credits: DxO DxO’s new Nik Collection 9 is here. It is the latest version of the company’s long-running suite of photo editing plugins, and this update focuses on AI-assisted masking and more flexible editing controls. The collection still works both as a standalone app and as a plugin for software like Photoshop and Lightroom Classic, but the main thing this time is improving how you handle local adjustments rather than changing the overall workflow. The biggest additions are the two new AI-based masking tools. One is a depth mask, which analyses the scene and lets you apply edits based on distance from the camera, so you can adjust foreground, midground, and background separately without doing everything manually. The other is an object selection mask, which works more like modern subject selection tools, letting you isolate parts of a photo by hovering over them or drawing a box around them. Both include edge feathering and support multiple masks at once, and everything runs locally on your device. These tools build on Nik’s existing U Point system, which has been a core part of how it handles selective edits for a long time. There are also a few new other extras. A colour grading panel now gives you separate control over shadows, midtones, and highlights, along with shortcuts to adjust them together. Three new filters have been added as well, including Halation for a film-style glow, Chromatic Shift for colour channel effects, and Glass, which overlays textured patterns. Another change is the addition of blending modes, with 18 options available across filters, which affects how edits stack and interact. Nik Collection 9 is available as a one-time purchase for $179.99, with upgrade pricing for existing users.

credits: Brightin Star Brightin Star has introduced a new AF 12mm f/2.8 ultra-wide-angle lens for full-frame mirrorless cameras, built around a design that tries to balance field of view with more controlled distortion. At 12mm, the lens delivers a 122.5-degree angle of view, which sits in ultra-wide territory, but unlike many lenses at this focal length, it is not designed to produce a fisheye-style photo. Instead, the goal here is to keep straight lines more intact, which is generally more useful for things like architecture photography. The optical construction is relatively complex, using 15 elements in 11 groups, including high refractive index elements, extra-low dispersion glass, and aspherical elements. That kind of setup is typically meant to reduce chromatic aberration and keep image quality more consistent across the frame, especially toward the edges where ultra-wide lenses tend to struggle. There is also a multi-layer coating applied to help manage flare and contrast when shooting in high-contrast scenes or into direct light. Autofocus is handled by a stepping motor, which is usually chosen for smoother and quieter operation, particularly in video use. The lens also includes a minimum focusing distance of 0.3 meters, allowing for close-up wide-angle compositions where perspective distortion becomes more pronounced. Physically, it comes in at around 96.6mm in length and 499 grams. The Brightin Star AF 12mm f/2.8 will be available for Sony E and Nikon Z mounts, although pricing has not been confirmed yet.

credits: Leica Leica Camera AG and Gpixel, a leading global provider of CMOS image sensors, have announced a new strategic partnership. The two companies are working together to co-develop a new high-performance image sensor for next-generation Leica cameras. That lines up with what Leica chairman Andreas Kaufmann mentioned late last year, when he hinted that the company was getting back into sensor development after relying more on off-the-shelf solutions in recent models. Rather than building everything in-house, Leica is taking a more practical approach by teaming up with Gpixel, which already develops sensors across a range of industries, including imaging. The goal is to create a custom sensor designed specifically for Leica, instead of adapting something that already exists. There are no hard technical details yet, but both companies are pointing toward improvements in areas like dynamic range, colour reproduction, low-light performance, and overall image quality. Gpixel’s existing lineup includes BSI sensors, stacked designs, and even full-frame global shutter sensors, so there are quite a few possible directions this could go. There is still no timeline for when this will show up in an actual camera, but the partnership itself is notable, especially in a market where Sony and Canon dominate sensor development.

credits: Insta360 Back in January, Insta360’s CEO Jingkang “JK” Liu shared a teaser photo on Weibo that showed two unreleased products, but did not say much about either of them. Now, a new leak is starting to fill in some of the gaps, and it looks like one of those products could be a pretty unusual entry into the Micro Four Thirds space. Leaked photos, which briefly appeared on Bilibili before being taken down, show what looks like a new Insta360 camera built around a 20MP Four Thirds sensor (Sony IMX472). That is the same sensor used in cameras like the OM System OM-1 II and OM-3, with a native resolution of 5280 × 3956 pixels. The camera itself does not appear to have an electronic viewfinder, instead relying on a fully articulating flip-up touchscreen, which lines up more with Insta360’s existing product style. Interestingly, the design also includes physical control dials for aperture and exposure compensation, along with a dedicated photo/video switch and playback button, which is something the company has not really done before. On the software side, the interface looks similar to what Insta360 uses on the Ace Pro lineup, and the camera is said to support face and animal detection autofocus. A few sample shots have also leaked, showing the expected 20MP output (you can see one sample photo up top).

credits: Viltrox Viltrox has released a new version of its AF 35mm f/1.2 LAB lens, this time without the built-in TFT/LCD screen. Aside from that change, the specs appear to be essentially identical to the original version. It is available for Sony E and Nikon Z mounts, and like before, it is positioned as a high-end, fast full-frame prime. The lens uses a 15-element, 10-group optical design, including 5 ED elements, 3 high-refractive index elements, and 2 aspherical elements. That kind of setup is meant to control chromatic aberration and maintain sharpness across the frame, especially wide open at f/1.2. The aperture runs from f/1.2 to f/16 with an 11-blade diaphragm, which should help produce smoother out-of-focus areas. Minimum focusing distance is 0.34 meters, with a maximum magnification of 0.17x, and the lens takes 77mm filters. It is not a small lens either, measuring around 122mm in length and weighing roughly 920g to 970g, depending on the mount. Autofocus is driven by Viltrox’s Hyper VCM (Voice Coil Motor) system, designed for fast and relatively quiet operation, with support for tracking and video use. The lens also features internal focusing with dual floating elements, which helps maintain performance at closer distances. Build-wise, it is an all-metal construction with weather sealing and multi-layer coatings to reduce flare and ghosting. Controls include a de-clickable aperture ring, an AF/MF switch, and two customisable function buttons.

credits: Glyph Memory and storage device manufacturer Glyph is expanding beyond external solid state drives and into camera memory with the announcement of a series of CFexpress Type B cards. It is a move we have already seen from other storage brands like OWC. The new cards fall under the Capture+ series and are based on the newer CFexpress 4.0 standard, with capacities ranging from 256GB up to 4TB. The lowest capacity card, the 256GB, appears to be more designed to support photographers and has a sustained write speed of 550 MB/s, while the 512GB jumps to 1,100 MB/s, the 1TB to 2,100 MB/s, and the 2TB and 4TB versions go up to 3,000 MB/s. Peak speeds are listed at 3,700 MB/s read and 3,500 MB/s write across the lineup, but those are not always the most useful numbers in real-world shooting. All cards are also optimised for thermal performance inside a camera, which matters when you are shooting long bursts or high-bitrate video. It is worth mentioning that right now no camera is capable of taking advantage of the peak read and write speeds that CFexpress 4.0 offers, as only CFexpress 2.0 is currently supported, but the cards are backward compatible, so they will still work in existing cameras. The higher bandwidth mainly helps when transferring files, where offloading large photo or video files should be noticeably quicker. The cards also include basic durability features like resistance to shock, dust, and x-rays, along with safeguards to protect data during power loss. Pricing has not been announced yet.

credits: Thypoch Thypoch looks ready to officially show its new 24–50mm f/2.8 at NAB 2026, and it marks a pretty significant step for the company. This is its first autofocus zoom lens, and notably, one of the first Chinese full-frame constant-aperture f/2.8 zooms with autofocus. The company has been teasing the lens for a few weeks, but is now starting to share more concrete details, giving us a clearer idea of how it fits into the lineup. The lens covers a 24–50mm focal range with a constant f/2.8 aperture, putting it in the same category as compact standard zooms rather than the more common 24–70mm range. It is designed for full-frame cameras and will be available for Sony E, Nikon Z, and Leica L mounts. One of the more interesting design choices is the internal zoom mechanism, meaning the barrel does not extend while zooming, which can help with balance and durability. In terms of controls, the lens includes a manual aperture ring (f/2.8 to f/22), along with a dedicated AF/MF switch, a focus ring, and a customisable function button. The build is described as compact and lightweight, using a modern plastic construction instead of the metal designs Thypoch is known for, with diagonal rubber grip rings for handling.

credits: Cosina Less than two months after introducing the Nokton Vintage Line 75mm f/1.5, Cosina has announced another 75mm option for Leica M-mount users, this time going in a very different direction. The new Voigtländer APO-Skopar 75mm f/2.8 is built around a much more compact design, measuring 44mm in length and weighing 191 grams. That makes it closer in size to a typical 50mm lens, and the narrow 54mm barrel is designed so it does not block the rangefinder frame lines, even with the included metal hood attached. On the Inside, the lens uses an apochromatic optical design, meant to reduce axial chromatic aberration to near-zero levels. The construction consists of seven elements in four groups, including four abnormal partial-dispersion elements, which are typically used to better control colour fringing and improve overall image clarity. The lens also features a 10-blade aperture diaphragm, which should help with smoother rendering in out-of-focus areas, although at f/2.8 it is not really designed as a bokeh-heavy lens. As expected for a VM lens, everything here is fully manual. The focusing system uses a metal helicoid with a rangefinder coupling mechanism, allowing for precise manual adjustments, with a minimum focusing distance of around 0.7 meters depending on the camera. Like most M-mount lenses, it can also be adapted to full-frame mirrorless systems without issue. The lens is set to launch in May, with pricing in Japan listed at around 90,000 yen (about $566), though final global pricing has not been confirmed yet. You can see full details and sample shots on Cosina’s website here

credits: Blackmagic Design Adobe Lightroom is getting an unexpected new competitor, and it is coming from Blackmagic Design. With the latest update, DaVinci Resolve 21 is adding a dedicated Photo page, bringing a full set of still image editing tools into software that has traditionally been focused on video editing and colour grading. The main difference here is that Resolve is bringing its node-based grading system over to still images. Instead of stacking edits in layers like most photo apps, everything is built through nodes that can be arranged in series or parallel, which gives a bit more flexibility when building complex edits. You can apply different adjustments to specific parts of an image or reuse the same look across multiple photos using shared nodes. It is also non-destructive, and the software supports RAW files, LUTs, and third-party plugins through Resolve FX and Open FX, so it is not just a basic add-on feature. There are also a few supporting tools around that. AI features like Magic Mask now work on photos, making it easier to isolate subjects, while AI UltraSharpen can be used to enhance detail or upscale images. On the organisation side, there is a LightBox view with filtering options, plus support for importing Lightroom catalogs, which makes switching over a bit easier. Tethered shooting is included too for some cameras, with direct control over things like ISO and exposure. The public beta is already available for free, and the full version is expected to cost $295. You can see full details on Blackmagic Design’s website here

credits: Westsott Westcott has announced the S18 Mini, a compact and basic on-camera flash. It delivers 18Ws of output with a guide number of 16 at ISO 100, which puts it a bit above what you would get from a built-in flash, but still well below a full-size speed-light. It uses a single-pin hot shoe, so it will work across different camera brands, but there is no TTL or any kind of automatic exposure control. Everything here is manual. Power can be adjusted across 19 steps over a 7-stop range, with 0.3-stop increments, so you do get fairly precise control, but you will obviously have to dial it in yourself. The flash head tilts from -3° to 72°, which allows for some basic bounce lighting, although there is no horizontal swivel, so you are limited to vertical adjustments. Recycle times are listed between 0.01 and 2.5 seconds, depending on the power level, which is about what you would expect for something in this range. It runs on a built-in 3.7V 1250mAh battery, charged over USB-C, and is rated for up to 500 full-power flashes per charge. It also comes with a set of colour gels, including diffusion and CTO options, which can slightly change the look of the light. Weight comes in at 100 grams, with pricing set at $40 You can see full details on Westcott’s website here

credits: Viltrox Viltrox is teasing a pretty wide range of new gear ahead of NAB Show 2026, taking place April 18–22. One of the main highlights is the next step for its EVO series, including new APO lenses that are expected to be officially announced during the show. These are meant to improve optical performance while still keeping things practical for both photo and video work. Another big focus is the L-mount lineup, which Viltrox has been building up more seriously lately. At NAB, the company plans to show the AF 16mm f/1.8 L, along with several unreleased lenses for the system. That suggests Viltrox is starting to treat L-mount as a long-term platform, especially for people shooting on Leica, Panasonic, and Sigma bodies. At the same time, its LAB and Pro series lenses will also be on display, giving a closer look at what the company is doing on the higher-end. On the video side, Viltrox is also expanding its cinema lineup, with new focal lengths in the EPIC series and Raze DL-mount lenses built for the DJI Ronin 4D. There is also the NexusFocus adapter, which adds autofocus capability to cinema setups, something that is still not very common. Beyond lenses, Viltrox will also be showing lighting and monitoring gear.

credits: Panasonic New Panasonic rumours are starting to circulate, with updates expected across both full-frame and Micro Four Thirds systems. On the full-frame side, the LUMIX S9 II is said to stick with its compact, lightweight design but fix some of the main complaints about the original. The addition of a hot shoe is a big one, along with improvements to the overall build, which should feel more solid and less “plastic” this time around. The LUMIX S5 III is expected to move further into flagship territory as a true hybrid camera. The main focus here is a new AI-based autofocus system, which could be important if Panasonic finally improves its tracking performance to match competitors. For video, the LUMIX S1H II is rumoured to push things further with 6K and 8K internal recording, along with ProRes RAW support, which would place it in the high-end video space if those specs turn out to be accurate. At the same time, Panasonic does not seem to be leaving its other lines behind. The LX100 III is rumoured to return as a compact option, while on the Micro Four Thirds side, both a GX9 successor and the next-gen GH8 are said to be in development. None of this is officially confirmed yet, but it looks like Panasonic has a pretty active period ahead.