Innholdsfortegnelse for 9-Jul-2016 i Amateur Photographer

We have something for everyone this week. If you like to photograph people, Wayne Johns shows just what you can do with a single light source, proving that you don’t need an expensive multi-light set-up to create good portraits. If you prefer subjects that don’t talk back we’ve got some striking architectural studies that combine long exposures and a mono treatment to great effect. If travel is more your thing don’t miss our feature on the winner of the inaugural Zeiss Photography Award. History lovers will enjoy our look at a major new exhibition on the pioneering work of W H Fox Talbot, and some fascinating early portraits of Marilyn Monroe. Finally, if you have some spare cash burning a hole in your pocket you may want to consider a…

THE best images from a fine-art photography competition have been plucked from around 4,000 that were submitted worldwide. Photographers David Tortora and Jaime Travezan triumphed in the professional category of the Fine Art Photography Awards, claiming the $3,000 (£2,266) top prize with their series of nudes titled ‘Flora (2015)'. Florian Ruiz was named Amateur Fine Art Photographer of the Year for his series ‘Mirage cities' captured in China. Florian won $2,000 (£1,511). In the Architecture (amateur) category Patryk Kuleta won first place for his series of photos on Modern Cathedrals (see image above). To view all the winning pictures, visit http://fineartphotoawards.com. Subscribe to Amateur Photographer SAVE 35%* Visit amateurphotographer subs.co.uk/15W (or see p40) * when you pay by UK Direct Debit…

HARD light can be used for a multitude of purposes. It can add drama to a dark scene and reveal the contours of your model with contrasting tones, or it can be made to look like strong sunlight just after noon. It depends on which reflectors you use, and how you use them. A prime example of this is when using a Fresnel light. Named after its inventor, the French engineer and physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel, a Fresnel has that beautiful ‘ringed' lens, like those found in lighthouses and on stage lights. It gives off a certain style of light that's just beautiful to work with. Fresnels come equipped with a control lever, which enables the user either to zoom the light into a more controlled ‘spot'-type light, or to zoom…

You answered… A Yes 17%B No 68%C I watermark on an image-by-image basis 15% What you said ‘I only put small images (c. 1,000 pixels maximum dimension) on websites – never full-size ones.’ ‘I don’t put much online, but if I do put up anything remotely large, I create hidden watermarks as well as any showing it is my work. The hidden stuff is a lot harder to remove, because it is difficult to find.’ ‘I sometimes watermark things on my pro site, if I’ve done an event shoot for organisations where individuals can buy prints. Otherwise, someone will just pinch the online version. I don’t use them for anything else.’ Join the debate on the AP forum This week we ask… Do you use YouTube to learn more about…

A NUMBER of Andre de Dienes' photographs almost never saw the light of day. After a storm damaged his house and photo collection, Andre buried the pile, unsorted, in his garden. Many pictures were destroyed in the process, but10 years later he dug them up and managed to salvage some of the negatives. The experimental prints he made from these shots remained lost until five years after Andre's death, when his widow found them in his garage by accident. ‘Nobody knew they existed,' Johnson tells us. ‘After he passed away, his wife and the studio were making modern prints, and they later discovered the lifetime prints which were very different. So they are very rare.'…

How to add a shaft of light THIS photograph by Andrey Poletilo was taken in very low-light conditions and shot in auto mode, which resulted in a photo where the exposure time was 1/8sec at ISO 800. I think this is the highest ISO setting on the Canon PowerShot SX210 IS he was using. It looks as if the camera deliberately allowed the exposure to go dark because, at a lighter exposure of, say,1 4sec or1 ×2sec, the photograph would definitely have suffered from camera shake. So, the objective here was to lighten the image to reveal the hidden shadow detail. In this instance, a Graduated Filter adjustment was used to add a shaft of light and the combined adjustments outlined helped to create a lovely atmospheric mood. 1 Lighten…

In conversation, words are supplemented with gestures and facial expressions. In writing there are oblique references, jokes and stylistic quirks. In politics we have the ‘dog whistle’. Things are rarely quite as they seem: additional meanings sneak in, purveyed and understood explicitly and implicitly. This also happens in photography. You can call it semiotics, if you like. For a start, the girl in this photograph is not just any little girl. She is Alice Pleasance Liddell (1852-1934) – the inspiration for Alice in Wonderland . This fact alone invests the picture with extra meaning. Next, the ‘beggar girl’ and her kin were popular tropes in Victorian photography: think of John Allison Spence’s calotypes from around 1850 or Robert Crawshay’s pictures in the 1870s. Some were real street children. Others, like…

Environmental portraits can tell us a great deal about cultures and individuals on a personal level. Placing a person within a certain context can deliver all sorts of information and introduce us to people we may not otherwise encounter in our day-to-day lives. This image was taken in Najaf, Iraq, by Ali Sabih Kadhim, and was shortlisted in the Environmental Portraiture Competition by Photocrowd.com, in association with Digital Camera magazine. In this image called ‘Walls of Scrap' we see the visually rich world of a scrap merchant. It's an image that you can stare at for ages and find something new at every moment. To see more, visit www.photocrowd.com. Words & numbers "A picture is a secret about a secret, the more it tells you the less you know." Diane…

Lighting techniques have been around far longer than photography. The basics of photography may have been formulated in the early 1800s, but photographic lighting principles have long been influenced by the great artists and painters dating back to centuries before. For example, Rembrandt-style lighting was used by the artist himself back in the 1600s. And he, no doubt, had been inspired by candlelight or similar. Most of us know that lighting set-ups can either be very simple or complicated, particularly if you want to use multiple lighting set-ups. However, there’s a beauty and an art form to using just one light to create something beautiful and rather satisfying. Types of light Lighting can be divided into two main types: ‘flash’ and ‘continuous’. But in these two, we have so many…

THE IMAGE above is one example of how I feather light, using just one light – a 100x80cm softbox, with the front and inner diffusers removed. When pointed directly at my model, it gives a very hard, unflattering light. But I ‘feather' the light by angling the hard centre of light past and in front of my model and lighting her with the soft edge of the softbox light instead. By adding a gold/silver reflector on the opposite side of my model, I can also bounce some of the hard centre of light from the softbox back on to the model as ‘fill' light. To add some extra depth to the shot, I also use a standard bathroom mirror beside the reflector, to bounce some of the hard light from…

1 Large and small softboxes Remember, in light theory, a large softbox doesn't cover a large area, and a small softbox doesn't cover a small area: they both cover the same areas. The difference is just that a large softbox gives a slightly softer light, and a small softbox gives a slightly harder light. 2 Surface bouncing Bounce light off a big surface, such as a wall, to add a lovely soft fill to your subject. Just be aware that a coloured wall will reflect its colour in your fill light onto your subject to give a colour hue that may not look so good. Keep in mind that you can also use the wall situated behind your shooting position and use that effect as your main light. 3 Shapes…

The Art of Macro Photography: Reptiles This workshop will provide delegates with a solid understanding of the skills and techniques required to capture close ups of reptiles. With a professional keeper on hand, you will be photographing a bearded dragon along with two royal pythons, one of which is an albino. The Nikon tutor will discuss and demonstrate best techniques to capture the beautiful markings and characteristics of these animals. The Art of Location Wedding Photography Join us on location for a fantastic wedding photography workshop, hosted at the exclusive Buxted Park Hotel, East Sussex. Learn how to shoot creative wedding images, work with a bride and groom on location, lighting techniques and a host of other tips and tricks you need to know. This is a great opportunity to…

There was a very dark period in my life when I was feeling lonely, frustrated, angry, stressed – all the emotions you don’t want to experience. But sometimes you need to hit rock bottom to find out who you are and where you want to go. I was lost for a really long time, trying to find the way to live, to be myself. From a young age I was interested in photography, music and graphic design. Eventually, I found surreal art to be my escape. I was experimenting with a lot of different concepts, but the double-exposure technique was something so different that I decided to take this idea and recreate it in Photoshop. My work is not traditional texture overlaying, but photo manipulation, which involves two, three or…

‘The show taps into the “commercial imperative and industrial madness” of the 19th century’ William Henry Fox Talbot was a scientist and pioneer of photography who invented what he called ‘the art of photogenic drawing’, where salted paper prints could be produced from a negative that subsequently led to a permanent way of producing photographic images in the camera. The earliest surviving photographic negative is of a window at Talbot’s home Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire, taken in 1835 using an improvised ‘mousetrap’ camera. In 1934, some 6,500 items were transferred from Talbot’s former home to the Science Museum in London, which is currently holding the exhibition, Fox Talbot: Dawn of the Photograph. This exhibition charts the birth of photography within the industrial, cultural and social context of the 19th century.…

Curved design The memory stick tucks neatly behind your device when plugged in. Mobile Memory app This app is designed to give easy access to photos, movies, music and documents. Protective cap This covers the USB and Lightning connectors when not in use. Leef iBridge • From £37.99 (16GB) • www.leefco.com Andy Westlake tests a memory stick for iPhone and iPad users At a glance • USB and Lightning connectors • Available in 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, 128GB and 256GB capacities ANYONE who uses an iPhone or iPad will likely come across the same problem sooner or later: as the device gets older and fills up with apps, music and photos, it will slow down and become less usable. But while Android owners can plug in microSD cards to expand their…

Customisable buttons The extent to which the camera’s external controls may be customised is impressive, with the option to assign functions to specific custom buttons as well as to key controls. Tru-Finder As with all Sony’s SLT models, the Alpha 68 employs an electronic viewfinder. It’s based on a 1.44-million-dot OLED panel, with magnification equivalent to 0.57x in 35mm terms. Video Full HD footage is recorded at 50Mbps, at a choice of frame rates up to 60i. The Alpha 68 doesn’t offer 4K video, although it does support the same XAVC S codec featured in Sony’s 4K models. Control wheel Together with the top-plate LCD, this provides a shooting experience similar to enthusiast-level DSLRs. Among other things, it speeds up scrolling through menu options and browsing images. Top-plate LCD It’s…

1 Lowepro SlingShot 302 AW bag Sometimes you need to react quickly, and this is where I love the uncomplicated concept of Lowepro’s slingshot bag. Simply rotating the bag around your body gets you to your gear fast. 2 Nikon D800 The latitude of shadow/highlight retrieval from raw on the D800 never ceases to amaze me, and the tonal range is superb. Also, the size of files are more akin to what you would expect from medium format. 3 Manfrotto 055XPRO3 tripod I need my tripod to be robust. It will be sat on, thrown or even used as a frame for a makeshift shelter. The aluminium build is resilient and the thick rubber handles on the head are easy to twist, even with numb fingers. 4 Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8…

Back up your shots Storage specialist Western Digital has unveiled a new data backup system – the WD Pro Series. The My Passport Wireless Pro Wi-Fi mobile storage (priced from £189.99) is designed to allow seamless transfer of content between devices. Visit www.wdc.com/en/ my-cloud-pro-series. LED light panels Bowens has launched LED light panels aimed at photographers and videographers. The Limelite Mosaic2 LED panels aim to create high levels of soft, flattering light and come in two versions: a Daylight model (£654) and Bi-Colour model (£835). Visit www.bowens.co.uk. App expands as film sales surge A free Kodak app has been extended to Android and iPad as film sales grew by more than 5% from 2013-2015. Previously only available for iPhone, the app aims to answer questions like where to buy and…

AN AMATEUR photographer has beaten professionals to win a nationwide competition to capture the diversity of nursing in the UK. Anthony Baines from Kent defeated more than 800 entries to win the Gold Award in the Care on Camera contest. His winning image (right) shows a community nurse dressing the wound of an elderly patient. This contest organised by the Royal College of Nursing and Royal Photographic Society gave photographers the chance to win a £1,000 prize. To view more of the winning shots visit www.rcn100photo.org.uk/events/royal-collegenursing-100/winners. For the latest news visit www.amateurphotographer.co.uk…

‘Dirty sensors are a fact of life with a ready supply of people needing them cleaned’ The greatest strength of the interchangeable-lens camera is its ability to mount a wide range of lenses onto the camera body. Of course, its weakness is that the camera can now be opened up to outside elements. Thus, you should always try to change lenses in as clean an environment as possible. A windswept sandy beach probably ranks as one of the best places to rapidly devalue your camera equipment. In a film camera, dirt can adhere to both the optics and the film, so regular cleaning of the elements solves most problems. And if any dirt sticks to the film – well, you're winding it on to the next frame so it's a…

CREATING photographic images should be fun, so don't always think ‘traditional' when trying to create something a little different. Sometimes you can produce the nicest work by experimenting with a random light source. For instance, using a projector is a novel way to explore new techniques, and provides some good challenges for the photographer, too. The main issue is the power of a projector's output, or more precisely the lack of it. Remember, it has only a tiny bulb so it's not going to have a massive output for high aperture and fast shutter speeds. That aside, it can open up a whole world of fun. The image above was shot with a projector light only. Find a nice selection of images based around your theme/concept, and then experiment. You…

NIKON SCHOOL offers workshops that cater to photographers of every calibre, from beginners to practising professionals. It holds a range of courses at the Centre of Excellence in Central London as well as experiential courses outside the School that are suited to individuals wishing to learn more about photography and expand their creative horizons. The Nikon School workshops are a mix of easy-to-understand theory and hands-on practical assignments. They are held in small groups to ensure everyone can benefit from the expert knowledge of the tutors. From understanding your digital SLR and lenses, image editing, HDR montages and location fashion shoots to capturing candid street portraits, making HD video films and taking inspiring landscape images or wildlife shots, Nikon School workshops cover a variety of skills and subjects that ensure…

Personal qualities You must be a ‘people person' to do a job like this. You need to be able to get along with everyone, and they need to be able to trust you. You also need a lot of patience. It's useful to be able to turn yourself into human origami in order to shoot in confined spaces without getting whacked by an elbow, a lighting boom or a swinging sword. Know your equipment Learn the ins and outs of your camera because you don't have much time for fumbling. I shoot everything in fully manual mode so that I have control. I also don't change lenses on the set – I have a different lens on each camera, so if I want a different lens I just pick up…

There are plenty of stories about the relationships formed between photographers and their models, but perhaps none has been so intimate as that between Andre de Dienes – a fashion photographer for Life, Esquire and Vogue – and the then unknown 19-year-old model Norma Jeane Baker, later known as Marilyn Monroe. The resulting images are featuring in an exhibition called ‘Andre de Dienes: Marilyn and California Girls’ that is currently showing at the Steven Kasher Gallery in New York. As Cassandra Johnson from the Steven Kasher Gallery explains, Andre was in California in 1945 looking for a model for his experimental nude photography. ‘Andre reached out to a couple of different model agencies,’ says Cassandra. ‘One of them, the Blue Book model agency, said, “We’ve got this girl in my…

Protection A good bag should keep your valuable kit clean, dry and safe from knocks. So look out for decent padding and a rainproof lid. Camera compartment All these bags have removable padded inserts. It’s always best to make sure you can fit your kit in before you buy. Organiser pockets Many bags have lots of space for memory cards, spare batteries and power banks. Domke F-6 Little Bit Smaller Bag • £99 • www.tiffen.co.uk WHEN a camera bag doesn't look like a camera bag that's only a good thing, especially when it comes to shoulder bags. The Domke F-6 simply looks like an old-school canvas holdall, but offers space and dividers to carry enough photographic kit for a day's shooting. The F-6 is aimed at pro-spec DSLRs, but the…

Resolution The Alpha 68 does well to resolve around 3,400l/ph at its base ISO, although this drops to 3,100l/ph at the ISO 200 setting. The camera manages to maintain a good performance up to ISO 1,600, but by ISO 25,600 resolution falls down to 2,400l/ph. The similar performance to the Alpha 77 II’s sensor strongly suggests the two are closely related. Dynamic range Results here are in line with what’s expected at the Alpha 68’s base sensitivity of ISO 100, with just under 12EV stops of dynamic range. Performance drops at a reasonably consistent pace as sensitivity increases, largely mirroring that of rival models. While results are far from class leading at higher sensitivities, they’re not so far behind to cause any concern. Noise Noise rises steadily through the camera’s…

‘For subjects such as birds and sport, reach is obviously a great virtue’ One property in a camera system that is much desired is ‘reach' – the ability to render an image of a distant object. The more distant an object the camera can pull in, the greater its reach. For subjects such as birds and sport, reach is obviously a great virtue. This is the thinking behind cameras such as the Canon EOS 7D Mark II and the Nikon D500. These cameras are optimised for this kind of photography, with fast frame rates and excellent autofocus systems to enable them to capture moving subjects at a distance. Since reach is another part of this equation, these cameras also have small sensors, of the size generically called APS-C. This provides…