Innholdsfortegnelse for 11-Jun-2016 i Amateur Photographer

This week’s issue is a great one for lovers of historic photography. Our Classics Revisited series, in which we recreate an iconic image, is one of our most popular features, and this week we go back to the 1960s and a wonderful fashion shot of Twiggy by the great, late Terence Donovan, whom I had the privilege to meet shortly before he died in 1996. This picture, which AP’s Phil Hall and Andrew Sydenham did a fantastic job of recreating for this week’s cover, perfectly encapsulates the zeitgeist of that decade, when British culture ruled the world – thanks in part to the Rolling Stones, who also feature this week as Terry O’Neill and Gered Mankowitz talk to AP about their experiences of working with the band. Finally, to round…

A PHOTOGRAPHER has appealed for help to trace thousands of pounds' worth of camera gear stolen days before a charity photo shoot. Michael Becket has warned photographers to be on the lookout for cameras and lenses thought to be worth more than £6,000 stolen from his London home. Becket wants photographers and dealers to be made aware of the missing Leica, Nikon and Sony items because the culprits may try to sell them. Anyone who can help is urged to call the police on 101, quoting the crime reference number 5607706/16. The stolen items include a Nikon D600 (serial number: 8802219), a Nikon D800E (8021799), a Sony Alpha 6000 (3905039) and a Leica M4-P (either 1543754 or 1547653). Subscribe to Amateur Photographer SAVE 35%* Visit amateurphotographer subs.co.uk/15W (or see p34)…

Position Use your skills as a photographer to position yourself accordingly for the image you are about to capture. For example, get down low to shoot children, rather than shooting down at them from above. Light It's imperative to understand the way ambient light works. If you have a ceremony at 4pm in December, the light is going to be much more difficult to work with. Use of metering can create a more dramatic image that has impact. Get in close Using small cameras will allow you to be nimble and react to the environment around you. Observe and listen, move in close, raise the camera and shoot, then remove yourself from the scene to let the moment run its course. Humanity Weddings are all about humanity – and it…

The Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year results are once more upon us. Over the next four pages we take a look at a selection of the images that were awarded first place in some of the most notable categories. As you may have noticed, food photography is well on the rise, perhaps because of the growing popularity of smartphone photography. Instagram feeds are awash with images of breakfast, lunch and dinner, but here we see what can be done if you take a more considered approach. We’ll be talking to Mark Benham, the overall winner, in AP 2 July. Food for the Family Maja Danica Pecanic, Croatia Picnic Good food photography can transport you out of your chair and to the kitchen table or, in this case, the…

Resolution The results from our Applied Imaging MTF tests confirm that the lens has desirable characteristics for a short telephoto portrait prime. At f/1.8 the values are relatively low due to spherical aberration, but the lens sharpens up rapidly as the aperture is closed down. Peak sharpness is at f/4-f/8, but in truth all apertures are quite usable. The traces for the corners closely match the centre, indicating excellent cross-frame sharpness. Vignetting Some vignetting is visible wide open, with the corners of the frame 1.3 stops darker than the centre. However, the very gradual fall-off profile means that this is visually not unattractive; indeed, it can often add to the aesthetics of your shots, rather than detract from them. Stop down to f/2.8 and the vignetting practically disappears. Curvilinear distortion…

LAUNCHED 1991 PRICE AT LAUNCH $219.95, with 50mm f/1.8 (approx £155) GUIDE PRICE TODAY £15 (body only) THE EF-M was Canon's attempt to provide traditionalists with a 35mm camera that could be used manually – one that used Canon's then-new EF range of lenses, albeit without autofocus. It was made solely for export, and although contemporary with EOS cameras it was not an EOS camera since it did not have autofocus. Neither did it have an LCD screen. Adapted from the Canon EOS1000, the EF-M used top-plate dials to set shutter speed and aperture. It had a focusing screen with both microprism and split-image rangefinder focusing aids and could realistically only be used with lenses having a graspable focusing sleeve, which some Canon EF-mount lenses do not have. Independent Sigma…

In this twilight-saturated image we find two fishermen resting in their shikara (a type of boat). The pair and their vessel are silhouetted against the setting sun that drenches the Dal Lake in Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir in India. Kashmir, a Muslim majority state, is often called the not entirely hyperbolic ‘Paradise on Earth'. For centuries the region has captured the imagination of countless writers, poets and filmmakers, and the state is integral to the tourist trade. Romantic aura aside, Kashmir is still subject to politics, as it has been a contested land between nuclear neighbours India and Pakistan since 1947, the year both countries attained freedom from British colonisation. Words & numbers “Best wideangle lens? Two steps backward” Ernst Haas Photojournalist and pioneering colour photographer…

The archiving of photos for future generations has been a rumbling point for many years, and has surfaced its head again with doomsayers warning that we will become a generation of ‘digital natives' destined to lose vast swathes of our digital life. The advice is to print our photos for the sake of archiving them. Generally, however, archiving has two aspects to it that are important to distinguish between: the accessibility of the storage format and the durability of the storage medium. The storage format for analogue products (negatives or prints) is always accessible, assuming we have physical access. That is not necessarily the case for digital products, where we move into the realm of both the storage medium and file format. Digital data needs to be on a device…

Small cameras The Fujifilm X-T1 and X100T cameras are perfect for documentary weddings. The X-T1 has a flip-down screen that allows you to get shots you may not be able to achieve by raising a camera to your eye. Prime lenses Try to steer clear of zooms. There is nothing wrong with them, but by using just a couple of prime lenses you will add uniformity to your coverage. You will also start to understand the focal length and the types of images you can achieve with them. Sustenance Weddings are unpredictable, so you may be shooting for prolonged periods of time. Make sure you keep a bottle of water and some power snacks, such as peanuts, in your kit bag. It’s impossible to operate at your best when your…

I would like to express how outstanding I found both the idea and execution of Nick Brandt's project highlighting the plight of animals and lost habitat in East Africa (AP 21 May). We should all be able to identify with this whatever country, landscape or background we come from. Nick chose East Africa, but each of us should be stimulated to look to our own patch, as well as support those working in conservation areas. While change and industrialisation are inevitable in poor and disadvantaged parts of the world to provide work and food for growing populations, we, in the more advanced economies, have a responsibility as we have already made these mistakes. In some part, we are making inroads into redressing these mistakes by the careful reintroduction of rare…

Terence Donovan: Portraits £35, Damiani, 2016 Published to coincide with an exhibition at the Photographer’s Gallery, Terence Donovan: Portraits is the first book dedicated to the legendary photographer’s portraiture. Alongside iconic portraits is work never previously published or exhibited. Terence Donovan: Fashion £45, Art/Books, 2012 This was the first time Donovan’s fashion pictures were collected in book form. From the gritty 1960s and ’70s to the vibrant ’80s and ’90s, the book reveals how his invention and experimentation influenced generations to come. Terence Donovan: The Photographs £31, Little Brown, 2000 This stunning retrospective of some of Donovan’s best-known images (as well as some previously unpublished) has been compiled with the support of his wife, and runs to almost 300 pages.…

Lighthouse George Fisk Canon EOS 5D Mark III, 17-40mm, 15secs at f/13, ISO 100 ACHIEVING correct contrast is something a lot of photographers find difficult. Pictures often emerge from the camera without enough impact (usually because there wasn't enough in the first place), so understandably we want to jazz things up a little. Reaching for the contrast slider can leave us with an image that has more than its fair share of extreme blacks and bright highlights, while what is needed in most cases is just a little more separation between the midtones. Here, George has given us a picture with so much black it would cost a fortune to output on an inkjet printer. I like the way George has used the path as a lead-in line to take…

Dual Pixel AF For live view and movie shooting, Canon’s dual pixel AF provides phase detection across almost the entire image area for smooth, decisive focusing. 4K video recording Cinema 4K video recording is built into the camera, with a huge 800Mbps bit-rate available when using CFast cards for top-quality footage. Pro controls Canon has stuck with the same tried-and-tested button-and-dial control set-up as used on previous generations of the EOS-1D series. Built-in GPS A small hump ahead of the hotshoe conceals a GPS unit that allows images to be geotagged automatically. Viewfinder The large, bright pentaprism viewfinder combines 0.76x magnification with 100% coverage of the subject area. Touchscreen A 3.2in touchscreen allows settings to be changed silently during movie shooting, and focus pulling by touch.…

‘It turns out that their beliefs were based on simplistic models and a faulty understanding of science’ In the early days of digital photography there was a sustained campaign by some parts of the web media against cameras with high pixel counts. It was proposed that high pixel-count cameras inevitably suffered from more noise, were more susceptible to camera shake and absolutely needed better lenses. Another widely promulgated belief was that high pixel-count cameras suffered from the effects of diffraction more than low pixel-count ones. It turns out that most of this was based on simplistic models and a faulty understanding of science, and that in most general-purpose photography, higher pixel-count cameras will produce better results than ones with lower pixel counts. However, they do so at the cost of…

This photograph is so weird that even I hesitated to use it. There are always some readers (very few, fortunately) who start frothing at the mouth and writing ‘stiff letters’ unless the photographs I choose fit their preconceptions. This, I suspect, would draw them out of the woodwork. I’m not sure what the photograph is: a wolf, maybe, or a pi-dog. I’m not sure if it’s blind in one eye, although that’s what it looks like. There’s so much I can’t fathom. It connected with me on such a visceral level, however, that as soon as I saw it, I knew I wanted it for the column. It calls upon a fear older than humanity. Rather than illustrating one of my favourite photographic sayings, ‘Shoot first and ask questions afterwards’,…

Top environment pictures The Atkins CIWEM Environmental Photographer of the Year competition has revealed the best 60 images that will go on show at the Royal Geographical Society from 29 June-21 August in London. The exhibition will then travel to Grizedale Forest, Cumbria. Shortlisted entries include ones on natural catastrophes caused by climate change, the effects of population growth and people’s efforts to preserve the Earth’s biodiversity. Photo London events Organisers of Photo London are to launch a series of events across London called The Crucible Project. Photo London co-founder Michael Benson (pictured) also revealed plans for a mentorship scheme to help graduate photographers. The second Photo London fair took place at Somerset House last month. RSPCA challenge The RSPCA Young Photographer Awards is seeking the best photos of animals…

PHOTOGRAPHER Mary McCartney says the most important thing she learned from her late mother Linda was to have a passion for your subject. Linda McCartney launched a career as a rock photographer after photographing the Rolling Stones in New York during the1960s. Her daughter Mary, now a professional photographer, focuses on portraiture and candid reportage. Mary was a guest speaker at Photo London. AP asked her what advice she received from her mother that she has used in her own career. Mary replied: ‘She didn't give me advice as such – she wasn't like that – but I would say that all the things she photographed she had real passion for, and when she didn't have a passion for it she wouldn't involve herself in it.' For the latest news…

You answered… A DSLR 38% B CSC 37% C Enthusiast compact 13% D Bridge 4% E Travel zoom compact 4% F Other 4% What you said ‘I’m on holiday in Italy now. I left my Canon EOS 5D Mark III at home and took my Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ70 with no regrets’ ‘My aim in my photographic life is to travel as light as possible, so no two cameras, five lenses, a flashgun and tripod for me. For a photographic weekend, I use my Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 with a long zoom. For a general weekend I use my Canon PowerShot G1 X’ ‘Probably my Canon EOS 600D with the EF-S 15-85mm lens. I usually regret it if I don’t take it’ ‘I would take my Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 III, with no…

Geoff Harris Geoff Harris is a leading photography journalist, and editorial and portrait photographer based in Glastonbury, Somerset. He writes regularly for AP, The RPS Journal and other leading photo titles and blogs. Geoff's images appear on Rex Features and have been exhibited in locations around the world. He received a Highly Commended award in the 2016 Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year. 1994 Minolta 7000i I got this Minolta Dynax 7000i – a newer version of the Minolta SLR with AF – in the 1990s. It was a great way to learn the basics of photography while I was living in Tokyo, Japan. I still use the camera. It's built like a tank and the AF system, while basic by today's standards, holds up well. I love the…