Innholdsfortegnelse for 29/04/2022 i Amateur Photographer

With long waiting lists for the latest new kit due to the global chip shortage, and the growing cost of living leaving us with emptier pockets, this year’s second-hand special has never been more relevant. If you’re hankering for a full-frame mirrorless body we offer our pick of the best options. If you’re on a tighter budget we look at how to build a system for under £1,000, and if you just want a high-quality compact to carry around we’ve got that covered too. But the second-hand market isn’t just about buying. If you’ve got an item of kit you haven’t used for months then perhaps you can live without it, and used retailers are crying out for it. Hopefully you’ll be able to re-invest the money in some new…

The Runners By Paul Cronin Canon EOS 5Ds, Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 at 70mm, 1/10sec at f/8, ISO 100 ‘ It had been a foggy few days in London but being on early shifts I couldn’t take advantage. Thankfully the forecast was for more fog during my late shift, so I took an early morning drive to the Windsor area. It’s a great little spot with endless compositions in the right conditions,’ says Paul. ‘This morning I was waiting for some human element as I had seen a few runners and cyclists whilst out walking so decided to wait by the side of the road with the curve in the road leading past the small copse of trees. I set my camera to mono and with live view which I find…

SONY has unveiled a new wideangle zoom for its full-frame mirrorless cameras, the FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G. This revisits the territory occupied by the existing Zeiss-badged FE 16-35mm F4 ZA OSS that appeared in 2014, but has a very different design philosophy. In a move that’s designed to appeal to videographers, it employs a powered, rather than mechanical zoom mechanism, driven by two silent XD linear motors. It’s also very lightweight, at 353g (vs 518g), but it lacks optical stabilisation. Sony has employed a 13-element, 12-group formula with plenty of special elements, including two advanced aspherical elements that suppress field curvature and astigmatism, and one each made from extra-low-dispersion (ED) glass and super-ED glass to minimise chromatic aberration. The dust- and moisture-resistant barrel measures 88.1mm in length and 80.6mm…

THE ROYAL Photographic Society (RPS) has announced the 2022 call for entries for the 164th edition of the International Photography Exhibition (IPE 164). The open call welcomes submissions from new, emerging, and established photographers of all ages, working in any subject or genre. New approaches, alternative photo processes and experimental work is encouraged. A £4,000 prize fund will be awarded to standout entrants, including the IPE Award, Under 30s Award and a £1,250 commission to create new work. Then 100 chosen images will form an exhibition at the RPS in Bristol, in January 2023. Entry is free for one image, and up to four images can be submitted for £18-£30, as a series or as individual images. Entries close at 23:59 BST on 17 May. Images submitted before 1 April…

There is something magical about selling a print. That someone is prepared to part with money in order to hang one of our creations on a wall in their house – and live with it every day – is perhaps the greatest compliment a photographer can expect. It is easy for anyone to say ‘Oh, yes, that’s lovely’, but when the notes slide out of the wallet and into your hands you know they mean it. A man who is by now very familiar with that feeling is black & white photographer and printer Dr Dave Butcher. Dave has been selling his handmade and expertly printed photos for over 35 years. It started as a side venture that grew into his main source of income after he left his job…

One of the most interesting aspects of Panasonic’s approach to the S5 is its unique kit zoom, the Lumix S 20-60mm F3.5-5.6. While its unusually wide view is undoubtedly aimed at vloggers recording themselves at arm’s length, it should also appeal to photographers shooting architecture and landscapes. At £619.99, it’s much more affordable than adding a specialist wideangle zoom to your kit. Paired with the Lumix S 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 Macro OIS (£1,259), it should also make an excellent lightweight travel kit. Panasonic also offers a range of small and relatively affordable f/1.8 primes.…

The idea that no one likes a bully just isn’t true. Confusing volume and violence for great leadership and vision, so many seem drawn to them. A desire to be on the winning side, to get one’s own way and to demonstrate ‘strength’ and decisiveness can often, it appears, cloud judgement and paper over ‘minor’ injustices for the good of the end. It isn’t true either that we all root for the underdog. Perhaps when the underdog is labelled as such we might, but being the underdog can just as easily be seen as a sign of weakness, the result of poor decisions and downright laziness. Some people like to get behind an underdog, to encourage them, and to cheer them on against the odds. That’s why we love the…

Mansion on the Move by Chris Ware The Elizabethan manor house, Ballingdon Hall, moves slowly towards its new location in Sudbury, Suffolk, on a massive trailer. The owners moved the house uphill after industrial development and tree growth obscured their view of the River Stour Valley. The spectacle sparked such interest that onlookers were charged a small fee, with the proceeds being donated to charity. Built in 1590 by Sir Thomas Eden, the house was moved half a mile all in one piece, lowered onto new foundations and its chimneys rebuilt. The owners lived in the house for more than 60 years before placing it up for sale in 2020 for the cool sum of £1.9m. The Getty Images Hulton Archive is one of the world’s great cultural resources. Tracing…

VENUS Optics has released its Laowa Argus 25mm f/0.95 MFT APO lens for Micro Four Thirds cameras, which offers a 50mm (35mm equivalent) coverage angle. The new 25mm has inherited the fast f/0.95 maximum aperture, optical performance, internal focusing and low focus breathing seen in existing Argus lenses in Sony E/FE, Nikon Z, Canon RF and Fujifilm X mounts. A 300° focus throw has been introduced to allow more precise focusing. The Laowa Argus 25mm f/0.95 MFT APO lens weighs 570g, is 86mm long and has a diameter of 71mm. It accepts 62mm diameter filters and has a minimum focus of 25cm. It can be pre-ordered now for £399.…

DXO HAS released a major update to its PureRAW program for pre-processing raw files using the firm’s advanced noise reduction and lens correction algorithms. PureRAW creates 16-bit linear DNG files that can in turn be processed in other imaging software, such as Adobe Lightroom or Camera Raw, just like the original camera raw files. DxO PureRAW 2 promises up to 4x faster processing on M1-based Macs when using PRIME or DeepPRIME noise reduction. It now offers full support for Fujifilm X-series cameras with X-Trans CMOS sensors. DxO’s Fujifilm support initially appeared in beta form in PhotoLab 5 last year, but PureRAW 2 now offers full support for 26 cameras and over 2,000 body/lens combinations. Other updates include batch processing direct from Windows desktop or Mac Finder windows. Lightroom users can…

Thank you for your articles on mindful photography and mental health. I’ve had my issues with depression and I really identified with what Tracey Calder described as the ‘monkey mind’ that constantly chips away at your self-confidence and belief. I wanted to relate my experience. Last year I set myself the goal of documenting the streets of Blackpool through day trips during the high and low seasons. I planned all the what’s and where’s, and yet, when I got there, I struggled to tune in and find the rhythm of the place. All the time I was berating myself for not living up to my own expectations, that other people have done it better, and that I’d wasted my time and I should just give up and go home... My…

Like all E-mount cameras, the A7 II can make use of a vast array of lenses. Not only is Sony’s FE range larger than rival line-ups, plenty of third-party options are also available, from small, affordable Samyang primes through to sublime offerings from Zeiss. In between, Sigma and Tamron both make excellent optics at competitive prices. It’s even possible to get electronic adapters for Canon EF-mount lenses, although they don’t work as well as on Canon’s EOS R cameras. Last but not least, the A7 II is an excellent vehicle for shooting with vintage manual optics from old 35mm film cameras via mount adapters.…

Fight & Flight by David Jackson Canon EOS R3, Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II, 1/3200sec at f/4, ISO 8000 David tells us, ‘This picture was taken from our kitchen door, which looks out onto the bird-feeders. Goldfinches arrive in numbers most days. They always put me in mind of bickering siblings, the way they bully each other off the feeders and spar in the air. No quarter is given! I’ve long wanted to capture this behaviour. The overcast weather actually helped, as it makes the beautiful colours of the birds “pop”. In addition I made sure to locate the feeders so that I have a clean background to shoot against, which again helps to highlight the birds in the picture.’ You can see more of David’s work on…

ZONER Photo Studio X (ZPS X) photo software has had ‘a hefty update’ that’s designed to let photographers have more customised control over their editing processes. Among the updates are customised previews, customised thumbnails, a redesigned browser, new blending effects, a more efficient Preview cache, faster Catalog, Fast Preview 1:1 (which lets you see whether the preview has the same resolution as the original photo) and Fisheye Lens correction. ZPS X photo software is a fully featured raw converter, with photo editing with layers and masks, while the retouching brush and faces tool are useful for enhancing portraits. You can download a free 30-day trial of ZPS X at www.zoner.com.…

Oliver Eade, Roxburghshire About Oliver Oliver is a retired doctor and writer of fiction. He became interested in photography after photographing his granddaughters who live abroad. He joined a camera club, subscribed to AP and completed the AP School of Photographic Imaging diploma course. Favourite subjects Street/documentary – it reveals so much about who and what we are. What do you love about photography? When taking photographs, I can forget myself and my worries and see how extraordinary our precious planet is. First camera Nikon D70. Current kit Nikon D5200 and a Sony compact. Favourite lens A versatile 18-200mm, frowned on by pros but so useful for street photos. Favourite accessory My wife’s shoulder as a camera rest instead of a tripod. Dream purchase Sigma Nikon-fit 150-600mm telephoto lens to…

With fewer and fewer new compact cameras being released, we often have to look at the second-hand market to find the best value. Here we’ve been looking through some of the great compact cameras of the recent past, and potential future classics, that you should be looking at if you’re in the market for a second-hand camera. We’ve selected models that offer manual control, raw shooting support, plus additional advanced features, that make these great models to use especially if you’re looking to get the best out of these cameras. Some of these offer classic styling, as well as external control dials, making them much more pleasant to use than your standard compact camera. You’ll also find that buying from a UK retailer means you can often get a warranty…

While you can use the fp with any L-mount lens, it’s arguably best suited for use with the firm’s compact i-series primes, which boast premium metal construction complete with analogue aperture rings. The 45mm f/2.8 is the perfect companion for everyday shooting, complemented by the 24mm f/3.5 wideangle and 90mm f/2.8 telephoto. For those who prefer larger apertures, 24mm, 35mm and 65mm f/2 optics are also available. Meanwhile, if you can’t live without a zoom, Sigma makes the 28-70mm F2.8 DG DN that’s considerably smaller and lighter than its 24-70mm sibling.…

Cameras Cameras come in three types: DSLRs with optical viewfinders, mirrorless models with electronic viewing, and compact cameras with non-interchangeable lenses Handgrip DSLRs traditionally have relatively large handgrips, while many mirrorless models have much smaller grips to keep size down. However, some can accept accessory grips to improve handling with larger lenses. Lens mount Each camera brand uses its own lens mount, and mirrorless cameras use different lenses to DSLRs even from the same brand. However, mirrorless models can often use DSLR lenses via a mount adapter. Controls Entry-level cameras tend to have simple, easy-to-understand controls, while more expensive models add lots of buttons and dials to give quick access to settings. Viewfinder The biggest difference between DSLRs and mirrorless cameras is that the latter use electronic, rather than optical…