Afraid of missing out on the latest photo industry news while you’re out, well, actually taking pictures? Photography News of the Week is all the news you might have missed this week, published on the weekends. Alongside the biggest stories of the week, like the new Olympus OM-D E-M1X, Apple’s Shot on an iPhone contest, and DxOMark’s new “Selfie” scores, find briefs on the latest in accessories and photography news from this week.
The Kite Viato thinks outside the box for a tripod-focused camera backpack
Don’t like dropping your camera bag on the ground? The Kite Viato is a photography bag designed specifically to fit in the space directly underneath a tripod, offering a spot to swap lenses without kneeling in the dirt. The triangular-shaped bag attaches to the tripod, stashing gear for easy access.
The bag can even be worn with the tripod still mounted and set up, if you don’t mind looking a little odd and don’t want to set the tripod up again at the next spot. The bag has 15 liters of storage space with padding and waterproofing to help keep gear protected. When not mounted on a tripod, the back panel tucks in and the bag turns into a more typical backpack.
The bag comes from Kite Optics, a Belgium-based company that recently expanded distribution to the U.S. The bag is expected out at the end of February or early March, with pre-orders listed for about $220.
Meike’s 50mm f/1.7 is a Canon EOS R, Nikon Z mount lens on a budget
The recently launched Nikon Z series and Canon EOS R are beginning to gain third-party lens compatibility without an adapter. This week, Meike launched a 50mm f/1.7 lens for both the RF mount and Z mount. The lens was previously available for Sony FE shooters.
The Meike 50mm f/1.7 is a manual focus only lens. The all-metal body houses optics with six elements in five groups. The lens is also weather-sealed. But the biggest perk of the new lens? It sells for about $140.
Samsung just launched the smallest smartphone sensor yet
Samsung’s latest imaging sensor is also the industry’s most compact smartphone sensor. The Isocell Slim 3T2 is a 1/3.4 inch, 20-megapixel sensor that measures only about 1.5 millimeters diagonally. The smaller size will help hide the camera when used as a front-facing camera, reducing the size of the screen notch or the “hole-in display.” In rear-facing cameras, the sensor can help cut the size of the camera bump by seven percent compared to another Samsung 20-megapixel sensor.
Besides the small size, the sensor uses Samsung Tetracell, a technology that allows for that high resolution in good light but then merges four pixels into one for better results in low light with increased sensitivity. In rear-facing cameras, Samsung says the sensor can use an RGB filter instead of the Tetracell technology as a second telephoto sensor in dual-camera designs. The company says the sensor maintains a higher resolution at a 10x zoom than the current 20-megapixel sensor.
Samsung says the sensor will be integrated into smartphone production in the first quarter of 2019.
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