As I mentioned in my article on Kickstarter, I back quite a few projects this year. And just yesterday, one of the project delivered. This one are the new products from Peak Design and since I got three of them, I will share some of my first impressions and some photos of them today. So here goes.

The Everyday Backpack 30L

I’m alway on the lookout for a good backpack, so this time I got the new one from Peak design. This is the 30l version, as the smaller 20l looked very small for my needs. The look and feature here are very similar to the last years Everyday Messenger bag, with the same use of materials.

The bags from Peak Design are probably the only ones where you need a manual when you get them. There are so many things hidden around the bag, small detail, straps, usage improvements, that it takes a while to find everything.

 
The build quality and material are excellent as usually, but I so would wish they checked the bags for loose threads, it just looks so cheap on otherwise quality product. I tried to fill the bag up, with two cameras and 6 lenses (from 50mm to 70-200mm) and it all fit in well, with quite a lot of space left (even with the top flap closed for minimal size). There is also a space for a laptop and also for a tablet, so you can really fit a lot here.

 
I tried to wear it for a while, but I’m not so used to backpacs, so can’t tell yet if it’s good or not. But one thing, when you have the bag straps tight, it’s hart to get to the inside of the bag while having it on one shoulder. Will try to use this bag on my next bigger travels, when I need to take a lot of stuff, to see how it works out. First impression is good, but the question is how comfortable it is.

The Everyday Sling

Also I got the smaller sling. First impression of it is even better than the backpack. It sits well over the shoulder, fits a full frame camera with two lenses easily, and will probably be my goto bag for short trips around the city when I don’t need much gear. Actually the only thing I did not like is that the bottom is not flat, so it does not sit well when placed down.

 
Same as with the backpack, you can expand the sling partially, the front pocked to be exact. I don’t think that it’s something I would use that much, as it involves loosening the two front buckles. But it can be useful sometime. The sling also has a space for a tablet, and I actually tried to stick the Surface Pro 4 in it, and while it’s clearly not meant for a tablet that size, it still fits and can be closed.

Range Pouch Medium

Lastly, I took the Range pouch. This is a lens pouch, you can use to store and also to carry a lens in multiple ways (on the belt, with a strap and similar). The medium one is perfect for a 24-70 f2.8 lens, but not much bigger. I got it more to use inside of the backpack, to house smaller lenses. Will see hot that works out.

Overall the first impression is very positive, let’s see how they stack up over time. I will do a review, but later one, when I had time to use them more. For more info on Peak Design products, please visit the Peak Design website here.

As every year, it’s time for my favorite photos from this year. I visited some new, some old places this time, so there have been some very nice photo opportunities. I did not continue with the daily updates this year, either due to a quite busy schedule during the year, or a need to just stop and do something different after a very long time of doing just this. But even with updates maybe not being so regular anymore, they will definitively not stop :)

So let’s hope for even better 2017, filled with great times, interesting locations and the perfect light. And here are some of my favorite photos taken this year. And since I got the tilt shift lens this year, a lot of them are taken with that :)

Also here you can see my favorites from past years: 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011 and 2010 :)

One more blue hour shot, this one of the SNP bridge in Bratislava during the Festival of light.

This is a blend of two exposure, done in Photoshop. I used a second, darker exposure to darken the light of the bridge.

First of all, please excuse the lack of posts recently. I do edit quite a few photos, but nothing I can share and it’s a bit repetitive, so I’m not in the mood to edit anything more afterwards. But I really will have to try and get back into the flow and start updating more again.

So for today, here goes a photo from Passau. I have a very similar without the railing in front, but looking at it, I like this one more (but I will maybe upload the other one sometime later). The railing gives the photo a bit more sense of the location and fill the foreground quite nicely.

This is a single exposure, edited in Lightroom and Photoshop.

//Update morning 26.11: Added one new deal at the end

I did this post last and the year before, so not to break tradition, here is it again :)

As always, Black Friday is the best day to buy the software and resources one need as most offer big discounts. And to make the search for you easier, here is a list of the discounts I found, that you may like. Here goes :)

1. Master exposure blending video tutorial

As usually, I will start with my own discount. From today, until the end of the month, you can get 40% off (that’s 29 instead of 49 USD) from my video tutorial series Master exposure blending. Just use the code BF2016 at the checkout. You can buy it from the Master exposure blending page here.

2. Macphun software

From the 21st of November to the 1st of December you can also get great deals on the new Macphun software.
Luminar – for this latest addition from Macphun is available for 59 or 49 USD (new or existing user respectively), and as usually, Macphun will include some learning resources with it. You can find Luminar here.

Aurora HDR 2017 – You also can get the latest version of Aurora HDR for only 89 USD. You will also get few bonus resources with it. You can find Aurora HDR 2017 here.

3. Topaz labs plugins

Topaz again offers a huge discount on all their plugins. If you buy the complete collection, they offer a 50% discount. From the November 25th to the 30th, use the code BLACKFRIDAY16 in the cart. You can find the plugin collection on the Topaz website here.

4. ACDSee

ACD systems have a 30-70% sale on some of their ACD see products, and you can find them all, together with the prices here. The offer is valid until the 25th of November here

5. Oloneo Photoengine

Oloneo also has a great sale right now, with a huge 50% discount on the Oloneo Photoengine (still my favorite HDR software, and one of the easiest). You can grab it for 62 euro or 74 USD from Oloneo website here.

6. Formatt-Hitech

I mention mostly software here, but I also noticed that Formatt-Hitech has a 25% off sale with the BLACK25 code until the 28th of November. For more, check out the Formatt-Hittech webpage here.

7. Peak Design

One more gear offer. Peak design has a range of discount on their clips & straps (up to 20%), and they also offer some of the accessories cheaper if you buy it together with a clip or bag. The offers are valid from the 25th to the 27th and can be found on the Peak Design webpage.

8. Stuck In Customs tutorials

Trey Ratcliff from Stuck In Customs also has a black Friday deal for you. He offers a 25% discount on all books, presets and tutorials. The discounts are available from the 23rd to the 28th November and can be found in the StuckInCustoms store here.

9. On1 software

On1 also offers deals on some of their software. You can find the list of them on the On1 store web-page here.

10. Creative cloud

Adobe offers a nice 20% off for a yearly subscription to Creative cloud. Regretably only for the all programs bundle, not for the photography one. But if you are interested anyway, check it out on Adobe website.

11. InFocusDeals

From the 25th you can get a nice colections of video tutorials from teh InFocusDeals webpage, all focused on landscape photography, all from great photographers (Colby Brown, Jay & Varina Patel, Chip Phillips and more). You can check out the deal already now here.

12. Clip Studio Paint

Clip Studio Pain is a very cool professional drawing program, and until the 28th you can get it for a low price of 25 USD (almost 50% off). Check it out here.

13. Imagenomic plugins

I use the Noiseware plugin from Imagenomic very often, and from the 25th to the 28th you can get it and other Imagenomic plugins with a nice discount. Just use the code BF2016 at checkout. You can find all on Imagenomic website here.

14. Fstoppers tutorials

Fstoppers offers a nice discount on many of their tutorials, and especially including the one from Elia Locardy are worth it. You can find list of all the discounts and the codes here.

15. 500px subscriptions

500px has a nice flat discount of 25% of all their subscriptions right now. You can find them all here.

16. Jimmy McIntyre tutorials & Raya Pro

Jimmy McIntire is having a 25% off sale on all his video tutorials and his Photoshop panel the Raya Pro. It is definitively worth a look. You can find it all on Jimmy’s webpage here.

Kolor Autopano

Kolor has right now the so caller Kolorful days, where you can get 25% off from the regular price of their panoramatic software Autopano Giga and Autopano Pro, also for the Video version. Check it all out on Kolor webpage here.

I will add more deals, as they become available or I find more :)