Innholdsfortegnelse for 10-Feb-2018 i Amateur Photographer

The great British film revival continues apace, with healthy demand for film from well-established names and startups. Black & white film holds a particular fascination for both newbies and old hands – it not only evokes memories of the golden age of post-war documentary and portrait photography, there is also something sensuous and satisfying about the rich tones and attractive grain of mono film. In the first part of his feature on b&w film photography (page 12), Matt Parry covers the fundamentals, including exposing for film and good film to buy – we’re sure you’ll find it helpful. Other highlights of this packed issue include a test of Panasonic’s stunning 200mm prime (page 41) and an overview of RPS distinctions (page 36) – a great to find out how good…

I entered the school's disused darkroom. Nobody knew precisely when it was last used. I found a well-designed workspace, a large darkroom sink, five rather elderly enlargers, cupboards containing assorted processing equipment, some 5x7 sheet film, various vintages of Ilford Multigrade paper, and even a hand-cranked Paterson Thermo-Drum for colour print processing – quite ambitious for a school darkroom. I also expected a box of Pentax K1000s: the workhorse school film camera of the 1980s, but alas, not. So should we scrap it or renovate it? Might art students take to silver-based imaging? It takes vision, sacrifice and passion to create, or recreate. And money in education (especially for the creative arts) is in very short supply: replacement 10x8 safelight filters are very expensive. The renaissance has presented some technical…

As a keen amateur photographer, I enjoyed reading David Tipling's article on garden bird photography (‘On the wing' in AP 20 January 2018). Aside from the tips, I was very impressed by the tack-sharp focus on all the images. From an accomplished photographer, such sharpness is not surprising. However, one thing puzzles me. One of the numerous ‘rules of thumb' in photography concerns image blurring as a result of camera shake. Everyone ‘knows' that, to avoid such blurring of a stationary subject, the exposure time in seconds must not exceed the reciprocal of the effective focal length in millimetres. So, for example, if effective focal length is 500mm, then the exposure time should not exceed 1/500th of a second. Nobody seems to have told David! Look at the numbers for…

Most black & white film speeds sit between ISO 50 (slow) and 400 (fast). If you shoot handheld in low light where flash is not practical or if you shoot sport and need to freeze the action, then ISO 400 will not cut it. Following the discontinuation of Kodak's T-Max 3200 in 2012, the only true ultra-fast black & white film on the market is the Ilford Delta Professional 3200. The alternative is to ‘push' your film. This is when you shoot the film at a different speed than its rated ISO value. For example, HP5 Plus can be comfortably pushed beyond 3200. The more a film is pushed the more evident the grain is – however, unlike noise, film grain retains an aesthetic quality that adds a unique and…

Steve Jupp ‘I went along because I had tried for the Licentiateship a couple of years back and failed. Last time I didn't seek advice from the people involved in the process, so this was a great opportunity to hear from the experts. I was first up and delighted to get a positive response to my panel: one image needed more contrast and one was not up to the standard, but I had a worthy replacement in reserve. I've now booked in again for the formal assessment at RPS HQ in Bath in February. ‘I'm grateful to my mentor for suggesting that I go for the ‘L'. It has given me a focus and aim which have really helped me to develop my photography and feel confident about handling the…

Nikon D800, 28-300mm, 1/50 sec at f/4.5, ISO 1600 This moody city scene was uploaded to our Twitter page using the hashtag #appicoftheweek. It was taken by photographer Andrea Heribanova. She tells us: ‘On this day the weather was very dull, but I still decided to go out with my camera. I had a ticket to go up the Sky Garden – a location I visit regularly. I realised when I was up there that I wasn't going to see much in way of a sunset. Luckily some dark clouds rolled in, which made the sky look very dramatic. The problem with the Sky Garden is that tripods are not allowed so it can be a challenge shooting in low light. But I was able to support my camera on…

Fujifilm has launched the FinePix XP130, the latest tough camera in the XP series. The camera boasts tough credentials of waterproofing down to 20 metres, shock proofing from a height of 1.75m, freezeproofing and dustproofing. In addition, the camera is equipped with the latest Bluetooth technology which enables instant image transfer to smartphones and tablets for quick sharing online. In order to use this feature, you'll need a free app which can be downloaded for Android and iOS. The XP130 has a 16.4MP back-illuminated CMOS sensor, which is paired with a 5x optical zoom lens that boasts 28mm at the wideangle end of the range. There's a 3.0in 920k-dot LCD monitor, while the body of the camera weighs just 209gm. Designed with underwater or cold shooting in mind, the monitor…

Sleepless in Senja Matty Graham tests the Canon EOS 5D Mk IV on a trip to the Norwegian fjords Reikan FoCal Pro Jon Devo tries out this AF calibration software for Canon and Nikon DSLRs Give your photos wings Learn about the basics of drone photography and how to get started CONTENT FOR NEXT WEEK’S ISSUE MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE…

Lab processing Black & white and colour films are not processed in the same way. While most high-street processing services will know this, your film will be ruined if it is processed using a C-41 colour process (with the exception of the Ilford XP2 Super). Most services will send your film to a specialist black & white processing lab, many of which are directly available, including harmanlab.com. You can search for labs in Ilford Photo's locator: www.ilfordphoto.com/storelocator. Alternatively you can search Emulsive's lab locator: emulsive.org/articles/global-film-lab-map. Home processing For those with access to a darkroom, black & white film is far easier to develop than colour, and offers a quicker and more economical option than lab processing. There are a range of developers, stop baths and fixers, and many online guides.…

KIT LIST Big Stopper filter At Faraid Head the sea stacks make great subjects for long-exposure photography. A Big Stopper filter could also be used to accentuate the movement of the grasses on the dunes if it’s a windy day. Solid tripod The weather this far north can be a little wild. You can avoid camera shake by using a solid tripod. It’s a good idea to fit spikes to your tripod if it has that option. BALNAKEIL Bay is one of many superb locations on the northern coast of Sutherland, Scotland, and requires a good few visits to capture its ever-changing moods. The images here were all taken in winter, but the weather can be dramatic at any time of the year. This sandy bay is backed by dunes…

THE LINEUP of guest speakers at the Photography Show's Super Stage, taking place at the NEC in Birmingham in March, has been announced. Some of the world's best-known photographers will be speaking on the main stage, including Ami Vitale, Art Wolfe (pictured above), Brent Stirton, Bruce Davidson, Erik Johansson, Daniel Berehulak, Gered Mankowitz, Jasmine Star, Miles Aldridge and Zed Nelson. The talks will offer visitors the chance to hear about how these photographers work, their inspirations and their careers to date. Sessions are £10 each, taking place from Saturday to Tuesday (17-20 March). See photographyshow.com for tickets. SAVE 35%* Visit amateurphotographersubs.co.uk/14AW (or see p48) * when you pay by UK Direct Debit…

THOSE were the days – pre-global warming, there was proper snow everywhere for the missus to go sledging. Winter wonderland aside, the then editor of AP had more letters after his name than Stephen Hawking. We're talking B.Sc, M.Sc, Hon. FRPS, D.G.Ph... we feel like turnips in comparison to such erudition (you can't get the staff these days). Mr Sowerby the editor also used big words like ‘propitious' and ‘redolent' in his editorial, so it was clearly a clever man who wrote it. Inside the rest of the issue there were lots of confident-sounding features; check out ‘Blueprint for Black and White Photos' by Neville Maude, while the romantically named ‘Ricardo' – Richard to his mum – had plenty of tips for beginners. George L Wakefield also tried out a…

Street justice I am an amateur photographer and student and have followed your magazine for a couple of years now. I recently watched a YouTube video of a security man asking a photographer not to photograph a private property (a factory) and the photographer stating he could photograph private property from public land (the photographer was standing on the pavement at the factory's entrance). This piqued my interest and after searching the internet and UK government website and legislation, I can find no mention in the law on photography in a public space. I assume most situations have no direct coverage in law and are based on case law and/or the data protection act. Could you offer an opinion? Josh Gooding The point is, there are no laws in the…

C-41 black & white film Lab-processing options are more limited for black & white film than for colour. One exception is the Ilford XP2 Super, an ISO 400 chromogenic film that can make use of the wide network of C-41 colour-processing labs. It also has the unique ability to be shot at different speeds between ISO 50 and 800 on the same roll and still be processed as standard. It can utilise Digital ICE technology, making it perfect for scanning. It can be purchased from over a hundred UK dealers(www.ilfordphoto.com/storelocator)or via the ilfordphoto.com website. Infrared film The infrared effect is particularly popular with black & white landscape photographers, because the skies become a deep black and green vegetation becomes a snow-like white. Options include the Rollei Infrared 400 and Ilford…

James Paterson James is as skilled a photo editor as he is a photographer. His work has appeared in countless magazines and books, and in 2014 he was appointed editor of Practical Photoshop magazine. His subjects range from portraits to landscapes, architecture and underwater scenes. For James, Photoshop is more than just a work tool. Visit www.patersonphotos.com 1 Fix overexposed photos Lightroom offers a range of tonal tools for correcting overexposure, but which should you use? Begin in the Develop Module's Basic panel and tweak exposure to darken the image. Next move on to the Highlights slider, which lets you pull back detail. Finally, adjust the Whites slider to rein in the very brightest parts. 2 Save underexposed images This is where shooting in raw really helps, as raws retain…

Roy Jacobson, Clevedon, North Somerset Roy has been taking pictures since he was a teenager, but his interest in photography really blossomed with the arrival of digital equipment. He joined Portishead Camera Club in 2000, and has been an active member ever since. He enjoys wildlife photography, but also has a penchant for aviation. ‘I love the unpredictability of wildlife, especially flurries of movement that are too fast to appreciate with the naked eye,' he explains. ‘I also enjoy taking aviation shots and I try to add something extra to both static and flight pictures.' Roy often converts his wildlife images to black & white. 1 Little egret Roy spotted this little egret looking for food in a small drainage channel in the Somerset levels. The bird was very skittish…

David Rudge ‘I approached the LRPS advisory day as another milestone along my journey to become a better photographer. I find that there is nothing more challenging than placing your work under the scrutiny of expert eyes, and this should always be taken as a learning experience be it at a club or national forum. The advisory day turned out to be invaluable in many ways. There were positives that included recognition that my panel provided a good spread of different types of techniques with some good and interesting images. However, and more importantly, the more critical comments provided me with a greater insight into how all images can be improved both in the environment in which they are captured (a grain of dust on the lens of one image…

Resolution The graph shows that the lens is slightly sharper in the centre than at the edge when it’s used at f/2.8. Stopping the aperture down sees the level of sharpness in the centre and at the edge improve to where it peaks at f/4. Centre sharpness remains a fraction higher at f/5.6 than it does at f/2.8, but by f/11 the sharpness levels begin to plummet as diffraction takes its toll. For the best sharpness, users should steer clear of using f/16 and f/22. Shading The vignetting that appears when the lens is used at its maximum aperture isn’t a huge cause for concern. The fall-off recorded at f/2.8 was 0.5EV, which reduces to around 0.3EV when the lens is closed down a stop to f/4. Stop down to…

Sharpness Tested on the Sony Alpha 7R II, the Laowa 12mm is exceptionally sharp in the centre when set to f/4 or smaller, with the corners being sharpest at f/8-f/11. With it mounted on the MSC, MTF50 readings diminish by 20% at these optimum apertures, indicating that the converter is doing a good job of magnifying the image without degrading it. Shading On its own, the 12mm shows considerable vignetting wide open. Add the converter and, as expected, this reduces significantly, with the device crucially adding no apparent extra vignetting of its own. But you’ll still generally want to use apertures of f/8 or smaller to avoid asymmetric variations in brightness across the frame. Curvilinear distortion Laowa’s ‘Zero-D’ lens genuinely lives up to its billing; there’s essentially no measurable distortion,…

Angle markings The horizontal and vertical field of view is indicated by lines on the top and side Tripod socket A standard 1/8in socket is placed centrally in the base Spirit level A bubble level embedded in the top of the camera helps keep your horizons level. Red window Film winding and frame counting is carried out using a window in the back of the camera. Carry bag The camera is supplied with a simple drawstring protective bag. • € 160 (approx £145) • www.ondupinhole.com In the AP reviews team, we usually spend our time testing out all the latest and greatest digital marvels. But we're not blind to the fact that there's a film revival going on, and just occasionally, it's nice to take a step back and enjoy…

Sensor size and lens bulk Q Like a growing number of photographers, I'm looking at downsizing. I currently use a Nikon D700, which is a hefty full-frame DSLR. I can see that there is a useful reduction in size and weight compared to an APS-sensor D7500: 135.5x104x72.5mm and 720g compared to the D700, which is 147x123x77mm and 995g. The D700 weight is minus the battery, while the D7500 weight includes the battery. Then compare, for example, a Nikkor DX 18-200 f/3.5-5.6 with a Nikkor 28-300 f/3.5-5.6, and the DX lens is significantly smaller and lighter. But what I don't get is that a comparable lens for a mirrorless APS-C body is smaller and lighter still. The AF-S DX Nikkor 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR is 78x97mm and 490g, while a Sony…

LAUNCHED 1960 PRICE AT LAUNCH Approximately £30 GUIDE PRICE NOW £70-90 IF YOU are buying a classic camera to use, the sensible option is to go for a 35mm or a 120 roll film model. But a quick search of the internet will reveal places where you can still buy 127 film, opening up a new set of options. The Komaflex-S is one of the best. Manufactured by the Japanese Kowa Optical Works and made with an attractive grey leatherette covering, the Komaflex shoots 4x4cm images, 12 to a roll of 127. A waist-level viewfinder screen under a fold-up hood incorporates a focusing magnifier, while an opening flap in the front of the hood lines up with a rear eyepiece for use at eye level. The Kowa 65mm f/2.8 lens…

Our appreciation of any picture is a blend of the personal and the universal. Imagine five portraits: a lover, a friend, an acquaintance, someone long forgotten, and a stranger. We see different things in each, but still share a common humanity. Then think of the settings, the contexts. These too carry their freight and can be more or less specific, more or less universal. The London Underground, the Moscow or Paris metro, the New York subway, the U-Bahn in Berlin: all are different, but anyone who has experienced any of them can see the specific and the universal. We are all people; they are all underground mass transit systems. Shared experience is the basis of humanist reportage, and this is the very heart of Luke Agbaimoni’s pictures on www.tubemapper.com. People…