto lens that has never existed before."
The tease was 'casually' dropped into a wide-ranging interview with Sigma CEO, Kazuto Yamaki – the man whose father founded the company in 1961.
Answering questions from Tim Berry, an executive from Sigma UK, Yamaki touched on all manner of subjects, ranging from the designer garden furniture at the company's Tokyo HQ to his love of British bands including Primal Scream and (fittingly) Aztec Camera.
However, the most interesting takeaway was the talk about Sigma's new lenses currently in development…
Full story: What's this? Sigma is making "a telephoto lens that has never existed before"
Canon copies Sony – in the worst way possible
Photographers using one of three Canon cameras have access to a new feature – but the latest firmware update from the company isn’t a free software download.
This week Canon announced a new cropping guide that’s available via firmware to the Canon EOS R50, R10 and R7. The tool is designed for keeping headshots consistently framed in high volume headshot photography, but it will cost owners of those cameras $120 for the upgrade.
The cropping guide adds marks to the viewfinder designed specifically for headshots. Four marks help photographers keep heads in the same spot, while crop lines on the edges note where a 5x7 and an 8x10 would crop, to keep essential details from being lost…
Full story: Canon copies Sony's tactic of charging $120 to add new camera gridlines via firmware
DJI Mini Pro 5 leaked… and it has LiDAR?
Most drone reporters – and serious leakers with an inside track like Jasper Ellens – have been wary of reporting anything about a DJI Mini 5 because it didn't seem possible to do much more and stay under 249g. Now, though, he has conceded that the latest leak might actually have something in it.
Not all drone rumors are created equal, you see. There are some leakers who have such a good track record that when they post images, we have to report it. There are others, though, which are harder to verify, like this post on Weibo – a Chinese microblogging site – which does appear to show a new airframe. And, as if that wasn't clear enough or exciting enough, the text translates:
"The first spy photos of DJI's new DJI mini5 drone have been exposed. The weight of the whole machine is still 249 grams. It is positioned as a lightweight and compact entry-level drone, equipped with DJI LiDAR and a more powerful motor. It is expected to be released in the summer of 2025…"
Full story: Leak says DJI Mini 5 Pro to be world's first ultralight drone with LiDAR
Will iPhone 17 steal Pixel's camera design?
It's been five years since Apple gave us a substantially new camera island design for the iPhone. When the iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max dropped in 2019, they introduced the then-new 'stove top' island design, with a triple-lens triangular array positioned within a square island in the top-left corner of the phone's rear panel. Today's iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max follows essentially the same layout, albeit with some subtle styling tweaks.
But if rumors this week are to be believed, this aging design could be set to change for next year's iPhone 17 series. According to long-time (and often reliable) tipster Digital Chat Station, the iPhone 17 may feature a camera island in the shape of a horizontal bar across the top of the rear panel, much like the Google Pixel 9 Pro and Pro XL.
The rumor stems from an image of a metal chassis frame, alleged to have come from an iPhone parts supplier, which clearly shows a cutout for a camera island that's been nicknamed a 'strip runway' design. Digital Chat Station also supplied a render of what a complete iPhone 17 might look like with this horizontal camera island shape, though at this stage the lens layout is pure speculation…
Full story: Fresh leak suggests the iPhone 17 might get a radically new camera island design
Røde Wireless Go (Gen 3) gets 32-bit float
Røde is certainly finishing the year on a high. Hot on the heels of the release of its first dedicated smartphone mic (the Røde Micro), Røde is back with an upgrade to one of its most popular models – the Wireless Go (Gen 3).
The new model builds on the features of previous versions, offering advanced capabilities to meet the demands of modern content creators while maintaining the system's simplicity and portability.
The Wireless Go (Gen 3) includes 32-bit float on-board recording, a feature designed to capture audio with a wide dynamic range and recover clipped or quiet recordings during post-production. This is complemented by Røde GainAssist technology, which dynamically adjusts audio levels to ensure consistent output without requiring extensive editing…
Full story: The new Røde Wireless Go (Gen 3) brings more color choices to its popular on-the-go wireless mic
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