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| Images: Leica, SmallRig, Pelican |
We’ve made it to another weekend, which means another edition of our accessory roundup. Today, we’ll be looking at a few lights, some Leica gear, and some rugged accessories, but first, as always, let’s check out what’s on sale.
Sony Sales
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| Photo: Richard Butler |
The Sony a7R V, a camera with a whopping 61MP sensor that makes it great for landscape or product photography, is currently on sale for $400 off its MSRP.
Recent Videos
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| Photo: Richard Butler |
If you don’t need that much resolution, the a7 IV is also on sale for $300 off its MSRP. It’s an older model that doesn’t include some of Sony’s latest tech and refinements, but it’s still a capable stills camera.
Tough travel backpacks
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| Image: Pelican |
Pelican is well known for its ultra-rugged hard cases, but the company has recently started making soft goods as well. The Trvl Aegis collection includes several types of bags, including backpacks, slings, duffel bags and rolling bags; some of them feature a “hybrid” construction, which Pelican says provides the “quality construction and protection of a hard case with the versatility of a soft case.”
Aegis backpack
Aegis rolling duffel
The hybrid packs come in various shapes and sizes, so you’ve got options no matter how light or heavy you pack. If you want a bit more protection, the company has also introduced a new line of hard-sided luggage cases, which it calls Trvl ATX. They don’t seem quite as burly as the company’s classic Air cases but feature creature comforts such as 360-degree spinner wheels, compression straps, and dividing pockets.
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The ATX series sits between the Aegis hybrid bags and the standard Pelican Air cases when it comes to durability. Image: Pelican |
Pelican ATX
The company has also introduced a variety of accessory “Modpaks” that let you add organization to your Trvl bags in the form of toiletry bags, extra pouches, and packing cubes.
Leica’s birthday
Leica is celebrating its 100th year of business this year, and part of the “100 Years of Leica” event is selling a variety of products meant to mark the occasion. Perhaps the most notable are the teddy bears – there were two limited-edition models that have already sold out, designed to look like important members of the Leitz family, as well as a more standard bear holding a plush Leica.
The bear, as well as a variety of other Leica 100 products such as a leather bracelet, magnifier, “100”-emblazoned hotshoe cover and even cufflinks, won’t be available until May. However, there are a few knickknacks currently listed for sale in Leica’s online store: a set of color pencils that comes with a cut-out paper M camera that you can color however you want, a pin, and a 3D wood puzzle. The latter two are sold out but aren’t listed as limited edition, so there’s a possibility there’ll be a restock.
A colorful spotlight
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| Image: Nanlite |
Nanlite’s new COB light acts as an upgrade to its bi-color FC-120B spotlight. The FC-120C has many of the same features, such as the ability to accept USB-C power, Bluetooth app control, and dimming, but it swaps out the LEDs for ones capable of putting out full RGB color.
While this does come with a brightness penalty – the bi-color version can put out 17,450 lux when paired with the included 45° reflector, while the RGB version can only do 12,850 lux – it obviously gives you more options when it comes to what color you want to light a scene with.
The FC-120C uses a proprietary FM mount for light modifiers but comes with an adapter that lets you use accessories made for the industry-standard Bowens mount.
Ultra-fast, ultra-rugged
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| Photo: LaCie |
LaCie, a Seagate-owned brand known for its rugged portable drives, has released a new rubber-coated SSD that’s meant to withstand drops, dust, water, and even, according to the company, “pressure from a 2-ton vehicle.” Appropriately named the Rugged SSD Pro5, it has an IP68 rating and comes in 2 and 4TB variations.
While the Pro5 is undeniably tough, it doesn’t come at the cost of performance. The company says you can expect read speeds of up to 6700 MBps and write speeds of up to 5300 MBps and that you should have no issues editing 8K footage stored on the drive. Part of that is thanks to its Thunderbolt 5 interface, which allows for speeds up to 10,000 MBps. If you don’t have one of the few computers with Thunderbolt 5 ports, it can be used with USB and Thunderbolt 4, though even the latter won’t be capable of hitting those peak speeds.
A splash of color
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| Image: SmallRig |
We’ve covered quite a few SmallRig video lights in the accessory roundup, but none as small and portable as the RF 10C. It’s a 10W light that’s around the size of a flashlight, that the company pitches as being perfect for “backlighting and background light for smartphone video shooting.” It can cast light in four colors, depending on what your scene calls for: “sunset orange,” blue, white and red.
The RF 10C has a built-in battery, rechargeable by USB-C, and comes with 20 gobos that let you cast light in the shape of a heart, window, semi-circle, and more. The light has two standard 1/4″-20 mounting threads, and the extending barrel gives you the option of having a diffuse or narrow beam.
Our DPREVIEW Tribute:
After nearly 25 years of operation, DPReview closed on 10 April 2023. This difficult decision was part of the annual operating plan review that parent company, Amazon, shared earlier this year.
Over the course of 25 years, DP Review built up a reputation as being one of the most informative places to go for information about that new camera or lens you’re after. DP Review began as an independent reviews site based in the UK in 1998, the brainchild of Philip and Joanna Askey, but it was eventually purchased by Amazon in 2007 and relocated over to Seattle in the USA in 2010.
Cheers DPReview – thanks for the great work and content that guided photographers, videographers and techno junkies the world over!
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