Innholdsfortegnelse for 04-oct-2014 i Amateur Photographer

I have a confession: I suffer from dendrophilia. I’ve had it for as long as I can remember. Although it isn’t contagious in the traditional sense, photographers are especially susceptible to catching it. The most obvious symptom is a sense of enhanced well-being when in the proximity of woodland or forest. Yes, a dendrophile is a ‘lover of trees’. Trees make a fantastic all-year-round subject for photographers, whether it’s their stark, bare branches in winter, or backlit leaves glistening in the summer sun – and, of course, the coming autumn season is the most photogenic of all. But wooded areas, where groups of trees are clustered closely together, are more problematic. It can be difficult to find visually coherent compositions within the random mess of branches, leaves and undergrowth, but…

Rolling hills, beautiful countryside and a striking sunrise or sunset are usually what spring to mind when you think of landscape images. Many photographers are guilty of overlooking the urban landscapes. However, providing they’re composed correctly, scenes with structures can make excellent subjects. It’s best to look for buildings that have an interesting shape and to find scenes with strong leading lines that draw the eye across the image. The easiest way to do this is to use Google Maps and select Street View. This will allow users to search an area and find a suitable urban location. It’s also worth noting that scenes will look great at night. 1 If shooting subjects that are illuminated at night, then try shooting 30mins to an hour after sunset. This will usually…

WITH its 24.3-million-pixel, full-frame sensor, Nikon is pitching the D750 as a DSLR for serious enthusiasts. Compared to the D610, the most eye-catching additions are a tilting rear screen and built-in Wi-Fi. The camera also incorporates many features from the D810, including its 51-point AF system. Sensor The D750’s 24.3-million-pixel, full-frame sensor offers a sensitivity range of ISO 100-12,800, which is expandable to ISO 50-51,200. With its Expeed 4 processor, the D750 can shoot at 6.5 frames per second. Its 51-point autofocus module includes 15 cross-type sensors, and 11 that work at f/8 for shooting with teleconverters. Nikon says it will work in low light down to an impressive –3EV. Inherited from the D810, a highlight-weighted metering setting is specifically designed to avoid blowing out detail in bright areas of…

There is a well-trodden path for many landscape photographers. Once an early interest in the land and sea begins to develop, it’s perfectly natural to want to expand horizons, set about capturing iconic locations and begin building something of a portfolio. If you live in Britain, some of those locations might include the world-famous limestone arch of Durdle Door, the view along the beach to Dunstanburgh Castle or perhaps Ashness Jetty at Derwent Water. The problem, of course, is that thousands of photographers have visited these locations before you, in all likeliness created something fairly special already, or simply enjoyed eminently more interesting conditions. The chances of pulling off a stunning image in one visit to any given location are incredibly low. I’ve visited some of my favourite spots up…

I’VE BEEN known to break with what many might consider to be conventional techniques in landscape photography and look for something different. In my view, this is an important part of developing a photographer’s artistic vision. I established a new project earlier this year titled Backwater. For this, I looked for pools of water in local woodland where I could combine my love of trees with reflections, infrared and a narrow depth of field, to develop something visually interesting and as unique as possible. ‘The approach really electrified my enthusiasm and I was quickly hooked’ This approach really electrified my enthusiasm and I was quickly hooked by these more abstract results, which hopefully show that not every photographic method and result has necessarily been considered or done to death. Some…

Winter Solitude Dominique Dubied Switzerland Inspired by a quote from beat writer Jack Kerouac, Dominique has produced a beautiful image that communicates much about winter solitude. By including the vast empty space in the image, the viewer is able to contemplate themes of isolation in the wilderness. The minimalist style is a wonderful evocation of these ideas. Menina Jacqueline Roberts Germany Around 6,600 images were submitted to this year’s RPS competition, but it was Jacqueline Roberts’ image ‘Menina’ that took the Gold Medal. ‘“Menina” was taken on Christmas Day, 2008,’ she says. ‘My daughter, Malen, was four at the time, and when I saw her swirling around in her princess dress, she reminded me of the Infanta Margarita, portrayed in Velázquez’s masterpiece Las Meninas. That was the moment that triggered…

Backlighting A GENERAL rule in photography is to always keep the sun over your shoulder when taking pictures. Yet shooting into the light can create a striking atmosphere, especially in black & white. This is particularly effective if you’re looking to achieve a silhouette. However, there are a number of ways to get a balanced exposure if that’s what you’re looking for. Using fill-in flash on your foreground interest is perhaps the easiest method. You could also take two exposures – one for the foreground and the other for the backlight – and blend them. High contrast CHOOSING a high-contrast scene removes all nuances and pushes the greys of your image towards the black & white ends of the spectrum. The results will be simple, yet striking, compositions. Visualisation THE…

Kodak Pixpro SP360 • £299 • www.kodakpixpro.com Capturing 360° pictures and video with a single lens, meet tine new SP360. Jon Devo gives his view At a glance ● 16.38-million-pixel BSI MOS sensor ● Fixed f/2.8 lens ● Records full HD 1080p video ● Shock, splash, dust and freeze resistant ● Measures 41.1 x 50 x 38mm and weighs 103g 360° vision The SP360 can record full HD, 1920 x 1080-pixel (30fps) movies and 10-million-pixel stills with an extreme 360° view. Wireless It’s possible to use a smart device for live view and remotely controlling the SP360. Recorded images can be downloaded straight to the device. Tough Made to handle the exploits of thrill-seekers, the SP360 is shockproof against a two-metre drop, splash-proof, dust-proof and freeze-proof to -10°C. ACTION cameras…

Full 1080 HD video recording Canon was not the first to put video in a DSLR – this accolade was achieved by Nikon with the D90. However, this was only 720 resolution and the D90 has big issues with rolling shutter. The EOS 5D Mark II is special because it’s the first DSLR to really do video right. A later firmware update added the ability to shoot 1920 x 1080-pixelresolution movies at frame rates of up to 30fps. The video quality is exceptional, giving a rich colour tone and dynamic range straight out of the camera, although using a custom picture style with low sharpening and contrast allows more scope in post-production. The camera also features a mic port for external sound recording. 21.1-million-pixel sensor At the time of release,…

ONE OF the best things about the 645Z is that it slowed me down. I stopped to think about what I was doing. I shot long exposures, waited patiently for insects to land on plants and made sure that my tripod was perfectly positioned. Of course, you can do all of this with any camera, but there is something about the size, shape and way of working with the body of the 645Z that encourages you to get the absolute best from its 51.4-million-pixel sensor. Yet for all the feeling that it was something new, it had a sense of familiarity, like stepping into your favourite shoes. Buttons, dials and on-screen menus are all logically placed, and the camera isn’t as intimidating as a digital Hasselblad. It handles like a…

● EXPERT ADVICE ● TIPS ● TRICKS ● HACKS ● KNOW-HOW Best DSLR in the heat? Q I want a high-quality DSLR that I can take out with me on hikes – often in hot environments. I had a smaller digital camera before, but it kept shutting down because of the heat. I need your help – Canon or Nikon? And why? Kris Tag A Although the age-old Canon vs Nikon debate still prevails, those brands don’t make enthusiast-level DSLR cameras that are certified as being any more or less resistant than cameras from other brands. Your first consideration when buying a new camera and potentially investing in an entire system should be the things you’re intending to shoot and then considering whether the camera and its systems are suitable…

THE UNIQUE effect produced by a fisheye lens makes it one of the most interesting optics for a photographer. However, it isn’t cost-effective for the average amateur to splash out on one. An alternative is a wideangle adapter that screws onto the lens’s filter thread. When used on a wideangle lens, a fisheye-type effect is achieved, so you can experiment with taking fisheye images before deciding to buy such a lens. However, there is an even cheaper way to get a fisheye effect from a compact camera, using a spyhole door viewer and a black film canister. In all, it should cost less than £10. Don’t expect excellent results, but this should give a fisheye effect on a compact camera for next to nothing. HOW TO MAKE YOUR FISHEYE LENS…

Canon EOS 6D, 28-80mm, 1/100sec at f/5.6, ISO 200 This image by Slavik Terebov was uploaded to our Flickr group. ‘The person you see in this image is called Katya,’ says Slavik. ‘I came across her one day as I was wandering around the streets with my camera. Katya was very bored as she had no one to play with. When I saw her, I knew she’d make a great portrait. I gave her a hat to wear and moved in close so that her whole head filled the frame. The shadows you see are from a fence that was breaking up the light and highlighting certain areas on her face. I always find this kind of light incredibly expressive.’ If you’d like your images considered for our online picture…

This image, shot in Kenya, is called ‘Hybrid Solar Eclipse 2’ and was taken by Eugen Kamenew from Germany. It took first prize in the People and Space category in the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2014. ‘This hybrid solar eclipse began at sunrise over the western Atlantic as an annular eclipse, in which the moon does not entirely block the sun, leaving a bright ring, or annulus, uncovered,’ explains Kamenew. ‘As the moon’s shadow swept eastwards across the ocean, the eclipse became total.’ All of the winning images are on display at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London, and will run until February 2015. For more information, visit www.rmg.co.uk. Words & numbers “Most things in life are moments of pleasure and a lifetime of embarrassment; photography is a moment…

I once worked as a barista in a café where we all had to memorise the preferences of the ten most regular customers. Not the ten highest-paying customers, the ten most frequent. Some came in every other day and ordered a single coffee and took a long time drinking it. The café’s owners knew that the more special we made them feel, the more likely they’d tell their friends about the café. It was the busiest café in the city, often with a queue out of the door. Fast-forward a few years. With a successful stint as a full-time photographer under my belt, I launched a photography invention. It was hard to get the word out and persuade others to sell my invention, but when my gear started appearing in…

TILT-shift lenses are mentioned a few times in this article and it’s fair to say they are not the cheapest item in an already expensive pursuit. My wonderful Nikon 45mm f/2.8 PC-E lens is about £1,400 new today and, although it will last a lifetime, the price no doubt puts the idea out of reach of many people. There are ‘budget’ alternatives, however… Third-party lens manufacturer Samyang makes a 24mm tilt-shift lens that is highly thought of, which I could find new for about £700, half the price of the Nikon equivalent. Cheaper still, at around £200, are tilt-shift adapters, which you can fit to your existing lenses, though it’s fair to say that you start to descend into a more random world with metering and focus confirmation with this…

What inspired you to travel across America photographing trains? Lost Tracks of Time is a way for me to share my passion for vintage steam-powered trains. The allure of capturing images that stimulate one’s senses is what drew me to photograph these locomotives. I wanted to bring to life the smells of the coal fuelling the engine, the sound of the steam hissing and the earth shaking, as these magnificent machines sit idle or are in motion. These machines of steam are alive. Each is unique, with its own personality, which changes from day to day. When first introduced, steam trains opened up travel to new frontiers, and their romance and glamour still fascinates enthusiasts across the globe. Sadly, this technology has vanished from our society, so I wanted to…

£25,000 IN PRIZES TO BE WON Round Eight The World in Black & White THERE are only three categories left for the Amateur Photographer of the Year 2014 competition, and if previous years are anything to go by, this is likely to be our most-entered round. Black & white has always proved popular, not just in APOY but in the magazine generally. The expressive qualities of monochrome are catnip to photographers. When colour is removed from the equation, the rules of composition, framing and lighting shift their parameters and require the photographer (and viewer) to see the world in a vastly different way. Many photographers who work exclusively in black & white maintain that colour is a distraction in a photograph. Remove it and the viewer is free to focus…

Paul Henni, Edinburgh Paul has taken photos for many years, but in the first portion of his image-making only used point-and-shoot cameras. However, once he was given a Nikon D3200 for his birthday, his interest in the technical challenges of photography began to increase. As he lives in much-photographed Edinburgh, Paul is always looking for new ways to shoot the city. Weather is a particularly important subject in his images, and he describes the rapidly changing light as both a challenge and an inspiration. In the near future, Paul would like to upgrade his kit and skills beyond entry-level. Reach for the sky 1 Paul has created a moody industrial shot here. The highlights on the steel pipework add depth to the image, and the strong cylindrical forms guide your…

Seagull MRC80+flash ● £76.50 ● www.camerachina.com THIS compact LED light ring can be attached to the filter thread of a lens via one of the provided adapters with fittings for 49, 52, 55, 58, 62, 67, 72 and 77mm lenses. The power pack takes four AA batteries, supplying 6V power as it sits in the hotshoe of the camera. The unit features wheel control for adjusting brightness and a switch for alternating between flash and continuous lighting modes. In use, the flash mode is significantly brighter than the constant light mode, carrying < guide number of 2.6m @ IS010, which is about half the power of comparable units, but then of course, those units cost a 1 bit more money. Being an economic option, the MRC80+ is constructed from weaker…

CANON has never really made a song and dance about the performance of the weather sealing on the EOS 5D Mark II, but during the camera’s lifetime, I have put it through hell and back, an extreme example being when I was recording video footage from a boat and the camera and tripod toppled over into the lake. I dived in after it and pulled it from the depths after a good two or three seconds of being fully submerged, bruising my ribs quite badly in the process. On dry land I removed the battery door, lens, card slot, eyecup and anything else I could, in order to strip it back. The LCD screen was filled with water, as was the top-view display, so I thought it was a goner.…

Lenses The 645Z is compatible with older, manual-focus Pentax 645 lenses designed for the older film cameras. If you hunt around, it is possible to find a bargain or two. DNG raw Images can be saved as DNG raw files, so can be easily edited in almost any raw conversion software. No AA filter Like the Pentax K-3, the 645Z has no AA filter, meaning that the maximum resolution can be captured from the 51.4-million-pixel sensor. The high resolution means that moiré patterning shouldn’t be an issue; however, if it does start to appear in images, the award-winning AA filter simulator feature can be used. Flucards The 645Z is compatible with Flucards. These SD-sized cards offer Wi-Fi connectivity, and enable not only image transfer to a smartphone or tablet, but…

I am your Lens mount I HAVE been around ever since photographers needed cameras that facilitated the straightforward changing of lenses. The earliest lens mount that gained widespread popularity was the 39mm screw mount, widely associated with early Leica cameras from 1930 onwards. The same mount became a standard for enlarger lenses in the darkroom. In 1949, I gained some width to 42mm (M42) thanks to the Zeiss Contax S, but more widely popularised by the East German Praktica brand, as well as Pentax in Japan and Zenit in the Soviet Union. Miranda went wider with a 44mm lens mount and later combined this with a four-claw bayonet mount. What’s a bayonet? The trouble with screw mounts is that it’s difficult to line up the lens in the first place…

RogerHicks considers… ‘Himalayan Railway, 1995’ by Raghu Rai Where ignorance is bliss, ’tis folly to be wise. Thus wrote Thomas Gray in his Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College in 1742. Everything is filtered though our own ignorance, our own knowledge. If you have travelled on the Darjeeling ‘Toy Train’, your response to this picture will be different to that of someone who has not. Likewise, it will vary according to whether you have been to India or not. How did Raghu Rai shoot this picture? Does it matter? We take from it what we bring to it. The man’s face is obviously the principal subject: clearest, with the most contrast. Then there are the ladies behind the glass, seen through reflections. Reflection means ‘thinking’ as well as…

CM1 stunner Panasonic stunned Photokina by announcing the Lumix DMC-CM1, billed as a connected device with a Leica DC Elmarit 28mm f/2.8 lens. The CM1 has a 20-million-pixel, 1in imaging sensor, a manual ring and 4.7in LCD touchscreen. It will feature an Android 4.4 operating system, 4K video, and can be used as a phone. It is not due out over here, though AP understands that Panasonic is monitoring its UK potential. Sony lenses October will see the debut of a new Zeiss 16-35mm lens for Sony’s E-mount system. The Vario-Tessar T* FE 16-35mm f/4 ZA OSS wideangle zoom was joined at Photokina by the FE PZ 28-135mm f/4 G OSS lens – a motorised zoom optimised for video. The 16-35mm (£1,289) is available for pre-order, with the 28-135mm (£2,200)…

At a glance ■ 24.3-million-pixel, full-frame CMOS sensor ■ 100% viewfinder with 0.70x magnification ■ 6.5fps continuous shooting ■ Dual SD card slots ■ Magnesium-alloy and carbon-fibre build ■ ISO 50-51,200 (expanded) ■ 3.2in, 1.23-million-dot tilting LCD screen ■ £1,799 body only; £2,249 with 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5 lens; £2,349 with 24-120mm f/4 lens Built-in flash The built-in, pop-up flash can be used for wireless control of Nikon Speedlight flash units Tilting LCD The first tilting screen on a full-frame DSLR, it’s designed specifically not to interfere with tripod heads when pointed downwards HDMI output The D750 can record video simultaneously to the internal memory card and an external recorder connected via HDMI. First impressions AT FIRST sight, the D750 might look a little underwhelming; there’s nothing really new here that we…

Uncommon Places: The Complete Works by Stephen Shore, Thames & Hudson, £39.95, hardback, 204 pages, ISBN 978-0-50054-445-7 The legacy of Stephen Shore’s Uncommon Places cannot be overstated. While many cite William Eggleston as being perhaps the pioneer of colour photography, Stephen Shore more than did his bit to take colour beyond the domain of advertising and fashion imagery. The subjects that formed the body of his work were no less influential; his large-format images of the American vernacular landscape have influenced a tradition in photography that has been endlessly repeated and reconfigured in the last 40 years of photographic history. This updated edition features15 previously unseen images and includes discussions with the artist, offering readers insight into what it means to produce – and update – such an enduring legacy.…

SOME photographers might take one look at the woods and think that there is nothing worth shooting until autumn presents itself in all its colourful glory, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. While the mood and character of trees is in constant flux, you can also unleash all manner of creative approaches no matter what time of year it is. Consider long exposures to elicit the feeling of movement, use creative blur by selecting a narrow depth of field, pick out individual unique features in the forest, or take in a wider view. The options are endless. Are you struggling for something to shoot during the summer months? If you want to get creative, try an infrared filter like the Hoya R72 and experiment. Infrared demands lots of…

Email amateurphotographer@timeinc.com and include your full postal address Write to Inbox, Amateur Photographer, Time Inc. (UK), Blue Fin Building, 110 Southwark Street, London SE1 0SU LETTER OF THE WEEK Better than Brandt I was initially sceptical when the Classics Revisited feature was introduced, but I have actually found it quite interesting. The recreation of Bill Brandt’s ‘Nude, London, 1952’ (AP 13 September) was especially interesting to me, although not for the technical details of the recreation process. I have been a fan of Brandt’s work since I first took an interest in photography (in my teens in the 1960s). However, one Brandt image that I was never comfortable with was, in fact, ‘Nude, London, 1952’. For me, the inclusion of the breast in the bottom-right corner created a conflicting focal…

1st prize THE first-prize winner will receive an Olympus OM-D E-M10 with a 14-42mm EZ Pancake zoom, a 45mm f/1.8 portrait lens, a 40-150mm zoom, a 9mm fisheye lens, a macro adapter and a street case in which to carry it all. That’s a total retail price of £1,200. The E-M10 has a 16.1-million-pixel, four thirds-sized CMOS sensor and a TruePic VII image-processing system. Its 1.44-million-dot EVF displays a 100% field of view and has a 120fps refresh rate. The 14-42mm EZ Pancake zoom lens is a slim and compact optic that is equivalent to a 28-84mm lens in the 35mm format. This 45mm f/1.8 portrait optic is ideal for low-light people shots without flash, while the 40-150mm zoom has high-speed AF and is optimised for movies and stills. The…

THIS is a clever and ambitious image that caught my eye because it is fun, different and tries, rather well, to tell a story. Anthony has obviously spent some time thinking about what he wanted to do and say, and he’s made a very good job of it. Setting out with a purpose can be a fantastic aid to our photography. Working in a confined space with flash is very difficult, as small distances between objects are proportionally more dramatic according to how much light they receive – which is why the dog is a little burnt out. The shot has a touch too much contrast as well, so it would be worth processing the original with reduced contrast and a fraction less exposure. In addition, Anthony might have diffused…

At a glance ● Around £800, second-hand ● 21.1-million-pixel, full-frame sensor ● 1080p movie recording at 29.97fps ● ISO 100-6400 ● Digic 4 processor ● 3.9fps continuous shooting ● 9 autofocus points ● 3in, 920,000-dot ClearView LCD display ● Small, medium and large raw+JPEG recording From the moment I bought my first DSLR, I was utterly engrossed in photography. Within six months, I was taking on small photography jobs in order to push myself and gain more experience. Even if there was no prospect of pay, the satisfaction of executing great photographs that were appreciated by the end users was enough to keep me going. Skip forward a year or so, and an opportunity to do some work experience at a big press agency came up. It was clear my…

Usually the preserve of the professional studio photographer, Pentax has been trying to tempt enthusiast photographers with a medium-format digital camera since the launch of the Pentax 645D in March 2010. The format certainly offers some advantages, especially for those who require a shallow depth of field and the ability to record the finest of details. Obviously, at almost £6,800 body only, the price of the new Pentax 645Z may still be prohibitive to most photographers, but it is still certainly far cheaper than other medium-format options from the likes of Hasselblad or Phase One. And, of course, renting the Pentax 645Z is another option for those who want to use it for a particular project. The real questions for the DSLR shooter thinking of using the Pentax 645Z are,…

Improve Your Photography ‘There is no better way to learn and improve our photography than to enrol on a proper course, led by qualified and experienced tutors who can offer one to one coaching and guidance. Our own SPI courses have been created by respected tutors, with the collaboration of the Amateur Photographer and What Digital Camera teams, to ensure they’re tailored to the needs of our readers, and by allowing you to work at your own pace they’re ideal for those of us with busy lifestyles.’ Nigel Atherton, Group Editor Student profile ‘I enrolled on an SPI course because I felt my progress had levelled off, and I wanted professional guidance as to how I may improve. So far, I have enjoyed the course, the tutor guidance is very…

LAUNCHED February 2005 PRICE AT LAUNCH £799 GUIDE PRICE TODAY £110 SUCCESSOR to the first sub-£1,000 DSLR – the EOS 300D – the EOS 350D is smaller and lighter than its predecessor. It also ushered in a raft of improvements, including a higher-resolution, 8-millionpixel, APS-C CMOS sensor and Digic II image processor. What’s good Noise is not something the EOS 350D is known for, even at moderately high ISOs. The AF system, particularly with USM lenses, is reliable and quick. You can use the massive range of EF-S and EF lenses from both Canon and third parties. For a DSLR, the EOS 350D won’t break your back. What’s bad The EOS 350D is not a pro camera, and although it’s one of the better examples of a plastic DSLR body,…