Innholdsfortegnelse for 05-sep-15 i Amateur Photographer

I’m sure that if you ask most photographers for their bucket list of holidays, a safari would feature near the top. We’re regularly asked for advice from readers who are planning to go on a safari, about the gear to take and how to get the best pictures. AP’s features and technique editor Phil Hall was lucky enough to visit the Masai Mara recently on a specialist photographic holiday, and he too spent a lot of time ruminating on what to take. In the end, and to his surprise, he came back regretting not taking a wider-angle lens. This week he shares what he learnt, much of which can be applied to wildlife photography closer to home too (see pages 10-17). I hope you enjoy it. Meanwhile, if you have…

PRESS photographers have been told to pay a £100 accreditation fee to cover this year's Notting Hill Carnival in London, and be prepared to share coverage with organisers. The pass grants access to controlled press areas, including a ‘press tower'. The media are also encouraged to enter their work into a competition to have their images used to promote next year's Notting Hill Carnival. The move angered the National Union of Journalists, whose freelance organiser, John Toner, said: ‘It is not acceptable that the media are expected to pay a fee to cover what is a genuine news event. ‘It is equally unacceptable that the organisers expect pictures and video to be supplied free for their commercial purposes.' Organisers did not respond to a request for comment.…

You answered… A Yes, people with similar interests will always band together and learn from each other 41% B Yes, it’s a social thing as much as it is about photography 27% C No, with all the information on the internet, social media and forums camera clubs are becoming redundant 19% D I don’t know 13% What you said ‘I’d like to have voted “Yes”, because I hope camera clubs will continue. Unfortunately, my head says they won’t, as my club is struggling to maintain member numbers and younger people don’t seem remotely interested these days. They’re happy to take thousands images and share them online’ ‘I used to attend a camera club local to me. It frustrated me that the programme was the same old thing every six months.…

Our cameras and lenses are tested using the industry-standard Image Engineering IQ-Analyser software. Visit www.image-engineering.de for more details IT'S THE image quality produced by the Alpha 7R II's back-illuminated sensor that most people will be keen to read about. Those who've been waiting to find out how the sensor performs won't be disappointed – the 42.4MP sensor produces astonishing results both in the lab and out in the field. As you'd expect, it resolves finer detail than the Alpha 7R, and its 7952x5303-pixel resolution can produce a 22x15in or 57x38cm print at a critically sharp 300ppi output resolution. Just like Canon's EOS 5DS and 5DS R models, the detail the sensor resolves has to be seen to be believed - we only wish we could print larger than A3 in…

A sudden death in my family prompted our close relatives to look through prints in an album of past special moments for memories shared and times enjoyed with the loved one. These photographs went from colour shots of more recent years to earlier glossy black & whites over several decades. None could be classed as great photographs in a technical sense, but the content meant so much to those who were viewing them. This experience seemed to highlight again the path of progress photography has made, from the days of film with its variable grain to the, frankly, annoying presence of the cult created by ‘pixel peepers', who are more focused on resolution than resolving to create photographs of meaning. Film photography certainly had its critics, and ‘grain watchers', but…

What’s your advice when it comes to kit? Gear’s everything, but you shouldn’t let it take over your safari. You want to take hundreds of good pictures, not be worrying about your kit. I’d love to say it’s all about the photographer, but nowadays it isn’t. The big, heavy lenses do give you faster, sharper and often quicker pictures. I always think there are two critical lenses you should have with you: a good long lens and a good wide one. What makes a great safari shot? Thousands of people go on safaris all over the world and they all come back with very similar photographs. What I try to teach people more than anything is to come back with something that no one else has, nobody else can possibly…

It was back in the 1970s that Tim Rudman first contemplated photographing Iceland. Tim had always liked the idea of exploring, and the cold region seemed to be a wonderful opportunity, a wonderful landscape and an inspirational country. However, it took until 2007 for this to become a reality. An upsurge in the popularity of photographing Iceland deterred Tim for many years, but he finally took the plunge and the end result is his new book Iceland: An Uneasy Calm, which takes its subtitle from the constant underlying threat of volcanic activity on the island. Tim’s love affair with photography and printing dates back to the late 1960s, when he picked up a book by the late Sam Haskins. ‘From that moment I knew that’s what I had to do,’…

Caravan at night Adrian Holt Pentax K-30,18-135mm, 30 secs at f/3.5, ISO 6,400 I HAVE seen a lot of earth/astro images recently, with features on the ground against a background of a dramatic night sky, and a good number have worked rather well. None, though, has featured a caravan in the foreground, as other photographers all opted for loftier subjects. I'm pleased Adrian has shot his version the way he has, as it allows us to make a stronger connection with the scene by including more down-to-earth subject matter because we can recognise something we might experience ourselves. The night sky belongs to everyone and can be enjoyed by everyone – and a campsite in the middle of nowhere might be the ideal place from which to appreciate it. Adrian's…

Canon EOS 5DS Sensor 50.6MP full-frame CMOS ISO 50-12,800 (expanded) Price £3,000 (body only) Like the EOS 5DS R, the EOS 5DS features a 50.6MP sensor and delivers breathtaking image quality with sensational detail. It’s larger and heavier than the Alpha 7R II, yet it remains an excellent all-rounder. Canon EOS 5DS R Sensor 50.6MP full-frame CMOS ISO 50-12,800 (expanded) Price £3,200 (body only) The EOS 5DS R is similar to the EOS 5DS in every way, except that the effect of the optical low-pass filter is cancelled out to resolve the finest level of detail possible. It adds a £200 premium to its price compared to the 5DS. Nikon D810 Sensor 36.3MP full-frame CMOS ISO 32-51,200 (expanded) Price £2,350 (body only) Nikon’s D810 is a highly refined camera that…

Resolution When wide open at f/2 the lens is sharp in the centre, and the corners are only slightly softer. There’s a big jump in sharpness at f/2.8, and not much change in our MTF measurements after that, suggesting the lens has plenty to spare for higher resolution sensors (we tested it on the 16MP X–A1). Best results are at f/5.6, and stopping down further results in progressive softening due to diffraction. Shading Fujifilm uses software correction to reduce shading in its cameras’ JPEG output, but even when looking at uncorrected raw files, shading from the 90mm is very low indeed. We measured just 0.4EV with the aperture set wide open at f/2, and stopping down to f/2.8 eliminates any shading entirely. Indeed, the chances are that many photographers will…

THE AF-S DX Nikkor 16-80mm f/2.8-4E ED VR is a well-specified lens with a versatile 5x zoom, 4-stop VR, electromagnetic diaphragm, relatively fast maximum aperture and compact form factor. However, there are perhaps better-value lens options out there, with the Sigma17-70mm f/2.8-4 DC OS Macro HSM | C offering a similar number of features but costing £349 (compared to £869), while the AF-S DX Nikkor16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, though not quite as fast as the Nikkor16-80mm f/2.8-4, costs £449. The Nikkor16-80mm f/2.8-4 delivers some great results, and so long as you're aware of its shortfalls you won't be disappointed. Its overall performance is good, with dependable performances from the autofocus and Vibration Reduction. It would have been nice to have seen more metal used in the construction, but this would…

LAUNCHED February 2004PRICE WHEN NEW £399GUIDE PRICE TODAY £150 BRANDED a Contax in Europe and a Kyocera FineCam in the USA, the rare 3.2-million-pixel SL300R T* was an innovative slimline compact digital camera. Manufactured and designed by the Kyocera Corporation in Japan, the company was the licence holder for the German Contax and Carl Zeiss T* brands. Kyocera quit the camera market just a year after launching the SL300R T* after big losses. What’s good The twist-and-shoot design looked good and was solidly engineered. Most are silver with a leatherette finish, but all-black examples exist. The camera section with the lens and flash resides on one side, with the LCD screen and controls on the other. Ideal for low-angle or candid shooting, the Carl Zeiss Vario Tessar f/2.8-4.7 lens doesn't…

LEGENDARY photographer Elliott Erwitt has returned to Cuba 50 years after he shot famous candid images of Ché Guevara and Fidel Castro. Erwitt's work will be used to launch the inaugural Elliot Erwitt Havana Club 7 Fellowship, an annual award that enables a photographer to travel to Cuba to create his or her own body of work. Their brief will be to take photos that capture ‘the soul of Cuba and the essence of Elliot Erwitt's unrivalled style of photography'. The Fellowship, which aims to celebrate the culture, history and tradition of Cuba, is run in conjunction with rum maker Havana Club, which will contribute € 25,000 per year to the project. Funding will also come from a selection of images that will be sold to support the next photographer…

Desire: New Erotic Photography By Patrick Remy, Prestel, £29.99, hardback, 280 pages, ISBN 978-3-79134-952-7 PERHAPS one of the most interesting ways that new technology is shifting the parameters of photography is how these fluctuating boundaries are directly affecting the creation and dissemination of specific genres. In this collection of erotic works created by 30 artists from around the world, we find that the human form and the desires associated with it are being reconfigured to suit the concerns of the 21st century. Unlike the photographers of yesteryear, there is so much more than salacious male ogling. Here the landscape is split between genders, with each photographer exploring the blurred canvas of sexuality and desire. Perhaps not everyone will agree that there is something beneath the surface, but this collection is…

ESTABLISHED in 2000, Kicheche Camps are beautiful tented camps that are set in the heart of wildlife-rich conservancies. With three camps in the Masai Mara and one in Laikipia, they consist of between six and eight guest tents and provide an incredibly intimate atmosphere within the bush. involved tucking into Scotch eggs not 15 metres from a sleeping leopard dangling from a tree branch in front of us. Staying out on the savannah for long game drives meant we had the advantage of spending more time following our fauna, and Paul and our guides had a complete understanding of their behaviour and habits. A perfect example was a morning when we followed a mother cheetah and her cubs on a hunt across the bush, and studied them as they came…

Research Do plenty of research on the actual safari you’re taking – what the operator promises, and what he or she can actually deliver. Also, research the best times of year to see wildlife and particular species. If the cost appears desperately cheap, don’t expect much time in the places that matter. The most important parts of any safari are the guides (are they properly qualified?), the vehicles (are they properly designed for long days in the saddle?) and time – quality time actually in the game areas, not just driving there crammed in a minibus. Kit Spend your money on a fast lens, rather than be talked into a high-tech, top-of-the-range camera. Most DSLRs know their onions now, but can be let down by shoddy lenses. F-stop not mm…

Seeing David Tipling's photograph of swallows on a fence in AP15 August (right) reminded me of a photographer I encountered recently at the RSPB reserve in Minsmere, Suffolk. On the seaward side of the reserve was a huge group of sand martins using a barbed-wire fence as a perch, happily flying out and returning to feed their young. A number of us had noticed this and queued patiently to get our shots. Then a person with the most massive kit took his turn and, when he finished, to the amazement of all the photographers remaining, marched through the perch site of the birds, scattering them and leaving the rest of us open-mouthed. The birds failed to return and we lost the opportunity of a memorable front-on shot . What I…

iStorage datAshur USB Flash Drive From £46.80 (4GB) www.istorage-uk.com Nigel Atherton looks at a hardware-encrypted portable storage solution Keypad Use the alphanumeric keypad to enter a 7 to 15-digit PIN code of your choice. LED lights confirm the lock/unlock status of the drive. Hardware encryption The datAshur offers military-grade 256-bit hardware encryption for maximum security. Protective sheath The rubberised drive feels solid and well made, but for extra protection it comes with a rugged aluminium sheath that is water and dust-resistant. At a glance USB pen drive in capacities from 4GB to 32GB Alphanumeric keypad with hardware encryption Brute Force Hack defence mechanism Works with Windows, Mac and other platforms BILLED as the world's most secure USB flash drive, the iStorage datAshur's key feature is an alphanumeric keypad that allows…

PlayMemories Sony’s app download service lets users add new functions to the Alpha 7R II. There are apps for photo and movie effects, as well as others that allow your smartphone to function as the camera’s remote control. Customisation The Alpha 7R II allows you to set the camera’s buttons and dials as you’d like them. To make a change, simply head to the custom key settings option, which is located in the main menu. Durable shutter The Alpha 7R II’s shutter is tested to 500,000 cycles and features a braking mechanism that’s designed to cut mechanical front and rear curtain vibration by up to 50%. Battery A pair of rechargeable NP-FW50 batteries, the same as those used in the Sony Alpha 7R, 7 II and 7S are supplied with…

WHILE there are some cameras that offer incremental upgrades over their predecessors, the Sony Alpha 7R II isn't one of them, as this camera is a huge step up from the Alpha 7R. The accuracy and speed of focusing, particularly in low light and when third-party lenses are used in conjunction with adapters, is drastically improved, thanks to the appointment of the new fast-hybrid AF system. The noisy shutter issue has been addressed, the introduction of Sony's superb 5-axis image stabilisation technology is helpful for achieving pin-sharp results when it's used handheld and the performance of the 42.4MP sensor is absolutely sensational. The way it controls noise and handles detail right up to ISO 25,600 is a real eye-opener. Although the handling is yet another area that's been refined, I'd…

ALTHOUGH the 90mm gives superb results when stopped down, what is more important to most users is its performance at maximum aperture, and Fujifilm has absolutely got it right with this lens. Wide open, the lens is really sharp and free from any worrying optical flaws, while the bokeh and out-of-focus areas are delightful for portraits. The autofocusing isn't as fast as some of Fuji's lenses, but it's a definite improvement over the 56mm and is very quiet and accurate. This is important given the very shallow depth of field when shooting wide open. It's hard to criticise this lens, but the one thing that goes against it is the lack of versatility of the 90mm focal length. For portraits, especially tight headshots, the Fujinon XF 56mm f/1.6 does a…

Resolution At 16mm and f/2.8, centre sharpness is good but edge sharpness does suffer. However, this improves somewhat as you stop the lens down, with around f/5.6-8 delivering the best results for centre and corner sharpness. Beyond that, diffraction starts to become an issue. At 80mm, edge sharpness at f/4 doesn’t match the centre of the frame, with f/5.6 delivering the sharpest results. Shading There’s severe vignetting when using the lens wide open at f/2.8 and 16mm, but it starts to disappear when stopped down a little at f/4 before being well controlled beyond that. At 80mm, vignetting is slightly better controlled at f/4, although there’s quite a drop-off at the edges of the frame. From f/8 onwards, though, things are controlled well. Curvilinear distortion At 16mm noticeable barrel distortion…

GoPro choice Q My friend is a track-day instructor. From time to time I get the opportunity to head out with him, and I'd like to capture some video footage outside the car, for which I've bought a suction-cup mount. I'm torn between buying the GoPro HERO 4 Silver and the brand new HERO 4 Session, but I can't to work out which is best. Can you help? Tim Chapman A The new GoPro HERO 4 Session features a rather different design to the traditional-looking GoPro models. Not only is the HERO 4 Session 50% smaller than the HERO 4 Silver, but it’s 40% lighter too, making it an excellent choice if you’d like to set up in a confined space or want a super-lightweight GoPro model. Both cameras can…

Jeremy Hunter Over 30 years, Jeremy Hunter has divided his talents between TV and photojournalism. He specialises in travel reportage and contributes to The Sunday Times, the Telegraph Magazine, The Sunday Telegraph Magazine, The Guardian, The Mail on Sunday, Condé Nast Traveller, Stern and Wanderlust. He has won two UNESCO awards. Visit www.jeremyhunter.com. 1958 Kodak Brownie Box My first camera was the Brownie Box 620. My school was near Silverstone motor-racing circuit in Northamptonshire, so every Saturday I would photograph all the greats of the motor-racing world, including Stirling Moss, Mike Hawthorn, Peter Collins, Jean Behra and Count Wolfgang von Trips. Sadly, I've lost all the 620 negatives, but I still have a few contact prints, which I've scanned, and I continue to be amazed by their quality. Today, I…

After last week’s column, AP deputy editor Richard Sibley asked me if I’d like to write another. ‘But don’t get too comfortable,’ he said. ‘I’m a man of advanced age,’ I replied. ‘I’m never comfortable.’ It’s now the eve of deadline day, and here I am sat in an East London pub, and my old mate Eli is handing me yet another pint of ale. ‘I’ve missed this,’ he says. ‘What am I going to write?’ He shrugs. ‘I think Salgado has a new book?’ At this time the bar noise fades to a low hum and a well-presented woman with a shock of black hair stands up and asks if we can hear her in the back. Eli shrugs. ‘We’re at a damned hustings!’ I whisper. For several minutes,…