Photography

The New Way to Buy Gear: Make Money, Save the Planet, Get Your Kit

Posted on by Andres

The industry has been putting out some really hard-to-resist gear these last few years. Ever since Sony released the a7 mirrorless line, it’s been a tsunami of gear upgrade options that seem too good to pass by. Whether it’s the new tack-sharp, image-stabilized Canon RF lenses, the 61-megapixel Sony a7R IV, or the new “creator-ready” Nikon Z 30, it’s not just a case of “Shiny Object Syndrome”: these developments in technology really do reflect in the quality of the work creatives can produce. That’s where MPB comes in.

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Can This Ultra-Cheap 85mm Lens Give You the Results You Need?

Posted on by Andres

An 85mm lens with a wide maximum aperture is one of the most desirable options out there, especially for portrait photographers, who prize the focal length and narrow depth of field. However, such lenses can easily cost well over $2,000 for a good option. At less than $200, the Meike 85mm f/1.8 is highly intriguing, but can it offer the results you need at such a low price? This excellent video review takes a look at the lens and the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from it in practice.

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Is the Arsenal 2 for Advanced Photographers?

Posted on by Andres

You may remember my 2019 review of the original Arsenal hardware. It was a block box you attached to your DSLR or mirrorless camera and it automated many of the tasks photographers face on a regular basis. The Arsenal sold quite well. While it had some good points that could speed or improve a photographer’s workflow, it left a lot of buyers unhappy and it seemed to wind up on a lot of shelves and in a lot of drawers, rather than in camera bags. Now we’ve got Arsenal 2.

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All the Ports You Need: We Review the Ugreen USB-C Triple Display 13-in-1 Docking Station

Posted on by Andres

Laptops are more powerful than ever, easily capable of replacing a desktop for many creatives. However, when it comes to the needs of creatives, the ports on most laptops simply aren’t enough to cover everything. Enter the docking station. In this review, we take a look at the Ugreen USB-C Triple Display 13-in-1 Docking Station and if it can cover all the needs of a demanding professional.

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How to Create Three Distinctive Looks Using One Octabox

Posted on by Andres

The octabox is one of the most fundamental and useful lighting modifiers out there, able to provide a wide variety of looks for portraiture while remaining relatively easy to set up and master, making it an ideal first choice for anyone working on learning artificial lighting. This excellent video tutorial will show you how to take one octabox and get three distinctive lighting styles from it, giving you a lot of versatility without a lot of work.

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Check Out This Amazing DIY Pond for Filming Wildlife

Posted on by Andres

One of the most difficult aspects of wildlife and bird photography is finding your subjects and having the patience to wait for them to come into position in frame. So, what if you could make your own spot that you knew would attract wildlife? This photographer and filmmaker designed and built his own pond for bird and wildlife photography, and this awesome video shows the location and the beautiful footage he gets there.

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