In issue 11, we review a handful of great accessories alongside the Nikon D810. In our interviews, we hear from Sony UK’s head of digital imaging, Frederik Lange, and talk to Dianne Owen about the SRGB Photo Group’s Print Celebration. As always, we have all the latest news, both from the world of photography and our contributing camera clubs.
GET YOUR FREE DIGITAL EDITION EACHMONTH! SEE PAGE 6
Your FREE newspaper packed with the latest news, views and stories from the world of photography Pentax offers day out with the 645Z Enter our competition to win a landscape shoot with the 51-megapixel camera Photography news NEWS PREVIEWS TESTS CAMERACLUBS INTERVIEWS ADVICE COMPETITIONS
FREE Issue 11
19August – 22September 2014
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Manfrotto, Olympus &Ricoh kit news, plus prizes towin& exhibitions to see
All the hot photo stories you want to know about
Plus Samsung 16-50mm, LensPen & bags on test Is theD810 theDSLR theD800&D800E shouldhave been? Inside theworld’s most influential photo organisation FIAP president explains what goes on at its HQ
ABOVE Shoot the Lake District with the Pentax 645Z this autumn.
In association with Ricoh Imaging and our sister titles, Advanced Photographer and Photo Professional , Photography News is offering five readers the chance to spend a day shooting with the Pentax 645Z. The prize includes dinner and overnight accommodation prior to the all-day shoot on 18 October, plus refreshments throughout the shoot. On the day, the five winners will shoot with the 51-megapixel medium-format digital 645Z, together with a selection of lenses. During the dawn to dusk shoot, which will
take in various locations across the Lake District, PN ’s editor Will Cheung will be on hand to offer advice. Selected images from the day’s shoot will appear in a future issue of Photography News , as well as our sister titles. Since its launch earlier this year, the CMOS-based 645Z has garnered praise for its outstanding colour reproduction and accuracy. It features super-fast AF, a high ISO setting of 204,800 and dust- and weatherproofing. Turn to page 7 to find out how to enter.
π To find out more about the Pentax 645Z, go to www.ricoh-imaging.com.
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Issue 11 | Photography News
Photography News | Issue 11
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Latest photography news
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Could your image be good enough tomake it onto the cover of Advanced Photographermagazine? Shoot the cover
NEWS INBRIEF
DIGITAL HASSELBLAD V BACK
Hasselblad is set to introduce a CMOS sensor-based digital back for its V System, designed to work on almost every V camera made since 1957. The back will include the same functionality as the H5D-50c camera, including ISO values up to 6400, Live Video in Phocus, a larger LCD screen with higher resolution, a 12.5-megapixel JPEG option in addition to Raw files, new programmable button, 90° viewfinders and a remote focus control option from Phocus. The CFV-50c is available for £11,400. www.hasselblad.com has released Tonality, a software for creating high-quality black & white images with minimal effort. It’s the fourth addition to the existing suite of photo software for Mac users, and uses a 16-bit Raw processing engine and layer-based image editing with tools such as adaptive exposure and smart contrast, overlay textures, advanced clarity and structure detail, grain and film emulation and adjustment brushes. It’s available now for a limited time at a price of £13.99. Tonality Pro, which adds the ability to run as a plug-in to Adobe software and Apple Aperture as well as several other features, can be bought for £41.99, or as part of Macphun’s Creative Kit Plus at £90.99. www.macphun.com TONALITYMADE EASY Macphun Software
Samsung and Advanced Photographer have joined forces to bring you this unmissable opportunity to join them for a special photo shoot and get your picture on the front cover of the magazine. Samsung cameras, lenses, two professional models, lighting and a wonderful stately home location will be provided. Plus Will Cheung, Lastolite out of focus
editor of PN and Advanced Photographer, will be on hand to offer technical advice when you’re shooting. As well as getting their image used on the magazine’s new-look front cover, the photographer will also win a Samsung NX system outfit. See Issue 48 of Advanced Photographer , out 28 August, for more on this amazing opportunity.
The Ilford range of inkjet media is set for a worldwide relaunch, to be distributed exclusively in the UK by Tetenal Ltd. The relaunch follows the purchase of the company in a partnership between Japanese company Chugai Photo Chemical Co. Ltd and C.R. Kennedy & Company Pty Ltd of Australia. A combined history of 146 years in the photo industry puts them in the ideal position to continue the 135-year history of Ilford and maintain Ilford brand relaunched its renowned quality. The relaunched range will continue to include favourite papers such as Ilford Gold Fibre Silk, Smooth Pearl, Smooth Gloss and Ilford Gold Mono Silk, as well as Prestige Metallic Gloss and two canvas products. Prices will remain competitive and all codes and packaging will stay the same, while new swatch books will be available, and new complementary products will be added in the coming year.
π To find out more about Ilford products, go to www.tetenaluk.com.
New from Lastolite is the Out of Focus background range, allowing you to create the effect of using a wide aperture to blur the background and create bokeh effects even when in the studio rather than on location, or when you’re not using a wide aperture lens. The collapsible backgrounds
are double-sided, with two reversible options: Summer Foliage/City Lights and Autumn Foliage/Seascape. Each measures 1.2x1.5m, and they collapse down into a 76cm bag, making them extremely portable. Both are available now, at a price of £118.95 each.
π To find out more, go to www.lastolite.co.uk.
What’s coming fromFuji
Fujifilm has updated its lens road map, giving X-series users new information about what’s to come. Headlining the updated road map is a new addition, the XF90mm f/2.0 R, set to offer a wide- aperture medium telephoto option in the middle of next year. Other updates to the road map include confirmation that a high-speed wide-angle lens announced previously
is the XF16mm f/1.4 R, also set for a mid- 2015 release. The next lens available is confirmed as the XF50-140mm f/2.8 R OIS WR, due out at the end of 2014 and joining the recent 18-135mm in the weather- resistant line to partner the X-T1. Adding to this in the spring of next year will be a third weather-resistant lens, the XF16-55mm f/2.8 WR, and a super telephoto zoom is on the distant horizon for winter 2015.
π To find out more about Fujifilm lenses, go to www.fujifilm.co.uk.
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Latest photography news
Travel easy
NEWS INBRIEF WILO CONTEST Pump manufacturer Wilo has launched a national photography competition with a theme of water, open to all with the chance to win £1000 in vouchers. The competition sets out to find the best photography from across the country that features water – from a bucketful to landscapes and rivers. You can’t use a smartphone, but there are no other restrictions. Prizes on offer are Jessops vouchers, with a first prize of £1000, second prize of £500 and third prize of £250. www.wilo.co.uk OLLOCLIP A new four-in-one lens system for iPad Air, mini and mini with Retina display has been launched by Olloclip. It includes four lenses: a fisheye, wide-angle, 10x and 15x macros, all in a package that weighs under 30g. www.olloclip.com PHOTO SHOW Every two years, the photo industry gathers in Cologne, Germany for Photokina, six days of imaging geekery, and it’s happening next month, 16-21 September, so expect lots of exciting news! www.photokina.com INTERNATIONAL
personal items or accessories. The entire side of the bag zips open for easy access. For an everyday bag, you can also remove the internal divider to make one large internal compartment. There’s an extendable side padded pocket specifically designed to accommodate the Manfrotto BeFree (or similar) travel tripod. If you have a bigger tripod, there are also adjustable carrying straps on the back.
Manfrotto has added the Advanced Travel Backpack to its range of bags for enthusiasts, designed to let you carry your camera kit, tripod and personal belongings all in the same bag. It even has a dedicated pocket for the Manfrotto BeFree tripod. The backpack has a bottom compartment for your camera and lenses, with removable dividers, and a separate top compartment for
Ricoh Imaging has launched a limited Prestige Edition of the Pentax K-3. Limited to just 2000 worldwide, it commemorates the success of the Pentax flagship DSLR, and the body and battery grip are both finished in high-grade gunmetal grey coating, which matches both the black and silver K-mount lenses. It also features a faux leather strap embossed with ‘2014 TIPA Best Digital SLR Expert’ in recognition of the K-3’s award. The Prestige Edition will cost £1099, but availability is yet to be confirmed. Limited Edition K-3
π To find out more, go to www.manfrotto.co.uk.
π To find out more, go to www.ricoh-imaging.co.uk.
PermaJet has created a unique new system for the Epson R3000 printer, using the world’s first battery-free chip technology to allow lifetime use. The new system uses automated ink resetting software, which makes it easier for you when refilling the cartridge and can reduce your printing costs by up to 80 per cent. NewEco-Flo for R3000
The pressurised cartridges prevent air introduction into the ink system, ensuring quality and consistency in prints. Users of previous Eco-Flo systems can also benefit without starting again, with an affordable upgrade system.
π To find out more, go to www.permajet.com.
The Sony World Photography Awards 2015 are open for entries. This year, the awards include the Open competition with ten separate categories; the Youth competitionwith three categories for photographers under 20; the Student Focus competition for those in higher education aged 18-30; and the Professional competition with 15 categories. Competitions close at 23.59 GMT on 6 December 2014 (Student Focus), Monday 5 January 2015 (Open and Youth) and Thursday 8 January 2015 (Professional). A range of cash prizes and the latest digital imaging equipment from Sony is up for grabs, and overall winners will be announced at a gala ceremony in London on 23 April 2015, followed by an exhibition on display until 10 May 2015. 2015 SonyWorld Photography Awards open
π To find out more and to enter, go to www.worldphoto.org.
Photography News | Issue 11
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Latest photography news Winners of the International Garden Photographer of the Year Macro Art winners have been announced, providing inspiration for those looking to get their entries in for the main competition, which is still open. The winning image in the Macro Art competition was Growing Agave, a close-up of agave spines forming by Minghui Yuan, who receives a £500 cash prize. Second and third places went to Jacky Parker with Winter Windflower, and Stefano Coltelli with Spiral. GardenMacro Art gardenwinners If you’re planning to enter the main International Garden Photographer of the Year competition, you need to get your entry in by the end of October 2014. Pictures entered into the Macro Art or Monochrome competition are also eligible to be entered into the main competition. There’s a top prize of £5000 in cash on offer, and many of the winning images will feature in the International Garden Photographer of the Year book and the exhibition, which tours the UK and world.
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NEWS INBRIEF POWERFUL METZ Claiming to be the most powerful TTL hotshoe flashgun around, the Metz 64AF- 1 has an impressive guide number of 64 (ISO 100/metres) at the 200mm end of its 24-200mm zoom- head. It also offers super-fast recycling and a secondary flash tube for better bounce effects. Available for Canon and Nikon now, it costs £375. Other fittings to follow. www.metzflash.co.uk NEXT ISSUE Issue 12 of PN will be out on 22 September.
ABOVE Winter Windflower by Jacky Parker (second place), Spiral by Stefano Coltelli (third place).
π To find out more about the competition, go to www.igpoty.com.
ABOVE Growing Agave by Minghui Yuan (winner).
Exhibit with Open Space
PEN Lite updated Olympus has brought the latest in its PEN Lite range, the E-PL6, to the UK, after it was launched in Japan last year. It shares most of its core features with the E-PL5, meaning the same 16.1-megapixel sensor and TruePic VI processor as the OM-D E-M5, but there are some added extras. A Low ISO setting in manual mode, equivalent to ISO 100; Small AF Target Mode for more precise focusing; and Short Release Time Lag Mode are amongst the most significant. Interval shooting and a level gauge have also been added. The E-PL6 is now also supplied with the new 14-42mm pancake zoom lens, making it incredibly slim when not in use, as well as a Wi-Fi capable FlashAir SD card. The E-PL6 is available now, priced at £429.
If you’re an Olympus shooter, then a platform launched by Olympus UK and Exhibtr Ltd allows you to exhibit your work alongside that of Olympus Ambassadors. If you want your photographs featured, all you need to do is sign up to Exhibtr and upload your best and most original images – if Olympus UK favourites your work, it automatically appears on the Open Space.
π To find out more, go to www.exhibtr.com.
π To find out more, go to www.olympus.co.uk.
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Latest photography news
Smart spots
Leading tripod brand Manfrotto has launched a new collection of camera supports. Known as the Off Road collection, two products designed specifically for the outdoor market are featured: a pair of walking poles and a lightweight tripod, both available in blue, red and green. The aluminium walking poles cost £79.95 for the pair and one of them features a rotating camera attachment on top so it quickly converts to a very usable monopod. The Off Road tripod weighs in at just 650g but is capable of supporting a payload of 2.5kg. An integral levelling bubble helps keep horizons straight and a rotating camera wheel speeds up set-up. This sells for £119.95. Off roadwith Manfrotto
NEWS INBRIEF
LEEF MICROSD
Access is a new compact microSD card
reader for Android devices from tech company Leef. It
plugs straight into the microUSB port of your mobile device, with a microSD card slot on the other side for immediate access to extra storage space and the ability to transfer files from or to the card quickly and easily. It’s fast enough to stream movies directly from the card, and features a storage slot for carrying more memory. www.2leef.com CINTIQ BONUS Wacom has introduced a bonus programme so that anyone who buys a Cintiq pen display or Cintiq Companion creative mobile tablet between now and 31 October 2014 can also choose one creative product or service worth up to £315 for free. Services on offer include Corel Painter X3, Wacom CarePack extension, Datacolor Spyder, video training courses, and CEWE and REFLECTA X9 The x9 Scanner from Reflecta can digitise slides and negatives in just one second, at a resolution of 1800dpi and colour depth of 24-bit. Images can be saved straight to a memory card. www.kenro.co.uk Tecco vouchers. www.wacom.com
π To find out more, go to www.manfrotto.co.uk.
Sony has launched a new initiative designed to help you get the best photos of landmarks in cities across the UK. Sony Xperia Spots has introduced distinctive footstep marks on the ground near the most photographed places in London, Manchester and Birmingham, including the London Eye, Royal Albert Hall, Tower Bridge, The Birmingham Library and the
Beetham Tower. It follows on from a similar scheme in America, which identified the best locations for capturing landmarks in New York and San Francisco – the same team has applied the same process in the UK. The scheme encourages photographers to share their own Xperia Spots for the chance to win the latest Sony smartphone photography technology.
Street season Take part inGreenwichGallery’s street exhibition and competition
π To find out more, follow @SonyXperiaGB on Twitter.
Greenwich Gallery presents the On Our Streets season of street photography. Invited photographers will exhibit over several months, including Steve Smith FRPS, Dave Mason, Nick Sack, Norman Smith, Paul Halliday, Kate Hooper and Stefan Lubomirski de Vaux. Images cover urban landscapes, captured moments, purposeful messages, unusual cultural events, activism, and destruction and construction.
Alongside the exhibition is a chance for all to take part with a competition. Entrants can submit a portfolio of three street photography images, and the judges will select 80 to be shown on a plasma screen in the Gallery. From these, an overall winner will be invited to hold a two-week exhibition in the gallery in 2015. Each portfolio of three images costs £10 to enter, and you can enter as many portfolios as you like.
π To find out more, go to www.thegreenwichgallery.com.
Photography News | Issue 11
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7 Competition Be aPentaxHot Shot PENTAX
Join Photography News and Ricoh Imaging in the Lake District this autumn for a unique opportunity to shoot with the sensational medium-format Pentax 645Z
locations. Each photographer will have access to a Pentax 645Z and a selection of lenses to use throughout the day. Getting to Keswick will be at your own expense but once there you will be the guests of Ricoh Imaging. Food and refreshments will be provided on 18 October and hotel accommodation will be booked for the night of 17 October – you will also be invited to join Will Cheung, editor of our sister publication AdvancedPhotographer magazine, and experts from Ricoh Imaging for dinner. This will give you the chance to get hands-on with the Pentax 645Z, plus you’ll receive all the advice you need to get familiar with it ready for the following day’s busy shoot. Photography News will be running a major feature on the event in a subsequent issue, so this competition also offers you a chance to see your images from the shoot in print in a national magazine.
It’s been a given ever since the invention of photography that the larger the format you use, the better the quality of the picture you can produce. It’s a formula that still rings true even in these digital times, but up until nowmedium-format has been out of the reach of many due to its cost. However, all that is set to change in the wake of the launch of the sensational Pentax 645Z, which offers discerning photographers a very exciting, hugely capable and much more affordable option, and we’re offering five photographers the chance to try one out for themselves. We have a special location shoot planned for Saturday 18 October this year and you can join us. We will be based in the market town of Keswick in the northern Lakes and while the exact shooting timetable will be revealed to the five winners in due course the aim is to shoot from dawn to dusk at various Lakeland
About the Pentax 645Z
The sensational 645Z medium-format camera boasts an effective resolution
of 51.4-megapixels, super fast AF, a top ISO of 204,800 and all in a dust-proof, weather- proof body. The camera offers brilliantly slick handling, whether on location or in the studio, and the 76 dust- and weather- proof seals mean it will also work perfectly in challenging outdoor conditions, down to temperatures as low as -10°C. The innovative CMOS sensor measures 43.8x32.8mm, so approximately 1.7x larger than a full-frame 35mm sensor, and it works with Pentax’s PRIME III imaging engine to produce images of outstanding accuracy and colour fidelity. With the exceptional quality of Pentax lenses, this anti-alias filter- free sensor can resolve the finest details. Until now, medium-format digital cameras suffered from limited battery capacity, slow continuous shooting speed and limited high ISOs. The 645Z has features and handling equal to a top-end APS-C or 35mm format DSLR, with a battery that can deliver up to 650 shots per charge, continuous shooting at 3fps with a large buffer and a top IS0 speed of 204,800. Of course, there is much more: live view, Full HD video, tiltable 3.2in monitor, twin SD card slots and the option of 14-bit Pentax or Adobe DNG Raw files. And you get all this performance at a competitive price: body only the 645Z is £6800; with the 55mm lens, it’s £7700.
To be in with a chance of joining us for this amazing photographic opportunity all you have to do is submit your best landscape photograph. Images should be low-res JPEGs 1000 pixels along the longest dimension (max. file size 10MB), and you must have the high-resolution files available in case the judges from Photography News and Ricoh Imaging want a closer inspection. Entry images should be submitted via the Howtoenter
online form at www.pentaxcomp.co.uk. Closing date: midnight, 28 September.
If you enter this competition you must be available to be in the Lakes on the evening on 17 October and all day on 18 October. These dates are fixed and cannot be changed.
TERMS & CONDITIONS Entries must be received by midnight, 28 September 2014, and the winners will be notified by 1 October 2014. This competition is open to UK residents only, aged 18 and over. Employees of Bright Publishing and Ricoh Imaging and their immediate family and agents may not enter. Entries not in accordance with these rules will be disqualified; by entering, competitors will be deemed to have agreed to be bound by these rules. The prize must be taken as offered; there is no alternative. In the event that the prize cannot be supplied no liability will be attached to Bright Publishing. For full t&cs visit www.pentaxcomp.co.uk/terms.
π To find out more about the 645Z, go to www.ricoh-imaging.co.uk.
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Camera clubs Camera club news If your club has any news that you want to share with the rest of the world, this is the page for it. Your story might be about your club’s success in a contest, or a member’s personal achievement; it could be about a group outing you had recently or when the annual exhibition is on show. Any news is eligible for inclusion, so club publicity officers please take note of the submission guidelines and get your stories in
Tell us your club’s latest news, email: clubnews@photography-news.co.uk
HOWTO SUBMIT
Allow plenty of time. Photography News comes out (roughly) around the third week of the month. For the next issue, we need words and pictures by 29 August. Write your story on a Word document (400 words maximum) and attach it to an email to clubnews@photography-news.co.uk. In the story please include contact details of the club, exhibition or event – website, meeting time, opening times, whatever is relevant to the story. Images: Yes please, and attach these to the email too. Images should be JPEGs, 2000 pixels on the longest dimension and any colour space. If the story is an exhibition or event, please send a picture from the exhibition (not the publicity poster), the winning image or one of the event. If the picture includes people please identify on the Word document. Deadline for the next issue: 29August
SPOTLIGHT
NEWS INBRIEF
Kingswood PhotographicSociety
SHOWING IN NORTHWALES The North Wales Photographic
BUNGAY’SANNUAL SHOW Visit Bungay Camera Club’s photo exhibition and fair on 6 September. It’s at Broome Village Hall, near Bungay in Suffolk, 10am-6pm, and by an independent panel of judges. The exhibition is at Venue Cymru, Llandudno, and opens on 6 September. The exhibition is in two parts, with some images on display 6 September to 3 November, and the others from 5 November to 16 January 2015. www.nwpa.co.uk Photographic Exhibition, which this year includes panoramic images for the first time, there will be demonstrations, a photographic help desk, photo jumble sale and a book sale. From 50p to over £100, the books are all from the Russell Robertson Photography collection. Passionate about photography, poetry and calligraphy, R A Robertson (late of Earsham, Bungay) purchased the books between 1980 and 1990, and his family felt it fitting to donate this collection to Bungay CC. R A Robertson’s preferred charity, the RSPB, will receive ten per cent of the book sale’s proceeds. www.bungaycamera club.org.uk Association (NWPA) is holding its annual show from September to January. The 24th NWPA Annual Exhibition includes work by photographers from 22 affiliated clubs, selected entry is free. As well as the club’s annual
Based inWarmley, SouthGloucestershire, we hold 48 meetings throughout the year in a friendly and convivial atmosphere; you can find details on our website. Renowned for the quality of our programme, we invite speakers from around the UK and are spoilt with presentations of inspirational prints and digitally projected images. Evenings where members share their knowledge and practical demonstrations of the latest innovations make up the balance of our programme. Our dedicated committeeworks hard to respond positively to the importance of using high-quality audio and visual equipment to provide the highest quality performance to do justice to our speakers’ presentations. We really must shout about one of outstandingly popular features of this year: our newly introduced outdoor events programmes where members have made friendships as well as
To commemorate the three-decade mark, Chapel CC is holding an extensive exhibition of more than 100 images by club members. Hosted by the Buxton Museum and Art Gallery, the exhibition will be officially opened by Bill Weston MBE, leader of The Billerettes, 2012 Olympic torch carrier and Buxton Town Crier at 2pm on Saturday 13 September. Among the other commemorative treats running until 22 November will be the Buxton Photo Challenge 2. Following up on 2012’s successful event (part of the Buxton Festival), Challenge 2 on 22 September will be another fun day of photography, promises club member Karl Wood. Register early on the day at the Buxton Museum and Art Gallery to find out the competition themes and get photographing for the chance to see your print framed and exhibited at the Gallery. Local schools in Buxton and Chapel-en-le-Frith will also be participating in Chapel CC’s first ever Mobileography competition. Pupils can photograph several challenging themes using their mobile devices and the winners will be exhibited at the gallery. On 26 September, Chris Weston, the celebrated wildlife photographer and co-founder of charity, Animals on the Edge, will be giving a talk at The Pavilion Arts Centre. A percentage of the evening’s takings will be donated to the charity, which supports endangered species and their habitats. Originally founded by members of Buxton Field Club, Chapel CC is a flourishing club with around 80 members. They regularly win awards and acceptances nationally and internationally. September this year is Chapel Camera Club’s 30th anniversary, and it’s marking it with a feast of photography delights Celebrating 30 years
capturing amazing images. These include visits to the Morgan Car Factory, International Centre for Birds of Prey, Bristol Blue Glass Factory and the Severn Bridge. Our social secretary has donated an award for the best outing picture, which will be judged later this year.
π To find out more, go to www.kingswoodps.co.uk.
If you want your club featured in Club Spotlight, write 200 words about your club and why it’s going places, then send the Word document and up to five JPEG images frommembers to clubnews@photography-news.co.uk.
EnterprisingBangor With empty shops a common sight around our towns and cities, there may be an opportunity for clubs and societies, as Beaumaris &Menai Bridge Camera Club explains
“Our camera club got the use of an empty shop to display photographs for eight weeks in Bangor town centre,” member Phil Newell explains. “We changed displays weekly, featuring sport, portrait and landscapes, andmanned it on Saturdays to promote the club and its diamond anniversary. “On the week we did people and portraits, we also offered a free digital portrait for anyone who wanted one. We photographed them, processed the result and emailed images out (prints were available at a small cost). This proved really successful with over 50 portraits taken including Bangor’s mayor.”
π To find out more, go to www.chapelcameraclub.org.uk.
π To find out more about Beaumaris &Menai Bridge CC, go to bmbcc.cffgc.co.uk.
Photography News | Issue 11
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Issue 11 | Photography News
Photography News | Issue 11
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Profile
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INTERVIEW
Frederik Lange PN talks innovations, pioneering technology and the method behind the madness with Sony UK’s head of digital imaging, Frederik Lange
full-frame, mirrorless SLR cameras that deliver superb picture quality and high-speed processing based upon internally developed devices such as our CMOS sensor and BIONZ X processor and that are different from anything else available. The A7 is a great all-rounder for photographers who want the benefits of a full-frame sensor in a compact body. The A7R is targeted at users who want the best possible resolution and the A7S is targeted at users who demand the ultimate sensitivity and want professional video functions in addition to the still photography capabilities. Wanting to utilise the E-mount that we had already introduced in APS-C form, the main challenge of containing the full-frame sensor in a small body was working with a flange back of just 18mm. We introduced our gapless on-chip lens design which increases light collecting efficiency and ensures that there is high corner-to-corner image quality. The camera is both a video and stills camera. It introduces new concepts to this category via a specially developed 12-megapixel CMOS image sensor that enables super high sensitivity which delivers benefits to both photographers and videographers. To address the growing demands to make movies with SLR cameras, we have enabled high-speed read-out of the 12-megapixel CMOS image sensor and high-quality movie recording in the XAVC S format. What were the technical challenges of getting a full-frame sensor in a small camera? TheA7Ssoundsamazing–with4Kfunctionality – but is this a video or a stills camera? What in your opinion has been Sony’s most successful technology in recent years? Being a leader in sensor technology certainly sets Sony apart. We are the number one sensor maker worldwide and competitors use our technology. This leadership position gives us a huge advantage and allows us to invest in research and technology. What has been your own personal highlight since being at Sony? I think it would have to be the launch of the RX1; I remember introducing the product to our retail partners at Photokina in 2012 thinking this is a truly groundbreaking product and the feedback we received has been overwhelming. I always feel proud about our new product launches but this really did take Sony to the next level as an imaging brand; it shook the industry and really was a statement to say, take us seriously as a camera manufacturer. It was a real achievement for Sony and something we have continued to build upon with the ongoing success of products that have followed.
Another big milestone for me was the introduction of the RX1 a few years ago and since then the ongoing launches of the entire RX series premium range. Sony introducing the world’s first fixed lens compact camera with a full-frame sensor was groundbreaking, a historic achievement and it sealed our leadership in sensor technology. The RX1 is a beautiful camera, well designed – an engineering miracle. We, of course, are all very proud of it. Since its launch, we have become the number one premium compact brand. Recently we have added to the RX family with the RX100 III, which, with only a few weeks in the market, has already started to win numerous UK and international awards. Two reasons really: the first is that we are a leader in technology and innovation. Sony is constantly innovating – bringing in new technology, giving us an edge over the competition and offering the consumers new possibilities to enjoy their imaging devices. You only have to look at our recently launched products ranging from the RX1 to the A7 to our unique QX lens-style cameras. I firmly believe, as a company, we are in a position to lead the imaging market, certainly through innovation as we develop and manufacture in-house all the components for creating the most superior imaging devices: lenses, processors and sensors. The second reason Sony stands out from the crowd is its wide product portfolio as a true entertainment and electronics company. In recent years I have witnessed more and more interlinking between the different divisions in Sony. For example, we worked alongside Sony Mobile at the launch of our QX lens-style camera – a perfect complement to our Xperia range, and other phones of course. Sony merged its SLT and mirrorless ranges of cameras under the same Alpha name, what was the reasoning behind that decision? We fully believe that consumers shop not for an SLT or mirrorless camera, but are simply looking for the best interchangeable lens camera suitable to their needs. Depending on their priorities they might prefer a bigger, more traditional camera with a better grip for control or perhaps prefer a smaller, lighter camera for ease of use and versatility. Consumers can easily distinguish by factor, design, control and functionality, but are they as driven about the choice between E-mount or A-mount? I’d say not. As the qualitative differences between SLT and mirrorless cameras disappear, for Sony it seemed a natural step for us to regroup both systems under the same name: Alpha. Just look at our Cyber-shot range: under the same sub-brand, it includes all types of cameras, from very slim to bulky bridge models. It’s a tough and competitive market out there, why do you think Sony has fared so well?
BIOGRAPHY
Please introduce yourself to our readers and tell us about your history with Sony. I grew up in Weil am Rhein, a small country town in South Germany. I’ve lived in the UK for over ten years with my wife and now our two-year-old daughter Mia. My career in Sony actually started in 2001 as an apprentice in the Recording Media division of Sony France selling floppy disks and recordable CDs to supermarkets. I immediately liked Sony as a company with great team spirit and passion. After finishing my master’s degrees in marketing and logistics, I moved to London in 2004 as a full- time, fresh-faced Sony employee. In traditional fashion I worked myself slowly up the ranks of the Imaging division, from supply chain management, to junior accessories product manager, to European sales manager for camcorders and digital still cameras, to head of imaging for Sony UK, and what a fantastic time to be in such a role with our current line-up of products. Somany – when I joined Sony in 2004 it was fantastic to see camcorders leading the way for imaging. We had just launched a new Handycam format – DVD recording. It was a huge technological development for consumers to be able to record video straight onto DVD for easy playback on their televisions. It is not every day that a product manager gets to see the birth of a brand new category. In 2006, I count myself lucky to have witnessed the introduction of the Alpha category with the launch of the A100 DSLR. This was a landmark moment for Sony, a big step forward to becoming ever more serious as a digital imaging brand. Since those early days our interchangeable lens camera category has grown and we are now recognised for offering a world leading product range, including the A7 series and the recently launched A6000 and A77 II. WHEN YOU WERE YOUNGER, WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GREW UP? I always wanted to be an adventurer discovering the treasures of the world like Christopher Columbus, Marco Polo or Indiana Jones. DOGS OR CATS? Dogs TOAST OR CEREAL? Cereal EMAIL OR PHONE CALL? Both, very much depends on the situation Have there been anymemorable technological developments since you joined Sony? YEARS IN THE PHOTO INDUSTRY: 10 CURRENT LOCATION: Weybridge, Surrey LAST PICTURE TAKEN: Of my two-year-old daughter Mia having fun at a water fountain in the park HOBBIES: I’ve always been a very keen skier and snowboarder
We are the number one sensormaker worldwide and competitors use our technology.
This gives us a huge advantage
What was the thinking behind the A7 series? We wanted to introduce a new range of compact,
π To find out more, go to www.sony.co.uk.
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Issue 11 | Photography News
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Opinion
BEFORE THE JUDGE BobMoore FRPS Each issue, a respected judge or exhibition selector shares their thoughts and experiences. This month, Bob Moore shares his views – over 40 years after falling into judging
MEET THE JUDGE BobMooreHon. FRPS, Hon.PAGB, MPAGB, FIPF, FBIPP: Bob confesses to being an obsessive photographer; he’s been taking photos for more than five decades and he’s still exercising his trigger finger. He’s spent the Home club: Arden Photo Group Years in photography: Over 50 Favourite camera: Nikon D800 Favourite lens: 24-120mmNikon zoom Favourite photo accessory: Photo rucksack Favourite subjects: Travel and people Favourite photographers: Major influences: Bill Carden Hon. FRPS, Joan Wakelin Hon. FRPS, Alan Millward FRPS Awardswon: Over 300 medals in national and international exhibitions. RPS Fenton medal Website: www.bobmoore.co.uk last four decades judging, sharing his experience and knowledge.
Words by Bob Moore
I was a young photographer in a camera club and I was doing reasonably well getting acceptances in exhibitions and I was just asked to judge, so I’ve been doing it now since the late 1960s. I was put on the Midland Counties Photographic Federation’s main list of judges. I remember the first exhibition I ever judged was the Bristol Salon of Photography. I got involved with judging really through lecturing and running workshops, which in my late twenties I was sponsored to do by Praktica. I’ve always been a pretty obsessive photographer. The key to being successful is not about knowledge of your equipment, it’s just having the drive to succeed and produce good pictures. I still exhibit in national and international exhibitions. When my acceptances finally dry up, that’s the time I’ll give up judging. The three major international print exhibitions in the UK are the Edinburgh International Exhibition of Photography, the Southampton International and the Smethwick Photographic Society International Exhibition. Get regular acceptances in these three and you’ve made it. A number of national exhibitions are at the forefront of UK photography; take a look at www.britishphotographicexhibitions.org.uk for more details. The Cotswold Salon is one of my personal favourites, it’s an excellent exhibition devoted to monochrome prints. I don’t mind passing my knowledge onto other people through judging and I feel like I should give something back. Sometimes you’re flattered when you’re invited to judge because people want to know your opinion. The nicest thing of all is to judge the major exhibitions but the hardest part is standing up in front of an audience when the images aren’t very good and making something of them. When you’re faced with a bad image, you’ve just got to be honest and as tactful as possible – I’m probably not known for being very tactful. If it’s good I’ll say so, if it’s not I’ll try and help. You’ve got to be optimistic rather than pessimistic. You’ve got to see the good sides of any image, it’s very easy to be condemning. Judging at club level is all about being fair and honest. It’s about trying to convey the excitement of photography without dimming the authors’ enthusiasm and creativity, giving valued comments in an articulate and informed manner. Judging at club level in the beginners’ section is the most important aspect of the job we do. These are the photographers of tomorrow and it’s where judging and judges can have the most influence. The beginners need our help and advice and
encouragement to make sure they don’t throw in the competition towel. I think we have to be very careful, but it’s not easy, especially when you’re slightly outspoken. As a judge, it’s important to be aware of current trends and fashions as well as the traditions of photography. It’s essential to visit the major exhibitions and to enter UK and international exhibitions to see what other photographers are producing. Many judges are only too pleased to comment and criticise images when they themselves are unable to produce photographs of a high standard. I think I owe it to the authors of the photographs I judge to be in touch with current standards, trends and fashions, even if I do not particularly like them. Judges need to be aware of what’s going on in contemporary photography and the best way to do that is to enter and support the major UK international and national exhibitions. We won’t get it right every time but we owe it to entrants to at least make the effort. Judging is like a roller coaster ride, you can be judging a small club competition one night when the members are mainly beginners. The next day you can be on a panel of three selecting a major UK international exhibition. The excitement lies in seeing new and fresh work. So what should our judging criteria be? Should we judge on whether we like an image or not? Of course not. That’s too simplistic and allows our own interests and values to take over. Surely we should judge on the basis of ‘is it good of its type’. Does the image convey mood, atmosphere, tell a story, part of a life cycle and emotion? Does the image work? I would much rather judge prints than PDIs because with a print you can examine it and get involved. Print quality is an important criteria but not
the be-all and end-all. I would rather see an exciting fresh picture, which could be printed better, than a super duper quality snap of nothing in particular. I focus on content 70 per cent and quality 30 per cent, give or take a little. With current digital printing technology it’s pretty easy to get reasonable quality. To achieve exceptionally high print quality though requires skill, time and experience. Judges should be aware of the many digital techniques available and not be overwhelmed with clever images that have no emotional content. In fact, emotional content should be a high priority in image making. It’s very easy to become proficient in the ways of Photoshop whilst forgetting that storytelling can be a vital part of a photograph. Photoshop is a wonderful tool for photographers and the mass of plug-ins available is overwhelming. Press a button for this and that without any control or skill and the effect you can achieve is staggering. Judges also need to be aware of the techniques and what can be achieved by simple computer button pushing. Better still, teach yourselves the techniques of photography so you can confidentially comment on manipulated techniques. Judges need to be well organised and sometimes extremely tolerant. They also need a built-in clock. If the club chairman says finish at 9.45pm. Do yourself a favour and finish at 9.40pm no matter how many entries there are. Just cut back the comments. You may think your comments are important, most of the audience do not, they just want you to finish on time so they can get to the pub before closing time. Never ever, and I repeat, never run over your allotted time. That is unprofessional and unforgivable. To be a good, competent judge, the most important thing is to be a compassionate, dedicated and successful photographer.
You’ve got to be optimistic rather thanpessimistic. You’ve got to see the good sides of any image, it’s very easy to be condemning
Photography News | Issue 11
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Issue 11 | Photography News
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Competitions
INTERVIEW
© Gareth Jenkins
© Adrian Lines
© Ross McKelvey
Acelebration of print Dianne Owen is one of the founding members of the SRGB Photo Group’s Print Celebration, now in its second year. It’s part of a new breed of exhibitions that celebrates photography in its broadest terms. Here she shares her experiences
How challenging is it to establish a new competition and exhibition? The decision to set up the exhibition was easy; the actual setting upwasn’t as easy. Firstlywe had to apply to the BPE to become part of the BPE family, without that it would have been so much more difficult. Once we obtained this we also applied for PAGB Patronage as we use PAGB judges for the exhibition and it creates a standard in the photography. The PAGB medals are used for the three judges’ awards and the highly prized SRGB members’ award. We started to apply for sponsorship fromWilkinson Cameras, PermaJet and Fotospeed; these companies helped us in our first year and the sponsorship has continued to grow this year. The gallery space was difficult to find but one day over a coffee in our local garden centre we spotted their greenhouse and were allowed to use the room for three weeks in September, including a two-week exhibition – we had 600 visitors last year. Once all this was in place we needed the most important part of the exhibition, the entries. I think personally this was the most stressful part of the experience, it was an unknown. Would we even have enough entries for the judges? They gradually started to come in but it wasn’t until the last two weeks leading up to close of entry that we knew there would
photographer. It’s a stepping stone in your personal journey of photography.
Interview by Megan Croft
What is your photographic background? I’ve always takenphotographs; I startedat a youngage taking photographs with my uncle and being shown how to use a darkroom to develop monochrome images. I look at photography with a creative eye, making images my own. I achieved Associate of the Royal Photographic Society (ARPS) in March 2008 and became a Fellow in October 2008, both in Visual Art. I’m an active member of Chorley Photographic Society and the chair of the SRGB Photo Group and one of the family of PermaJet lecturers. What’s your involvement with the exhibition? I’m one of the founder members, along with Bernard Longley and Gordon Jenkins and I’m the chair of the exhibition. All SRGB members are included in the exhibition to a greater or lesser part, we all have a role to play. Many members of the group have had experience in running competitions and exhibitions at national level so I have a great team behind me. My role is to coordinate the jobs and members. SRGB’s clubhouse is at my home so this helps with the day-to-day running of the exhibition. The exhibition wouldn’t work without the team working together.
This is only the second year that the exhibition has been held, howdid it all come about? The SRGB Photo Group started as a small group of like-minded people who wanted to add something extra to their camera club. At the end of the second year of the SRGB group we decided we wanted to do more as a group. Holding a print that you’ve produced is in my opinion the final step for any image. The exhibition was created to join people with the same philosophy, encouraging more people to print and exhibit their work. When trends and convenience dictate a preference for digital exhibitions, why did you decide on print? A finished mounted print is what you see. And it’s what you want your audience, whoever that is, to see. It’s your small piece of individuality. No one can change it, there’s no reliance on projection and calibration. Celebrating the print was our aim and we want to encourage more people to print their work. To see a print on the wall of an exhibition for the first time is something special especially when it’s besides work by someone you look up to as a great
ABOVE TOP Penguin Slide, Gareth Jenkins – Top Score Award Highest Aggregate Score ABOVE RIGHT Death Grip, Adrian Lines – Best Image by an SRGB Member, PAGB Gold Medal BELOWBody Sock, Ross McKelvey – Gold Award Winner, Believable Reality
Photography News | Issue 11
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Competitions
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RIGHT The judges selecting the winners for the SRGB Members’ Award. BELOW Man in the Mirror, Brian Beaney – Gold Award Winner, Step Out The Box
be enough prints to continue the judging process. We worked hard to get it to run smoothly and the most rewarding comment after the judging was from the judges expressing that the day was well run. Then the hard work began, the scanning for the catalogue, organising the exhibition and sorting the returns for postage and other things. The exhibition is the next stage; thanks to Dobbies for the use of their room and South Liverpool PS for the stands: we couldn’t do the exhibition without the cooperation of friends, other camera clubs and organisations. To receive nearly 800 entries in the first year is very impressive… We were very pleased with the response to the first exhibition and it exceeded the number expected. This year we received over 1000 prints. We aimed to make it a more personal exhibition, trying to cater for people’s needs. A new exhibition creates new goals for people and new awards to strive for. What’s the general standard of entries been like? There is a range of work, dependent on the entrant’s level of photography. Many of the images have been accepted in BPE exhibitions before, therefore collecting points for the entrant. The standard of photography has been very high in all the sections, no matter what their size. The categories are different fromtheusual colour andmonochrome, etc, why is that? The themes were chosen to reflect everyone’s
photography, to compete with a subject rather than a general type of photography. Many subjects are pigeonholed by rules. We wanted to give people more freedom to try new things and follow their genre of photography and stretch the imagination. We wanted to give everyone a chance to enter. All the sections can be edited, to a greater or lesser degree; it’s a fact of the digital world. We all take thousands of photographs every year but often they don’t fit in with conventional subjects. Here you can have a chance at exhibiting those images. We thought that we’d covered every type of photography in the themes but occasionally there’s one that still doesn’t fit, and we are working on those. The Step Out The Box category allows people to have fun with their photography. We wanted people to make some choices, allowing them to enter their prints in any section; allowing pay per print after the first four images. The SRGB Photo Group is a small group, determined by the size of the room we meet in. Allowing each member to give an individual award to their favourite image, the SRGB key ring, gives a personal touch from the members themselves. We give so much time and effort to make the exhibition work, we all see our favourite prints along the way and this is a way to celebrate those prints from the non-awarded images. It’s a little individual thank you for entering a great image. Having a members’ award is a great idea to get the whole club involved…
Which categories are most popular and what would you like to seemore of? Humanity and the Environment. These two subjects cover the greater photographic interest: wherewe live and who we are. As a creative worker I’d personally love to see more people have a go at the Step Out The Box theme. Setting up the group and having the personal goal of helping people to move forward with their photography though the exhibition process. Seeing everyone work together to achieve the first exhibition and learning so much more about the people while we worked towards a common goal. The exhibition is a great achievement for everyone involved. Seeing people support the exhibition and support us by coming to the Open Day from Scotland, London and various other locations in the UK was a highlight too. I think that seeing people enjoying the exhibition and chatting about the world of photography is always interesting. This year’s exhibition entries have blown us away; we have a big increase in prints on last year’s and the overall quality is excellent. What are your ambitions for the exhibition? Simply to celebrate prints and develop the exhibition to encourage and to explore photography in all its forms, and to help each entrant achieve their personal goals. What have been some of your personal highlights of the exhibition?
Seeing people enjoying the exhibition and chatting about photography is always interesting
© Brian Beaney
π To find out more about the exhibition, go to www.srgbphotogroup.co.uk.
See theexhibition
With entries in and already judged for the Second Print Celebration 2014, you can see the final exhibition at Dobbies Garden Centre in Southport from Saturday 6 until Saturday 20 September 2014. An awards ceremony will also take place on the exhibition’s first day to celebrate those who were successful. Keep an eye on the SRGB Photo Group’s website if you’re interested in entering next year’s competition; all details will be available there.
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