Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2016 i Australian Photography

Once again our prestigious competition, the AP Photographer of the Year presented by Olympus, has been run and won, and this year’s overall victor is nature photographer Graeme Guy. As a long-time nature shooter, Graeme presented our panel of judges with a portfolio of exceptionally executed images of birds. While his images were technically outstanding – sharp, well lit and beautifully composed – his work went well beyond the standard shots of “birds on branches” with most of the portfolio capturing these untamed creatures in the middle of extraordinary moments of feeding, looking after their young, or in mid-air action. Well done to Graeme who, as our 2015 Photographer of the Year and 2015 Nature Photographer of the Year is the recipient of $6000 in prize money, an Olympus OM-D…

Photoshop compatible with Windows 10? Q A friend has told me he can no longer use Photoshop CS6 as it crashed when he upgraded his PC to Windows 10. Adobe did not offer any assistance so he is faced with finding another editing program at a reasonable cost. I have an ageing desktop PC running Windows 7 and I’m thinking about buying a new desktop PC running Windows 8 as ‘run out’ models seem good value. However, the salesman told me that Microsoft are to automatically upgrade such models to Windows 10 via the internet. If this occurs, will I lose my cash investment in Photoshop CS5 as well as the time and effort taken to learn this program? Will this also affect Lightroom? The Apple alternative seems a good…

Your Best Shot is open to AP subscribers and APS members. To enter an image in the comp, check the competition themes and instructions below and email your best image to yourbestshot@australianphotography.com UPCOMING COMPETITION THEMES APRIL ISSUE THE BEACH Deadline: Jan 31, 2016 MAY ISSUE RAIN Deadline: Feb 29, 2016 JUNE ISSUE NIGHT LIGHT Deadline: Mar 31, 2016 JULY ISSUE PORTRAIT Deadline: Apr 30, 2016 AUGUST ISSUE DOG Deadline: May 31, 2016 EMAIL DETAILS • Send your entry to yourbestshot@ australianphotography.com • Include the name of the competition theme you are entering in the email subject line, for example ‘Rain’ or ‘Abstract’. • Please include the following details with your entry: your name, image title (if there is one) and 100-200 words about how you created your image. Please also…

WINNER 2015 PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR DASHA RILEY MY DAUGHTER JULIA Our portrait winner, Dasha Riley, started out as a painter and discovered photography in 2013 when a friend suggested a photo course. She went along because she wanted to shoot better reference photos for her paintings but found it opened her eyes to a new side of creative photography. In most of these images, Riley’s daughter daughter Julia is photographed against a series of hand-painted backdrops. “Dasha Riley’s photographs are quietly beautiful, elegant portraits. I enjoy the sense of narrative imbued in each of the works and the inclusion of both interior and exterior locations. Her use of colour and lighting add an ‘Old Masters’ quality to the series which I find particularly striking. Employing a number of…

WINNER 2015 JUNIOR PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR ANA BURENKOVA JEUNESSE Sixteen-year-old Ana Burenkova was an overwhelmingly popular choice for first place in the Junior Portrait category, with five of the six judges awarding her their top mark. Tobias Titz said she was a “great observer”, Mandarine Montgomery praised “a maturity beyond her years” while Tamara Dean commended her “honest and uncontrived” portraits. High praise from some of Australia’s best. Well done Ana. “It’s the moments ‘in between’ which Ana Burenkova has captured brilliantly here. It is as though her subjects are waiting for something: the answer to a question, for the photograph to be taken, or something else that we are not privy to. This gives a powerful sensibility to the series which I enjoy, a compelling sense of…

With this kind of trip you want to maximise your shooting opportunities. A good all-round travel lens from 28-300mm will allow you to shoot a range of subjects from landscapes through to portraits. If you want to take individual lenses, I’d suggest a wide-angle zoom (around 16-35mm) for landscapes, a general zoom (28-70mm) for everyday shooting, and a longer zoom (70-200mm) for portrait and detail shots. A macro lens is handy if you enjoy close-up photography. A strong, steady travel tripod is a must, along with a ball head for good manoeuvrability, and a cable release, which will ensure there’s no camera shake when you press the shutter. A head-torch helps you to keep both hands free when searching for things in the dark. In the more isolated regions you…

When we start a new year I like to look back on just how the photography industry has changed. A bit over a decade ago magazines which extensively covered digital imaging were just starting to take their place in our libraries. Up until then photo magazines had largely dealt with film issues – now, print magazines are struggling to compete with online publications. The rapid change seems to be gaining momentum, and while the basics of taking images hasn’t changed and capture is still all about ‘painting with light’, the number of tools at our disposal to make these images is growing daily. The changes in technology are difficult to keep up with! I read with interest not long ago that Sony is now offering what is essentially a ‘point…

Not that long ago shooting after sunset was pretty ‘hit and miss’ for many photographers. Results greatly depended on the skills of the shooter, the camera, luck with the weather and which film you were using. Early digital cameras where terrible for long exposures. I can remember my first DSLR, the Nikon D1X. The 5.4-megapixel camera cost over $10,000 in 2003 and shot at its native ISO of 125 pretty well. When I first bought it I shot a couple of images at ISO 400 and noise (grain) the size of golf balls would show in the image! So ISO 125 to 200 were the standard sensitivity settings. My first ‘after dark’ shoots were in 1982 when I was working at Uluru. I spotted the rock with star trails over…

OVERALL WINNER 2015 PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR WINNER 2015 NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR GRAEME GUY BIRDS IN ACTION Graeme Guy’s winning portfolio is proof that in photography it pays to specialise. The 67-year-old took up nature and bird photography in high school and has been honing his skills ever since. His images are not only beautiful they are richly informative, revealing unique moments in the amazing lives of birds. “It is a real challenge to capture dramatic wildlife behaviour shots. The best moments are usually fleeting, and often occur at a considerable distance. These intimate images are testament to Guy’s patience and time in the field. It is clear that Guy is a master of the decisive moment – that critical moment that really portrays the best and most…

Tamara Dean Tamara Dean is an Australian photo media artist whose practice explores the relationship between humans and the natural world. In 2014 she was the winner of the New York Photo Awards, Fine Art Series, and in 2013 she won the $10,000 High Commendation prize in the Moran Contemporary Photographic Awards. She is also a winner of the Olive Cotton Award (2011) and Sydney Life: Art & About (2009). Her works have exhibited in solo and group exhibitions around the world and she is represented by Olsen Irwin Gallery, Sydney. tamaradean.com.au Justin Gilligan Justin Gilligan combines his scientific background and artistic flare to create images that draw attention to the beauty of the natural world. His freelance images and feature articles have been published globally, and he has won…

1. Gaining access Before you go you’ll need to arrange the proper permits to enter restricted areas. The Aboriginal Land Act NT 1979 requires all individuals to have a current permit. Permits are available through the Nhulunbuy Corporation on the Gove Peninsula. The Dhimurru Aboriginal Corporation offers general and special ‘do-it-yourself’ permits. You can also apply online at permits@dhimurru.com.au. A general permit covers a wide range of areas and costs $160 for an annual family permit and $85 for an individual. There is also a $45 two-month permit and a $35 seven-day permit. A special permit grants access to particular recreational areas where vehicle numbers are capped to protect the land and cultural sensitivities. If you want to spend time visiting and photographing the Yolngu people in their homelands you…

Image Doctor Online Now there’s another way to get feedback on your images. We’re now offering an online version of Image Doctor at www.australianphotography.com, moderated by professional photographer Anthony McKee. Submit an image and find out what you’re doing right, what you’re doing wrong and, most importantly, what you can do to improve your photos. To upload an image go to www.australianphotography.com and click the ‘image doctor’ tab on the home page. THIS MONTH’S WINNER! A challenging shot “After wandering around the Adelaide Zoo for an afternoon I came to the flamingo enclosure, which had quite poor lighting and was covered in shadows,” writes Lochie Cameron. “I shot three frames just to capture the animal and hardly noticed them. When I got home and started processing, I noticed how interesting…

WINNER 2015 LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR DIANA YONG SALT: CLAY While aerial landscapes have become more popular in recent years, Diana Yong’s portfolio adds a fresh perspective. While the images are honest and unfiltered renderings of the landscape, the limited colour palette and abstract nature of the designs create a painterly effect, almost like a contemporary indigenous ‘dot’ painting. The images were taken over The Western District Lakes, Victoria. “There is an abstract nature to the photographs that provides just enough information to encourage the viewer to look closer and consider each frame carefully. Overall the compositions and choice of crop are excellent and well suited to the subject matter. This is an effective, considered portfolio of photographs that is an excellent example of how to work with a…

WINNER 2015 BLACK & WHITE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR DOUWE DIJKSTRA MOBILE STREETPHOTOGRAPHY Douwe Dijkstra caught the judges’ attention with his graphic compositions and strong contrast. Monochrome is a natural choice for Dijkstra who says it is, “easier to capture the essence of a scene in black and white”. Dijkstra’s preferred camera is an iPhone. “It’s instant, it allows me to process images on the spot and share them with the world. I dislike lengthy indoor photoshop processing sessions anyway, for me it is more about capturing the moment than technical ability.” “Every image in this series contains moving subject matter yet the timing and subject placement are almost perfect in each one. Some of the compositions are refreshingly unorthodox,and there is a masterful understanding and use of the full…

My life changed in 2008 when I bought my first DSLR camera. Suddenly the world looked like a completely different proposition, and a far more interesting place, with infinite possibilities for photographing the landscape and nature. While I had always been interested in art, I embarked on a very steep learning curve, knowing nothing at all about the technicalities of cameras or photography. I look for the essence of things and I like my images to express an emotional quality, whether that be the mood of the landscape or the sheer beauty of the subject. I joined the Northern Tasmanian Camera Club in 2009, where I found a remarkable mentor. The following year I joined the West Tamar Camera Club and the Australian Photographic Society. Through these organisations, I have…