Episode 389: Latest News and Rumors

Show Notes

Greetings, you’re listening to the Liam Photography Podcast, I’m your host Liam Douglas and this is Episode 389 for Thursday February 8th, 2024. In today’s episode I thought I’d bring back some news and rumors for this week just so on occasion I can let you know what is going on in that part of the photography world.

If you recall back in November (Richard from Canon Rumors), I talked about a sensor that Canon was going to show off at IEDM (International Electron Devices Meeting) in December, we haven't heard much about that until now. When I talked about this twisted sensor back in November, my thoughts on it were that it was a quad-pixel arrangement to support better AF in horizontal and vertical directions.

You may tell me, Richard, the title is clickbait. Well, perhaps. New information has recently surfaced about Canon's presentation and reading the sensor descriptions in the two articles, this is very much an “I don't know what it is.”. Canon specifically mentions that autofocus in various orientations and edge alignment improves with this new sensor and that they “twisted” the photodiodes to accomplish it. They mention that the pixels are rotated 90 degrees from each other, which traditionally indicates a quad-pixel arrangement (and they call this in the articles as being twisted). Canon describes this sensor as a “cross dual-pixel twisted-photodiode” sensor. So even Canon calls it a dual-pixel sensor, and not a quad sensor. So that's why you got that title and here we are.

Canon showed off this diagram at IEDM which illustrates how much better the new autofocus can see lines at various angles versus the more traditional DPAF sensor.

The far left column is the item being imaged, the middle is with the new twisted sensor, and the far right column shows the autofocus output from a traditional DPAF sensor. You can see that with a regular dual-pixel AF sensor, it simply can't recognize some of the lines at all, but that's not the case with the new sensor. The more the AF can recognize, the more it can do pattern recognition and autofocus, and the quicker it can do the calculations.

Canon also claims that this sensor is much quicker at autofocus than the current DPAF sensors, even with increased data reading. Canon suggests that it should be almost twice as fast as current sensors.

We are lacking any more information on this, to which I'm very sad. I would have loved to see if they are actually twisting the photodiodes for improvements or just used that terminology as a catchy phrase. I was telling Craig that I tried for a week to get my dirty little hands on that whitepaper.

We talked more about twisted photodiodes in the prior article, but just a refresher, the difference between a twisted photodiode and a regular one, is the small layer on top of the photodiode, in the above picture called TBG. In this example, it's a twisted bilayer graphene photodiode. We don't know if this is what Canon is doing. But it should be something similar.

This is research – we don't know when Canon would implement (if ever) this sensor, but it stands the reason that if Canon is talking about it publicly like this, they have a high degree of confidence in the solution. No one wants to look like an idiot in front of their peers when Canon presented it at IEDM last December.

ThinkTank Photo has announced the release of version 2 of their Mirrorless Mover series of camera bags. I currently have the original Mirrorless Mover 30i and totally LOVE that bag! It has tons of space for a day out shooting Street Photography

and the design and materials are top notch. The bag has room for extra batteries and memory cards as well as a camera body and a couple of lenses. The YKK zippers makes for a way to secure your items and will last for a long time as they are ultra durable.

The front flap on the bag has magnets to allow it to close and stay secure when out and about and the bag just plain looks sleek and sexy. If you happen to be out shooting in a slight rain no worries the bag is water resistant and should you encounter an actual downpour they even provide a nice rain cover for the bag as well.

Updated from their popular Mirrorless Movers series with four new and exclusive two-tone melange colors

Increased front pocket volume with added organization features

Additional adjustable dividers provide a more customizable fit for your specific     gear combination.

Designed to carry and protect modern mirrorless systems

Removable shoulder strap and belt pass-through easily converts the bag to a belt pack

Flip-top lid with magnetic closure provides quick access to gear

High-quality YKK® RC zippers and metal hardware

Easy-access dimensional front zippered pocket and accessory organizer

Dedicated clear secure card slot(s) for CF, SD, XQD, or Micro SD

Stretchable and gusseted side pockets for accessories

Additional storage pocket for batteries or compact accessories under lid

Included key hook and lanyard

Grab handle on the lid

DWR treated fabrics protect against the elements

Seam-sealed rain cover included

The new colors for the version 2 of the Mirrorless Mover series come in Cool Grey, Coast Green, Marine Blue and Campfire Orange, I personally ordered mine in the new Campfire Orange.

Fujifilm x100vi (From Patrick at FujiRumors) I have been asked about the Fujifilm X100VI price in Euro.

Well, according to our trusted sources, it will be €1,799.

And one more thing regarding the price in US Dollar.

I told you recently that according to a new source it would be of $1,599 (hence $200 more than X100V). I also asked you to take it with a grain of salt for now until I can confirm it by trusted source.

Now, given that the price in Euro will be €1,799, the US price of $1,599 is definitely realistic.

As a reference:

X-T5 costs $1,699 in USA and €1,999 in Europe

X-H2 costs $1,999 in USA and €2,249 in Europe

So there is this 250/300 difference between the USD and EURO price. And if confirmed, there would be a 200 difference also between the US/EURO price of the X100VI.

But an anonymous source (who decided to use a nickname – THANKS), gave us a different price in USD. I am now checking that information (and also the rest you’ve sent me, thanks a lot), and will share an update here on FujiRumors. And if I can’t check the price in a reasonable time with my trusted sources, I will share the one given to me by the anonymous source anyway.

It’s just, usually when I need to correct a potentially wrong rumor, I want to to be sure the correction is 100% the final word on that particular rumor. That’s why I take a bit of time to try to get it confirmed by trusted sources.

It could also be that both sources are accurate, just one source got a more updated information than the other.

Fujifilm really loves to change its mind on the pricing a couple of times before they release the gear. And actually it also happened that Fujifilm made rapid changes shortly after announcement, as for example with the Fujifilm X70, which was launched for $799, and just a few days after launch, while still on pre-order, Fujifilm lowered the retail price to $699.

There have been some low resolution, pixelated images leaked “supposedly” showing the new x100vi and it shows that there is no D-pad on the back on the new camera as well as a new logo, possibly a Bluetooth on near the DISP/BACK button.

As a final note, the new camera will sport the same NP-W126S battery as the x100v which makes sense as the only way to put the larger NP-W235 battery in they would have to seriously increase the size of the camera body itself, which would totally kill the compactness of the camera and it would no longer be part of the x100 line.

On a personal note with the x100 line, I recently bought the two conversion lenses for my x100v with the TCL-X100 II and the WCL-X100 II. I bought the x100v as a dedicated Street Photography camera and since Tina and I often go back to the Northeast for visits with family when I want to be as streamlined as possible I can take my x100v and it’s two conversion lenses and also have 28mm for landscapes and the 50mm for shooting portraits.

The toy camera at the heart of the analogue revival. 

When the Holga first launched, it didn’t quite capture people the way its creator hoped… but it did spark something.

The camera, which first released in 1982, was meant to be an affordable option with a plastic toy-like body, the South China Morning Post explains in the video above (part of its new “Cultured” series), but users found it “too rudimentary” even within the amateur space. Plus, it used 120 film, while 35mm was a far more popular option.

However, the Holga wasn’t left to languish in photography history books, instead gaining a following through the Lomography movement. Lomography was an art style that started in Vienna in the 1990s that embraced so-called “imperfections” in photography. Blur, light leaks, under and overexposure, and heavy vignetting were celebrated in Lomography. The champions of the movement started the Lomography company and the Lomographic Society International.

“Emotionally, it feels more real. Maybe not visually. Visually, if you have a very clear image, of course there are more details. But emotionally, maybe it doesn’t feel real. Maybe with the dream and blurry image, it is actually more accurate to our memory,” Tat Tso, Lomography’s head of operations in Asia, tells the South China Morning Post. “We don’t remember things clearly if you think about it. We remember things in a blurry way, in a dreamy way.”

Therein lies the appeal of Lomography.

Those elements drew popularity once again in the 2000s and 2010s, as apps like Hipstamatic and Instagram aped the look with filters that incorporated vignettes and artificial light leaks. Hipstamatic and even Instagram’s original app icon further embodied the looks of camera models like Holga. Additional vintage- and Lofi-style filters on smartphones and editing software as well as apps like Huji continued the trend. And while the Holga isn’t an instant, the rise of instant cameras from companies like Fujifilm and Polaroid all tie into the Lomography renaissance.

In the late 2000s, the South China Morning Post reports, Holga was selling about 200,000 units each year. And Lomography, the company, continued as well with stores all over the world and camera releases.

Yet, some attribute the revival of analog photography and Lomography as contributing to Holga’s downfall. Some say Instagram’s rise was to blame. Others think Kodak’s filing for bankruptcy and stopping film production was the real issue as film for the camera became more scarce. Though Kodak would eventually resume film production and Instagram has moved away from the Lomography aesthetic it boasted in its early years, Holga stopped production in 2015.

Trail Camera Proves Wolves are Returning to California

Stepping into the frame and staring up at the clandestine trail camera, a wolf lets out an ungodly howl as it stands in a forest between San Francisco and Los Angeles.

The footage was taken on January 23 and the wolf belongs to the Yowlumni Pack that was discovered in the summer of 2023. The pack is one of four new wolf packs discovered in California last year, according to Field and Stream.

The Yowlumni Pack are the first wolves spotted in Southern California for 150 years after first returning to the Golden State in 2011.

The video of the howling wolf, which also contains footage of the wider pack, was captured by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife which discovered the pack in Sequoia National Forest.

“Wolves howl as one form of communication with one another and often howl to locate each other,” writes the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) on YouTube. “Packs aren’t always together and may temporarily separate, capturing this behavior on video is extremely rare.”

While wolves returning to the Southwestern United States is seen as a good thing for many people, some local farmers wonder if large predators still belong in the world given the dangers they pose to cattle ranchers.

“You can’t kill a wolf even if it kills your cattle because wolves are federally protected,” William McDarment, a rancher on the Tule River Reservation in Tulare county told The Guardian in November. “So, what do we do?”

The CDFW considers wolves to be a recovering endangered species and they are protected under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA) and the federal Endangered Species Act.

“The department strives to conserve gray wolf populations for their ecological and intrinsic values,” reads a statement on the CDFW website, “and closely monitors our overall wolf population … for conservation and research, management and conflict mitigation.”

The Yowlumni name derives from the Yowlumni band of the Tule River Yokuts. Vernon Vera, a Tule River Tribal Elder, explains that Yowlumni translates to “wolf tongue.”

“[My mother Agnes] was the last fluent speaker of Yowlumni until her passing in 2010,” Vera tells the CDFW. “She taught that the Yowlumni were speakers of the wolf tongue.”

Fujifilm XF16-55mm F/2.8 Lens Firmware Fix Arrives

Last week, PetaPixel reported that firmware version 1.30 for the XF 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR zoom lens had been suspended due to a bug that impacted exposure accuracy. At the time, Fujifilm said it was working on emergency firmware to alleviate the issue for users who had updated to version 1.30 before it was pulled. The new fix arrived today in the form of version 1.31. Any users who had upgraded to version 1.30 should immediately download and install version 1.31. Complete installation details are available on Fujifilm’s support page.

https://www.canonrumors.com/canon-shows-off-an-ultra-fast-af-multi-directional-sensor/

Check Out the New Mirrorless Mover by Think Tank Photo

https://bit.ly/3ZmKqju

https://www.fujirumors.com/

https://petapixel.com/2024/02/05/meet-the-toy-camera-at-the-heart-of-the-analogue-revival/

https://petapixel.com/2024/02/05/trail-camera-captures-iconic-howl-to-prove-wolves-are-returning-to-california/

https://fujifilm-x.com/global/support/download/firmware/lenses/xf16-55mmf28-r-lm-wr/

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