Gear update
Our round-up of the latest digital photography must-haves
All the latest Canon-related kit that you need in your photographic life
01 Polaroid Hi•Print Bridging gap between instant photography and digital creativity £90/$100 https://uk.polaroid.com
THE POCKET-SIZED Polaroid Hi•Print printer features wireless connectivity and employs the high resolution dye-sublimation printing process. This promises vibrant, consistent, fade-proof print quality, on waterproof credit cardsized 2.1x3.4-inch paper with an adhesive back. Each all-in-one cartridge contains a colour ribbon and 10 sheets of photo paper. The Hi•Print is designed to work wirelessly via an IOS and Android app, allowing you to print directly from your phone or tablet. The app also enables you to edit your shots with tools such as filters, overlays, frames, text and stickers.
02 WD My Passport SSD (NVME) Speedy transfers and up to 2TB storage From £136/$119 https://shop.westerndigital.com/
THIS LATEST edition of WD’S popular My Passport portable SSD boasts read and write speeds of 1050MB/S reading and 1000MB/S. This is made possible due to the NVME SSD interface, which can double the transfer speed of a SATA interface. The new My Passport SSD also features 256-bit AES encryption and is drop-resistant to a height of two metres. The drive is available in grey, in 500GB and 1TB capacities for £136/$119 and £221/$189 respectively. Blue, gold and red versions will be available later this year, along with a larger capacity 2TB version.
03 Zhiyun Crane 2S Bigger payloads and extra features £599/$599 www.zhiyun-tech.com
DESIGNED PRIMARILY for use with DSLRS and larger mirrorless camera set-ups, the 1.88kg Crane 2S is capable of handling pro cameras like the Canon EOS-1D X Mark III. A new, larger 0.96-inch OLED screen offers a wider view that enables you to navigate through the menu system and switch between modes swiftly. Three detachable 18650-type lithium-ion batteries are said to give a max running time of over 12 hours. Also new for the Crane 2S is a feature that allows you to use the gimbal for vertical shooting, without the need for additional accessories.
04 Meike 25mm f/1.8 A fast prime for bargain price £65/$75 https://meikeglobal.com
THIS BARGAIN little lens is a proper optic (not a plastic toy lens) with a fast f/1.8 aperture for just £65. It’s an APS-C lens that’s designed specifically for mirrorless flange distances, so you’ll need an EOS M-series camera. As you’d expect from a £65 lens, it’s completely manual – so you’ll be adjusting an aperture ring and finding focus the old fashioned way. It also has no electrical contacts, so your Canon won’t receive or record any EXIF data.
05 Hähnel Creative Lantern Kit Soften your Speedlite and spice up colours £60/$TBA www.hahnel.ie
LOOKING LIKE a concertina paper lantern, Hähnel’s new flashgun modifier fits to the front of your Speedlite and fans out to produce a much softer, more diffuse light source. You can use it on its own, or with six different coloured filters included in the kit. The kit comes with the Lantern Diffuser, a filter adapter, a wallet and the blue, green, purple, red, orange and yellow filters. It’s designed to be used with the Hähnel Modus 360 and 600 flashguns, but you will need to buy a separate Module 360 or Module 600 Clamp to fit them. Hähnel does say, however, that these clamps are adjustable and can fit a variety of flashguns, not just Hähnel’s own.
06 AOC U32U1 Monitor My other monitor’s a Porsche £829/$TBA https://eu.aoc.com
AOC’S LATEST photo monitor boasts an extra-large 31.5-inch IPS display with a UHD 3840x2160 resolution. The screen delivers a 10-bit color depth and it covers 135% of the SRGB, 100% of the Adobergb and 98% of the DCI-P3 color spaces – impressive. But this monitor’s most headline-grabbing attribute is that it’s been designed by Studio F. A. Porsche. Design features include a four-sided frameless, slim display that sits atop a shiny eye-catching metal tripod stand. An aluminium backplate houses the cable connectors and remains in the same position when the display is rotated into portrait position, so the cables stay in the same place.