Photography News Issue 44

In this issue we’ve got more info about Photo 24 and some of the optional events taking place, plus news about the final club to qualify for Camera Club of the Year: and, at last, details of the final showdown. Plus, as always, we’ve got inspirational images from groundbreaking photographers, tons of technique tips, and tests of the latest cameras and photography kit.

Your FREE newspaper packed with the latest news, views and stories from the world of photography news Photography Issue 44 15 May - 11 June News Tests Reviews Interviews Techniques Competitions Exhibitions Clubs Produced by

DIGITAL EDITION every month* *at absolutephoto.com FREE GET YOUR

A Samsung 128GB memory card Enter the competition on page 64 WIN!

Social media Get startedwith social media. Read our essential Beginners’ Guide on page 34

Fujifilm GFX 50S Groundbreaking medium-format camera on test on page 40

Close, closer, closest

Tips on the buying the right macro lens and how to get the most from it on page 20

Sony’s latest CSC is full-frame and the first of its kind to offer a continuous shooting speed of 20 frames-per-second – and that’s with AE and AF tracking Sony A9 sets new speed record

Photography News joinsTIPA TIPA (Technical Image Press Association) is a group of 30 imaging magazines from all over the globe formed to promote imaging through its prestigious annual Awards and other activities. Photography News is proud to have been accepted as a member and looks forward tobeingactively involved withTIPA See page 7 for this year’s TIPA winners

The Sony A9 features a stacked full-frame Exmor RS CMOS sensor that with the Bionz X processor allows shooting at 20fps with focus and exposure tracking and with no viewfinder blackout. The uninterrupted viewing with no reflex mirrorblackoutmakes trackinga fast- moving subject easier than ever. The full-frame sensor offers a resolution of 24.2 megapixels, 14-bit capture and a native ISO range of 100

to 51,200, with expansion available from ISO 50 to 204,800. Autofocusing is handled by Sony’s 4D phase-detection system which features 693 focus points covering 93% of the image frame with a sensitivity down to -3EV at ISO 100. The shutter has a top mechanical speed of 1/8000sec and 1/32,000sec with the electronic shutter that allows silent shooting. Flashsync is 1/250sec. Body integral image stabilisation is

a feature championed by Sony from very early on and the A9 embodies a new5-axis systemwith a 5EVbenefit. As youmight expect froma top end model, there’s 4K video, dual SD slots, dust and moisture-resistant build and a fully featured exposure system using a 1200-zonemetering sensor. Body price of the SonyA9 is £4500 with units due in the shops this June.

sony.co.uk

Photography News | Issue 44 | absolutephoto.com

News

The latest addition to the Sony Alpha range is the 24.2-megapixel full-frame A9. Boasting a continuous shooting speed of 20 frames-per-second for up to 241Rawshots, it sets itself firmly inplace for actionandsport photographers. It also features 693-point focal plane phase detection AF points with 60AF/ AE tracking calculations per second. An extended battery life and dual SD card slots allow even more shooting and a 5-axis in-body stabilization with a 5EV benefit helps to keep both stills and images free from camera shake. Available from June the Sony A9 has a price tag of £4500. SonyA9

News in brief

Save onCanson’s award winning paper Canson’s new Infinity Baryta Prestige inkjet paper was voted as this year’s TIPA Best Inkjet Photo Paper. TIPA is a worldwide organisation of 30 imaging magazines (which Photography News has just joined) and its prestigious Infinity Baryta Prestige is a 340gsm paper with an acid- free alpha-cellulose and cotton base with a baryta coating to help image sharpness. It has excellent DMAX qualities that give prints with deep, solid blacks and rich shadow detail while the gloss finish oozes quality with a look redolent of darkroom fibre-papers. On-line Paper has 20% off all Canson papers and if you order before June 30 you will get free postage. Use the code ‘PN44’ at the checkout. on-linepaper.co.uk Hahnel get flash The Hahnel Modus 600RT speedlite flashgun offers a high power output from an unusual power source, an Li-ion rechargeable battery, instead of AA cells. The battery can give over 550 full power flash bursts with an amazing recycling time of just 1.5 sec. Super-fast recycling is just one of this flashgun’s many attributes. There is TTL flash, high speed sync up to 1/8000sec and wireless connectivity with a 100m range when paired with an optional Viper TTL wireless trigger. There is also a USB interface for firmware updates. The Modus 600RT on its own is priced at £219.99, while the Viper TTL costs £129.99, the Viper TTL Transmitter is £69.99 and the Viper TTL Receiver is £59.99 Hahnel.ie Awards are recognised as leading benchmarks throughout the imaging industry.

sony.co.uk

Instax goes square

Samyang VDSLR 16mmT2.6

The Instax SQUARE SQ10 is the first hybrid instant camera to take the new instax SQUARE film, which will be released on 19 May. This hybrid camera features a digital image sensor as well as digital image processing technology.With an LCD screen, operation dial and buttons on the back, it’s easy to operate and you can select images, edit them and then print them. It features various shooting modes such as Night Scene and Close-up shot, plus ten different filter effects, 19 steps of vignette control and 19 steps of brightness adjustment. Its internal memory can store up to 50 images or for extra storage you can insert a microSD card, while its rechargeable battery allows you to shoot 160 images with one charge.

Adding to its range of dedicated cine lenses for DSLRs, Samyang has introduced the VDSLR 16mm T2.6 for full-frame use. With an angle of view commonly used by directors of photography, this versatile wide-angle lens is great for a variety of video shoots. It includes a distance scale and T numbers marked on both sides of the lens, as well as a quiet and smooth de-clicked focus and aperture gear rings for ease of use when filming. The VDSLR 16mm T2.6 will be available from June with a price of £529.

instax.co.uk

Fujifilm has announced two more lenses for its GFX medium-format system. The GF110mm f/2 R LM WR and GF23mm f/4 R LM W are targeted at portrait, landscape and architecture photographers. Both will be available from June. These prime lenses boast fast and quiet autofocusing and have a weather-resistant build, making themable to withstand dust and freezing temperatures. The GF23mm f/4 R LM WR is priced at £2399 and the GF110mm f/2 R LMWR will sell at £2599. MoreFuji lenses

samyanglensglobal.com

fujifilm.eu/uk

Photography News | Issue 44 | absolutephoto.com

News

Pocket friendly Panasonic

News in brief

X-Rite Festival of Color This month X-Rite launched its Festival of Color with a series of events, special offers and free laptop calibration across the UK and Europe. Until the end of the month Coloratti ambassadors will be sharing information across the X-Rite Blog, Facebook and Twitter giving you the opportunity to interact with them. xritephoto.com Hähnel andMiggo Hähnel has been appointed the exclusive distributor of Miggo and PICTAR products in the UK. Director Chris Hähnel said: “We are delighted to be appointed as the exclusive Miggo distributor in the UK. This was a natural progression Miggo and PICTAR products in the Republic of Ireland for over 12 months now.” hahnel.ie for us as we have been successfully distributing Updates for Olympus Firmware updates for the OM-D E-M1 Mark II, PEN-F and OM-D E-M5 Mark II have been announced. A key benefit is compatibility with the new Profoto Air Remote TTL-O trigger so Olympus users can enjoy Profoto ’ s lighting system, which includes TTL flash, a range of modifiers and short flash durations. The update also has feature modifications.

The TZ90 is the latest addition to Panasonic’s Lumix range. This pocketable camera features a 30x optical zoom, offering a 35mm equivalent of 24-720mm, a 20.3-megapixel High Sensitivity MOS sensor, Power O.I.S to eliminate camera shake and a Venus processing engine to ensure high image quality when shooting, even in low light. The TZ90 also features 4K Photo allowing you to shoot at 30 frames-per-second and save eight-megapixel stills. Available from June the TZ90 will be priced at £399. Also new from Panasonic is the LEICA DG VARIO-ELMARIT 8-18mm F2.8-4.0 ASPH ultra wide-angle lens, which is dust/ Rotolight innovates

splash proof and able to cope in temperatures down to -10˚. Available from May the lens will cost £1049.

panasonic.com/global

UK Optics has announced the Laowa 7.5mm f/2 UWA for Olympus and Panasonic Micro Four Thirds cameras. Offering an ultra-fast f/2 aperture and an acute 110° angle of view this manual focus, wide-angle lens is ideal for landscape and low-light shooting. Weighing just 170g and measuring 55mm long, the lens is compact and portable. Priced at £499, it will be available at the end of May 2017. Laowawide- angle lens

laowalens.co.uk

Shoot red, white and blue towinprintsworth £200 Rotolight has launched AEOS, an industry-first location LED lighting innovation. Weighing just 1.5kg and 1cm thick, the AEOS is extremely portable and able to deliver a light output of 5750 lux at three feet. It can run for three hours using a single 95Wbattery, providing 100% power. Aprofessional level ball head offers 360° rotation and 200° of tilt when mounted to a light stand. Other features includehigh-speed sync flash, True Aperture Dimming, which calculates and displays the f/stop at a given distance, and AccuColour to deliver exceptional colour rendering. Available to pre-order now the AEOS is priced at £749.99, shipping will start in June. rotolight.com On the E-M5 Mark II, you can link spot metering to the focus point while on the PEN-F you can use the monitor AF targeting pad while the camera is up to the eye. olympus.co.uk profoto.com

Photography News has teamed up with expert photo printers LumeJet to bring you the chance of seeing your favourite photographs in glorious print. Win this free-to-enter contest and you will have £200 to spend on the LumeJet website. LumeJet is passionate about printing great photographs and uses its own, in-house developed S200 printer for high-end photographic and commercial print use. Using its innovative and homegrown photonic technology, LumeJet is able to deliver beautiful and previously unseen photo print quality, faithfully reproducing the photographer’s art to achieve ultra-high quality print with extraordinary colour fidelity, superb tonality and great light-fast qualities.

To be in with the chance of winning £200’s worth of LumeJet prints all you have to do is shoot red, white and blue. You can shoot, red, white or blue individually or in any combination you choose but your entry must feature colour/s as the main part of the composition. Upload images to flickr.com/ groups/pnredwhiteblue/. There is no fee to enter but you will have to join flickr.com, which is free. Free your imagination and upload your entry before the closing date. Only one photograph per person can submitted and the entrant must be UK based. Images should be 1500 pixels across and we will contact you if we need higher resolution files to judge or publish. The editor’s decision in this contest is final and

for full terms and conditions please see absolutephoto.com. The closing date for entries is 4 June 2017 and entries will be judged by PN 's editor. The winner will be announced in PN issue 45 out from 12 June 2017. The winner of last month’s At Home contest is Ben Chapman so congratulations and well done to him. Go to bit.ly/2r05hcS to see his nicely observed candid of a couple at the seaside.

lumejet.com

Photography News | Issue 44 | absolutephoto.com

News

We’ve joined TIPA!

Photography News is now a member of the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA) which means we are now part of a global organization of 30 magazines published in ten different languages whose aim is to promote imaging and recognise outstanding kit and innovations through its annual Awards. This year’s TIPA Awards were announced at the beginning of April and the grand awards ceremony and presentationwill take place in Tokyo on 16 June. The awards spanned 40 different categories and 27 editors from professional, amateur and

business magazines from Asia, Australia, Europe and North and South America, alongside a delegate from the Camera Journal Press Club in Japan voted on the awards. Next year editor Will Cheung will be joining them to take part. Those that won awards included the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV for Best Full-Frame DSLR Expert, the Fujifilm GFX 50S for Best Medium- Format Camera and the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II, named Best Mirrorless CSC Professional.

Kenro has introduced a new range of NanGuang Shooting Tables ideal for still life photography and video use-. The CNT1017 table is priced at £109.98 and measures 61x70x54cm. Featuring a transclucent Perspex top, it stands 18cm high on its frame and has a total height of 54cm. Light heads can be clamped to the front or back of the frame to help easily light your subject and the table is also available as part of a 3-head kit, which includes two NanGuang CN20FC Fresnel focusing lighting heads, one NanGuang CN8F Fresnel focusing lighting head, and three clamps and brackets, this kit is priced at £799.98. For larger objects the NanGuang Freestanding Shooting Table CNT1018 measures 62cmwide and 85cm deep, standing 66cm off the floor, and giving a total height of 112cm. This kit is suitable for use with larger lights and is priced at £229.98. Perfect your product shots

tipa.com

TIPAAwardwinners 2017

kenro.co.uk

Profoto Olympus

BESTDSLRENTRYLEVEL NikonD5600 BESTAPS-CDSLREXPERT Pentax KP BESTFULL-FRAMEDSLR EXPERT Canon EOS 5DMark IV BESTDSLRPROFESSIONAL SonyA99 II BESTDSLRWIDE-ANGLEZOOM LENS Sigma 12-24mm f/4DGHSMArt BESTDSLRSTANDARDZOOM LENS Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS II USM BESTDSLRTELEPHOTOZOOM LENS Tamron SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di VCUSDG2 BESTDSLRPRIMELENS Sigma 85mm f/1.4DGHSMArt BESTPROFESSIONALLENS Nikon PCNIKKOR 19mm f/4EED BESTMEDIUM-FORMAT CAMERA FujifilmGFX 50S BESTMIRRORLESSCSCENTRY LEVEL FujifilmX-T20 BESTMIRRORLESSCSCEXPERT FujifilmX-T2 BESTMIRRORLESSCSC PROFESSIONAL Olympus OM-DE-M1Mark II

BESTCSCSTANDARDZOOM LENS Panasonic LUMIXGXVARIO 12- 35mm f/2.8 II ASPH. POWEROIS BESTCSCTELEPHOTOZOOM LENS OlympusM.ZUIKODIGITALED 12-100mm f/4 IS PRO BESTCSCPRIMELENS FujinonXF 23mm f/2WR BESTEXPERTCOMPACT CAMERA SonyDSC-RX100V BESTSUPERZOOMCAMERA Panasonic LUMIXDC-FZ80/FZ82 BESTPROFESSIONALCOMPACT CAMERA FujifilmX100F BESTRUGGEDCAMERA Nikon COOLPIXW100 BESTCAMCORDER CanonXC15 BESTPROFESSIONALPHOTO/ VIDEOCAMERA Panasonic LUMIXDC-GH5 BESTPHOTOPRINTER Epson SureColor SC-P5000 BESTINKJETPHOTOPAPER Canson Infinity Baryta Prestige 340gsm BESTIMAGINGSTORAGE SOLUTION SanDisk Extreme 900Portable SSD

BESTIMAGINGSOFTWARE Macphun Luminar BESTCAMERAACCESSORY Manfrotto Lens Filter Suite BESTLIGHTINGACCESSORY NissinAir10s BESTIMAGINGPROCESSING EQUIPMENT Wacom Intuos Pro BESTPROFESSIONALFLASH SYSTEM Profoto D2 BESTPORTABLEFLASH MetzMecablitzM400 BESTTRIPOD VanguardAlta Pro 2 tripodwith 263AB 100 ballhead BESTPHOTOMONITOR LG 27MD5KA (UltraFine 5K Display) BESTPHOTOSMARTPHONE HUAWEI P10/P10Plus BESTCAMERADRONE DJI Phantom4 Pro BESTACTIONCAM Sony FDR-X3000R BESTPHOTOPRINTSERVICE WhiteWall ultraHDPhoto Print BESTPHOTOBAG Manfrotto Pro Light 3N1-36 BESTDESIGN HasselbladX1D-50c BEST360°CAMERA NikonKeyMission 360

Profoto has launched the AirTTL-O remote for Olympus systems, which offers full TTL and HSS capability with Profoto’s Pro-10, D2, B1 and B2 flashes. The AirTTL-O remote available now is compatible with the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II, OM-D E-M5 Mark II and the PEN-F. With a battery life up to 30 hours and a wireless range up to 300myou’ll be able to shoot at a reasonable distance fromyour subject. Available now, the AirTTL-O remote is priced at £275.

profoto.com

Photography News | Issue 44 | absolutephoto.com

News

Photo 24 – final call

Shooting fromThe 02

News in brief

G-Tech harddrive Expanding its G-DRIVE storage portfolio Western Digital has announced the G-DRIVE USB-C. Available in capacities of 4TB, 8TB or 10TB the drive has a USB 3.1 Gen 1 interface and USB Power Delivery to charge the latest MacBook or MacBook Pro. g-technology.com WesternDigital SSD The My Passport SSD from Western Digital is the fastest WD brand portable drive yet. Available in capacities of 256GB, 512GB and 1TB the My Passport SSD features speeds of up to 515MB/s and a USB Type-C port. It’s also USB 3.1 Gen 2 ready with a USB Type-C to Type-C cable and adapter allowing it to be used with traditional USB Type-A ports. Prices start from £109.99 and each drive comes with WD Backup software. wd.com Olloclip for iPhone 7 and 7+ Olloclip cases and add-on lenses are now available in the UK. The latest addition is the ollo Case for iPhone 7 which works with the olloclip connect for iPhone 7 and 7+ by attaching the lens to the top of the device. Add on lenses include Fisheye + Macro 15x lens, Telephoto 2x Lens, Super- Wide Lens and the Ultra-Wide Lens. The ollo Case is priced at £29.99, add-on lenses start at £49.99. olloclip.com

The registration for Photo 24 has closed and the successful applicants have been notified, but we have now opened a reserve list. Should any successful photographers not be able tomake it, we will first check with those who initially registered and then consult the reserve list. If you haven’t already registered this is your final chance to be considered for this year’s event, which starts at noon 1 July. Photo 24 in association with Fujifilm is your chance to join like-minded photographers and challenge yourself to shoot for 24 hours. The event is free, but there will be the opportunity to take part in optional

paid-for events, which will include shooting vintage buses in front of famous landmark spots, shooting the evening light from the London Eye and climbing The O2 to shoot sunset with your camera, see panel (right). A limited number of successful applicants will also get the chance to take advantage of free short-term loans of Fujifilm cameras and lenses throughout the 24-hour event to assess the cameras’ performance and grab some shots with them. To register for the reserve list, visit the website.

People doing the Up at The 02 climb are only permitted to take mobile phones with them, but there is now the opportunity to take cameras and tripods on special photo climbs. Our Photo 24 optional event will be one such opportunity; with a slot from9 to 10pm, there should be some great photo opportunities at the top platform, which is 52m from ground level. Clacton Camera Club did the Up at The 02 experience as a test run earlier this spring. Member Tony Bullock says: "The weather on the day was not good, and at one point itwas questionable whether we were going to do it because of the very strong winds. However, 32 of us achieved the climb, including one of our members aged 80, now referred to as Supergran! The arrangements surrounding the climb were professionally handled by the Up at The 02 team and the guides were helpful in the extreme. Despite a few aching muscles, everyone agreed that they had enjoyed a remarkable day. The trip would have significant appeal to camera clubs and photographers in general. ”

absolutephoto.com

upattheo2.co.uk 0208463 2689

World’s first Rainproof Gimbal for GoPro

The Lastolite Joe McNally Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 Plus has been developed in partnership with acclaimed photographer Joe McNally and features the white interior, preferred by Joe, to offer a softer light. The 22x22cm mini softbox priced at £59.95 can be attached directly to a flashgun and has a removable inner and outer diffuser, which gives up to a two-stop light loss if used together. Thanks to its innovative twist-lock silicon strap and folding mechanism the Joe McNally Ezybox Speed-Lite 2Plus is quick and easy to secure to your flashgun and can be packed away to fit in your kit bag making it extremely portable. Its design also incorporates two magnets which allow you to attach Lastolite by Manfrotto Strobo honeycomb and gel holders for more creative effects and control over lighting. Lastolite by Manfrotto

Designed for use with the GoProHero3, 4, 5 and Session cameras, the Removu S1 is a three-axis rainproof gimbal, priced at £349. It features a detachable handgrip and a wireless remote control, which allows you to control the angle of the camera, as well as switch between the gimbals different modes: pan, follow and lock. Fully compatible with GoPro’s range of helmet, body and bike mounts you capture a range of shots and footage from different perspectives. Both the motor and body of the Removu S1 are waterproof so you can keep shooting through the rain.

manfrotto.co.uk/lastolite

removu.com

Photography News | Issue 44 | absolutephoto.com

News

News in brief

The National Portrait gallery has announced that digital submissions will now be accepted for the first time to the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize. Entry closes at midnight on 29 June 2017. The first prize winner gets £15,000. Entry costs £28 per photograph entered. TaylorWessing welcomes digital entries PictureHappiness Barnett Waddingham, the benefits consultancy provider, has launched a photography competition to find out what makes the UK happy. There are three prizes of £500 up for grabs for over 18s and an iPad to the value of £500 for an under 18 winner. The competition closes at 5pm on 30 June. For full terms and conditions and to enter visit picturehappiness.co.uk.

This year is the 160th year of the International Photography Exhibition (IPE) and the Royal Photographic Society is calling for entries across all genres that showcase engaging, visually striking and inspiring work. This competition is open to all photographers worldwide. Submission prices are £30 for non-members, £20 for RPS members and £15 for under 30s with the competition closing on 24 May. Photographers who are selected will have their images exhibited in a nationwide ten-month tour, opening at PHOTOBLOCK at The Old Truman Brewery in London, in October. International Photography Exhibition: 160

rps.org

Royal Photography Society Bursaries The Royal Photographic Society is offering four funding opportunities worth over £12,000. The Environmental Awareness Project Funding of £6000, closes 31 May and is split between two awards, one for those aged between 16 and 30 and one for 31+. This bursary is for one-year projects which will promote environmental awareness. The Joan Wakelin Bursary for £2000 closes on 16 June and will

npg.org.uk

Proud Camden will be exhibiting a collection of images by the late photojournalist Terence Spencer from 1 June to 20 August 2017. The exhibition will showcase images from an extensive archive which embodies the liberalised popular culture of the 60s and the period of social change and music revolution. Shots include Muhammad Ali, Marianne Faithfull, Sir Richard Branson and more. Free to attend the exhibition will be held at Proud Camden, London. Terence Spencer: ALasting Impression

be awarded to the best proposal for a photo essay on an overseas social issue. The Postgraduate Bursary of £3500 is to support postgrad students carrying out photographic research or studying photography at postgrad level; and finally the Short Film Award of £2000, closes in July for the short film with the best cinematography.

Above: Thembinkosi Fanwell Ngwenya by Claudio Rasano, 2016 First Prize Winner of the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize 2016 Photo: © Jorge Herrera

proud.co.uk

rps.org

Pink Lady Food Photography of theYear 2017 winner Shoeb Faruquee, based in Bangladesh was named the overall winner of the Pink Lady Food Photography of the Year 2017 award, winning a cheque for £5000. Over 8400 images were entered into the competition from more than 60 countries. Shoeb’s winning image is titled Food for God, which shows the Brahman cook, making religious food at the Rajapur Lokonath Dham Chittagong Bangladesh, a praying and worshipping centre of the follower and believer of ‘Baba Lokonath’. The food is eaten after the devotees have finished fasting for 24 hours.

pinkladyfoodphotographeroftheyear.com

Photography News | Issue 44 | absolutephoto.com

Tell us your club’s latest news, email: clubnews@photography-news.co.uk

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 achievements; 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

How to submit

Deadline for the next issue: 1 June 2017

We need words and pictures by 1 June 2017 for the next issue of Photography News , which will be available from 12 June 2017. Write your story in a Word document (400 words max). Please include contact details of the club, exhibition or event: website, meeting times, opening times, whatever is relevant. Images should be JPEGs, 2000 pixels on the longest dimension, any colour space, and image credits should be included. If the story is an exhibition or event, please send a picture from the exhibition (not the publicity poster) or

one from the event. If it includes people, please identify them. Attach the Word document and JPEGs to an email and send to clubnews@photography-news.co.uk

Devizes Camera Club announced the winners of their Print and Projected Image of the Year competition this month. All the images that won or were placed second or third in the club’s competitions throughout the year were entered. The standard was extremely high, with beginners, intermediate and advanced categories; Desert Owl, bottom, was one of the finalists. The club is a group of enthusiastic and talented photographers and meets at Devizes Sports Club at 7.45pmon Tuesday evenings fromSeptember toMay. Newmembers welcome. Pictured (below) is an image of Skye taken by a club member on a recent field trip. devizescameraclub.co.uk Best of the Best at Devizes CC

News in brief

Hampstead Photographic Society celebrates 80 years!

The Aldershot, Farnham and Fleet Camera Club will be holding their annual print exhibition on Friday 26 and Saturday 27 May 2017 from 10am to 5pm on both days. Entry is completely free and the venue is The Harlington, Fleet Road, Fleet. Please do come along to view and vote on the work of club members and chat to someone about the club and its activities. affcc.uk Beyond Group is holding its 10th National Exhibition of Projected Images this summer. It opens for entries on 16 June and closes on 30 July. The exhibition will be at Copdock and Washbrook Village Hall (near Ipswich) on 17 September, and entries can be made on the website. beyondgroup.org.uk Leigh on Sea Camera Club is holding its 88th Annual Exhibition at the Forum, Southend Library from Friday 2 to Tuesday 27 June. Visitors will be able to experience examples of work created by their members who have a wide range of photographic experience. There will be a variety of subjects on display which should be attractive to the whole community. leighcameraclub.co.uk Battle Photographic Society was formed on 26 May 1962. Its annual exhibition will be held in Battle Memorial Hall on Saturday 24 June between 10am and 5pm and Sunday 25 June between 10am and 4pm. Entrance is free and light refreshments will be on sale all day. Club meetings are held weekly from September to May in the Shephard Room at the Memorial Hall starting from 7.30pm. battlephotographicsociety. co.uk

This is a big year for Hampstead Photographic Society in north London, as it celebrates its 80th anniversary, following its founding in 1937. This major milestone has prompted the society to update its history document, compiled on its 75th anniversary, and will also see a major Summer Exhibition in Burgh House, Hampstead from 3 to 20August. With over 50 members, HPS has meetings from September to June, and speakers from well-known institutions including the Victoria & Albert Museum, Imperial War Museum and the National Portrait Gallery as well as prominent speakers from the world of professional photography. The club also prides itself on its programme of masterclasses. The club meets on Tuesday evenings, from 8pm in the Crypt Room at St John’s Church, Church Row, Hampstead, London, and welcomes photographers at any level, from beginners to professionals.

hampsteadphotococ.org.uk

Success forWare &District PS

Members of Ware & District Photographic Society were delighted to retain theSt Ives InterprintTrophy. On Saturday 25 February, Ware & District Photographic Society took part in the 35th Annual Interprint Competition against 28 other Clubs in the East Anglian Region, recording their fifth win for the Club

since the competition started in 1983. Club President John McDowall said, “This competition is always one of the highlights of our season and we were extremely pleased to have retained our title against some very stiff opposition”. Ware DPS are a well-established Club in Ware, Hertfordshire and

meet at the Arts Centre in Kibes Lane from September to the end of May on Wednesday evenings at 7.45pm.

wareps.org.uk

Above Left to right, back row: Mike Hawes, Steve Vause, Mick Willis and MalcolmNeal. Left to right, front row: Sue McDowall, Barbara Norris, John McDowall (President) holding the St. Ives Trophy and Bob Norris.

Photography News | Issue 44 | absolutephoto.com

Profile

Before the judge Brian SwinyardARPS Join us for our monthly chat with an experienced photographic judge. This time, it is the turn of Brian Swinyard, a judge and lecturer of the Midland Counties Photographic Federation

With 40 plus years of photographic experienceintheUKandoverseas,I’ve progressed from club photographer to international exhibitionist with over 2500 acceptances and many awards. I have been honoured to be asked to judge international and national photographic salons. In 2004, Jack Farley FRPS, president ofGloucesterCameraClub and my photographic mentor, took me aside and said “You’re interested in creative photography; perhaps you’d like to become a judge and give talks to camera clubs.” I attended a judges’ seminar in Smethwick and the advice I received that day has stood me in good stead ever since, influencing my judging style. The strapline was to look beyond the technical aspects of an image and to ask whether the image speaks to you. Does it stop you in your tracks? Does it visually engage? Does it tell a story? I decided early on that I needed an image to grab me, hold my attention and visually engage with me. I like to think that this comes across in my judging. When I am asked to judge locally, nationally or internationally, I use the following criteria. Firstly, I look for technical competence; exposure, sharpness, tonal range and colour saturation. Secondly, I look for artistic merit; composition, use of depth-of-field. Thirdly, and for me most importantly, I look to see whether I can see something of the photographer in the picture through the visual story. For those of you who don’t know my style of photography, I don’t do sharp and I don’t do sky but I do do filter effects. This was predicated by the fact that I suffer from hand tremor which is not an endearing quality for a photographer. Making the most of this adversity (or perhaps it is just an excuse), I have actively promoted the idea of soft-focus, abstract images where feeling, emotion, mood and movement are more important than a mere record. It matters not that others may not like this style of photography but it is my style and

Biography

Howmany years in photography? Over 40 years. Home club Cheltenham Camera Club,

Gloucester Camera Club, member RPS Creative and Digital Groups. What is your favourite camera? Canon EOS 50D and Canon EOS 40D converted to IR. What is your favourite lens? Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8. What is your favourite photo accessory? Canon angle finder and Canon battery charger. Who is your favourite photographer? There are many but Irene Froy would feature strongly. What is your own favourite photographic subject or technique? Using in-camera/computer creative techniques to enhance emotional content. What awards/distinctions/ medals have you earnt/won? MA in photography, 2500 acceptances and some medal/ award winners in international salons.

my project work to camera club competitions. My rationale was that I wanted to give the judges a challenge and put themoutside their comfort zone to see if they could cope. Alas, they could not! The first offering was a panel of monochrome prints of my naked body and the second submission was a panel of five printed negatives, both of which were from my dissertation, ‘Personal Identity: Transition from Camera Club to Master of Arts Photographer’. On both occasions, the judges commented “I’m sorry, I don’t understand this... next”. On another occasion, I entered a monochrome triptych separately into a local camera club aggregate competition, another camera club’s annual exhibition and a national salon. Three different judges marked the images respectively in the mid-teens, highly commended and a gold medal. This begs the question: “What do judges know?” However, there are some very good judges who can engage with an audience, think outside the camera club box and assess pictures in a non-photographic, artistic way. As a judge, I am happy to offer advice to anyone who is prepared to listen. Firstly, never apologise for your photography. Your photography today is better than it was yesterday and tomorrow it is likely to even better than today. Secondly, don’t get bent out of shape if a judge doesn’t like your images; remember that they are just the views of one person. Thirdly, produce images for yourself and not for judges, otherwise your photography will never improve. After all, what do judges know?

what I do best. However, I try not to bring any bias to the judging process and I make every effort to judge against the standard I set myself with my three criteria. As a judge, I am drawn to images where I don’t know what I am looking at. I find audiences warm to a judge who can bring an artistic perspective to their comments and offer constructive suggestions without being condescending. You know whether an image is good or bad and it is incumbent on any judge to highlight the positives and to mention the negatives in passing. How often have we seen prints where the quality is lacking and PDIs that are over sharpened? The most important aspect for me is composition and the left-to-right visual flow in pictures. I often flip images or rotate them to try to improve the visual story, much to the amusement of the audience. When I started judging a colleague said that wemust not lose sight of the fact that our performance as a judge should be educational and entertaining. Humour and engagement with an audience plays a big part in that. When judging competitions, particularly at camera clubs, I use a relative versus absolute scoring system. Presented with two images, one of which is much better, it makes no sense for the better image to be given a very highmark and the other image a very low mark. It seems a better strategy for the two images to be differentiated by two or three marks. In this way, the separation is still delineated but the author of the lower image will go home much happier. I make it a practice to score all images between 15 and 20marks, and I’m not adverse to awarding top marks to several images.

The judging process can be very rewarding particularly when club members congratulate you at the end of the evening with comments like, “That was the best eveningwe’ve had for a very long time” or “It’s a pity there are not more judges like you”. The quality of images I see as I tour clubs gives me a warm feeling that amateur photography is in a good place. I’ve seen a steady improvement which has been encouraged by improvements in and affordabilityof newtechnologies. It’s interesting that the quality of some beginners’ work is sometimes better than their advanced colleagues. Salons are a different matter. When selecting judges, organisers cast the net far and wide to choose those who not only meet the criteria of the patronage organisations but also provide a wide spectrum of skill base, experience and interest. I seem to have built a reputation as an ‘aspirational’ photographer with special interest in creative photography. Judges seem to be chosen for their ability and the distinctions they have accrued. Great weight is given to holders of FRPS, and credence is also given to holders of academic qualifications. I completed a Master of Arts degree in Photography at De Montfort University and this has stood me in very good stead. Having completed the course, I smile wryly to myself when others assume that because you have an MA(Photography), you must know what you are talking about! That could not be further from the truth! When I did my MA I became aware of the differences between the camera club ethos and academic study of photography. I decided to enter some images I used in

What do you think?

Have you seen a photographic judge at work who you’d like to see profiled in Photography News ? If so please drop us a line to opinion@photography-news. co.uk with the judge’s name and, if possible, their contact details.

brianswinyardphotography.com

Photography News | Issue 44 | absolutephoto.com

CameraClubof theYear in associationwith Camera Club of the Year 2016-17 They think it’s all over! Well, it is...almost! After five hotly contested rounds, we have our fifth club finalist and now we’re all set for the final showdown

Hearty congratulations to Great Notley Photographic Club for qualifying for the final shoot out by winning Round 5: Landscapes. It was a very close run thing with Great Notley seeing off Ayr PS, Peterborough PS and Preston PS by a single point. As you can see from the scores both Dorchester CC and Exeter CC finished with more points than Great Notley PC but both clubs had already qualified for the final, which leaves Great Notley PC as this round’s winners. Great Notley PC joins Harpenden PS and New City PC as well as Dorchester CC and Exeter CC in our final shootout that is scheduled to take place in early June. The final itself is an all-day photo shoot where the five finalists will be confronted by five photo challenges that have to be shot on five different Fujifilm cameras including the medium-format GFX 50S, the X100S premium compact and very successful X-T2. What’s more, each assignment must be completed in a certain time, with finished, edited files to be handed in within that strict deadline. It is going to be a massive examination of each club’s ability to shoot creatively under intense pressure while working as a team. The submitted entries will be judged and the winning club announced on the day. The full story of the final will in featured in Photography News issue 46 which is due out from 17 July. If you can’t wait, we will posting regular updates about the shoot on the day itself onto Facebook and Twitter.

©DaveRoberts

Scores *Dorchester Camera Club

*Already qualified

93 91 86 85 85 85 84 83 83 83 80 80 80 80 79 79 79 77 77 77 77 76 76 75 75 74 81

©JackieBale

*Exeter Camera Club

Great Notley Photography Club

Ayr Photographic Society

Peterborough Photographic Society

Preston Photographic Society

Richmond & Twickenham Photographic Society

Harlow Photographic Society

Maidenhead

Wisbech and District

Windsor Photographic Society Blandford Forum Camera Club

Gloucester Camera Club

facebook.com/photonewspn @PhotonewsPN

Seaford Photographic Society

©LeighGarner

West Wickham Photographic Society

Dronfield Camera Club

*Harpenden Photographic Society

Norwich and district photographic society

Consett

Earl Shilton Camera Club

First Monday Halstead &DPS

Alba Photographic Society Park Street Camera Club Birlingham Photography Club City of London and Cripplegate

Dunholme Camera Club

©JohnBuckley

©DaveGreenwood

About Fujifilm

This year’s Camera Club of the Year competition is sponsored by Fujifilm, a brand making serious waves in the imaging market with its innovative cameras and lenses. In the past year alone, Fujifilm has introduced several milestone cameras including the popular X-T2, highly specified and attractively priced X-T20, the premium X100S compact and the stunning medium-format GFX 50S, which is tested in this issue.

fujifilm.eu/uk

Photography News | Issue 44 | absolutephoto.com

Technique 20

In associationwith

Changing lenses alters the way you see the world, and at no time is this truer than when using macro models. Telephoto lenses can magnify distant subjects and wide-angle models pack in more of the scene, but macro lenses reveal things you often can’t even see with the naked eye. It could be the minute textures of a flower petal or the intricate details of a tiny insect; it could be the internal workings of a watch or the workmanship of antique jewellery or toys. Start wielding a macro lens and you’ll find there are amazing subjects everywhere. Because of their longer focal lengths and fast maximum apertures, macro lenses can also make very usable portrait lenses, so you're getting two great tools for the price of one. A macro lens is designed to focus much closer than a normal lens can – sometimes mere centimetres from the front element. This leads to lots of magnification, the more of which there is, the more of the frame will be filled by the subject. With true macro lenses, the subject can be reproduced at its actual size on the sensor. This is called a 1:1 life-size reproduction or 1x magnification. So, if you were shooting a penny, which measures 20.3mm, at a 1:1 reproduction ratio, it would be focused on the sensor at the same 20.3mm size. This of course leads those amazing details. This power needs to be handled with care though; with such a huge magnification, focusing must be precise, and even tiny movements from the camera or subject canwreck the crisp details. Wide apertures give very little depth-of-field and lighting can be tricky with the camera lens so close to the subject. Combine the right lens, solid technique and some artistic endeavour though, and you’ll have the recipe for outstanding pictures. Up close With its amazing power to magnify the tiniest subjects, a macro lens is your ticket to a voyage of photographic discovery. But these powerful tools must be used with care for best results. Here you’ll find out how Words Kingsley Singleton Pictures Will Cheung and Kingsley Singleton

You might already have a telephoto lens with a ‘macro’ setting, or a compact camera with a macro mode, so why would you need a dedicated macro lens? Aside from the greater image quality you’ll find by choosing a lens that’s designed purely for macro work, the big divider is the level of magnification you can achieve. Only true macro lenses can achieve a 1:1 reproduction ratio (or a 1x magnification), where the subject is rendered at its actual size on the sensor. While many telephotos, such as the Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6APO DG Macro have a macro setting, it’s often 1:2 (0.5x) or 1:3. That’s good enough to be considered ‘close up’, but not true macro. Minimum focusing distance and minimumworking distance The level of magnification you can achieve depends on how close you can focus, and all lenses will state a minimum focusing distance. This is measured from the sensor (also referred to as the film plane or focal plane) to the subject, rather than the front of the lens. You can see where the focal plane sits as it’s marked on the camera as a circle with a line through the middle. The minimum working distance is the distance from the lens's front element to the subject. This is a really important figure and gives you an idea of how close you can get.

A very short working distance is fine for many subjects, usually florals and still life. But having the camera close to the subject does make lighting them more difficult (you may block the light and leave it in shadow), and live subjects may get scared off by your presence. For the latter, a longer working distance is more useful. Which focal length do I need? Macro lenses with longer focal lengths tend to provide more working distance and so something like a 150mm or 180mm lens with a minimum focus of 40-50cm is useful for nature. But there are also the general principles of focal length to consider. For example, a longer focal length will seem to affect the perspective, compressing foreground and background elements and giving a tighter look to the frame. However, macro lenses with longer focal lengths will also be more liable to camera shake. Conversely, wider macro lenses, like a 50mm, will have a shorter working distance, and while that’s not so useful for certain subjects, it does mean you can frame up closer and use the wider field of view to your advantage. For example you can show more of the subject’s environment or interesting textures. Of course, if you’re shooting with a smaller than full-frame sensor, your view will be cropped by a

Pick the right lens

PART 1

Everything you need to know about choosing a macro lens

Above These two images of the same flower show the potential of amacro lens. One was shot on a regular 50mm lens at the closest focusing distance of 40cm; the other is froma Sigma 50mm f/2.8 EX DGMacro, wherein the 13.5cmminimum focus produces a huge enlargement and lots of detail.

Photography News | Issue 44 | absolutephoto.com

Technique 21

In associationwith

What to look for in a macro lens

certain degree. This doesn’t affect the focusing distance though, and can make it easier to fill the frame at the maximummagnification. Depth-of-field The closer the subject is focused upon, and the greater the magnification, the shallower the depth-of-field becomes. For this reason, even using a small aperture will produce a shallow depth-of- field with macro lenses when used very close to a subject. You may have only a few millimetres of sharpness to play with, so while the widest apertures are often seen as attractive, they’re less useful when shooting macro. Therefore it’s well worth checking how well a lens performs at smaller apertures (those prone to more softening through diffraction), as this is where you’ll be doing a lot of shooting. Of course, the problem is lessened as you focus further from the lens. Effective aperture A feature common to allmacro lenses is a change to the effective aperture of the lens as you focus closer to the subject. To focus closely, the lens elements and aperture mechanism move towards the subject, and this means the aperture effectively becomes smaller. Some cameras showthis in the shooting settings and somedonot, but the effect is the same; you lose light, so longer exposures or and also limit focusing range; for example, to just the closest settings. 3 Frontelement On some lenses, as you focus closer, the front element racks out, towards the subject, so it’s better to use lenseswhich focus internally. 1 Lenshood The lens hood cuts out flare, caused by bright light sources, and protects the glass fromknocks. Focus really, really close and the hood can get in theway, stopping light reaching the subject. Controls Here you can switch on image stabilisation, set auto ormanual focus 2

4 Filter thread

6 Maximumaperture This states how wide the

8 Reproduction ratio Stated on the barrel next to the focusing distance – you usually get true macro 1:1 reproduction ratio at the minimum focusing distance. 9 Focal length With macro lenses, this is a good indication of how close you’ll be able to frame up on the subject without disturbing it, and howmuch the perspective will be compressed. Typical focal lengths are 50mm, 70mm, 90mm, 105mm, 150mm and 180mm. Tripod collar Like large telephoto lenses, longer macro options will have a tripod collar. 10

This allows you to mount the lens on a tripod via that point, rather than the base of the camera, giving a much better balance and more stability. The collar can also be rotated, so switching from a horizontal to vertical composition is easy. and camera. Of course, it needs to be one that fits your camera make, and a metal lens mount will offer you much greater strength and durability. Some lenses have weather sealing here, too, which will protect the camera and the lens from dust and water getting into the mechanism. 11 Lens mount The mounting point between lens

higher ISO settings are required. The viewfinder may also appear darker which can make checking critical focus a slower process. Buying a macro lens with a fast maximum aperture is still important though, as the lens uses the widest aperture when autofocusing. Relate this to the diminishing effective aperture and slower lenses may lose AF their closest focus distances. If you get an f/2.8 lens it should only close to f/5.6 at closest focus which will still allow AF on the vast majority of cameras. Size, weight and stabilisation Macro lenses with longer focal lengths will likely be larger and heavier than shorter options, but if the lens is mounted securely on a tripod and suitable head, size and weight shouldn’t be a problem. A tripod collar makes this easier. Obviously if you’re handholding the lens, weight is more of a concern, especially as you may find it more difficult to hold steady. Thankfully, that’s where image stabilisation comes in; most macro lenses now use some form of stabilisation for sharper results when handholding, so make sure yours has it. Sigma’s macro lenses feature its proprietary OS or Optical Stabilizer technology to give up to a 4EV benefit when handholding. For nature, this is useful because using a support is not always feasible. Each lens has a filter size, identified on the barrel. Using this thread you can add filters, like polarisers or close up lenses for even more magnification. 5 Focus ring The focus ring is used to manually focus the lens, and in the certain AF modes, you have full-time override to make minor corrections after focus has kicked in. On a macro lens, where manual focusing is critical, you’re looking for lots of grip, a smooth turn and a slow change in the focus setting so that you can achieve greater accuracy.

aperture will open; as almost all true macro lenses are primes there will only be one value stated, but you will also notice that the maximum and minimum apertures vary as the focusing distance is changed – if you focus closer then the values will get smaller etc. 7 Focus distancewindow This shows where the lens is focused between infinity and the lens’s closest focusing distance, measured in metres and feet. Some lenses also have a depth-of-field scale, so you can quickly tell what’s in focus andwhat isn’t.

Above Macro lenses with longer focal lengths are useful when you need to keepmore distance from the subject. This might be to avoid alarming them, as with tiny wildlife subjects, or to avoid casting a shadow from the lens.

Filters and hoods Take note of the lens’s filter size: while you’re unlikely to need neutral density filters in macro photography (the problem is more likely to be getting enough light into the camera to use smaller apertures,

than the opposite), polarising filters can be very useful; they’ll allow you to lower contrast, and reduce glare off foliage, say shiny green leaves, for more saturated results and to reveal surface detail. It’s also useful if a macro lens comes with an APS-C

lens hood adapter. This increases the length of the hood to match the cropped view and is therefore more effective at reducing flare, being longer than the regular hood. You will sacrifice working distance this way, however.

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