Chris Niccolls

The majority of professional photographers pray at the Church of the Holy Trinity. That is to say that they make their daily bread with an ultra-wide f/2.8 zoom, a general-purpose 24-70mm f/2.8, and a 70-200mm f/2.8 telephoto. This is a tradition that has held true for decades from the time of the autofocusing film SLR to the modern mirrorless cameras of today. Good things come in threes so today we look at the best three lenses from the three biggest companies.

It's well-known that I am not a fan of the 35mm focal length. It's also well-known that I am in the extreme minority on this. Everyone loves a good 35mm lens which is a prime candidate for a faster f/1.4 aperture. Samyang has answered the call with its latest "Prima" series of lenses which promise to be optical standouts with sophisticated autofocusing.

Viltrox has been making waves in the lens space for a while now, but its LAB series, a new push into professional-grade optics, takes the company's ambitions up a notch (or two). The Viltrox LAB 135mm f/1.8 aims to deliver professional performance at a much lower price. Does it deliver the goods?

Here, we thought that the smartphone would kill the point-and-shoot digital camera. There is, instead, a steady resurgence with more and more (mostly young) people purchasing used point-and-shoot cameras. The Panasonic ZS99 aims to capitalize on the trend, offering a modernized take on an older P&S model.

My editor-in-chief, Jaron Schneider, tasked me with a Christmas challenge to review a camera unlike anything I had reviewed before. On my doorstep shows up a Bluey-themed kids' camera with the worrisome "eKids" branding on the bottom. I had a family vacation coming up in Alberta's capital city of Edmonton, so it was the right opportunity to put the camera through a rugged baptism of fire. We planned on shooting at the Royal Alberta Museum, which would give us bright and dark conditions in which to test the camera. Even with low expectations, I came away disappointed.

Jordan and I regularly give our two cents about the lenses we enjoy the most from each of the major manufacturers. Taking each brand in turn, we list our favorite wide-angle, normal zooms, normal primes, portrait, and telephoto lenses. However, we have never tackled the Micro Four Thirds system, which is unique because it has two major OEM manufacturers that can share lenses. This gives us roughly twice as many optics to sift through, but we managed to narrow it down.

Some of the best traditions are holiday traditions. Turkey at Thanksgiving, pumpkin carving at Halloween, and Christmas trees loaded with decorations are some of the cherished classics but undeniably, the greatest of them all is our annual Best and Worst camera gear roundup.

Hasselblad is a name that screams premium optics at a premium price. However, Hasselblad recently developed a line of more compact and somewhat more affordable lenses categorized under the “P” for portable moniker.

I like the ultra-compact Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L lens very much. It’s easy to carry around in the camera bag. It’s very sharp and well-corrected. But the inability to attach a teleconverter is a huge strike against a fast 70-200mm lens and video shooters don’t like the shifting balance as you zoom the extendable lens elements.

Now that Canon has released the R1 and Sony has updated its a1 II platform, the Nikon Z9 has stiff competition. The title of "flagship camera" represents the pinnacle of each company's technological abilities and becomes the outward face of that company for all to judge. Should a flagship camera be able to handle anything that is thrown at it? And is there such a thing as a "best" right now?

I wanted to love this camera so desperately. When I first looked at the X-M5, I was won over by its handsome design and compact nature. And the world needs more stylish little cameras like this, which are within the reach of most people’s budgets. However, we might lose too much to make this lower $799 price possible. Most of the technical specs and features were covered in a previous video and subsequent article, but I want to focus on the make-or-break features today.

I’m an outlier in the photo world, especially regarding glass. I dislike the 35mm focal length, and as much as I love a good 24mm lens, a 28mm lens is even better. Maybe this is why I immediately gravitated to the quirky Canon RF 28-70mm f/2 zoom when it first came out. Despite its massive form factor, this bulbous gem of a lens quickly became a favorite of mine.

The original Sony a1 is one of the most capable, advanced, and expensive flagship cameras ever. When it first came out, it wowed potential buyers with a fast-scanning 50-megapixel sensor without major rolling shutter issues while offering fast burst rates. It has been almost four years since then, and now we have a version II from Sony in our hands. Does the apple fall far enough from the tree to make it worth the $6,500 cost?

My first experience with the Canon EOS R1 was in the sweltering heat of Phoenix, Arizona with a pre-production unit. There is of course, only so much that you can test with a pre-production unit under predefined conditions.

Tamron has been in the lens-making business for decades and was initially known for making affordable optics if not always professional-grade optics. Many enthusiasts flocked to Tamron super-zooms for the inherent convenience and low cost that they represented. However, there is a focal length that gained legendary status amongst amateurs and professionals alike and the Tamron 90mm f/2.8 Macro found its way into even the most discerning camera bags.

Nikon's Z50 II is a long time coming. Although the Nikon Z50 II is -- by Nikon's own admission -- aimed at beginner photographers moving up from smartphones, the first thing you notice is just how capable this basic camera design is for serious photography.

Fujifilm has one of the most expansive stable of lenses you could desire for its illustrious X-mount cameras and it just got two more. This time, it chose to expand its lineup on opposite sides of the focal length spectrum.

Fujifilm's new entry-level X-M5 is very affordable and that is a good thing because mirrorless cameras are expensive. At a cursory glance, it feels like every smartphone and mirrorless camera nowadays is further and further beyond the reach of most people who are nonetheless enthusiastic about the art form.

Pentax's popular Pentax 17 showed the market that there is demand for a new-production analog film camera. It wasn't clear if this risky venture would float, but the Pentax 17 has found a loyal following and now we have another player ready to make waves: Mint's Rollei 35AF.

When I first tested the Panasonic Lumix S9, it took a while to truly understand the intention behind it. Although compact and adorable, the it lacked an EVF and had a very basic control structure. Clearly, the S9 was intended for beginner photographers or creators who desired a simple and approachable camera.

In the past, we did a versus battle between the Sony a7R V and the Nikon Z8 but recently Canon updated its R5 II and we thought it to be the right time for a three-way fight.

There is a recurring theme that sneaks its way into the comments section of the YouTube channel. We’ve heard this same statement on The PetaPixel Podcast many times as well and it goes a little something like this: "Why do I have to pay for the video features on a camera when I just take photos?"

Photographers love fixed-focal-length cameras since a single lens forces you to think carefully about the composition and move within the scene to capture the shot. There is a simplicity and a meditative experience to be had, wandering the streets with a compact camera on your shoulder. Make no mistake though, the Leica Q3 43 is a pricey piece of bling at $6,895.

When the Nikon Zf was announced, it felt like an early look at what the Z6 III would eventually be. But a little less than a year later and the Z6 III came with some important differences compared to the retro-inspired Zf. So, which one should you buy?

After Apple concluded its keynote featuring the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max, I dove into my review of this new smartphone as a photographic and videographic tool in the sunshine of California. Jordan Drake shot our entire video review on the iPhone 16 Pro and I scoured the area around Monterey and Santa Cruz to take pictures with the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Most photographers probably don't think Hasselblad makes zoom lenses. In a sea of primes, the company makes the general-purpose 35-75mm lens and even the older H-mount system only has a couple. But Hasselblad has finally branched out into the wide-angle realm with a new 20-35mm f/3.2-4.5 zoom lens. It is very good -- and it better be with this asking price.

Nikon makes some incredible prime lenses, from the illustrious 58mm f/.95 Noct to the 50mm f/1.2 S -- the latter of which is the more practical, yet is very expensive even though it is very good. Nikon also makes a full spread of f/1.8 and f/2 prime lenses across a wide range of focal lengths. What Nikon have curiously ignored are any f/1.4 primes, at least until recently.

The PetaPixel team flew down to Cupertino to witness the 2024 Apple Keynote event and get our first glimpse at the new iPhone 16 Pro. With all the recent push lately to add AI features to the photography aspects of the phone it's nice to see Apple working on updated camera hardware instead.

Versatility is always desirable when it comes to optics. Having a lens that can cover a wide range of focal lengths while collecting a decent amount of light is a supremely useful tool, but it is a challenging game for lens designers to play.