Hello Reader, A few weeks ago, I posted a review of the new Shimoda Urban Explore camera pack. I had a lot of good things to say about it, not least because they hit a much lower price point than they had with their previous bags. Moreover, they also offer a 25% discount during the Kickstarter campaign–but this ends in just a few hours. Shimoda bags have been incredibly popular among my readers, but sometimes, their price has been a barrier. If that were the case, this new bag and the huge...
10 months ago • 1 min read
Fun weekend at the Las Vegas F1 Grand Prix! Hello Reader, After leaving Alaska last week, I headed to Las Vegas for the inaugural Las Vegas F1 race. Getting up close and personal with F1 cars is always an incredible experience, and I'm grateful for the hospitality shown to me by the Red Bull and Alpha Tauri teams. If you watched it on TV and knew what to look for, you might have seen me in the back of the Red Bull Racing garage with a headset on later in the race, standing next to a certain...
10 months ago • 1 min read
Nikon Z8 + 600mm f/6.3 VR S Hello Reader, I just returned from a few days in Alaska, where I tested the new Nikon 600mm f/6.3 VR S lens. Honestly, the weather was awful, but that's how it sometimes goes. This is a fascinating lens. It might be as sharp as a 600mm f/4, but less than half the price and weight. Nikon has done a great job with this. If you want to subscribe to the Shutter Muse YouTube channel, I have added some quick tips and behind-the-scenes clips using the 1-minute YouTube...
11 months ago • 1 min read
Hello Reader, When I got my new iPhone 15 Pro Max last week, I was eager to see how to incorporate the phone's new USB-C port into my photography workflow. At first, I experimented with backing up my camera directly to a portable SSD, using the iPhone to manage the files and folders. I'll write more about that next week. In the meantime, I wanted to tell you about another unexpected discovery I haven't seen anyone else discuss. I connected various Sony, Nikon, and Canon cameras to my phone...
12 months ago • 1 min read
Is this the cutest animal you have ever seen, Reader? It's certainly the cutest that I have ever photographed. It's a baby common wombat, photographed a few days ago on a small island off the East Coast of Tasmania. If you'd like to read more about this image, such as what the settings were and which lens I used, I made it the subject for my latest Behind the Shot post: -->> Behind the Shot: Baby Wombat in Tasmania For those that missed last week's newsletter, I also want to remind you to...
over 1 year ago • 1 min read
Hello Reader, Eight years ago, I reviewed the FirstLight backpack from Think Tank. Since then, it's a bag I see nature photographers using everywhere I go. A few months ago, Think Tank emailed me to let me know a new version would be released in April. There was a long list of interesting updates. And, as usual from Think Tank, a couple of features I had never seen on a camera bag before. "Would you like to test it out before the launch?" You bet!! I have used the brand new FirstLight Plus...
over 1 year ago • 1 min read
Hello Reader, I thought sharing my gear list for a trip to Tasmania might be fun. This trip will feature various photographic opportunities, from wildlife to landscapes and astrophotography. I've listed everything I packed and some commentary on my choices, such as why I chose my Sony kit for this trip instead of Nikon or Canon and why I chose specific filters and camera bags. -->> Packing list for Tasmania One more quick thing. Gura Gear has launched two new colors for their popular City...
over 1 year ago • 1 min read
I recently shared details of this image on the site. Hello Reader, I have some interesting information today that I haven't seen shared before. One of my contacts at the largest camera retailer in North America was able to share their internal sales rankings for lenses and cameras for all of the major camera brands. The data reveals interesting information and curious trends, such as that the best-selling lens isn't made by Canon, Sony, Fuji, or Nikon. It's a 3rd party lens! Then there is the...
over 1 year ago • 1 min read
Hello Reader, Lots to share for your weekend reading! In a previous review, I called it the RRS PG-02 gimbal the ultimate all-in-one tripod head. Then, suddenly, it disappeared from the market… until now. I had my hands on a pre-production version of the Mk2 update for my recent trip to California, and my detailed review is now on the site. >> Really Right Stuff PG-02 Mk2 Review Some other new articles for your weekend: The 10 best-selling cameras of 2022 revealed (with surprises) Nikon...
over 1 year ago • 1 min read