Innholdsfortegnelse for 19/04/2022 i Amateur Photographer

Preserving highlight detail can still be a challenge for a lot of photographers, and it remains a common reason for images being marked down in camera club competitions or photo society distinctions. However good your editing software, you can’t pull back any tonal variation in an image if the highlights are blown. So this issue we have some expert tips for ensuring your highlights come through as part of a well-balanced exposure, with top pros sharing advice for landscapes, portraits and more. On the subject of editing software, we review the innovative DxO PureRaw 2, which now offers Lightroom integration and Fujifilm support. Don’t miss our engrossing feature on the enigmatic Vivian Maier, too – while unknown in her lifetime, she is now posthumously celebrated as a world-class street photographer.…

To congratulate the AP Pic of the Week winner, Fujifilm is giving the winner a £25 voucher to spend on any photo prints or gifts at myFUJIFILM.co.uk, so that they can print their image any way they like! Simply go to myFUJIFILM.co.uk, select what you want, then enter your given voucher code at checkout. The voucher is valid for 6 months and can be used in multiple transactions. No monetary eligibility or exchange. Need help using your code? Contact myfujifilm_uk@fujifilm.com *THE PRIZE APPLIES TO UK WINNERS ONLY. PLEASE ALLOW UP TO 28 DAYS FOR DELIVERY…

FOR THE Record: Photography & the Art of the Album Cover is a new exhibition at The Photographers’ Gallery London that celebrates the unique ‘object d’art’ that is the album cover and runs till 12 June 2022. The showcase of over 200 examples of classic album cover art reflects upon its influential role in shaping and making music artists – both in front of and behind the camera. The exhibition includes the iconic Abbey Road album cover of The Beatles, shot by the late Iain Macmillan, Robert Frank’s legendary imagery for the Rolling Stones and Jean-Paul Goude’s unforgettable Grace Jones LP covers. To find out more details just go to www.thephotographersgallery.org.uk.…

San Miguel Mission The San Miguel Mission in Santa Fe, New Mexico, is reputed to be the oldest church in the US, dating back to 1610. However, it would be more accurate to say that this is the site of the oldest church, as it has been rebuilt many times since then. Even so, what survives today is a classic example of ‘Adobe-style’ architecture for which Santa Fe is well known. Indeed, Santa Fe has a city-wide ordinance that requires all new buildings to be constructed in the Adobe style (nothing to do with the company). Santa Fe is also associated with the artist Georgia O’Keeffe and is still an arts hub. Vibrance and saturation I happened to visit Santa Fe at the end of the summer season, by which…

WHEN Samyang released its original 50mm F1.4 in 2016, it counted as a very decent first effort at an autofocus optic. But expectations have changed since then, with lenses now required to provide a good account of themselves on high-resolution sensors while also offering video-friendly characteristics. Judged against this higher bar, the Samyang AF 50mm F1.4 FE II acquits itself well. By any sensible measure, this is a fine lens, and a major upgrade over its predecessor. It’s much sharper at large apertures, while autofocus is quicker and quieter. Yet it’s also smaller and lighter, while benefiting from useful additional controls and weather-sealing. Indeed, casting around for flaws feels a little churlish. It probably doesn’t focus quite as rapidly as its rivals, and I wouldn’t expect to get the same…

Among the plethora of fully automatic compact 35mm cameras from the end of the last century, the Ricoh R1 stands out for a number of reasons. Firstly, it’s very small, even for a compact camera. Secondly, it has two focal lengths, the standard 30mm, itself quite wide for this kind of camera, and then a 24mm super-wide option, which by default engages a panoramic film plane mask. Dating from around 1995, this camera was also marketed as the Rollei Prego Micron in the USA. Mine came from eBay over a decade ago. I bought it having read about the wideangle lens, and the simple non-permanent modification that could be made to give full frame images instead of panoramic, albeit with some vignetting in the corners. I’d enjoyed using the very…

Sellers Interview by John Chillingworth The actor Peter Sellers (centre), at his home in Muswell Hill with the Picture Post journalist, Bob Muller (right), and legendary photographer Thurston Hopkins (left). The image was shot as part of a story about Peter Sellers for the magazine, but it wasn’t included in the article. It is interesting to note that despite Thurston Hopkins being there, John Chillingworth – another of the team’s ‘star’ photographers – was also present to capture some extra images. The Getty Images Hulton Archive is one of the world’s great cultural resources. Tracing its origins to the founding of the London Stereoscopic Company in 1854, today it houses over 80 million images spanning the birth of photography to the digital age. Explore it at www.gettyimages.com.…

LEICA has added a new, robust version of its Summicron-M 28 f/2 ASPH fast, wideangle prime lens in Matte Black. The ‘especially robust’ Summicron-M variant has a specialist paint finish with extremely scratch-resistant properties. The light green inlaid engravings on the lens have been designed to complement the Leica M10-P Reporter camera, but the lens is compatible with any other M-mount rangefinder camera. The matte black variant features an integrated lens hood, which extends via one quick twist. The lens is said to be ‘fast, compact and delivers exceptional performance. Its outstanding speed makes it particularly versatile and delivers brilliant imaging results even in difficult lighting conditions.’ It’s available now at £4,000.…

SOFTWARE firm Capture One has revealed details of an update to its Capture One 22 software (15.2.0) that includes feature updates, a redesigned keystone tool and ‘substantial speed improvements’. The Keystone Tool has now been split into Guides and sliders tabs and Auto Keystone has been added for all camera models to help to allow for quick and precise perspective correction in almost all images. Apple Silicon M1 improvements include a preview generator that is ‘up to 100% faster’, Luma Mask rendering said to be up to 300% faster, Feather and refine Mask at up to 1000% faster, plus Fujifilm X-Trans raw loading that’s up to 100% faster. Capture One 22 (15.2.0) is available now as a ‘perpetual license’ for £299, as an upgrade from previous generations for £159, or…

When I’m being commissioned for an editorial shoot, I find it’s always best if the picture editor gives me a free hand to come up with my own ideas. If they have a specific idea of what they want me to shoot, it makes me feel there’s no joy in the process as I’m just replicating their idea. The best picture editors know who the good photographers are, trust them to come up with something and let them get on with it. Fortunately, I was able to choose what to shoot when I photographed the television documentary-maker and presenter, Louis Theroux. I shot portraits of him twice in 2001, when he had been in the public eye for a couple of years with his series Louis Theroux’s Weird Weekends. When…

1 Lighten the image I started by expanding the Basic panel options, where I lightened the Exposure. At the same time, I dragged the Highlights slider to the left to preserve highlight detail and dragged the Shadows slider to the right to lift the deep shadows. 2 Add more saturation To ‘pop’ and enrich the colours I clicked on the Profile menu and selected the Adobe Landscape profile. In the Presence section below I added Texture and Clarity in order to bring out more midtone detail, plus I added more Vibrance. 3 Apply a Lens Correction Next, I expanded the Lens Corrections panel. Here, I checked the Enable Profile Corrections option to auto-apply a profiled lens correction to remove geometric distortion as well as lens vignetting. I also checked Remove…

IT COULD be tempting to see the Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G as being a lens for videographers, simply due to its power zoom design. But this would be to do it an injustice. Sony has overcome the usual irritation of clunky, imprecise zoom controls and delivered a lens that works just as well for shooting still images. I’ve been really impressed by its implementation of power zoom, and can imagine a lot more lenses working this way in future. At £1,300, the FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G is, however, the most expensive of the compact FE-mount wideangle zooms available. Compared to its Zeiss-badged predecessor that sells for £1,149, it’s usefully lighter and boasts much-improved operability, but doesn’t bring significantly better image quality. Meanwhile Tamron’s 17-28mm F/2.8 Di III…

AP picture of the week Light in the Shadows by Amber Burton Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II, Olympus 45mm f/1.8, 1/2500sec at f/2.8, ISO 200 Amber says, ‘A bright, sunny and blustery spring day, with deep contrasting shadows everywhere. Nearly impossible to take a photo without clipping. I spotted this little lone daffodil standing in a splash of direct sunlight, against the moody and muddy background. It was bright, hopeful and resolute – and just what I needed in that moment.’ Instagram: @amberjaneburton We also liked... The Kestrel & The Dragonfly by Martin Buckley Canon EOS 5D Mark IV, 100-400mm at 400mm, 1/800sec at f/5.6, ISO 160 ‘An amazing experience at my local reserve in Dagenham (the Chase Nature Reserve). The kestrel swooped down into the tall grass and reappeared…

NIKON has revealed it has increased prices on its imaging products and that this ‘new pricing will apply to all new orders that ship after 1 April 2022.’ However, certain Nikon imaging products have been excluded from the rises – these include the flagship 45.7MP Nikon Z 9, sport optics, accessories and other ‘certain new products’. Nikon admitted, ‘We have had to increase our prices as a result of increased component parts and logistics costs. We have explored all options to absorb these, however, regrettably we have to increase costs to maintain production.’ The exact amounts of the Nikon price increases have yet to be confirmed.…

9 April 1958 RECEIVING your weekly copy of AP via digital download may be quick and convenient but it lacks the charm of having it delivered by spaniel, even if you do have to wipe the slobber off it before you can read it. This issue featured a piece about the vintage Bromoil process by Arnold E Brookes, FRPS. ‘Of all the processes that have ever been invited there is not another, in my opinion, to compare with bromoil,’ he began. There was also a big feature on theatrical photo-calls by a young Angus McBean, illustrated with photos of the likes of Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh. ‘Since the war it is the usual practice of theatrical managements to open new shows out of London,’ he explained, which meant that…

Receiving your article in February on home printing was very good timing. Having been frustrated before Christmas on the quality of online services for enlargements, I was investigating what options are available online or local. The result of that read being a newly purchased ‘nearly new’ Canon PRO-1 printer. The result is a beast of a printer and a headache from a learning curve I couldn’t and didn’t foresee. My previous attempts at printing with reasonable-quality printers always led to blockages, wasted paper and frustration but now, armed with some knowledge, with no kids wanting to print homework, I’m able to ditch those online warehouses and print some really nice, high-quality prints. Knowing the cost of the extras beforehand may have put me off a little, but the AP article…

I’VE BEEN using DxO PureRAW regularly for a year now, and over that time I’ve only come to appreciate its benefits more. If you shoot a lot at high ISOs, or indeed avoid shooting at high ISOs due to fear of noise, it’s a game-changer. About the only thing that bugs me is that I’d like to be able to disable vignetting correction, as this is very much an aesthetic choice. In some ways, using PureRAW is akin to getting a new camera, given the improved image quality it delivers from your raw files. This puts the £115 asking price into perspective – you’d have to spend a lot more on hardware to get a stop better noise performance. For Fujifilm owners, the addition of X-Trans support makes PureRAW 2…

I really like people. I love to chat to them and find out about them. They have interesting stories and often have very different ideas to mine and it allows me to reconsider the way I think. And sometimes they have a different way of doing something and I learn something new. People can make me laugh, so I can feel joy, and other times I can feel sad along with them. Other people really do make the world a better place – don’t believe what landscape photographers tell you about people. A photo that transports me into the presence of another person, so I feel I could be in the room with them – is relatively rare. Well, rare among images made by photographers – normal people seem to…