New Releases

For many DSLR owners, there comes a time when one wants to go beyond the kit lens that came with the camera. The reasons vary. For some it's a matter of sharpness. For others it's a matter of speed and/or focal-length restrictions. And for some it's simply the fact they don't like the ''icky" feel of a plastic lens barrel, regardless of how sharp the lens may or may not be.

Even if you’re not really sure what iLife is, I’m willing to bet that it may already be a part of your life, whether you realize it or not. The introduction of Apple's iLife '11 means that life just got better. It brings GPS slideshows and expanded printmaking abilities to iPhoto '11, a super cool automated movie trailer-making ability to iMovie '11 and a toolbox to tighten up your Garageband.

What's 0.11 inches thick, weighs 2.3 pounds, and can stay powered-on from its battery for up to 30 days? I'll give you a hint: it's not a new tablet computer with a robotic-sounding name. These impressive specs belong to Apple's new MacBook Air. But if you look beyond the bragging rights, you'll find a construction and an operability that's going to redefine notebook computing.

Choice is a good thing.  We love the ability to choose what we have for dinner or what cell-phone plan to purchase and, if you work with pro video, what gear and accessories to buy for your camera. So it’s exciting that B&H is now carrying Triad’s line of professional mounts, plates, sunshades and monopods for ENG, HDV and DSLR cameras.  

The good news about your DSLR's pop-up flash is that it's right there whenever you need it. The bad news is the light it produces is harsh, prone to weird shadows and red eye and seldom—if ever—flattering. To right these wrongs, Light Scoop has introduced a pair of mirrored bounce attachments designed to soften the blow of your pop-up flash.

Just as image stabilization can make the difference between a sharp handheld picture and a blurry handheld picture, remote controls can make the difference between sharp and not-so-sharp pictures taken with a tripod-mounted camera. And that's because even if your tripod weighs more than your neighbor's Great Dane, manually pressing the shutter button can makes things move and things that move can easily result in shaky-looking pictures.

It wouldn't be wrong to say many of today's pro, full frame 35mm-based DSLRs capture image files that rival or surpass the quality of medium-format film cameras. As for medium-format digital cameras... they've come quite a ways too. They've become quicker, more nimble and the image quality of the higher-res capture backs now approaches the image quality of larger-format  film cameras, which brings us to the Mamiya 645DF.