#316: Third-party lens love and best newborn photo kit

Neale returns from skiing with legs intact, and now he's off to Bangladesh for his next expedition. Meanwhile, Kev is building his moat ever deeper around Castle Malmesbury, and plugins that will change your creative life have become his adventure: clever stuff, as he explains on the show. Also on the show, questions about presets and recipes for Fujifilm camera systems, a nod to Bob (ChatGPT) and how it can help you build your own recipes and film simulations. We try to work out why Aftershoot culling doesn't always perform as well as we might wish/expect for some genres and shoots, is the X Half worth the RRP, the best way or kit to record audio on your creative travels, street photography dos and don'ts, and what kit do the boys use for shooting video; Fujifilm or other? Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  For links go to the showpage. If you'd like to travel to far-off places with a camera: https://www.thejourneybeyond.uk/

Kev and Neale are lamenting the weather: all hail weather-resistant lenses! Kev's also watching Mr Mercedes from behind the sofa - don't tell him the ending! On the show today, is Fujifilm mirrorless the perfect kit for newborn photography, when is the next FujiCast away day, and will Andreas like Kev's Valentine card enough that he invites The Mullins back into the inner fold? Kev shares why he released presets and Lightroom plugins and how they have changed his business, and why he still can't bear Apple kit! We also talk about third-party lenses and Neale sends Kev to sleep with some tech thoughts about podcasting. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  For links go to the showpage. If you'd like to travel to far-off places with a camera: https://www.thejourneybeyond.uk/

Kev is becoming a lean, mean loving machine! Never mind giving camera advice; we're thinking of launching a new weight-loss cast! You'll understand why when you hear the start of the show. On the show, for the love of megapixels, when is the X-Pro4 going to become a thing? We wonder about other roadmap arrivals and talk about research and development, plus inspiration and age verification. We discuss how that will work and the social media channels where verification could have made the platforms far more child-friendly, pivoting into a new genre with excellent advice for tickling the search engines, and the best lens to take on a wonderful hike across New Zealand. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  For links go to the showpage. If you'd like to travel to far-off places with a camera: https://www.thejourneybeyond.uk/

Neale and Kev reminisce about driving tests; turns out Kev failed his a gazillion times! Also, firmware updates, what would the boys like to see improved in the near future on Fujifilm cameras, Kev sorts Neale's focus failures on the X100V, loaning out your cameras to family, and we ask whether the great Fujifilm zoom lenses can stand up to the quality offered by primes? We choose between particular cameras in the range, and we return to an ole' chestnut conversation; what NOT to do on Instagram, so a slight twist on the theme. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  For links go to the showpage. If you'd like to travel to far-off places with a camera: https://www.thejourneybeyond.uk/

Neale and Kev consider naturist wedding photography in their ageing rock'n'roll years. Unofficially, this becomes a new year's 'spring clean' week for those wishing to drive business through websites and social media, driven by Alex Mealin, who is relaunching his photography business after a six-year hiatus.  Talking of new, Neale launches a new podcast in 2026 called Reflections, which is about this creative life we lead. At the end of today's show, he gives you a preview featuring thoughts on our social media guru, KEV! Also today, Kev's new business plans for the year, why you need to stop playing the algorithm, the advantage of posting carousels, worrying about likes and follow numbers, trust and authority in your online presence and the super-importance of blogging and fresh content. Is shooting in a genre scattergun fashion focused enough and why do we run twilight events at a time of year when it's just plain dark!?! Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  For links go to the showpage. If you'd like to travel to far-off places with a camera: https://www.thejourneybeyond.uk/

A few audio gremlins in the works, but Kev's on the case and normal service will be resumed in 2026, whatever normal is. It's the last show of the year, with our regular break on the way for the holidays. Today, a special edition as we revisit an interview Kevin recorded with Martin Parr who sadly passed last weekend. Also on the show: shooting in black-and-white mode, though editing in colour; lossless compression; rear-screen focus distance accuracy; custom mode shooting; plus we have a book of the week called Layers of India by Mark Seymour. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  For links go to the showpage. If you'd like to travel to far-off places with a camera: https://www.thejourneybeyond.uk/

Stand well back from the podcast player today, because Kev's brought man flu to the airwaves! What he needs is a week-long retreat in Scotland, which Neale shares details about during the show. Today, photographic mishaps, when things don't quite work out as you plan, post professional gig rituals, wedding fair conversions, and we ask the question, are engagement shoots a thing anymore? Also, Ed Sheeran's One Shot show, using flash for nature photography, faster Fujifilm lenses for landscape photography, expanding your photo business into social photography, being genre-specific on a website, photographing weddings for free to gain experience, and marketing to new clients. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  For links go to the showpage. If you'd like to travel to far-off places with a camera: https://www.thejourneybeyond.uk/

Kev has lost a family heirloom, but fortunately, Neale finds the X100V he left on a car roof in Chelsea. Also today, Kev's looking to expand his photographic library, just don't tell Gemma, what makes a good photographic retreat, Kev's studio lighting workflow for portrait work, when to use Auto ISO, shutter speed choice, do you have a Gary in your life, plus correct preset and profile workflow in Lightroom. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  For links go to the showpage. If you'd like to travel to far-off places with a camera: https://www.thejourneybeyond.uk/

Kev returns from a week away looking at the world through the bottom of a pint glass, but all is well, and we're ready for the final push through to the time of year it's too early to mention yet! Your questions and emails into the show answered. Today, should you recycle your memory cards more often to be absolutely safe they won't corrupt? Do we have a strategy for our exits from shooting weddings or even being photographers? Is the wedding industry for photographers at any rate, the slowest it has been since the pandemic took it away for a while? Do you calibrate your monitor? And the big elephant in Kev's duck stream (listen the show that will makes sense), what will the new X-Pro line camera look like?  Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  For links go to the showpage. If you'd like to travel to far-off places with a camera: https://www.thejourneybeyond.uk/

Kev shares his memories (those he can still recall through cocktail-infused eyes) of the Judo boys-on-tour trip to Gibraltar, and Neale is wrestling with a washing machine that's doing its best to flood the house. Questions for the show include decisions on why to shoot wide open, whether a GFX will cause editing problems on an older iMac, if a GFX can be a decent travel companion, and electronic zoom or zooming in Lightroom - what's less destructive? We're still noodling over AI, we talk about Google Maps, cameras with patina, what art forms inspire your photography and why your pictures may be muddy in post-production. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  For links go to the showpage. If you'd like to travel to far-off places with a camera: https://www.thejourneybeyond.uk/