Innholdsfortegnelse for August 17, 2013 i Amateur Photographer

HOW MUCH like a ‘real’ camera is a camera phone? Well, it really rather depends on your expectations. If you want a pocketable camera that will outperform your interchangeable-lens DSLR, you’ll be sorely disappointed. If, however, you want to take quick photos, and edit and share them on the go, and you’re not bothered if they’re not ‘pixel perfect’, then camera phones are a great option. I use the camera on my Samsung phone fairly regularly. If my 18-month-old son is being particularly funny, takes a first step or the like, I want to be able to take a shot instantly. His grandparents would rather see a poorer-quality photo than no photo at all! Of course, I still own and use my DSLR, but I tend to use this with…

Wednesday 14 August EXHIBITION Quiet heroes by Ken Griffiths, until 24 August at ffotogallery, Penarth, Wales Cf64 3Dh. tel: 0292 070 8870. Visit www.ffotogallery.org. EXHIBITION Visions of the Universe (images of space), until 15 september at national Maritime Museum, Greenwich se10 9nf. tel: 0208 858 4422. Visit rmg.co.uk. Thursday 15 August EXHIBITION World Press Photo, until 25 August at the scottish Parliament, edinburgh eh99 1sP. tel: 0800 092 7500. Visit www.worldpressphoto.org. EXHIBITION Landscape Photographer of the Year, 10-17 August at Waterloo station, London. Visit www.take-a-view.co.uk. Friday 16 August DON’T MISS royal edinburgh Military tattoo, until 24 August, against backdrop of edinburgh Castle. Visit www.edinburghfestivals.co.uk. EXHIBITION environmental Photographer of the Year 2013, until 1 september at Grizedale Visitor Centre, hawkshead, Cumbria LA22 0QJ. tel: 01229 860 010. Visit www.golakes.co.uk. Saturday 17…

FERRANIA has confirmed plans to launch a ‘re-engineered’ version of Scotch Chrome 100 colour slide film, years after the Italian manufacturer sold or dismantled its factory equipment. Ferrania says it plans to introduce an improved version of the Imation-made emulsion onto the market in the first quarter of 2014, following ‘unexpected feedback’ from photographers. Bosses point out that the new film ‘will not have anything in common with the old 3M slide film from the ’70s’. The firm also plans to produce a colour negative film based on Ferrania Solaris FG-100 Plus (pictured). In its heyday, Ferrania also made rebadged film for other brands. Ferrania claims that it has the equipment to make film in formats including 120, 135, 220 and 126. It plans to make only the most requested…

MIKE Williams, one of the UK’s most respected authors and photographers of guides to national parks and longdistance walks, has died at the age of 66 after a long illness. Photography lecturer Professor Paul Hill paid tribute to him: ‘Born in Maidstone, Kent, in 1947, Mike [pictured] became a photographer with the education department of Kent County Council in 1972. Two years later he was appointed staff photographer at the Peak District National Park – a job coveted by many professional photographers at the time.’ PASSIONATE ‘Mike was passionate about landscape photography and was always eager to extend his knowledge and skills. ‘He came to lectures by wellknown visiting practitioners at Trent Polytechnic, Nottingham, which is where I first met him, and was a participant on the first-ever residential photography…

Ken Griffiths: Quiet Heroes Until 24 August. Ffotogallery, Turner House, Plymouth Road, Penarth CF64 3DH. Tel: 029 2070 8870. Website: www.ffotogallery.org. Open Tues-Sat 11am-5pm. Admission free PORTRAITURE takes centre stage in this exhibition by Ken Griffiths that celebrates the strong community spirit in Welsh towns and villages. Griffiths makes individuals his focus and brings out the small things that make communities worth living in. Wales is a fascinating place, and he uses portraiture to bring that out well. He pulls away from his subjects slightly, allowing the context more room to breathe and giving a sense of the history of the people he photographs. Dragonfly By David Chandler and Steve Cham British Dragonfly Society and New Holland Publishers, £14.99, hardback, 128 pages, ISBN 978-1-78009-229-4 DRAGONFLIES are among the country’s most…

There have been occasions when I’ve dismissed certain photographers’ work as rubbish. I hasten to add that I’m more than aware of my own shortcomings using a camera and have had similar criticism myself. It can be hurtful. But on the plus side is the argument that it would be a boring world were everyone to agree on the same things. That said, in a recent newspaper article I came across a photographer whose work is so appalling it almost defies description. But I’ll try anyway! His recent set of photographs are atrocious. Diabolically so. They’re horrendously out-of-focus duds and an absolute joke in terms of composition. Which is a shame given their subject matter: Moscow’s picturesque Red Square. Just think of a three-year-old toddler waving around his first camera…

EVERYONE likes a celebration. That’s particularly true when you’re faced with the borderline apocalyptic bleakness that is often characteristic of our British summers. Royal marriages and Olympic gold medals aside, nothing gets those plastic Union Jacks waving like a good old-fashioned tennis tournament. Back in July, Wimbledon was once more upon us and the cries of jubilation and anguished gnashing of teeth filled the air around south-west London. This year the sun decided to take residence in our skies throughout the entire tournament, turning Murray Mound into a sea of bare skin and sunglasses. Yet one man found himself sheltered from the sun’s rays for pretty much the duration of Wimbledon. That man was award-winning sports photographer Bob Martin, who has been Wimbledon’s official photographer for several years. This year…

Gary King Devon After many years away, Gary moved back to the south-west of England where the extraordinary landscapes of Devon and Cornwall inspired him to take up landscape photography. His favourite subjects are the sweeping vistas of Dartmoor National Park, specifically in the periods just after sunset and the moments leading up to sunrise. Gary describes himself as a photographer who is able to learn as much from his disappointments as he is from his successes. He is currently experimenting with minimalist urban abstract imagery. Gul Rock 1 Gary has managed to balanced the left-hand side of the scene by using the leading water run-off on the right Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 17-40mm, 0.5sec at f/14, ISO 100, tripod, cable release, ND grad, polariser Start Point 2 Gary…

GIVEN the success of the hugely popular Olympus OM-D E-M5 of last year, it comes as no surprise that Olympus has again taken inspiration from one of its own film cameras for its latest flagship Pen camera, the Pen E-P5. While the OM-D pays homage to the Olympus OM series of film cameras, the E-P5 is similar in appearance to the Pen F, a camera first announced 50 years ago in 1963. On the surface, the E-P5 is a success – it’s a lovely looking camera and the most attractive modern Pen to date. However, beauty is only skin deep, and the E-P5’s success will hinge on the improvements inside. Thankfully, compared to its predecessor, the Pen E-P3, the E-P5shows numerous and noteworthy changes. This latest model is the fourth…

DISCOVERED the Ilford Obscura 5x4in pinhole camera by accident a few months ago. I was looking at articles on the web about Focus on Imaging and found a short video about it. I was immediately struck by the simplicity of the design, and had one of those head-slapping moments when, every once in a while, somebody designs something that makes you say, ‘Why didn’t I think of that?’ Why didn’t I think of that?’ I contacted Ilford and was sent an Obscura for review. As soon as it arrived I started to use it. The Obscura takes just one piece of film at a time and you need a changing bag if you wish to shoot any other images while you are out in the field. However, this is not…

DISC EXPLANATION A Regarding Ivor Matanle’s answer to Norm Firman in AP 22 June, I suspect that the ‘disc with film speeds’ actually refers to the small disc on the bottom of the Nikon FTn. This disc is used simply as a reminder of the ASA speed of the currently loaded film. The small black arrow is used as the marker for black & white film and the red arrow as the marker for colour film. Danny Portnoy XQD-CARD COMPATIBILITY Q Can you confirm whether Sony and Lexar XQD memory cards are compatible with the Nikon D7000 and Nikon D800/800E? Clavero Tamina A At present, the professional-level Nikon D4 is the only camera that is compatible with XQD-format memory cards. Chris Gatcum POLARISER PROBLEMS Q In my days as a…

‘REPTILE baby is coming!,’ shouts the voice down the phone, bloodcurdling in its euphoria, almost as if Lovecraft had a Twitter feed. ‘What?’ I said. ‘She’s in labour!’ the voice yelled again. I wince. The voice is Eli, my erstwhile Irish mate and the furthest thing from a royalist. But as photographers, we’ve both been eagerly anticipating the birth of the royal baby. Not because of any cuteness or sense of national pride, but as hopeful street photographers we’ve been intrigued by the whole phenomenon. I make my way to Baker Street and find him on the steps of a terraced house near the hospital, telephoto zoom extended like a primate in heat. I edge my way between the throngs of worshippers and make my way up the steps and…

AP RIGHTS WATCH TWO photographers say their DSLRs made them an easy target when police stopped them as they practised their newly learned panning skills on a moving patrol car. It seems photographers with DSLRs can still attract unwelcome attention, despite a change in anti-terror laws three years ago. Kyle Adams, who was using a Nikon D7000, and George Anastasi, using a D5100, say they were stunned when officers quizzed them as they tried to take pictures from a public pavement next to the A412 in Hertfordshire. The pair, both 26, had just completed a 10-week beginners’ DSLR photography course and set off for Croxley Green in search of a subject to try out their skills on a moving subject. They had taken photos of nearby barges and bridges, before…

A new photography show is set to take place in London from 27-30 March 2014. Aimed at professional photographers and enthusiasts, London Imaging Live 2014 is billed as a not-for-profit showcase for ‘the entire imaging industry’ by its organisers, Life Media Group, the publisher of trade magazine Pixel. In a letter, potential exhibitors are told that wildlife, fashion, sport, studio and photojournalism will be key to the four-day event, which takes place at the ExCeL Centre, Royal Victoria Dock, London E16. It is expected to feature seminar-based discussions, interactive live shows and ‘inspirational presentations’. The event comes in the wake of the now-discontinued Focus on Imaging show, which was axed after 24 years in Birmingham. Focus was run by a separate party. The letter adds: ‘We believe that a UK…

PHOTOGRAPHERS who change their camera body over time are set to benefit from a new service designed to allow the existing mount of certain Sigma lenses to be changed to work with another camera. Eligible lenses are set to include the 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM DSLR lens (pictured), which can be converted for Sony, Nikon, Canon, Pentax and Sigma fits. Selected mirrorless-system lenses will also be able to be converted. Sigma has not yet indicated how much the service, which is due to be launched on 2 September, is likely to cost. ‘Our goal is to provide more freedom for photographers to select new camera bodies without the worry of having to discard their lens collection,’ states Sigma’s UK website. ‘Sigma wants to help you keep those lenses for a…

PANASONIC’S relationship with Leica was something the brand was very proud of when it produced its first G-series camera, the Lumix DMC-G1. Promoting the fact that an adapter was available for Leica M lenses, and indeed having ‘Leica’ written on its own AF optics, sent out a certain message regarding who the company was aiming at. Panasonic products have never been cheap, but the G1 presented a way for photographers to get a slice of Leica without having to pay Leica prices. Critically, too, it allowed Leica owners to use their lenses on a body costing far less than a digital host from Leica itself. I don’t have any figures on how many Leica owners, or Leica aspirants, took up the offer, but my impression from speaking to readers is…

● CANON EOS 60D: THE EXPANDED GUIDE by Tracy Hallett, £14.99 Tracy Hallett’s guide to the Canon EOS 60D joins the voluminous ranks of the others as a good down-tobasics guide that covers the camera’s prime functionalities and tips on using it out in the field. In its pages you’ll find quality images and accessible advice. This guide contains just about everything you will need to set you on your way. ● BEYOND AUTO MODE by Jennifer Bebb, £21.99 Beyond auto mode is a good place to be, and Jennifer Bebb’s personable writing style makes this guide to getting there pleasantly accessible. A warning up front – Bebb is an avowed believer in getting it right in-camera, and part of her explicitly stated aim is to get the reader away…

BRINGING YOU ESSENTIAL EXPERT ADVICE EVERY WEEK THREE years ago, on 20 April 2010, British Petroleum’s Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, based around 40 miles southeast of the Louisiana coast in the US, exploded. The event claimed 11 lives and injured 16 others. What followed was the biggest oil spill the world has ever seen and one that devastated the Gulf of Mexico. The spill received a lot of media attention due to its scale and, as more and more information arrived, I became aware that this was a story that I needed to document. In the past I have often described myself as a conservation photographer. Many people call me an activist and I suppose that’s really not far from the truth. I don’t believe in neutrality any more. I…

THERE were numerous reasons for using the Nikon D4 with the Polycam system. ‘The three most important considerations for us were image quality, speed and AF performance,’ says Nikon’s James Banfield. ‘We knew that for this project to succeed, the camera had to be fast and accurate. ‘Our decision was dictated by something that happened at Wimbledon in 2008, when we witnessed the staggering final match between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. It’s the longest singles final in Wimbledon in terms of time played and it went on until 11pm. As the match progressed, the light levels dropped. The only camera [at that time] capable of functioning to its full potential in those conditions was the Nikon D3. That was in our minds when we began the collaboration with MRMC.…

THE TROUBLES, the conflict between Unionists and Loyalists in Northern Ireland, began in the 1960s and only really ended in the 1990s after years of negotiation. The Troubles also gave rise to a new wave of photography as people sought to use art to process what was happening to their country. With his new book, called Northern Ireland: 30 Years of Photography, Colin Graham is exploring this work. Taking 1980 as his starting point, Graham traces the developments in photography through turbulent times. ‘Collectively, these images show a sceptical interrogation of what the politics of Northern Ireland have done to the place,’ says Graham. ‘They’re not looking at political events or figures, but at the effects that high politics has on local lives and spaces.’ ART AND DOCUMENTARY The book…

A KEY difference between the OM-D E-M5 and the Pen E-P5 is that the former has a built-in viewfinder, yet while the new camera does not, it does feature a hotshoe port via which an optional unit – the new VF-4 (around £250) – can be attached. It is interesting to see just what difference using this viewfinder makes when compared to the E-P5‘s rear LCD screen, and also how the VF-4 fares against the OM-D’s built-in unit. The optional VF-4 unit compatible with the E-P5 offers a resolution of 2.36 million dots and can be angled up to 90°, while the built-in unit in the OM-D is fixed and has a lower resolution of 1.44 million dots. The lack of a built-in viewfinder means the E-P5 is a more…

Your photo guides will be landscape photography expert Jeremy Walker and What Digital Camera editor Nigel Atherton Join us on a bespoke photo tour to Canada, accompanied by photo experts and a local guide for an opportunity to view and capture the breathtaking Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, and the Rocky Mountains’ natural wonders. This is a tremendous-value, interest-packed, escorted photo tour. First, you’ll fly west to Calgary, gateway to the Rocky Mountains, and spend two nights in Banff. You will have time to capture images and benefit from inspiring advice for achieving amazing photos. There will be optional-extra excursions too! Then, you’ll journey by coach past beautiful Lake Louise and along the Icefields Parkway into Jasper National Park, to stay overnight in Jasper. From here, you’ll journey east to…

Computer terminology This week’s glossary continues to decipher the jargon surrounding computer monitors RESPONSE TIME: The time, measured in milliseconds (ms), that it takes for a pixel to be redrawn. The lower the response time, the faster the screen image can be refreshed, although this is of more concern if you want to play fast-paced games or watch movies. For image editing it is less critical – a screen with a response time of 12ms is more than adequate. VIEWING ANGLE: Given as both horizontal and vertical measurements (in degrees), the viewing angle gives an indication of how far you can move away from the centre of the screen while still seeing an image that is correct in terms of its colour and brightness. As with contrast ratio, there is…

A fundrAising project to bring back a renowned 19th century portrait lens for use with Nikon and Canon film and digital SLRs has raised more than ten times its target figure. The reinvented Petzval lens will be compatible with Canon EF and Nikon F-mount cameras when it is launched next February, according to the Lomography Kickstarter project. ‘Photos shot with a Petzval lens are immediately recognisable for their supersharp focus areas and wonderfully swirly bokeh effect at the non-focused areas,’ stated organisers of the project, which is backed by Russian camera maker Zenit. ‘Expect strong colour saturation, artful vignettes and narrow depth of field.’ The first 1,000 lenses could be shipped as early as December. Organisers, who have raised more than $1 million for the project, claim: ‘The totally distinctive…

ILFORD Imaging Switzerland, which makes Galerie-branded photo inkjet paper and has been in financial trouble, has announced that it is up for sale. Last month, we reported that Ilford Imaging Switzerland had entered urgent talks with its bank as the company admitted it could no longer honour all its financial obligations. Swiss courts granted Ilford Imaging Switzerland until mid-August to find ‘a short or medium-term investor to save the business’. At the time of writing, the company was still waiting for a final decision on how to proceed but stressed that it is still trading and has not been declared bankrupt. It moved to deny a Swiss press report that claims the firm’s plant in Fribourg had been shut down and 220 staff ‘laid off’. As we went to press,…

AP focused on the ‘Father of Modern Photography’, William Henry Fox Talbot, in a feature about his life this week in 1985 that also tried to convey the ‘personality and character’ of the man whose achievements were well documented. ‘A study of his letters, notebooks and his approach to his creative work still presents an enigma,’ wrote Bob Lassam from the Fox Talbot Museum in Lacock, Wiltshire. ‘It does seem he was a very complex man. In portraits of him, although scarce, he seems to be serious and somewhat miserable in appearance, but this is not altogether true. He was a man who did not suffer fools gladly, but to his family and friends, he was kind with a good sense of humour. He was generous to church charities and…

THE IN-CAMERA ‘artistic’ filter has become extremely popular, and Panasonic reflects this by incorporating a few more in this model – a grainy black & white effect, and a high-key version, to add to the other 19 filters. More advanced is the monochrome mode, which can now recreate the effect that different-coloured filters would have when placed over the lens. Filter options include red, yellow, orange and green, as well as none. It is also now possible to tone your black & white images with sepia and cyanotype colourations and, more importantly, to moderate and exaggerate the effect. The more impressive of the GX7’s new shooting features is, however, the adjustable gamma curve. Using the front and back dials, or the touchscreen, we can increase and decrease contrast across ten…

DRAWING WITH LIGHT Once again, Melvyn Dover raises concerns about photographic competitions (Backchat, AP 27 July). I can certainly agree with his worry about copyright issues when a competition winner has been created by combining a number of images culled from the internet but, in relation to some of his other points, he perhaps misunderstands the meaning of the word ‘photography’. He seems to think that photography must involve the use of a camera. Not so. The word simply means ‘drawing with light’. I can think of competition winners in the past where the photographs have been images created by scanners or by simply drawing on photo-sensitive film or paper with a light source. No one would have questioned if those forms of art were legitimate photographic images. James D…

ALL DIGITAL photographs are affected by noise to some extent. The sensor in your camera will have an underlying noise signature that is always there, even at low ISO settings. It is only when you crank up the ISO to shoot in low-light conditions that the analogue capture image data is amplified and the noise characteristics of the sensor become apparent in the digitised image. Whenever you edit a photograph in Lightroom or Camera Raw, you have the ability to control such noise using the noise-reduction sliders found in the Detail panel. These have been much improved since Process 2010 was introduced for Lightroom 3 and Camera Raw 6, and further enhanced by the ability to apply localised noise reduction using the Adjustment Brush. In the following steps I wanted…

IT CAN be difficult for most of us to find the time to get out and take photographs, but for AP reader Scott Hills this is something of an understatement. Scott’s busy schedule is taken up first and foremost by his job as a firefighter. ‘I’ve been doing the job for nearly five years now, and for me it’s the best job in the world,’ he says. ‘I genuinely look forward to going to work every day. Well, apart from bonfire night!’ Away from his career, Scott also enjoys mixed martial arts and Thai boxing – sports he’d like to get further involved in through his photography. When he does have time to spend on his photography, Scott not only switches between genres, but he’s also started to dabble in…

Gura Gear Sabi Sack From £26.13 (plus p&p) www.guragear.com A BEANBAG is a great alternative for the mobile photographer who doesn’t want to fuss with a tripod, and we were impressed with the Sabi Sack from Gura Gear. It is well constructed from durable fabrics and is designed to stand up to rugged outdoor conditions. The sack is essentially two square parts stitched together, and can be used either horizontally or vertically, with the lens resting in the hollow between the two. It’s a simple product, but it works well, offering quick makeshift stability for long lenses. Placing it down, putting the camera on top and composing is a very streamlined process, which makes it ideal for wildlife and nature photographers. Measuring 21x21x13cm (small version), the Sabi Sack is very…

FOCAL POINTS Flash The built-in pop-up flash is released manually using this catch. It has a class-leading flash sync speed of 1/320sec, while external flash units attached via the hotshoe enjoy a flash sync speed up to 1/250sec, which is again very impressive. The built-in flash has a guide number of 10m @ ISO 200 (GN 7m @ ISO 100) Switch As mentioned in the Build and handling section, this lever can change the function of the dials. As a default, the ‘1’ position is set for aperture/shutter speed, while the ‘2’ position changes the white balance/ISO Dials The rear dial is placed close to the front dial, which makes the pair quick to operate together for changes to exposure, among other things Magnification Live-view magnification from 5x and up…

WHILE many of today’s smartphone manufacturers seem to be having a neverending megapixel race among themselves, HTC has opted not to compete with others in a bid to achieve the highest number of megapixels inside a smartphone. Instead, the company has evaluated what the consumer needs from a camera and built something that fits those needs. FEATURES Inside the HTC One UltraPixel smartphone camera is a sensor with a resolution of just 4 million pixels. A brief glance at this figure may deter the pixel-counting consumer, although it should be pointed out that putting 13 million pixels onto a small sensor can have an adverse effect on image quality. However, the camera’s other specifications show that HTC has focused on maximising this model’s performance and overall image quality. A 1/3in…

THE KODAK Retina, the world’s first folding 35mm camera, had been an icon of what was then called miniature photography throughout the latter part of the 1930s. The Second World War proved only to be a brief interruption to the supply of these much admired folding precision cameras to most of the world. However, as with all other relatively expensive cameras, UK import controls made new Retinas more or less unavailable in Britain during the late 1940s and early ’50s. This limited the extent to which the ‘a’ models of the early 1950s became known and loved by British photographers. Only during the late 1950s and early ’60s, when a substantial number became available second-hand, along with the ‘b’, ‘B’, ‘c’ and ‘C’ Retinas of the later 1950s, did the…