In today's episode OM Systems has released an astrophotography version of the OM-3, drones at the Winter Olympics, a Tortise escapes a fire and more.
Show Notes
Welcome back to the show, Liam here and today is Episode 493 of the Liam Photography Podcast for the week of February 12th, 2026. In today’s episode, OM-3 Astro, Olympic Drones, Teeny, Tiny Retro camera and more.
OM System has announced the OM-3 Astro, a new dedicated version of the standard OM-3 designed for astrophotography. The OM-3 Astro has special features to help bring out the beautiful red colors in nebulae and improve overall astro performance.
The infrared cut filter in front of the OM-3 Astro’s 20.4-megapixel stacked BSI Micro Four Thirds image sensor has been tweaked to enhance the vivid capture of red nebulae, a popular target of enthusiast astrophotographers. The IR-cut sensor in a standard camera effectively prevents the capture of red and pink colors in nebulae emissions.
The modified IR-cut filter in the OM-3 Astro enables 100% transmission of Hα wavelengths, which, as OM System says, “allows the camera to vividly capture the beautiful shapes and colors of nebulae emitting Hα light, which are difficult to photograph with standard digital cameras.”
However, the modifications go beyond the different IR-cut filter. There is also a new color profile, COLOR1, optimized for astrophotography, including imaging red nebulae. There is also a COLOR2 profile optimized for starry landscape photography.
The OM-3 Astro is a very strong candidate for a specialized astrophotography camera for other reasons as well. The camera features Starry Sky AF, which lets users lock onto stars with autofocus, rather than tediously fine-tune focus manually. The camera also features a Live Composite mode that enables light painting in-camera without blown highlights. The OM-3 also features a Night Vision mode that adds a red overlay to the user interface, preserving night vision.
And, of course, the camera features High-Res Composite shooting modes, including a Handheld High Res mode that combines 12 images into a single 50-megapixel file in-camera. However, this mode doesn’t have to be used handheld. As OM System notes, “By utilizing Handheld High Res Shot — normally used for handheld shooting — with the camera mounted on a tripod or an equatorial mount, you can use a single shot with the body to achieve the Stacking Processing frequently used in astronomical photography . In addition to this method’s high detail, shooting this way reduces image noise.” The stacking process corrects for the diurnal motion of the stars in the night sky.
There are camera settings optimized for starry sky photography preset to the camera’s C1, C2, and C3 modes on the mode dial. C1 is set for stacking for astrophotography, C2 is for stacking a starry landscape, and C3 is for handheld shooting of a starry landscape.
Alongside the OM-3 Astro camera, OM System is releasing new filters for astrophotographers. These two new filters mount between the camera body and the attached lens, allowing them to be used with any lens, including ultra-wide and fisheye lenses that are challenging to use with front filters.
The OM System BMF-LPC01 Body Mount Light Pollution Suppression Filter aims to reduce the impact of light pollution on astro images. As OM System notes, since the area near the horizon is most affected by light pollution, this filter is especially useful for photographing stars and other celestial bodies rising in the east or setting in the west.
The BMF-SE01 Body Mount Soft Filter is designed to slightly blur and highlight point light sources, making stars appear more impressive than they otherwise would. The brighter the stars, the blurrier they look, emphasizing their size and color.
The new Body Mount filters work with the OM-3 Astro, of course, as well as the standard OM-3, the OM-1, OM-1 II, and the Olympus E-M1 Mark III.
The OM System OM-3 Astro will be available in March for $2,499.99 in the United States and $2,999.99 in Canada.
The pair of new filters will also be released next month. The BMF-LPC01 is $339.99 ($399.99 CAD), and the BMF-SE01 is $229.99 ($279.99 CAD).
They can be seen, they can definitely be heard. Nevertheless, Winter Olympics fans are enjoying the shots provided by FPV drones that are often racing behind the athletes.
The downhill skiing and luge events taking place this weekend at Milan-Cortina have been enhanced by the dramatic new camera angles. Some viewers have compared the shots to real-life video games.
But not everyone is so impressed.
Press photographers covering the games have had their action photos invaded by the flying cameras. Whether it makes for a better photo or not is in the eye of the beholder.
And photographers aren’t the only ones to have noticed them: viewers at home also get glimpses of the drones racing around on the broadcast. But seeing them is not the issue — it’s the trademark high-pitch whirring.
“Trying to watch the men’s downhill ski in the Olympics and this drone they are using to follow the skiers is extremely annoying with the high-pitched whine sound it outputs. I hate it,” writes KapG on X.
“The drone high-pitched whirring is driving me mad at the Winter Olympics. I want to hear the ski or snowboard carving, landing and crowd noise. Not a constant high-pitched drone following the contestant,” says Daniel Ricker.
The Games organizers tell Reuters that the drones aren’t impacting the athletes in any way.
“We look at this as an evolution of the sports. The expectation of everyone today is to have this kind of experience when you consume a sports event, even more so for the Olympic Games,” Pierre Ducrey, International Olympic Committee sports director, tells the press.
“We strive to offer the best viewing experience whether in the stadium or outside. We believe that the drones do not impact significantly the experience of the athletes. We have looked into it to make sure it doesn’t. Maybe some people are more sensitive than others.”
While drones were used at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the 2026 Winter Games mark the first time they have been so prevalent. The drones are particularly impressive while covering sliding sports like luge, where they follow down the narrow ice canal for a shot never broadcast on television before.
“We tested drones before competitions, we have listened to the athletes’ community… so that the impact would not affect their performances, would not bother them in any way,” Milano Cortina Games sports director Anna Riccardi tells Reuters.
“Each athlete has a different level of sensitivity, awareness and capability for tackling innovation. So far we have not received any complaints that might lead to the non-use of drones in the future.”
The new Haru Mini Retro Camera, released this week in Japan, is downright adorable. It may not necessarily take good-looking photos, but it will absolutely look good doing it.
Available now in Japan for just 5800 yen, or around $38, the Haru Mini Retro Camera is designed to look like a proper camera, albeit shrunken way down. The Haru Mini Retro Camera even ships with a fairly traditional camera neck strap, despite being small enough to easily fit in just about any pocket or even on a keychain, like the Kodak Charmera. In a press release, the maker, Hansmare, says users can “carry it around like a real camera.”
It is technically a real camera, though. The cute toy camera has a 20-megapixel sensor, albeit a very small one, and can capture both still photos and video. Photographers can quickly transfer their photos to their phone or a computer using the built-in USB-C port, which also enables the Haru Mini Retro Camera to serve as a webcam. The camera also charges via this same USB-C port.
The Haru Mini Retro weighs just 67 grams (2.4 ounces / less than 1/25 of a Noct) and is 52 millimeters (two inches) wide and 40 millimeters (1.6 inches) tall. It records 20-megapixel photos and 2K-resolution video to a microSD card, which is included with the camera. The mini camera features a 1.47-inch rear display for framing shots and reviewing images. The little viewfinder “prism” on top is just for show. As are most of the controls, for that matter.
Toy cameras like this are always interesting. On the one hand, the sample photos don’t look very good, despite the manufacturer describing them as “beautiful” and “high quality.” They aren’t. It’s a teeny-tiny, cheap image sensor behind a similarly cheap, small lens. However, the camera is cute and costs under $40 — although it would surely cost more after import costs for those outside Japan. Cute and fun have value to a lot of people, as evidenced by the absolute smash hit that is the Kodak Charmera. For many, a camera’s appeal goes far beyond its specs and performance.
The Haru Mini Retro Camera may not have the cultural cache of something like the Kodak Charmera, but it is undeniably cute. That has to be worth something to someone.
Flickr is celebrating its 22nd birthday, a remarkable achievement. To mark the occasion, Flickr shared some interesting data and insights into how photographers use Flickr, which cameras they own, and what types of shots they like to share the most.
“Since our last birthday, you’ve been busy. Uploading, tagging, sharing, connecting. Every photo tells us something about how you see the world, and this year, the story you told was uniquely yours. We also noticed some interesting trends emerging that are already shaping the year ahead,” Flickr says.
As expected, the most-used tag last year was “2025.” However, moving beyond the expected, “red” was the second-most popular tag. Then “green,” “nature,” “sport,” “art,” and “travel.” The first camera brand to appear was “Nikon” in eighth, and the first country was “France,” right after Nikon. “Canon” rounded out the top 10.
As Flickr notes, red and green were both big risers compared to 2024. The use of the red tag increased 25% year over year, while green “exploded into second place with a 45% surge.”
“Look through Explore on any given day and you’ll see why: sun-drenched forests, neon-lit streets, jewel-toned macros of dewdrops on leaves. Between our Explore takeovers, the energy of challenge groups, and photographers simply capturing the vibrant world around them, there’s a clear shift happening. With the momentum “green” has been showing, we wouldn’t be surprised if it takes the lead in year 22,” Flickr explains.
Alongside the tags that Flickr users assign to their photos, Flickr also provides a lot of insight into camera metadata. While it would be very interesting to see how Flickr’s metadata compares to other online image platforms, like Instagram, it is still notable to see what cameras photographers on Flickr use. While Nikon is a generally popular camera brand, it is fascinating that on Flickr, it is the most popular of all. Flickr says Canon made up some serious ground in 2025, but Nikon still has the overall edge.
That said, the most popular individual camera model last year was the Canon EOS R6 Mark II, followed by the Sony a7 II, Apple iPhone 16 Pro, and then the Nikon Z6 II. The Z6 II was actually Nikon’s only appearance in the top 10. The company must have its overall lead thanks to a ton of depth, since it doesn’t have one superstar on its Flickr roster.
The top 10 most-used cameras on Flickr are an interesting mix of dedicated, high-end cameras and smartphones. Notably, there are as many Micro Four Thirds models on the list as there are full-frame cameras, and only a single APS-C camera, the Fujifilm X-T5.
Then again, when considering the most popular photography genres on Flickr in 2025, Micro Four Thirds cameras make a lot of sense. Photographers love nature, travel, landscape, and street photography the most, all situations where a compact, lightweight camera can be very beneficial. Portraiture, architecture, and wildlife are next up.
Flickr also has access to interesting data about people’s capture and upload behavior. May 17, 2025, was the day when photographers captured the largest number of shots uploaded to Flickr, while October 21 was the busiest day for actually uploading shots all year.
“Here’s to 22 years of moments captured, stories shared, and a community that continues to inspire us every single day. Thank you for being here. Thank you for creating. Most of all, thank you for making Flickr what it is: not just a platform, but a community,” Flickr says.
Adapters to use DSLR lenses on modern mirrorless cameras are very common parts of photography kits. They are extremely useful tools that enable photographers to use their existing, older lenses on new mirrorless cameras. However, as New Zealand builder James, who goes by Ancient on YouTube, shows, these adapters can be so much more and capture photos and videos that would otherwise be impossible.
As Ancient James shows in the video above with his Canon EF-EOS R adapter, which lets Canon EOS R owners use Canon EF DSLR lenses on their Canon mirrorless cameras, there is quite a bit of space between the EF lens on the front and the EOS R camera image sensor at the back of the adapter. Normally, there is nothing in this gap; the light travels through the lens, the gap, and hits the image sensor, meaning the EF lens works essentially the same on a mirrorless camera as it does on a DSLR.
James had the idea, what if he put something in this gap? Enter the Digital Iris, a programmable transmissive LCD that “[inserts] digital effects into an otherwise purely optical pipeline.”
As Ancient James demonstrates in the video above, it’s possible to create unique iris shapes using this transmissive LCD. Photographers may be familiar with this concept, as Lensbaby has offered numerous lenses over the years that support customizable bokeh shapes using inserts, letting photographers turn out-of-focus point light sources into shapes like stars and hearts. However, what makes Ancient James’ Digital Iris so different and exciting is that using new shapes is as simple as installing ffects on the Digital Iris’ tiny onboard computer.
Beyond that, these effects can also be animated and manually controlled in real time, enabling the use of changing effects during video recording. It also means that different parts of the light field can be precisely darkened during shooting, enabling the Digital Iris to capture parallax effect wobbles, like a “wigglegram.” Normally, a wigglegram relies on multiple lenses capturing shots of the same scene from slightly different angles, but since the Digital Iris can control the light hitting the sensor, it can achieve a similar effect by simulating multiple lens angles in quick succession.
It’s a relatively complex but very interesting DIY project. Ancient James has uploaded all the required files to Github, and the Digital Iris, as he built it, runs on an RP2040 running Micropython 1.27 with an 84×48 pixel PCD8544 LCD. He has also uploaded some different aperture files to Github. It would be very cool to see something like this as a commercially available product for those who aren’t able to build it for themselves.
DoPchoice has introduced the Snap Rabbit Octa 5′ Snapbag, a new softbox system designed to simplify setup while maintaining the high-quality light control expected on professional sets. Built for today’s high-output COB LED fixtures, the Octa 5′ aims to reduce assembly time without sacrificing diffusion quality or output efficiency.
The Snap Rabbit system replaces traditional rod-based assembly with a fan-style opening mechanism that allows the softbox to deploy in seconds. Instead of inserting rods or forcing a frame into position, users fan the structure open and secure the final section. The system is designed to minimize physical strain and speed up lighting adjustments during production.
“The Snap Rabbit Octa 5 Snapbag from DoPchoice features a super-shallow Octa design, magnetic snap closures, and a new Convertible Mount system for fast swaps between NL, Bowens & Aputure A-Mount. Smooth output, optional internal diffusion, flat-packing transport and optional 40° Snapgrid control — all built for modern LED workflows,” DoPchoice says.
The Snap Rabbit Octa 5′ Snapbag focuses on efficiency during both setup and breakdown. Two integrated buckles are magnetically guided into alignment, helping ensure secure closure and consistent shaping. The design eliminates the need for ground contact during assembly, which can be beneficial in fast-paced environments or controlled studio settings.
When it is time to wrap, the softbox collapses by pinching the central ring, rotating, and folding the structure flat. The process is engineered to reduce stress on both fabric and frame, potentially extending the life of the modifier through repeated use.
Despite its 5-foot diameter, the Octa features a super-shallow depth compared to many traditional softboxes of similar size. This reduced profile allows cinematographers to position the light closer to ceilings or walls, making it particularly useful in small studios, interior locations, or low-ceiling environments.
When collapsed, the Snap Rabbit Octa 5′ Snapbag packs down to a slim footprint, making transportation and storage more manageable for traveling crews and rental houses.
The Snap Rabbit Octa 5′ Snapbag is built to handle the intensity of modern COB fixtures while producing broad, creamy illumination. Its three-layer diffusion system includes a Snapbounce interior for improved reflectivity, a quarter-grid baffle for internal light control, and Snapcloth diffusion material for soft output.
For productions requiring greater control, the softbox is compatible with DoPchoice’s 40-degree Snapgrid, which mounts directly to the front to narrow beam spread and reduce spill.
DoPchoice will be debuting the Snap Rabbit Octa 5′ Snapbag at BSC Expo stand 133. While exact pricing has not yet been announced, DoPchoice notes that costs and regional availability are expected to vary by configuration and distributor.
A security camera captured the moment a fire engulfed the shed that Leo the tortoise was living in — causing her to slowly run away.
Leo’s owner, Hyeri Tom, was away at a Super Bowl party when a rogue heat lamp fell over in the enclosure housing the reptile. Leo’s owner shared a video of the fire raging inside the shed as the sulcata tortoise continued to sleep.
But moments later, Leo awoke from her slumber and was captured walking away from danger as fast as she could manage.
The footage quickly went viral online. But most importantly, Leo is okay — although she no longer has a house.
The incident took place in Fullerton, California. Fortunately, a neighbor spotted the fire and quickly put it out before it could do any more damage.
Sharing the footage to TikTok, owner Hyeri Tom joked, “sports mode unlocked”. Tortoises famously move slowly. “In all seriousness — thankful beyond words for attentive neighbors who helped put out the fire,” Tom adds. “Leo is safe. The heat lamp fell and ignited the substrate.”
Tom says she is sharing the footage as a warning to other tortoise owners. “Secure your heat lamps. This could’ve ended very differently.”
Leo has since been “taking it easy after her big adventure”, eating cucumber as the family set about building her a new home.
Last week, a sleepy mountain lion posed for a few amusing selfies after a nature photographer set up a trail camera right next to a kill. Proving that it can often be remote automatic cameras that capture the best shot.
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