Camera
Lensbaby announces new Obscura system, a modern take on pinhole photography
Lensbaby is well known for its unusual lenses. However, as the company says, its latest product ‘isn’t a lens,’ but rather is an ‘extraordinary experience crafted in the origins of photography.’ Lensbaby’s latest product is Obscura. Lensbaby Obscura is a modern twist on pinhole photography that allows photographers to use digital cameras to capture images like what you might get from an actual pinhole camera.
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| Lensbaby Obscura Optic |
As a quick refresher, an actual pinhole camera is a light-proof box with a small hole in one side. Through this hole, or aperture, light passes through, projecting an inverted image of the scene on the opposite side of the pinhole camera. This is the camera obscura effect, of which there are descriptions as far back as 500 BCE. The effect was used for pinhole photography as far back as the 1850s.
Today, pinhole cameras are most often used to safely view a solar eclipse or for fun photographic experiments and projects. Lensbaby wants its Obscura product to bring photography’s ancient spirit back to modernity.
Lensbaby Obscura comes in two versions. There’s a 50mm Pinhole/Zone Plate/Pinhole Sieve optic. There’s also a standalone 16mm Pinhole/Zone Plate/Pinhole Sieve pancake lens although, pinholes aren’t technically lenses) for mirrorless cameras, including Canon RF, Nikon Z, Sony E, Fuji X, Micro Four Thirds and L mount. Finally, for the Optic Swap system, there’s an Obscura Optic. It has a 50mm focal length.
Obscura’s pinhole, zone plate and pinhole sieve are made of three layers of chrome with a total thickness of 0.00014mm deposited on 1.5mm thick glass. An anti-reflective coating is also applied. Lensbaby writes, ‘With a resolution of 128K dpi, this photolithography process not only makes true zone plates with excellent light transmission, it produces perfectly round pinholes and precision zone plate zones.’ Unlike traditional pinhole cameras, which can be quite fragile, Obscura can be cleaned in the same way as any camera lens.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bU-ul2MxiWk
‘Pinhole photography taught me to see composition, contrast, leading lines and the shape of things in ways that led me to make some of my most powerful images,’ says Craig Strong, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer at Lensbaby, Inc. ‘We created the Obscura so that you could learn and grow while using a technologically advanced pinhole lens with options. It’s the Lensbaby twist to old-world imagery.’
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| Lensbaby Obscura 50 |
The Obscura 50 has a 50mm focal length, as evidenced by its name. The Zone Plate has an F32 aperture. The Pinhole Sieve is smaller still, at F64. Finally, the Pinhole has an aperture of F161. The minimum focus distance also varies across the three versions, ranging from 0.27m (10″) to 0.001m (0.04″). Unsurprisingly, Obscura is a manual focus system.
Obscura 16, the standalone pancake ‘lens’ Obscura product, has the same three parts, Zone Plate, Pinhole Sieve and Pinhole, with F22, F45 and F90 aperture values, respectively. Minimum focusing distances range from 0.6m (23″) to 0.05m (2″).
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| Lensbaby Obscura 16 |
Obscura 50 is available now for Canon EF and Nikon F mounts. It costs $280. Obscura 16 is available for many more mounts, Canon RF, Nikon Z, Sony E, Fuji X, Micro Four Thirds and L mount, and costs $250. The Obscura Optic is $180. The full Obscura product line can be viewed here.
| Photo: Leica |
With its latest announcement, Leica is furthering its focus on mobile photography, adding a new accessory to its lineup. The company designed the Leica Lux Grip specifically for iPhones, following up on the June release of the Leica Lux iPhone app. The grip is strictly for Leica lovers, as it will only work with Leica’s iPhone app; controls will not transfer to the default iPhone camera app or any other third-party options.
Leica says the Lux Grip is “similar to a classic Leica camera in terms of its handling and feel.” It goes even further and explains that all of the grip’s “physical controls consistently express Leica’s design philosophy and conjure up the familiar experience of using a professional camera.” Any grip will make for a more camera-like experience and make taking photographs with a phone a bit more ergonomic, so users who focus on mobile photography could certainly benefit from it.
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| Photo: Leica |
The grip relies on a magnetic MagSafe connection rather than a case-like design, which is typical in other phone grips. The magnetic attachment makes switching between portrait and landscape orientations easy while maintaining a comfortable grip with easy controls. Plus, removing the grip when it’s not needed and returning to a traditional phone form factor is straightforward. That also means that when users purchase a new iPhone, there’s no need to buy an entirely new grip specific to that phone.
The Lux Grip uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) connectivity to communicate with a phone’s camera, allowing users to control camera functionality without digging into phone menus. That includes a two-stage shutter release that, like cameras, uses light pressure to focus and a full press to take a photo. There’s also a button to switch between shooting modes, two customizable buttons and a dial for adjusting settings.
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| Photo: Leica |
For those who want to go all out, Leica also released a leather case designed just for the Lux Grip, which features an AirTag holder.
The Leica Lux Grip is available for $329 on Leica’s website and B&H. The purchase includes a year of the Leica LUX Pro subscription.
Buy now:
Leica Camera AG is launching the Leica LUX Grip for the iPhone today.
The camera grip impresses with its intuitive operation and high-quality manufacturing while, at the same time, setting new standards for photographic precision using a smartphone. The Leica LUX Grip is similar to a classic Leica camera in terms of its handling and feel. Its clear design, sophisticated operating concept and easy attachment – guaranteed by secure magnetic MagSafe technology – improve the ergonomics and functionality of smartphone photography, taking it to a new level. The LUX Grip and iPhone communicate via Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and are perfectly complemented by the Leica LUX app.
All of the LUX Grip’s physical controls consistently express Leica’s design philosophy and conjure up the familiar experience of using a professional camera. The 2-stage shutter release focusses with light pressure and starts shooting when fully pressed down. A button allows you to quickly switch between shooting modes. Two control elements can be individually assigned and customised via the Leica LUX app. While one button provides quick access to frequently used functions, the easy-to-grip control dial enables the precise selection of camera settings – such as zoom, aperture, shutter speed and exposure compensation. This means that photographers have all the essential aspects of image composition in their own hands, even when using a smartphone.
The Leica LUX app rounds off the photographic experience by adding the unmistakable image and colour aesthetics of legendary Leica lenses. The bokeh effect of the Summilux-M or Noctilux-M can be used to deliberately emphasise features while retaining full control over exposure, ISO and shutter speed. Unique Leica Looks – from Vivid to classic Black&White – expand the artistic palette, lending digital photography an analogue character. The Leica LUX app forms a perfect symbiosis with the LUX Grip. The full version of the app is included for one year with every Grip product registration.
The LUX Grip also sets the tone when it comes to sustainability. Thanks to its modular design, the Grip can be easily reused with all electronic components every time you change your iPhone. Only the MagSafe base plate has to be replaced. Weighing just 130 grams, the Leica LUX Grip is comfortable to hold and is equally suitable for left- and right-handed users. Its powerful battery lets you take up to 1,000 shots and will be ready for use again in a flash with a charging time of 2 hours via USB-C.
The Leica LUX Grip is now available in selected Leica Stores, in the Leica Online Store and from specialist retailers. The recommended retail price is EUR 300 incl. VAT.
| Nikon Nikkor Z 35mm F1.2 pre-production | F1.2 | 1/125 sec | ISO 64 |
Earlier this week, Nikon announced the Nikkor Z 35mm F1.2 S, a wide-angle lens with a fast aperture. We were able to spend a few hours on the streets of Seattle with a pre-production model, and got some shots that should give you an idea of what this lens is about.
A few caveats to keep in mind – given that the photos were shot with a pre-production lens, they may not be exactly indicative of how a production model would perform. Our standard lens gallery procedure also involves processing the images through Capture One, giving us precise control over what corrections are and are not applied. However, the images in this sample gallery are straight out of camera JPEGs, and thus may have corrections that wouldn’t usually be applied to images in our sample galleries.
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This image depicts the Sony E-mount version of the AF 28mm F4.5 lens, though the size is nearly identical.
Photo: Viltrox |
After a playful bit of marketing, Viltrox announced a new flavor of its ultra-thin AF 28mm F4.5 lens. It first made the lens available for Sony E-mount cameras last fall, and now it will also be available for X-mount cameras.
Viltrox calls this teeny offering a chip lens. That nickname is in reference to how thin it is, drawing similarities with potato chips, and does not pertain to any sort of technology inside the lens. To stay on theme, the company’s teaser for the announcement featured a bag of chips with AF 28mm F4.5 XF above it, much like the Lays potato chip flavor announcements.
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| Image: Viltrox |
The Viltrox AF 28mm F4.5 is a unique lens because of its diminutive size. It weighs a measly 60g (2.1oz) and is only 15.3mm (0.6in) thick. To keep the size so minuscule, there are some compromises. Most notably, it uses a constant F4.5 aperture. That means no adjusting the aperture based on lighting conditions. Additionally, it lacks a manual focus ring, so you’ll be stuck entirely with autofocus. It also isn’t compatible with filters.
The optical design is made up of six elements in six groups, including two ED and two aspherical elements. Voltrox says it will deliver “sharp images, vibrant colors, and stunning starburst effects.” It uses a VCM for autofocus, which Viltrox promises will be “fast, precise, and silent.” Additionally, the lens features an integrated lens cap with a slide for opening and closing the cover and a USB-C port for firmware updates.
The AF 28mm F4.5 XF is available in black and white colorways for $99.
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