Category Archives: camera

Travel report: A journey through the Balkans

Travel report: A journey through the Balkans

Last two years I already visited (by airplane) the Balkan countries Montenegro and Albania for a hiking vacation with my girlfriend and a photography trip with my photo buddy Rick. The wild nature of the Balkans attracts me a lot. As the Balkans are not well known yet, and a lot of people from West Europe think its still dangerous there (most area’s are safe nowadays), you can walk around in the mountains without seeing anyone for a whole day.
The Balkan countries also have very nice, often old cities at the Adriatic coast which are touristic, but not nearly as those in e.g. Italy.

Below you can find a few pictures from my trip last year, which convinced me to go back again this year.  Most photo’s of this year can be found in high resolution here. The timelapse video my friend Rick made is also worth checking.

a7s | Samyang 14mm t/3.1 | Montenegro 2018
a7ii | Loxia 2/50 | Montenegro 2018
a7s | Voigtländer 4.5/15 | Montenegro 2018
a7s | Samyang 14mm t/3.1 | Montenegro 2018

Continue reading Travel report: A journey through the Balkans

How good a camera you need? – A closer look at the Huawei Mate 20 Pro

Introduction

huawei mate 20 pro phone photography smartphone small sensor resolution review bokeh computational photography
Huawei Mate 20 Pro | 27mm equivalent | polarizer

Very often we get asked questions like: should I get lens X or lens Y? Out of lens X, Y and Z: which is the best performer? Which 35/50/85mm lens should I buy? Do I need a camera with 42mp? Is the Zeiss Batis 18mm 2.8 or the Zeiss Loxia 21mm 2.8 sharper?
For several reasons we usually cannot answer these questions: rarely we know what you want to use the lens or camera for and often the difference between a good and a bad sample of the same lens is bigger than that between two different lenses.
So, to give you a different perspective, in this article we will look at the Huawei Mate 20 Pro, a smartphone with above-average camera capabilities and see what results can be obtained from this pocketable 200g device.

Sample Images

huawei mate 20 pro phone photography smartphone small sensor resolution review bokeh computational photography
Huawei Mate 20 Pro | 27mm equivalent
huawei mate 20 pro phone photography smartphone small sensor resolution review bokeh computational photography
Huawei Mate 20 Pro | 16mm equivalent
huawei mate 20 pro phone photography smartphone small sensor resolution review bokeh computational photography
Huawei Mate 20 Pro | 80mm equivalent

Continue reading How good a camera you need? – A closer look at the Huawei Mate 20 Pro

Review: Sony FE 135mm F1.8 GM

The Sony 1.8/135 GM is a highly anticipated lens that has been rumored for some time. Being a GM lens, it is part of a line which includes some of my favorite lenses like the Sony FE 1.4/24 GM and the Sony FE 1.4/85 GM. My expectations are as high as its price – can it live up to that?

Sample Images

Sony A7iii | Sony FE 1.8/135 GM | f1.8 | full size
Sony A7iii | Sony FE 1.8/135 GM | f1.8 | full size
Sony A7iii | Sony FE 1.8/135 GM | f1.8 | full size

Continue reading Review: Sony FE 135mm F1.8 GM

Review: Sony RX1RII Sonnar 35mm 2.0

Introduction

sony rx1r rx1r2 rx1rm2 mark2 mk2 rx1 sonnar 35mm 2.0 review a7rii
Sony RX1RII with Sonnar 35mm 2.0 lens

We still have no 35mm f/2.0 or f/1.8 with AF for the A7 series cameras, but the Sony RX1RII with the highly regarded Sonnar 35mm f/2.0 is finally coming down in price. So let us find out what this package has to offer.

Sample Images

sony rx1r rx1r2 rx1rm2 mark2 mk2 rx1 sonnar 35mm 2.0 review a7rii
Sony RX1RII | Sonnar 35mm 2.0 | f/2.0
sony rx1r rx1r2 rx1rm2 mark2 mk2 rx1 sonnar 35mm 2.0 review a7rii
Sony RX1RII | Sonnar 35mm 2.0 | f/2.0
sony rx1r rx1r2 rx1rm2 mark2 mk2 rx1 sonnar 35mm 2.0 review a7rii
Sony RX1RII | Sonnar 35mm 2.0 | f/5.6

Continue reading Review: Sony RX1RII Sonnar 35mm 2.0