Innholdsfortegnelse for 14-feb-15 i Amateur Photographer

When I took my first set of portraits, I’d had no training about what to do. I found an unloved white roll of paper and a pair of 500W continuous lights tucked away at the back of the art department cupboard and, after a bit of dusting and a replacement bulb, I set up a home studio and invited friends around to pose. Among those negs there were dozens of useless shots, but out of the rolls and rolls of film that I shot, there would always be one, of each subject, where I had managed to get a bit of their character in the image. For me that was the goal – to walk away with a shot about which others would say ‘it’s just like them’. You don’t…

Whilewe shouldn’t get bogged downwith the idea of good or badweather for photography, rain is something that divides us.Some willwant to keep their cameras safely tucked away in their bags, while others willembrace the conditions. If you’re in the former camp, don’t discount rain, as it is possible to turn it to your advantage and still stay dry. By staying inside and opting to photograph rain on windowpanes, it’s possible to create some creative abstract images while making the viewer look at a scene that they’ve probably seen before in a new light. With the UK blessed with its fair share of rainfall at this time of year, there’s bound to be an opportunity to capture rainy windows at some point this weekend. 1 You can try practising at home,…

A Lifewith The Royal Ballet Talented ballet dancer and photographer Colin Jones’s black & white images from the Royal Ballet are a treat, with fleeting snaps of behind-the-scenes camaraderie as well as stark, evocative performance shots. 29 January-1 March, www.proud.co.uk Realism in Rawiya Rawiya, the first all-female photographic collective to emerge from the Middle East, presents an exhibition on gender and identity. The stories they tell from across the Arab world are rich and illuminating. 18 February-16 May, www.impressions-gallery.com, www.rawiya.net We Could Be Heroes More than 20 photographers, including Roger Mayne and Bruce Davidson, feature in The Photographers’ Gallery’s love letter to youth culture, rites of passage and the dawn of the term ‘teenager’ throughout the 20th century. 6 February-12 April, www.thephotographersgallery.org.uk Sony WPO Mobile Phone Awards The World Photography…

If you’re struggling to shoot a striking portrait, then it’s perhaps time to deconstruct how you set up and capture your subject, since there are a number of elements that combine to make a successful portrait image. By understanding and following our top ten commandments of portrait photography (and knowing when you break them), you can easily pinpoint weaknesses and areas to improve your portrait technique. To help, we’ve called on a range of portrait experts to offer their guidance and insight. With the advice from editorial and commercial photographer Jason Alden, beauty and commercial photographer Jamie Harrison, travel photographer David Lazar, and beauty and lighting guru Damien Love grove, you can ensure that the next portrait you take will be your best yet. 1 Planning and preparation HAVE A…

Picture the scene. It is a dull Monday 1 morning as a man crosses Vauxhall Bridge in London on his way to work. All appears normal to Chris Follows. But 15 December 2014 would turn out to be anything but routine. This passer-by was about to witness a breaking news event. Luckily, he was carrying a camera phone and was equipped for the job. Chris spotted a speedboat looming into view from the murkiness of the River Thames. A colleague quipped that James Bond may be at the helm, the scene being close to the Secret Intelligence Service building MI6. To the pair’s astonishment, actor Daniel Craig then appeared in full Technicolor - as James Bond. Chris quickly reached for his iPhone and managed to grab a video as the…

Coate Water Diving Board 1 By shooting with a long exposure, Jake has smoothed out the water to ensure the beautiful pink light has permeated every inch of the scene Canon EOS 5D Mark III, 24-105mm, 30secs at f/16, ISO 100, tripod, grad filter, remote shutter Bassenthwaite 2 Jake was fortunate in that he arrived to the scene at a time when a thick bank of fog rolled in, blocking out the sun and, as he says, ‘lighting up the vivid tones’ Canon EOS 5D Mark III, 24-105mm, 0.3sec at f/18, ISO 100, tripod, grad filter, remote shutter Reflect 3 There’s a nice balance in the image here, and the reflection is vital for the composition Canon EOS 5D Mark III, 24-105mm, 1sec at f/14, ISO 100, tripod, grad filter,…

Several years ago, my photography mainly involved shooting products and portraits, with the occasional on-location reportage shoot thrown in for good measure. However, things have become far more diverse in recent years. As weddings, festivals and events have become more of a staple, the luxury that was ample time and light has evaporated. Often I find myself in near-dark conditions, attempting to photograph erratically moving subjects - be that the groom’s dodgy two-step dancing or the joyous arm-raising of an excited crowd from a bass-heavy beat. Whatever the situation, I still have to capture the moment. When faced with such challenging conditions, my Canon EOS 5D Mark II struggled to deliver what I needed, so it was time to up the ante. On trying out a Nikon D4, I found…

LAUNCHED 1960 PRICE ￡119 9s (￡119.45) in 1960 GUIDE PRICE TODAY ￡350-￡1,000 with 75mm f/3.5 Planar or Xenotar, depending on sub-type, whether 120 only or 120/220 and condition THE ROLLEIFLEX 3.5F with f/3.5 Carl Zeiss Planar or Schneider Xenotar and coupled meter was, with the 2.8F, the last of Franke and Heidecke’s twin-lens reflexes. Made for professionals, but extensively used by amateurs, there is no better twin-lens reflex. Early examples used 120 film only, while later versions used 120 or 220. Collectors have pushed fine examples to astronomical prices. Misleading online descriptions of Rolleiflex models and condition make it best to buy from an experienced dealer who offers a warranty. What’s good The Rolleiflex 3.5F is a top-quality camera with top-quality optics. It has a bright screen with a large…

Stump & Reed Reflections by Mick Houghton Nikon D7100, 16-85mm, 1/160sec at f/5.6, ISO 400 This minimalist image taken in the Lake District by AP reader Mick Houghton was uploaded to our Flickr page. ‘This photograph was taken as we walked round Loughrigg Tarn in Cumbria, on 21 January,’ says Mike. ‘The light was fading and it was fairly overcast, but the reflections on the tarn were quite striking as it was very still. As we walked past a few clumps of trees on the shoreline, I noticed the tree stump and the reeds all reflected, which I thought I could isolate to make a reasonable image. There was some detail in the lines of the wood, which stood out, and I was drawn to the muted, almost monochrome, tones…

If you had to guess, what do you think the object is in this image? It’s probably fair to say that no immediate answers come to mind. It may surprise you to read that this unusual object is, in fact, the stalk of an apple. The artist known as Pyanek has created a project called ‘Amazing Worlds Within Our World’, a series of images that show the beautiful details of everyday things (including kitchen sponges, teabags and lipsticks). Pyanek’s amazing shots were captured using a Canon EOS 600D DSLR with a reversed kit lens and edited with Helicon Focus (focus stacking), Lightroom and Exposure 5. To see more of Pyanek’s images, visit www.facebook.com/pyanek.official. Words & numbers Time eventually positions most photographs, even the most amateurish, at the level of art…

Smartphone cameras have not been able to compete with their larger cousins in terms of sensor size, but this could all be about to change, thanks to HDR developments Ever since digital cameras started taking over from their film cousins, there has been a correlation between the dimensions of a camera’s imaging sensor and the quality of image output. Generally, larger sensors mean better dynamic range, noise performance and detail rendering but also, in combination with a fast lens, they allow for a narrower depth of field and therefore offer more creative options than cameras with small sensors. In terms of sensor size, smartphone cameras have always been at the bottom end of the scale. Some manufacturers have attempted to install larger sensors in smartphone cameras, but tiny 1⁄3in sensors…

LETTER OF THE WEEK Back to film I was intrigued and delighted to read John Gilbey’s article regarding his ‘new’ home darkroom (Viewpoint, AP 3 January), as many years ago I completed a City & Guilds course on advanced darkroom processes. I would also like to commend your magazine on its recent advice on film developing and printing. It brought to mind an article I read many years ago that included the question: If you had ￡3,000 to spend on new photography gear, what would you buy?’ A reader answered this question by describing his shopping list as follows: A Lubitel 166B medium-format camera at ￡280; monopod - stand on one leg; tripod - lean against a wall; wideangle lens - take a step backwards; telephoto lens - take a…

The printing process isn’t as difficult as you might imagine and a makeshift darkroom can be set up in a bedroom, at one end of the garage, in a cellar, in a shed or even under the stairs. All that is needed is an enlarger, three trays, a power socket and a red light. The stop and fix you used to process your film (see my article in AP1 November 2014) can be used for printing, but a different developer is needed for the paper. The developer can be any standard paper developer, which might come as a powder or a liquid concentrate that is mixed to the correct strength before use. Many manufacturers offer darkroom paper, but the brand I recommend you buy first is Ilford Multigrade RC (resin-coated)…

Sirui Easy Traveler ET-2204 with E-20 head Andy Westlake tests a fully, featured tripod kit from Chinese maker Sirui At a glance • Carbon fibre with four-section legs • Ball-and-socket head • Arca Swiss-type quick release • Reverse-folding design SIRUI’S Easy Traveler tripods are designed with portability in mind, featuring four section legs that fold up around the centre column for a shorter packed length. They come in two sizes and a choice of aluminium or carbonfibre construction, with a ball-and-socket head included in the kit. Here we’re looking at the larger carbon fibre model, the ET-2204. The four-section legs have large, positive lever locks, and the sliding centre column has a twist lock. Each of the tripod’s controls is easy to operate when wearing gloves, which is essential for…

Lens for GF3 I own a Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3 camera and was thinking about buying a Panasonic 14-200mm lens, but now I’m not so sure. I’m going to Thailand in June and would love a lens that is easy to handle and will give me good shots from a distance. What would you recommend? ‘Jane’ Your camera can use any lens with a Micro Four Thirds mount, Jane, and this includes lenses from Olympus and third-party makers like Sigma and Samyang. But there’s a catch - if you want a long zoom lens, then you really need it to include optical image stabilisation, and this limits you to Panasonic’s own lenses. For shooting distant subjects, assuming you already are using a 14-42mm ‘kit’ zoom, you have two choices. You can…

For the sake of brevity, this story will begin with the electronic flash. This type of flash depends on a reusable light source, unlike the bulb flashes that preceded it. The lamp is a tube filled with xenon gas. When an electric current passes through this gas, it forms a plasma that glows, providing an efficient source of light. The power is stored in a i capacitor, working at a potential of several hundred volts. Even this voltage is insufficien t to start the flash, so a separate trigger transformer multiplies the working voltage to several thousand volts to provide the required spark. In early flash units, the trigger transformer was provided directly by the contacts in the camera’s shutter. In contemporary cameras, this was a simple mechanical switch that…

Tamron 15-30mm Tamron’s 15-30mm ‘ultrawideangle’ f/2.8 lens will be released on 16 February, priced £949.99. Suitable for full-frame cameras, the lens includes optical image stabilisation and a ‘water and dirt-repellent’ coating. Visit intro2020.co.uk or call 01628 674411. Phottix flash The Phottix Indra 500 TTL is a 500-watt TTL studio flash for Canon and Nikon cameras that can be powered by a rechargeable battery and used on location. The Indra 500 TTL costs £999.99 (with rechargeable battery) or £699.99 (head only). Visit Intro 2020 or call 01628 674411. Argos £5k blooper A Canon lens hood mistakenly went on sale at Argos for £4,747, according to a price quoted on the retailer’s website. The apparent cost of the Canon ET-65B lens hood was spotted by AP reader Terence Moore. The same money…

THE OM-D E-M5 Mark II is Olympus’s update to its highly regarded two-year-old compact system camera. Like its predecessor, its design harks back to classic film SLRs. With a Micro Four Thirds lens mount, it is compatible with a comprehensive range of lenses from Olympus, Panasonic and third-party makers. A 16-million-pixel Four Thirds sensor gives a standard sensitivity range of ISO 200– 25,600, with an extended setting of ISO 100. Continuous shooting is available at 10fps with fixed focus, or 5fps with autofocus. The maximum shutter speed has been increased from 1/4000sec to 1/8000sec and, in a first for Olympus, a fully electronic silent shutter offers speeds from 1/16,000-60secs. The 81-point contrast-detection autofocus system covers almost the entire frame. The headline-grabbing feature is a new 40-million-pixel composite stills mode. This…

Bulletproof by Vee Speers, Kehrer Verlag, ￡32, hardback, 88 pages, ISBN 978-3-86828-566-6 IN THIS sequel to her staggeringly i well-received 2008 book The Birthday I Party, Vee Speers returns once again to portraits of children. Speers’ first book — featured images of children dressed up ready to attend an imaginary birthday party. Each one was pushed to borderline fantastical extremes. Everything, from the hairstyling, costumes and print aesthetic, was designed to communicate the magic of childhood. Here, Speers returns to similar themes and actually uses the same children found in her previous collection. Naturally, the children have grown. They are longer, thinner - and more aware of themselves. The fragile beauty of adolescence finds its voice in Speers’ images and in many ways acts as fitting memorial for the one thing we…

THE NEW MAGIX Photostory 2015 Deluxe offers more than 300 freely combinable high-quality effects, animations and decorative elements. You can combine individual images to make panoramas or 3D photos, and travelroute animations allow you to create interactive presentations of travel images. With over 50 new music pieces and 500 effects, the program features more than 850 professional sounds and songs for audio dubbing. You can also add your own audio comments and music. If you don’t have a lot of time or much of a creative streak, you can use the Photostory wizard. With lots of thematic templates for birthdays, weddings, Christmas and other events, you can automatically create the right Photostory for every occasion. There is no need to upload photos and video to the internet, and everything can…

What do Julia Margaret Cameron’s enigmatic portraits, Steve McCurry’s iconic image of an Afghan girl with piercing green eyes, Harold Eugene Edgerton’s milk-drop image and Philippe Halsman’s eccentric Salvador Dali photograph all have in common? They are just some of the many treasures that belong to the Royal Photographic Society’s 250,000-strong collection of images. Better still, these photographs are among the 200-plus currently on show at the Science Museum’s Media Space in South Kensington, London. From photography pioneer Nicephore Niepce’s exquisite heliographs to more contemporary images by the likes of Don McCullin, Terry O’Neill and Martin Parr, the exhibition Drawn by Light spans the entire canon of photography, touching on its technological and artistic development right through to the present day. Produced in collaboration with the Reiss-Engelhorn-Museen in Mannheim, Germany,…

Adding a Radial Filter Gregory Emery, who took this picture, informs me this is a photograph of the L ’Accalmie boat, taken near Baie-St-Paul, Quebec, Canada. It’s a lovely subject, but I do think the photograph was perhaps cropped a little too tightly in-camera. As it has been shot, the cropping works well, but I reckon it would have helped if Gregory had zoomed out slightly (this was shot at 27mm using an 18-140mm lens). This would have provided more options to apply an alternative crop at the image-editing stage. The following steps show how I edited the master raw image and used a Radial Filter adjustment to selectively lighten the hull of the boat. 1 Add a Radial Filter I began by adding a Radial Filter. I did this…

Manfrotto 055PROB tripod I use the Manfrotto 055PROB tripod and a ball head for 99% of my landscape shots. The 055 is big and heavy, but it provides a very secure base and enables me to shoot with the camera up to nearly 2 metres from the ground if needed. Hoya circular polarising filter This is a must for photographing waterfalls, as the polariser allows me to cut out the reflections on the surface of the water and reduce the overall glare on the wet rocks and foliage. Nikon ML-L3 camera remote I use the mirror lock-up function when shooting landscapes to ensure image sharpness by minimising any camera movement and trigger the shutter sequence with the tiny Nikon remote. Cokin Z-Pro graduated filters Graduated filters are a must for…

These are itinerant cotton workers during the Great Depression. They are citizens of the richest and most powerful country in the world. They are carrying all that they possess. All that they possess. This alone brings tears to the eyes. But there’s a famous quote associated with this picture too: ‘Damned if we’ll work for what they pay folks hereabouts.’ Carl Mydans had as good an ear for a phrase as an eye for a picture, and the words and the picture play off one another. The picture on its own is, to be brutal, generic historical poverty. Superbly executed, to be sure: the big empty spaces, the broad road, the smallness of the figures in the unoccupied landscape. But then you learn that they are carrying all their possessions.…