Photo news: GoPro competition, luxury Leica and drone verdict

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Nothing is allowed anymore. You could come to this childish conclusion if you only take a superficial look at the Federal Court of Justice's ruling on drone photos. After all, it is precisely about photos that were not taken from the surface. We have already reported the whole story in detail, so here is just this much: anyone who takes commercially used photos of works of art that would otherwise not be readily visible must share the revenue with the rights holders.

In this particular case, it was about a travel guide for which pictures were taken by drone that were of a very good standard. The photographers invoked the freedom of panorama, which the Federal Court of Justice has now not severely restricted, but only slightly. Similar rulings have long applied to paparazzi shots with a ladder over a hedge and other contortions. You should really read the conditions carefully, the rough rule of thumb is: if the art is the main motif, you are not allowed to use any special aids. Only what an amateur with a camera in his hand – and not in the sky – would see is covered by the freedom of panorama.

Law must keep pace with technology

As with the unfortunate photo wallpaper, such rulings by the highest courts are unavoidable today, because copyright and usage rights must keep pace with technical developments. Just 20 years ago, professional aerial photography was much more expensive and complex than drone photography is today. And sports photography, and in particular the filming of athletic action, has also changed enormously thanks to technology, keyword: GoPro.

Although the small action cams have long been synonymous with the device class, the competitors are not giving up, especially after GoPro's stumble with the last generations. The new Insta360 Ace Pro 2 is the hottest challenger currently, at least according to the technical data. For 450 euros, it offers above all the tried-and-tested flip-up screen, which is quickly becoming indispensable for video selfies. But also 8K resolution, three microphones and all kinds of AI bells and whistles.

Clear available-light videos from an action cam?

Mockery is appropriate here, because filtering wind noise or removing a selfie stick – in this case via the app – are based on pattern recognition that is part of artificial intelligence, but have not yet had to be marketed with the hype buzzword. We are particularly excited about "PureVideo", which is supposed to produce clear images in low light. Perhaps the AI chip, which the new Ace is supposed to have, really is a big step forward. After all, these filter functions for image noise are one of the most convincing photographic applications of AI, even with full-blown desktop software.

Small car or limited Leica?

To use a cliché, the Leica connoisseur naturally wants nothing to do with such small plastic cameras. They would rather spend as much as they would on fifty Insta360s to be able to put the"Leica M Edition 70" in their display case. As there are to be 250 units, this platinum-coated camera is more of an investment than a working tool, despite its technical sophistication.

With this special edition, Leica is celebrating the premiere of the Leica M 70 years ago, and even today almost all the German manufacturer's cameras look like this iconographic model. And many, many others are at least based on this rangefinder camera design. You have to hand it to the Wetzlaern: Precisely because this is an expensive collector's item for fans and perhaps speculators, sales are being organized fairly. As things stand, you don't have to apply for it like you do for super sports cars or get lucky with a pre-order website. The Leica M Edition 70 is not due to be sold in some Leica stores until 2025, so it will probably be a case of going there and swiping your credit card. That is, if you have 22,500 euros to spend. If you are expecting Christmas presents from a real Leica fan: They might turn out a little smaller than hoped for in 2024.

US photographers take their time

Our recommendation for a long read for the weekend this time is a PDF that you first have to order by entering your email address. Yes, the US company Aftershoot doesn't provide this any other way, we didn't notice any spam after ordering. The document is somewhat pompously labeled the "2024 Photography Industry Report", which is a survey of over 500 professional photographers who use the company's software. Among other things, this is useful for AI-supported image selection based on criteria such as sharpness, facial expressions of people, etc., i.e. for extensive image series.

The group of users, mainly photographers from the USA who specialize in weddings, portraits and events, is correspondingly large. How they work can also reassure the (semi)-professional here: It usually takes two, more likely four weeks from shooting to delivery, and a few thousand pictures are produced per order. More than half of them then deliver more than a thousand pictures – Whether this makes sense for the customer is doubtful. But the call for "as many photos as possible, we'll choose them ourselves" can be heard more and more often in this country too. Rather reassuring because it's old school, is how photographers get orders. Social media is mentioned most frequently here at 86.6 percent, but right behind it is good old word of mouth at 85.9 percent. So those who are recommended still get more out of the creative profession.

(nie)