Review: Cecilia Lambert Camera Messenger Bag

The Cecilia Lambert Camera Messenger Bag is pretty comfortable and has some low profile features that, if improved upon, can make it the ultimate messenger.

The Cecilia Lambert Camera Messenger Bag was announced a few weeks ago, and we got a moment to take a look at Photo Plus East and called one in for review. The bag is a fashionable messenger designed with a few key but differentiating design features that add to its overall unique nature. Being made of cotton canvas, the Cecilia Lambert Camera Messenger Bag has an exterior that is soft to the touch. There is also a bit of wax on the exterior to protect it from the elements and the drunk at the event you’re photographing. With lots of pockets, dividers, and a big strap, it is also designed with standards that lots of camera bag manufacturers have implemented over the years.

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Cheap Photo: Save Big on Fujifilm Cameras and Lenses Thanks to Fujifilm’s Massive Holiday Sale!

If you have been wanting to buy some new Fujifilm cameras, or some new lenses, now’s the time.

Right now, all Fujifilm cameras and lenses are on sale, which means you can save some serious green if you’re thinking about switching teams, or if you want to add to your current collection. You can grab the excellent Fujifilm X-T3 with battery grip and lens for $2,099, and the X-T2 w/18-55mm lens for $1,499. You can even save $1,000.90 on the soon to be released GFX 50R w/GF45mm f2.8 R WR Lens. There are also big savings when it comes to new glass as well with many lenses seeing discounts between $50 and $200!

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Cheap Photo: Grab a Canon 5D Mk iV for Under $2,000; Save Big on Lenses, Presets, and Guides

Photography deals are popping up fast right now, and there are some big savings to be had!

There are some truly outstanding photography deals on cameras, lenses, software, and more. You can save over $3,000 when you get the buy one get two free Lightroom presets deal for just $39. Save $2,070 on a brand new Canon 5D4 which is just $1,929.99, and $200.95 when you snag the amazing Fujifilm X-T20 for just $799! The amazing Sigma 18-35mm f1.8 lens is also on sale for the cheapest we have seen at just $671.19!

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We Collaborated with Tog Tees to Make These Unique T-Shirts. You Should Get One

We’re super excited to announce our official collaboration with Tog Tees and are bringing you these wonderful new T-Shirts.

For years, as the Phoblographer’s founder and editor I always wanted to abide by strong ethics–which is why we never stepped into doing collaborations or selling merch the way a few others do. I’ve always wanted folks to wear their love of the site in their actions, and not make you into cultists. My thoughts on this have changed over the years though, and while I still don’t want you to be a cultist of the Phoblographer, I think that you’d look great in our latest collaboration with Tog Tees in the form of these snazzy T shirts.

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Here’s an Ultra Macro Look at How the Wet Plate Collodion Process Works

Markus Hofstaetter has some new, mesmerizing videos showing the wet plate collodion process like you have never seen it before.

Austria-based portrait and wedding photographer Markus Hofstaetter has been sharing with us his crazy cool experiments with the wet plate collodion process, and he has yet another unique take on it for all of us to watch. It’s one thing to watch the plates develop in normal view, but these new videos in an ultra-macro perspective show us what happens in the process in a totally different — and extra magical — light.

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Film Emulsion Review: Kodak Ektachrome E100 (35mm, 2018 Emulsion)

We’ve been waiting for the Kodak Ektachrome to come out for a long time, and it’s just the way that we remembered it.

Kodak Ektachrome E100 was announced to be coming back to the market in 2016; and though Kodak took its time getting it back to the market, I’m elated to say it’s finally here! Before it’s latest death, Kodak Ektachrome was deemed by Kodak to be a replacement for Kodachrome. But indeed, it has never looked like that. Instead, Kodak Ektachrome has both a saturated look to it while also remaining pretty low contrast in its appearance and in comparison to the Slide film emulsions offered by Fujifilm. At the moment, it’s also still pretty tough to get your hands on some.

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Five Bang for Your Buck Photography Accessories Every Photographer Should Own

Photography accessories are there to be embraced, enjoyed, and used to take your images to the next level. 

Whether you are buying your first camera this holiday season, or if you have been a photographer for many years, one thing to know is that photography accessories such as filters, tripods, and flashes are there to make our lives as photographers easier. They enable use to get the images we want, and they can help save us a ton of time when it comes to producing and processing our images.

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Field Report: Using the DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Zoom in NYC

The DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Zoom are fun tools to use for the enthusiast and hobbyist, but serious photographers will surely want more.

Testing drones here at the Phoblographer has always been pretty difficult; NYC has very strict rules about where you can fly, times, etc. and to that end it’s not always as simple as setting up a camera and shooting. It draws attention, and doing it responsibly and legally can provide a number of challenges. Take for example the day we went out with DJI to play with their new DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Zoom drones–Trump decided to do a flyover of NYC and so the locations, timing, and altitude were all pretty difficult to make work. Despite the Pro designation, it doesn’t really feel quite pro. Professional photographers will surely be able to do great things with it, but the heart of the DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Zoom leave me really wanting.

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Kodak Consumer Film Division Revenue Drops, Q3 2018 Report Says

In their recently released Q3 2018 financial results, Eastman Kodak Co. reported net earnings of $19 million but a revenue decline of $7 million in its Consumer and Film Division.

Attention, film photographers: looks like Kodak still needs our help. In their third-quarter 2019 financial results, the company garnered $366 million in revenue and net earnings of $19 million, compared to $379 million revenue and $13 million earnings in the previous year. However, the Consumer and Film Division continues to struggle with a $7 million decline in earnings compared to the same quarter last year.

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These “Weird” Travel Photos Are a Slap in the Face to Those Instagrammable Spots

All images by François Ollivier. Used with Creative Commons permission.

We all strive to make our travel photos as perfect as possible, sometimes even going as far as looking for the “less traveled” paths on top of some popular, “Instagrammable” locations. Canadian photographer François Ollivier, however, wanted to explore an outrageous idea for travel photography, going towards a “weird” route instead of the usual. The results are pretty amusing, even for Ollivier himself.

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Skander Khlif Captures Glimpses of Everyday Life in the Moscow Metro

Through photography, Skander Khlif freezes fleeting moments in the lives of the commuters of the Moscow Metro. 

With a camera in hand, Skander Khlif plants himself right smack in the middle of crowded coaches and bustling hallways in the Moscow Metro. He’s there as an observer, ready to press the shutter and, in essence, freeze a fleeting moment in the life of a commuter at any given moment. Skander, whose work we’ve featured many times on this site, continues to show that he’s very versatile as a creator and documenter.

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First Impressions: Viltrox PFU RBMH 20mm f1.8 ASPH (Sony FE)

Chinese photography accessories maker Viltrox is expanding their portfolio with brand new camera lenses

When Viltrox extended an invitation for us to check out their brand new line of lenses at this year’s Photo Plus Expo, our interest was certainly piqued. Up until this point, China-based Viltrox’s focus has been on the manufacturing of photography accessories like lens mount adapters, external monitors, speedlights, and LED lighting. We were quite eager to see how they fared with their first foray into lens manufacturing. As of right now, all of the lenses that Viltrox is working on are designed for Fujifilm and Sony mirrorless camera systems, which includes the Viltrox PFU RBMH 20mm f1.8 ASPH (Sony FE, manual only), Viltrox PFU RBMH 85mm f1.8 (Sony FE, manual only), and the Viltrox PFU RBMH 85mm f1.8 STM (Fuji X and Sony FE, autofocus).

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Ludwig Favre Captures the Glow of New York Chinatown Just Before Dawn

All images by Ludwig Favre. Used with permission.

If you’re not an early riser, the dreamy images you’re about to see will give you an idea on what you’re missing out. During an early morning stroll in New York City, Paris-based fine art photographer and Lumix Ambassador Ludwig Favre captured a mesmerizing side of Chinatown, showing how it transforms with a bit of rain just before the dawn breaks.

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Review: Godox XProF Wireless Flash Transmitter (Fujifilm)

The Godox XProF Wireless Flash Transmitter is proof of Godox’s drive to change the market.

When the Godox XProF Wireless Flash Transmitter was announced and finally on the market, I strongly believe that serious Fujifilm camera users must have jumped for joy everywhere. Finally, you could use flashes for other camera systems with your camera and still be able to get full TTL and other parameters. In this case, you can do it all with Godox’s own system. If you’ve got flashes for Sony, you can control them with this transmitter. I’ve tested this with Nikon before, and when I did I wasn’t able to get TTL due to firmware updates being only compatible with PCs. But now that I own a PC (and a Mac) and I purchased the Godox XProF Wireless Flash Transmitter for Fujifilm, I was able to use the same flash with two different system seamlessly.

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Øystein Sture Aspelund Adds a Splash of Color in Nordic Landscapes in “AEON”

All photos by Øystein Sture Aspelund. Used with Creative Commons permission.

The mere mention of Nordic landscapes brings to mind some dramatic images of snow-capped mountains, frigid vistas, and rugged terrains. But it seems that for Øystein Sture Aspelund, all these are blank canvases waiting to be painted with his surreal visions. And so he does in his most recent body of work called AEON. If you’ve ever wanted to do a unique conceptual twist to landscape photography you may want to take notes from the Oslo-based photographer.

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How To Develop Your Photographic Voice

Buying a camera is the simplest part of your photographic journey – switching it on is the second. But to develop your photographic voice takes time, experimentation and a deep analysis of your self.

New photographers often want to imitate those that inspired them to first delve into the world of photography. They look at images from the past masters and confirm to themselves “I want to take photographs just like that”. They buy their first camera and tell the whole world that they are going to be a photographer. First, forcing family members to sit and pose, and second, taking photos of every sunset that they witness. But like any relationship, the honeymoon period only lasts for so long. Over time you need to become more confident in who you are and what you can do. You need to find your place in the photographic world, and it needs to hear your voice.  Doing so isn’t easy – how does one go from replicating the work of others to truly finding out who they are as a photographer?

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Inside the Photographer’s Mind: Lois Greenfield

Dance Photographer Lois Greenfield told us she’s been shooting more or less the same way since she started.

On our latest episode of Inside the Photographer’s Mind, Lois Greenfield graced us with her presence, knowledge, and overall creative thought process. Lois started out in photography as a photojournalist in theaters, but then she decided to do a different type of work in studios. Of any modern dance photographer, Lois is truly one of a kind. I reference this heavily in our interview. While Lois started out in film, shooting with a Hasselblad camera and Broncolor Lights mostly with black and white film, since moving to digital, she’s been able to do much more.

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We’re Making a Few Big Changes to Our Reviews

In an effort to keep the site fresh and adapt to how content is being delivered, The Phoblographer is changing the way that we’re doing reviews.

The Phoblographer is making a few big changes to our reviews from now on. If you’ve been a fan of the site, you know that we tend to do things much differently than lots of other publications. And today we’re taking that even further.

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This Machinist Built His Own Hasselblad X-Pan and It’s Mind-Blowing

This guy beat all our weekend projects the moment he decided to build his own Hasselblad X-Pan. Yep, you read that right!

Still don’t have the camera of your dreams? Saving up for it is the usual route, but definitely not the only route. You might want to follow the example of photographer and cinematographer Casey Cavanaugh, who took matters into his own hands and built his own Hasselblad X-Pan. If that sounds amazingly cool, we assure you — it is!

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Four of Our Favorite Crop Sensor Cameras for $2,000 and Under

APS-C cameras are incredibly affordable, and aren’t only for enthusiasts now thanks to advancements in technology and features.

Just a short while ago, APS-C cameras were seen as being only suitable for beginners and enthusiasts in the field of photography. Now, thanks to advancements in sensor technology, and the amount of features being poured into these camera bodies, they are suitable for beginners to pros, and beyond.

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