Photography News Issue 45

Photography News | Issue 45 | absolutephoto.com

News

Club class

Phase One and Hasselblad have both announced 100-megapixel cameras this month. Phase One’s iXG Camera System comes in 50 and 100-megapixel configurations, with exchangeable repro lenses (72mm and 120mm macro) guaranteeing onemillion actuations. The cameras are designed for Cultural Heritage digitisation projects, and though you won’t get much change out of £50,000, you do get a lens thrown in. Hasselblad’s new 100-megapixel model is the A6D-100c, the latest in the company’s range of aerial cameras. If 100-megapixels isn’t enough, up to eight units can be synchronised. Imagine Photoshop trying to deal with all those pixels. 100Mp cameras ahoy

Above Congratulations to New City PS for winning Camera Club of the Year 2016-17. Its members (left to right), Jamie White, Colin Mill, Mark Jones and Dave Cromack collected the trophy from PN 's Will Cheung.

hasselblad.com phaseOne.com

Adventure mode

The wait is finally over. The winner of PN ’s huge Camera Club of the Year (CCOTY) contest has been crowned, and what a worthy set of champions this year’s competition produced. Not only did New City Photographic Society fight off scores of other clubs to gain entry into the CCOTY final, they also had to compete against four other clubs on the big day, each vying for the top prize. And what a day it was. Our five finalists arrived with only the most basic of briefs on the subjects they’d be tackling. Thrown in at the deep end, they had to tackle five separate challenges across the day, shooting a mixture of subjects, processing their images and submitting themwithin tense one-hour time slots. On their side, they had CCOTY sponsors, Fujifilm, which supplied leading-edge cameras for the day, as well as expert technical advice. Amongst other gear,

contestants got to use the amazing medium-format GFX 50S, X-Pro2 and X-T2 cameras, plus a host of brilliant Fujifilm lenses. And the location, centred around the Natural Light Spaces studio in Northampton, certainly helped too; with a mix of pro-level facilities and dramatic backgrounds around its Weedon Bec setting, a Georgian-era Royal Ordnance factory, there was plenty to shoot. Plus, of course, the PN team were on hand to shout encouragement and crack the whip. Praise should also be heaped upon the other competing clubs, Dorchester, Exeter, Great Notley and Harpenden, all of whom put in an amazing effort, missing out on the big prize by only the smallest of margins. For a full report on a fantastic day of challenges and creative zeal, make sure you check out the next issue of Photography News .

Nikon’s latest all-weather camera is the Coolpix W300, a 16-megapixel compact that can be used at depths of up to 30m without a specialist housing. It’s also freeze proof down to -10°C, dust proof and shockproof when dropped from heights of up to 2.4m, so should suit even the most butterfingered of giants. On the imaging side, there’s a 1/2.3in back-illuminated 16-megapixel CMOS sensor allied to a 5x f/2.8 optical zoomgiving a 24-120mmequivalent. Reach the end of the zoom and the Dynamic Fine Zoom doubles the reach with no loss of pixel dimension. For your adventure videos, theW300 can shoot at up to 4K resolution (at 30p), and a new auto exposure lock helps capture flicker free video footage as light levels change, which is a particular concern underwater. Nikon’s HybridVibrationReduction feature is also on board, delivering sharper pics at slower shutter speeds, which again should help underwater applications. A decent grip, large monitor, and bigger buttons make control easier in gloves, and the camera also adds GPS and other data to your shots, such as the number of steps taken, altitude and pressure. The W300 should be out by the time you read this, costing £389.99.

Live in thewow Joining the growing number of 360º and virtual reality devices is the Ion360 U camera, claimed to be the first “seamless 360º camera that’s also a protective case and charger for phones”. The Ion360 U snaps onto your phone, turning it into a 360º camera, so you don’t need a separate device. Versions are available for iPhone7/7 Plus and Samsung S8/8+. The device also produces eight-megapixel stills and 4K videos, with a recording time of two hours, and its app can live stream content to your chosen social media platform, like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter or Instagram. It’s currently priced at £299.99 with £80 off and free shipping in the UK.

ion360.com

nikon.co.uk