Innholdsfortegnelse for 2/6/2024 i Amateur Photographer

7 days A week in photography OM System has also revealed a new M.Zuiko 150-600mm F5.0-6.3 Digital ED IS lens, which gives an impressive 300mm to 1200mm equivalent range, along with 0.7x magnification (at 1200mm). It’s surprising that this is the first time we’ve seen a 150-600mm on the Micro Four Thirds system. However, this is a big lens, weighing roughly 2kg, and it’s noticeably larger than most other Micro Four Thirds optics. This lens can be used with the Olympus MC14 1.4x teleconverter, giving 450-1800mm equivalent at f/7-9. Even the Olympus MC-20 2.0x teleconverter can be used, giving 600-2400mm equivalent at f/10-f/13. This is up there with the ultra-zoom bridge cameras we used to see. The lens has optical image stabilisation (IS) that has been designed to work…

7 days A week in photography The latest and best books and exhibitions from the world of photography £36, Dewi Lewis, hardback, 112 pages, ISBN: 978-1-916915-00-8 Small World was first published in 1996 and remains one of Martin Parr’s most enduringly popular books. Here, global tourism is the target for his acerbic eye and he homes in on the contradiction between the idealised myth of travel and the messy, more complicated reality. Parr’s images highlight all the unwelcome evidence of modern life that most tourists try desperately to exclude from their photos. Crowds of tourists queue grimly to board a gondola in Venice; sightseers try to ignore insistent street vendors in Bethlehem; Shakespeare’s birthplace is upstaged by a passing street cleaner and a parent with a pushchair. They perfectly…

TestbenchSMARTPHONE TEST The OnePlus Open is the firm’s only folding phone. It’s a rather impressive first attempt as well, with a priority being put on the Hasselblad cameras on the back. But could this be one of the best folding phones for photography? Design and features Often because of space and design complications of the folding system, the camera setup can be a bit lacking compared to non-folding phones. Not with the OnePlus Open, which has put a strong emphasis on the triple-camera system on the back. The first camera to mention is the main 48MP wideangle camera, with an f/1.7 aperture, optical image stabilisation (OIS), and phase detection autofocus (PDAF). This gives pixel-binned 12MP images, and uses a 1/1.43in sensor. It’s joined by a 48MP ultra-wideangle camera with an…

High ISO noise has been a problem going back to the days of film. Although contemporary digital cameras outperform their film counterparts in this area, noise remains an issue when pushing settings above the ISO 1600 mark with most digital cameras; the exception is the best professional cameras available that perform well at higher settings. To be fair, even entry-level cameras are excellent performers these days, but even so, there will inevitably be times when you need to crank up the ISO to be able to expose correctly when shooting handheld in low light or to freeze subject movement in certain situations. One thing to always remember is that it’s better to have a noisy photo that captures what you intended than no photo at all. Third-party noise-reduction software options…

We are sad to report the death of Brian Griffin, a top commercial, portrait and documentary photographer who was named Photographer of the Decade by The Guardian in 1989. While Griffin was chiefly famed for his portraits of musicians – he shot now-iconic album covers for Depeche Mode and other top acts – he also undertook a diverse array of portrait and documentary projects. These ranged from promoting the 2012 London Olympics to Himmelstrasse, about the railway lines leading to Nazi concentration camps. His acknowledged influences included film noir, surrealism and the Renaissance masters. Griffin was also an accomplished filmmaker and directed a number of music videos and TV commercials from 1991 to 2002 (his advertising clients included British Airways and Sony). A proud Brummie, Griffin gave a lot back…

When Canon unveiled the EOS 5D Mark III in 2012, it received a lot of interest from enthusiasts and working pros. Its 22.3MP resolution wasn’t a big increase over its predecessor, but it promised improved dynamic range and low-light performance. Its sensitivity range of ISO 100-25,600 (expandable to ISO 50-102,400) and 61-point AF system with 41 cross-type AF points were identical to the then-flagship EOS-1D X. Other features include 6fps shooting, a reliable 63-zone metering system, fixed 3.2in 1.04k-dot screen and an optical viewfinder with 0.71x magnification and 100% coverage. Full HD video (30p) and dual card slots (CF & SD) are supported too. What we said ● ‘The viewfinder is bright, clear and offers 100% coverage’ ● ‘Those more interested in video may be left wanting a little more’…

LETTER OF THE WEEK Wedded bliss A few months ago AP published my letter concerning me stupidly leaving my Panasonic FZ2000 on a bus. With an insurance claim out of the question I resorted to a few other cameras including my Nikon D90. Having not used it since 2015, it felt cumbersome, and I wondered whether its 12MP sensor would still be up to the job. I needn’t have worried. Despite being 16 years old, the camera still performs like a champion. I was asked to photograph a friend’s wedding recently and the resulting pictures came out very well. The bride and groom were thrilled, as was I. So much so, that I felt a little bit guilty at having abandoned my D90 back in 2015 in favour of a…

At a glance £2,199 body only ■ 20MP Four Thirds Stacked BSI Live MOS sensor■ 50fps with C-AF, 120fps fixed AF■ ISO 80-102,400■ 1,053-point AI-detect Quad Pixel AF■ 5.76m-dot EVF, 0.83x magnification■ 1.6m-dot 3in vari-angle touchscreen■ 5-axis in-body image stabilisation (8.5EV with Sync IS) Buffer  Doubled in size for increased continuous shooting (up to 256 raw shots). Autofocus  Improved continuous AF performance is promised. High-res multi-shot  This feature now supports 14-bit raw recording. Live Grad ND  The world’s first in-camera live graduated ND filter is on board. OM System has updated its previous flagship camera, the OM-1, with a new OM-1 Mark II version. It only seems like yesterday that the OM-1 was first announced, but it’s actually been nearly two years! If you’re au fait with the OM-1 already,…

When was the club founded? 1947. We celebrated 70 years in 2017 with a very successful and popular exhibition in Gracefield Arts Centre, Dumfries, featuring 1,000 pictures of people in Dumfries and Galloway taken by club members. What does your club offer new members? The Dumfries Camera Club gives a warm welcome to all levels of photographer. Visitors can come along and hear guest speakers for a small fee. Becoming a member also gives you access to the Members’ Area of the club website where you can view ‘members only’ pages, make comments, upload images to your gallery and enter league competitions. Describe a typical club meeting The club meets on a Wednesday evening from the end of August to the end of April at Gracefield Arts Centre, Dumfries. The…

Testbench LENS TEST Panasonic has been making full-frame mirrorless for just as long as Canon and Nikon, having been a founding member of the L-Mount Alliance in 2018. While it initially struggled for market traction, its Lumix S5II and S5IIX cameras have provided considerable impetus to the system. Now the firm has launched another eye-catching product – the implausibly compact Lumix S 100mm F2.8 Macro. Designed for shooting closeups, this is, by a considerable margin, the smallest and lightest lens of its type. It’s just 8.2cm long and weighs less than 300g, which means it’s exactly the same size as Panasonic’s highly regarded f/1.8 primes, and very similar in weight. In contrast, its closest L-mount competitor, the Sigma 105mm F2.8 DG DN Macro, measures 13.4cm and 715g, which is pretty…