I miss my DSLR camera. But before you assume it’s purely sentimental, I actually started to learn photography using SLR film cameras. I still own a film camera, but I don’t miss film like I miss DSLRs. In fact, I miss my DSLR camera so much, I’ve actually considered selling my mirrorless kit and going back to the Nikon D850, a ‘holy trinity’ of F-mount glass, a couple of choice primes and a supertelephoto, and never worrying about upgrading my setup ever again. Of course, I’m not going to do that (I don’t think…), but that’s how much I MISS MY DSLR!

I miss my DSLR like a ghost misses being opaque. And it gets worse. I swear I took my best photos ever on my DSLR cameras. I understand how ridiculous that sounds, given the insane specs of almost any enthusiast-level mirrorless camera nowadays. I’ve thought about this a lot and the conclusion I’ve come to is that I was less precious as a DSLR user. Let me explain.

My DSLR camera made me a better photographer?

When you shoot with an optical viewfinder, you’re less bothered about getting the perfect exposure. You understand the limitations of your camera’s light meter, and you deal with it. It’s kind of freeing. When I use mirrorless cameras, I’m almost constantly fiddling with the settings, hyper aware of the preview on the EVF.

I find myself retaking the same photos over and over again, ad nauseam, striving for perfect exposure and absolute sharpness. With a DSLR camera, I’d take a few shots, glance at the rear screen and move on. There’s also this expectation with modern cameras that they’re so good, anything other than sheer perfection isn’t good enough. As such, I think my DSLR shots were more characterful and featured more variation.

I miss the more tactile experience of using a DSLR camera, too. Mirrorless cameras are silent, free from vibrations, and to this day that bothers the heck out of me. I miss the reassuring vibration that AF was engaged and that visceral clunk of the reflex mirror and shutter dancing in tandem. I could operate my DSLR with my eyes closed. Mirrorless? No such luck.

Perhaps the best way I can describe it is that mirrorless cameras feel like picture-making computers, whereas DSLR cameras feel like picture-making machines. I’m a bit of a romantic at heart; I’ll be gushing about my Nikon Z8 again next week, but I can’t be the only one to feel this way. I’m sure a lot of photographers won’t get it, and that’s totally fine. But man, you cannot put a price tag on the bond I built with my Nikon D800 and Nikon D850.

Do you agree? Do you long for the DSLR camera's heyday? Do you still shoot on a DSLR camera? Let me know in the comments below!

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This 18-year-old DSLR is trending: Can the Nikon D700 really be a feasible buy for budget photographers in 2026? Nikon F100: If you’re serious about film photography but light on budget, this is as close as you’ll get to an F6 without the mammoth price tag. I’m a photography educator who disregarded Micro Four Thirds for wildlife photography. I don’t mind admitting when I’m wrong.

I was surprised to find the Nikon F100 trending on Google, but the more I think about this ‘modern’ film camera the more I understand why.

The Nikon F100 was released in 1999 and discontinued in 2006, making it a relatively recent example of the format. It was launched as a more affordable alternative to the Big N’s range-topping Nikon F5, making it an incredibly capable body for 35mm film photography.

But what makes the Nikon F100 such an attractive prospect is that it represents a sweet spot between specs and affordability. If you’re looking for what is technically the very best film camera Nikon ever made, look no further than the Nikon F6, which was released in 2004 and remained in production right up until 2020.

Because the F6 was never surpassed, it still commands extremely high prices on the used market. I’m seeing them priced in and around the $1,700 / £1,400 mark. The Nikon F100, on the other hand, goes for around $300 / £300. That’s a big difference.

Ultimately, the Nikon F100 gets you close enough to the Nikon F6’s specs that all but the very hardcore of film photographers would benefit from the difference. Don’t get me wrong, the F6 is the more advanced and better camera – but for most film uses, the Nikon F100 will do the job.

Nikon F100 vs Nikon F6

Using both the Nikon F100 and Nikon F6 will feel somewhat familiar to Nikon DSLR users. They’re not a manual film camera like the Nikon FM; they feature a variety of automatic modes, making them more complicated initially but overall easier to operate.

When it comes to the two cameras stacked up against each other side by side, there are a few big differences. Firstly, the Nikon F100’s 3D Matrix Metering is inferior to the F6’s 3D Color Matrix Metering and autofocus is a similar story.

The Nikon F100 featured Nikon’s Multi-CAM1300 5-area AF module, while the F6 debuted the more advanced Multi-CAM2000 11-area AF system.

Both cameras are well made, but the Nikon F6 comes out on top with extensive weather sealing and an all-metal body, compared to the Nikon F100’s largely metal build and only partial weather sealing. The Nikon F100 can also suffer from Nikon’s infamous sticky rubber/leatherette, much like the Nikon D70.

Lens compatibility is another win for the F6 over the Nikon F100. Make sure you look up exact lens compatibility before buying any film camera. While both cameras can accommodate most Nikon F-mount lenses, the F6 boasts better all-around compatibility. For example, the F6 can retain Matrix Metering when using manual F-mount lenses; the Nikon F100 cannot.

The viewfinders are slightly different, too, with the Nikon F100 featuring 96% coverage to the Nikon F6’s 100%. And while it won’t matter to most users, and could even be seen as a plus to some, the Nikon F100’s shutter is much louder than the Nikon F6.

If that seems like a lot of differences, it most certainly is. The Nikon F6 isn’t regarded by many as the greatest film camera ever made for nothing. But when it comes to film photography as a hobby, the vast majority of film photographers will get by with the Nikon F100 just fine.

If you’ve got the money then, by all means, pick up a fine piece of film photography history. For everyone else, the Nikon F100 is all the film camera you could ever need and provided you can find a good example, you cannot beat current used prices.

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Want something that looks cool but boasts more mod cons? Take a look at the best retro cameras. If you're looking for a more authentic retro film camera experience, the Nikon FM could be all the camera you'll ever need. And to stay up to date on the most recent imaging advancements, here's the latest camera news.

Gimbal cameras and drone cameras are capable of following action without a person behind the camera – but a robotics startup is launching a mini robot camera to follow you around on wheels. Beni is a personal camera robot with 4K video, auto-follow capabilities and even the ability to climb stairs.

The California-based Mondo Robotics calls Beni the “first portable, all-terrain robot that independently films while following you around.”

Beni sounds a bit like a camera drone that wheels around the ground rather than taking to the skies. The camera robot has obstacle avoidance built in, along with smart video tracking that can be set to follow the action from different angles.

The company says that Beni’s wheels are meant for all terrains, with the little bot being capable of speeds of up to 18mph / 28.9kph. The small robot is even able to jump as high as 3.9 inches / 10 cm and righting itself if it tips over, which the company says gives it the ability to climb stairs.

The camera robot can shoot 4K 30p footage with a 16:9 aspect ratio. A 60p frame rate is available at 3K, while 100p slow-motion is available in FullHD.

Mondo Robotics, however, says that Beni isn’t just a camera – the robot can nod and shake its head, and also has a game mode where it can jump and flip.

The little robot weighs less than four pounds, the company says. Beni's small stature and eyes remind me a bit of one of my favorite Disney characters, WALL•E.

Beni is Monbdo Robotics' first launch, arriving via a Kickstarter campaign that opened on July 08. All crowdfunding projects come with risks, but the camera robot exceeded the original funding goal in a matter of minutes.

Early pledges start at $549 with a $799 expected retail price. The company also ships to the UK, Canada and Australia, where that early pledge converts to about £410 / CA$779 / AU$795.

Editor's note: As with all crowdfunding projects, there is no guarantee that the final product will match the early depictions in the campaign – or that the final product will be completed or delivered at all. DCW does not endorse this or any other crowdfunding campaign.

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For more cameras that can track action, consider a gimbal camera like the popular DJI Osmo Pocket series or the Insta360 Luna. Or, take a look at the best drones for beginners.

Ikea Canada’s social media manager deserves a raise! The Canadian arm of the Swedish / Dutch company has recreated the flags of 12 World Cup nations, by photographing cleverly arranged household items.

Perhaps the simplest example is England’s St George’s Cross, represented by what would appear to be a five-by-five white Kallax shelving arrangement, with red storage boxes used to form the cross.

Scotland and Germany’s arrangements are similarly simple, with folded blue sheets on a white rug, used to represent the former, and a stack of folded black, red and gold towels used to form the latter.

The flags of Spain, Portugal, Argentina, Brazil and Morocco are particularly interesting, since they all have emblems, which are trickier to replicate. However, the team has come up with a few clever workarounds.

For example, Argentina’s Sun of May is represented by an octopus plushie between a pair of light blue sofas. Portugal’s coat of arms is represented by a candle holder, while Spain’s is recreated using two candles and a tub of beads. Morocco’s star is formed using bamboo, and Brazil’s starry sky is a blue bowl with a thin, white candle.

Of course, the Canadian team has also recreated Canada’s famous maple leaf via a cleverly folded napkin. And while the concepts are fantastic, the photographer/s deserve to be celebrated, too. The series is a masterclass in flat-lay and still-life photography. Images are undistorted, well-lit and perfectly square.

Also, did you know that Ikea – the master of flat-pack furniture – also released a flat-pack camera once upon a time? Launched in 2012, the Ikea Knäppa was "The World’s First Cardboard Digital Camera"! You can still snag one on eBay if you don't mind paying $340 for a cardboard camera…

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Want to capture still life photography at home? Here's how to shoot a flat lay featuring ingredients from nature. Plus, supercharge your still life photography with the best tripod and the best photography lighting kits.

This ultra-fast 35mm lens is a compact lens, built for serious photographers – and now you can grab it at a big discount.

The Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/0.9 lens for Fujifilm X-mount is now just $1,199 at B&H. With this offer, you save $300 off its regular price of $1,499.

The Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/0.9 is a groundbreaking manual focus lens, designed exclusively for Fujifilm X-mount mirrorless cameras.

If you are looking for a fast lens that covers portrait, street, and low-light photography, this 35mm prime combines standout performance with true portability.

Thanks to its ultra-fast f/0.9 aperture, the Nikton excels in low-light conditions and delivers a beautifully shallow depth of field.

You'll be able to create stunning, soft bokeh with ease – something few other lenses in this class can match. Its manual focus design also encourages you to follow a slower, more deliberate shooting process, helping you get more creative and intentional with your images.

It's compact, lightweight, and packed with advanced optics, including aspherical elements for sharp images.

This 35mm lens is built to be your go-to lens for creativity on the go. Plus, with full compatibility with Fujifilm's in-body stabilization and EXIF data, you get modern convenience without sacrificing manual focus control.

The Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f/0.9 measures just 64mm in length and 492g in weight, making it lighter and shorter than many comparable lenses. Built with a durable all-metal barrel, it's made to last.

With its f/0.9 maximum aperture, this lens is a serious investment in your photography – and with this current deal, you can save big on a lens with even bigger creative potential.

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You might also be interested in discovering why this pro photographer prefers a 35mm prime for portraits.

With reports rife that the Sony FX5 will be launching later this month, boasting features like open gate video and triple-base ISO, you have to wonder: should Canon be worried?

After all, the biggest camera company in the world has just spent a fortune bringing three versions of its FX3 killer to market (the Canon EOS R6V, R6 Mark III and EOS C50). And no sooner have those cameras hit shelves than Sony looks like it has one-upped them – at least, if the latest camera rumors are accurate.

Sony Alpha Rumors, has "confirmed" that the Sony FX5 is will be announced on July 22 – and it's an upgrade on the FX3 (and perhaps Canon's latest bodies) in almost every way.

The headline features, and the ones that potential buyers will be most concerned with, are 5K open gate, triple-base ISO, false color and the same AI autofocus unit found in cameras like the Sony A7R VI.

In addition, the FX5 will boast "a body that is only barely bigger than the FX3" and will also be at least somewhat modular in nature, with an external removable electronic viewfinder unit.

Sony FX5 specifications (rumored)

• 16.6MP fully stacked sensor
• Bionz XR 2 with AI AF
• 5K open gate (3:2)
• Triple-base ISO
• False color
• Venice menu style
• Modular tilting EVF unit
• 3.5-inch articulating screen

Should Canon be concerned?

It took Canon (and Nikon, in fairness, with the Nikon ZR) years to provide an alternative to the monstrously successful Sony FX3. And it did so with the R6 V / R6 III / C50 trifecta that offers every possible kind of FX3 customer every possible kind of photo / video performance combination.

Launched in 2021, the FX3 lacked obvious features like false color and internal RAW – let alone more modern features like open gate video. So Canon loaded its trio of FX3 killers with monstrous specs like 7K open gate, algorithmic subject detection and a far more pixel-rich 32.5MP sensor.

If these leaks are true, however, the FX5 now returns fire with some even more impressive specs. Triple-base ISO was introduced by Canon a few years ago, in the high-end Canon EOS C400, but its latest bodies only feature dual-base ISO.

It now records RAW internally in X-OCN (extended tonal range Original Camera Negative), Sony's 16-bit linear encoding profile. And while its 16.6MP sensor has more modest resolution, its stacked design is much faster and its 5K capture might be preferable to many users simply in terms of storage and workflow.

And of course, while the C50 and R6 V famously eschewed any kind of electronic viewfinder, the FX5 is also promising a modular EVF option for those who need it.

The proof in the pudding is obviously in the eating. Sony Alpha Rumors' report notes that testers "say that while this camera is a bit… expensive, it is also a far superior cine camera compared to the FX3." So cost will be a crucial factor.

For now, however, it seems that Sony has played a very smart chess match with its FX3 successor. Let's see what happens on July 22.

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Check out our Canon EOS C50 vs Sony FX3 comparison to see how those bodies square up. And take a look at the best hybrid cameras along with the best cinema cameras to see what else is on the market.

This Canon premium super-telephoto zoom is one of the best Canon zooms we've ever tested – and with this deal, you can now get it for a great price.

You can grab the Canon RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1 L IS USM for just £2,379 at Amazon. With this offer, you save a stunning £780 off its regular price of £3,159.

The Canon RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1 L IS USM is known for its hefty price tag, making this deal even more tempting. It is one of the best Canon telephoto zoom lenses, designed for Canon's EOS R-series cameras.

This lens is a favorite among wildlife, sports, and aviation photographers who need reach and versatility in one package. With its impressive 100-500mm focal range, you're covered for everything from sweeping landscapes and intimate close-ups to fast-paced action shots.

It's the kind of lens that adapts to your creative vision, whether you're tracking birds in flight or capturing the thrill of the game.

Crafted with Canon's legendary L-series quality, this lens is a stellar build. To get the best performance and fastest AF (autofocus) – especially for capturing fast-moving subjects – pair it with the advanced AF and IBIS (in-body image stabilization) systems of the EOS R5 or R6.

One thing to keep in mind is that the aperture narrows as you zoom in. Unlike the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens, which holds f/5.6 at 400mm, the RF 100-500mm lens stops down to f/7.1 at 500mm.

It's a slight trade-off for the extra reach you get, but that's a point that's often worth it for the flexibility and performance you get.

Given the hefty original price tag, this deal is a great offer to invest in this 100-500 telephoto zoom.

If it is your first one, you will notice a difference in framing and will be amazed at how close you can get to the wildlife or sports action with this lens.

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Leica has made some wild special-edition cameras over the years, but few are more striking than this gold-plated Lecia M6. This example that’s come to auction is one of only 350 units in the world and comes with an eye-watering starting price of $20,000. The eagle-eyed among you will notice that the camera, listed via online auction marketplace LiveAuctioneers, is entitled "Gold Leica Saltan of Burnie M6 Camera with Summilux lens".

This listing should presumably read ‘Sultan of Brunei’, referring to a very limited run of 24-carat gold-plated Leica M6’s produced in celebration of the Sultan of Brunei’s silver jubilee. It comes with a matching Summilux 50mm f/1.4 lens and a wooden presentation box. The estimate is a whopping $25,000 to $35,000.

It’s certainly not the first time one of these cameras has come up for sale. I’ve found two similar listings at Photographica Auction, where a 1992 piece was listed but unsold and a 1994 piece went under the hammer for €31,200 (approx $35,700 / £27,000). The latter was a slightly later run that featured a 35mm lens, released in celebration of the Sultan’s 50th birthday and limited to only 125 pieces.

It would seem that the camera in the LiveAuctioneers listing has gone to market before. I can see from the images that the serial number is HB-178, the same serial number present on a lot listed by Flints Auctions. Personally, I’m confused as to why the listing doesn’t feature more information, given that I was able to source almost all of the information from elsewhere. Add with the typo, I definitely wouldn’t feel comfortable bidding unless I could find out more about the item, first. Then again, finding out more is standard practice; a $35,000 camera isn't exactly an impulse buy...

Regardless, this is an undeniably cool find. And one of the most striking Leica cameras I think I’ve ever seen, and with the legendary German manufacturer’s penchant for dazzling special editions, that’s saying something!

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Looking at major retailers’ best sellers is often the first sign of an emerging trend in the camera industry – but a number of the best-selling cameras on Amazon sit in an unusual category: kids cameras.

Two of Amazon US’s top ten best-selling cameras right now are kid cameras, but shift to the instant camera category, and eight out of ten are built for kids. Amazon UK shows a similar trend, with one kid camera making the top ten, but the instant camera category is overwhelmingly filled with kid cameras.

Amazon's best-seller lists tend to lean more towards cheap cameras than photo retailers, but the number of kid cameras on the list is still an interesting insight.

As both a pro photographer and a parent, my kids started with camera-shaped teethers and worked their way up to fully functioning cameras. Yes, giving my kids cameras has meant a lot of lo-fi shots of toes, blurry photos of the dog, and lots of photos that I lovingly call “abstract art.”

But giving a kid a camera isn’t about getting high-quality photos that hang on a wall. Photography is the art of noticing things – and giving a kid a camera helps teach the next generation to slow down and observe their surroundings. When I gave my 6-year-old a compact camera inside a botanical garden, he photographed “all the pretty things” which, in his mind, included dandelions and shadows.

Beyond teaching my kids observation and sharing one of my biggest passions with them, I love kid cameras for a much more practical reason – kids are less bored with a camera in hand. When I take my kids on a short hike or a walk outside, I tend to hear less whining about boredom and tired feet when said walk is a photo walk.

Kid cameras don’t have to be expensive. In fact, kid cameras probably shouldn’t be super expensive because, well kids tend to drop things and leave toys on the floor. The cost of the cameras that I hand over to my kids increases slightly with age and responsibility and range from a screen-free cheap compact camera to my old entry-level DSLR (read: a free DSLR).

The most expensive camera that I bought for kids was for my son who was a pre-teen at the time – the previous generation of the OM System Tough TG-7 – and the camera was a waterproof, drop proof compact camera that I knew I would also borrow for beach days.

The other thing I love about the kid camera trend? Many of the best-selling kid cameras are instant cameras that also print out photos. My pre-teen decorates her room with Instax prints on a string light clip and while the cheap thermal printer variety seems to be the most popular, real instant film teaches a bit of patience and delayed gratification too.

(My only word of warning on those cheap kid cameras with thermal printers? Give them a place to keep those photos, or you’ll end up with receipt paper photos littered throughout the house, which is almost as bad as the time I thought it would be a good idea to buy a toddler not yet capable of picking up his own toys a ball pit.)

There are a lot of things that I regret buying for my kids – loud toys and toys with 1,000 pieces included. But I haven’t yet regretted buying my kids a camera – or recycling a hand-me-down camera either.

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Images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have revealed new secrets about a nearby galaxy, leaving European Space Agency (ESA) astronomers with all sorts of questions about its mesmerizing structure and glistening star formations.

Centaurus A (also known as NGC 5128) is located 11 million light-years away from Earth and has been well documented by scientists since its discovery in 1826. However, vibrant cosmic dust shrouding the galaxy’s central region made it difficult to observe, and even the Hubble Space Telescope couldn’t provide detailed enough images.

But unlike Hubble, JWST features a Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) that cuts through the hazy space gases, which the ESA says exposes the galaxy’s inner workings and a prime case of “galactic archaeology”.

Most notable to the astronomers is the “warped” parallelogram-like band of light peppered with stars stretching across the center of NGC 5128, while wisps of material flow outward like clouds.

This formation was revealed by combining images from the MIRI with those captured by the NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera), with the ESA thinking it could have been the result of a cosmic collision with another galaxy billions of years ago.

The astronomers also used James Webb’s spectroscopy instruments to determine how the black hole at the center of Centaurus A influences the galaxy as a whole. While the researchers are certain it can trigger new star formation by compressing gas, and also limit this by pushing cosmic material away, the “complex” answers continue to elude them.

Even though the ESA astronomers have been left scratching their heads, they’ve said that the new images have enabled them to trace dust, resolve millions of stars and reveal the motion of gases in unprecedented detail, transforming Centaurus A into a “vivid record of cosmic history”.

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Once a year, deep in the rural countryside of the French department of Cantal, some 40,000 people amass in the small village of Allanche.

Normally, the town is home to just 800 people, but every May, the streets swell with crowds, and the air fills with the sound of cowbells, as a centuries-old tradition gets underway: the transhumance of Salers cattle to the high mountain pastures.

At the invitation of a longtime friend, photographer and art director Thomas Savary left the urban expanses of Paris for the countryside town to document the event. Now he's exhibiting the photo series in collaboration with Sigma at this year's Les Rencontres d'Arles festival.

"I travelled to the Cantal to bring my own perspective to the event,” said Thomas. “Immersed in the heart of this landmark event, I set out to document the transmission of a living heritage.”

While many farmers now transport their livestock via lorry, several areas across France continue to do the droves on foot as part of transhumance festivals (Fête de l’Estive), keeping tradition alive. In Allanche, the highlight is the procession of hundreds of Salers cattle through the main streets, led by local farmers.

“I enjoyed weaving my way through the crowds, talking with farmers and visitors alike, who generously shared both their expertise and their enthusiasm for this extraordinary occasion,” said Thomas.

Opting for freedom of movement, the photographer used the ultra-compact Sigma fp, enabling him to become immersed in the action and develop a “sense of closeness” with his subjects.

He revealed details like the weathered hands resting on a shepherd's staff, a child carefully brushing their animal, and the look of pride on a farmer’s face as he led his herd, combining photojournalism with his fine art directing background.

“Through these images, I sought to reveal the quiet beauty of the bond that unites people, animals, and the land they share,” said Thomas.

L’estive – the name of Thomas' exhibition – is open until July 12, Rue du Pont, Arles, France, bringing rural tradition to the heart of the festival's opening week, inviting viewers to pause and reflect on national heritage.

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If you want to try your hand at photojournalism, documentary and reportage work, take a look at the best cameras for street photography and the best lenses for street photography.

This Canon premium super-telephoto zoom is one of the best Canon zooms we've ever tested – and with this B&H deal, you can now get it for a great price.

You can grab the Canon RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1 L IS USM for $2,899 at B&H. With this offer, you save a stunning $200 off its regular price of $3,099.

The Canon RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1 L IS USM is known for its hefty price tag, making this deal even more tempting. It is one of the best Canon telephoto zoom lenses, designed for Canon's EOS R-series cameras.

This lens is a favorite among wildlife, sports, and aviation photographers who need reach and versatility in one package. With its impressive 100-500mm focal range, you're covered for everything from sweeping landscapes and intimate close-ups to fast-paced action shots.

It's the kind of lens that adapts to your creative vision, whether you're tracking birds in flight or capturing the thrill of the game.

Crafted with Canon's legendary L-series quality, this lens is a stellar build. To get the best performance and fastest AF (autofocus) – especially for capturing fast-moving subjects – pair it with the advanced AF and IBIS (in-body image stabilization) systems of the EOS R5 or R6.

One thing to keep in mind is that the aperture narrows as you zoom in. Unlike the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens, which holds f/5.6 at 400mm, the RF 100-500mm lens stops down to f/7.1 at 500mm.

It's a slight trade-off for the extra reach you get, but that's a point that's often worth it for the flexibility and performance you get.

Given the hefty original price tag, this deal is a great offer to invest in this 100-500 telephoto zoom.

If it is your first one, you will notice a difference in framing and will be amazed at how close you can get to the wildlife or sports action with this lens.

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If you are a Canon shooter or want to become one, check our guide to the best Canon cameras, along with the best Canon standard zoom lenses and best Canon superzoom lenses.

As concerns surrounding artificial intelligence and misleading imagery continue to grow, a photograph's traceable history could become every bit as valuable as resolution, autofocus, or dynamic range. C2PA-enabled cameras help field the question "Is this AI?" by giving viewers an overview of how a photograph was captured and edited.

Cameras on this list may be designed for very different photographers, from photojournalists and documentary shooters to portrait, landscape, and commercial professionals. Some are compact rangefinder-style models, while others are powerful full-frame workhorses, but they all share one increasingly important feature: built-in support for C2PA-based Content Credentials.

This technology adds cryptographically signed provenance information at the moment an image is captured, helping viewers confirm where a photograph originated and whether it has been altered through a compatible editing workflow. It does not judge whether the subject itself is truthful, but it provides a transparent, tamper-evident record that can help distinguish genuine camera-captured photography from manipulated or AI-generated content.

Whatever genre of photography you shoot, the best C2PA-enabled cameras give you a clearer way to demonstrate that your images originated with you, in your camera, at the point of capture.

The best C2PA enabled cameras in 2026

Best in concept

Sample images

The Leica M11-P combines the traditional rangefinder experience with one of the most important new technologies in digital photography. Its understated design removes Leica’s familiar red dot, giving the camera a more discreet appearance that suits street, documentary, and travel photographers who prefer to work unnoticed.

Inside, it shares the same 60MP full-frame sensor as the standard M11, complete with Leica’s Triple Resolution Technology. Image quality is exceptional, with superb detail, rich color, and plenty of flexibility for large prints or heavy cropping.

The M11-P was the first camera ever to embed C2PA-compliant provenance information at capture, creating a secure record of an image’s origin and subsequent editing history. While many brands use software-based C2PA, Leica uses a hardware-based chipset to apply the C2PA as the image is captured, making the data harder to tamper with.

The C2PA embeds more than the typical metadata, like what camera was used and the photographer's name. The C2PA also records if the photo was opened in an editing program like Photoshop and, if so, what changes were made. If you only made adjustments to color, for example, that's what will show inside the Content Credentials.

Anyone can look up the Content Credentials online, but the feature is also compatible with Leica's Fotos app. These Leica Content Credentials cannot prevent photographs from being manipulated, but they give photographers a clearer way to demonstrate that an image began as a genuine camera capture.

The Leica M11-D offers the same C2PA functionality but removes the rear screen entirely, creating an even more traditional shooting experience. Reviewing images requires a connected smartphone, but for photographers seeking a more focused, film-like approach, it is an appealing alternative to the M11-P.

Read our full Leica M11-P review for more details

Best for beginners

Sample images

The Fujifilm X-T50 brings much of the imaging performance of the flagship X-T5 into a smaller and more approachable body. Its 40.2MP APS-C sensor and fifth-generation processor deliver excellent detail, strong color, and plenty of cropping flexibility, while built-in image stabilization makes it a capable everyday camera for travel, street photography, and portraits.

Video performance is equally impressive for a camera of this size, with high-resolution 6.2K recording, oversampled 4K, and internal 10-bit options. Fujifilm’s Film Simulations remain a major part of the experience, with the dedicated dial making it quick and enjoyable to switch between different looks without spending hours editing afterwards.

The X-T50 does support C2PA Content Credentials, giving photographers a way to attach verifiable provenance information to their images. Like other C2PA cameras, this attaches a digital signature and tracks whether or not a photo has been edited. The C2PA feature is also free to use and doesn't require a paid activation.

The X-T50 is one of the more affordable options for anyone who wants strong image quality and traditional Fujifilm handling alongside a modern authenticity workflow. It is not perfect, though. There is no weather sealing, the battery is relatively small, and the single memory-card slot limits its appeal for demanding professional work. Its price also places it close to the more robust X-T5, but for photographers who want Fujifilm’s latest sensor technology and C2PA support in a compact body, the X-T50 remains a very compelling choice.

Read our full Fujifilm X-T50 review for more details

Best hybrid camera

The Canon EOS R5 Mark II is one of the most advanced hybrid cameras available, combining a 45MP full-frame sensor with rapid shooting, sophisticated autofocus and professional video capabilities. It can capture bursts at up to 30fps and record 8K 60p RAW video, making it equally comfortable covering sport, wildlife, news assignments, and high-end filmmaking.

Canon’s Dual Pixel Intelligent AF is a particular highlight. Eye Control AF allows you to select a subject simply by looking towards it in the viewfinder, while Action Priority can recognise important movements in selected sports and shift focus towards the player most likely to perform the decisive action. Its powerful stabilisation and in-camera neural-network processing further strengthen an already formidable all-round package.

For this guide, however, the most important feature is its support for C2PA-based image authentication. With Canon’s Image Authenticity feature enabled, the EOS R5 Mark II can attach signed provenance information at capture, helping news organisations verify where an image originated and follow its history through editing and publication. Canon’s wider Authenticity Imaging System also supports certificates, trusted timestamps, and content-history verification, although C2PA functionality requires paid activation and availability varies by region.

While specifically designed for newsrooms, Canon's Image Authenticity requires a paid activation.

The EOS R5 Mark II is undeniably expensive, and not every photographer will need its extensive speed, video, and authentication capabilities. For professional photojournalists, sports photographers, and editorial teams that require both cutting-edge performance and a traceable image workflow, however, it is one of the strongest C2PA-enabled cameras available.

Read our full Canon EOS R5 Mark II review for more details

Best digital/analog experience

Sample images

The Leica M11-D takes a very different approach from most modern digital cameras. By removing the rear screen entirely, it encourages photographers to concentrate on framing, timing, and instinct rather than reviewing every image immediately after capture. The result is a slower, more deliberate experience that feels closer to shooting with a traditional film rangefinder.

Despite its minimalist design, the M11-D is built around thoroughly modern technology, including Leica’s 60MP full-frame sensor and C2PA-compatible Content Credentials. Provenance information can be attached at the moment of capture, helping create a secure record of where an image originated and how it moves through a compatible editing workflow. Like other Lieca,s the C2PA data is hardware based.

It is not the most practical choice for photographers who need instant playback, rapid menu access, or a conventional digital workflow, as image review is handled through a connected smartphone. For street, documentary, and fine-art photographers who value both a distraction-free shooting experience and verifiable image authenticity, however, the M11-D is one of the most distinctive C2PA-enabled cameras available.

Read our full Leica M11-D review for more details

Best Canon for sports

Sample images

The Canon EOS R1 is built for professional sports, news and action photographers who need speed, reliability and intelligent autofocus above everything else. Its 24.2MP stacked full-frame sensor can shoot continuously at up to 40fps, while the fast sensor readout keeps rolling-shutter distortion to a minimum when photographing rapid movement.

Canon’s Dual Pixel Intelligent AF system is the real highlight. Action Priority can recognise important moments in football, basketball and volleyball, while Registered People Priority helps the camera remain focused on selected individuals. Eye Control AF also allows photographers to choose a subject simply by looking towards it through the viewfinder, making the R1 exceptionally responsive in unpredictable situations.

The EOS R1 also offers 6K 60p RAW video, powerful in-camera noise reduction, and deep-learning upscaling that can increase the dimensions of a 24MP image by four times. It may lack the native resolution of some competing flagships, but its combination of speed, connectivity, and intelligent processing makes it ideally suited to photographers working against tight deadlines.

Of course, it also supports Canon’s C2PA-compliant Authenticity Imaging System. With the Image Authenticity function activated, the camera can attach a digital signature at capture, helping news organisations verify an image’s origin and track its history through editing and publication.

The full C2PA service requires paid activation, and availability varies between regions, but for professional sports and press photographers who need both rapid performance and verifiable imagery, the EOS R1 is one of the strongest options available.

Read our full Canon EOS R1 review for more details

Best Sony camera for sports

The Sony A9 III is built for professional sports, action, and news photographers who cannot afford to miss a decisive moment. Its full-frame global-shutter sensor eliminates the rolling-shutter distortion associated with conventional electronic shutters, while enabling blackout-free continuous shooting at up to 120fps with full autofocus and exposure tracking. It can also reach shutter speeds of 1/80,000 sec, including with compatible flash equipment.

Sony’s AI-powered autofocus system is equally impressive, recognising and tracking subjects including people, animals, birds, insects, vehicles and aircraft. Combined with its exceptional burst speed, this makes the A9 III particularly well suited to unpredictable subjects where even a fraction of a second can determine whether you capture or miss the image.

With compatible firmware and Sony’s Camera Authenticity Solution, the A9 III can also support C2PA-based Content Credentials. These add signed provenance information to captured files, helping photographers and news organisations verify where an image originated and follow it through a compatible editorial workflow. Sony also uses depth data inside the credentials, which helps prevent someone from taking a photo of an AI-generated image with the camera and passing it off as real.

Licensing and service availability may vary depending on the country or region. Basic C2PA certificate capabilities are included with the purchase of the camera, but the Digital Signature Upgrade License made for newsrooms is a paid upgrade.

For most photographers, the A9 III’s extraordinary speed will be unnecessary and will quickly create demanding storage, backup, and image-selection workloads. For professional sports and press photographers who genuinely need global-shutter performance, advanced autofocus, and verifiable image provenance, however, it is one of the most specialised and capable C2PA-enabled cameras available.

Read our full Sony A9 III review for more details

Best for megapixels

The Fujifilm GFX100S II makes high-resolution medium-format photography considerably more accessible. Its 102MP large-format sensor delivers exceptional detail, dynamic range, colour depth and tonal subtlety, making it particularly well suited to commercial, fashion, landscape, fine-art and archival photography.

Despite that enormous sensor, the GFX100S II is relatively compact and weighs approximately 883g. Its in-body image stabilisation provides up to eight stops of compensation, while Pixel Shift Multi-Shot can create files with resolutions of up to 400MP when even greater detail is required.

Its place in this guide comes from Fujifilm’s rollout of C2PA-based Content Credentials across selected GFX and X Series cameras. This gives professional photographers a way to attach tamper-evident provenance information to their work, helping demonstrate where an image originated and how it has been handled through a compatible workflow. The latest firmware and any required software should be checked before relying on the feature professionally, but C2PA is a free feature.

The faster and more expensive GFX100 II remains the better choice for demanding video or action work, but many photographers will not need its additional performance. For anyone prioritising extraordinary resolution, manageable handling, and verifiable image provenance, the GFX100S II is one of the most compelling C2PA-enabled cameras available.

Read our full Fujifilm GFX 100S II review for more details

Best compact monochrome

Sample images

The Leica Q3 Monochrom is an unapologetically specialised camera, combining a fixed 28mm lens with a dedicated black-and-white sensor. Its 60MP full-frame sensor captures exceptional detail, tonal depth and low-light performance, while the Summilux 28mm f/1.7 lens delivers excellent sharpness and contrast for street, documentary, travel and fine-art photography.

It is not designed for photographers who want maximum versatility. There is no colour capture and the lens cannot be changed, but those limitations are a large part of its appeal. The Q3 Monochrom encourages you to concentrate on light, texture and composition, creating a more deliberate and focused shooting experience.

For this guide, its other key feature is built-in Leica Content Credentials. The camera can attach C2PA-compliant provenance information at capture, helping establish where an image originated and providing a traceable record through a compatible editing workflow.

It is expensive and undeniably niche, but few cameras combine such exceptional monochrome image quality with a compact body, fast fixed lens and verifiable image provenance. For photographers committed to black-and-white photography, the Q3 Monochrom is one of the most distinctive C2PA-enabled cameras available.

Read our Leica Q3 Monochrom review for more details

Best mirrorless Leica

Sample images

The Leica SL3-P is a powerful hybrid camera designed for photographers and filmmakers who need speed, image quality, and professional video tools in one body. Its 44MP full-frame BSI sensor delivers excellent dynamic range, color and low-light performance, while its multishot mode can produce 176MP files when additional resolution is needed.

Autofocus is considerably faster and more dependable than on previous SL cameras, combining phase, contrast, and object detection. Continuous shooting reaches 40fps with full autofocus, making the SL3-P suitable for action, events, and documentary work as well as more considered portrait and commercial photography.

Video is another major strength, with 8K recording, 3:2 open-gate capture, with RAW output over HDMI. It also supports professional features including ProRes recording, L-Log, timecode, external SSD recording, and direct camera-to-cloud workflows through Adobe Frame.io.

The SL3-P is the second camera in Leica’s SL system to include Content Credentials technology, following its introduction on the SL3-S. It can cryptographically sign images at capture with information about the camera and subsequent editing history, giving professional photographers a clearer way to demonstrate the origin and authenticity of their work.

It is expensive, but for anyone who wants a premium hybrid camera with strong stills, video and C2PA support, the SL3-S is a highly compelling choice.

Read our Leica SL3-P preview

Best all-rounder

Sample Images

The Sony A1 II is one of the most capable professional cameras available, combining exceptional image quality, rapid performance, and Sony’s most advanced autofocus system. It is an evolutionary update rather than a complete reinvention, borrowing several features already seen elsewhere in the Alpha range, but those improvements are enough to keep Sony’s flagship competitive.

Its 50.1MP full-frame sensor continues to deliver outstanding detail and dynamic range, while the improved in-body image stabilization makes handheld shooting more dependable. The most significant upgrade, however, is the automatic subject-recognition autofocus. The camera can identify and track different subjects with very little input from the photographer, making it faster and more intuitive for sports, wildlife, news, and documentary work.

For photographers who need to demonstrate the origin and authenticity of their images, the A1 II also supports C2PA-based Content Credentials through compatible firmware and workflow. The Sony A1 II is one of the first cameras to offer C2PA for video as well as stills. Sony offers a basic C2PA certificate at no additional charge, but the Digital Signature Upgrade License – which includes video licenses – is a paid feature built for newsrooms.

The biggest obstacle is its price. Rival flagship cameras now offer similarly impressive speed, autofocus, and image quality for considerably less. Even so, the Sony A1 II remains an exceptional professional tool, particularly for photographers who need one camera capable of handling almost any subject while also supporting a verifiable image-provenance workflow.

Read our full Sony A1 II review for more details

Honorable mentions

How to choose the best C2PA-enabled cameras?

Choosing the best C2PA-enabled camera should begin in the same way as choosing any other camera: think about what you actually plan to photograph. A photojournalist may prioritize speed, autofocus and durability, while a portrait or commercial photographer may care more about resolution, color depth and studio connectivity. The presence of Content Credentials is important, but it should complement the camera’s core performance rather than replace it.

You should also check exactly how C2PA support is implemented. Some cameras require a firmware update, additional software or a particular workflow before credentials can be attached and preserved. It is also worth considering whether the editing programs you use can maintain the provenance chain, especially if you regularly crop, retouch or export your images before publication.

How we test cameras

When I test a sports camera, I don’t waste time shooting brick walls or static landscapes – I take it straight to the action. Whether it’s courtside, ringside, or trackside, I put these cameras through real-world sports scenarios to see how they perform under pressure. Sometimes that means shooting pick-up games at the local rec center, and other times, it’s photographing elite Olympic athletes. No matter the level, the goal is the same: to push these cameras to their limits.

I stress-test autofocus, burst shooting, buffer depth, and battery life, capturing both stills and video. I shoot in bright outdoor conditions and dimly lit indoor arenas to see how the ISO performance holds up and whether the autofocus can track fast-moving subjects in tough lighting.

Once I’m done, the cameras go to our lab manager, Ben Andrews, for rigorous scientific testing. Using Imatest Master and DxO Analyzer, he evaluates:

1. Resolution (ISO-12233) – We use an Applied Image ISO-12233 resolution chart to determine the camera’s vertical resolution at the center of the frame. The higher the value, the sharper the detail.

2. Dynamic Range (DxO Analyzer) – This measures the camera’s ability to retain detail in highlights and shadows. We use DxO’s transmissive chart, which allows testing up to 13.3 stops of dynamic range.

3. Noise Performance (DxO Analyzer) – Using the dynamic range transmissive chart, we analyze the signal-to-noise ratio for both raw and JPEG files across all ISO settings. A higher value means cleaner images with less noise.

By combining real-world field testing with controlled lab analysis, we ensure these cameras are truly ready for the fast-paced demands of sports photography.

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FAQs

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Nikon has released the latest firmware for the Z50II – an affordable APS-C shooter geared towards beginners and vloggers – with the update expanding shutter priority (S Mode) controls when recording video along with several label and location changes to settings menu items.

While the name and location changes of settings menu items alone might not justify updating to firmware version 1.10 for stills photographers, videographers will want to consider the added creative controls over exposure and depth of field.

The most impactful new feature of the firmware update is the ability to manually adjust aperture when recording video in S Mode, enabling filmmakers to dial in depth of field and adjust exposure by eye. Prior to firmware version 1.10, the Z50II would make all the ISO and aperture decisions for you when recording in S Mode.

It’s a seemingly minor update that moves S Mode towards more of a hybrid auto-come-manual mode, but one that puts an end to any unwanted sudden and drastic exposure changes.

Nikon Firmware Download

Download firmware version 1.10 (Nikon Z50II)

It’s a good idea to hold off downloading the latest firmware for a few weeks. This should give enough time for any new issues to arise in community chatter, and for Nikon to address them. Keep an eye on Digital Camera World and we'll let you know about any problems.

Nikon has also rejigged the settings menus in the Z50II. In Picture Controls, “Cloud Picture Control” is now called “Imaging Recipe” and “Add Cloud Picture Control files” under the Set Picture Control setting has changed to “Download Imaging Recipes”.

You’ll also notice changes to the Setup Menu, including an added option to save your current focus settings to the U1, U2, or U3 positions on the top mode dial.

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Take a look at our expert pick of the best Nikon cameras from basic beginner models to advanced pro rigs.

Bangladesh photographer Azim Khan Ronnie has spent more than a decade building an extraordinary international reputation, earning over 800 photography awards throughout his career.

Now, Ronnie has added another major title to that list, winning the International Aerial Photographer of the Year 2026 competition. Using DJI drones, Ronnie's winning images transform familiar scenes across Switzerland, Bangladesh and India into dramatic aerial compositions.

But beyond the awards and mesmerizing visuals, Ronnie's latest achievement carries a wider message about photography itself. At a time when AI-generated images and digital manipulation are raising new questions about trust, the award-winning photographer says protecting the integrity of photography remains central in his work.

International Aerial Photographer of the Year

The story behind the award-winning series
Each of the locations in his award-winning portfolio has a unique story to tell, whether it was the quiet simplicity of rowing on Lake Zurich in Switzerland or the spiritual atmosphere of the Rakher Upobash ritual in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

He explains, "I visited these locations while working on documentary and travel photography projects, and I chose them because I saw the potential to transform everyday scenes into compelling visual narratives.

"Behind each photograph was patience, waiting for the right light, the perfect arrangement of people, or a fleeting moment when everything came together. Those brief moments are what make aerial photography so rewarding."

Ronnie's trusted aerial gear
“For aerial photography, I use the DJI Mavic 4 Pro and DJI Mavic 3 Classic, allowing me to create images that reveal scale, patterns and perspectives impossible to capture from the ground," he explains.

Photography's integrity matters

Ronnie explains, "My post-processing philosophy is based on enhancement rather than manipulation. I believe editing should strengthen an image without altering its truth or narrative.

"Every adjustment is made with the goal of accurately reflecting the atmosphere, light and emotion I experienced when I pressed the shutter.

"Especially in my documentary and photojournalistic work, I am committed to ethical editing practices that preserve the integrity of the photograph.

"For me, post-production is the final step in realising the image I envisioned in the field, not creating a different reality."

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Browse the best drones for aerial photography and video, the best drones for beginners, and the best travel drones.

Looking for competitions to enter? Here are 10 global photo contests now open for entries from July 2026 to January 2027.

Before digital tools revolutionized visual arts, creators harnessed hands-on techniques, working with chemicals and physical layers to concoct graphic designs and process images. Trevor Key was a foremost British creator in this space and his innovative techniques transformed the darkroom into a graphic design studio.

Now, The Sigma Foundation, a philanthropic initiative set up by the Japanese lens manufacturer to promote photography, is set to release an eponymous book on the late photographer, delving into his creative process and his work.

Trevor Key is the first book to document the artist's work, covering two decades of his career (1972–1995). At the core of the book is the collaboration between Key and Peter Saville, the influential British art director and graphic designer.

This creative partnership spanned the 1970s and 80s, with the duo's work blending bold typography with pioneering analog photography techniques, notably bringing to life the visual identities of artists like New Order, Mike Oldfield, Phil Collins, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark and Peter Gabriel.

The Dichromat Technique, where they selectively re-colored black-and-white negatives using layered filters and varying exposures to produce striking images, came to define their approach.

This technique was further innovated later in the partnership to infuse color, producing album covers and wider works reminiscent of Andy Warhol's silkscreens, which the pair achieved by taking hundreds of exposures to refine the exact color intensities.

Trevor Key will be presented by Peter Saville at Arles, France during the Les Rencontres d'Arles photography festival, tomorrow, July 07, and is set for a 1,500-edition release in August.

The 244-page monograph also includes an essay from photography curator and writer Charlotte Webb, as well as commentary from Saville. Prices for the book are yet to be confirmed – keep an eye on the Sigma Foundation webpage for updates.

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Take a look at our pick of the best cameras for black-and-white photography as well as our review of the best photo editing softwares.

Apple has increased orders for its new foldable phone to 10 million, up from previous targets of 7 or 8 million. This news comes at the same time that other major phone brands are slashing their production plans.

According to Nikkei Asia, Apple has booked parts and components for 80 million phones – across its whole late 2026 range, which is expected to include an iPhone Pro and Pro Max, and Apple's first-ever foldable.

How can Apple be putting its orders up while other big names like Xiaomi and Oppo are reducing orders? These are big firms producing a lot of phones on the global market, but Apple is the biggest name with the strongest bargaining power.

It doesn't mean Apple customers won't face higher prices, as we've seen. Tim Cook has already increased Apple prices, but this might not affect the company's bid to remain "cool" – key to the new CEO John Ternus's mission.

Apple traditionally launches a new generation of phones in September, regardless of demand for the existing models.

An executive of an Apple supplier is quoted as saying: "The demand for the iPhone 17 series in the markets is still quite good, but we are told to purposely reserve common chips and components for the iPhone 18 series,"

There is another way to read this, however.

Apple's bargaining power is the strongest in the business, so the company might choose to spread its launches out, taking advantage of the fact it can order more chips and save its launches (or some of them) for Spring 2027.

The delay would mean Apple gets to enjoy the success of its existing models even longer – backed by the advantage it has in getting memory. It could then throw all the fanfare of a big launch against any potential competition from the large Chinese and other companies in Spring, and stay ahead.

It might also be the only solution to the engineering issues that have, according to some rumors, plagued the folding phone, and might be especially problematic when large volume production is required.

Nevertheless, according to sources, the more likely releases for the early 2027 window at the moment are the standard (non-Pro) iPhone 18 and a new iPhone Air.

That's interesting for several reasons – not least because some of us thought that the iPhone Air might just be a way of testing half a folding phone on customers, but if there is a new model this soon, perhaps Apple is in it for the long haul.

If you're into the Apple ecosystem, you'll likely need to decide what kind of phone you want – and be prepared to wait if a think light 'Air' or the cheaper iPhone 18 doesn't arrive in the September wave.

Apple sold more smartphones than Samsung, the next largest company, in 2025 and in order to maintain that lead it is devoting a lot of energy to the supply chain.

It is known to have made connections beyond China, too, with companies including Japanese glass fibre company Nittobo, seeming looking to get the lead on components needed by chip manufacturers.

That is a reminder that Apple – a company which produces its own chip designs, after all – is also in a complicated game against the likes of Nvidia.

Will it be worth waiting for the folding iPhone? And just how long a wait? Check our guide to the best iPhone for photography now – and the best folding phone.

The Sony A7 V has topped multiple sales charts across both the US and Japan since the mirrorless camera’s launch late in 2025 – but Sony may have just outdone themselves. Topping US photo retailer B&H’s trends chart for June 2026 is the A7 V’s newly announced big brother: The Sony A7R VI.

The 66.7MP full-frame mirrorless camera tops the overall sales charts for the retailer in June, followed by the $35 camera that just won’t quit: The Kodak Charmera. The longstanding Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III and cheaper sibling PowerShot ELPH 360 HS A also make an appearance on the trends list, along with a new compact camera with zoom, the Panasonic Lumix L10, and a longtime zoom favorite, the Sony RX100 VII.

Looking exclusively at mirrorless cameras, another trend emerges as full-frame cameras that mix speed and resolution headline the list. Along with the A7R VI, the Canon R5 Mark II, Nikon Z6 III, and Canon EOS R6 Mark III also earn top-seller badges at the retailer.

The Sony A7R VI only began shipping at the beginning of June, so the trends list offers an early glimpse at how popular the new mirrorless is. Sony’s A7R series has traditionally offered more resolution than the A7 line, but the A7R VI brings a 67.8MP full-frame sensor with a 30 fps blackout-free burst speed – that’s three times the burst speed of the A7R V.

The upgrades on the A7R VI came with a price hike – but the camera’s appearance on the top sales charts suggests photographers are more impressed with the feature mix than discouraged by the price.

The Sony A7R VI appears to have pushed the A7 V farther down the trending list, but Sony’s December 2025 launch still makes an appearance. While the camera may not have the resolution of the R series, the A7 V borrows the autofocus tech of its pricier siblings, building a reputation for its hybrid performance.

Both Canon’s late 2025 launch of the 7K open gate EOS R6 Mark III and an older pro favorite, the 45MP 8K R5 Mark II, also sit toward the top half of the top-selling mirrorless list, while the new Canon EOS R6 V also made the list.

Nikon’s full-frame Z6 III has also risen unusually high for a 2024 release – but the 24.5MP mirrorless known for its low-light autofocus also dropped to its lowest-yet price in the US during June. (The Z6 III is still $500 off at B&H).

One of Sony’s more compact full-frame mirrorless also made the mirrorless list – potentially helped by June discounts – though it's the higher resolution Sony A7CR, not the more affordable A7C II, making the list.

B&H’s list of trending cameras for June 2026 isn’t exclusive to full-frame models. Sony’s compact but quick A6700 also makes the list. Fujifilm’s mirrorless bundle that shared the most features with the trendy X100VI, the X-E5 with a 23mm f/2.8 kit lens, also makes the list, along with Canon’s budget favorite EOS R100.

A medium format model even made the top trends list, the Hasselblad X2D II 100C, a pricey but luxury 100MP model.

The top trending cameras at B&H for June 2026 include:

• Sony A7R VI
• Kodak Charmera
• PowerShot G7X Mark III
• Panasonic Lumix L10
• Canon PowerShot ELPH 360 HS A
• Canon EOS R5 Mark II
• Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III
• Nikon Z6 III
• Sony RX100 VII
• Hasselblad X2D II 100C
• Canon EOS R6 Mark III

Broken down to include only mirrorless cameras, the top trending options for the month include:

• Sony A7 VI
• Canon EOS R5 Mark II
• Nikon Z6 III
• Hasselblad X2D II 100C
• Canon EOS R6 Mark III
• Sony A6700
• Sony A7 V
• Fujifilm X-E5 with XF 23mm f.2,8 lens
• Canon EOS R6 V
• Sony A7CR
• Canon EOS R100 with 18-45mm kit lens

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Trends may be good indicators, but these are the best mirrorless cameras based on expert testing.

The Sony A7 V has topped multiple sales charts across both the US and Japan since the mirrorless camera’s launch late in 2025 – but Sony may have just outdone themselves. Topping US photo retailer B&H’s trends chart for June 2026 is the A7 V’s newly announced big brother: The Sony A7R VI.

The 66.7MP full-frame mirrorless camera tops the overall sales charts for the retailer in June, followed by the $35 camera that just won’t quit: The Kodak Charmera. The longstanding Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III and cheaper sibling PowerShot ELPH 360 HS A also make an appearance on the trends list, along with a new compact camera with zoom, the Panasonic Lumix L10, and a longtime zoom favorite, the Sony RX100 VII.

Looking exclusively at mirrorless cameras, another trend emerges as full-frame cameras that mix speed and resolution headline the list. Along with the A7R VI, the Canon R5 Mark II, Nikon Z6 III, and Canon EOS R6 Mark III also earn top-seller badges at the retailer.

The Sony A7R VI only began shipping at the beginning of June, so the trends list offers an early glimpse at how popular the new mirrorless is. Sony’s A7R series has traditionally offered more resolution than the A7 line, but the A7R VI brings a 67.8MP full-frame sensor with a 30 fps blackout-free burst speed – that’s three times the burst speed of the A7R V.

The upgrades on the A7R VI came with a price hike – but the camera’s appearance on the top sales charts suggests photographers are more impressed with the feature mix than discouraged by the price.

The Sony A7R VI appears to have pushed the A7 V farther down the trending list, but Sony’s December 2025 launch still makes an appearance. While the camera may not have the resolution of the R series, the A7 V borrows the autofocus tech of its pricier siblings, building a reputation for its hybrid performance.

Both Canon’s late 2025 launch of the 7K open gate EOS R6 Mark III and an older pro favorite, the 45MP 8K R5 Mark II, also sit toward the top half of the top-selling mirrorless list, while the new Canon EOS R6 V also made the list.

Nikon’s full-frame Z6 III has also risen unusually high for a 2024 release – but the 24.5MP mirrorless known for its low-light autofocus also dropped to its lowest-yet price in the US during June. (The Z6 III is still $500 off at B&H).

One of Sony’s more compact full-frame mirrorless also made the mirrorless list – potentially helped by June discounts – though it's the higher resolution Sony A7CR, not the more affordable A7C II, making the list.

B&H’s list of trending cameras for June 2026 isn’t exclusive to full-frame models. Sony’s compact but quick A6700 also makes the list. Fujifilm’s mirrorless bundle that shared the most features with the trendy X100VI, the X-E5 with a 23mm f/2.8 kit lens, also makes the list, along with Canon’s budget favorite EOS R100.

A medium format model even made the top trends list, the Hasselblad X2D II 100C, a pricey but luxury 100MP model.

The top trending cameras at B&H for June 2026 include:

• Sony A7R VI
• Kodak Charmera
• PowerShot G7X Mark III
• Panasonic Lumix L10
• Canon PowerShot ELPH 360 HS A
• Canon EOS R5 Mark II
• Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III
• Nikon Z6 III
• Sony RX100 VII
• Hasselblad X2D II 100C
• Canon EOS R6 Mark III

Broken down to include only mirrorless cameras, the top trending options for the month include:

• Sony A7 VI
• Canon EOS R5 Mark II
• Nikon Z6 III
• Hasselblad X2D II 100C
• Canon EOS R6 Mark III
• Sony A6700
• Sony A7 V
• Fujifilm X-E5 with XF 23mm f.2,8 lens
• Canon EOS R6 V
• Sony A7CR
• Canon EOS R100 with 18-45mm kit lens

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Trends may be good indicators, but these are the best mirrorless cameras based on expert testing.

If you want to shoot maximum image quality, with a compact and lightweight setup, you might want to check out "the most compelling compact camera on the market", recently honored as the Best Professional Fixed Lens Camera at the TIPA World Awards 2026.

The Sony RX1R III is now available for only £3,899 at Wex. With this deal, you save £300 off its original price of £4,199!

The RX1R III somehow squeezes a 61MP full-frame sensor and a Zeiss 35mm f/2 lens into a body that's smaller than almost anything else on the market.

It's lighter than you expect, sharper than it has any right to be, and its 693-point autofocus system is, frankly, leagues ahead of most fixed-lens rivals.

Yes, it lacks IBIS. Yes, the rear screen doesn't tilt. And yes, it costs the same kind of money as a luxury compact like the Leica Q3 – but here's the thing: nothing else gives you this combination of size, resolution, and AF performance in one sealed unit.

The 61MP sensor also enables clever digital crop modes, giving you effective 35mm, 50mm, and 70mm focal lengths at the tap of a screen. It's like carrying three primes in your jacket pocket – without carrying three primes.

If you want the smallest, most powerful everyday camera you can buy right now, this is it. It's as close to a "perfect carry" as compact cameras get.

The compact camera trend has brought a number of price hikes as demand exceeds supply, but a popular compact camera series has jumped in price due to the cost of raw materials. The Ricoh GR series, including the Ricoh GR IV and GR IIIx, has jumped in official list price in multiple regions.

Last month, Ricoh Japan announced that the list price of the popular series would increase in July due to a rise in raw materials and manufacturing costs. However, it wasn’t clear at the time if the announcement was meant only for Japan or if other regions would follow suit.

Now that the date has passed, photographers finally have the answer: that GR series price increase wasn’t just for Japan, as the price of the popular compact camera has now increased across several regions, including the US, the UK, Australia, and Canada.

The list price increase spans several models from the GR series, including the base model GR IV, the longer lens GR IIIx, and the HDF variants.

In the UK, the GR IV Monochrome has also increased in price, but the US, Canada, and Australia list prices appear to have remained the same.

US 🇺🇲

• Ricoh GR IV: Was $1,499, now $1,599
• Ricoh GR IV HDF: Was $1,599, now $1,699
• Ricoh GR IIIx: Was $999.95 (September 2021), now $1,249
• Ricoh GR IIIx HDF: Was $1,149, now $1,349
• Ricoh GR IV Monochrome: Unchanged

UK 🇬🇧

• Ricoh GR IV: Was £1,199, Now £1,299
• Ricoh GR IV HDF: Was £1,299, Now £1,399
• Ricoh GR IV Monochrome: Was £1,599, now £1,699
• Ricoh GR IIIx: Was £999, now £1,099
• Ricoh GR IIIx HDF: Was £1099, Now £1199

Australia 🇦🇺

• Ricoh GR IV: Was AU$2,099, now AU$2,199
• Ricoh GR IIIx: Was AU$1,779 at launch, dropped to AU$1,599 in 2024, now AU$1,699
• Ricoh GR IIIx HDF: Was AU$1,899, now AU$1,999
• Ricoh GR IV HDF: Unchanged
• Ricoh GR IV Monochrome: Unchanged

Canada 🇨🇦

• Ricoh GR IV: Was CA$1,899, now CA$1,999
• Ricoh GR IV HDF: Was CA$1,999, now CA$2,149
• Ricoh GR IV Monochrome: Unchanged
• Ricoh GR IIIx: Unchanged

The compact camera trend has created a rise in demand that means several trendy options are hard to find in stock, the Ricoh GR IV series included. However, Ricoh Japan said that the reason for the cost increase was due to a rise in the cost of materials and manufacturing.

Ricoh may not be alone in facing rising costs of manufacturing cameras. AI’s pressure on digital storage has caused the price for digital storage components to increase, not just for SD cards and hard drives but for camera components as well.

Other brands have also recently discussed an increase in manufacturing costs, including Canon and Nikon. Fujifilm also noted not only the rising costs of memory, but the increase in cost for silver as well.

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Japan has long been one of the world's biggest camera markets and is used as an indicator of wider photography trends. Now new data from Minna Camera suggests a more complex picture than the familiar "mirrorless takeover" narrative.

Between November 2025 and June 2026, the most-traded camera on the platform was the Ricoh GR IV – a 228g compact camera and the lightest and only model of its kind in the Top 20. Despite its 2025 release, it sits at No.1 in the rankings, a position supported by strong demand and frequent stock shortages.

At the other end of the scale, heavier DSLR models continue to appear in the rankings. The Nikon D500 still appears in the Top 20 at 760g, making it the heaviest camera in the rankings, alongside long-standing models such as the D750 and D7500.

The Top 20

Top 20 most-traded cameras at Minna Cameras (Nov 6, 2025 - Jun 13, 2026)*

*Camera type, sensor size and release date added by Digital Camera World

Used-market insights

Compact vs. mirrorless vs. DSLRs

Mirrorless cameras account for 80% of the Top 20, dominating the rankings with models from Canon, Nikon, and Sony.

The Ricoh GR IV is the exception. At just 228g, it is the only compact camera in the rankings (5% of entries), yet it is also the most-traded model overall.

DSLRs make up the remaining 15% of the Top 20. Nikon is the only manufacturer represented in this category, with the D500 (11th), D750 (17th) and D7500 (19th) all appearing in the rankings.

Lighter vs. heavier gear

The mirrorless era, now almost two decades old, brought photographers smaller and lighter camera systems.

This shift is visible in the data, with 15 of the Top 20 cameras (75%) weighting 600g or less. The remaining five models (25%) all exceed 600g.

Yet the persistence of heavier DSLRs suggests that weight alone is not the defining factor for photographers buying on the used market.

For many, the used market represents one of the last opportunities to get discontinued DSLR models – or to find a high-demand compact camera that can be diffivult to purchase new.

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Snow leopards are one of, if not the, most difficult big cats to spot thanks to their perilous habitats and shadowy movements. These cats typically live at altitudes between 3,000 to 4,500 meters across Central and South Asia, meaning researchers, who’ve nickanmed them the “Ghosts of the Mountains” often have their work cut out.

However, over the years, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has partnered with local conservation efforts to help restore populations of the big cat, in the process drip-feeding images to the public from their trail cams.

The latest photos to appear on WWF’s social channels have come from an ongoing survey which began in 2022 to document the elusive mountain cats across 10 high-altitude regions in China, including the Wolong National Nature Reserve (Sichuan Province) and the Sanjiangyuan National Park (Qinghai Province).

Since then, the network of cameras has captured more than 600 photos of snow leopards and recorded 157 separate sightings, shedding new light on the species’ population, of which only 22% is estimated to have been documented by researchers.

While snow leopards remain largely out of human sight high up in the mountains, the researchers hope the passive infrared (PIR) cameras, which can function in temperatures as low as -40°C, will reveal greater numbers of these cats than previously known.

Along with capturing snow leopards, the current survey has also snapped pictures of other high-altitude species, including foxes and takins – large, stocky mammals native to the eastern Himalayas that look like a cross between a bison and a moose.

WWF hasn’t mentioned when the current survey will come to an end, so hopefully there will be more snow leopard and other wildlife pictures shared over the coming months too.

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I said that the Nikon DL Series would sell like hotcakes today and roughly a year later, Nikon Rumors has posted a tenuous report that the doomed premium compact camera lineup could be making a more impressive comeback than Belgium did against Senegal in the World Cup. I say tenuous because none of this information has been confirmed (nor backed up by multiple sources).

It follows rumors that Nikon is working on its first full-frame compact camera and I can’t help but wonder if these rumors regard two separate releases or are actually one in the same. After all, an aftermarket EVF was touted in that rumor. Regardless, Nikon Rumors seems confident that some kind of Nikon compact is in the works, stating: “Nikon will definitely release a new compact camera.”

The ‘DL’ rumor comes with a few details, including the use of premium materials, an included leather case, Flexible Color Picture Controls, an aftermarket smart-shoe EVF, and a stacked, 24-MP 1-inch sensor. Much of this seems par for the course and while I’d prefer an EVF as standard, offering an attachment is the next best thing, I guess. The bit that worries me is that 1-in sensor. I said in my DL retrospective that if the series were to ever make a comeback, I’d like to see an APS-C sensor. And if you look at the compact camera landscape, I think that makes absolute sense.

1-inch sensors are sooo last year?

Most of the latest and greatest premium compact cameras are built around Micro Four Thirds [MFT], APS-C or full-frame sensors, and I think most consumers are getting used to larger compact cameras and the increased image fidelity that they provide. Think about it, you’re going up against the likes of the Fujifilm X100VI, Leica D-Lux 8, Ricoh GR IV, Leica Q3, and more recently the Panasonic Lumix L10. All premium compact cameras, all packing sensors that are larger than one inch.

If there’s stock in the one-inch sensor design, it’s possible that Nikon has identified an overcrowded APS-C premium compact market and is looking to operate within a sparser class of cameras. The Panasonic Lumix ZS300 (TZ300) is the latest compact with a 1-inch sensor launched by a major manufacturer.

Technically, the Fujifilm X-Half is another recent release, although its quirky vertical mount and entry-level build mean it stands alone. The Sony ZV-1 II is a video-focused device and it’s been nearly seven years since the Sony RX100 VII, although the VIII is rumored. It just worries me that consumers expect more from a premium compact camera’s sensor in 2026.

It wouldn’t be the first time Nikon has built a system around a one-inch sensor and found it to be a hard sell. People often wrongly think of the Z Series as Nikon’s first mirrorless camera lineup, but the ‘Big N’ dipped its toe into the world of mirrorless cameras with the Nikon 1 Series, which debuted in 2011.

I don’t think you can call a system that lasted up until 2018 and spawned 13 Nikon-branded lenses and 11 cameras a complete disaster, but it certainly wasn't a resounding success either. I don’t have a crystal ball, but I’ve always wondered if the 1 Series would have proven more robust if it’d been built around an APS-C-format sensor.

Of course, everything I’ve talked about today is complete hearsay. I hope we at least get a fixed-lens full-frame Nikon. And unlike the doomed Nikon DL Series, I hope whatever Nikon’s actually got cooking gets off the ground this time. One-inch sensor or not.

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If you're a Nikon fan, make sure you check out the best Nikon cameras. How the Nikon Z30 failed the vlogging market, but rose from the ashes as an unlikely alternative to the premium compact camera. Denied World Cup accreditation, sports photographer captures games on television – but not everyone is a fan.

Photographing fireworks requires hitting the shutter at just the right second – but sports photographer Casey Sykes recently managed to capture not just fireworks but lightning all striking in the same frame.

Sykes (@caseysykesphoto) is an Atlanta, Georgia-based freelance photographer whose portfolio spans regular coverage of the Atlanta Braves to Getty Images to corporate clients. After the Braves’ 14-3 win over the New York Mets on the Fourth of July, Sykes stuck around for the fireworks show and captured a rare shot mixing lightning with the post-game fireworks.

In the shot, fireworks light up just beyond the stadium as a bolt of lightning strikes on the right side of the photograph. That dual human-made and nature-made night show unfolds over a packed stadium, including striking blue lights and projected stars, further adding to the ambiance of the shot.

Capturing lightning on camera is a difficult shot that requires the right timing – or a light-sensitive trigger. But capturing a photo that mixes both fireworks and lightning is even more unusual.

Many fireworks shows are often cancelled when inclement weather is expected, making the mix even more rare. The storms held off for most of the game, however, and started moving into the area during the post-game show.

According to the photograph’s metadata, Sykes captured the shot with the Canon EOS R5 Mark II and the RF 15-35mm f/2.8 L IS USM lens. A fifteen-second shutter speed helped get both the lightning strike and fireworks in the frame, while an f/22 aperture kept much of the detail in the stadium sharp.

The mix of fireworks and lighting together over the home of the Braves was striking enough that the photo was featured among Getty’s top photos of the week.

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The Nikon D700 is trending, and while it might not be the first budget camera I’d stick on my recommendations list, you cannot argue with the image quality or price. At the time of writing, a working Nikon D700 can be picked up from used camera retailer MPB for as little as $249 / £149. Evidently, photographers are buying up DSLRs, and when you consider what you get for your money, it’s not hard to understand why.

Nikon announced the Nikon D700 in July 2008. Its biggest selling point was its heavy infusion of Nikon’s flagship D3 tech, and that’s still appealing today. You see, the D700 might be an aging piece of kit, but it still feels like a high-end product. After all, it’s a pro-grade, weather-sealed Nikon, made in Japan. It’s got that reassuring, high-end Nikon DSLR feel in that it’s like holding a miniature tank.

Nikon D700: Aging specs, premium build

The Nikon D700 is built around a 12.1-MP full-frame sensor, which in and of itself is reason enough as to why photographers on a budget may be interested in an aging DSLR like this. Full-frame cameras aren’t cheap and while 12.1MP isn’t up to today’s standards, the D700 is still capable of capturing gorgeous imagery. You just have to be much more regimented about getting it right in-camera.

And that’s another reason why a DSLR can prove to be a great buy. It’s a harder tool to learn than a modern mirrorless camera; it will force you to become a better photographer. Despite the D700 having impressive specs for its time, you’ll need to consider your ISO carefully to avoid noticeable noise; you won’t be able to fire off super-quick bursts because it’s capped at 5fps (without the MB-D10 battery pack), and you’ll have to wrestle with a robust but technically dated AF system. And all that’s before you consider the lack of an EVF.

But the good news is, if you learn on a cheap but capable DSLR like the D700, you’ll find the transition to mirrorless much easier. This old camera has another cool feature (or lack thereof) up its sleeve: it doesn’t do video. Now, that might seem like a shortcoming in 2026, but if the D700 did have video capabilities, they’d be undesirable anyway.

What you’re left with is a rarity in the modern world of photography: a stills camera that’s a stills camera only. If you’re determined to become a true student of stills photography, the D700 is an all-out photography machine. No video-centric distractions. Don’t get me wrong, it’s easy to ignore a camera’s video features, but there’s something pure and characterful about the D700’s limited featureset that’s a rarity in modern photography.

Nikon D700 as a cheap lens platform

And finally, perhaps the best reason to pick up a D700 or any DSLR for that matter is that you can take advantage of cut-price DSLR glass. My number one tip for new photographers or photographers getting into an interchangeable-lens system for the first time is to avoid spending all of your budget on a fancy camera and have nothing left over for lenses.

If your budget is really tight, a cheap DSLR can be used as a lens platform to start with, and then in the future you can always upgrade the camera. In the case of Canon and Nikon DSLR cameras, you can pick up official adapters so you can even end up with a new mirrorless camera and still make use of your lens collection.

So there you have it; the D700 still isn’t the first camera I’d recommend for photographers on a budget, but this exceedingly cheap DSLR could still prove a great entry point into the world of serious photography for the right photographer.

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If you’re a fan of the ‘Big N’ then you’ll want to pick up one of the best Nikon cameras. The Nikon Df is the DSLR I'd buy today – and reminds me that photography isn't always about cutting-edge perfection. Has the compact camera trend already stalled? Camera numbers are down across every major category in the latest data from Japan.

Sony's new FE 100-400mm f/4.5 GM OSS has made an immediate impact, shooting straight to the top of Japan's best-selling lens rankings just weeks after launch.

According to sales data from retailer Yodobashi, Sony's latest telephoto lens (available for $4,298 / £4,399) claimed the No.1 position during the first half of June – an impressive debut for what Sony says is the world's first full-frame mirrorless zoom lens to offer a constant f/4.5 aperture.

Photographers were eager to get their hands on the new optic, which replaces Sony's long-running FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS with a brighter aperture, faster AF (autofocus), and an internal zoom design. While Sony celebrates, the question is: what happened to last month's No.1, the Nikon Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S II?

Yodobashi's Top 10 lenses (1st half June)

1. Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5 GM OSS
2. Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM II
3. Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II
4. Hasselblad XCD 35-100E
5. Tamron 25-200mm f/2.8-5.6 Di III VXD G2 (E-mount)
6. Canon RF 100-400mm f/5.6-8 IS USM
7. Sony FE 50-150mm f/2 GM
8. Nikon Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S II
9. Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM Z White | Black
10. Nikon Z 24-120mm f/4 S

Success for Sony's top-tier lens lineup

Alongside the debut of the FE 100-400mm f/4.5 GM OSS at No.1, Sony demonstrated the strength of its premium G Master lineup by placing four lenses in Yodobashi's latest Top 10.

The Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM II claimed second place, followed by the Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II in third, while the Sony FE 50-150mm f/2 GM secured seventh.

No other manufacturer matched Sony's representation in the rankings, highlighting the continued demand for its high-end E-mount lenses among photographers in Japan.

Premium glass: the fastest zoom for medium format

The Hasselblad XCD 35-100E secured fourth place, continuing a strong run that has seen it regularly feature among Japan's best-selling lenses throughout 2026.

Designed for the Hasselblad X, the XCD 35-100E remains the fastest zoom lens currently available for a medium-format camera, with a maximum aperture of f/1.8 at the wide end.

This premium optic can effectively replace seven high-end prime lenses worth over US$20,000, making it one of the most versatile workhorse lenses in professional photography

Where did Nikon's champion zoom go?

Claiming the top spot after its release, the Nikon Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S II has dropped out og Yodobashi's Top 10 entirely.

The rapid fall shows how competitive Japan's lens market can be. Newly launched optics often win from a surge of pre-orders and early demand, getting them to the top of the sales charts before interest naturally levels off.

Whether Sony's new FE 100-400mm f/4.5 GM OSS can maintain its momentum remains to be seen.

Its groundbreaking constant f/4.5 aperture gives it a unique selling point, but future rankings will reveal whether its early success reflects sustained demand or typical post-launch excitement.

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Camera shipments from Japan dropped across every category in May 2026, including the trendy compact camera.

According to the numbers from the Camera and Imaging Products Association for May 2026 – the latest data available – camera shipments have declined across every category, including compact cameras, mirrorless cameras, and DSLRs. The total camera shipments for May were just 79 percent of the previous month's numbers, bringing the total to 751,208 cameras shipped.

While monthly dips in camera numbers alone aren’t a cause for alarm, the latest report is the second time in 2026 that numbers have dropped below 2025 levels in a year where CIPA has predicted a slowdown for interchangeable lens cameras. The latest numbers overall are only slightly higher than the same time in 2024, which saw 743,244 shipments.

CIPA’s 2026 prediction anticipates the popular fixed lens camera category to continue to grow, but the trendy category dropped in the latest numbers as well. Fixed lens cameras – which include compact cameras and bridge cameras – shipped 89.1 percent of the previous month's numbers. Comparing the data to the same month in 2025, the category saw only a slight decline at 99.4 percent.

The compact camera category, however, continues to show growth in production in the latest numbers, with production at 100.5 percent of the previous month and 123.5 percent of the same time last year. A number of the most popular compact cameras, such as the Fujiifilm X100VI and Ricoh GR IV, remain difficult to find in stock. The latest numbers show that camera makers are still trying to catch up to demand by increasing production.

Interchangeable lens camera shipments dropped to 75.5 percent of the previous month’s numbers and 76.9 percent of the same month last year.

While mirrorless cameras were at 78.3 of May 2025 numbers, mirrorless cameras as a whole have shown growth for 2026. In the first five months of the year, mirrorless cameras are 102.4 percent of last year's numbers, while DSLRs are 68.1 percent of last year’s data so far.

While the total number of mirrorless bodies shipped dropped, the value of those cameras remained nearly even with the same time last year. While mirrorless numbers are 78.3 percent of the same time last year, the cost of those mirrorless bodies is at 100.6 percent, suggesting that the retail price of those bodies has increased. A number of the newest cameras in 2026 are more high-end models, like the recent launch of the Sony A7R VI.

At the same time, the trendy compact camera shows a smaller difference between the change in numbers shipped and the value of those cameras, as camera brands shipped 99.4 percent of the previous month's compact camera numbers, but the value of those cameras sat at 97.5.

Interestingly, DSLR shipments for May 2026 were higher than the category's average for the year at 96.6 percent compared to the previous month, a blip in the data that follows a spike in DSLR numbers from February.

While May shows a dip in camera numbers across every category, looking at the year as a whole offers more insight than the monthly data, which can be influenced by seasons, sales, and geopolitical tensions. Camera shipments overall are at 104.1 percent for the first five months of the year, with compact cameras at 121.5 percent, mirrorless at 102.4 percent, and DSLRs at 68.1 percent.

CIPA’s data for lenses shows a similar dip for May 2026 at 81.6 percent of the previous month’s numbers and 88.9 percent compared to the same month last year. Lenses in 2026 so far, however, are showing a slight growth at 102.2 percent of the same time frame last year.

CIPA numbers are usually one of the key indicators of the health of the camera industry. CIPA data only includes shipments from participating brands located in Japan, but that list includes several major camera brands, including Canon, Fujifilm, Nikon, OM System, Panasonic, Ricoh, and Sony.

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Summer is the time for sunglasses, which also happens to be the time of the year that I loathe viewfinder-free cameras even more than I normally do. That’s why a recent Sony rumor caught my attention. If the latest rumor circling the Sony community has any truth to it, then color me jealous.

According to reports from Sony Rumors, the hotly anticipated Sony FX5 mirrorless cinema camera will have an optional tilting electronic viewfinder, along with a new, larger LCD screen.

If the rumors are indeed true, a tilting EVF wouldn’t exactly be surprising, as Sony’s more entry-level FX series camera, the FX2, has a tilting viewfinder built in. But the rumors are calling for the FX5’s tilting viewfinder to be an optional add-on attached to the camera’s hot shoe.

Summer always reminds me of why I hate cameras that don’t have a viewfinder. Harsh glare from the sun renders the LCD screen hard to see. Add in sunglasses – a personal must if I want to avoid a squint-induced headache – and sometimes the LCD screen is almost completely useless.

There are plenty of mirrorless cameras that still have a viewfinder, the design of which shields the problematic sun glare. But a viewfinder that tilts is rare.

As much as I prefer the viewfinder, I’ll use a tilting LCD screen to get unusually low or high angles. A tilting viewfinder may not be quite as versatile – you can’t, for example, see it from a distance like an LCD screen or use it for selfies – but I would love a bit more flexibility to get low-angle shots without giving up my viewfinder.

Rumors also point to the cinema camera getting a larger 3.5-inch tilting LCD screen compared to earlier options, expanding on earlier reports of a 16MP full stacked sensor with Open Gate.

Sony has yet to release any sort of teaser or verify any of the speculation, leaving plenty of room for doubt over those speculated features.

As a photographer and not a videographer, I’d like to see a tilting EVF come to still cameras. Then again, such a design may increase the size of the camera in an era when the latest trends seem to suggest photographers want smaller, lighter gear – so a tilting viewfinder isn’t something I would expect to see anytime soon.

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Small enough to slip in your pocket and affordable enough for almost any budget, these trendy compact cameras make everyday photography fun.

They don't often go on sale, but these three models are currently slightly reduced in price. The discounts are modest, but they make already budget-friendly cameras just a little more appealing.

The Kodak Pixpro C1 is now $99.99 at Adorama – you save $9.96 off its original $109.05 price.

The Kodak Pixpro FZ45 is now $99 at Adorama – you save $20 off its original $119 price.

The Chuzhao Digital camera is now $35.99 at Amazon – you save at least $49.99 off its original $14 price (the camera retails between $36 and $50, depending on the vendor).

• The Kodak Pixpro C1 in brown is $99.99 (instead of $109.95)
• The Kodak Pixpro C1 in tan is $99.99 (instead of $109.05)

• The Kodak Pixpro FZ45 in blue is $99 (instead of $119)
• The Kodak Pixpro FZ45 in black is $99.95 (instead of $119.95)

• The Chuzhao Digital Camera in red is $37.99 (instead of $49.99)

Kodak Pixpro C1

Kodak's Pixpro C1 is the brand's best budget selfie compact right now – thanks to its flip screen and wide-angle lens, making it more convenient than the FZ45 or Chuzhao for self-recording and vlogging-style clips.

However, it trades on image quality and flexibility, so if you care more about zoom or detail, the FZ45 is the stronger pick. If you want ease and selfies over everything else, the C1 is the camera for you.

Kodak Pixpro FZ45

Compared to the C1 and Chuzhao, the FZ45 is the most traditional camera here – it's the only one with real optical zoom, which makes it more versatile for travel and distance shots.

You lose the flip screen and retro charm, but gain reach and a more familiar shooting experience. The FZ45 is the camera for you if you want a simple holiday or everyday camera rather than a novelty or selfie device.

Chuzhao Digital Camera

The Chuzhao Digital Camera is the most characterful camera of the group – and all about enjoying the process of taking photos. The square format, waist-level viewfinder and TLR-inspired design make shooting feel playful – in a way none of the Kodak compacts really replicate.

While the FZ45 is about straightforward practicality and the C1 leans into selfie convenience, the Chushao is all about atmosphere, nostalgia and creative expression in your pocket.

Browse the best compact cameras, the best retro compact cameras, and the best cheap cameras.

Instead of relying solely on billion-dollar space telescopes, NASA should also consider using pictures taken by astronauts with commercial handheld cameras to study the cosmos. That’s what astronomers at Tokyo City University, Japan, have suggested in a new research paper.

The paper has revealed how an image taken by one of the astronauts during the recent Artemis II lunar mission has improved understanding of the F corona – scattered light from cosmic dust forming part of the outermost layer of the Sun's atmosphere.

The image was taken on day 6 of the lunar mission as the astronauts witnessed a total solar eclipse from the far side of the Moon. We don’t know which astronaut pressed the shutter, but we do know, thanks to EXIF data, that they used a Nikon Z9 and Nikkor 35mm f/2D lens, with settings: 2secs at f/2, ISO 1600.

According to the Japanese astronomers, the F corona is a faint spreading structure that can be seen in the image surrounding the Moon, which is obscuring the Sun, and special conditions such as a total solar eclipse are required for observation.

By analyzing the image, the astronomers deduced that the extent to which the F corona is distributed in the north-south direction is greater than scientific models have previously predicted, revealing new understanding of the origin and evolution of materials within the solar system.

The Tokyo-based researchers have said the study represents a pivotal intersection of science and human activity, as “a single photograph taken by a person in space” has highlighted a potentially crucial role astronauts using handheld cameras could play in the future of astronomy.

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If you're after a reliable, versatile, and sharp lens that covers all your shooting bases, this is the workhorse optic to consider.

The Sony FE 24-240mm f/3.5-6.3 OSS is now available for £679 at Wex– you save £40 off its original £719 price.

This wide-to-telephoto all-in-one zoom covers everything from landscapes to portraits, making it an easy single-lens solution for travel and everyday photography.

It's a popular lens that rarely sees significant price drops, and stock across the UK is tight – retailers like Clifton Cameras, Park Cameras and London Camera Exchange are currently out of stock or waiting for stock, while availability at Wex is limited.

Juggling multiple lenses for different styles is not great – and it can be pricey. Especially when you are just starting your full-frame journey or if you recently switched to a Sony camera setup.

So, you might consider a telephoto zoom – but many fall in the 70-300mm range, which means missing out on the wide-angle shots that make landscapes and street photography pop. Plus, quality full-frame telephotos can be expensive.

But the Sony FE 24-240mm f/3.5-6.5 OSS can do it all, on a budget – this superzoom covers everything from 24mm wide-angle to 240mm telephoto, it lets you shoot wide seascapes, candid street scenes, environmental portraits, classic portraits, weddings, events, wildlife, and even sports – and all with one lens for just over £800.

For photographers on a budget, this lens is a perfect tool. It's the kind of investment that pays off by replacing multiple lenses in your kit, freeing up your bag and your wallet.

I even consider getting this lens for my own photography, as I am currently limited to a 24-70mm focal length at the moment – way too little reach to capture distant subjects on my Sony A7 III.

Technically, this lens packs a punch. We actually rated this lens as the "best Sony lens for travel".

The Sony FE 24-240mm features Optical SteadyShot for stabilized shooting, though it does lean on in-body corrections for things like chromatic aberration – which is pretty common with many modern mirrorless lenses.

What sets it apart is its zoom range combined with consistently sharp image quality throughout. Unlike many superzoom lenses that compromise on sharpness, this Sony optic delivers crisp photos from 24mm all the way to 240mm.

Check out best Sony lenses and the best Sony telephoto lenses.

An Ecuadorian photographer has been named as the recipient of the 2026 Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award for a series documenting indigenous maternal healthcare in her native country’s Amazonian and Andean regions.

When the Earth Gives Birth tells the story of AMUPAKIN and Partera de Anaku, the first Indigenous midwifery schools and hospitals in the Amazon and Andes.

Assuming the eyes of midwives, apprentices, and patients, the series sheds light on these women-led initiatives which, for more than thirty years, have provided obstetric healthcare in a part of the world where indigenous women face disproportionately high maternal mortality rates.

Johanna Alarcón is the photojournalist behind the project. A Magnum Foundation Member and winner of numerous photography accolades, her work focuses on themes of collective memory, spirituality, and the relationship between community and territory across the Latin American region.

“I receive this award with the deep joy of knowing that what I love most co-exists - photography, motherhood, and spirituality - coming together in this project to give birth to an intimate story about the work of women and Indigenous peoples to sustain life in a context that destroys it,” she said.

The Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award is an annual competition. Named after Marilyn Stafford, the renowned woman 20th century US photojournalist, and facilitated by FotoDocument, an arts social enterprise, it celebrates professional female photographers documenting social, environmental, economic, or cultural issues.

Alarcón received the £4,000 (approximately $5,300 / AU$7,700) award and will gain widespread recognition for her winning series. For more information on the award, and to see this year’s shortlist from which When the Earth Gives Birth was crowned, head to the Marilyn Stafford Photography website.

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European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Sophie Adenot has shared the latest of the incredible images she’s captured from aboard the International Space Station (ISS), this time treating us to a mesmerizing shot of the aurora borealis as it glistened over Earth.

Adenot is part of the Epsilon mission crew, who are expected to remain in orbit for around nine months conducting microgravity research, and this new image was captured on day 127 (orbit 1,968) some 250 miles above the planet.

“That aurora was absolutely spectacular… shimmering and dancing beneath us, stretching as far as the eye could see, and so intense it lit up the Station in shades of green,” said Adenot. “Moments like these never get old up here; the whole crew suddenly find themselves vying for a good spot at a window!”

An aurora occurs when electrically charged particles from the Sun collide with gases in Earth’s upper atmosphere, causing atmospheric oxygen and nitrogen to glow vibrantly.

Adenot said she’s seen several since the mission began, but this one was “on a completely different level”, requiring different camera settings than usual. To capture the shot, she set her trusty Nikon Z9 to 1/4 sec, f/1.4 and ISO8000.

The astronaut has been documenting the mission with camera in hand since the beginning and has built out an amazing portfolio.

On day 103 (orbit 1,598) she snapped an awesome image of Mt. Vesuvius – the volcano which destroyed the Roman city of Pompeii – and Mt. Etna, an active stratovolcano on the island of Sicily, while smoke billowed from its crater.

With roughly a month left of the Epsilon mission, I’m sure we can expect more fascinating images from her before the space odyssey comes to an end.

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Compact cameras are enjoying a huge resurgence, but the Canon PowerShot SX740 HS never really went away. Since launching in July 2018, Canon’s travel zoom has remained one of the brand’s most sought-after compact cameras, proving its popularity isn’t simply driven by today’s retro camera boom.

In 2024, Canon introduced the PowerShot SX740 HS Lite, a lightly updated version of the original camera. Despite changing just one small feature, the model has proven just as popular, recently claiming the No.1 spot in Yodobashi’s latest sales rankings in Japan.

While manufacturers often use refreshed models to introduce hardware upgrades, the PowerShot SX740 HS Lite remains almost identical to the original camera released seven years ago. That unchanged formula continues to win for buyers looking for a genuinely pocketable camera with a powerful zoom lens.

Yodobashi's top selling compacts, 1st half June 2026

1. Canon PowerShot SX740 HS / Lite | Silver | Black
2. Sony ZV-1 II | Black | White
3. Panasonic Lumix TX3 / ZS300 / TZ300 | Black | Graphite Silver
4. Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III | Black | Silver
5. Canon IXY 650 / Powershot Elph 360 HS A / Ixus 285 HS A | Black | Silver
6. Fujifilm X100VI | Silver | Black
7. Kodak Pixpro C1 | Brown | Black
8. Panasonic Lumix TZ99 / ZS99 | Black | White
9. Leica Q3 43
10. Sony RX100 VII

Why the PowerShot SX740 HS Lite is high in demand

Remarkable capable yet genuinely pocketable, the PowerShot SX740 HS Lite stays true to what compact travel cameras have always done best. It combines a 20.3MP 1/2.3-inch-type CMOS sensor with a body that’s small enough to slip into a jacket pocket.

Its standout feature remains the impressive 40x zoom lens, covering an equivalent focal range of 24-960mm – giving reach smartphones can’t match.

That reach is the camera’s defining strength, making it an excellent choice for travel, wildlife and everyday photography.

Lite vs original

Canon made just one notable change to the Lite edition: it removes USB charging.

The change comes after Europe introduced USB-C charging requirements for many electronic devices. Canon has not said whether the decision to remove USB charging was related to those rules.

There’s no larger sensor, longer zoom or new shooting modes – just the same travel-zoom formula that has remained popular for nearly a decade.

Panasonic's brief time at the top is over

Just a few weeks ago, Panasonic’s newly launched Lumix TX3 (aka the Lumix ZS300 in the US and Lumix TZ300 in the UK) reached No.1 in Yodobashi’s rankings shortly after its release.

But the latest rankings see the PowerShot SX740 HS Lite reclaim the top spot, while Sony’s ZV-1 II creator camera also moved ahead of Panasonic’s travel zoom.

Interestingly, Panasonic’s premium L10 doesn’t appear anywhere in the current Top 10, despite attracting attention ahead of launch thanks to its larger sensor and stronger stills and video capabilities.

For now, photographers in Japan prioritize portability, long zoom ranges and proven models over newer premium alternatives.

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At the beginning of the year, I set the cat firmly among the pigeons when I claimed that I only recommend the ‘Big Three’ camera brands for serious wildlife photography: Canon, Nikon and Sony. As you can imagine, Micro Four Thirds camera (MFT) photographers were not happy.

So, Luke from OM System got in touch with me and offered to lend me some kit so I could put my money where my mouth was. Cue the arrival of the flagship OM System OM-1 Mark II and the mighty ‘Big White’ M.Zuiko 150-400mm f/4.5 TC1.25X IS Pro, as well as the M.Zuiko Digital ED 100-400mm f/5.0-6.3 IS and M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm f/2.8 PRO. Lucky me!

Determined to put the kit through its paces, I headed off to wetland wildlife reserve WWT Slimbridge and the Hawk Conservancy Trust in a bid to photograph some of the most challenging wildlife subjects on Earth: birds. So, read on to find out why I hold my hand up and admit that I was so very, very wrong about MFT. Just don’t expect a puff piece – I’m not ready to give up my full-frame kit just yet…

Wildlife photography weight saving

MFT is renowned for the small size and light weight of its cameras and lenses. But in my review of the ‘Big White’ 150-400mm f/4.5, I called it a bit of an oxymoron. That’s because it’s a 12.4in long, 1,875g behemoth. Still, compare it to a full-frame 600mm f/4 lens and it’s a minnow. It’s also the largest MFT lens on the market, aimed squarely at sports and wildlife professionals.

The M.Zuiko Digital ED 100-400mm f/5.0-6.3 IS is just eight inches long and 1,102g, with the M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm f/2.8 PRO measuring 6.3in and weighing 880g. To put that into perspective, every MFT lens on the market (even the ‘Big White’) is smaller and lighter than the Nikon Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 VR. And while the OM System OM-1 Mark II is very small and light for a flagship camera, it’s not so prominent that longer lenses feel unbalanced, which is a good thing in my book.

I’m no stranger to heavy kit. I’ve owned a Nikon D800, Nikon D850 and Nikon Z8, and as I get older and my back becomes more temperamental, the weight of my kit is something I’m becoming more and more aware of. Most camera gear seems manageable when you pluck it off the shelf in an air-conditioned store and wave it around for a few minutes. You’ve got to imagine yourself in blistering heat, trudging your way up a gravel track to get to that secluded hide. Or standing on a cliff-top, capturing pan after pan of soaring seabirds.

And indeed, while walking around with my OM System kit, I couldn’t quite believe that I was packing two super-telephoto and one telephoto lens, plus a flagship camera. My own personal Nikon Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 VR is so long, a lot of camera bags are too small for me to pack it with a camera attached. No such problem here. For hide photography I do prefer to use some kind of support, be it a tripod, monopod, or beanbag, but the M.Zuiko Digital ED 100-400mm f/5.0-6.3 IS, especially, is an absolute joy to stroll around with.

Even the ‘Big White’ is easy to cart about. And doing so netted me my favorite image of this little project. I was leaving a hide, ‘Big White’ in hand, when a sparrowhawk landed in a tree, right in front of me (above). I couldn’t believe my luck! I simply raised the M.Zuiko 150-400mm f/4.5 TC1.25X IS Pro, took full advantage of its huge 800mm effective focal length and squeezed off a burst. No cropping needed.

If you’re physically unable to lug around heavy kit, know that it will impact your enjoyment, or even become a wildlife photography barrier, you simply cannot put a price on MFT’s weight-saving properties. However, it comes with a bit of a caveat: image quality.

How good is MFT image quality?

At the epicentre of MFT’s weight-saving strategy is its 4/3 sensor, which measures 17.3 × 13mm, roughly half the dimensions of a full-frame sensor (36 × 24mm) and roughly ¼ of the surface area, while also being smaller than an APS-C sensor (23.5 x 15.6mm).

This results in what tends to be a combination of lower resolutions and smaller photosites resulting in more noticeable noise, which means MFT images tend not to hold up to extreme cropping as well as their APS-C and full-frame counterparts. The flip side is that 2x crop factor, which means you’re effectively doubling your lens’s given focal length. In practice, this is often a big advantage, but there's one situation where it's more of a hindrance. Let me explain…

So, the big plus point here is that you can fill the frame with your subject, while standing further back. This means you’re less likely to stress or scare wildlife, or better your chances when restricted to a hide. But, this advantage is curtailed somewhat because it leaves you far less room for cropping.

A lot of photographers will tell you to get it right in camera. It’s sound advice, but doesn’t always work out in practice. Wildlife and sports photographers, in particular, often rely upon cropping simply because they cannot get close enough to the subject. This levels the playing field somewhat when it comes to high-resolution full-frame cameras that can be cropped significantly.

If you’re shooting at 400mm on a full-frame camera, you can crop to the point that you can end up with a similar field of view as an MFT camera (800mm), but a 45.7MP or 60MP sensor will still leave you with less resolution than a 20.4MP MFT sensor. However, the margins are fine and the advantage with extensive cropping is that you get more control over your composition. If you’re capturing slower wildlife or wildlife portraits then I think getting it right in camera is definitely what you should be aiming for and in this context the extended reach of an MFT setup can work to your advantage.

But I spent a lot of time capturing birds in flight during the Hawk Conservancy Trust’s excellent flying displays and what I found out was that even though I could get much closer to the subjects using my OM System camera, I was missing more shots. The reason is simple, the larger the subject is in the frame, the less room you have for error.

When the subject is an erratic bird, you really do need to pull back slightly to give yourself some wiggle room and help prevent unintentionally cropped wing tips, beaks, etc. So, while MFT gives you the advantage when capturing portraits or slower subjects, a high-resolution full-frame camera wins for extreme action such as birds in flight.

OM System OM-1 Mark II: Suitable for wildlife?

I really enjoyed using the OM System OM-1 Mark II. After all, Digital Camera World’s resident MFT fanatic, James Artaius, awarded it five stars in his review. For starters, it’s a fantastic price. It’s an expensive camera, but you can find it for under $2,000 / £2,000, which is enthusiast-camera prices for flagship technology. What really surprised me, though, is the camera’s ergonomics.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that the OM-1 Mark II is the most comfortable camera I’ve ever had the pleasure of using. The grip feels just right, your thumb naturally rests on the ISO button and your left hand is free to alter the AF mode or burst speed without ever moving your eye away from the viewfinder. I was using my Nikon Z8 on the day to compare and the OM-1’s AF isn’t as good as the Nikon’s, but you’re talking about a more expensive, larger and heavier camera.

Do I still recommend ONLY the ‘Big Three’ for wildlife photography?

I guess I’m recommending the ‘Big Four’ for wildlife photography now. ‘Big Five’ if you include Panasonic’s wildlife-worthy Lumix G9 II. I still stand by my original article in that if someone were looking for the very best wildlife photography setup money can buy, I’d lead them down the full-frame route. But if budget or your back is a concern or if you’re a hobbyist who really doesn’t need to be buying the cream of the pro-grade crop, then Micro Four Thirds is not only a solution, its unique advantages mean that it’s not even a sub-par option. It’s just a different option.

My feeling is that it really comes into its own when photographing almost any wildlife that isn’t birds in flight. The extended reach increases your chances of getting it right in camera, making it a fantastic system for wildlife reserve trips or safaris. However, I still think the ability to widen your framing and crop in post is the better choice when capturing birds in flight.

But that’s what’s great about the photography industry today; there really is a system for everyone. So don’t let me or anyone else tell you that Micro Four Thirds isn’t an ideal fit for wildlife photography. If it meets your budget and saves your back, it’s the system for you. Right then, Fujifilm photographers. Come at me!

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I think older DSLR models are excellent choices for beginner photographers on a budget, and Nikon certainly has some of the best, especially as it practically dominated the entry-level end of the market for years.

In fact, the Nikon D600, with its 24MP sensor, continuous shooting of up to 5.5 frames per second and Full HD (1080p) recording is seemingly a solid choice, even more so now that you can find the 2012 camera for as low as around $300 /£275 (approximately AU$430) on sites like MPB.

However, if you’re eyeing up a Nikon D600, you should know that this camera has a history of oil spots building up on the sensor, causing unwanted marks in images.

Essentially, during operation, the shutter blades and their internal components would release micro-droplets of lubricant (oil) onto the sensor. This is a well-documented issue in the D600 and one that's tricky to sort as the oil tends to smear when wiped with a sensor cleaning kit.

I’m not saying that the D600 you may buy will definitely be affected by this, especially as Nikon addressed the issue in many cameras with service advisories offering free shutter system replacements.

This came following a class action lawsuit filed collectively by users in 2014 who had faced ongoing issues, despite, in some cases, having already sent their cameras in to Nikon for cleaning multiple times.

Some users also reported the leaking oil problem to seemingly fix itself after using the camera for some time. Nikon says the D600 was tested for up to 150,000 shutter cycles or actuations, so my educated guess is that picking up a camera with a low five-figure count may reduce the chances of an issue.

But, basically, what I’m saying is, be aware of this particular issue and investigate if the camera you’re keen on has been affected by it before deciding whether or not to buy. It could be that your contender has had absolutely no issues whatsoever, or it could be that the camera has a history of leaking oil onto the sensor.

Do your due diligence, and you’ll increase the chances of picking up a good Nikon D600 at a decent price, or you’ll know to opt for another camera altogether. In fact, my first camera was a Nikon D3500. This is a model I highly rate and one that’s never faced serious manufacturing defects like the D600.

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The Godox RS100Bi is a continuous LED (Light Emitting Diode) video light designed to illuminate your video or photography subjects while on location. Its compact design enables you to fit it easily into your camera backpack, and its built-in USB-C chargeable battery means that you don’t need to carry a chunky V-mount battery (as I had to when I tested the Godox ML150Bi).

Godox released a very similar-looking RS100R version at the same time as the RS100Bi. The key difference between the two lights is that the Godox RS100Bi emits light in degrees Kelvin (K), with a color temperature range of a very warm 2800K to a cooler 6500K. The RS100R is an RGB LED, so it has much more control over color. The RS100R can emit a wider range of CCT values than the RS100Bi, between 1800K and 10,000K. It can also mix RGB LED bulbs to produce a rainbow of creative colors. This extra color output means the RS100R has 14 animated video effects, whereas the color restrictions on the RS100Bi limit it to 11 animated effects.

So on paper, it would appear to be a no-brainer to buy the RS100R instead of the RS100Bi. But hold on a tick – it all depends on your needs as a videographer/photographer. If you need creative color output (beyond a typical CCT range), the RS100R should be the model for you. But if you need a brighter LED with a longer reach, then the RS100Bi will meet your requirements. I’ll delve into the key differences between the two models in the Design and Handling section so that you can make an informed choice between the RS100Bi and the RS100R, both of which aim to be among the best LED video lights.

Godox RS100Bi: Specifications

Godox RS100Bi: Price

The Godox RS100Bi retails for an official price of $229 / £209. It’s a fair bit cheaper than its sister light – the RS100R, which costs $319/£289. As well as being cheaper, the RS100Bi is much brighter than its more expensive sibling, with the RS100Bi emitting 28,600 lux compared to the 15,900 lux from the RS100R.

So if you need a portable LED with a long reach, then the RS100Bi offers good value for money. However, if you need a light capable of producing more creative colors, then the RS100R might be worth the extra cost. As an RGB light, the RS100R can produce a wider range of color temperatures, plus it can cast thousands of atmospheric colors on your subjects. This extra color control gives the RS100R more effective animated lightning effects, such as a red, yellow, and blue cop car effect – something that is absent on the cheaper RS100Bi model that I am testing for this review.

So, if you need more creative color control, can compromise on a weaker lux output, and have more money to spend, go for the RS100R. If you’re on a tighter budget, don’t need to produce colors beyond a 2800-6500 Kelvin range, and want a much brighter light source, then the RS100Bi is the model for you.

Godox RS100Bi: Design & Handling

The Godox RS100Bi looks virtually identical to its more expensive sibling, the RS100R. However, the RS100R uses a full-color LED array to produce an extensive range of RGB hues, whereas the RS100Bi is dedicated to bi-color (warm and cool) white light. This limits its CCT range to 2800-6500K, compared with the RS100R’s broader 1800-10,000K range, but enables the RS100Bi to deliver considerably more brightness. With the supplied lens reflector fitted, the RS100Bi produces up to 28,600 lux at 1m and 5600K, compared with the RS100R’s 15,900 lux under the same conditions.

Now that I’ve got the crucial difference between the RS100Bi and the RS100R out of the way, I’ll focus on my experience with testing the Godox RS100Bi for the rest of this review.

The RS100Bi is constructed of a black plastic material and is shaped like a chunky flashlight (or torch). It feels satisfyingly heavy at 1.95lb (886g), giving it the feeling of a well-constructed and professional piece of kit. Yet at under two pounds (one kilogram), it’s not too heavy to cart around in your camera backpack, and at just under 10 inches in length, it’ll fit easily into your backpack (or into one of the tripod/bottle holders on the side).

The RS100Bi ships with a few accessories. The most important one is the high-efficiency lens reflector. This slots onto the front of the LED with a click and a twist, massively boosting the output of the light’s LEDs. A USB-C charging cable enables you to charge up the RS100Bi’s internal battery. This battery is designed to operate for 52 minutes at full power, though I found that 50% power output was more than bright enough in my studio location. Talking of power, a really nice touch is that the little OLED display on the rear of the unit gives you a battery countdown, so you know how long the power should last during a shoot. I could have done with a runtime countdown when testing the Godox ML150Bi LED, as it ran out suddenly before I’d finished the shoot. The RS100Bi is compatible with 18-140W PD chargers (though a charger is not included).

The kit also ships with a little lighting stand mount. This screws into the RS100Bi’s 1/4-inch thread and then slots onto a standard light stand. You can adjust the angle of the mount with ease so the light points up or down at your subject. There’s also a cloth carry bag in the box. Thanks to the LED’s Godox S-mount compatibility, you can replace the supplied reflector with a wide range of Godox accessories, such as softboxes (not supplied).

The properties of the Godox RS100Bi are controlled by three buttons and a knob at the rear of the light. The knob also functions as an extra button. The settings or modes that you select are visible on a little OLED screen, so you can operate the light with ease using these features. You can also use the free Godox Light smartphone app to adjust lighting settings or trigger effects from a distance. I found the app was very useful as I could adjust the light while it was illuminating me from a distance, which makes it the perfect piece of kit for a self-shooter.

Godox RS100Bi: Performance

To test the Godox RS100Bi, I took it to a TV studio. I used the studio’s row of ceiling-mounted cyclorama lights to light the backdrop curtain, and used the RS100Bi as my key light, mounted on a lighting stand at approximately 26 feet (8m) away. When the RS100Bi was turned off, I was in silhouette, so I was easily able to demonstrate the difference that the RS100Bi’s output made during my test shoot. If you watch the supporting video that accompanies this review, then you’ll see the light in action!

The RS100Bi was easy to set up. I screwed the supplied mount into the 1/4-inch thread at the base of the light and slotted the bottom of the mount onto a standard light stand. I then adjusted the light stand’s height and tilted the mount so that the light would illuminate me when I was standing on a stage in the center of the studio.

I started the test by manually operating the RS100Bi using its rear panel controls. It was a simple matter to press the On switch, and (as with most Godox LEDs) I then had to rotate the main dial to turn on the light. This two-step button press/dial twist process ensures that the light doesn’t get turned on by accident on your way to a shoot, so you know that you’ll have plenty of battery power when you arrive on location. The little OLED screen makes it easy to see what setting you’re adjusting. Rotate the dial to toggle between CCT (Color Temperature) and DIM (brightness). Press the dial to select one of these options, then rotate it again to choose a specific color temperature or adjust the brightness. The brightness can be adjusted very smoothly and in fine increments of 0.1%. It was handy to refer to the runtime countdown on the display so that I knew I had enough battery power to conduct a thorough test shoot.

During my shoot, I used an iPhone 16 Pro to record my “talking to camera” pieces while being lit by the RS100Bi. I used an iPhone 17 to run the Godox Light app so that I could operate the LED remotely while standing in its illumination. I found it even easier to change the properties of the RS100Bi when using the app, as you’ll see from this review’s supporting video. I was able to trigger a variety of animated effects, such as Lightning, Broken Bulb, and Fire, with a tap and a few swipes on my iPhone’s display. You can also use the app to fine-tune the way the effects behave, such as making a Broken Bulb flicker more slowly.

The RS100Bi was so bright that at 100%, the highlights in the shot were blown out. I found that 50% was the perfect setting, even when the LED was shining at me from 26 feet away. This gave me the confidence that the RS100Bi would perform well (and for long enough) on a model shoot on location.

Godox RS100Bi: Verdict

If you need a portable LED that can illuminate a subject (such as a model) without the light appearing in the shot, then the RS100Bi will meet your needs. It’ll fit easily in your camera backpack and thanks to the 1/4-inch thread you can mount it on a mini tripod or use its supplied mount to attach it to a standard light stand. The handy runtime countdown on the OLED screen ensures that you know how long the light will shine on a specific setting, so you can adjust your settings on the fly to make sure the light doesn’t “die” before you finish the shoot.

The RS100Bi has a narrower CCT range than its more expensive RS100R sibling, and it lacks a couple of extra animated lighting effects, but the RS100Bi is cheaper and brighter, which should make it an attractive purchase.

Alternatives

Since I started reviewing gadgets for Digital Camera World, I’ve upped my photography game by hiring models instead of shooting friends and family. As well as looking good in photos, models don’t moan while I fumble around in my kit bag looking for a photography accessory. Another big improvement to my photography has been achieved by using continuous LED lighting.

Even a single LED makes a big difference. I can use an LED to fill in the harsh shadows caused by strong sunlight, or add a rim light that makes the model stand out from the background and makes their face look more three-dimensional. Most LEDs are relatively compact, but sometimes you might want to travel even lighter, and that’s where the Neewer Basics FL20 20W RGB Portable Photography Flashlight comes into play.

The Neewer Basics FL20 20W RGB Portable Photography Flashlight has a big name for such a compact lighting solution (so much so, I'll refer to it as the FL20 from now on). It’s basically a handheld flashlight (or torch, as we say in the UK) that fits into a small kit bag. Despite its diminutive stature, it can produce big results in the shape of a circular spotlight that’s broken up by various shapes, such as the slats of a window blind – perfect for adding a film noir vibe to your portraits.

Neewer is a China-based company that produces a wide range of lighting accessories (plus other photography and video-related gear), such as its PL60C panel studio light or its portable HB80C battery-powered location LED, but the FL20 is the cheapest and most compact Neewer LED that I’ve tested. Cheap it may be, but it may well be the one that I give a permanent place to in my camera kit bag, and is certainly a contender for being one of the best video lights when it comes to value.

Neewer Basics FL20 20W RGB Portable Photography Flashlight: Specifications

Neewer Basics FL20 20W RGB Portable Photography Flashlight: Price

The Neewer FL20 officially retails at $74.99. That might sound like a lot for a flashlight, but given the difference the FL20 can make to a portrait, it’s a worthwhile investment. However, checking prices online, I found it available for significantly less, making it an even more attractive purchase. This lower price is comparable to similar products, such as the SmallRig RF10C flashlight

Thanks to the kit’s 20 supplied gobo stencils, you can add a wide range of shapes and textures to boring studio backgrounds, and summon a wash of red, blue, yellow, and white light that changes the mood/atmosphere with the tap of a button. The Neewer FL20 could provide one of the cheapest ways to improve your portrait photography, especially when on location.

Neewer Basics FL20 20W RGB Portable Photography Flashlight: Design & Handling

Your first impression when handling the Neewer FL20 is that it has a quality build. For starters, its silver aviation-grade aluminum body feels cold to the touch. It's a reassuringly solid metal unit rather than a cheap plastic flashlight. The feeling of quality is reinforced by the weight. It’s just over a pound [0.5 kg], so it’s not going to be buffeted by the wind when on a mini tripod. This thing has heft!

The FL20 is marketed as an RGB light, but when I hear that term, I think of LEDs that can produce thousands of colors. At the front of the flashlight, you can clearly see the four large LED beads that produce the FL20’s four colors – Red, White, Yellow, and Blue. So the range of colors is very limited compared to many other RGB LEDs, though this limitation is a common property of flashlight LEDs such as the similarly specced SmallRig RF10C.

The front of the unit is where you slide on the rubber gobo mount. This mount has a slot that enables you to slide in one of the 20 textured circular gobo stencils to add creative shapes to the LED's output. You can then pull the front of the flashlight to extend its length by about an inch. This adjustment causes the light pattern to produce a wider or narrower circular spotlight shape.

The lower half of the FL20 has thin metal grooves that give a firm and secure grip on the flashlight. It has three 1/4” threads that you can use to mount it on a mini tripod. Two of these threads are on opposite sides of the cylinder, while the third sits at the base of the shaft. I used a side thread to attach the FL20 to my GorillaPod tripod.

Extending from the side of the FL20 is a button. Press and hold the button to turn on the light. Immediately, you hear what appears to be the whirring of a fan (though it's quiet enough to be negligible if you’re using the LED while capturing audio on location). Rotating the button turns on the flashlight, and tapping it cycles between the four LED beads in the flashlight’s head. You can then rotate the button (which has a nice textured grip) to adjust the brightness of the device, but I imagine most people will keep it set to maximum output, as it should last for three hours on that setting.

Neewer Basics FL20 20W RGB Portable Photography Flashlight: Performance

To test the Neewer FL20, I took it to the gloomy corridors of the Barbican Centre in London to add some color and texture to portraits of my model, Maddy. The FL20 ships with a cloth carry bag that has a drawstring to keep the LED safely stowed. However, you can’t fit the 20 plastic gobo stencils and the rubber snoot in the drawstring bag, so they have to be stored separately in a zipped mesh pouch in my go-to camera backpack – the Gomatic 25L Camera Backpack.

I was mindful of a previous shoot when I planned to test a similar device – the SmallRig RF10C flashlight – in the same location. I managed to lose the SmallRig’s rubber snoot shortly before the shoot, so I had to try to attach the stencils to the SmallRig by using the model’s hair band. That was a stressful shoot! Fortunately, there was no recurrence of this problem when using the Neewer FL20.

On a previous Barbican shoot, I was moved on by security personnel who objected to me using a tripod-mounted LED light wand. The beauty of the Neewer FL20 is that it’s much smaller, and when screwed by its 1/4” thread to a small Joby GorillaPod, I could attach it to railings or place it on surfaces without it drawing too much attention. The additional fact that I was using an iPhone 17 as my camera also helped me keep a lower profile, and my model shoot unfolded without any interruption.

I often shoot in the interior corridors of the Barbican Centre due to the texture and shapes of its amazing Brutalist architecture. These features make exciting backgrounds for my model photography. Many of the Barbican Centre’s concrete corridors are already lit creatively by blue and yellow LEDs, so they make great backdrops for model portraits.

The Neewer FL20 brought an extra level of lighting variety to the available light on location. I was able to summon a blue spotlight from the FL20 to contrast with a wash of yellow from the location’s LEDs. By adding various stencils to the FL20’s snoot, I was able to add extra shapes to the bland backgrounds just by using light, so I could create portraits that would stand out and showcase the location in a fresh way. Check out this review’s supporting video to see the model and the FL20 in action on location.

One niggle I have is the time it takes to slide a stencil into the rubber snoot’s grooved slot. It took me 30 seconds to get each stencil inserted and aligned, so when changing stencils, the model had to hang about patiently. I let Maddy choose which stencils she preferred, and we were both fans of the window pane look, as that helped add extra texture and color to the background. Other photographers will enjoy experimenting with different stencils to tell their own creative stories with light!

Neewer Basics FL20 20W RGB Portable Photography Flashlight: Verdict

To be brutally honest, I thought the Neewer FL20 would be a bit of a ‘toy’ during my pro model photo shoot. However, I loved using the FL20. It was compact enough to fit easily into my 25L backpack alongside other bits of kit, yet made such a huge difference to my portraits. By summoning four different colors at the tap of a button, I was able to change the mood of my portraits instantly.

I could also contrast or complement the creatively colorful lights in my indoor shooting location. The kit’s supplied gobo stencils added extra texture to my portrait photos, too, such as mimicking light streaming through an offscreen window – perfect for film noir-themed shoots. And the two threads on the body of the flashlight enabled me to pop it on a GorillaPod and attach it to railings or set it on a surface, so I could shoot my subject hands-free.

Alternatives

One of the rarest Rolleis ever made is up for auction – but whether its limited edition looks reek of class or crass might be up for debate.

At its heart, the Rolleiflex Aurum is a twin-lens reflex camera with an 80mm f/2.8 Schneider-Kreuznach Xenotar lens… but obviously, the Aurum isn't content with being an ordinary twin-lens reflex.

Its brass is plated in gold and the body is wrapped in brown African lizard-skin leather – and only 1,500 of these were ever made, back in 1983 after the production of Rolleiflex F series was suspended, one of which is currently being listed by LiveAuctioneers.

It has to be said that the auction's listing images do the camera no favors, making it look like one of the cheap Chuzhao TLR cameras or the even gaudier Hasselblad-styled version.

But look up the Rolleiflex Aurum listings on eBay and you'll get a much better idea of how the camera really looks. The Aurum looks leagues more tasteful, with much less yellowy gold and a better rendition of the tone of the leather.

You might even find a more appealing price, too, if you're happy taking a chance trusting an eBay seller with a camera like this.

And that's really the story here. Sure, the folks at LiveAuctioneers might not know how to take a decent photo (even, ironically, when it's a luxury photographic device) but they're very reputable and you know that you're going to get a quality item. Or, indeed, that you're going to get an item period.

There's little information on the auction listing, other than the condition is "great" and the starting price is $4,000 (approximately £3,020 / AU$5,800) with an estimate of up to $6,500 (£4,900 / AU$9,430). Bidding begins on July 13.

And, of course, the note that this model is outfitted with a Schneider-Kreuznach taking lens instead of a Zeiss Planar (which is arguably the more desirable of the two).

If you're interested, check out the LiveAuctioneers listing for more information.

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For a TLR experience that won't break the bank, take a look at our Chuzhao TLR Camera review. And for old-school looks with new-school tech, check out the best retro cameras.

Looking for an exceptionally thin and light Windows laptop that doesn't compromise on performance? The Geekom GeekBook X14 Pro could be the answer. It weighs just 2.2lbs and is only 0.23 inches thick, yet even the base spec includes a versatile Intel Core Ultra 5 processor, a healthy 32GB of RAM and a 1 terabyte SSD. Keen photographers and creatives will also appreciate the high resolution OLED display that promises excellent image quality. Let's see if the GeekBook X14 Pro can live up to expectations…

Geekom GeekBook X14 Pro: Features

The X14 Pro comes in two configurations, though the only difference is the processor. The base config is based around an Intel Core Ultra 5 125H CPU which packs 14 cores and can run at up to 4.5 GHz. Opt for the top tier model and you get a powerful Core Ultra 9 185H CPU, which adds two additional cores while running at up to 5.1 GHz. Both configs include 32GB of RAM and a fast 1TB PCIe Gen4 SSD. Physical connectivity consists of two 40Gbps USB4 Type C ports with Power Delivery, along with an HDMI port and 3.5mm audio socket. And if that's not sufficient, Geekom also includes a USB-C dongle which adds an additional USB-C port, two further USB-A ports, another HDMI socket and even an RJ45 Ethernet port.

Sometimes thin and light laptops don't prioritize screen quality, but that's not the case here. The X14 Pro boasts a premium 14-inch OLED display running at a crisp 2880 x 1800 resolution. It also has an advertised 100% DCI P3 color space coverage - there are high-end standalone monitors that struggle to match that - while maximum brightness is a respectable 450 nits. Gamers will appreciate the 120Hz refresh rate, though the X14 Pro isn't designed to be a gaming powerhouse, as there's no dedicated graphics processor - the CPU takes care of that.

Despite its super-thin design, Geekom has managed to cram in a 72Wh battery, which it says is enough to power the laptop for up to 16 hours. When you're out of juice, the included (and surprisingly compact) gallium nitride charger provides 65 watts of charging power - enough to reach 80% charge in around 1 hour.

Geekom GeekBook X14 Pro: Specifications

Geekom GeekBook X14 Pro: Design & handling

As is often the case in the thin and light Windows notebook sector, Geekom has looked to Apple for design inspiration. Consequently the X14 Pro bears more than just a passing resemblance to a current MacBook Air, and it uses a similar CNC-machined magnesium alloy unibody chassis construction. The main deck of the laptop is surprisingly rigid with very little flex, considering its minimal thickness. Inevitably the wafer-thin screen feels flimsier, but that's unavoidable if you want ultimate thinness and lightness.

The trackpad is a useful size, very smooth and responsive. My only gripe is that for some reason only the right-hand third of the trackpad area is clickable, making it a pain to perform click and drag movements, such as when painting or erasing in Photoshop. The keyboard is backlit, with customisable brightness. Key travel will always be restricted on a device this thin, and the click action is slightly rubbery for my liking, but I was still able to type quickly and comfortably. Sound quality is best described as adequate. A chassis this thin leaves hardly any room for speakers, so audio is completely lacking in bass. Even so, music doesn't sound uncomfortably harsh, and there's always the 3.5mm headphone jack when you want better audio fidelity.

Geekom GeekBook X14 Pro: Performance

Our GeekBook X14 Pro review sample came equipped with the faster of the two available CPU options: Intel's Core Ultra 9 185H. In my benchmark testing this returned a healthy Geekbench CPU score of 12297, comfortably outpacing my existing laptop of choice: Lenovo's Yoga Slim 7 Aura. The X14 Pro also outpaced the Slim 7 Aura in Cinebench 2024, scoring 618, and its 1TB SSD is extremely rapid, being capable of a blistering 7004MB/s read speed, with write speeds not much slower.

This all translates to surprisingly potent performance for photo editing. Even when working with very high resolution raw files in Photoshop, the X14 Pro managed to stay snappy, adding filters with ease and showed no sign of slowing when the layer count reached double figures. For an even tougher test I broke out a 1.4GB, 852-megapixel stitched panorama TIFF file and attempted to enlarge it vertically by around 500 pixels using Generative Expand. This took an impressively rapid 27.5 seconds - compare that with the 45 seconds taken by the Slim 7 Aura laptop, which was already a respectable time relative to the 1 minute 23 seconds taken by my personal tower PC equipped with a 6-core AMD Ryzen 5 5600G (a much older CPU not designed with AI in mind). What's more, even with this respectable processing speed, the X14 Pro never got overly hot or noisy.

The twin 40Gbps USB4 ports are a very handy inclusion for when you want to import photos or videos, as with a USB4 Type-C card reader you could even max out the speed of a CFexpress 4.0 memory card. A modern NVMe portable SSD should also be able to run at its full speed when attached to one of the USB4 ports. It's a pity one of the two ports is used by the charger, but this is to be expected as Type-C chargers are now the norm.

Geekom GeekBook X14 Pro: Screen quality

A laptop that'll be used for image editing needs a reliable, color-accurate screen as well as decent processing power. Thankfully, the X14 Pro’s 14-inch OLED display doesn't disappoint. Its super-crisp 2880 x 1800 resolution is high enough to blend individual pixels into each other, while vibrancy and contrast are incredibly high by virtue of this being an OLED display, rather than LCD. The only issue I had was that the brightness on our test laptop was stuck and did not respond to the keyboard controls, despite the on-screen brightness slider appearing to go up and down in response to the relevant keys.

But to objectively assess the image quality of any display, you need a specialist device called a colorimeter; more commonly known as a monitor calibrator. Our Datacolor Spyder Pro is ideal for this job, so we can precisely assess just how good the X14 Pro’s screen really is.

Color Gamut

Geekom states that the Geekbook X14 Pro should display 100% of the wide-gamut DCI-P3 color space, and our testing revealed this bold claim to be completely accurate. 95% coverage of the even more demanding AdobeRGB color space is just as impressive.

Color accuracy

Right out of the box the X14 Pro manages an awesome color accuracy of Delta-E 0.48. And notice how every tested color patch is less than Delta-E 1? Many monitors and laptop screens are tuned for a cooler overall color balance, resulting in the cyan test patch being much less close to ideal color than the other patches. But that's not the case here: the X14 Pro is the most color-accurate laptop I've ever tested.

Screen uniformity

Color uniformity at 100% brightness is very good. However it becomes even better when brightness is reduced to a more comfortable 67%. Luminance (brightness) uniformity is also excellent, regardless of the overall screen brightness setting.

Brightness

Unlike the brightness uniformity test where Datacolor's calibration software raises and lowers the display brightness, measuring the screen's overall brightness relies on manual brightness adjustment. As mentioned above, this wasn't working with our sample laptop, hence all the brightness cd/m2 values in this chart are essentially identical.

Geekom GeekBook X14 Pro: Verdict

As tested with the faster of the two CPU options, the Geekom GeekBook X14 Pro costs $1,199. That makes it just $100 less expensive than a base 13-inch MacBook Air, but at that price the MacBook has half the RAM and half the storage of the X14 Pro. You'll also have to pay extra for a MacBook port dongle, whereas Geekom includes this for free with the X14 Pro. Geekom's pricing also compares well to other thin and light Windows laptops with equivalent CPU, RAM and storage specs.

Ultimately, no 13-inch laptop is an ideal tool for serious image or video editing - there simply isn't enough screen area for displaying multiple toolbars, palettes and a timeline, while also having a comfortably large preview pane. But if outright portability matters most to you, then the GeekBook X14 Pro is almost without compromise: it's got plenty of power, its screen is simply stunning, and it sips battery power. To manage all that in such an outrageously thin and light chassis is nothing short of incredible.

Fascinating subjects often make for fascinating images. And this shot of coral researchers carrying out an underwater study in the Saudi Arabian Red Sea is up there with the most interesting I’ve ever seen.

In fact, it recently won an award at the Scientists at Work Photo competition, organized by academic journal publisher Nature.

Shot by Uli Kunz, a marine biologist and photographer-filmmaker, the image depicts fellow biologists and divers, Nauras Daraghmeh (left) and Yusuf El-Khaled (right) investigating how coral species are adapting to warming oceans amid climate change.

“As a host of the German nature documentary series Terra X, I was working on a shoot about coral reefs in Saudi Arabia," said Uli.

"We followed the scientists at KAUST [King Abdullah University of Science and Technology] to the so-called 'marine microbiome lab' where they install incubation chambers to check coral health."

Using a Sony A7S III in a Nauticam camera housing with a Nauticam Wide Angle Conversion Port 2 (WACP2) underwater lens attached, Uli got close to the “coral doctors”, opting for a 16mm focal length, 1/400 shutter speed, f/8.0 aperture and ISO640 sensitivity.

“I wanted to get a light reflection into the divers' masks to emphasize the looks onto their subject of research,” he explained. “I had to control and move each head precisely to get the desired effect and see the light of the dive torch behind the incubation chamber.”

Although this image gets my vote purely for how interesting it is, it's much more than just an intriguing composition. Uli said "photography and film will help us to educate people” – and he hopes the award-winning shot will show government decision makers what's happening in the "real world".

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Take a look at the best waterproof cameras as well as the best underwater housings for cameras and phones.

I love photographing the stars, but my favorite lazy photographer astrophotography hack is to start a time-lapse – and then go to sleep. The GoPro Mission 1 Pro seemed ripe for such a shot.

GoPro says that the battery life is the best yet, and the larger sensor improves low-light performance, so I abandoned the newest GoPro on a beach overnight.

The Mission 1 Pro isn’t the first GoPro that I’ve used to photograph the night sky. I’ve previously set up my GoPro Hero 12 Black on a time-lapse during northern lights activity so I could move around and snap a variety of different compositions with my mirrorless camera.

I was surprised at how well the action camera then managed to capture the night sky – but in the past I’ve always used the GoPro Volta battery tripod in order to record a complete time-lapse from darkness to sunset.

Curious to see just how much the camera’s new 1-inch sensor and larger battery make a difference, I set the new Mission 1 Pro on a tripod just after midnight and started recording.

I set the camera to create a 4K timelapse, as I wanted more detail than FullHD but didn’t want a lot of noise with the starlight conditions. That meant the still images were around 8MP.

I set the camera up to use a slower 20-second shutter speed, to let in the most light and blur the lake. I programmed the camera to take a photo every minute, shooting both an assembled video and JPEG images, and then went to sleep.

Under these settings – and a hot summer evening – the Mission 1 Pro managed to record from about 00:20 to 05:30. That was long enough that I had to cut the last second off my video, as the battery lasted long enough to run just past sunrise and overexpose the last few frames.

That’s an impressive length of time for such a small camera to keep shooting without plugging into an external battery pack.

The still photos that the GoPro stitched into a video are equally impressive, coming from such a small camera and as 8MP shots. The stars aren’t quite tack-sharp, and I did pull up the shadows a bit to see more detail from the lake shore, but, I thought the shots were very good coming from an action cam rather than a mirrorless camera.

Yes, I could get more resolution by using 8K or shooting 50MP RAW photos – but I wanted to balance low-light quality and battery life. Considering the GoPro still recorded past sunrise, now I’m eager to try an 8K timelapse next.

The GoPro Mission 1 Pro feels like a natural evolution for the popular action camera maker. The camera still looks, feels and operates like a GoPro, but that boosted sensor and battery are a welcome change.

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I also tried out the GoPro Mission 1 Pro as a point-and-shoot camera. Read more about the best action cameras.

Producing a screen-free digital camera in 2026 is a wonderfully eccentric idea. Which is precisely why it appeals to me.

Of course, aside from the gimmick factor, omitting an LCD keeps production costs down. It’s allowed for a growing number of cheap and cheerful, low-effort point-and-shoot digicams like the popular Camp Snap 2 and Flashback One35 V2 to be brought to market and find engagement with an audience of younger, fledgling photographers.

For both seasoned shooters and newcomers alike, however, the inability to ‘chimp’ at captured images via a rear LCD (as there isn’t one) enables users to be more present and in the moment. Like we were in the analog film era, without even realizing it.

This form of ‘digital detox’ is something that, increasingly, we all seem to value – whatever our age or skillset.

At the higher end of screen-free photography options, there’s the Leica M11-D, which its maker argues allows for users to engage in a ‘purer’ form of photography. Even Fujifilm’s X Half compact has a Film Camera Mode that enables us to shoot ‘blind’.

It’s another way to rewind the clock to the perceived innocence of the analog era and get teens off their screens – something that, even without the bans on under-16s in the UK and Australia accessing social media, some were already gravitating toward.

Screenless digital compacts aside, pocket-money priced disposable film cameras like Fujifilm’s QuickSnap have also recently seen their own stock rise among the young. Surprisingly, today the single-use / disposable camera market is worth $1.15 billion is and expected to keep rising to $2.6 million within a decade.

The downside for users is that developing a roll of 27 snapshots can cost as much as buying the plastic, screen-free disposable unit in the first place.

Better, then, to invest in a screen-free digital camera on which an infinite number of shots can be taken without spending a small fortune – and then select only the best for print.

Like Instax and Polaroid instant cameras, there’s the anticipation of waiting to see how my captured images look when I’m shooting only with an optical viewfinder – and then having to connect the camera to a computer or smartphone to see them.

With these screen-free cameras, I’m automatically thinking less about the gear and more about the image – and that can only be a good thing.

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See if the best screen-free digital cameras can win you over with their distraction-free designs. Alternatively, you can go full old-school with the best film cameras and best 35mm film.

I’m a Canon professional photographer, so I'm a big Canon fan and I only shoot with EOS cameras. I still use Canon DSLRs for studio stuff and day-to-day photography when I don’t need an EOS R5 Mark II’s super-fast AI AF and I’m not shooting small moving targets.

But one of the reasons I like using full-frame mirrorless Canon cameras like the R6 Mark III is that they have a clever built-in 1.6x crop mode. I find this useful when I’m traveling light and only have one lens on my camera, such as during a recent city break in Madrid, Spain.

A quick flick to crop mode and 100mm becomes 160mm for a little more reach, to help me compose on distant subjects, parts of a scene or interesting elements of architecture.

Which is why I was intrigued by the Digital Telephoto Converter mode available on cameras like the full-frame EOS R8. This ‘Digital tele-conv’ mode is on the first page of the red shooting menu, just beneath the cropping mode/aspect ratio option.

I was excited to try it out and had high hopes, as there are 2.0x and 4.0x digital telephoto options, but I very quickly discovered that it has some big flaws.

While you can shoot RAW and use the crop mode, the Digital tele-conv is only available when you shoot JPEG (due to necessary in-camera interpolation) which already restricts the quality before we even get to digital croppage.

It also only allows you to use one central AF point (or box), which is fixed, and tracking frames are not displayed. Initially I found this was fine, until I realized that it affects metering for off-center subjects – as the above photos illustrate.

However, while clever in-camera interpolation somehow keeps the 2.0x and 4.0x images at 24MP 6000 x 4000 pixels at 350dpi, they are simply heavily cropped (or zoomed-in) – so image quality is, well, rubbish. Images look low-res and unsharp.

The Digital tele-conv can also be used in conjunction with the EOS R8's 1.6x crop mode to give you 3.2x or 6.4x magnification, but again – it’s just heavily cropping into an already cropped image, so quality drops off rapidly.

I wouldn’t be surprised if the Digital tele-conv mode disappears from future EOS cameras. It’s not available on the EOS R5 Mark II for good reason.

If you need extra reach for Canon lenses, get a proper teleconverter (which Canon calls extenders) for your telephoto lenses. Canon Extenders are available in 1.4x and 2x in both EF and RF mounts, and will deliver far superior results to these digital in-camera crops.

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Take a look at the best teleconverters in 2026 to see how they work and what to look for. And of course, you can check out the best Canon telephoto lenses and best Canon superzoom lenses to get more reach without any optical compromise.

Dycam Inc was an American technology company based in Chatsworth, California. It was best known for developing and manufacturing the Dycam Model 1, which is widely recognized as the world's first commercially available digital camera.

Fujifilm had created and shown its Fujix DS-1P digital camera in 1988, in cooperation with Toshiba, but it was never commercially available – not even in Japan.

When the Dycam was released, in November 1990, $995 bought you a camera capable of taking 32 black-and-white, 8-bit images, each one just 376 x 240 pixels or 0.09MP. They were stored as highly compressed JPEG images, so as to fit all 32 into a single megabyte of memory.

And that memory was volatile, meaning that if the batteries went flat you lost your photos. But assuming your photos were still there, they could be uploaded to your computer using a cable.

The lens was a fixed-focus, 8.5mm (35mm equivalent), f/4.5 optic. It had a built-in electronic flash and an electronic shutter with speeds from 1/30sec to 1/1000sec (1/25sec when using flash), all packed into a very modern-looking, landline telephone-handset-style case in black plastic.

Power was supplied by two nickel-cadmium AA-sized rechargeable batteries, under the hood. Battery drain was fairly high, thus they batteries needed frequent recharging, so the camera came with a nifty recharging dock/stand.

Once charged, before you could take any photos, you had to connect your camera to a computer to download the software that made it run. Another reason to keep the camera charged!

The whole affair was pretty basic by today’s standards. But it beat the competition – because there was no competition!

The computer accessory company, Logitech, wanted to market a camera. It saw cameras as the next big thing in computer peripherals, so it licensed the basic technology from Dycam for one million dollars and set about creating its own software to run the camera.

The Logitech Fotoman-1 came out in mid-1991 with very similar specs to the Dycam, but a few differences. Because Logitech was originally a Swiss firm, rather than having it made under contract by Dycam, the Fotoman was made by the Swiss watch-making firm that had made its first mice.

The big, visible difference was that the Fotoman cameras came in an off-white shell, rather than Dycam’s black. Essential specs were identical to the Dycam, but Logitech offered improved firmware and software that offered additional features. The software was more frequently updated, too.

More importantly, though, Logitech had worldwide distribution channels, while the Dycam models were made and sold in the USA only. Thus, the Logitech sold a lot more than the Dycam and is often thought to be the first consumer-level digital camera. And it’s almost true!

Logitech’s brand recognition and aggressive marketing (free camera bag sent when you registered your purchase and similar promotions) also helped with sales.

Both cameras were classed as “consumer” cameras, but the high price (£499 in the UK) meant limited uptake. So, in the beginning, both were aimed at businesses such as real estate agents and insurance adjusters, who needed a quick turnaround.

Following the Model 1, Dycam continued to refine its technology with subsequent versions including Models 2, 3 and 4, before eventually expanding into more conventional designs.

Eventually the firm gave up on cameras and evolved into Tetracam Inc, which continues to operate as a specialist in multi-spectral imaging systems – particularly for agriculture.

Logitech abandoned the digital camera market after the Fotoman series, to concentrate on peripherals like mice and keyboards. It later became a leader in webcams, but never made or marketed a standalone digital camera again.

Read more of David Young's ongoing series on classic cameras, as well as his book A Brief History of Photography.

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Take a look at the best point-and-shoot cameras you can buy today.

Often in photography, less is more. And in the case of abstract images, such as this stunning close-up from Chris See Casas, a simplified composition can create drama.

"I am researching water photography for my thesis and stumbled upon an article teaching how to do creative macro photography," explains Chris. "I had this urge to try it immediately, and all sorts of creative juices flowed from there on."

Describing her thought process, Philippines-based Chris says: "I wanted a photo that would create greater awareness regarding the importance of every water drop in an interesting way – most of the photos I see of water drops are too formal.

"This is the main reason I chose to shoot it in macro. I discovered the use of long exposure creatively in the process."

In high-magnification images, careful lighting and exposure is of critical importance, since any imbalances are immediately noticeable in the tightly composed frame.

Chris encountered several challenges shooting this image. "The first was finding the proper equipment to produce crisp light streaks. I experimented with many kinds of reflective surfaces and lighting equipment – flashlight, mini pin light and pen light.

"I used the pen light in the end – it works in wonderful ways! Secondly, identifying the proper way to point the light at the subject.

"I did many trials before landing a good shot like this. Thirdly, time; a lot of it was spent experimenting to get a shot this interesting. Long exposure and macro photography combined requires lots of patience."

The end result was a shot that Chris feels is unique and impossible to exactly recreate. In her own words: "I cannot replicate this one. Ever."

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Browse the best cameras for macro photography, the best macro lenses and the best telephoto lenses.

Think Peak Design and you’re probably thinking photo bags and backpacks, and those clever Peak Design Slide camera straps with their quick-release mechanisms. However, the company also makes general travel luggage, outdoor gear, phone cases, wallets, and even gadget mounts for cars and motorcycles. The California-based outfit was founded in 2010 with a mission to ‘build happy and meaningful lives for the people that work there', and, hopefully, some of that meaningful happiness will spill over to people who buy their products.

Fast-forward to 2020, and the company launched its first and so far only tripod, in the somewhat revolutionary shape of a very distinctive travel tripod. We’ve reviewed it very favorably in both of its Peak Design Travel Tripod (Aluminum) and Peak Design Travel Tripod (Carbon Fiber) editions. The company designed and launched its first tripod off the back of a crowdfunding campaign, which is its go-to business method, and the result is undeniably one of the best travel tripods on the market.

The new Peak Design Pro Tripods inherit the innovative design and features of the original Travel Tripod and build them into a (mostly) full-sized range of kits. As such, the new models are available in Pro, Pro Lite, and Pro Tall versions, each of them aiming to be among the best tripods for photography, as well as being among the best carbon fiber tripods. As you’ve probably guessed, though, the Pro Lite is relatively lightweight and downsized, compared with the other two more full-sized sticks.

Peak Design Pro Tripod: Specifications

Peak Design Pro Tripod: Price

Full-sized, heavy-duty, carbon fiber tripod kits that are also reasonably lightweight and fold down small for the journey don’t come cheap. One of my all-time favorites is the 3 Legged Winston Pro 2.0 kit, complete with AirHed Pro Ball Head, which will set you back around $500 / £400 / AU$750. Then there’s the somewhat legendary Manfrotto MT055CXPRO3 Carbon Fiber Tripod (legs only) for around $500 / £399 / AU$850, but it’s also available in kit options with various heads.

In that context, the Peak Design Pro Tripod kit looks pretty pricey at $900 / £800 / AU$1,500, whereas the Pro Tall is understandably even more expensive at $1,000 / £900 / AU$1,700, as there’s simply more of it, and the least expensive Pro Lite is still very dear at $800 / £700 / AU$1,400. On the face of it, none of these three tripods looks like they’re going to win any ‘Great Value’ awards, but considering the innovative, no-compromise designs, they could still be very well worth the money.

Peak Design Pro Tripod: Design & Handling

After decades of being a keen photographer, it’s very rare that a tripod walks into my studio and really grabs my attention. The Peak Design Travel Tripod did exactly that a few years ago, with sufficient wow-factor to make me actually open my mouth and say ‘wow’. Looking as super-skinny as a catwalk model, the tripod was designed with oval-profile legs that wrap around a triangular center column.

The net result is that the tripod is incredibly slim when folded, while also avoiding the time-consuming chore that you get with the vast majority of travel tripods. That’s because with the Peak Design and its integral head, you don’t need to fully extend the center column and swing the legs up to achieve a compact stowage size. All of these design facets in regard to the legs, center column, and head are inherited by the next-gen ‘Pro’ tripod range.

One notable difference is that the Pro tripods have four sections in each leg rather than five, which makes setup and takedown quicker and easier, as there are fewer leg section clamps to contend with. The leg sections themselves are made from the good stuff. Like anything else, carbon fiber isn’t all created equal, but this tripod is constructed from premium-grade 3k weave, 2x2 twill carbon fiber, along with CNC-machined and anodized 6061-T6 recycled aluminum for the ball head, hub, load hook and leg locks, rather than using any die-cast parts.

As with most tripods great and small nowadays, it’s not just the height of the legs that you can adjust, but also the angle from vertical. True to form, the Pro has three lockable leg angles when unfolded for use. The wider angles enable greater stability and resistance to the tripod toppling over when it’s set to a short operating height. Multiple angles also make it easier to work on uneven terrain and around obstacles.

The ball head is equally innovative as the tripod legs, and a crafty bit of design in its own right. The compact, integrated design helps to keep stowage size to a minimum, but it’s nevertheless full of clever tricks. A twist-action lock at the base of the head allows for super-fast release and locking of the ball and socket clamp. The only slight downside is that you have to raise the center column slightly to enable anything more than a slight range of tilting movement of the ball head, and to enable shooting at extreme angles and vertically upwards or downwards, as well as for swapping from landscape to portrait orientation shooting, unless you’re using an L-bracket.

While the ball head has a good range of adjustment if you raise the center column a smidge, there’s also a full 360-degree of independent lateral rotation, thanks to a separate panning lock. The panning mechanism has a marked scale and a lovely fluid feel, making the head well-suited to shooting video as well as stills.

One particularly nice touch is the bubble level. It protrudes from the outer circumference of the camera platform and also acts as the lock/release catch for the Arca-Swiss type quick-release plate. And to avoid any expensive accidents if you inadvertently knock the bubble assembly, there’s also a sliding safety lock with marked open and closed positions.

The QR plate itself is a fairly small, square affair, but you can use other plates if you feel the need. My only complaint about the supplied plate is that it can’t be fastened to your camera without the use of a hex key, but at least one is supplied with the tripod, as I’ll come to in a moment.

There’s more trickery down below. A weight hook is featured at the bottom of the center column and, unlike those that need endless twisting on a thread to fit or remove them, this one secures or releases with a spring-loaded lock and a one-third twist.

What’s more, with the weight-hook removed, the dual-sized hex wrench tool that’s stowed inside the center column pops halfway out by a further spring-loaded mechanism, while the use of magnets stops it from falling all the way out unless you actually tug on it. If my memory serves me rightly (and I’m pretty sure it does), the Peak Design Travel Tripod comes with an additional Mobile Phone Mount, but you can buy that separately for use with the Pro, at a cost of around $20 / £20 / AU$55.

Moving further down, right to the bottom of the tripod, sturdy rubber pads are the footwear of choice. Made from non-slip TPU (Thermoplastic Polyurethane), they’re extremely durable and work well on most surfaces. For very soft or loose ground, you might be better off with metal spikes, and these are available as an optional extra, costing around $50 / £45 / AU$80.

Finishing with a flourish, the tripod kit is all wrapped up in a very nicely tailored and padded soft case with a single zippered opening and an adjustable shoulder strap.

Peak Design Pro Tripod: Performance

Peak Design points out that it developed the Pro range of tripods in collaboration with the renowned photographer and filmmaker, Jimmy Chin. It also says that they’re based on the groundbreaking architecture of Peak Design’s original Travel Tripod, but scaled up to offer significantly greater stiffness and maximum operating height. I’d say these comments are bang on and that, as I’d expect from a tripod co-developed by a photographer and filmmaker, it works well as a hybrid stick for both photography and videography. That’s mostly thanks to its clever head, which enables fluid panning as well as quick and easy ball and socket adjustments.

I’d also agree that one of the most crucial aspects of the Pro tripods is that you can shoot from a higher maximum height, as I found the Travel Tripod quite restrictive in this regard. Even so, the maximum height of the Pro tripod isn’t exactly towering at 168.4cm / 66.3 inches.

Being quite tall and liking to keep my shooting options as open as possible, I went for the Pro Tall version of the tripod, which extends to a more impressive 197.4cm / 77.7 inches.

The Pro Lite edition is certainly smaller and more lightweight for the journey, but only rises to a maximum height of 162.5cm / 64.0 inches, and has a lower payload rating of 15.9kg / 35lb, compared with the 18.1kg / 40lb of its heftier siblings.

It’s not just height that I’m interested in. I also like to shoot from really low angles sometimes, for creative effect. In time-honored tradition, the Pro tripods enable you to remove and invert the center column, thus shooting out from between two of the legs with the camera inverted, right down to ground level. That’s all well and good, provided that you don’t mind shooting with your camera upside down, which definitely isn’t preferable for videography.

A more convenient but more long-winded approach to ultra-low-level shooting is that you can tilt the ball head through 90 degrees, loosen a screw, and remove all but the very top of the center column. This enables you to shoot from as little as 15.9cm / 6.3in, 17.3cm / 6.8in, or 15.8cm / 6.2in above ground level, with the Pro, Pro Tall, and Pro Lite versions of the tripod, respectively.

Those specializing in videography rather than stills photography might like to go a little further with filmmaking features. Catering to these needs, Peak Design offers a Leveling Base for an additional $120 / £110 / AU$220. This enables you to level the head even if the tripod legs aren’t precisely leveled, so that your horizon doesn’t go on the slant when you start panning. And if you want to add a fluid tilt action to the head’s existing fluid pan abilities, there’s an optional Tilt Mod for $150 / £135 / AU$300.

Peak Design Pro Tripod: Verdict

I’ve tried many and varied Peak Design products, and they always give me a real feel-good factor. The company makes bold claims regarding the design, features, build quality, and performance of its Peak Design Pro Tripod range. I love it when products live up to and even surpass their billing, and that’s my experience of the Pro Tall tripod kit that I tested and immediately fell for.

Highlights for me are that the design neatly cuts out any wasted space, the specially profiled legs snugly wrapping around the center column for incredibly slimline stowage. The integral head also helps to keep packing size to a minimum, so everything’s neat and tidy. Better still, the tripod has super-fast setup and take-down times, apart from its fiddly tool-driven quick-release plate. Best of all, the kit gives rock-solid support for stills and video shooting, with a nice fluid panning feel for the latter, and remains really steady and stable even at its maximum height with all of the leg sections and center column fully extended.

The only catch, as far as I’m concerned, is the price. It’s a very expensive tripod by any standards, but I feel that Peak Design has really gone the extra mile with its no-compromise design and build, making the Pro range of tripods well worth the money.

Alternatives

As you probably know, mini camera keychains – especially Kodak keychain cameras – have been as popular as Pokémon cards lately. The craze first kicked off last year with the original Kodak Charmera, and since then everyone from Yashica to Insta360 has got in on the craze.

If you've somehow missed the trend, these keychain cameras are teeny-tiny compact cameras that are small enough to – you guessed it – fit on a keychain.

Their appeal is multifaceted. First and foremost, they're ridiculously cheap. Selling for about $35 in the US, they're affordable enough to be impulse buys and are perfect for gifting. Secondly, they're ridiculously cute and collectible. Coming in multiple colors and styles, there's a real "gotta catch 'em all" vibe.

But the Kodak keychain cameras added a third stroke of genius: blind boxes. Like a Labubu (or, indeed, a pack of Pokémon cards), Charmeras come in an unmarked box and you didn't know which of the six designs you were going to get (hence you're buying a box "blind").

I dunno about you but, as a child who grew up collecting things like stickers and trading cards, I'm a sucker for a blind box. And Kodak knew what it was doing by adding a "secret" seventh design – a super-rare version that you had a 1-in-48 chance of getting.

For a while, those secret Charmeras (with a transparent design) were being sold for $500 on eBay! The Millennium Edition Kodak keychain cameras also have a secret variant (in a very sexy chrome body) and Escura does the same with a "mystery" SnapRoll design.

However, while these keychain cameras are undoubtedly cute and collectible, it's fair to say that the image quality is far more about fun than fidelity.

If we take Kodak's keychain camera as an example, it packs a minuscule 1/4-inch sensor with just 1.4MP resolution. And there are some cheap knock-offs on Amazon with even worse quality.

So you're not exactly going to shoot a wedding on one of these, but it's a fun thing to have on your car keys or dangling from your bag – and they make perfect cameras for kids, too. I've tried out a bunch of them and, after some unscientific testing, these are the best keychain cameras I've used so far.

Best Kodak keychain camera

The one that started it all, the Charmera is the OG Kodak keychain camera – and thus, the one that set the bar. It's not a very high bar technically, though, with a tiny 1/4-inch sensor that maxes out at 1.6MP resolution for stills and FullHD 30p for video.

What is that good for? More than you might think, surprisingly! Obviously the images are never going to win you a photo competition, but they're about early era smartphone quality – an aesthetic which has a following among Gen Zers, for whom this is the "retro look" the same way that Polaroid and 35mm was retro for my generation.

Images are muddy but not devoid of charm, like shooting with a digicam from the late Nineties. They make for fun social media snaps, and the tinny video in particular has that vintage digital camcorder quality that some folks spend a lot of time layering LUTs and filters to replicate.

The rear screen is very small, making it tricky to compose images, though credit to Reto (the company that actually makes the Charmera) for including an optical viewfinder – which is even smaller and less useful, but is a nice nod to the old cameras like the Kodak Fling.

Something that my colleague Mike remarked on, which never occurred to me, is that the Charmera offers authentic retro charm – whereas the SnapRoll can only offer an imitation of retro brands.

Best film-style keychain camera

If you want a keychain camera that looks like a roll of film, the Escura Snaproll is by far your best bet – but there's more on offer than just looks!

The signature appeal of this camera is its design. Kodak's keychain cameras are cool just because they're small, but the SnapRoll is cool because it looks just like a canister of 35mm film.

Indeed, Escura has gone to great lengths to style the different SnapRoll variants after famous film stocks such as Kodak Gold 400 or Ilford Pan 400. Personally, I think that's even neater than a cute little rectangular box – and as someone who grew up shooting film, I much prefer the design of this to the Charmera.

It also boasts a bigger LCD screen, which makes it easier to frame and review your shots, and shoots both in a higher resolution and a square format – which is something that's always fun to challenge your compositions. Image quality is about on par with the Kodak, though I prefer the filters here – particularly the GameBoy-esque green filter, for which I have a soft spot.

However, video can only be captured in SD (720p) – though honestly, none of these keychain cameras take video that's very good by any conventional measure!

Best Kodak keychain camera for filters

The Charmera Millennium Editions are the second wave of Kodak keychain cameras, and possess the exact same technical specs as the original series.

What's different is twofold. First, where the OG Charmeras featured Eighties-inspired styling, the Millennium Editions features a Nineties aesthetic – with nods to things like pixel art as well as cult tech like Sony's MiniDisc, as you can see in the green one above.

(The "secret" chase variant even tips its hat to the iconic T-1000 from Terminator 2, with a liquid metal finish that's sure to have scalpers' eyes wide with anticipation.)

The other difference is also an aesthetic one, but for your photos: the Millennium Edition adds a new selection of frames and filters (including a neat Video Player frame, which looks like your photos are being viewed on something like RealPlayer or Media Player Classic).

While the original Charmera filters were pretty horrible (particularly the single-color options), here they're almost sophisticated. The new Pixel Filters offer a sort of duotone line art style – and the Coral in particular creates some very interesting results. If you enjoy creative filters, this is the one to go for.

Best keychain camera for creators

My hat is off to Insta360. Not only does it sell grips that turn the Ace Pro 2 action camera into a bona fide compact camera and even an instant camera, it also offers a housing that turns the Go 3S into a pro-level keychain camera!

That's what we've got here. The thumb-sized Go 3S slots into the Retro Viewfinder – a plastic sheath with a top-down optical viewfinder. And just like that, you've got a brilliant 4K keychain action camera.

Obviously this isn't the same sub-$50 proposition as the other cameras on this list, so some might see it as a cheat. However, if you want something keychain-sized that packs the power of a "proper" camera, this is the hands-down winner.

The Insta360 can shoot 12MP photos and 4K 30p video on a much larger 1/2.3-inch sensor, which delivers monumentally superior image quality. Seriously, it's in a completely different stratosphere – and also offers features like image stabilization, timelapse, slow-motion, open gate video and even pre-recording. It's even waterproof to 33ft!

Because there is no screen (although you can buy the Action Pod separately for about a hundred bucks, with a flipping 2.2-inch touchscreen) you'll need to pair the Go 3S with your phone – where there is an enormous amount of additional control available.

Best cheap keychain camera

If you just want something cute, cheap and photo-related to hang on your car keys or dangle from your camera bag, the Photo Creator Mini Cam is the one for you.

This keychain camera is essentially a glorified charm that takes pictures, but it's also ridiculously cheap. Right now you can find it for as little as $15 in the US and £6.50(!!!) in the UK, making it a perfect novelty purchase where images are a Brucie bonus rather than the point of the product.

And that's really the best way to think about the Mini Cam. Despite technically having more than double the resolution of the Charmera, the image quality is considerably worse for both stills and video.

However, there are a couple of unique upsides. For starters, this camera comes with a 1GB microSD card – so you can start playing with it right out of the packet. It also possesses a "flash" – although this is really just an LED that lights up, rather than anything that's going to illuminate a shot.

Again, that's really the case here: everything is for show. This is a cute little keychain camera that looks like a mini DSLR or mirrorless body, and it just so happens to be able to take photos and video. Ask nothing more of it and, for the super-low price, this is a fun little novelty item.

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A fantastic opportunity for an established photojournalist to have their work printed in a custom photobook by a major UK publisher has returned for 2026.

Now in its second year, The Tom Stoddart Award for Excellence celebrates one lucky established photojournalist by teaming up with publisher Gost to print a custom book on the winning long-form project.

Based in London, Gost publishes visual arts books and has collaborated with the likes of Sir Don McCullin on his more recent works Life, Death and Everything in Between (2023), The Stillness of Life (2025) and the forthcoming Vietnam (2026).

Along with the book of their work, which will go on sale via Gost’s platform and be publicized in The Guardian, the winner will also receive a healthy £5,000 (approximately $6,700 / AU$9,700) to visit the printing facilities in Verona, Italy.

The Tom Stoddart Award for Excellence was founded in 2025 by the Ian Parry Memorial Fund, which also runs the eponymous, longstanding grant for emerging photojournalists.

The new award is named after the late photojournalist Tom Stoddart, whose celebrated career covering pivotal global events (such as the fall of the Berlin Wall and the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa for outlets including The Sunday Times) spanned five decades.

Entrants to the competition need to be at least 18 years old and the project submitted should be near completion and extensive enough for publishing. A short personal biography along with a brief summary of the project should be included, as well as up to 40 images taken from the project.

Entries to the awards can now be made until September 30, 2026. Judging will take place in October with the award recipient announced November 30.

It costs £50 to enter the Tom Stoddart Awards for Excellence, with the important note that AI-generated imagery is not allowed. Visit the award official webpage for more information and to enter.

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The 2025 Tom Stoddart Award for Excellence winner was Laura Pannack, for her photo series documenting children's dangerous school journeys in Cape Town, South Africa. If you want to try your hand at photojournalism, documentary and reportage work, take a look at the best cameras for street photography and the best lenses for street photography.