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Brightin Star’s New 35mm f/1.4 Prime Lens

Brightin Star has added another manual-focus prime to its lineup with the release of the 35mm f/1.4 for full-frame mirrorless cameras. It is a pretty straightforward lens meant for photographers who prefer compact gear and mechanical controls over autofocus and electronics. The lens is available for Sony E, Canon RF, Nikon Z, L-mount systems and comes in black or silver.

Physically, the lens weighs 218 grams and measures about 42mm in length. The body is entirely metal, with engraved markings and a retro-inspired exterior. The focus ring is manually damped and designed for precise adjustments, while the aperture ring can be switched between clicked and step-less operation, making the lens usable for both stills and video. Additionally, it is equipped with a standard 49mm front lens filter thread.

On the optical side, the lens uses a seven-element, six-group design that includes one high-refractive element and one low-dispersion element. Brightin Star says this double-Gaussian-based layout is intended to deliver consistent sharpness across the frame while keeping distortion and aberrations under control, even at f/1.4. The lens is priced at $159.99 across all mounts.

You can see full details and sample shots on Brightin Star’s website here

The Latest Canon EOS R3 Mark II Rumours

The Canon EOS R3 Mark II is starting to appear more consistently in the rumour cycle, with growing speculation that Canon could be preparing it for a pre-Olympics reveal. While there is still no official confirmation, the timing alone has caught people’s attention. Canon has a long history of aligning professional camera announcements with major sporting events, and the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan would be a very logical moment to introduce or at least tease a new pro body.

What is interesting is how the R3 II is rumoured to fit into Canon’s lineup. Rather than acting as a direct successor to the EOS R1 or trying to replace it, the R3 II is expected to be more specialised. Current chatter points toward either a speed-focused camera built around a global shutter, or a higher-resolution stacked sensor model designed for demanding sports, wildlife, and agency work.

Beyond that, expectations include a newer processor with stronger AI capabilities, refinements to Eye Control AF, a more responsive electronic viewfinder, and expanded video options. If Canon does stick to an Olympic-adjacent announcement, pricing is expected to land below the R1 but definitely in professional territory, likely somewhere around the $6,500 to $7,000 range.

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Weekly Photo Technique Exploration

Welcome to a new section of the magazine where every week we will explore a new photography technique from across various photography genres.

This week’s technique: Abstract Firework Photography

Abstract Firework Photography

The new year is right around the corner, making this an optimal time to brush up on your firework photography skills. However this time, lets do something a bit different, lets focus more on ‘Abstract firework photography’, where you are not trying to show exactly what the fireworks looked like, you want to be using them as raw material to create shapes, textures, and motion that feel closer to painting than photography.

A Different Approach

Most people shoot fireworks trying to be precise → perfect timing, as sharp as possible, frozen motion etc. Abstract firework photography flips that completely. You want to embrace things like blur instead of sharpness, motion instead of precision, overlap instead of isolation, colour and rhythm instead of clarity.

Core Techniques That Make It Abstract

Defocusing on Purpose

This is a technique I already wrote about a few months ago. Instead of focusing at infinity you pull focus slightly (or a lot) out of focus (if you haven’t read my detailed guide, just google ‘‘defocused firework photography’’ and you will find great in depth explanations).

How to do it (a quick recap/introduction):

• Switch your lens to manual focus

• Start focused normally at infinity

• Slowly turn the focus ring back toward closer focus

• Watch the fireworks in live view as you do this

You will see a clear progression:

• Slight defocus means → fireworks look soft but still readable

• More defocus → the bursts turn into glowing discs

• Heavy defocus → pure colour blobs and overlapping shapes

Also keep in mind that every lens behaves differently, so if you have multiple, test early in the night.

An advanced defocusing technique:

→ Pull focus during the exposure. So, you start sharper → slowly defocus; Or you start defocused → slowly bring it closer to sharp

This creates shots that feel like they are melting or morphing as the burst expands.

Long Exposures with Multiple Bursts

With this technique you let multiple fireworks happen inside the same exposure and then stack on top of each other.

How to do it:

• You want to be using bulb mode or a fixed shutter between 2–5 seconds

• Open the shutter just before a burst starts

• Keep it open through multiple explosions

• Close it once the frame feels “full enough”

A couple exposure control tips:

• Use f/8–f/16 to avoid blowing out highlights

• If things get too bright, stop down instead of shortening the exposure

What this will give you:

• Overlapping shapes

• Colour interactions between bursts

• And most importantly, fireworks stop being individual events and become a collection of texture

Intentional Camera Movement (ICM)

Another technique I covered in the past (but that was quite a while ago + not specifically for fireworks). ICM works with fireworks, because they are already isolated points of light against a dark background, meaning they respond incredibly well to camera movement.

How to do it:

• Use a shutter speed between 1–4 seconds

• Start the exposure

• Move the camera deliberately (in different motions) while the shutter is open

Different movements will give you different results:

• Vertical movement → long streaks, looks like light rain or energy beams

• Horizontal movement → smeared layers

• Circular motion → spirals and vortex looking shapes

• Diagonal movements → gives more aggressive, chaotic energy

You can also:

• Move for the entire exposure

• Move only at the start or end

• Pause briefly and then move again

→ Each variation will change the results.

Zoom Blur

Here, instead of moving the camera, you are changing how the lens projects light while the shutter is open (So you are zooming in or out while the shutter is open).

How to do it:

• Use a zoom lens (obviously)

• Set a shutter speed around 1–3 seconds

• Start the exposure

• Smoothly zoom in or out during the shot

  • Zooming in, pulls everything toward the centre

  • Zooming out, pushes light outward

More advanced options:

• Zoom only for part of the exposure, then hold still

• Zoom one direction, pause, then zoom again

• Combine zoom blur + slight camera movement for warped looking spirals

Zoom blur, in essence, turns fireworks into tunnels and ‘energy fields’. I would say it its one of the most visually aggressive techniques.

Editing Approach

Post-processing should support the abstraction, not clean it up.

Some things you definitely will want to do → Increase contrast slightly; deepen blacks to isolate colour; fine-tune saturation carefully; crop aggressively if needed; don’t over-sharpen

Black and white conversions can also be surprisingly powerful here.

Wishing you all a happy new year (soon) and have fun shooting abstract fireworks ;)

The Rest of this Issue is for Premium Subscribers

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