Camera
Opinion: it's way too hard to get my Pixel's Raws

Image: Google |
Picture this: you just bought a Google Pixel 9 Pro and have been shooting pictures with it all day. Because you’re a photographer, one of the first things you did was turn on Raw + JPEG, so you’d have as much editing latitude as possible. You sit down at your computer, navigate to the Google Photos site, select all the photos you just took, hit download, and…
… discover that you now have a folder full of JPEGs without a Raw in sight. It turns out that there’s no easy way to bulk download JPEG + Raw pairs from Google Photos; instead, you have to go to each picture individually, click the triple dot menu button, then hit “Download all 2 photos.” Repeat that process for 40 photos, and you’ll have 40 zip files that you’ll then have to uncompress to finally get your JPEG and DNG files.
�Using Google Photos to get Raw files shot on a Google phone is a massive pain
In other words, getting the Raw files you shot with your Google phone out of Google Photos is a massive pain – something we discovered as we were shooting galleries for the new Pixel 9 phones. The difficulty bulk downloading Raw files took us by surprise, because we remembered it being so much easier with previous iterations of the phone.
To be clear, it’s not that we’re just fools who can’t find an obvious button; Google Photos’ management of Raws is a common complaint on forums like Reddit and Google Community. Google’s own AI told us that bulk downloading wasn’t possible. (To make sure it wasn’t missing something or hallucinating, we also looked at the support documentation the old-fashioned way and found it mum on the subject of Raw downloads.)
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Google Gemini essentially told me to look elsewhere. Also, PicBackMan has 1.8 stars on TrustPilot. |
If you happen to be using Windows, you can get around this by plugging your phone into your computer with a USB cable and then using Windows Explorer to access the files and copy them to your computer. With macOS, it’s a lot harder. If you can get Apple’s Image Capture app to recognize the Pixel (and that’s a big ‘if’ based on our testing), you can use it to get the Raws onto your computer. However, you’ll have to navigate through a massive list of photos you likely didn’t even know were on your phone and that don’t seem to be in any discernible order. Oh, and your deleted photos will show up there, too, alongside MP3s and other mysterious file types such as DB-WAL, DB-SHM, and EXOs.
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Pictured: Apple’s Image Capture struggling with the Pixel 9’s file structure. Not pictured: a good photo management experience. |
There are almost certainly workarounds to this problem. You could use a different service to sync your pictures, such as Dropbox or Lightroom, if you pay for those. You could set up an automation on your phone to move the Raws from Google Photos to Google Drive, where you can bulk download them or even automatically sync them with your computer. And, because the Pixel runs Android, there are probably dozens of GitHub projects meant to solve this exact issue.
However, I’d argue that it’s ridiculous that you need a workaround in the first place. (And yes, I’m counting having to physically plug your phone into a computer as a ridiculous workaround because it’s 2024, not 2004.) You should be able to download your Raws from Google Photos without having to go one-by-one, especially since the problem stems from using Google’s own photography-centric phone.
Apple handles Raw files shot on its phones much better than Google does
What makes the whole situation more annoying is that, to my genuine shock, Apple handles Raw files shot on its phones much better than Google does. Getting at them on a Mac is obvious; if you’re syncing your photos with iCloud, they’ll automatically be added to the Photos app.
Unbelievably, getting your iCloud photos on Windows is almost as easy. The iCloud for Windows app will automatically sync your photos – including Raws – to your computer. If you’re using someone else’s computer and can’t install an app, you can go to the iCloud Photos website and batch-download them from there. In other words, Apple’s system works exactly how I expected Google’s to.
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Apple Photos can sync straight to Windows Photos, Raws and all. |
That’s not to say that Apple’s system is perfect. If you use Apple Photos to back up Raws from other cameras, it’s very difficult to get them from a Windows machine. But while someone has probably had to deal with that scenario at some point, it’s a substantially more niche use case than just trying to offload Raws you took on your phone. (And that in itself is already a niche workflow.) And if you don’t use iCloud Photos, you will be left reaching for a cable or using AirDrop. But the point still stands that Apple’s photo system handles Raws with far more grace than Google’s
Hopefully, that fact is a wake-up call to Google. In theory, this problem could be entirely solved by the addition of a ‘Download Raws’ button that’s available when you have multiple images selected in Google Photos. Until then, anyone who wants to shoot Raw on their Pixel should know that they’re setting themselves up to jump through some hoops if they ever want to get those Raws on a computer.
On a completely unrelated note, check out our Pixel 9 Pro or Pixel 9 Pro Fold sample galleries to see how Google’s newest smartphone cameras stack up.
Camera
You can now buy Viltrox's fast, lightweight and cheap 50mm Air lens

Image: Viltrox |
Yesterday, Viltrox had some fun with April Fool’s Day and announced a lens in its Air lineup that was, well, literally air. But today, the company has revealed a real addition to the Air series of compact and lightweight lenses. The AF 50mm F2.0 Air was initially announced and displayed at CP+, though details were extremely slim at that point. Now, though, things are more official, with full details available.
The AF 50mm F2.0 Air is available for Z-mount and E-mount. It joins the 20mm F2.8 and 40mm F2.5 full-frame lenses already in the lineup, along with 25mm F1.7, 35mm F1.7 and 56mm F1.7 APS-C Air lenses. The 50mm focal length, affectionately called the nifty fifty in the photography world, is a versatile option. It’s ideal for everything from street photography and travel to portraits and more.
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Image: Viltrox |
Viltrox’s take on this classic focal length is compact and lightweight, with the E-mount model weighing 205g (7.2oz) and the Z-mount version weighing slightly more at 220g (7.8oz). The optical design features thirteen elements in nine groups, which include three ED lenses, four high-refractive elements, and one aspherical element with HD nano-coating. Viltrox says it will provide “vivid, distortion-free images.”
The lens offers an aperture range of F2.0 to F16 and it features a nine-blade aperture, resulting in what Viltrox says is “stunning bokeh.” An STM motor drives autofocus, which works with eye and face detection, promises minimal focus breathing and supports in-body image stabilization. It can focus as close as 0.51m (20″).
The Viltrox AF 50mm F2.0 Air is available today. It’s currently on sale for $183, though it will cost $199 at full price.
Buy now:
Camera
The Sigma BF isn't the revolution I hoped for, but the effort that's gone in is obvioius

Photo: Richard Butler |
Some years ago, when I was relatively new to the camera industry, I wrote a post for DPReview’s short-lived blog, suggesting it was high time someone re-thought the way camera interfaces work.
I used Apple as an example of a company making inroads into an established market by developing a completely different way to interact with a device. I had no idea, back then, just how much impact the iPhone would go on to have, of course. The iPhone 3G, the first to offer competitive communication speeds, had only been launched a few months earlier and it seemed impossible that the likes of Nokia would be swept away by a relatively small computer company.
I explicitly wasn’t advocating for cameras to move to a smartphone-style touch interface, more for a blank-sheet reconsideration of what a camera needs to provide and how best to prioritize those things.
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When I wrote a blog post in 2008 asking for an Apple-style re-think of the way cameras operate, I had no idea just how significant the iPhone would go on to become.
Rendering: Apple |
Sixteen years later, no one’s really attempted it. A lot of cameras still operate like film cameras with a dizzying array of digital functions clumsily added on top. Most manufacturers haven’t significantly re-thought menu systems originally designed for 20-or-so options despite them now having to accommodate around 100. Arguably none of them work well at this point: the difference is in just how badly they cope.
The result is cameras that are only really usable by people who’ve spent quite a lot of time learning how to use them, which is why I quietly seeth every time I hear a camera being described as ‘intuitive.’ Photography’s core elements are complex enough that there’ll always be something of a learning curve, but there’s probably a middle-ground between a smartphone that does everything from focus and exposure to adaptive processing for you and a camera that operates like a 1980s SLR with a text-based choose-you-own-adventure computer game glued to the back.
Small steps
There has been some innovation since then, of course: Pentax created the TAv (time and aperture priority) exposure mode that has now become commonplace in the form of allowing Auto ISO while in Manual exposure mode. And its Hyper Program mode where you could override its aperture or shutter speed decisions while retaining a high degree of automation.
Likewise, Canon introduced its Flexible Priority exposure mode (along with the disappointingly useless M-Fn swipe bar) on the EOS R, which let you select which of aperture value, shutter speed and ISO you controlled and which were automated, on-the-fly. I’ll confess I never quite managed to get my head ’round using it quickly enough for it to be beneficial.
The Sigma BF is not the answer
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With its dedicated settings screen, the Sigma BF represents a radical new approach to camera operation.
Photo: Richard Butler |
The Sigma BF is one of the most radical attempts I’ve witnessed to re-think how a camera operates. That’s why I’ve put so much time into making videos about it over the past few weeks: because it’s so different to anything you might have used before that it’s hard to appreciate without seeing it in action.
To be absolutely clear: it is not the future of photography. It’s a fascinating, back-to-fundamentals way of controlling a camera that makes you really think about shutter speed, aperture and exposure compensation (and by extension, ISO), in a way I’ve found quite inspiring. However, it engenders (perhaps even enforces) a slow, contemplative way of shooting that wouldn’t be appropriate for most photography or most photographers.
I’ll admit when I first heard the underlying specs of the BF I was worried Sigma had somehow taken five years to make a more limited version of the fp, which would appear to be a complete waste of everyone’s time. But when I got to actually use it, the interface turned out to make it one of the most interesting cameras I’ve used in years. Again, not as an all-round, do-anything camera: even if you added a mechanical shutter, it wouldn’t be that. But as an attractive device for documenting the world, it’s strangely compelling.
All about the detail
Whatever you might think about the BF, a little bit of time spent using it reveals just how much thought has gone into its interface. Learning to operate each function one at a time through the dedicated settings display, then using the main LCD solely for composition and focus, with no incomprehensible icons distracting you, is unexpectedly engaging.
Whereas on the single-dial Panasonic S9 I find myself constantly frustrated, pressing buttons, cursing and wishing for a second control dial, on the BF I’ve found myself intentionally passing the aperture control back to the camera’s single dial. It’s difficult to rationalize, and yet, it makes sense when the camera is in your hand.
There are two details that have jumped out at me. The first is that: when you half-press the shutter, just as you’re about to take your shot, the BF switches the dial’s function to exposure compensation. It’s a lovely little touch: it assumes you’ve selected the aperture and/or shutter speed you want, creatively, but makes it easy to give it a little tweak at the last moment, if needed.
It just works
But the detail that really stood out to me is the way White Balance is handled. Not something you might usually notice or pay attention to, but the way it’s handled on the BF is so clever that it makes you realize how much thought has gone into it.
When you first turn the camera on, the White Balance icons are arranged in order of color temperature, so that you can scroll from correcting too much orange light to correcting too much blue. That’s standard enough.
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Custom White Balance presets get saved along the white balance continuum in the menus. You can tap the trash icon to delete them. |
But what jumped out at me is what happens when you set a custom white balance. For this you have to bring up the 10-setting function menu to access the Custom WB option, but whatever value it records is then saved as a preset, in sequence along the color temperature spectrum.
So if you set a custom white balance that isn’t quite as cooling as the Incandescent preset, that custom preset will now appear between the Incandescent and Fluorescent settings as you scroll through your white balance options. If you find you no longer need that preset, you can delete it.
Manually defined white balance values are treated a little differently: they still appear in their relative position on the scale, but have to be selected from the function menu because, once selected, the rear dial adjusts their value, rather than jumping between presets. I was annoyed by this inconsistency at first, but it makes sense that you’re more likely to want to constantly fine-tune a white balance value you’ve chosen yourself, rather than setting from a grey card.
Ultimately, the handling of white balance is a tiny little detail for a setting most people don’t regularly interact with, but a detail that’s redolent of the degree of consideration that’s gone into ensuring the BF can be operated using a screen that displays a single parameter at a time.
There’s still need for revolution
As I hope I’ve made clear, I’m not saying the Sigma BF is the iPhone of the camera industry: far from it. But sixteen or so years after asking for it, it’s lovely to see someone willing to radically rethink how a camera could work. And I want to acknowledge Sigma and whoever designed the BF’s White Balance system for doing so.
Camera
Adobe's moving some of Premiere Pro's most interesting new features out of beta

Image: Adobe |
The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is still a few days away, but Adobe has announced updates coming for video users in anticipation of the annual trade show. Most of the changes are focused on Adobe Premiere Pro. The latest features, all of which have already been available in beta, aim to streamline the editing process even more with the help of various AI-based tools. Frame.io is also getting a few updates, making collaborating and controlling your files easier.
Adobe Premiere Pro updates
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Image: Adobe |
One of the more exciting beta tools that is getting general availability is Generative Extend. Powered by Adobe Firefly, Generative Extend uses AI to create a few extra frames when clips are just a bit too short. Firefly essentially uses the audio and video from your clip as a prompt and adds a few frames. It’s ideal for holding on to a character reaction for an extra beat, extending sound effects or cutting an awkward gesture or facial expression right at the end of a clip.
DPReview’s Mitchell Clark tested Generative Extend when it was announced at Adobe Max last year and was quite impressed. At the time, there were quite a few limitations, but luckily, Adobe addressed those. Now that it’s moving out of beta, it works with up to 4K video and also works on vertical videos. It also works in the background, so you can keep editing while it processes.
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Adobe says Generative Extend is safe for commercial use and that appropriate Content Credentials are embedded in the file. Adobe has also said that your content remains your own and is not used to train these AI models. The tool is free to use for now, though, after a “limited time” (Adobe didn’t provide any more detail), Generative Extend will require Firefly generative credits. Pricing will vary based on the format, frame rate and resolution of your video.
Media Intelligence, an AI-powered search tool, is also coming out of beta. A search panel in the upper right-hand corner of Premiere Pro allows users to search for everything in one spot, with the AI recognizing the content of your clips, including objects, locations, camera angles and more. Adobe released the beta version of Media Intelligence and the AI-powered search panel in January, but now there will be full access to the feature.
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Image: Adobe |
Media Intelligence allows you to search using natural language, and it will find any matching visuals, spoken words or even embedded metadata. The AI recognition happens locally, so no internet is required. It promises to significantly speed up the editing workflow for those who need to pull from large libraries or are working on big projects.
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Image: Adobe |
Caption Translation, yet another January beta release, is also coming out of beta. This tool allows for AI-powered multilingual caption generation, saving users quite a bit of time when translating captions. It currently supports 27 languages and can be accessed in the Text Panel. You can even display multiple visible caption tracks simultaneously for greater flexibility.
Finally, a non-AI-based tool is also on the list of beta features going mainstream. Adobe’s new Color Management feature allows users to transform Log and Raw from nearly any camera to SDR and HDR without LUTs. Adobe says it is a simple and approachable feature with six presets that any video editor can use, no matter their experience level. It also says it will be easier to match videos from different cameras and to define the look and feel of your videos.
All of the new Premiere Pro features are generally available today.
Adobe Frame.io updates
Frame.io is Adobe’s take on collaborative media management. Last fall, Adobe added Lightroom integration for the platform, making it more usable for those who need access to more than just video work. Now, the company has added more tools for collaboration. Many of the tools are only available (or applicable) to larger teams, but there are some useful features even for smaller collaborations.
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An example of the watermarking tool in Frame.io
Image: Adobe |
Admins now have the option to create brand templates that any user can apply, making it easier for teams to create consistent content with a branded visual identity. It’s also possible to protect work-in-progress content with custom watermarks, though you’ll need a Pro, Team or Enterprise account to use those.
While you may want to share your files with collaborators, you don’t necessarily need everyone to have editing or even commenting access. Adobe has added restricted folders, which allow you to keep things organized while protecting sensitive assets and discussions. These folders will allow you to set customizable permissions, changing who has access to view, comment or edit.
The Frame.io features are generally available today.
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