Shutter Happens - Issue #003
What's happening in cameras, lenses, software and all things photography.
Hey guys. Welcome along to the latest edition of Shutter Happens, my newsletter covering everything that's happening in the world of photography or at least everything I think is interesting in the world of photography.
From Action Hero to Austerity: GoPro CEO Drops Salary in Cost-Cutting Push
They might have invented the whole Action Camera niche, but GoPro have been struggling to maintain their dominant market share in recent years. And now GoPro founder Nick Woodman has opted to fore-go his annual salary as part of a batch of cost-cutting measures.
In 2024 the company posted an operating loss of $80m, but the CEO remains bullish about a return to positive territory by the end of this year.
Over the past few years GoPro have faced intense competition from consumer brands such as Insta and DJI, but also from cheap China-made 4K action cameras flooding the bargain end of the market.
Woodman was upbeat about the company’s future and pointed to the forthcoming launch of the MAX2, their 360º camera which was first teased all the way back in September 2023. It will be fighting of market share with the Insta360 X4 which has been a huge global hit and with 8K video capabilities offers a higher resolution than the 5.7K rumoured to be included in the MAX2.
GoPro have faced consistent criticism from customers over recent years due to its lack of innovation. It remains to be seen whether products like the MAX2 can steady the ship and lure action cam users back to the original action brand.
55 Year Old Underwater Loch Ness Camera Rediscovered
The legend of ‘Nessie’ the Loch Ness Monster is of course a load of old bollocks, but it’s a fun enough story and one which serves as a welcome tourist draw to the Scottish Highlands.
And now a highly specialised camera that was set up 55 years ago to try and capture the reclusive monster has been found by accident by a robot submarine called Boaty McBoatface.
The semi-autonomous sub was undergoing sea trials in the loch when its propellor snagged on something 180m below the surface of the water. Somewhat unbelievably the camera casing was still water-tight and an engineer from the UK’s National Oceanography Centre (the owners of Boaty McBoatface) managed to develop the film in the camera.
The resulting images don’t show much more than a bit of silt and a few water particles, but that’s unlikely to stop X Files aficionados from continuing to ‘believe’.
CLICK App Launches as Digital Guardian Against Sora-Era Deepfakes
A new app called CLICK has launched as the world's first digital trust network, designed to authenticate media content on blockchain in three simple steps. The app allows users to capture photos or videos, authenticate them with a swipe, and share the verified content anywhere - all while maintaining C2PA certification.
In an era where digital manipulation has made it increasingly difficult to verify authentic content, CLICK offers a user-friendly approach to media authentication. The platform's blockchain technology creates an unalterable record of when and how content was created, potentially revolutionizing how we establish trust in digital media.
The timing couldn't be better as social platforms and news outlets struggle with the proliferation of AI-generated and manipulated content. CLICK's approach puts authentication power directly in creators' hands, allowing anyone with a smartphone to participate in building a more trustworthy digital ecosystem through what the company calls "making history in one click."
TopazLabs Photo AI 3.6 Continues the App’s Shonky Development History
Topaz Labs has announced version 3.6.0 of its Photo AI software, claiming a ‘500% faster’ Super Focus v2 model for sharpening and focus recovery. The update, released on 27 March, promises significantly improved processing speeds for blurry images alongside new lighting adjustment features. However, on Topaz’s customer support forum, paying customers remained unconvinced about the actual performance improvements.
While Topaz boasts the new Super Focus v2 is their "most powerful sharpening and focus recovery model EVER," the company has already acknowledged a "known issue" with the software creating banding artifacts in skies and blurry backgrounds.
This admission raises questions about how thoroughly the software was tested before release, with the company simply stating they "will be fixing this soon" without providing a specific timeline. So that’s alright then.
The update includes new controls for highlights, shadows, and colour correction in the Adjust Lighting v2 feature, giving users more manual control—potentially suggesting the AI-powered automatic adjustments weren't meeting user expectations. Topaz has also made the telling decision to turn colour correction off by default, indicating previous versions may have been too aggressive with automatic colour alterations.
Perhaps most concerning is Topaz's new initiative to collect before-and-after images from users to "help develop even higher-quality models." While supposedly optional, this data collection appears shortly after processing images, potentially suggesting the current models require significant improvement. The timing of this collection effort coincides with the company's admission of rendering artifacts, raising questions about whether Super Focus v2 is truly as "super" as advertised.
The update also includes basic interface improvements that users have allegedly been requesting for some time, such as zoom-to-fit preferences and additional file format export options. These fundamental usability features—standard in many competing photo editing applications for years—are being presented as exciting new additions, highlighting how the software has been lagging behind industry standards despite its premium pricing and AI-focused marketing.