Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2022 i N-Photo: the Nikon magazine

TWEAK THE SETTINGS James says… Nigel didn’t have to change his camera settings much at all, once he was happy with each lighting setup. He used Manual mode and Matrix metering throughout, and generally started with the same basic settings – 1/125 sec, f/8, ISO100 – before tweaking them accordingly. CLEAR VIEWS James says… Viewing images on the back of the camera is hugely important when creating a new lighting setup. I find it helpful to have an unobstructed view of my pictures, so I recommend turning off the info overlay by checking the ‘None (image only)’ box in the Playback Display Options. FOCUS ON THE EYES James says… I’m very happy with my Nikon D850, but I do find the advanced AF abilities of Z mirrorless cameras rather tempting.…

Afar, Ethiopia TREVOR COLE The Afar have existed in the Danakil Depression for millennia and control the salt trade. At 120m below sea level, the Danakil is the second-lowest place on Earth and is also the hottest – temperatures can rise to over 50°C in summer. Camera: Nikon D750 Lens: 70-200mm f/2.8 Exposure: 1/640 sec, f/5, ISO250 Lake Magadi, Kenya JIE FISCHER Lake Magadi is an inland lake at the southernmost point of Kenya, formed by fault subsidence, and is well known for its wading birds, including flamingos. During the dry season it is 80 per cent covered by sodium carbonate, and salt deposits form colourful patterns around the lake, depending on the wind and waves. Camera: Nikon D850 Lens: 70-200mm f/2.8 Exposure: ½000 sec, f/2.8, ISO360 Lewa Wildlife Conservancy,…

“Keep a close eye on the blooms in your garden, shooting them as soon as they peak. An overcast, windless day is best 1 Dewy webs Clear, cool nights will typically leave grasses, roosting insects, flowers and spiderwebs glistening with dew. Webs form intricate patterns and more than justify a closer look. To capture webs sharp throughout, select a small aperture and opt for a parallel angle to place as much of the subject as possible within the plane of focus. 2 Petal power Flowers are hugely photogenic and ideal subjects for honing your skills. They are ephemeral things, so keep a close eye on the blooms in your garden, shooting them as soon as they peak. An overcast, windless day is best. 3 Reflect the light Light can be…

“Tree trunks will converge and appear to bow inward, creating an unconventional and imposing perspective 31 Into the blue A dense carpet of bluebells is surely the most photogenic of spring subjects. Visit woodland in late April and early May when bluebells typically peak. Avoid bright midday light. Visit either end of the day, when the sun’s low position will cast long shadows across the woodland floor. A 70-200mm tele-zoom is a good lens choice, helping compress and simplify chaotic woodland scenes. 32 ICM Woodlands are suited to intentional camera motion (ICM). If you have never attempted it before, give the technique a go this spring. Select a slow exposure time of ½ sec or longer and then smoothly pan the camera while the shutter is open. A vertical motion…

1 Universal Connector Light Painting Brushes’ Universal Connector is an implement that’s designed to slide onto and grip the head of most torches with a 0.975 to 1.5-inch diameter. A protruding tapered end is designed to attach one of the company’s many light painting attachments. 2 Attachments Dedicated Light Painting Brushes attachments range from Collapsible Light Swords to fibre optic brushes, but our patterns were largely produced using the rounded glow from coloured Light Pens, while also using Opaque Light Writers and Crystal Light Pens. 3 String, tape & card We used twine and painter’s tape to suspend our torch. Cardboard was placed over the lens to block the beam when removing and attaching multiple accessories during a single exposure. You could turn the torch off, but swapping attachments is…

Composites are one of the things that Photoshop does better than any other image editor. With a few simple selection and layer skills you can combine a wide array of photos into one magical scene. We’ve used several free downloadable images from www.pixabay.com to create our fantastical composite. If you want to follow the technique in full then download the eight start images (see box for reference numbers). Or instead, why not learn the techniques explained here then apply them to your own selection of images? Perhaps you could start by shooting your own ‘base’ pictures then overlaying objects taken from downloaded images. When searching for photos to combine, keep in mind that some will fit together better than others. There are two important factors to look at. The first…

Sourcing bugs You can find bugs everywhere. Turn over stones in the garden, go for a walk or search windows for dead flies. However, for more exotic species you can also buy bugs. Look for ethical sources that specialize in insects. We purchased a set of 10 bugs from www.art-butterflies.com for £30. Clean the insect A bug might look pristine to the naked eye but it can be covered in dust and fibres when seen close up, so before you start shooting spend some time cleaning and preparing the insect. A fine needle can be useful for removing hairs, and a gentle air blower can help to blow away particles. Setting exposure If you’re using studio strobes like this then try setting the camera to manual exposure, shutter speed ½00…

George Karbus is in a hurry. He is attempting to get his campervan ready and roadworthy so he and his partner Kate and their two children, Joshua and Natalie, can set off on a two-month trip away from the wild winter of Ireland’s west coast. There can be no prizes for guessing that Karbus is not an Irish name – George was born and raised in the Czech Republic before moving to a small coastal village in County Clare 18 years ago. Today, he is one of Europe’s most awarded underwater photographers and cameramen. He may love Ireland’s natural beauty but, even after two decades, the Atlantic winters remain difficult to tolerate. “I would love to live away in winter,” he declares. “I love Ireland in spring. April, May, June…

The term ‘exposure value’ (EV for short, also known as ‘stops’) recognizes the fact that many different combinations of shutter speed and aperture can produce the same overall exposure: 1/125 sec at f/8 or ½50 sec at f/5.6, for example. In practice, we mostly encounter EV when setting exposure compensation or exposure bracketing, where it serves as a measure of the difference between two or more exposures. A difference of 1EV (or one stop) doubles or halves the amount of light admitted. This usually makes a noticeable difference in the final image. The smallest increment, or difference between two exposures, that can be set on our Nikon cameras is ⅓ EV.…

Are you sitting comfortably? Nikon School runs the workshops over Zoom with the tutor using Capture One to control the camera functions – however, the user doesn’t need this or any other software, aside from a web browser or the Zoom app. As well as viewing the live feed from the camera, you can adjust any settings that can be controlled electronically. You call the shots However, certain aspects need to be set by the tutor on location, such as the composition, but it’s all under your direction. We asked Neil to pan slowly around the location and settled on an iceberg for foreground interest, requesting the tripod to be lowered to make it more dominant and positioned to the left-hand third of the frame. Remote possibilities Happy with our…

Joby Wavo microphones From £69/$80 www.joby.com Aimed at video creators, Joby’s new Wavo line of microphones include a Wavo PRO Shotgun mic, Wavo AIR wireless mic and Wavo POD streaming/podcasting mic, all designed for easy-to-use plug-and-play operation. At the top of the Wavo range is an all-new Wavo PRO shotgun mic, equipped with a hybrid analogue/digital system with active noise reduction (ANR), a sound management app for iOS and Android for remote audio monitoring, and a second 3.5mm mic input for dual channel recording or interviews, for example. It’s designed to offer pro-level audio quality and control for videographers. The high-end Joby Wavo PRO is available now at a price of £258/$300, but coming in March 2022 is a cheaper mid-range version called the PRO DS, which will sell for…

When the going gets tough and you’re clambering around, in pursuit of landscape photo op, the last thing you need is a bag of heavy camera kit. This compact ultra-wide zooms weighs just 230g, employing a plastic mounting plate, but it still packs in useful features. Unlike Nikon’s older and heavier AF-S DX 10-24mm, it adds 3.5-stop VR that can save a lot more weight, avoiding the need to lug a tripod around. Autofocus is based on a stepping motor that gives quick performance for stills and smooth, near-silent transitions while shooting movies. Manual override and fully manual focusing are available via an electronically coupled focus ring. Also typical of ‘AF-P’ autofocus lenses, there’s no focus distance scale. Performance Although undercutting the price of the Tamron and Tokina DX format…

Tokina was one of the first indie manufacturers of ultra-wide zooms for DX format cameras, in the shape of its 11-16mm lens, which has since been updated. This ‘Pro’ lens is similar in many respects, including its f/2.8 aperture rating, which remains constant across the zoom range. Optical finery includes three aspherical elements, of which two are all-glass moulded elements, with an additional ‘precision-moulded’ element. There are also three SD (Super-low Dispersion) elements. The AF system is quick but relatively noisy, driven by an electric motor. Typical of Tokina lenses, this one has a ‘one-touch focus clutch’. This enables you to swap between AF and manual focus simply by snapping the focus ring forwards or backwards. Performance The AF system feels outdated and there’s no stabilization, but the Tokina performs…

We’ve long been fans of Sigma’s ultra-wide 12-24mm lens, with its extreme max viewing angle. The Mk II edition of the lens was very good and the latest ‘Art’ edition is even better, gaining a constant-aperture rating of f/4. This newer addition to the Art line-up is more modest in its ultra-wide coverage but an f-stop faster, qualifying as a ‘trinity’ zoom. The weather-sealed construction is excellent. Optical prowess benefits from a large-diameter, ultra-high-precision moulded glass aspherical front element, which teams up with three top-grade FLD (‘Fluorite’ Low Dispersion) elements and three SLD (Special Low Dispersion) elements. Ring-type ultrasonic AF is speedy and whisper-quiet. Performance Levels of sharpness are ace across the whole image and throughout the entire zoom range. Colour fringing is negligible and, despite the Sigma having average…

After the long grey winter months, blossoms are beginning to bloom, insects are buzzing once more and newborn animals are making their first tentative steps. Spring is most definitely springing! And to celebrate the season of rebirth, nature pro Ross Hoddinott brings you 50 hand-picked tips to reinvigorate your photography and encourage you into the great outdoors with your Nikon. But if you’d prefer to hibernate just a little longer, famliar N-Photo face James Paterson dons his instructor hat and shows our apprentice how to take cool creative portraits from the comfort of the studio. In our interview, we dive deep into the imagery of marine photographer George Karbus, who tells us that being raised in the landlocked Czech Republic was no barrier to his underwater ambition. In our Gear…

James says… When using gels, it’s easy to focus on illuminating your subject and ignoring the saturation of the colours. While you can boost saturation in post, you still want to get it as close as possible in-camera. If you’re not careful, lights can cancel each other out and reduce saturation. An easy fix is to reduce the power of one of the lights. We reduced the power of the red kicker – used to illuminate the side of the face. This ensured the blue key light remained strong and saturated, directing the viewer’s eye towards the subject’s face.…

41 Get support Although shooting handheld promotes spontaneity, the stability of using a tripod will allow you to work in low-light situations and refine focus and framing. Look for a sturdy but lightweight design that also enables low-level shooting. A tripod is essential if you wish to take photographs at night-time or decide that you want to capture creative long exposures. 42 Go long Landscape enthusiasts often instinctively reach for a wide-angle lens, but this spring don’t neglect your telephoto. Longer focal lengths foreshorten perspective, allowing you to capture a stacked or layering effect, or isolate distant interest. They suit misty conditions and woodland photography, allowing users to exclude distractions and simplify busy-looking scenes. 43 Go with the flow Rivers and streams are often in full flow at this time…

Plenty of photographers shy away from fast-moving subjects because they can be difficult to photograph. But we reckon the steep learning curve can be made more palatable due to the intensity in which you can practise the technique. If you’re learning to shoot sunsets, you have to find a good location and hope the weather plays ball. If everything does work out, you might get the chance to photograph a few different scenes and only one during peak sunset conditions. If you want to learn how to capture birds in flight, however, you can head to your local nature reserve and spend all day snapping ducks, geese, swans and anything else that happens to swoop past. It’s also often assumed that you need specialist camera equipment to shoot fast-moving subjects.…

If you’ve mastered your exposure settings and are looking to take your photography to the next level, consider investing in a few filters. These thin sheets of glass or resin are typically placed in front of a lens in order to manipulate rays of light before they reach the camera’s sensor. Unsurprisingly, this can affect image quality, so if you intend to use filters often, it’s worth investing in a decent set. The most commonly used filters are neutral density (ND), graduated neutral density (ND grad) and polarizers. ND filters block varying degrees of light to lengthen exposures, ND grads are dark at the top and clear at the bottom to balance bright skies and the ground below, and polarizers block polarized light, which reduces glare and boosts blue skies.…

There are all kinds of objects and details that look incredible in close-up, but insects are perhaps the most beguiling. Ultra-macro photography allows us to blow their tiny features up to a tremendous scale, revealing alien-like features, vibrant colours and incredible details. But how do we get close enough to see these details? You can easily spend a lot of money on macro photography. From specialist objective lenses to bellows and motorized focus rails, close-up photography can get expensive very quickly. But for those looking to dip their toes in the world of ultra macro photography, there is a cheaper option – extension tubes. These let you convert any lens for macro use by allowing for closer minimum focusing distances, and if you already own a macro lens then extension…

1 Stack the sequence We used Helicon focus to combine our focus stack sequence (there’s a free 30-day trial that anyone can use). We simply dragged our sequence in then chose one of the three stacking methods and hit render, then saved the image. We created one stack for the head, and a second for the abdomen. 2 Merge to a panorama If we treat the insect like a panorama by shooting it in segments then we can use Photoshop’s panorama stitching features to combine our stacked images together. Open Photoshop and go to File>Automate> Photomerge and load in the stacked photographs to stitch them together. 3 Retouch distractions No matter how diligently you clean them, insects are likely to be covered in dust and other distractions. So we need…

1. Let there be light – painting stop-motion animations Darren Pearson is a multi-talented photographer, light painter and animator. He creates stop-animations using a Night-Writer – a self-designed, purpose-made tool for creating colourful drawings using light. These short films are labour-intensive, often taking months or years to create, but Darren has created a style we’ve never seen before. https://bit.ly/36LJzUh 2. Camera wars: the Nikon v Canon tradition continues Canon and Nikon have again shadowed each other closely with their next generation of pro-level interchangeable lens cameras. So it is little surprise that the Canon EOS R3 and Nikon Z 9 were released so close to each other – and once again illustrating the different philosophical approaches of each brand in the execution of a pro camera. https://bit.ly/3tbGVhN 3. The Nikon…

The word ‘exposure’ has been in use since the very beginning of photography. To make an image, you ‘expose’ light-sensitive material to a controlled amount of illumination. That material could be a chemical emulsion coated onto film or a glass plate, but these days it’s much more likely to be a digital chip, such as the CMOS sensor at the heart of your Nikon camera. The word ‘exposure’ is used in more than one sense. ‘An exposure’ is almost synonymous with ‘a photo’ – early photographers would talk about making an exposure, while a roll of 35mm film would allow 24 or 36 exposures. However, the word is now used more often in relation to the vital business of making sure the right amount of light reaches the sensor for…

Q I’ve been thinking about trading in my D300 for a Z 7. Would that be a good choice and where could I get a good deal? Tom Williams A I’d go for the Z 6 or Z 6II, unless you really need the 45 megapixel sensor of the Z 7, which is mostly useful for retaining detail in large-format printing, or for extreme cropping of images. The Z 6 and Z 6II are much less expensive, have the same excellent handling characteristics and actually produce cleaner high-ISO images with less noise. An advantage of the newer Mark II models is that they have a secondary SD card slot, making memory cards much cheaper to buy. A standard zoom is probably the most important lens to get. Personally, I’d go…

The best drawing tablets for photo editing might seem something of an oxymoron. But actually plenty of photographers use drawing tablets for that very task… and with good reason. After all, pen and drawing tablet can feel much more natural than using a mouse or a laptop touchpad. So they’re not just great for making art, but can also make editing your images more efficient and comfortable as well. By definition, graphics tablets need to be sensitive, and the best models register anything up to 8192 distinct levels of pressure. That means you can be very precise with your photo editing, which is a useful thing in an era where standard resolutions are getting higher and higher everyday. And so whether you’re using Photoshop, Lightroom, or Affinity Photo, you’ll find…

After a long and mostly grey winter, spring has finally sprung in glorious colour. It’s the perfect time to take to the hills and valleys with your Nikon camera and suck in all that nature has to offer. Indeed, you’ll need a wide-angle lens to squeeze the epic vistas on show into the camera frame. There are plenty of excellent ultra-wide-angle prime lenses on the market, at least for full-frame DSLRs and mirrorless cameras but, for most of us, the versatility of a wide-angle zoom lens wins out. More than with any other type of lens, it’s important to pick the right tool for the job. Whereas FX (full-frame) telephoto lenses can work equally well on DX (APS-C) format cameras, a wide-angle lens designed for FX cameras will generally lack…

Barely more than half the weight of the AF-P DX 10-20mm on test, which itself is lightweight, this lens tips the scales at 135g and, when retracted for stowage, measures just 32mm. Even when extended for use, the overall length is only 55-60mm, depending on zoom setting. Coupled to a Z 50 or Z fc, it makes a really go-anywhere landscape package. With a minimum effective focal length of 24mm in full-frame terms, it’s a lot less ‘wide-angle’ than the other lenses here, but choices of native Z DX lenses are limited. The design includes four aspherical elements and one ED (Extra-low Dispersion) element, plus 4.5-stop optical VR. Build quality feels pretty good, although the mounting plate is plastic. Performance Sharpness away from the centre of the frame is better…

The mighty Nikon AF-S 14-24mm f/2.8G ED might seem the most obvious contender for an ultra-wide landscape zoom for FX format DSLRs, but we actually prefer the equivalent Sigma Art lens, also on test. Compared with both of those, Nikon’s 16-35mm lens naturally has a less generous max viewing angle and aperture rating, but makes amends in other ways. It’s relatively compact and only about two-thirds of the weight, while adding the bonus of optical VR. It’s also less pricey to buy and has a detachable hood that enables the inclusion of a 77mm filter attachment thread. The optical path boasts two ED (Extra-low Dispersion) elements and Nano Crystal Coat. Build quality feels solid and the mounting plate features Nikon’s usual rubber weather-seal ring. Performance This Nikon lens really delivers…

The pro-grade Z 14-24mm is packed full of features, including a tertiary customizable control ring, a customizable Lens-Function button and a multi-function OLED display. Optical highlights include four ED elements, and both Nano Crystal Coat and ARNEO coatings, built into a tough and weather-sealed casing. The lens is refreshingly compact and lightweight for such a fast, wide-angle zoom. It comes with two alternative hoods, one of which enables the attachment of filters. However, its uncommonly large 112mm thread makes the range of compatible filters somewhat limiting. Performance Lab-test scores for sharpness are more impressive than for any other lens in the group and, in real-world shooting, you can be assured of superb results throughout the zoom range, right out to the extreme edges and corners of the frame. Colour fringing…

James asked Nigel to arrive at the studio an hour before the models so they’d have plenty of time to prepare. “The relatively short amount of time we have with the models is going to be the biggest challenge today,” said the pro as they finished assembling two flash heads and a Speedlight. “But time management is an important lesson when it comes to studio work, and I’m guessing it’s something you’re already quite used to Nigel?” The apprentice nodded: “Aviation photography requires you to maximize small windows of opportunity – it’s setting up the lighting that’s the daunting bit…” James smiled: “We’ll start with a more conventional setup and once you’re comfortable we’ll progress onto using some of the more creative light sources that I have here.” When Jabez and Diana…

COMBINE IMAGES James says… Open the portraits in Photoshop. Copy one (Cmd/Ctrl+C) and paste it into the document with the other image (Cmd/Ctrl+V). Use the Move tool to position the pasted image so it fits over the second one neatly. TURN OFF CHANNELS James says… Head to the Layers panel (Window>Layers) and double-click on the top layer to bring up the Blending Options box. There are lots of different blending effects here, including the option to turn colour channels on or off. Toggle off the R box to turn off the red channel. TWEAK COLOURS James says… Double-click the bottom layer and turn off the G and B channels, so it’s just red, turn off the R channel on the other layer so it’s just green and blue. Merge both…

21 Worm’s-eye view Get low and shoot from ground level to capture an intimate and natural perspective. Discard your tripod and use your elbows for stability or support your lens on a beanbag. A low angle, together with a telephoto lens and large aperture, will help subjects ‘pop’ from their surroundings. 22 Background check Background choice can make or break your shot. Aim to capture flattering, non-competitive backgrounds. A diffused wash of colour typically works well – for example, out-of-focus vegetation, spring flowers, sky or water. You can typically exclude distractions by changing the shooting angle or setting a larger aperture. “Subjects are accustomed to human activity, making them ideal for photographers with limited time 23 Beautiful butterflies During spring, butterflies return to gardens, flower meadows and wooded glades. Few…

The uninitiated might assume light painting is simply postproduction trickery, when, in actual fact, light painters are constantly pushing the envelope and redefining what can be achieved in-camera. In fact, the light painting community is so inventive it can be a little hard to know where to start, and that’s where this month’s Creative Techniques project comes in. By suspending a tiny beam of light on a piece of string and setting it into a swinging motion, you can create incredible geometric patterns from the comfort of your own home. What makes this an ideal first light painting project is that it can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. Just one light source can create clean but complex trails of light, or you can…

When you want to create a black-and-white rendition of a picture, there are so many ways of processing the image that it can be difficult to know where to start. The colours in a regular picture can be turned into various shades of grey, so a red object, for example, can be made to look very bright, very dark or anything in-between, depending on how you convert it. Add all the other colours into the mix, and making a mono conversion can leave you scratching your head! For this issue’s download, we have the solution. Just add your colour shot, then go through a series of clicks to get your desired mono results. Our B&W FX Kit will also standardize your print size to A4 or A3, and add a…

1 Tripod for stacking Focus stacking involves shooting a sequence of images while making minute adjustments to the focus, in order to capture sharpness across the subject, so we need a tripod to keep the camera still throughout. The frames are combined afterwards using stacking software like Helicon Focus or Zerene Stacker. 2 Release and mirror Our subject needs to stay perfectly still while we shoot our focus stack sequence. Any tiny vibrations are amplified in close-up photography, so we don’t want to touch the camera at all. A cable or wireless release is a must. It’s also best to use Live View or set Mirror Lock-up to prevent mirror vibrations. 3 Focus rail We used an inexpensive four-way Neewer focus rail (bought for £40 on Amazon). This lets us…

Some key controls are in much the same place on every Nikon camera, but others move around. We’re using a D750 as our main example, while the smaller illustrations show where to find the controls on other models. And on other Nikon cameras… ISO CONTROL The position of the ISO button varies. On the D750 here it’s on the back, but on the D850 and Z-series cameras it’s on the top plate. On entry-level cameras like the D3500, you will need to set ISO via the menu system. Z-SERIES BRACKETING Even upmarket Z-series cameras don’t have a BKT button. You need to set this via Photo Shooting Menu> Auto Bracketing>AE Bracketing. You also need to set bracketing via the menu on D5xxx-series DSLRs. FN BUTTON On cameras without a separate…

The right button On some cameras, exposure compensation is only available in Program, Shutter Priority and Aperture Priority modes, while others allow Manual too. Look at your LCD Hold down the exposure compensation button and rotate the command dial (the rear main command dial on two-dial cameras). The multi-selector On some models, such as the D3500, you can also apply exposure compensation through the information display on the LCD. Choose a value Compensation can be anywhere between -5EV and +5EV, in steps of ⅓EV. It’s rare that you’ll need to go all the way to one of these extremes. Fine-tuning Having set your compensation level, take a shot and review it on the LCD. If the exposure still needs tweaking, simply repeat the procedure. Wipe the setting When you’ve finished…

The shot above is of Iceland’s famous Diamond Beach, where icebergs from the Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon wash up on the contrasting black volcanic sand. We decided on our composition, fiddled with the camera settings and fired the shutter – yet we took this shot without leaving the house, let alone the country… It was taken during a Nikon School Live Remote Shooting session – where you get expert one-to-one tuition from the Nikon School trainers, but while they’re at the location battling the elements, you’re warm and snug at home, taking control of their camera remotely and directing the shoot via a video link. Not only does this open up a whole new world to shoot at incredible remote locations you couldn’t otherwise get to, but it enables you to…

Q I’m after a high-end DX format DSLR on a low budget. What do you think would be the best buy? Dave Nicholls A Matthew recommends… I’d go for the D7100. It has a high-quality build, advanced controls, plenty of useful features and great all-round performance. And it’s a bargain secondhand buy at the price. Nikon D7100 LAUNCHED NINE YEARS AGO, THE D7100 WAS NIKON’S MOST UP-MARKET DX BODY AT THE TIME RELEASED: 2013 PRICE NEW: £1100/$1200 SECONDHAND PRICE: ‘Excellent’ £320/$450 ‘Good’ £270/$380 Picking up the baton from the prestigious and popular D7000, the D7100 boasts a 24.1Mp image sensor while omitting an optical low-pass filter to boost sharpness, and a powerful EXPEED 3 image processor. It’s a major upgrade over the D7000 in terms of the autofocus system, based…

Lab tests explained Sharpness A chart with multiple sharp boundaries is photographed, the extent of blur at the centre, mid and edges showing how many line widths per picture height the lens can resolve. Simply put, the bigger the numbers the sharper the lens. Fringing Chromatic aberration is visible as purple or green fringing around high-contrast boundaries, caused by different wavelengths being focused on different areas of the sensor. The larger the number, the worse the score. Distortion A lens that bulges towards the edges of the frame produces barrel distortion, shown as a negative score. Pincushion distortion produces a positive score. A score of zero indicates no distortion. Our awards in a nutshell The best performance, design and value A product that gives you more for your money The…

This DX lens has plenty of overlap with a standard zoom lens, reducing the number of times you need to swap between the two. Updating early models to firmware V2 via Tamron’s TAP-in Console ensures full compatibility with Z-mount mirrorless cameras via an FTZ or FTZ II adapter. A huge upgrade over Tamron’s original 10-24mm lens, this one has an HLD (High/Low toque-modulated Drive) AF system. It’s faster, quieter and improves handling as the focus ring no longer rotates during AF. Image stabilization is added and better build quality features weather-seals and a fluorine coating on the front element. The new optical path includes an enhanced aspherical element and LD (Low Dispersion) elements. Performance Due to the size of test charts, lab-tests for ultra-wide-angle lenses need to be carried out…

For full-frame mirrorless shooters with a Nikon Z-series camera, the main choice of landscape zoom is between this lens and the Nikon Z 14-24mm f/2.8 S. The latter is spectacular and has a faster aperture, but the Z 14-30mm costs half the price and has a lot going for it. Thanks to a retractable design, the Z 14-30mm is quite compact at just 89x85mm and weighs a mere 485g, yet matches its bigger sibling for max viewing angle. As an S-line lens, it’s well-built and features four aspherical elements, four ED elements, Nano Crystal Coat and a fluorine coating on the front element, as well as multiple weather-seals. A key advantage over the Z 14-24mm is that the filter thread is a much more common 82mm. Performance Lab-tests don’t tell…

Money no object, the Z 14-24mm f/2.8 S is the best lens here. But it’s expensive and handling exotica is arguably superfluous for landscapes, as is its f/2.8 aperture. For FX format mirrorless cameras, the money is on the Nikon Z 14-30mm f/4 S. Despite costing half as much, it still delivers lush image quality and all-round performance. For FX format DSLRs, the Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 DG HSM | A is the best buy, with superb performance at an affordable price. For DX Nikons, the Tamron 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5 Di II VC HLD wins for image quality and performance. It’s an F-mount lens designed to be used with DSLRs, but works with Z-series mirrorless cameras via an FTZ mount adapter. The Nikon Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR works well for landscapes,…