In today's episode a Dark Photo Trend with Tigers, a controversy at the Hasselblad Masters 2026, a new film camera that comes with 2 rolls of film for $50 and more.
Show Notes
Welcome back to the show, Liam here and this is Episode 506 of the Liam Photography Podcast for the week of May 21st, 2026. First I wanted to apologize for no episode last week I had to go out of state for a week of Commercial Photography, but I am back now so on with the show.
In this week’s episode, A Dark Photo Trend, Hasselblad Masters 2026 issues and a new film camera that comes with two rolls of film for a grand total of $50!
A video on X showing a behind-the-scenes video of a photo shoot at Tiger World Thailand has gone viral and highlighted a serious problem in the country.
The video shows an American tourist sitting on a brick with his legs crossed as an enormous tiger approaches from behind and puts its paws on the man’s shoulders with the aid of zookeepers. The tourist looks terrified throughout as he tries his best to pose for a photo. The video, posted recently, has racked up close to five million views at the time of writing.
The zookeepers also seem nervous throughout and will only leave the tiger alone for a few seconds at a time, just enough for an unseen photographer to capture a few frames. As soon as the big cat moves its head, the staff are straight back with a bottle of milk to distract it.
The tiger’s minders have good reason to be apprehensive: last year a tourist was mauled by a tiger while posing at Tiger Kingdom in Phuket, Thailand.
The photo shoot took place at Tiger World Thailand, about 60 miles from Bangkok. According to the zoo’s website, a photo shoot like the one the American tourist got cost over $200. It notes that only “strong people” can have the tiger on their shoulders.
Tiger World Thailand’s Instagram page is filled with photos of tourists doing the exact pose the American tourist was doing. Other poses are available, but the shoulder pose seems like the most popular.
International NGO, the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), advises tourists in Thailand to stay away from any venue offering the chance to interact or take photos with tigers.
“Tiger entertainment venues may claim that profits support tiger conservation but this is, in truth, rarely the case,” writes the EIA, pointing to one venue called Tiger Temple in Thailand, which was raided by authorities and 40 dead tiger cubs were found in a freezer. 147 tigers were rescued, but around half died shortly after.
“Speed breeding is what keeps the supply going,” writes Anish Moonka on X. “Mothers get their cubs taken at two to three weeks old. The females come back into heat much sooner and pop out another litter long before nature would let them. World Animal Protection investigators walked through Thai tiger parks and found half the cats they saw in cages smaller than a one-car garage. A wild tiger covers 10 to 20 miles in a single night.”
The EIA says that captive tigers held in entertainment are not treated well. The early separation from their mothers is so they can be hand-raised and bottle-fed by tourists.
“Cubs work the photo line for a few months,” adds Moonka. “They get passed from tourist to tourist hundreds of times a day. Most are declawed, which is exactly what it sounds like: amputating part of each toe so they cannot scratch a paying customer. Once a cub grows too big or starts pushing back, it is finished with the photo business and too expensive to feed.”
So while it may seem like a cool idea to get a photo with a tiger for social media, tourists should be aware that they are fuelling something far more sinister.
Hasselblad has disqualified a photographer accused of using generative artificial intelligence (AI) from Hasselblad Masters 2026.
Almost immediately after Hasselblad unveiled the 70 finalists for its Hasselblad Masters 2026 photography competition, with 10 finalists per seven categories, online commenters quickly identified a very questionable photo in the Street category.
When asked about the finalist that had all the typical markers of generative AI, Hasselblad told PetaPixel that it took the accusations very seriously and was immediately conducting further review.
“Pending the completion of the verification, we will not make any premature judgment on the compliance of individual entries. Should any violation be confirmed, the shortlisted qualification of the offending work will be revoked immediately,” Hasselblad told PetaPixel last month.
As promised, once the violation was confirmed, as expected, the offending was “revoked immediately.”
While Hasselblad has stopped short of releasing an official statement or comment on the disqualification, the company told PetaPixel today that the offending photographer has been removed from the contest and replaced with a new photographer. However, Hasselblad said it remains committed to the authenticity of photography.
At this stage of Hasselblad Masters 2026, all the photographers are officially anonymous, although some have remarked about the competition on social media.
As PetaPixel noted when the AI controversy kicked off late last month, the 70 finalists were selected via internal voting at Hasselblad, and not selected by the Hasselblad Masters 2026 Grand Jury. This is important to note again because one, the Grand Jury, which is full of talented, respected photographers, and two, the new finalist has just as much of a chance to win the category as the other nine remaining finalists. While it is true that the new finalist is technically the “11th place” entry selected by the internal voting process, the Grand Jury that makes the ultimate decision has not yet evaluated any of the entries.
Each category winner will earn a 5,000-euro cash prize, a Hasselblad photo kit valued at more than $10,000, and the prestigious title “Hasselblad Master.”
Alongside the Grand Jury’s judging process, the public also has a say. Users with registered Hasselblad accounts can vote for their favorite entries across all the categories now. Sign-up is free. Voting is open until June 1, and Hasselblad Masters 2026 winners will be announced on June 30.
Analogue Wonderland, a photographic film store based in the U.K., has released a beginner-friendly analog camera called Pure35.
The Pure35 is a compact, sleek design that comes with a fixed 31mm lens and is a “true point and shoot camera” with a built-in flash and a focus-free lens.
The simple design makes it a perfect starting camera for those interested in film photography, as the low barrier to entry and easy controls mean first-time shooters should be able to capture atmospheric film images without much fuss.
Better yet, Analogue Wonderland has put on a sweet deal for the newly launched film camera: For just £39.90 ($53), the camera comes with a bundle that includes two rolls of Kodak film, a camera strap, a camera pouch, and a bunch of stickers. Analogue Wonderland ships to the U.S.
It means photographers can try out a color film and black-and-white film (or both the same if so inclined), and practice the magical feeling of loading and unloading a film cassette. Analogue Wonderland also develops and scans film.
The Pure35 Reloadable 35mm film camera comes in three different colors: black leather, green leather, and violet leather. The lens is set at f/9 and has just a single element. The fixed focus range covers one meter (3.2 feet) to infinity, meaning subjects need to be at least one big stride away for them to be in focus.
“This reloadable camera is ideal for snapping on-the-go, great for street scenes and travel shots too. Coupled with a 70% field of vision viewfinder and a fixed shutter speed of 1/120s,” notes Analogue Wonderland.
“You will be able to pick this up, wind and shoot easily and get those distinct true-to-life shots… And with its built-in flash, it doesn’t matter if you’re in bright daylight or darker interiors; it’s got you covered.”
“Film photography should feel joyful, not intimidating,” adds Paul McKay, Director at Analogue Wonderland. “The PURE35 film camera is about removing barriers and helping people fall in love with film. We hope that by providing an affordable and simple ‘camera plus film’ bundle, we’re enabling folks to take their first easy step towards a lifetime of analogue creativity!”
Analogue Wonderland recommends using film with an ISO between 200 and 800. The Pure35 reloadable 35mm camera is available here.
Alongside the Canon EOS R6 V and new RF 20-50mm f/4L IS USM PZ lens, Canon also announced a new accessory last week, and photographers are eating it up.
Ever since Canon unveiled the original EOS R full-frame mirrorless camera and its first four RF lenses in September 2018, photographers have rightly complained about the Canon RF lens cap. For whatever reason, the original Canon Lens Dust Cap RF has an alignment notch, meaning it can only properly attach and lock to the lens if photographers align the mark on the cap with the mark on the lens. A single mounting point is frustrating, especially when time is of the essence.
The new Canon Lens Dust Cap RF II has three mounting points, like EF lens dust caps. This minor change is a deceptively big deal. It is difficult to overstate how frustrating the original RF lens cap design has been to photographers since 2018. It is a common refrain among PetaPixel staff that the cap is annoying.
Clearly, we are not alone. As Asobinet reports, Canon has already announced a shortage of the new lens cap in its home market, citing “higher-than-expected order volume.”
An apologetic Canon Japan says delivery times may be longer than expected for the Lens Dust Cap RF II. A shortage of lens caps is highly unusual, quite possibly unique. But this speaks to the demand Canon photographers have for a more functional RF lens cap. Sometimes the most exciting announcement isn’t a new camera or lens, but an essential, cheap accessory.
In the U.S., B&H says the dust cap is expected to begin shipping in early July, and it’s already a “top seller” on the site. It’s $8, technically one cent more expensive than the original RF lens cap.
Canon says the new cap will be included with future lens releases, though it notes it may take some time for it to fully replace the older lens cap design. The company is not replacing the cap in lenses already in the retailer pipeline, of course. Canon U.S.A. has the new cap available to preorder as well, although it’s $8.99. Canon U.S.A. expects the cap to begin shipping on July 7, six days after B&H’s estimate.
Ludicrous Batman Graphic Novel
One of the most famous and beloved Batman graphic novels ever, “Batman: The Killing Joke,” is getting a new special limited-edition release that looks like an oversized film camera.
As reported by Digital Camera World, the idea of a graphic novel shaped like a camera may seem completely insane at first. However, the bizarre and expensive crossover is closely tied to the graphic novel’s story itself.
Originally published in 1988, “Batman: The Killing Joke”‘s iconic cover shows Batman villain, the Joker, front and center, holding a “Witz”-branded 35mm film camera. On the cover, the Joker is holding the camera in portrait orientation and saying, “Smile.” Classic Joker humor. The graphic novel, written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Brian Bolland, is an extremely popular one-shot.
“The Killing Joke” proved to be such a hit that its events have been embraced by subsequent comic book storylines, and the comic was eventually adapted into an animated film of the same name in 2016. The movie’s poster brought back the Joker holding his Witz camera.
For the new, special “Batman: The Killing Joke” Avant-Garde Edition, publisher Argent Comics turned the comic itself into a big Witz camera, complete with an accompanying brown leather “camera” case and camera strap modeled after the kit the Joker uses in the graphic novel. The volume includes both the original 1988 coloring by John Higgins and the 2008 recolor by the original illustrator, Bolland.
It’s an ostentatious camera-themed collector’s edition, to be sure, and no expense has been spared. Each side of every page in the volume is individually giclée printed and then hand-fused. Per the publisher, it is the very first comic book to be giclée-printed, a process typically reserved for fine art. The team even had Hahnemühle custom make a Photo Rag Metallic paper specifically for the comic book.
The volume is bound into aluminum boards, hand-lined with goatskin leather. The case is cinnamon calf leather with purple and green suede lining and a tropical-themed strap. Argent Comics describes the camera case as “equal parts protection and display piece.”
The “lens” on the front of the graphic novel even spins. It’s also detachable and held in place by magnets.
It is, in every sense of the word, luxurious. To that end, it costs $17,409.75. Although, having the money is not even enough. Argent Comics is accepting applications to allow people the chance to purchase one of the 47 copies available. Serious collectors are even encouraged to schedule a private appointment to view the comic book at Argent’s Croatian headquarters.
Cooke, a legendary name in cinema lenses, has announced the AP3 FF lenses, a new series of 1.5x anamorphic lenses designed specifically for full-frame mirrorless cameras.
Cooke has kicked off its new AP3 FF cinema lens series with a trio of primes, all featuring fast T2.4 apertures. There is a Cooke AP3 FF 35mm T2.4 1.5x Anamorphic, a 50mm T2.4 1.5x, and finally, a longer 85mm T2.4 1.5x prime.
All three lenses promise uniform aesthetics and natural optical rendering. Cooke describes its philosophy as embracing “controlled anamorphic character with the clarity and dependability that modern filmmaking demands.”
Although the new AP3 FF anamorphic lenses come in Sony E-mount by default, they feature interchangeable mounts. Cooke says RF, L, and M mounts are available to order as a free accessory. Since they’re built from the ground up for mirrorless cameras, each lens features a compact, lightweight design, at least for its class. Cooke notes that each lens is well-suited to handheld filmmaking.
The lenses range from 1.2 to 1.4 kilograms (2.6 to 3.1 pounds), and each of them features a unified 87mm front diameter. The lenses are 142 to 159 millimeters (5.6 to nearly 6.7 inches) long. They also feature unified 0.8 MOD gears, 79 degrees of iris ring rotation, and 160 degrees of focus ring rotation, all of which support seamless filmmaking workflows.
“Anamorphic is a format that demands to be taken seriously and rewards patience over novelty,” Cooke says. “AP3 brings the optical pedigree of Cooke’s high-end anamorphic lineage into a compact, lightweight series built for modern mirrorless cameras. Balanced, purposeful and with the cinematic depth and character you’d expect from Cooke.”
To that end, the AP3 lenses promise the distinct flare characteristic of anamorphic lenses, meaning long, horizontal flare patterns. Cooke says the flares “have depth and complexity.” The company also promises that the flare pattern and look are consistent across all three AP3 lenses.
Likewise, transitions between focus planes promise to look natural and organic. There is minimal focus breathing in Cooke’s examples. However, the company notes it has not sought to eliminate it entirely, citing breathing’s ability to be a creative tool in and of itself.
Cooke also promises beautiful bokeh, and as the company’s sample footage shows, it delivers. That said, the new AP3 lenses, unlike many other cinema lenses these days, prioritize exceptional sharpness, at least in the center of the frame. Cooke has not opted for a purposefully soft look with its new lenses, claiming that the AP3 lenses are “defined” where they need to be, and “expressive everywhere else.”
“AP3’s bokeh is a product of its ground-up design. As a true 1.5x anamorphic lens it renders out-of-focus elements with a painterly quality that draws the eye but doesn’t distract. The impressionistic shape and dappled character remain consistent across the entire T-stop and focal length range,” Cooke explains.
Cooke is not known for affordable lenses, and the new AP3 FF 1.5x Anamorphic primes are no exception. A single Cooke AP3 FF T2.4 1.5x Anamorphic lens is $7,750, while a three-lens bundle with each of the new lenses is $22,250, for a $1,000 total savings.
Sony has released firmware version 2.00 for the Sony a7 V, bringing a substantial update focused on professional audio workflows, FTP functionality, and new production tools for hybrid shooters and filmmakers.
The headline feature of the update is support for 32-bit float audio recording when using Sony’s newly announced Sony XLR-A4 XLR Adapter. The adapter, introduced alongside the new Sony a7R VI, connects through Sony’s Multi Interface Shoe and enables high-quality 96 kHz, 32-bit float recording directly in-camera.
For filmmakers and content creators, the addition of 32-bit float recording is one of the most significant audio upgrades the a7 V has received since launch. The format provides dramatically greater dynamic range and flexibility in post-production, helping reduce the risk of clipped audio during unpredictable recording situations.
When paired with the XLR-A4 adapter, the a7 V can now capture 96 kHz 32-bit float audio directly to the camera. Sony says the adapter supports dual analog-to-digital converters and four-channel input recording, allowing creators to work with a broader range of microphones and professional audio setups.
The XLR-A4 itself features two combo XLR/TRS inputs, an additional 3.5mm microphone input, physical gain controls, and an integrated microphone holder. Sony also says the adapter can generate separate WAV files recorded directly in-camera to help simplify editing workflows later.
While the adapter is sold separately, the update substantially expands the a7 V’s appeal for documentary shooters, solo filmmakers, and creators looking for more professional onboard audio recording without relying on external recorders.
Firmware version 2.00 also introduces support for the Preset Focus function with select lenses that do not feature power zoom functionality. Sony notes that compatibility may vary depending on the lens model.
The update additionally adds more detailed focal length display information, allowing the camera to show focal lengths down to one decimal place for more precise lens data during shooting and playback.
Sony has also ended support for updating lens firmware directly through the camera using memory cards. Going forward, users will need to use Sony’s desktop update tools on Windows or macOS for lens firmware updates.
Sony is continuing to expand the a7 V’s professional workflow capabilities with several new FTP and transfer management tools included in the update.
Users can now simultaneously delete and rate images stored across both memory card slots, display folder and file names during playback, and cancel scheduled image transfers during FTP operations.
The update also expands compatibility with Sony’s Transfer & Tagging workflow system, adding support for automatic FTP transfer scheduling for protected images and videos, automatic protection of transferred files, and SFTP server configuration support.
These additions are clearly aimed at news, sports, and event photographers who rely on rapid wireless delivery workflows directly from the camera.
Sony is also continuing its push into content authentication and enterprise workflows.
Firmware version 2.00 adds support for Sony’s Write Digital Signature functionality for movies as part of the company’s Camera Authenticity Solution initiative. Sony says licensing availability for broader users outside select media organizations is still being determined.
The update also introduces compatibility with Scan and Tag, Photo Cropping, and Volume Photography Commands through Sony’s paid Volume Photography License system, which is expected to launch later in May 2026.
Alongside the major new features, Sony says the update fixes an issue where movie recording could occasionally fail when using the separately sold ECM-M1 microphone.
The company also notes general operational stability improvements throughout the camera.
Firmware version 2.00 for the Sony a7 V is available now as a free download from Sony.
The new Sony XLR-A4 XLR Adapter is also available separately for $778.
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