Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2015 i Outdoor Photographer

With its 24-megapixel sensor and EXPEED 4 processor, the Nikon D750 takes features from Nikon’s other high-end DSLRs, the D610 and D810, to create a powerful tool for nature photographers. Award-winning photographer and Nikon Ambassador Moose Peterson has been using the D750 since late 2014, and he shares his impressions and insights on the standout capabilities of this impressive DSLR. “The image quality is really quite amazing,” says Peterson. “I really like the way it deals with color and white balance. And it does a great job of getting those multiple variable strands of a particular color and bringing them to life, rather than just melding them together. They’re all just very distinct, and that color is very important in my photography.“ To get the best possible performance from the…

In this issue, we’re featuring the winners of our late autumn and early winter Assignments. Congratulations to Kevin King, Harry Lichtman and Kevin Russell for their winning submissions. A new Assignment is posted every week 42 Outdoor Photographer outdoorphotographer.com at outdoorphotographer.com. To get your images into the running, all you have to do is submit. Sign up for our eNewsletters to get updates, and if you have an idea for an Assignment topic, you can find me on Twitter @OPRobinson. 1) First Snowfall Assignment Winner PHOTOGRAPHER: Harry Lichtman EQUIPMENT: Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon EF 100-400mm ƒ/4.5-5.6L IS, Gitzo Tripod Finding the combination of vibrant fall foliage and snow seems to be more unpredictable in New Hampshire than out West. Often, the leaves in New Hampshire’s White Mountains have…

When a photographer used to carrying a 4x5 camera on 20-mile hikes that gain thousands of feet of elevation simply leaps out of bed, grabs his digital camera and heads for the front porch, it’s kind of homey. In fact, it is home. The Montana skies that entrance most people are David Muench’s daily fare. Brilliant, stormy, moody, fiery, explosive, all-enveloping, luminous, numinous, crystalline, slashed with the colors of rainbows or formed of the deepest blue, they’re skies with no boundaries. When someone says, “the sky’s the limit,” they aren’t talking about these skies. There is no limit here. No limit to the power of nature or to the opportunity for the photographer who can simply never let go of a camera. Sky happens. You want to be ready. Influencing…

NIKON D5500 Nikon has introduced the next DX-format DSLR to their lineup. The D5500 is the smallest and lightest camera (with a decrease from the D5300 body size by a small 2/10 inches, but a more impressive 2 ounces) while maintaining durability for the avid traveler. The 24.2-megapixel CMOS sensor with optical low pass filter removed produces sharp, detailed images with rich color tone. The camera also includes an EXPEED 4 image processor and expanded ISO range spanning 100-25,600. The D5500 is the first Nikon camera to offer a 3.2-inch vari-angle LCD monitor with touch sensitivity for full setting control. The 39-point AF system utilizes 9 cross-type sensors to lock onto quickly moving subjects and shoots up to 5 fps. Video is captured in 1080/60 fps full HD with full-time…

Image stabilization has empowered more nature photographers to get sharp, inspiring photos by freeing us from the bulky tether of a tripod. In the full-frame 7 II, Sony has taken stabilization to the next level with the most advanced technology currently available, a revolutionary 5-Axis Stabilization system. In the field, photo opportunities like the one in this macro photo are fleeting. These ants didn’t pause and wait for their close-up. Being able to work handheld and adjust your position to follow the action is critical, especially with macro subjects like this. But it’s no good if the image is blurry. The 5-Axis Stabilization system built into the Sony a7 II gives you the freedom to move and shoot handheld at shutter speeds that would have been impossible without it. The…

Ansel Adams’ philosophy that, “Without a guiding vision, photography is not necessarily an important activity,” divides photographers into two groups: those who simply shoot aesthetically pleasing one-offs of beautiful scenes and those who have a driving force behind why they shoot what they do and meticulously plan how they’ll capture the image to make it meaningful. Sure, we’re all likely at least a little familiar with Adams’ black-and-white landscape photographs, and many would argue that his fame derived from the technical superiority of his images at the time, and their ability to be reproduced and displayed well. While that was certainly a key to his success, it was his guiding vision that led to a lifelong mission of environmental conservation and preservation of the American West that still has an…

Dawn, with its soft, subtle light, gentle tones and fine mists, has always been my favourite time of day to shoot. My intent with the project AURORA was to capture different water locations around the world in that diaphanous pre-dawn light; soft pastel hues and gentle contrast, and a stillness one doesn’t experience at any other time of day. As with most of my work I wanted to convey a sense of peace and space, and to help achieve this I would need very long exposures to remove texture from the water thereby simplifying the composition. In order to achieve those long shutter speeds I chose the LEE Big Stopper 10 stop filter, and combined this with various LEE ND grad filters to control the light. I always prefer to…

The appeal of Ansel Adams’ work hasn’t diminished with time. Although some art critics have dismissed Adams as more of a popular culture figure than a true artist, we know better. To dismiss Adams as little more than a product of a time is to fail to recognize the lasting impact he has had on the efforts of conservation around the world, as well as how much of an inspiration he continues to be to photographers everywhere. Pop culture figures fade with time and distance from their specific context; Adams’ legacy is still growing. I don’t own any Adams prints, but if I could, the one I’d buy isn’t “Moonrise,” nor is it the famous image of Half Dome. “Clearing Winter Storm, Yosemite Valley,” is the Adams print I’d most…

The year was 1964, and Ansel Adams was seated directly across from me at the dining table. Our group had finished eating and was well into the third hour of wonderful conversation. Topics included psychology, art, music and photography. I was in my first year of college. As president of our college photo club, I was responsible for organizing the photo department’s annual arts and culture program. Through hard work, help from numerous friends and lots of luck, I managed to book Ansel as our speaker. The day of the big show arrived, and the foyer reception area was packed with hundreds of visitors gathered to meet Mr. Adams and get up close and personal with 20 of his finest original prints. The main presentation was Ansel narrating a slideshow…

In an age when black-and-white landscape photography is too often considered anachronistic, photographer Mitch Dobrowner literally never wavers from his monochromatic view of the world, as he makes images literally unlike any that have come before. To call him a landscape photographer may be technically accurate, but it doesn’t do justice to the one-of-a-kind, jaw-dropping images that have taken a prominent place in his portfolio. Dobrowner is a storm chaser. “I always found myself photographing in really inclement weather,” he says. “It was just so beautiful to me. In that weather, you never really knew what was going to happen. I would go out to the Southwest in the winter and it just came to my mind that if I’m enjoying this weather... I heard about all the action in…

Ansel Adams and Group f/64 were synonymous with image quality, sharpness and detail. Group f/64 took its name from an aperture setting that would lead to maximum depth of field in the image. These photographers used large-format cameras with movements that enabled even greater control over sharpness, and they employed fine-grained film with high silver content for rich tones throughout the range, from dark shadows to bright highlights. For photographers, Adams’ legacy as a conservationist and artist is rivaled by his legacy as a master craftsman who coaxed the most out of his gear through technique and the choice of tools he used in the field and in the darkroom. We can debate whether Adams would have used digital cameras and software, but that debate misses the fundamental point. If…

Aperture Academy New Locations And Sojourn Series Expansion | 2015 | The Aperture Academy has added exciting new international adventure workshops to their wildly popular Sojourn Series of on-location expeditions. Aperture Academy is one of the largest private photography schools, expanding their class schedule in 2015 to over 200 classes and workshops around the globe. Their new Sojourn adventures, Banff Canadian Rockies (seven days) and The Scottish Highlands (nine days), joins Colors of Costa Rica, Grizzly Bears of Alaska, Iceland, American Southwest and Africa expeditions. U.S. workshops visit over 30 locations including the very popular Arches, Canyonlands, Yellowstone, Grand Teton and Yosemite National Parks, day and night shooting, beginner to pro levels. Aperture Academy’s 2015 schedule ranges from photography basics to advanced applications; workshops go from day to night, from…