Modern digital cameras are technological marvels capable of creating amazing images and chockfull of innovative features. But dammit, there are a few things manufacturers could add that would enhance the overall electronic photography experience for us all.

To be fair, my daydreams do not consider cost, patent infringement issues or manufacturing limitations. However, I know that all 10 are technologically doable. While these features may not be priorities for everyone, surely each has universal appeal. On some planet.

Furthermore, since I’ve been in the photo industry for about five-dozen dog years, I believe I know whereof I speak. Equally, I have experienced and thoroughly understand the difficulty a marketing individual endures when attempting to convince a camera manufacturer’s R&D team to think more than a couple millimeters outside the proverbial box. I could tell you stories…

1. Apple AirDrop
One reason I appreciate my iPhone is its ability to instantly send images directly to my Mac with two or three screen taps. I would love to be able to do this — in a manner this simple — with my real cameras. Yes, I know all about Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, but nothing is as easy as AirDrop. Besides, I routinely use more than one brand of camera in any given week; it would be great if I could use the same upload procedure with all.

2. Arca-Swiss-Compatible Base Plate
How difficult can it be to build a tripod-mounting baseplate into the bottom of a mirrorless camera? 3 Legged Thing, SmallRig and about 700 largely anonymous ebay sellers offer removeable plates that do the job. Why not build in a mounting plate instead of the 100-year old legacy tripod socket hole? The irony is the only current use for a tripod socket is to screw in a tripod mounting plate. Hello? And if the camera baseplate is plastic, package it with a removable aluminum plate that accommodates the battery hatch, etc. — maybe a pretty one from 3 Legged Thing or SmallRig.

3. Infrared Simulation Mode
The Fujifilm XF10 has a reasonably good monochrome IR mode, but like every other premium Fujifilm compact camera, that model disappeared way too fast, and the price of secondhand units sored to absurd heights. Many cameras have Creative Effects or Film Simulation modes, so the kernel is already there. Some offer Bleach Bypass and/or Cross Process, two effects that must totally flummox the average Jane or Joe who’s never set foot inside a darkroom. So why not IR?

4. Removeable Hand-Filling Grip
Bless Nikon, they have a clue. They occasionally bundle the perfect handgrip with their retro-genius Nikon Zf. SmallRig makes an equally excellent grip for the Nikon Z fc. Photographers more or less adapt their grip to meet the camera’s shape, but that’s backwards. Please, camera makers, give us some grip options if you’re truly focused on ergonomics.

5. Neck Strap That Isn’t a Billboard
I get it, I get it. The camera brand name emblazoned in large letters on the neck strap is free advertising. It’s also loudly screaming “steal me — I’m valuable” to everyone in view. Fujifilm has a better idea; their famous logo is debossed into the wide strap in discreet black-on-black lettering (at least on the X-H1 I own). Why not ship cameras with Peak Design Anchor Links instead of a billboard? If you want me to flash the brand, give me a tee shirt or hoodie instead, size L please. More people will see it, and none of them will be interested in stealing me.

6. Menu-Accessible Tally of Total Shutter Presses
The accumulated total number of shutter actuations is stored in the firmware or metadata of many cameras, but not all. Even when present, the information can require three hands a monkey wrench to access. Why? Not only is it vital information that should be shared when cameras are bought or traded, it’s also important to me as a photographer when I evaluate my equipment closet. Add the data to the Setup menu or on the Firmware Version page.

7. Real-World Maximum ISO Ratings
Many (perhaps most in 2025) digital cameras perform exceptionally well in low light. But some cameras have top ISO ranges that must have been written by a Hollywood Starlet’s imaginative agent. Sure, big numbers may appeal to some lightly-informed consumers, but give us some honest maximums, you know, top ISO ratings where the images do not look like they were shot through a dirty screen door.

8. Single-Shot High ISO Program Mode
Cameras with multi-shot low-light mode options are available, but the entire high density sensor is used. That sensor is sometimes so jampacked with pixels that the pitch (the distance between pixels) is so unavoidably tiny that signal noise is extremely difficult to mitigate. Instead, why not use fewer of the accessible pixels—which would accordingly be farther apart—and deliver better low-light shots, even at the expense of resolution?

9. Optional DNG Format With Your Proprietary Raw
Pentax (Ricoh) and Leica, I salute thee. On at least a few of your cameras, DNG is an available image file storage format. I’m not knocking Canon, Nikon, Fujifilm or any other Raw format, but being able to save pics as a DNG guarantees that I’ll always be able to decode the data. Using Adobe’s free Digital Negative Converter, I can turn your proprietary file formats into universal DNGs, but why should I have to perform the additional steps?

10. Theft-Deterrent Technology
Chucking the screaming camera brand billboard neck strap is a good first step, but let’s go further. I’m not an expert on security technology, but around me I see cars with “kill switches,” easily trackable Apple AirTags, and slash-resistant straps—none of which I find on any camera. Why not build a brand that becomes widely known as “theft unfriendly?” Here’s an idea: unless I tap a password onto the camera’s LCD once a month, the camera imprints “This Camera is Stolen — Notify Police” on every image automatically? Or the LCD goes black and scrolls a similar message in the same giant letters you use to print your logo on the neck strap? Promote the security features and soon the word would get out that it’s just not worth stealing your brand of camera.

Special Message to Camera Product Managers
Filch any or all of these ideas and make them your own. Present them to the R&D honchos at your company’s HQ. They’ll ask you for market data, sales forecasts, statistical analyses and other obstructive material, and of course all you have is my opinion, which means nothing to anyone. But if you’re passionate and persistent, maybe someone will listen. Alternatively, tell me to go pound sand. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve heard that request.

Full Disclosure
All images in this article were created using a variety of AI apps and tools. Who cares, right?

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—Jon Sienkiewicz

Professional photographers spend years studying, practicing, and refining their shooting and editing techniques before really hitting their stride, and this video from an accomplished pro is intended to shorten your learning curve by revealing five “huge mistakes” made by self-taught shooters.

Once you understand this handful of errors and the solutions required, your outdoor photography skills are sure to grow by leaps and bounds. Steve Arnold is an Australian pro whose goal is to “help landscape photographers level-up their in-camera and post-processing techniques to create their best imagery ever.”

As he says, “in this video I’ll explain five mistakes that cause landscape images to be dull, boring, and amateurish.” He then demonstrates solutions to each scenario that will dramatically increase your odds of success. And he does so in barely nine minutes.

Arnold begins with a “massive” mistake that can hold you back and even destroy the credibility of your work. He puts it like this: “There’s a small Goldilocks Zone between under- and over-processing photos.” In short, if adjustments fall outside this zone of awesome editing you can expect your photos to be wreaked.

According to Arnold, the trick is understanding how far you can go during the editing process, and when it’s time to stop. His examples prove the importance of a thoughtful and oftentimes subtle approach to making enhancements that imbue images with a look that’s compelling, realistic, and believable.

Arnold’s discussion begins with “external” factors that need to be satisfied for optimum results. These include time of day, the ambient light available, any glare or reflections on the screen, and the color of light that illuminates the room where you process your work.

In other words, if you finish your edit in a dark room it will appear bright, colorful, and vibrant. But look again in the morning with sun streaming through a window and the same image may look dull and flat as though it needs more work..

Then there are “internal” factors that must be considered if you really want to get things right. Arnold says these “happen in your head because the human brain doesn’t perceive things the same way all the time.” This phenomenon occurs because we tend to become desensitized by consistent stimuli over time.

The remainder of this nine-minute lesson is devoted to helping you overcome these external and internal obstacles so that the only thing that’s consistent is the quality of your work. There’s more great stuff on Arnold’s instructional YouTube channel, so set aside time to explore.

And for some high-level insight on upping your skills further, be sure to watch the tutorial we featured with a successful National Geographic photographer who demonstrates the magic of backlighting for spectacular nature and wildlife photography—and even environmental portraits that stand out from the crowd.

The most common practice among many inexperienced Lightroom users is to start with the Basic adjustment and Tone Curve tools. And some photographers only take one approach or the other because of a misconception that they both do the same thing.

That’s because the Basic adjustment and Tone Curve tools enable you to modify highlights and shadows, as well as blacks and white points to optimize contrast and exposure for a well-balanced image. But here’s the deal: According to instructor Gerrard Needham, there’s a “massive” difference in results if you employ these tools together rather than individually.

Needham is an eclectic pro whose YouTube channel offers straightforward tutorials spanning the gamut from landscape and sports photography techniques to those for portrait and fashion shooters. This episode explains when and how the powerful tools mentioned above behave differently and why “they are only truly effective when they’re used in combination.”

These explanations and intsructions are based upon Needham’s personal experience as well as input from experts at Adobe and other professional sources, and he walks you through his workflow for using Basic Adjustment and Curves tools “to enhance dynamic range in my Raw files and achieve tone and contrast that’s similar to film.”

Of course, you can apply his approach to achieve just about any effect, mood, or look that’s appropriate for the particular task at hand.

Be sure to stick around through the end of the video where Needham switches gears and demonstrates two post-processing techniques for boosting Color Contrast to make photographs far more compelling. There’s a simple approach for novices, and an advanced method that provides more control for experienced users. So just pick an option that works best for you.

Bottom line: In the next 15-minutes your guesswork will be a thing of the past if you follow Needham’s step-by-step advice. Be sure to check out his YouTube channel once you’re done where you’ll find a wide array of instructional videos like this one.

And if, like most of us, you want photographs that exhibit perfect sharpness every time, don’t miss a tutorial we featured with another post-processing expert who demonstrates a  fast-and–foolproof workflow that performs with precision.