Micael Widell Newsletter #3: Fractal lenses, iPad OS, Eastern Blocks, Laowa 100mm 2x Macro, Samyang 45mm f/1.8, Thomas Swedin
Captain's log
We have grown from 130 to 298 subscribers since the last issue. I am very happy about the interest in this newsletter. Welcome all new subscribers! In this newsletter I summarize my personal thoughts and highlights from the passed month in terms of photography.
For me personally it has been a pretty good month. I tested new and interesting gear, I had a lot of fun with photography, learned the basics of focus stacking, and I published four new YouTube videos.
A surprising thing for me was how well received the video where I critique your photos was. Usually when I make longer videos where I mostly just talk, they do not get that many views or comments. So I was happily surprised to see that this video was quite popular. I will probably make another one.
July will be a month where I travel quite a bit. Mostly in Sweden, but I will also visit London for a few days. What are some things a photography interested person should not miss in London? Reply to this e-mail if you have suggestions :)
Enjoy this month's newsletter,
Micael
Photo book I bought
I find myself more and more interested in the architecture of the communist era. I find it both ugly and beautiful at the same time, and intriguing in its' ambitious expressions. Maybe part of my fascination comes from the futuristic feel many of these buildings have, and over time they have also been worn down to look even cooler, almost post-apocalyptic.
I found out about this beautiful photo book because I follow the account This Brutal House on Instagram, and ordered it immediately. I can also recommend the Instagram account In Concrete We Trust if you are into this kind of photography.
This month's featured photographer
I am not a big fan of street photography, mainly because I honestly think most street photography that I see is rather bland and uninspiring. But an exception to this is Thomas Swedin who has several street photography accounts on Instagram. I really love his beautiful colors and compositions. A true talent.
Thomas Swedin's accounts:
Most used gear this month
Venus Optics Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Macro
Venus Optics sent me a review copy of the Loawa 100mm f/2.8 2x Macro lens, an amazing piece of equipment. Venus Optics have really improved their build quality and design over the past year or two, and now they make lenses that feel and look very professional. I also love how they actively seem to look for gaps in the market – lenses that nobody else is making. Having a 2x macro lens is so much more fun than a conventional 1x one. See my review video about the 100mm Laowa macro lens.
Favorite shot (not mine) stumbled upon this month
One of my favorite macro photographers is @doogle1796 who posted this amazing shot of a jumping spider.
My favorite shot this month
My favorite photo that I took during June has to be this shot I took in the forest with the Samyang 45mm f/1.8, a lens that I made a review video about. I really love how the sun flares from this lens look.
Gear that excites me right now #1
I love the Sony E-mount system and the plethora of lenses that have come out in the past couple of years, both by Sony and others like Samyang and Tamron. But what the system has been lacking so far is affordable, native supertelezoom lenses. Finally Sony has announced an affordable 200-600mm lens that looks very interesting. I might get one.
Gear that excites me right now #2
Fractal lenses! See here and here. I should get one and start experimenting.
Gear that excites me right now #3
I have been eyeing the Olympus 40-150mm f/2.8 Lens for micro four thirds for a long time. What makes it unique is the very wide aperture, the excellent optics, and the reach corresponding to 300mm on full frame, in a super compact and pretty lightweight format.
150mm at f/2.8 on micro four thirds corresponds to 300mm f/5.6 on full frame, in terms of reach and depth of field. That is pretty sweet for such a small lens. You can also throw on a teleconverter to make the reach correspond to 420mm on full frame. I am tempted to buy it and try it out. Look at all the beautiful photos people have taken with this lens. Look here for even more examples.
Software that excites me right now
The new iPad OS which is available in a public beta, excites me a lot, as it will finally be possible to import RAW files directly from your camera into Lightroom on the iPad.
Using an iOS device earlier for image editing has not been attractive to me as I had to import RAW files to the camera roll before importing them to Lightroom, and then to free up space on the iPad there was no way to filter out the RAW files specifically, making the workflow unbearable. The iPad has been completely crippled when it comes to file handling, making it hard to use as a professional tool. Now we finally get better file handling. See this video from Marques Brownlee where he showcases more of the new features.
So in summary, even though I love my Macbook Pro as the main workhorse for photo editing and video production, I might get myself an iPad again to see if the photo and video editing experience is good enough with the new iPad OS.
My Published Videos in June
- Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro Lens Review
- Samyang 45mm f/1.8 Lens Review + Sample Photos
- I Critique YOUR Macro Photos!
- Focus Stacking Basics in Macro Photography
Goodbye for now
Thank you for reading this far, and see you in a month! Feel free to follow me on YouTube, Instagram and 500px in the meantime. And also feel free to tell your friends about this newsletter, and to reply to it if you have feedback or comments :)
/Micael