We’ve all experienced this frustrating problem, and it often occurs when shooting in the field: There’s a stubborn filter on your lens that refuses to come off no matter how hard you try. This experience is not only unnerving, but it makes it impossible to change filters when the light or other conditions change.

This dilemma is often caused by using too much muscle when mounting the filter, while other times you were careless and cross-threaded the filter—damaging it’s threads or those on the front of your lens. Even worse is when you drop the camera or bang the lens on a hard object, smashing the filter and the underlying lens mount.

Instead of freaking out when the foregoing occurs, all you have to do is remember the four tricks you’ll learn in today’s video from the Signature Edits YouTube channel— a great source of videos on image-editing, shooting techniques, and solutions to common gear problems. In this episode the founder of the channel Ryan demonstrates what he says are “the four easiest and safest ways to loosen a jammed filter no matter how tight it is.”

One trick works great when the filter is slightly too tight and you can’t get a great grip because of sweaty hands. Another is useful when the filter is super tight and works best when you’re at home. The third is a go-to option when you need even more force to get the job done. Method #4 involve taking a deep breath and doing a bit of surgery, and it’s reserved for those times when the other three fail.

The first trick is super effective when you’re at home and dealing with a filter that extremely tight or slightly damaged. The solution involves employing a soft, rubbery mousepad, but not in the way you might think. Instead of using the mousepad to get a better grip, here’s what you do: Leave the mousepad on your desk, hold the camera with the lens pointed down on the pad, and then press firmly while and rotating the camera to unscrew the filter.

The second approach  is pretty much foolproof when shooting in the field, and you just can’t get a good grip because your hands are wet, dirty or greasy. This simply requires that you pull a thick rubber band out of your bag and stretch it over the outer ring of the filter. Then a quick counterclockwise turn usually does the job.

The last two techniques are increasingly more aggressive but either one or will definitely remove filters that are broken or bent. Just follow Ryan’s advice  and you’ll be able to get the darn thing off without any further damage to the delicate front of the lens.

The very popular Signature Edits YouTube channel offers videos on a wide variety of popular photography topics, so be sure to pay a visit when you have time to explore.

Today’s quick Photoshop lesson is designed for photographers who are frustrated and dissatisfied with how their landscape images turn out after post-processing because results “lack that special something.” The goal is to solve this dilemma with three simple Photoshop hacks for injecting photos with the WOW factor to make them stand out from the crowd.

Instructor Steve Arnold is a landscape pro, image-editing expert, and respected instructor whose tutorials are intended to “help other photographers level-up their Photoshop skills” with straightforward technique for shooters of all skills levels. He says that in this episode “I’ll share fast and easy steps for livening up sunrise photos, sunset scenes, and even daytime landscape images in just a few quick clicks.

Before jumping into his trio of transformational tips Arnold discusses a common a common “editing trap” that sidetracks many inexperienced Photoshop users and prevents their images from connecting with the viewer. As he insists, “this leaves you destined to fail and do justice to the scene you remember seeing in the field.”

The solution relies upon a small shift in how you approach the processing task in general: Instead editing a photo to make it look like when your captured it, try to make it look like it felt when you snapped the shutter. Why? “Because the best photos aren’t those that simply look accurate, they’re that ones that make someone feel something.”

Once you accept this point of view, Arnold’s three Photoshop hacks will enable you to significantly boost the impact of every landscape photo you make. The first tip is to create a hazy glowing light effect that Arnold says, “is as effective as it is stupidly simple to do.” This technique will transform the look and feel of an entire scene, and he walks you through how it’s done while avoiding any potential missteps.

The next trick involves adding a bit of drama to how your Raw file appears, whether that’s to enhance stormy conditions or to accentuate a flat and lifeless sky.  An easy way to do this is by improving contrast in the sky without employing Photoshop’s Curves tool in the conventional manner. Arnold admits that this technique may “seem a bit weird” until you see how well it works.

Arnold says that his third editing may be the most powerful of all because it uses an advanced masking technique, “but in a way that’s 1-click easy.” The real key to this one is understanding how it enables you a quickly achieve a variety of adjustments. And like the others, it’s also somewhat surprising.

We encourage all landscape photographers to become acquainted with Arnold’s instructional YouTube channel, so be sure to check it out..

We also suggest watching the tutorial we featured recently with another unique approach to editing from a pro who has a different definition of getting it right in the camera; namely, shooting the best photograph possible to prepare it for post-processing tweaks and enhancements.

Leica just introduced the D-Lux 8, a 17-megapixel Micro 4/3rds format, advanced compact mirrorless camera with a 3.1X (24-75mm equivalent) zoom and an abundant helping of DNA from the Panasonic LX100 II which was introduced a full 6 years ago and subsequently discontinued. Shutterbug had the opportunity to exercise the D-Lux 8 for a few days before its official introduction. Here is our hands-on appraisal.

Overview
Stymied by why Leica would resurrect a six-year-old design of a long since discontinued Panasonic model, we diligently searched for hidden upgrades and covert improvements that might justify the deliberate resuscitation of an outdated product. Not to tip our hand, but we found little.

The Leica D-Lux 8 is well integrated with Leica’s FOTOS software, that’s clear. And that’s a definite plus point. But its miserable low light, poor high-ISO performance negates this tiny benefit in my well-seasoned opinion.

Key Features
•  Leica DC Vario-Summilux 24-75mm f/1.7-2.8 4 ASPH (equivalent)
•  Micro 4/3rds CMOS sensor
•  21-megapixel measured (17-megapixel functional)
•  2.4-megapixel OLED viewfinder
•  3-inch TFT LCD, about 1,843,200 dots
•  4K video capability
•  DNG, JPEG, DNG+JPEG format options
•  Excellent Leica FOTOS app integration
•  Separate shoe-mount accessory flash (included with camera)
•  Curious winking auto open/close lens cap option
•  Magnesium die-cast body with leatherette covering
•  Nice assortment of cosmetic accessories
•  Close focus to 50cm (19.6 inches)
•  Macro setting: 3cm (wide angle) 30cm (tele zoom)
•  Dimensions: 5.1  x 2.7 x 2.4 inches (130 x 69 x 62mm with lens)
•  Weight (with battery) 14 ounces  (397g)

High ISO Performance
The images speak for themselves. There’s an abnormally aggressive noise reduction operation being performed by the signal processor or supporting ASIC, and unfortunately the results are substandard for Leica. At the bottom of this story you’ll find four straight-from-camera images captured at the distance of approximately four feet, lit by a single candle.

Leica FOTOS
Leica D-Lux 8 connects easily to the Leica FOTOS app. Images, including DNG, and video can be downloaded, edited and shared directly to a smartphone. Most appealing of all, perhaps, the app also provides remote camera operation, including optical zoom. It’s also possible to install camera firmware updates directly within the Leica FOTOS app.

Construction
Superb construction. Despite not sharing Leica’s boisterous “Made in Germany” designation,  the Leica D-Lux 8, made in China, exhibits outstanding build quality, as good as anything you’ll find anywhere in the USA marketplace.

It feels good in the hand, and the just-right weight of 14 ounces make it a delight for all day carry.

Image Quality
Under adequate light, the Leica D-Lux 8 is an excellent performer. Colors are punchy, images are sharp and overall IQ is very good. Low-light performance, disappointingly, is not acceptable. This model runs contrary to every Leica camera we’ve ever used.

Micro 4/3 vs APS-C, Full Frame
To be clear, we like and support the M4/3 format. That said, we must acknowledge that it’s smaller than APS-C. Compared to full-frame, M4/3 is only 26% as large, whereas APS-C is 43% the size of full-frame. Not to say that there’s anything magical about full-frame; we present the comparison here only to provide an objective analysis based in mathematics. The approximate areas of the sensors are as follow: full-frame = 864.0, APS-C = 368.2, Micro 4/3 = 224.9 (i.e., 17.3 x 13.0 = 224.9).

Conclusion
Priced at $1595, the Leica D-Lux 8 does not present a good value. The small 17-megapixel Micro 4/3rds sensor and anemic low-light/high-ISO performance make it a non-starter for me. After all, it’s spec-vs-spec the same as the 2018 Panasonic’s LX100 II, and it’s difficult for me to understand why Leica decided to introduce a camera based on technology that was perhaps considered state of the art six years ago.

Price & Availability
The Leica D-Lux 8 is now available globally at all Leica Stores, the Leica Online Store, and authorized dealers. The suggested retail price is $1595. Retailers set prices independently. For more information, visit Leica’s website.

Scorecard

Pros
• Useful 24-75 zoom range
• Bright OLED viewfinder
• Good sharpness in good light

Cons
• Unsatisfactory performance in low light situations
• Sluggish startup time
• Low value-for-cost proposition

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