Innholdsfortegnelse for 30-Apr-2016 i Amateur Photographer

Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day. We’re all familiar with the nursery rhyme, and generally, it reflects my feelings towards my least favourite type of weather. But there’s another popular quote, attributed to various people: there’s no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing. The second of the two is the one that will stand photographers in the best stead, because while the majority of us are tucked up in the warm, more adventurous and waterproofed photographers are out there grabbing all the best pictures, as David Tipling shows us this week on page 10. His subject is wildlife but many of his tips are universal. Speaking of bad weather, Leica took us all by surprise recently by launching its premium brand into the competitive tough camera…

THE BEST images from this year's Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year competition have been plucked from thousands submitted worldwide (www.pinkladyfoodphotographer oftheyear.com). Open to professional and amateur photographers, the contest boasted a prize pool worth £8,000. AP Editor Nigel Atherton was on the judging panel. The public were asked to choose their favourite photos from around 400 shortlisted images and 18 short films, via the People's Choice vote. The food photographer, filmmaker and wine photographer chosen in this vote will join other finalists for a reception at the Mall Galleries in London on 26 April, ahead of a five-day exhibition. Subscribe to Amateur Photographer SAVE 35%* Visit amateurphotographer subs.co.uk/15W (or see p28) * when you pay by UK Direct Debit…

Rain cover Protecting your camera needn’t cost a fortune – even a bin bag with a hole in one end for the lens will suffice. I use an old pair of waterproof trousers wrapped around the camera and lens. However, there are some excellent covers made for specific focal lengths. Clothing While you’ll want to keep your kit dry, you’ll also want to keep yourself dry. Make sure you dress for the conditions. A wind and waterproof jacket is essential. Beanbag Photographing wildlife in the rain can be very productive if you use your car as a mobile hide and shelter. A good solid beanbag that can rest on the car door will ensure a heavy telephoto lens has a steady support. Lens cloth A decent large lens cloth lives…

1 For photographs of animals shaking themselves in heavy rain, deer parks are well worth a visit. Those I can recommend through personal experience include Knole Park in Kent, Bradgate Park in Leicestershire, Richmond Park in London and the RZSS Highland Wildlife Park at Kingussie in the Scottish Highlands. There are also plenty of areas in the Highlands where red deer come down from the hills close to roads. 2 Eider ducks can be photographed in Northumberland between Seahouses and Bamburgh. They are particularly spectacular in rough seas when they feed close inshore and plough through the surf. A 500mm lens is desirable on such occasions. 3 Seabirds hanging in strong winds can be enjoyed at many locations around the UK in summer. A top site for puffins is the…

John Heywood's letter on judging (AP 9 April) amused me somewhat. It sounds like the judge referred to was rather arrogant, but judges do get a lot of stick. The basic reply must be, if you don't like heat, keep out of the kitchen. I was a PAGB circuit judge for many years and believed in firm, strong comments. I was asked to some clubs many times, and others just once. As a judge, I always opened the session by saying the final result was my opinion, no one else's. I explained that once all the images with technical faults had been rejected, and there were often a lot of these, the last few would be placed according to my personal tastes. How else can you choose? I often had…

AS I WAS born and raised on the Dorset/ Hampshire border, I know the area incredibly well and tend to shoot a lot in Dorset and the New Forest. There are so many well-known locations in these areas that some people travel from all over the UK and beyond just to see them. You are almost spoilt for choice in an area like this. Other locations I enjoy shooting in are the Somerset coast, the Cotswolds and, more recently, Northumberland and the North East coastline. I grew up ten minutes away from the sea, so coastal locations appeal to me. I like the fact you can shoot them all year round and they always look slightly different. Different tides, weather, changes in the beach – they always give you something…

Zoom burst Adam Nagy Nikon D7000,17-70mm, 10secs at f/16, ISO 100 THE ZOOM burst can be a useful technique for creating a sense of movement in an image, or for blurring the outer edges of the frame so the viewer's concentration is drawn to the subject in the middle of the picture. It is created, as many of you will know, by selecting a relatively slow shutter speed and adjusting the position of the zoom during the exposure, or by actually moving the camera towards, or away from, the subject with the shutter open. For this exposure, Adam chose a shutter speed of10secs and achieved that by turning his ISO down to100, and closing the aperture to f/16. The technique can be effective in exposures as short as1/15sec but, obviously,…

Lens The Leica Summilux 23mm f/1.7 Asph lens (equivalent to 35mm) features an optical construction of ten lens elements in eight groups with nine aperture blades. It focuses to within a 20cm distance. Waterproof resistance The Leica X-U can be used underwater in depths of up to 15m (49ft) for a maximum duration of an hour. Video As well as shooting stills, the Leica X-U records video in a choice of 1,920x1,080 or 1,280x720-pixel resolution at 30 frames per second in MP4 video format. Battery life The camera accepts Leica’s BP-DC8 Lithium-ion rechargeable battery, offering a 450-shot stamina on a single charge. A fail-safe double-locking system for the battery compartment is implemented to prevent it being opened accidentally underwater. Rugged body The X-U is constructed with a sealed body with…

Canon G7 X price Q When I heard that Canon had announced a PowerShot G7 X Mark II, I immediately thought I would be able to pick up a fantastic pocket compact in the shape of the PowerShot G7 X to complement my Canon DSLR at a knockdown price. So much for finding a bargain, though, as I see it's still being sold for over £400. When can we expect to see the original G7 X fall below £300? James Tailor A When the original Canon PowerShot G7 X was launched in late 2014, it hit the market at £549. The recent release of the PowerShot G7 X Mark II has reduced the price of the original and a quick search online reveals some retailers are selling it for over…

LAUNCHED 1971 PRICE WHEN NEW £49 GUIDE PRICE TODAY £50 CANON manufactured its Canonet range of 35mm fixed-lens rangefinders through the 1960s and early '70s. The strangely named New Canonet QL19 of 1971 was an update to a 1965 model, with a more compact body design. With a 45mm f/1.9 lens comprising five elements in four groups, it was a cheaper alternative to the New Canonet QL17, which used an f/1.7 lens. A successor, the near-identical Canonet QL19 G-III, was announced within a year, making this particular model very short-lived. It's a compact 35mm camera that can be used in fully manual or shutter-priority modes. The mechanical shutter has speeds from 1/500-1/4sec plus bulb, and focusing uses a large, clear coincident-image rangefinder. The QL in the camera name indicated Canon's…

Those who fought in Vietnam remember different things from those who did not. Many remember the conflict secondhand: from TV or print, from knowing people who were there, from having demonstrated against it. There are also those who find it ancient history. What we remember and what we know will affect both how we view this photograph and what can be said about it. It feels wrong to take an image that explicitly or implicitly shows suffering and death, and to analyse it in terms that might be used for judging a camera-club competition entry. However, an image cannot be above comment. Much of what we think we know comes from the photographs of others, so it is worth trying to see how and why some affect us more than…

In this beautifully composed and lit shot, we see a billboard of Deng Xiaoping, the former Chinese leader who advocated ‘one country, two systems'. It stands at the Lo Wu border in Shenzhen, China. Despite protests by opposition lawmakers concerning the construction of a high-speed rail link connecting Hong Kong to Shenzhen and Guangzhou, the territory's future is increasingly dependent on China's megacities across the border. Known for being the global hub of China, Hong Kong's economic position faces further challenges as these neighbouring cities grow. Last year, the disappearance of a Hong Kong bookseller, followed by his reappearance on the mainland, raised fears that security officers had taken him, violating the ‘one country, two systems' arrangement in place since Hong Kong's return to China. Words & numbers “It is…

‘The drawing of a turtle is imposed on the film by a piece of printed acetate’ In May 2014, I wrote about a camera that automatically placed images of the boy band *NSYNC across the bottom of each and every photo; a niche product if ever there was one. That camera dated from around 2000, but the concept wasn't new. A decade earlier, you could buy one that placed a little turtle in the corner of each negative, in tribute to the Teenage Mutant Hero Turtle cartoons from the1980s. The four pizza-loving reptiles, bizarrely named after the Italian Renaissance artists Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michelangelo, had a large following and Turtle-themed merchandise was very popular. I have one of these cameras, a piece of Turtleabilia that came from a car-boot…

Have you ever been stopped by the police or a security guard while taking photographs? You answered... Yes 58% No 42% What you said ‘Just once, at the end of Farnborough Airfield, Hampshire, taking photos of the planes. The security guard on his side of the fence told me to move on. I pointed out I was on public land. He mumbled into his radio and drove off.’ ‘No. Not been a problem even in what some may consider sensitive areas.’ ‘Yes, by a security guard in a shopping centre who told me it was not allowed, because you weren’t allowed to take pictures of other people. I was taking a picture of the ceiling!’ ‘Brighton rail station and London’s South Bank.’ ‘I’ve been stopped by the police several times,…

I’m often asked what attracts me to landscape photography. Simply put, it gets me out into the beauty of the countryside. Given that my regular job has me working indoors and in the dark (since leaving school I’ve worked in the theatre industry as a lighting technician and electrician), this is a big draw. Also, around once every 10 times that I go out to shoot, I’ll get that one amazing morning or evening when the conditions are even better than usual. Trying to repeat this experience becomes addictive, and pushes me to keep going and adding to my collection of images. I also appreciate the social side of photography, be it on social media or the friends I make when I go shooting. A few months ago, I found…

Expanding end pockets Undoing a zip opens these pockets for larger items such as water bottles. Trolley strap This allows the bag to be slipped over the handle of a rolling suitcase. Leather base This provides protection when the bag is placed on the ground. Shoulder pad Well-padded and grippy, the shoulder pad provides comfort when the bag is carried. • £165 • www.tenba.com/uk At a glance • Shoulder bag for CSC or small DSLR• Holds a camera and three or four lenses• Rear pocket for 13in laptop• External dimensions 37x27x14cm, weight 1.2kg AS MIRRORLESS compact system cameras gain popularity, accessory manufacturers are paying increasing attention to catering for them. Tenba's Cooper 13 Slim is a case in point: it's a slender messenger bag specifically designed for carrying smaller cameras and lenses. It's closely…

At a glance • 16.2-million-pixel, APS-C CMOS sensor (4,928x3,272 pixels)• Leica Summilux 23mm f/1.7 Asph (equivalent to 35mm)• f/1.7-f/16 aperture range• 20cm-infinity focusing range• ISO 100-12,500• 30secs-1/2,000sec shutter speed• ±3EV exposure compensation• 5fps continuous shooting (7 consecutive exposures with constant shooting speed in DNG+JPEG fine)• 3in, 920,000-dot LCD screen• Waterproof to depths of 15m (for up to 60 minutes), shockproof from a height of 1.22m• SD, SDHC, SDXC memory cards• Leica BP-DC8 Lithium-ion battery (450-shot battery life)• 140x79x88mm• 635g (with battery)• Adobe Lightroom included I'm not usually one to hesitate when it comes to getting out with my camera at the crack of dawn, but after a tiring overnight drive to my hotel on the outskirts of Swindon in Wiltshire and a wake-up call at the unearthly hour of 5am on a Sunday, it's hard to resist pulling the duvet over my head. There's no…

For followers of new camera introductions, these are interesting times. Both of the major manufacturers are releasing their top-end photojournalist cameras, the Nikon D5 and the Canon EOS-1D X Mark II. In many ways, both cameras have specifications that could have been predicted. Each moderately increases the pixel count compared with its predecessor (interestingly, the new cameras have much the same pixel count), both have slightly higher frame rates and improved autofocus, and both sport 4K video capability. However, study them more closely and you find that, strangely, they appear to have swapped roles. Over the past couple of generations, Nikon has built up an advantage over Canon with respect to the dynamic range available at the base ISO. Dynamic range is the ratio of the largest possible signal to…

London lens show Get acquainted with the latest lenses and participate in workshops and photo walks at the Wex London Lens Show on Saturday 30 April. Most major brands are due to exhibit at the show. The Wex London Lens Show takes place at 47-49 Tanner Street, London SE1 3PL. Visit wexphotographic.com. Cullmann range Cullmann, the German photographic accessory producer, has announced the release of its new range of equipment in the UK. Available through photo-imaging product distributor Intro 2020, the line comprises nine camera bags and a variety of tripods and flexipods across a range of budgets. Tripods range in price from £14 to £399, and camera bags start from £35.99. For more information, visit www.intro2020.co.uk. Beastgrip rig The new Beastgrip Pro is a modular universal lens adapter and…

ZEISS is to launch a super-wideangle 18mm f/2.8 lens for E-mount cameras that will become the widest prime lens for the Sony Alpha 7. The Zeiss Batis 18mm f/2.8, out in May, comes with built-in OLED display showing focus distance and depth of field information, and designed to be easy to read in low light. ‘By virtue of the large diagonal angular field of 99°, this lens is ideal for capturing unique images in landscape, architectural and astrophotography, and for impressive interior shots of small spaces,' claims Michael Pollmann, product manager for Zeiss Camera Lenses. Featuring a fast, quiet AF drive, the11-elements-in-10-groups lens includes four aspheric elements and a rubberised manual focusing ring. Built to be weather and dust resistant, the Zeiss Batis18mm f/2.8 follows the launch of the Batis…

1 Shutter speed Rain shows up best when you're shooting into the light and against a dark background. Your choice of shutter speed will depend on the intensity of the rain. Heavy rain can be captured with high shutter speeds, while it might be beneficial to use a shutter speed of 1/125sec or thereabouts for a more streaky effect when the rain is lighter. 2 Experiment To photograph mammals shaking water off their bodies, try experimenting with slow shutter speeds. If your camera is on a tripod, shooting down to 1/30sec blurs both the body and flying water. Alternatively, a fast shutter speed of around 1/1000sec or more will freeze water and animal at the same time, capturing an interesting expression. 3 Handhold When photographing flying birds in strong winds…

THIS shot contains the three major elements I often struggle with: woodland, wildlife and black & white conversions. Close to where I live is a very long avenue of trees with a grass path running down the middle. It's a spot I've visited on a few occasions, but never quite got what I wanted. I struggle with woodlands as I like my shots to be clean and tidy, and these are often the exact opposite. On this day, the mist drifted into the avenue of trees and I was able to get a strong shot without the clutter of the background. I used a vertical composition to show the height of the trees and to allow me to use as much of the path as possible to lead into the…

Billingham Hadley Pro £170, www.billingham.co.uk This classic English camera satchel is similarly sized to the Cooper Slim 13, with a removable insert. There’s no laptop pocket, but a 13in Ultrabook can be slipped inside. LowePro Streetline SH 180 £132, www.lowepro.co.uk A casually styled bag designed to carry a 13in laptop and personal items alongside your camera, this bag uses collapsible ‘flexpockets’ to protect your kit. Vanguard Havana 33 £79, www.vanguardworld.co.uk This distinctive-looking bag from Vanguard has a removable insert to double up as an everyday travel bag, and an internal pocket for a 13in laptop.…

FROM crashing waves to scenic views, from Shetland in the north to St Mary's in the south, the RNLI is fortunate to have access to such great photographic opportunities around its coastlines across the UK and Ireland. The RNLI Instagram account (@RNLI) showcases the best photographs from amateurs and professionals capturing the RNLI from many different views and perspectives through varying lenses. Nathan Murray, RNLI's social media content officer, says: ‘About seven in ten photos that we share on Instagram have been sourced from our online community. We're incredibly lucky to have a network of photographers across the country continually supplying us with authentic and often incredible beautiful photographs.' If you're already an Instagram user, search for RNLI and click on the blue logo to start following. Although our coastlines…

Resolution The MTF graphs from our Applied Imaging tests show that the 30mm f/1.4 behaves very well indeed, despite its relatively low price. It’s very sharp in the centre, with peak resolution around f/4-f/5.6. The corners aren’t quite so sharp, but this is partially due to slight curvature of field throwing them a little out of focus with our flat test chart. Overall, though, this is an excellent performance. Shading Shooting at f/1.4 gives noticeable shading on Sony APS-C cameras, with the corners being about 1.2 stops darker than the centre of the frame. But stopping down to f/2.8 essentially eliminates this vignetting entirely. Micro Four Thirds users will also see less vignetting, due to the smaller size of the image sensor. Curvilinear distortion As is the way with modern…