Photography News

© Leica

 

Leica expanded its legendary Noctilux line with the launch of the Noctilux‑M 35 f/1.2 ASPH, the first in the series to feature a 35mm focal length. Built in Wetzlar for M-Cameras with high-resolution sensors, the lens delivered the signature subject isolation, smooth background rendering and film-like quality that photographers love, while offering the ability to focus as close as 50cm. Compact at just 5cm in length and weighing 416g, it combined speed, precision and portability, making it a versatile choice for portraits, reportage and street photography. The Noctilux-M 35 f/1.2 ASPH is available worldwide through Leica Stores, the Leica Online Store and authorised dealers, priced at £7,700 / €8,950 / $9,650.

 

From Leica

Since first being introduced in 1966, the name ‘Noctilux’ has represented the pinnacle of optical craftsmanship at Leica. The name is made up of the Latin words ‘noctu’ and ‘lux’, meaning ‘night’ and ‘light’, and refers to the exceptional speed of this lens series. With a maximum aperture of up to f/0.95, Noctilux lenses are considered to be the epitome of optical development, allowing creative possibilities beyond the ordinary and delivering images with an unrivalled visual aesthetic. With the new Noctilux-M 35 f/1.2 ASPH., Leica Camera AG is presenting the first Noctilux M-Lens in the company’s history to feature a 35 mm focal length.

Like all Noctilux lenses, the latest addition to the family impresses with its exceptional speed and superior imaging performance. The new, compact Noctilux-M 35 f/1.2 ASPH. produces clear, high-contrast images characterised by a distinctive look. The shallow depth of field at a wide aperture precisely separates subject and space, creating a velvety soft bokeh and lending images tangible depth as well as a cinematic atmosphere. Stopping down the aperture allows you to selectively increase the depth of field. A floating element within the complex optical construction ensures consistent performance across the entire focusing range, from the close focus distance to infinity.

 

© Leica

 

Up until now, the strength of Noctilux glass has been leveraged exclusively for 50 mm and 75 mm focal lengths, but the new Noctilux-M 35 f/1.2 ASPH. now makes this strength available for the versatile 35 mm focal length for the very first time. The perfect combination of a wide aperture and natural perspective makes it ideal for outstanding portrait, reportage, available-light and street photography. Subjects are clearly in focus thanks to precise separation, while retaining their context thanks to harmonious transitions to the background.

This new lens is the first Noctilux to feature an extended close focus distance down to 50 cm. When used with the new Leica M EV1 and its high-resolution integrated electronic viewfinder, focusing is particularly convenient across the entire focusing range. M-Cameras with a rangefinder can focus to a distance of 70 cm via the optical viewfinder. In the close-up range of 70–50 cm, focusing is carried out via Live View on the rear LCD panel or the Visoflex 2 clip-on viewfinder. The large focusing angle of the Noctilux-M 35 supports this, thereby enabling precise and sensitive work.

 

© Leica

 

The new Leica Noctilux-M 35 f/1.2 ASPH. has been optimised for M-Cameras with high-resolution image sensors, in addition to having been completely redesigned and handcrafted in Wetzlar. Decades of experience and state-of-the-art production technologies have gone into its development. This includes processing special glass materials and aspherical lens elements manufactured in Wetzlar using innovative Precision Glass Moulding (PGM) technology, which shapes lenses in a highly precise process, achieving exceptional quality standards. The optical design comprises ten lenses in five groups, including three aspherical lenses, and a floating element which ensures consistent imaging performance over the entire focusing range. The integrated lens hood reduces glare and reflections, ensuring high contrast and brilliant colour rendering, even with backlighting. Measuring just 5 cm in length, with a diameter of 6.5 cm, and weighing only 416 g, the new lens also impresses with its remarkably compact size.

The Leica Noctilux-M 35 f/1.2 ASPH. will be available worldwide as of the 29th of January 2026 from Leica Stores, the Leica Online Store and authorised dealers. The recommended retail price is £7,700.00 (incl. VAT.) / €8,950 (incl. VAT.) / $9,650.00.

A lens cap will also be available separately for an RRP of £70.00 / $95.00.

For more information, please visit the Leica website.

 

At this time of year, across the UK, snow can start appearing in our landscape. But, it's not the easiest of subjects to photograph, so we have answered some of the most frequently asked questions to help you out when snow's filling your landscape shots. 

1. Why does the snow look blue/grey in my shot?

This is because your camera's metering system is fooled by the highly reflective tones of the white snow, which makes the image appear darker than it should be. Blue snow in pictures occurs where the snow is receiving no direct sunlight but is simply being lit by the sun reflecting off the blue sky (hence the cast). 

All cameras have built-in metering systems that are designed to deliver a perfect picture assuming the contrast range is normal. They do this by scrambling the tones and then adjust so the scrambled colour brightness is mid-grey or average. This is fine when the subject has a wide tonal range with everything from black to white being present, but when the subject is predominantly white, such as snow, the camera underexposes so that the white becomes grey.

If you are using a compact camera it most likely has a snow scene mode and by switching to this, your once grey snow should appear white. For those using more advanced cameras, you can get around this by adjusting the exposure compensation setting to either plus 1 or two stops depending on the amount of snow in the picture. If your camera has the exposure lock feature, which is usually set by half-pressing the shutter button, point it at a mid-tone in your scene, lock the exposure then recompose your shot.

To fix a blue cast in-camera you'll need to switch your white balance settings to either shade or custom if you want to create a custom white balance from the snow. If working in sunny conditions the snow shouldn't appear blue but your shadows may but if you try and correct the image in-camera to remove the cast from the shadows you'll alter the colour of the snow so generally, it's best to leave the blue in the shadows so your snow is crisp and white. Plus, there's always the option to adjust the image in your image editing software once home. 

 

 

2. Why does my snow shot look boring? 

When snow covers most of your shot it can make the scene look a little bland, especially with a snow-filled sky as there won't be that much definition between the sky and the ground. Try stopping down a little to add more depth to your shot, or if this doesn't work, try adjusting your position to include a stone wall perhaps, or a lone tree, to add a little more to the shot. To darken light skies so your shots are a little more moody fit a graduated filter to the front of your lens. 

 

3. Falling snow is ruining my shot. How can I minimise the appearance of the flakes? 

The simple answer to this is to wait until it stops snowing. If this is not an option, make sure you're not using your flash, as this can cause the light to reflect off snowflakes nearer to the lens, causing the rest of your shot to look really dull and grey. A better way to capture snow falling is to put your camera on a tripod and use slower shutter speeds. 

 

4. Why has my lens steamed up?

This is because you've moved from a warm house to the freezing cold outside, resulting in condensation. To avoid this, let your camera acclimatise in its case or bag for a while. Don't be tempted to wipe the lens with a cloth as this will cause smudges and marks which will spoil your image. 

   

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The UK’s most exciting photography Convention is back — bigger, bolder and packed with more inspiration, education and industry powerhouses than ever before.

 

The 2026 London Photo Convention & Trade Show brings thousands of photographers together under one roof for four days of hands-on learning, live demos, exclusive deals, and world-class speakers. If you’re serious about your photography — this is where you need to be.

London Photo Trade Show: 15–17 January — Meet the Biggest Brands in Photography

Get ready for three electric days on the Trade Show floor, with leading camera and lighting brands showcasing their latest kit. Expect:

• Hands-on access to the newest cameras & lenses
• Live demonstrations from top pros
• Expert advice from manufacturers
• Show-only offers and exclusive discounts
• Retailers showcasing must-have accessories

Whether you shoot weddings, portraits, landscapes, content for social, or you’re just passionate about photography – the Trade Show has something for you.

Entry: £10 on the day (free if you pre registered before Tuesday)

Get Your Tickets Now!

 

 

Over 200 Hours of Training with Masterclasses & Superclasses

If you're hungry to learn, the Convention’s education programme is unmatched.

Masterclasses

Dive into a huge lineup of practical, inspiring and business-boosting sessions covering:

• Portraits
• Weddings
• Lighting
• Wildlife
• Macro
• Post-production
• Creative storytelling
• Branding
• Business growth for photographers

Top photographers, award-winning educators and industry leaders share the techniques and insights that elevate your photography fast.

Superclasses

Want hands-on training with the best in the business?

The Superclasses deliver small-group, practical workshops with some of the most respected names in the industry. Limited spaces — these sell out fast every single year.

 

 

Exclusive Offer

Save 10% with code epz10 on all class tickets!

  The Photography Event You Simply Can’t Afford to Miss

If you want to improve your skills, grow your business, network with other creatives and immerse yourself in the world of photography — this is your event.

 

Save the Dates

Full Convention: 14–17 January 2026

Photo Trade Show: 15–17 January 2026

Venue: Novotel London West, Hammersmith, W6 8DR

 

Join thousands of photographers for the ultimate start to 2026.

Masterclass Passes and Superclasses available now.

Book your tickets now!

 

The Fstoppers community is brimming with creative vision and talent. Every day, we comb through your work, looking for images to feature as the Photo of the Day or simply to admire your creativity and technical prowess. In 2026, we're featuring a new photographer every month, whose portfolio represents both stellar photographic achievement and a high level of involvement within the Fstoppers community.

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When it comes to action and sports photography, one of the main problems you face is your subject moves quick and they don't tend to stay in the same place for very long. As a result it can be a bit of a challenge to try and get a sharp photo where your subject is in focus, however there are a few things you can do to capture your moving subject perfectly.
 

Switch To AF

Most cameras feature quick and accurate AF (Auto Focus) systems, making them great for capturing fleeting moments or action shots. Of course, how fast your subject is moving, how much light is around and how quickly your lens can focus will come into play but at least your chances of capturing a sharp shot will be increased with the help of Auto Focus.
 

Manual Focus

You can try and focus manually but this isn't particularly easy to do with fast moving subjects but it can be useful if you plan on pre-focusing.
 

Pre-Focus

This is a little more tricky but once you get the hang of it, it can be a useful trick to know. It's not a very useful technique for subjects whose movement is unpredictable but get at the side of a track or a road where you know a car will have to pass through a certain point and it's extremely helpful.

Written down the technique sounds simple: Switch to manual, focus on a spot you know your subject will pass through, lock your focus and then just before you know your subject's about to pass through the point you focused on, hit the shutter. You need to hit the shutter just before as shutter lag can cause you to miss the shot if you hit it at the point they pass through your focus point.
 

Continuous Shooting

To further increase your chances of capturing your subject as they pass through your point of focus, switch to continuous shooting mode to capture a series of shots, increasing your chances of capturing the shot you're looking for. Again, start shooting just before your subject goes through your focus point and you should get at least one shot that's spot on.

Correct Shutter Speed

You don't want to use a shutter speed that's too high as this will just freeze everything and the shot will look static but you don't want to go too low either as you'll just end up with a shot that's full of blur. Sometimes lots of blur can give you something that's a little more artistic but most of the time it's worth firing off a few test shots to get your shutter speed spot on before the main action starts.

 

You've read the technique now share your related photos for the chance to win prizes: Photo Month Forum Competition  

There's a particular kind of cognitive dissonance that happens when you spend months researching dynamic range charts, reading MTF curves, and comparing autofocus systems, only to find yourself genuinely excited about a plastic camera with a 1.6-megapixel sensor that hangs from your keychain. I've spent years writing about camera technology for this site, dissecting the differences between sensors and explaining why certain lenses outperform others. And yet, some of the most enjoyable photography I've done recently has been with cameras that would make any spec-sheet enthusiast wince.

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With black & white camera modes, apps that can turn your phone shots mono and various black & white editing techniques available, black & white photography is more accessible than ever but if you've never produced a black & white shot, why should you? Well, we've put together a quick list of reasons that may just persuade you to give black & white photography a go, plus we've linked to various black & white tutorials as well as mentioned a few tips further down in the article.

 

1. It Makes You Think About Composition More

 

As Robin Whalley said in a previous article: "To achieve a good black and white image you need to have separation between the elements in the frame. If you can’t distinguish or find it difficult to distinguish between the elements the image will lack impact and the viewer will struggle to understand it."

With this in mind, it makes you search harder for an interesting composition that includes strong foreground interest. Strong shapes and lead-in lines work well as do other strong, distinctive shapes further back in the composition that the eye can easily identify even when everything has a similar tone.
 

2. Interesting Take On Snow Photography

 

As most of us have seen snowfall over the last week, now's a good time to talk about photographing snow in a black & white format. Black & white snow-filled landscapes will not only give you something a little different to what the majority of people photograph but it can also stop shots with pale, snow-laden skies from looking boring and lacking in contrast. As mentioned above, contrast is important so look for strong recognisable shapes that can be easily isolated from the white background. For more tips on black & white snow photography, take a look at John Gravett's article.

 

3. Not As Distracting

 

As colour's stripped away and shots become reliant on tones, texture and contrast, everything seems simpler and there are not as many distractions to contend with. Focus falls on your main subject more easily and when shot right, can have a lot of impact.

 

4. Helps Create Mood

 

Mood essentially relates to the lighting in a shot and when you shoot on a cloudy, unsettled day, working in black & white will give you a shot that's far more foreboding than a shot in colour. It's far easier to create a sense of a dark and brooding landscape with black & white than it is colour.
 

5. Soft Or Strong? 

 

During post-production you can Darken certain areas of your shot while lightening other areas, creating contrast as you do. You can create a soft black & white effect or go all out and apply one that's strong. There are various methods for doing this including applying an S-Curve or using the dodge and burn tools. Take a look at these tutorials for more tips:

• How To Turn A Coloured Landscape Mono
• Make A Moody Black & White In Photoshop Elements
• Turning A Coloured Image Black & White
• Create Black And White Images In Paint Shop Pro
• Convert Your Images To Mono With Gradient Maps

   

You've read the technique now share your related photos for the chance to win prizes: Photo Month Forum Competition  

Decades ago, when a new iteration of your favorite camera model was released, you looked forward to seeing the meaningful improvements the new model offered. Today, the Mk II version of a camera is likely to be almost indistinguishable from its predecessor. The only time the new offering is unique is when that camera was made by Leica.

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A pet is just like any other subject in terms of photography technique - composition, focusing and exposure being the three main areas to perfect, the fourth, and most problematic, is getting subject participation. If you position your cat/dog then get your camera out their inquisitive nature will drive them to come right up to the camera and sniff the lens. You move away and they'll follow. Sit them in a convenient spot and they'll bounce back. Frustrated? You will be! 

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You can, of course, spend time training them to obey, but the fact of life is most of us have a pet as a companion and training is the last thing on the agenda. So, what can you do? Here are a few basic tips to get you started: 

  1. Give The Dog A Bone

Give your pet something to take their mind of the camera. The only problem now is they will be chewing or playing around and are highly unlikely to look at you, let alone the camera.

 

2. Use A Squeaky Toy

Use a squeaky toy to attract their attention. Place it behind the camera so they look in the right direction. The bone they're chewing will be more interesting, but at least they will look up long enough for you to fire the shutter. Act quickly and make sure you get the shot in the first or second take as they'll soon get wise or bored of your attention-seeking activity.

 

 

3. Wait Until The Right Moment 

Cats and dogs are easy to catch out when they are sleepy. Time for the squeaky toy again. Just as they're nodding off squeak the toy and you'll get a moment of alertness. Which means you can get two shots: one where they're alert and the other relaxed. 

 

4. Ask A Friend

You could ask someone else to entertain the pet while you walk around taking the photos. Try to keep the person out of the frame and the shots will be more natural.

 

5. Exposure Issues?

Take care when photographing an animal with dark or light fur as their coats can fool your camera's meter. A pet with a white coat can end up looking dull as the camera thinks the scene is too bright while a pet with a black coat can end up looking grey due to your camera thinking the scene is darker than it is. If you find this to be a problem just use exposure compensation to use a + or - exposure depending on your circumstances.

 

6. Focusing Tips 

As with people photography, focus on the eyes for the attention-grabbing shots but don't forget a dog with a long snout will need more depth of field when shooting close up to prevent the tip of the nose is out of focus. Take your shots using a small aperture to avoid this or shoot when their head is turned to one side.

 

 

7. Keep An Eye On Your Backgrounds

Watch out for bright backgrounds that could affect the meter reading. Try to take the shot with a neutral background that isn't distracting and, like people photography, avoid trees and telegraph poles growing out of heads.

 

8. Capture Action Shots

Try using a slow shutter speed with flash and panning with the animal as it moves to create abstract slow sync flash shots that create a sense of action. You can also use flash to freeze the animal as it moves through your frame. For a shot of a dog jumping into the air, for example, follow the dog through its tracks and fire the shutter when its feet are off the ground. Again, it helps if you have a friend with you to help encourage the dog to do tricks while you move around and capture the action.

 

9. Using Flash

Humans are not the only ones who suffer from devilish looking eyes when the flash is used. Pets eyes appear bright green when flash has reflected. Just as you do with people, you can remove the unwanted colour from the eyes in Photoshop.

 

 

10. Photographing Fish

If you have fish in a tank you need to move up close to the glass to avoid reflections and use the natural light to take the photo. In daylight, the shots will come out okay but shoot under the light used to illuminate the tank and you'll get a colour cast.

If you have to step back from the tank to photograph the fish from a distance you will get reflections from the glass. In such cases, a polarising filter will help prevent reflections. Attach it to the camera and rotate until the reflections are minimised and then take the photo. You may find shooting from an angle to the glass will work best.

Fish in outdoor ponds can benefit from the use of a polariser too. Take them when they are near to the surface - feeding time is ideal, and use the polariser to kill the reflections. Shoot from an angle to allow some depth to the fish.

Even in summer, the darkness of the water will make the shutter speed quite slow so shoot when the fish are still and hold the camera very steady to prevent camera shake when working hand-held. 

 

11. Capturing Shots Of Smaller Pets

Let's not forget our small friends such as hamsters guinea pigs and mice who are all cage based and eager to bury themselves in straw. 

The main problem with these pets is one, getting close enough and two, avoiding a picture framed with bars. A good option is to photograph the creature in someone's hand, which gets over the cage problem. Then you need a lens that will go close enough so you can fill the frame with the animal. 

If you don't trust the hand approach move really close to the cage and use a wider aperture to throw the bars out of focus. Or shoot through the cage with the door open. 

Try experimenting with slow speeds on a hamster running on a wheel as you may be able to get the legs blurred and the head sharp, giving a great sense of movement. A shutter speed of around 1/8th sec should be about right for this.

 

You've read the technique now share your related photos for the chance to win prizes: Photo Month Forum Competition  

Every year, I make it a ritual to look back at the photographs I’ve taken—not just to see if I ended up with a set of images I’m actually happy with, but to understand what they say about me. Reviewing a year’s worth of images can reveal patterns you didn’t know were there: the subjects you’re drawn to, the way you use light, the emotions you chase. It’s an honest reflection of who you are as a photographer—and who you’re becoming.

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