Innholdsfortegnelse for 2/25/25 i Amateur Photographer

We all have periods of creative fog, where we lose our sense of direction and purpose. This week, SheClicks founder Angela Nicholson talks to six members, with very different photographic styles, about how they found and developed their own niche and how that inspires their photography. One way to find inspiration is to look to the past, and we also report on the republishing of a seminal work of documentary photography: Robert Frank’s The Americans, which was first published in 1958. It’s certainly a topical subject just now. Of course you could go even further back in time for inspiration as Rikard Österlund has done in reviving the Victorian wet plate process. Finally, don’t miss our review of Nikon’s latest affordable APS-C addition to its Z system. Our cover image…

TOKINA has announced its first lens for Fujifilm X-mount, the atx-m 11-18mm F2.8 X. This is also the first super-wideangle zoom lens in Tokina’s line-up designed exclusively for mirrorless cameras. The lens features a consistent f/2.8 aperture throughout the zoom range in a compact and lightweight body. Back in 2022, Tokina released the atx-m 11-18mm F2.8 for Sony E-mount APS-C, and the Fujifilm mount version is very similar (it offers the same 16.5-27mm equivalent view on both the Sony and Fujifilm mounts.) Other noteworthy features include two aspherical and two low-dispersion glass elements to suppress chromatic aberration and a minimum focusing distance of 19cm. The lens offers full compatibility with Fujifilm X-mount cameras, including Image Stabilization, AF and MF, MF Assist mode, Eye Detection and optical corrections. In addition, there…

ZEISS has hinted that it’s about to release a new lens, after a quiet few years (to put it mildly). The premium lens maker is giving very little away, but released a picture of an owl on its Instagram page, accompanied by the toe-curling pun, ‘Get ready for owlsome news.’ A follow-up Instagram post featuring owls then appeared on Valentine’s Day, flagging up February 25 as a much more important date. (in case you’re wondering about the owl connection, Zeiss’ line-up of Otus lenses are named after the Otus owl family.) The only Otus lenses released so far have been for Canon EF and Nikon F DSLR mounts, triggering speculation that the new lens could be for mirrorless cameras. This will be good news if so, as there have been…

Many who are fans of documentary photography cite The Americans as a big inspiration. Shot during 1955 and 1956, this year it turns 70 years old. The following seven decades have of course produced hundreds, if not thousands, of influential documentary photographers – ask any of them to name a hero, and I’d be willing to bet that many of them would cite Frank’s masterpiece. The work was first published in France in 1958, before making its way over to the States the following years. We’re often featuring mid-century American work in this magazine – the interest in it never seems to wane – but this is something particularly special. 2025 also marks the centenary of Robert Frank’s birth. That Frank was still relatively young while creating this piece is…

LETTER OF THE WEEK Why not wider? I’ve just returned from a visit to the 2024 Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition hosted by the Natural History Museum in London. The standard and presentation of the photos was superb, and there are some common themes that run through the winning photos. The winners used a whole range of cameras, from the most to the least expensive, and both DSLRs and mirrorless models were used. Even with cheaper cameras, a common theme was the use of high-quality lenses, however. I suppose that’s not too surprising as a high degree of planning and thought went into the shots. The winning photographs all showed great technical skill, repeated practice and continued experimentation married with a bit of luck. Very few photos were chance…

ANGELA NICHOLSON AP regular Angela speaks to six photographers who share how they discovered their creative calling AMY DAVIES Features Editor Amy writes about the anniversary of Robert Frank’s influential book The Americans; and tests Vivo’s X200 Pro RICHARD SIBLEY Former AP deputy editor Richard talks to photographer Rikard Österlund about his love of wet plate photography ANDY WESTLAKE Technical Editor Find out how our chief reviewer rates the new Z50II, Nikon’s updated APS-C mirrorless camera JESSICA MILLER Dep. Online Editor Also our social media manager, Jessica selects more of your stunning images in It’s good to share…

LEICA has announced a new version of the storied Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 lens as part of its Leica Classic Line. The original version, released in 1959, was the first to carry the Summilux name, and this latest iteration uses special glass to deliver a particularly soft bokeh, along with other technological updates. The lens features solid brass construction and is fitted with a round vintage lens hood. It’s available now for £3,310.…

£14.99 each, Mussel Publications, Hardback, Various pages, ISBNs: 1955: 9781399992046, 1965: 9781399992053, 1975: 9781399992060, 1985: 9781399992077 There’s lots of joy to be had scouring through the Getty archive. But, it’s also true that it’s a bit overwhelming. Well, that’s where books like this come in. Across four volumes covering 1955, 1965, 1975 and 1985, we get a lovely hit of nostalgia that will delight both history and photography lovers alike. You’ll find out – or be reminded of – which team won the FA Cup, who won Wimbledon, who won the Grand Prix, the best films, which artists topped the charts and all sorts of other major events from the year of your choosing. Get a glimpse at the celebrities of the time, the biggest news events, and even fun…

I first met Swedish photographer Rikard Österlund (and former AP Technical Editor Tim Coleman) on my first morning at Kent Institute of Art and Design, Rochester, where we would spend three years working on a degree in editorial and advertising photography. The worlds of film and digital photography were at a tipping point; one morning, we would get in early to grab an enlarger in the darkroom, and the next, we would scramble to get a Power Mac and Minolta scanner. It had been over 20 years since I last saw Rikard, but it felt like we had never lost touch. Instagram and Facebook had acted as digital photo albums that we had seen from time to time, and we knew precisely the journeys we had been on since we…

LAUNCHED 1960 PRICE AT LAUNCH approximately £20 GUIDE PRICE NOW £200-250 Here’s a camera rarely seen in the UK, though a lot more prolific in France. With an aluminium body made in a crackle finish, it looks like a cine camera, but it’s a still camera, even though it uses cine film. The Color 60 was one of half-a-dozen different models, made in various colours and manufactured in Paris from 1948 until the early 1970s. Back in the days when amateur cine cameras were popular, Standard-8 film was actually 16mm wide and came in reels of 25ft. The film was run through a cine camera body once, then reversed and run through again in the opposite direction so that two images, each one 4.37x3.28mm, were exposed side by side along…

WIN! The AP Pic of the Week winner will receive a beautifully framed print of their winning image worth up to £100. If you Love it, Frame it! ThisPicture.com is an experienced, high-quality framing company with a unique, easy-to-use website. Build single or multi-image frames with a few clicks of your mouse and select from a wide range of frames, window mounts and glazing options. Each frame comes with a three-year guarantee and FREE P&P within the UK. Visit thispicture.co.uk Chaffinch Hierarchy by David Twomey Sony A7R III, Tamron 150-500mm F/5-6.7 Di III VC VXD, 1/6400sec at f/6.7, ISO 3200, at 500mm ‘Recently I had a fantastic day of shooting at Irish Photography Hides, in County Laois, here in Ireland. This fallen tree was a perfect focus point for birds…

Linder: Danger Came Smiling Until 5 May Hayward Gallery, London £19 / concessions This exhibition, the first London retrospective of the feminist artist Linder’s work, showcases 50 years of her pioneering work. Linder’s early pieces include photomontages which she made while part of the punk scene in 1970s Manchester. Today she still works in digital montage form, which is being shown for the first time at this exhibition. The show also encompasses photography, performance and sculpture. Concerned primarily with the body and its photographic representation, early glamour photography to digital deep fakes is the central tenet of Linder’s approach to image-making. A catalogue featuring works from the show will also go on sale for £25, and can be bought from the gallery, or online. An adapted version of this exhibition…

Photography is a vast and varied art form, offering endless opportunities to express yourself and tell a story. But with so many genres and subjects to explore, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed or to head out with your camera and end up photographing everything and anything without focus. By discovering your creative vision – that special approach, subject, or technique that resonates with you – your time with the camera becomes more purposeful and your photography naturally improves. Over the next few pages, six talented photographers share their journeys of discovery, revealing how they each found their creative calling. Whether it’s embracing the simplicity of minimalism, exploring the intrigue of multiple exposures, experimenting with editing controls, trying new kit or capturing the serendipity of street photography, their stories highlight the…

In 2016 on a week-long trip to San Francisco I tried unsuccessfully to photograph in the Tenderloin District. The consensus is it gets its name from a police captain who said he could afford tenderloin steak after receiving bribes in the area. The term Tenderloin became synonymous with areas of vice and illegal activity across America. Tourist sites warn not to go there. Hellhole is an often-used phrase. I wasn’t surprised to learn that South African photographer Pieter Hugo, known for his images of marginalised communities in Africa, had also trained his lens on Tenderloin locals. Darcy Padilla’s focus In 1991, after completing internships at The New York Times and The Washington Post, American photographer Darcy Padilla chose to pursue her own documentary work. In an early project she spent…