/
Текст
T here has never been a better time to own, or be thinking of owning, a Nikon digital camera. A digital camera has a simple function; it captures light that, in turn, creates the kind of images we all see and enjoy. This capturing of light is such a rewarding experience for beginner and professional alike and the camera you choose is the key to unleashing the kind of photographer you want to be. The popularity of digital cameras has increased over recent years and if you want to be both a technically accomplished and creative photographer, then a camera system with manual controls, plus the option to swap out different lenses, should still be your first choice. The range of Nikon cameras, lenses and accessories available to photographers is nothing short of staggering. For those looking to delve into photography for the first time, or are looking to upgrade, the amount of choice can be a little overwhelming. The aim of this manual is to give you a concise overview of the range of equipment available. We also have a number of guides that can show you how to get the very best out of it and have a lot of fun as you learn how to master your Nikon.
CONTENTS GEAR UP WITH NIKON 8 Get to know your camera 12 The Nikon KeyMission range 14 KeyMission accessories 16 Digital compact cameras 20 Nikon DX-format DSLRs 22 Nikon FX-format DSLRs 24 The Nikon Z series mirrorless system 26 NIKKOR DX-format lenses 30 NIKKOR FX-format lenses 36 NIKKOR Z series lenses and accessories 38 Nikon Speedlights SHARPEN YOUR KNOWLEDGE 42 Shooting modes 44 Focusing 46 Shutter speed and camera shake 48 Aperture and depth of field 50 Focal length and zoom 52 Exposure and metering 4 www.bdmpublications.com
TOP TIPS & PROJECTS 54 We understand you have to start somewhere, but in the fullness of time, when you find yourself hitting a wall and wondering what is required to help you improve, seeking out some handy hints and tips can give you that important jump-start into some next level photography. NIKON CREATIVE 66 Pet photography 68 Neutral density grads 70 Assignment: circus 80 Wildlife at the zoo 82 The power of silhouettes 86 Night photography 90 Assignment: happy colours 98 Tabletop photography 104 Fireworks photography 110 The fisheye lens 112 Candid photography 116 Outdoor macro photography 118 Shallow depth of field 120 Shooting panoramas and vertoramas 128 Food photography 130 Light up your photography 134 Long exposure photography 140 Selective focus 142 Explore the macro world www.bdmpublications.com 5
GEAR UP WITH NIKON Discover Nikon cameras, lenses and accessories “To help you, over the following pages we take a look at a range of Nikon cameras, explain more about them and offer some insight into what each one has to offer.” T hese days it is a rare thing to be able to find a local camera store and actually look at a camera that interests you. The rise in online retail activity is making the high street shop a thing of the past. This is a shame. The ability to walk into a camera shop, talk to the assistants (who are most likely photographers themselves) and handle a camera and lenses is invaluable. Moreover, many stores would happily let you use a demonstration model so you could get a feel of the device and discuss whether it is the right one for you. This personal touch could be instrumental in helping you choose the right 6 www.bdmpublications.com camera. To help you, over the following pages we take a look at a range of Nikon cameras, explain more about them and offer some insight into what each one has to offer. From compact cameras to high end DSLRs and cutting-edge mirrorless systems, we hope there is something for everyone and that it will help you to make a more informed choice about which one is for you. It doesn’t stop there. We also have a number of pages dedicated to some of the best lenses and useful accessories available that can take your photography in new and exciting directions. Q
GEAR UP WITH NIKON www.bdmpublications.com 7
Get to know your camera A quick guide to all the major dials and buttons ”Nikon cameras come in many shapes, sizes and prices. At their heart though, they all do the same thing: capture light on a sensor and turn it into a digital image.” N ikon cameras come in many shapes, sizes and prices. At their heart though, they all do the same thing: capture light on a sensor and turn it into a digital image. That’s a gross oversimplification but you get the general idea. Modern cameras also come with many features and functions. Although it 8 www.bdmpublications.com would be difficult to list them all, here are the main dials and buttons that you can expect to find on many cameras. Different brands and models vary in their button and dial layouts as well as certain naming conventions but we’ve put together a little guide to the main controls and displays. Q
GET TO KNOW YOUR CAMERA THE FRONT OF THE CAMERA 7 6 8 4 5 3 2 1 9 10 12 1 AF-Assist illuminator If your subject is poorly lit, the AF-Assist illuminator lights up to help with focusing. 2 Power switch A simple lever you can rotate to turn the camera on and off. 3 Shutter release button This is a typical two-stage button. Press halfway to focus, then fully depress to take a photo. 4 Aperture/Exposure Compensation Pressing this button lets you alter either the aperture or exposure compensation value. 11 5 Movie record button This button is pressed to begin video recording and pressed again to stop recording. 6 Live view switch Click the live view switch in order to display the view through the lens on the camera’s LCD screen. 7 Mode dial Rotate this dial to choose which shooting mode to use such as Aperture, Priority or Manual mode. 8 Pop-up flash A small built in flash that can be used to help illuminate poorly lit or backlit subjects. 9 Flash modes and flash compensation This button allows the choice of different flash modes such as Red-eye reduction and control of output power. 10 Function button You can assign a preferred function to this button that activates when you hold it. 11 Lens release button Push this button in order to release an attached lens from the camera’s lens mount. 12 Infrared receiver (front) You can activate your camera remotely by using a controller pointed at this receiver. www.bdmpublications.com 9
1 THE REAR OF THE CAMERA 2 3 5 8 10 9 7 4 11 6 12 13 14 15 17 16 6 1 Pressing the menu button will give you access to most of the shooting options on the camera. Stereo microphone Many cameras have a small stereo microphone built in to capture audio whilst shooting video. 2 Accessory shoe This mounting plate lets you attach optional flashguns to use instead of the built in flash. 3 Eye sensor When you place your eye to the viewfinder, the LCD display will automatically turn off. 4 Info button Press the info button to activate the LCD screen and view the current information display. 5 Command dial The command dial lets you alter the values of the main camera settings by rotating it to the left or right. 10 Menu button www.bdmpublications.com 7 Infrared receiver (rear) You can activate your camera remotely by using a controller pointed at this receiver. 8 Speaker A small speaker unit to let you listen to any audio that you have captured. 9 Viewfinder eyepiece Through the viewfinder you will see the main framing grid and the camera settings displayed. 10 Dioptre adjustment Here you can adjust the focus of the viewfinder to suit your eyesight. 11 Play button Pressing this button will display pictures on the LCD monitor. 12 Information button When you press this button you can change settings such as image quality and metering. 13 Multi selector The multi selector acts like a cursor to let you navigate menu screens. 14 OK button Used in conjunction with the multi selector, it lets you select highlighted items. 15 Trash button If you want to delete a currently displayed image, press this button to remove it. 16 Vari-angle monitor All information about camera settings and image playback can be viewed on the screen. 17 Playback zoom With an image displayed on the screen, you can zoom in up to 33x magnification.
GET TO KNOW YOUR CAMERA THE LEFT SIDE 1 Accessory terminal 4 Wireless controllers and GPS units can be plugged in to this terminal. 2 5 Microphone socket Optional external stereo microphones can be connected to this port. 3 USB and A/V connector You can directly connect your camera to a computer or printer from this port. 4 Flash and FEC button Activate your camera’s built-in flash when required. You can also activate the flash exposure compensation. 5 1 Function button Pressing this button in conjunction with other buttons allows you to access more features. 2 3 THE RIGHT SIDE 1 1 HDMI connector Allows the camera to be connected to a high-definition HDMI device like a TV. 2 2 Memory card slot This is where you insert the digital storage media such as an SD card. 3 3 Power connector A terminal allowing a mains electrical source to be plugged in. 4 4 Battery compartment cover The battery is inserted here. 5 Infrared receiver 5 For a remote control device. 6 Mains power slot Mains power adapter/powerpack lead access slot. 6 www.bdmpublications.com 11
The Nikon KeyMission range Getting into the heart of the action with adventure-proof cameras “This is where you need something a little easier to manage and that would be rugged enough to do the kinds of things and go to the kinds of places where DSLRs fear to tread.” I f you are the adventurous type and love to get out into the world and explore, then taking a larger bulky DSLR with you to capture all those amazing moments may prove troublesome. This could be particularly true if you are hanging off the side of a mountain or riding a perfect wave on your surfboard. The same could be true even if it is just a family vacation to the coast and you want some memorable moments captured 12 www.bdmpublications.com as your kids splash around at the water’s edge down on the beach. This is where you need something a little easier to manage and that would be rugged enough to do the kinds of things and go to the kinds of places where DSLRs fear to tread. Action cameras are designed to be small, light, tough and waterproof enough to stand up to great punishment on land sea and air, while still being able to capture stills and video for a truly immersive viewing experience. Nikon has introduced its KeyMission range of action cameras that allow you to get into the heart of the action, and capture the great shots you need. Nikon offers three models in their KeyMission range. The KeyMission 80, 170 and 360. They are designed to record videos and stills from a first person point of view and perspectives that would be more challenging for larger APS-C and DSLR models. Q
THE NIKON KEYMISSION RANGE KeyMission 80 KeyMission 170 KeyMission 360 £189/$270/€218 Capture everyday life with this wearable camera £265/$179/€199 Dynamic 170° ultra wide-angle action video £199/$179/€199 Immerse yourself in a 360 degree view Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 12.4 megapixel front camera 4.9 megapixel rear camera 1/2.3 inch front CMOS sensor 1/5 inch rear CMOS sensor 1.75 (4.4cm) inch monitor Front lens 25mm equivalent 12 megapixel stills 1920 x 1080 30p movie capture ISO range 100 - 1600 Vibration reduction Waterproof to 1m Weight 74g Pros: Amazingly compact design. 12 megapixel sensor. Image stabilisation. Cons: No remote control. Expensive. Screen very small. No slow motion. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 8.3 megapixel sensor 8.3 megapixel stills 1/2.3 inch CMOS sensor Image size 3840 x 2160 pixels 1.5 inch 345,000 dot monitor microSD/SDHC/SDXC storage Ultra HD 30p video capture ISO 100 - 1600 High speed movie options 15mm equivalent lens Waterproof to 10m Weight 135g approx. Pros: Good quality 4K video. Easy to use. Good value compared to rivals. Cons: Low light quality is lacking. Few control options on board. 3.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 23.9 megapixel sensor 23.9 megapixel stills 1/2.3 inch CMOS sensor Image size 7744 x 3872 pixels microSD/SDHC/SDXC storage Ultra HD 24p video capture ISO 100 - 1600 8mm equivalent lens f/2.0 fixed aperture Waterproof to 30m Weight 198g approx. Dustproof and shockproof Pros: Robust. Good image quality. Video compatible with social media. Cons: Image capture tricky. Needs a monitor. Quite expensive. 3.5 3.0 Silicone Jacket Waterproof Case Wrist Strap Mount Compatible with: KeyMission 360 Compatible with: KeyMission 170 Compatible with: KeyMission 170, KeyMission 360 The CF-AA1 Silicone Jacket is designed for the KeyMission 360. Silicone material protects the camera from scratches and dirt when in use. The WP-AA1 Waterproof Case is designed for the KeyMission 170, enabling underwater shooting to a depth of 40m for 30 minutes. An additional battery can be supported. The AA-6 Wrist Strap Mount allows for the camera to be mounted via your wrist for shooting while surfing, skiing or other active sports. Waterrepellent performance ensures reliable shooting. Dimensions 68.9 x 67.7 x 44.4mm Weight: 13.4g Dimensions 90.2 x 80.3 x 48.8mm Weight: 133g Dimensions 91.0 x 42.8 x 65.5mm Wrist circumference 180-330mm Pros: Tough durable design. Available in two colours. Cons: The material is prone to slipping and can slide out of shape. Pros: Waterproof down to 40m. Large, easy-touse buttons. Cons: Adds a large amount of bulk and weight to the camera. Pros: Easy to adjust and fits comfortably around the wrist. Cons: Expensive compared to some third party options. 3.5 4.0 4.0 www.bdmpublications.com 13
KeyMission accessories Gear up, mount up, and get shooting “Any action camera system will stand or fall depending on its mount system and what is available for it.” A ny action camera system will stand or fall depending on its mount system and what is available for it. Since the KeyMission range is a relative newcomer to the action cam market, its range of accessories is not yet as large or as varied as its main competitor, the GoPro range of action cameras. That said, there are still enough options to extend the capabilities of your KeyMission devices, with extra batteries, remote controls, underwater housings and mounting options. To get you started, here is a brief list of some on offer. Q 14 www.bdmpublications.com Soft Case System Compatible with: KeyMission 80, KeyMission 170, KeyMission 360 The KeyMission Soft System Case is a soft case designed for easy transport of your KeyMission 360, KeyMission 170 or KeyMission 80 camera and accessories. Pros: Compact and lightweight. Decent materials used. Cons: A little expensive. There have been reports of zips breaking. 2.5
KEYMISSION ACCESSORIES Extension Arm Handlebar Mount Suction Cup Mount Compatible with: KeyMission 80, KeyMission 170, KeyMission 360 Compatible with: KeyMission 170, KeyMission 360 Compatible with: KeyMission 170, KeyMission 360 The KeyMission Extension Arm allows you to gain a new perspective by extending your KeyMission camera out, to get more of your surroundings in self-portrait photos or videos. The AA-7 Handlebar Mount allows you to attach the camera to the handlebars of a bicycle or motorbike. It can be attached to any handlebar with a diameter between 18mm and 30mm. The Suction Cup Mount lets you attach the camera to a car dashboard or fuel tank of a motorcycle. It comes with one suction surface protection sheet. Not for external vehicle use. Dimensions 220mm, extending to 734mm Weight: 185g Dimensions 46 x 76.8 x 73.7mm Handlebar diameter 18.0-30.0mm Dimensions 80.0 x 49.0 x 106.5mm Weight 62g Pros: Lightweight construction. 90 day limited warranty. Cons: Can be prone to twisting. Parts can possibly freeze and break. Pros: Compact and lightweight construction. Can support heavier cameras. Cons: The grip has limited uses. May not fit all handlebars. Pros: Good suction for a secure mount. Works on most flat surfaces. Cons: Not strong enough to use on the exterior of a moving vehicle. 2.0 3.0 3.0 Surfboard Mount Chest Mount Wrist Strap Mount Compatible with: KeyMission 170, KeyMission 360 Compatible with: KeyMission 170, KeyMission 360 Compatible with: KeyMission 170, KeyMission 360 The AA-9 is for mounting the camera to a surfboard or snowboard. Strong adhesive tape is placed at the back of the plate and the supplied strap prevents the camera from being dropped. A comfortable, adjustable and lightweight chest mount system. This mount lets you attach the camera to your chest for hands-free shooting during sporting activities. Water-repellent performance ensures reliable shooting. Dimensions 49.6 x 12.6 x 62.3mm Weight 15.5g Dimensions 112.0 x 121.0 x 33.7mm Weight 175g The MP-AA1 Handy Grip is designed exclusively for use with the action cameras and reduces the load during long-duration shooting. It also comes with a wrist strap. Pros: Inexpensive. Supplied with strong adhesive tape and strap. Cons: Demounting the accessory can sometimes be difficult. Pros: Secure mount designed specifically for KeyMission cameras. Cons: Is a bit expensive compared to alternative mount systems. Pros: Secure mount. Well-made and lightweight. Cons: A little overpriced. Designed as a small grip. No extension. 4.0 4.0 4.5 www.bdmpublications.com 15
Digital compact cameras Explore the possibilities of shooting and sharing with the Coolpix range of cameras Nikon CoolPix P950 £799/$796/€855 Whether it’s an airshow or a safari, you have the ability to get close Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 16.0-megapixels 1/2.3” CMOS sensor Focal length 4.3 to 357mm 83x optical zoom 24-2000mm equivalent Lens shift vibration reduction F-number f/2.8 to f/6.5 Lens 16 elements in 12 groups 1cm electronic viewfinder 2359k-dot OLED 8.1cm 921k-dot vary-angle monitor SD, SDHC, SDXC storage media 2160/30p UHD video ISO range 100–1600 (extendable to 6400) Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 1005g including battery 140.2 x 109.6 x 149.8 mm Battery life 290 shots approx. Pros: Amazing 83x optical zoom, with good ergonomics and portable design. 4K video. Cons: Expensive compared to its predecessor P900. Image quality is a little sub-par. I n this day and age, you have to work hard to find products that are interesting enough to keep your ever-present camera phone in your pocket and use a digital camera instead. Camera phones are great, but if you suddenly find you need to use a large zoom factor to get a shot, then your phone will not be able to cut it. This is where the strength of the compact digital camera becomes more appealing and Nikon have addressed this issue with their CoolPix digital cameras with 16 www.bdmpublications.com 4.0 Nikon’s style and technology at the foundation of the range. Get inspired and take the next step in shooting and sharing exceptional photos and high quality movies. Nikon’s extensive range is sure to include the right digital camera for you, whether you’re a beginner looking for a pocket-friendly device for casual snapping or an advanced professional with an eye for the perfect shot. The CoolPix range is full of incredible cameras to suit your ability and wallet. Q “Get inspired and take the next step in shooting and sharing exceptional photos.”
DIGITAL COMPACT CAMERAS Nikon CoolPix A10 Nikon CoolPix A100 Nikon CoolPix A1000 £69/$86/€79 Makes photography intuitive and fun £79/$95/€89 An easy to use stylish compact £399/$475/€429 A high-powered all-round zoom Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 2.7” 230k-dot, TFT LCD 16.1 megapixel CCD sensor 5x optical zoom 26-130mm equivalent focal length f/3.2 to f/6.5 SD, SDHC, SDXC storage media 720p movies Lightweight 160g construction Motion blur reduction Max ISO 80 - 1600 Pros: Very cost-effective. Compact and easy to use. Creative effects. Cons: Only 720p movie capture. Noisy images. Slow to focus in poor light. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 2.7” 230k-dot TFT LCD 20.1 megapixel CCD sensor 5x optical zoom 26-130mm equivalent focal length Long battery life SD, SDHC, SDXC storage media 720p movies Lightweight 160g construction Scene auto selector Max ISO 80 - 3200 Pros: Compact and easy to use. Creative effects. Good exposure and colour. Cons: Only 720p movie capture. No vibration reduction. Noisy images. 4.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 35x optical zoom 1166k-dot equivalent LCD viewfinder 3.0” 1036k-dot tilt screen 16.0 megapixel CMOS sensor 24-840mm equivalent focal length SD, SDHC, SDXC storage media 4K/UHD movies at 30fps Raw format shooting High performance vibration reduction Max ISO 100 - 6400 Pros: 4K UHD video capture mode. Huge optical zoom range. Raw capture. Cons: Image quality below par. Small electronic viewfinder. High price. 3.5 4.5 Nikon CoolPix B600 Nikon CoolPix W150 Nikon Coolpix P1000 £329/$326/€349 A powerful all-round bridge camera £149/$176/€145 Robust reliability with user-friendly features £1,049/$996/€1,099 World’s biggest zoom camera Q 13.2 megapixel effective pixels 1/3.1 inch CMOS sensor Q Equivalent to 30 - 90mm lens Q Aperture from f/3.3 to f/5.9 Q 109.5 x 67.0 x 38.0mm, 177 g Q Waterproof to 10m Q Shockproof to 1.8m Q ISO 125 to 1600 Q Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built-in Q Full HD movies Q Q Q Pros: Easy to use with lots of filters. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Good macro mode. Cons: Noisy in low light. No manual control. Slow shooting. Pros: Incredible 24-3000mm zoom. Good image quality. Raw support. Cons: Slow aperture at long focal lengths. No touchscreen. Not weather sealed. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Optical viewfinder 3.0” 921k-dot monitor 16.0 megapixel CMOS sensor 60x optical zoom 24-1440mm equivalent focal length SD, SDHC, SDXC storage media HD movies at 30fps Always-on SnapBridge connection DSLR-style ergonomics Max ISO 125 - 6400 Pros: Huge zoom range. Built-in wireless. Image stabilization. Cons: Only HD movie capture. No Raw shooting. No touchscreen. 4.5 3.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 16 megapixel 1/2.3” sensor Bright f/2.8 to f/8 NIKKOR lens Backside illuminated CMOS sensor Shoot action up to 7fps 125x optical zoom 250x dynamic fine zoom High definition 2,360k electronic viewfinder 4K/UHD movies Nikon vibration reduction 921k LCD monitor 4.0 www.bdmpublications.com 17
Nikon CoolPix B500 Nikon CoolPix P900 CoolPix S9900 £235/$255/€225 40x optical zoom with this brilliant performer £499/$760/€675 Incredible zoom brings the world closer £229/$350/€310 The Jack-of-all-trades compact Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 3.0” 921,000-dot Tilt LCD 16 megapixel low light CMOS sensor 40x Zoom-NIKKOR ED Glass Lens Built-in Wi-Fi, NFC & Bluetooth ISO range 125-1600 (expandable to 6400) Lens Focal Length 4.0-160mm 20MB internal memory SD, SDHC and SDXC storage P/A/S/M exposure modes 7.4fps continuous shooting Pros: Very large zoom level. Cost-effective. Battery life very good. Cons: Uses AA batteries. No viewfinder. Image quality below that of rivals. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 83x optical zoom (24-2000mm equiv.) 16 megapixel BSI CMOS sensor Smooth slide zoom control 5.0-stop Dual Detect Optical VR GPS location finding support Built-in Wi-Fi and NFC support Superfast 0.12sec shutter response 7.5cm 921k-dot vari-angle monitor Full HD (1080/60p) movie recording Zoom microphone Pros: Incredible zoom range. Effective vibration reduction. Extremely versatile. Cons: Heavy at nearly 900g. Long lens hard to control. Very expensive. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 30x optical zoom lens 16 megapixel BSI CMOS sensor EXPEED C2 image processor P/A/S/M exposure modes 7.5-cm 921k-dot vari-angle monitor Hybrid electronic/lens-shift VR Built-in GPS, Wi-Fi and NFC Full HD (1080/60p) movie recording Target finding AF Time-lapse movie mode Pros: Versatile all-rounder. Robust build quality. Excellent value for money. Cons: A little heavy and bulky. Complex for novices. Battery life could be better. 4.5 4.5 4.0 Coolpix S7000 CoolPix AW130 CoolPix L31 £149/$230/€200 Super slim but packed with features £218/$330/€295 A rugged go anywhere waterproof compact £54/$80/€73 Unbeatable value for money Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 20x optical zoom lens 16 megapixel BSI CMOS sensor 27mm thick, weighs 161g EXPEED C2 image processor 7.5-cm 460k-dot TFT LCD monitor Built-in Wi-Fi and NFC Full HD (1080/60p) movie recording 4-axis Hybrid VR Scene auto selector Time-lapse movie mode Pros: Slim and lightweight. Good zoom lens for size. Easy to use. Cons: No manual features. No built-in GPS. Zoom lens a bit unwieldy. 4.0 18 Q www.bdmpublications.com Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Waterproof to 30m underwater Shockproof to 2m, freeze resistant 5x optical zoom lens 16 megapixel BSI CMOS sensor Built-in GPS, Wi-Fi and NFC Built-in world map and compass Altimeter and depth gauge 4-axis Hybrid VR 7.5-cm 921k-dot OLED monitor Full HD (1080/60p) movie recording Pros: Deepest diving of any compact. Packed with outdoor features. Rugged but stylish. Cons: Controls fiddly with gloves on. Limited zoom range. Heavy for a pocket camera. 3.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 16 megapixel CCD image sensor 5x optical zoom lens HD (720/30p) movie recording 6.7-cm 230k-dot LCD monitor Powered by 2xAA batteries EXPEED C2 image processor Scene auto selector Smart portrait system Motion blur reduction Available in a range of colours Pros: Ultra-compact size fits anywhere. Fun and easy to use. Good video modes. Cons: Expensive for a novelty camera. Small size is hard to handle. Image quality only average. 3.5
DIGITAL COMPACT CAMERAS Nikon CoolPix A300 Nikon CoolPix W100 Nikon CoolPix W300 £148/$136/€132 Budget conscious but still packed with features £129/$156/€125 Robust reliability with user friendly features £368/$386/€379 A rugged all weather action camera Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 20.1 megapixel sensor 1/2.3 inch CCD sensor 8x optical zoom Lens 25-200mm equivalent Aperture f/3.7 - f/6.6 Vibration reduction ISO 80 - 3200 in Auto Mode Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built in 2.7 inch 230k dot monitor HD movie capture Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Pros: Decent zoom capability. Image stabilisation. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built- in. Cons: Slow focusing. Image quality is noisy and below par. Video only 720p. 13.2 megapixel effective pixels 1/3.1 inch CMOS sensor Equivalent to 30 - 90mm lens Aperture from f/3.3 to f/5.9 109.5 x 67.0 x 38.0mm, 177 g Waterproof to 10m Freezeproof and dustproof Easy share with SnapBridge Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built in 220 shot battery life Pros: Easy to use. Wi-Fi, NFC and Bluetooth builtin. 4.7fps burst mode. Cons: Image quality noisy. No stabilisation. No optical zoom. 3.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 16 megapixel sensor 1/2.3 inch CMOS sensor NIKKOR lens with 5x optical zoom Aperture from f/2.8 to f/4.9 Lens 24-120mm equivalent Lens shift and electronic VR 3.0” 921k dot monitor ISO 125 - 6400 in Auto Mode 4K movie recording Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built in Pros: 4K video capture. Waterproof to 30m. Close focus macro. Easy to use. Cons: Short battery life. Advanced options lacking. Image quality not great. 2.5 3.5 Nikon CoolPix B700 Nikon CoolPix S2900 Nikon CoolPix A900 £360/$445/€391 DSLR styling in a compact body £95/$120/€109 A very slim affordable camera £299/$396/€329 Quality optics in a pocket-size camera Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 3.0” 921,000-dot Vari-angle LCD 20.2 megapixel low light CMOS sensor 60x Zoom-NIKKOR ED Glass Lens 120x dynamic zoom PSAM mode dial RAW (NRW) capture Built-in Wi-Fi, NFC & Bluetooth 4K UHD videos Built-in flash 5fps shooting and 10fps for 5 shots only Pros: 4K UHD video capture mode. Huge optical zoom range. Raw capture. Cons: Monitor is not touch sensitive. Image quality can suffer at full zoom. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 20.1 megapixel sensor 1/2.3 inch CMOS sensor Five body colour options 5x optical zoom lens 720p HD video 2.7” 230k dot monitor ISO 80 - 3200 EXPEED C2 processor 250 shots per charge Image Stabilisation Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Pros: Light and slim construction. Easy to use with digital filters. Cons: Low resolution monitor. Image quality lacking. Quite slow. 2.5 20.3 megapixel sensor 1/2.3 inch CMOS sensor NIKKOR lens with 35x optical zoom Aperture from f/3.4 to f/6.9 Vibration reduction 3.0” 921k dot monitor ISO 80 - 1600 Built-in flash Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built in 4K movie recording Pros: 4K UHD video capture. Tilting screen. Large zoom capability. Cons: Low light performance is lacking. Screen not touch sensitive. No viewfinder. 3.5 www.bdmpublications.com 19
Nikon DX-format DSLRs From beginners to advanced enthusiasts, Nikon have something for everyone Y ou may notice that the Nikon range of DSLR camera bodies come in two formats. There is DX-format, which we will be looking at in this section and the FXformat, which will be covered in the subsequent section. The DX-format sensor is referred to as a cropped sensor format (APS-C) and measures 24 x 16mm. This means it is slightly smaller than the FX-format sensor which measures 36 x 24mm and is approximately the same size as a full frame of 35mm film. For those with more modest needs, or those looking for a more compact system, Nikon provides a highly acclaimed range of DX-format DSLRs, with APS-C sized sensors. Just because they have smaller sensors however doesn’t make them any less capable and the DX range covers all requirements, from newcomers to SLR photography, with the user-friendly D3300, right the way up to the professional grade D500. All Nikon DSLRs feature advanced autofocus systems, large LCD monitor screens and a full range of manual controls, as well as other advanced features including HD and 4K video, high ISO low light shooting ability and highspeed continuous shooting. Nikon’s DX-format DSLRs can use most of the same lenses as the full-frame FX cameras and are backward compatible with most legacy Nikon lenses from 35mm film cameras. They are also compatible with the full range of Nikon Speedlight flashguns and other accessories. Q Nikon D5200 £320/$490/€430 Advanced features in an affordable entry-level package Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 24.1-megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor ISO range 100–12,800 (extendable to 25,600) EXPEED 3 image processor 5fps continuous shooting 39-point phase-detection autofocus system Eye-level pentamirror reflex viewfinder 2016-pixel RGB TTL exposure sensor 7.5-cm (3-in.) 921k-dot vari-angle monitor Full HD 1080/60i video recording Optional wireless remote control Optional WU-1a wireless mobile adapter 129.0 x 98.0 x 78.0 mm, 555g incl. battery Pros: Excellent features for the price. Superb exposure metering. Good low-light shooting. Cons: An old model by today’s standards. Plastic body. No weatherproofing. 4.0 20 www.bdmpublications.com
NIKON DX-FORMAT DSLRs Nikon D3500 Nikon D3400 Nikon D5300 £329/$376/€475 Premium build quality and easy to shoot and share your precious memories £399/$540/€470 Explore the world of photography with the successor to the excellent D3300 £450/$690/€605 Award winning low to mid-range model, the perfect hobby camera Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 24.78 total pixels 100 - 25600 ISO 11 cross-type focus points 1920 x 1080p movies at 60fps 5fps max burst 3.0” 921k LCD monitor Bluetooth connectivity 95% viewfinder coverage Shoots Raw files Redesigned ergonomics Pros: Great value for money. Good all-round image quality. 5fps continuous shooting. Cons: Bulky compared to rivals. Rear screen not articulated. No 4K video movies. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 24.2-megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor Native ISO range 100–25,600 EXPEED 4 image processor 5fps continuous shooting Nikon SnapBridge connectivity Records 1080/60p Full HD video Built-in Bluetooth connectivity 3.0” LCD 11-point AF system In-camera special effects Pros: Long battery life. Face detection focusing. Top LCD display. 395g light construction. Cons: No image stabilisation. No articulating touch screen. No weatherproofing. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 24.2-megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor ISO range 100–12,800 EXPEED 4 image processor 5fps continuous shooting 39-point phase-detection autofocus system 2016-pixel RGB TTL exposure sensor 8.1 cm (3.2-in.) 1,037k dot vari-angle monitor Full HD 1080/60p video recording Built-in Wi-Fi and GPS 125 x 98 x 76 mm, 530g incl. battery Pros: Outstanding creative features. Huge variangle monitor. Built-in Wi-Fi and GPS. Cons: Plastic body. No weatherproofing. Complex for beginners. 4.0 4.0 Nikon D5600 Nikon D7500 Nikon D500 £542/$645/€610 An excellent entry level DSLR with great image quality £1,350/$1,245/€1,250 A rugged, powerful and versatile camera in a compact design £1,575/$1,895/€1,975 A compact and professional-level APS-C camera Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 24.2-megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor Full HD video recording Shutter speed 1/4000 to 30s ISO range 100-25,600 39 point autofocus system 9 cross-type sensors Built-in Wi-Fi Bluetooth connectivity Up to 5fps continuous shooting 124 x 97 x 70 mm, 465g Pros: Great ergonomic design. Excellent image quality. Touch screen interface. Cons: Shoots 1080p maximum. A little expensive compared to rival cameras. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 20.9-megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor EXPEED 5 image processor 4K UHD video recording 8.0-cm (3.2-in.) 922k-dot tilt-screen ISO range 100–51,200 8fps continuous shooting 51 point phase-detection autofocus system Built-in Wi-Fi Shutter speed 1/8000 to 30s Dust reduction system Pros: Excellent AF system. Up to 8fps burst shooting mode. Quality sensor. Cons: Uses only one SD card slot. LCD screen relatively low resolution. 5.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 20.9-megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor 153 point autofocus system 3.2-inch tilt-angle touchscreen 4K UHD video recording EXPEED 5 image processor 10fps Raw continuous shooting 180,000-pixel RGB metering sensor ISO range 100–51,200 Dual card slots Weather-sealed for harsh conditions Pros: Amazing image quality. Pro-level weather sealing. 10fps burst mode. Cons: Touchscreen is tilt only, not vari-angle. AF lags in live view mode. 5.0 www.bdmpublications.com 21
Nikon FX-format DSLRs If you are looking for the ultimate in full-frame image quality and performance, then look no more N ikon has a long and proud history of making many of the world’s best SLR cameras and that tradition continues with the FX-format DSLRs. The key feature of the range is the full-frame FX-format sensor, the same size as a frame of 35mm film, the FX sensor format provides the ultimate in image quality, especially when paired with Nikon’s legendary optical technology. The FX series cameras are compatible with all of Nikon’s F-bayonet mount lenses, giving access to a huge range of current and legacy lenses, and other accessories. Full-frame DSLRs used to be the exclusive preserve of wealthy professional photographers only but advances in technology and the increasing popularity of the format have brought full-frame cameras within the reach of the enthusiast hobby or semi-pro photographer. Nikon has responded to this trend by introducing several models at a more wallet-friendly price point, including the gorgeous retro styled Df and the entry level D610. Q “The key feature of the range is the full-frame FX-format sensor.” Nikon D6 £6,299/$6,495/€7,375 Keeps up with the demands of the professionals Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 20.8-megapixel FX-format CMOS sensor ISO range 100–102,400 (extendable to 50-3,280,000) EXPEED 6 image processor Up to 14fps continuous shooting 105-point phase-detection autofocus system Eye-level pentamirror reflex viewfinder 180K TTL exposure sensor 2359k-dot touch-sensitive LCD 3840 x 2160 4K UHD 30p Type C USB connector Type C HDMI connector 160 x 163 x 92mm 1450g incl. battery Pros: The top pro camera in Nikon’s range. 4:5, Square 1:1, 16:9, 1.2× and DX crops. Cons: This is a big camera and weighs in at nearly 1.5kg. Very expensive. 4.5 22 www.bdmpublications.com
NIKON FX-FORMAT DSLRs Nikon D610 Nikon D750 Nikon D780 £1,185/$1,800/€1,585 The entry-level model of the Nikon FX DSLR range, the D610 doesn’t skimp on features £1,499/$2,285/€2,010 Take your photography to the next level with this feature packed full-frame DSLR £2,199/$2,295/€2,489 Versatile, reliable and up for any challenge you can throw at it Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 24.3-megapixel FX-format CMOS sensor ISO range 100–6,400 EXPEED 3 image processor 6fps continuous shooting 39 point phase-detection autofocus system 2,016-pixel RGB TTL exposure sensor 8.0-cm (3.2-in.) 921k-dot TFT LCD monitor Full HD 1080/30p video recording Dual SD card slots Optional WU-1b Wireless Mobile Adapter Pros: Entry-level price for full-frame. Relatively light weight. Good value for money. Cons: Limited native ISO range. Partly plastic body. Relatively slow performance. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 24.3-megapixel FX-format CMOS sensor ISO range 100–25,600 EXPEED 4 image processor 6.5fps continuous shooting 51 point phase-detection autofocus system 91,000-pixel RGB TTL exposure sensor 8.0-cm 1,229k-dot tilt-screen LCD monitor Full HD 1080/60p video recording Dual SD card slots Built-in Wi-Fi Pros: Tough weather sealed body. Excellent performance. Good value for money. Cons: Handgrip a bit small. Partly plastic body. Complex controls for newbies. 4.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 24.5-megapixel FX-format CMOS sensor ISO range 100–51200 EXPEED 6 image processor Up to 12fps continuous shooting 51-point phase-detection autofocus system 2359k-dot touch-sensitive LCD 3840 x 2160 4K UHD 30p Type C USB connector Type C HDMI connector 143.5 x 115.5 x 76mm Pros: A top performer in ISO and dynamic range. Excellent build quality. Great AF tracking. Cons: No built-in flash. Excessive JPEG noise reduction. No joystick or touchpad AF control. 5.0 4.5 Nikon D850 Nikon D810 Nikon D5 £3,499/$3,296/€3,799 Amazing performance from the full-frame successor to the D810 £2,349/$3,575/€3,145 Still one of the best. The awesome D810 is still a choice for the discerning professional £6,100/$6,499/€7,180 Setting high standards in photographic performance and reliability Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 45.7-megapixel FX-format CMOS sensor 153 point autofocus system 99 cross-type sensors EXPEED 5 image processor 3.2-inch tilt-angle touchscreen Up to 7fps continuous shooting 153 point autofocus system 4K UHD 30p video capture USB 3.0, HDMI, Bluetooth connectivity Max ISO range 64-102,400 Pros: Outstanding image quality. 19.4MP crop mode. Amazing AF system. Cons: Very expensive. Focusing in live view not as fast as rivals. 5.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 36.3-megapixel FX-format CMOS sensor ISO range 64–12,800 EXPEED 4 image processor 7fps continuous shooting 51 point phase-detection autofocus system 91,000-pixel RGB TTL exposure sensor 8.0-cm (3.2-in.) 1,229k-dot LCD monitor Full HD 1080/60p video recording Dual card slots, SD & CF Ultra-high capacity battery Pros: Tough weather sealed body. Awesome image quality. Super-fast performance. Cons: Very expensive. Bulky and heavy. Complex controls. 5.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 20.8-megapixel FX-format CMOS sensor ISO range 100-102400 EXPEED 5 image processor 14fps continuous shooting with AF 153 point phase-detection autofocus system 180,000-pixel RGB TTL exposure sensor 8.0-cm (3.2-in.) 2,359,000 dot LCD monitor Dual CompactFlash or dual XQD card slots USB 3.0, HDMI and optional wireless 160 x 159 x 92 mm, 1415 g incl. battery Pros: Class leading AF. Amazing battery life. Excellent AF in challenging light. Cons: Very heavy. Video features still lacking. Auto AF fine tune can be erratic. 5.0 www.bdmpublications.com 23
The Nikon Z series mirrorless system A system designed to capture more detail, more colour and more light N ikon have created a system that ushers in a new era of photographic possibilities. Mirrorless cameras have been with us for some time but now Nikon have changed the game with their two Z series cameras. They have taken their inspiration from the D850 full-frame DSLR which is a model of perfection, sturdy build quality, easy handling and impressive image quality. All the qualities you want from the D850 form factor have been transposed into the smaller, lighter Z7 and Z6 mirrorless bodies. It looks like a Nikon and, more importantly, it handles like a Nikon, but it is going to become the future of photographic imaging. Both the Z7 and the Z6 use the new Z Mount full-frame lens mount. This new design is actually the widest mount on any camera. At 55mm, it is 17% larger than a standard F Mount which allows more light capture and places the lens closer to the sensor allowing smaller, lighter cameras and lens design. The build and ergonomics of the two cameras have been carefully crafted to be lighter than standard DSLR bodies and allow intuitive control. Combined with an articulating touchscreen, navigating and adjusting settings has never been easier. The new cameras have impressive specifications: The Z7 sports a huge 45.7MP sensor and the Z6 weighs in at 24.5MP. The Z7 also boasts 493-point on-sensor PDAF technology to increase the focusing speed. The Z6 employs 273-point PDAF. Both are powered by the latest EXPEED 6 image processor for unrivalled handling. The Z6 has a native ISO range from 100 - 51,200 and can capture 12fps in continuous shooting mode. The Z7 has a 64 - 25,600 native ISO range and can capture 9fps in continuous shooting mode. Couple all the features listed above with the cinematic 4K UHD video capability and you can see why the Nikon Z system will capture the imagination of photographers and videographers everywhere. Nikon Z7 £3,462/$3,500/€3,699 Nikon’s first full-frame mirrorless camera Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 45.7MP sensor New Nikon Z Mount system Powerful EXPEED 6 image processor 64 - 25600 ISO range 493 PDAF focus points 4K UHD movies 9fps continuous shooting 8K time-lapse movies 5-axis optical vibration reduction 2.1M dot tilt display Built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Compatible with Nikon Speedlights and more Rugged design and weather sealing Pros. Smaller and lighter than standard fullframe DSLRs. Cons. Very expensive. AF system less reliable than rivals. Short battery life. 4.5 “The new cameras have impressive specifications: The Z7 sports a huge 45.7MP sensor and the Z6 weighs in at 24.5MP. “ 24 www.bdmpublications.com
THE NIKON Z SERIES MIRRORLESS SYSTEM Nikon Z6 £2,099/$1,996/€2,225 Incredible all round performance Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 24.5MP sensor New Nikon Z Mount system Powerful EXPEED 6 image processor 100 - 51200 ISO range 273 PDAF focus points 4K UHD movies 12fps continuous shooting 100Mbps video capture Single XQD card slot 2.1M dot tilt display Built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth OLED top plate display 3.69M dot OLED viewfinder Pros. Great high-ISO performance. High-res EVF. Silent shutter mode. Cons. Subject tracking selection can be tricky. Short battery life. 5.0 “The Z50 heralds their first foray into the APS-C mirrorless format.” Nikon Z 50 £849/$857/€949 This APS-C mirrorless camera is small and mighty Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 20.9MP sensor CMOS 23.5 mm x 15.7 mm DX format 11 frames per second 4K / 30fps video RF lens mount 100-51200 Low light AF -4 EV 209 focus point Built-in pop-up flash 8cm 1.04M vari-angle monitor 0.39-inch 2,360,000-dot OLED viewfinder Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Powerful EXPEED 6 image processor 126.5 x 93.5 x 60 mm Pros: Great image quality. Excellent video at 4K. Good dynamic range and ergonomics. Cons: No in-body image stabilisation. Battery life is poor. Minimal lens availability. 4.5 www.bdmpublications.com 25
NIKKOR DX-format lenses Expand your creativity and choose from a wide range of DX-format lenses for your APS-C DSLR “If you own a Nikon DSLR with a 24 x16mm APS-C sensor, this makes it a DX-format camera body. These smaller sensors allow for the production of lighter and smaller camera bodies.” 26 www.bdmpublications.com W hat exactly is a DX-format lens? A DSLR camera’s format is based upon the size of its sensor. If you own a Nikon DSLR with a 24 x 16mm APS-C sensor, this makes it a DX-format camera body. These smaller sensors allow for the production of lighter and smaller camera bodies. If you were to use a normal full-frame lens on a new crop sensor camera, it would project an image that was too big for the sensor. A 100mm full-frame lens for example, would project an image that was about 1.5 times too large for the smaller sensor. This meant that a new kind of lens had to be created that could project an image onto the smaller sensor and thus the DX-format lens came into being. Just as a side note, if you’ve ever wondered what NIKKOR stands for, it is a westernised name derived from the Nikko parent company and was introduced in 1932. Nikon cameras allow for the interchange of lenses between their DX-format and FX-format camera bodies. If you own a full-frame Nikon camera, you can still use a DX-format lens on it. The camera detects that a crop sensor lens is attached and automatically crops the frame to suit the lens being used. Q
NIKKOR DX-FORMAT LENSES AF-P DX NIKKOR 10-20mm f/4.5-5.6G VR AF-P DX NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR AF-P DX NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3G ED VR £329/$269/€396 Get creative and go ultra-wide £118/$246/€100 Compact and lightweight for daily use £252/$396/€283 A versatile super-telephoto zoom lens Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Focal length 10-20mm Maximum aperture f/4.5 - f/5.6 14 elements in 11 groups 7 diaphragm blades 109° to 70° angle of view 0.22m minimum focusing distance 3.5 stops image stabilisation Filter size 72mm 77 x 73mm, 230g 0.17x reproduction ratio Pros: Quick focussing. Low amounts of distortion at widest focal length. Cons: Not a constant aperture lens. Some chromatic aberration at 10mm. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Focal length 18-55mm Maximum aperture f/3.5 - f/5.6 Image stabilisation 12 elements in 9 groups 7 diaphragm blades 76° to 28° angle of view 0.38x reproduction ratio 0.25m minimum focusing distance Filter size 55mm 64.5 x 62.5mm, 205g Pros: Very quiet autofocusing. Fast focusing lock. A decent kit lens. Cons: Not compatible with a number of DX cameras. Check compatibility. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Focal length 70-300mm Maximum aperture f/4.5 - f/6.3 Minimum aperture f/22 - f/32 14 elements in 10 groups 7 diaphragm blades 22° to 5° angle of view 1.1m minimum focusing distance 0.22x reproduction ratio Filter size 58mm 72 x 125mm, 415g Pros: Appears sharp at all focal lengths. Fast and quiet autofocus. Cons: Check your camera for AF-P compatibility. Not all cameras work with it. 3.0 4.5 AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR II AF-S DX Zoom-NIKKOR 17-55mm f/2.8G IF-ED AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II £135/$146/€170 Ultra-compact telephoto lens £1,346/$1,496/€1,599 A professional DX zoom lens £692/$646/€699 The flexible all-in-one lens Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Focal length 55-200mm Maximum aperture f/4 - f/5.6 Image stabilisation 13 elements in 9 groups 7 diaphragm blades 28° to 8° angle of view 0.23x reproduction ratio Filter size 52mm 1.1m minimum focusing distance 70.5 x 83mm, 300g Pros: Extremely compact. Silent wave autofocus great for this budget. Cons: Focusing ring will move as the lens is zoomed in and out. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Focal length 17-55mm Maximum aperture f/2.8 Minimum aperture f/22 14 elements in 10 groups 79° to 28° angle of view 9 diaphragm blades Filter size 77mm 1/5 reproduction ratio 0.36m minimum focusing distance 85.5 x 110.5mm, 755g Pros: Constant f/2.8 aperture. Sharp images with good contrast. Cons: Expensive lens. Some barrel distortion at the wide end. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Focal length 18-200mm Maximum aperture f/3.5-f/5.6 Minimum aperture f/22-f/36 16 elements in 12 groups 76° to 8° angle of view 7 diaphragm blades Filter size 72mm 0.5m minimum focusing distance 0.22x reproduction ratio 77 x 96.5mm, 565g Pros: Flexible lens with good zoom range. Compact. Sharp images. Cons: Reports of models suffering from lens creep. Quite heavy. 5.0 www.bdmpublications.com 27
AF-S 16-80mm f/2.8-4E ED VR AF-S 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR AF-S 18‒55mm f/3.5‒5.6G VR II £629/$965/€845 High performance general purpose zoom £130/$200/€175 Affordable compact telephoto zoom £199/$305/€268 Versatile standard zoom lens Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q High performance 5x zoom lens Compact and lightweight, just 480g Optical vibration reduction Fast maximum aperture, f/2.8 – f/4 Minimum focus distance 35cm Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Electromagnetic diaphragm Nano crystal coating reduces flare 72mm filter ring Aperture range f/2.8 - f/32 Pros: Very good image quality. Good sharpness throughout. Cons: It is quite heavy and expensive. Noisy focusing. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Telephoto zoom lens, great for travel Optical vibration reduction Retractable lens mechanism Light and compact, 300g Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Maximum aperture f/4 – f/5.6 One extra low dispersion glass element Pairs well with 18–55mm f/3.5–5.6G VR II Minimum focus distance 110cm 52mm filter ring Pros: Useful zoom range. Decent build quality for the price. Cons: Not a constant aperture zoom lens. Superseded by its VRII update. 4.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 3x zoom lens for snaps and HD movies Optical vibration reduction Retractable lens mechanism Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Light and compact, 195g Aspherical lens element Ideal standard zoom replacement Pairs well with 55-200mm f4-5.6G ED VR II Minimum focus distance 28cm 52mm filter ring Pros: Very compact design. Good centre sharpness across the zoom range. Cons: Not a constant aperture zoom lens. Some image softness at around 35mm. 4.0 3.5 AF-S 18‒300mm f/3.5‒6.3G ED VR AF-S 18-140 f/3.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR £549/$845/€740 Multi-purpose wide telephoto £429/$660/€580 Compact and versatile wide zoom £269/$415/€363 Powerful super telephoto zoom lens Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Wide 16.7x zoom range ideal for HD video Optical vibration reduction Maximum aperture f/3.5 – f/6.3 Zoom-lock switch keeps the lens secure Weather sealed mount Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Minimum focus distance 48cm 99mm long and 550g 67mm filter ring Pros: Very lightweight and compact. Fast autofocus. Good zoom range. Cons: Not as sharp as some others in this range. No lens hood supplied. 3.5 28 Q www.bdmpublications.com Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 7.8x zoom lens ideal for general shots Silent action ideal for video Optical vibration reduction Maximum aperture f/3.5 – f/5.6 Weather sealed mount Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Minimum focus distance 45cm 490g and 97mm long 67mm filter ring Pros: Decent optics for this price point. Good build. Versatile zoom range. Cons: Known to be noisy while focusing. Possible drop in sharpness around 70mm. 4.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 5.5x zoom ideal for wildlife and sports 35mm equivalent 82.5-450mm Optical vibration reduction Maximum aperture f/4.5 – f/5.6 Weather sealed mount Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Minimum focus distance 140cm 530g and 123mm long 58mm filter ring Pros: Good value. Great build. Good sharpness around the mid-zoom range. Cons: Images can be soft around 300mm. Some may not like the telescoping body. 4.5
NIKKOR DX-FORMAT LENSES AF-S DX NIKKOR 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX NIKKOR 10-24MM f/3.5-4.5G ED AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G £429/$660/€580 Compact and versatile zoom £639/$985/€862 Ultra wide-angle zoom gets more in shot £136/$210/€184 Wide aperture lens for maximum quality Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 5.3x zoom perfect for portraits, interiors and landscapes Superior optical performance Optical vibration reduction Maximum aperture f/3.5 – f/5.6 Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Nikon Super Integrated Coating Minimum focus distance 38cm 485g and 85mm long 67mm filter ring Pros: Great VR image stabilisation. Good build quality. Cons: Outshined by the optically superior 1755mm. Lack of sharpness at the wide end. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 2.4x wide zoom lens ideal for panoramic landscapes and interiors 10 to 24mm focal range Maximum aperture f/3.5 – f/4.5 Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Non-rotating front element Internal focus design Minimum focus distance 24cm 460g and 87mm long 77mm filter ring Pros: Solid and well built. Better at smaller apertures. Quick autofocus. Cons: Noticeable edge distortion at 10mm. Sharper alternatives out there. 3.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Wide aperture 35mm lens Maximum aperture f/1.8 Minimum aperture f/22 Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Advanced optical design for sharpness Balanced lightweight and compact M/A (manual-priority autofocus) Minimum focus distance 30cm 70 x 52.5 mm, 200g 52mm filter ring Pros: One of the better budget prime lenses. Reasonably sharp images with decent contrast. Cons: Autofocus can be slow and even slower in low light. Reports of chromatic aberration. 4.0 4.5 AF-DX Fisheye-NIKKOR 10.5mm f/2.8G ED AF-S DX Micro NIKKOR 40mm f/2.8G AF-S DX Micro NIKKOR 85mm f/3.5G ED VR £549/$845/€740 The first fisheye for the Nikon DX format £185/$286/€250 High quality macro lens £349/$540/€470 Compact and lightweight DX format macro Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q True fisheye with 180-degree view angle Focal length 10.5mm Maximum aperture f/2.8, minimum f/22 Designed for DX only Close range correction 10 elements in 7 groups Minimum focus distance 14cm 63 x 62.5mm, 305g Gelatin filter for lens mount provided Fixed lens hood Pros: Good quality fisheye lens. Great sharpness across the board. Compact size. Cons: Construction does not allow for external filters. A little expensive. 4.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q True macro, 1:1 reproduction Built to capture fine detail Focal length 40mm Maximum aperture f/2.8, minimum f/22 Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus M/A (manual-priority autofocus) 9 elements in 7 groups Minimum focus distance 30cm 68.5 x 64.5 mm, 235g 52mm filter ring Pros: Great quality 1:1 macro lens effects. Autofocus is fast and quiet. Cons: Lacklustre autofocus ability in low light situations. No vibration reduction. 3.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q True macro, 1:1 reproduction Max aperture f/3.5 Minimum aperture f/22 Optical vibration reduction Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Non-rotating front element Internal focus design Minimum focus distance 29cm 73 x 98.5 mm, 355g 52mm filter ring Pros: Solid, portable and good ergonomics. Switch focus mode with the M/A selector. Cons: Sharpness and contrast a little below par. Relatively slow max aperture. 3.5 www.bdmpublications.com 29
NIKKOR FX-format lenses Choose from the world-renowned range of full-frame FX-format lenses from one of the best optical manufacturers in the business I t is likely that as a photographer, enthusiast, pro or otherwise, you will hear the often quoted mantra that a camera is only as good as the lens you attach to it. In the ever advancing world of camera and sensor technology, the size of the images the camera can capture and its ability to resolve amazing detail can often show up the weaknesses of below par lenses. Sharpness is probably the first thing you might notice when reviewing an image taken on something like the Nikon D850 but the sharpness of your lens is just the beginning, there is also contrast to consider as well as how much distortion is present. Then comes colour fringing and the darkening of the image edges known as vignetting. Obviously, you can offset a lot of these issues at the post-process stage but it comes at the risk of degrading the image. The best solution of course, is to get it as perfect as possible at the capture stage. With this in mind, Nikon have been developing their range of full-frame lenses for over 80 years with the goal of pursuing optical excellence. Their current line up of full-frame FX-format lenses are some of the best you can buy right now. From the amazing fisheye zoom lens to the longest super-telephoto, you have a choice of incredible optical technology that will do your DSLR proud and capture the world in superb sharpness and focus. Q “You have a choice of incredible optical technology that will do your DSLR proud.” 30 www.bdmpublications.com
NIKKOR FX-FORMAT LENSES AF-S FISHEYE NIKKOR 8-15mm f/3.5-4.5E ED AF 14mm f/2.8D ED PC NIKKOR 19mm f/4E ED £1,250/$1,246/€1,549 Advanced optical construction in Nikon’s first fisheye zoom lens £1,199/$1,854/€1,637 High performance, ultra wide-angle lens for photojournalism £3,299/$3,396/€3,739 An ideal tilt-shift lens for architectural and landscape photography Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Maximum aperture f/3.5-f/4.5 Minimum aperture f/22-f/29 7 diaphragm blades 15 elements in 13 groups 180° to 175° angle of view 29 x 27mm filter slot 0.34x reproduction ratio 0.16m minimum focusing distance 77.5 x 83mm, 485g Pros: Ultra wide zoom and fisheye all in one. Excellent image quality. Fast focus. Cons: A very expensive purchase. Some may find this has limited uses. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Maximum aperture f/2.8, minimum f/22 RF (rear focusing) system Hybrid aspherical lens elements Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Seven diaphragm blades 14 elements in 12 groups Minimum focus distance 20cm 87 x 86.5 mm, 670g Built-in rear filter holder Pros: Great lens for architectural photography. One of the widest rectilinear lenses around. Cons: Very niche lens. Front element is spherical. The hood offers little protection. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Maximum aperture f/4 17 elements in 13 groups 97° angle of view 9 diaphragm blades No filter attachment possible Shift ± 12mm Tilt ± 7.5° 0.18x reproduction ratio 89 x 124mm, 885g Pros: One of the best tilt-shift lenses for Nikon around. Excellent image quality. Cons: A very expensive lens compared to rivals. Niche application for the price. 3.5 5.0 AF-S 14-24mm f/2.8G ED AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR AF-S 24mm f/1.8G £1,315/$2,035/€1,800 Wide-angle fast aperture zoom lens with a revolutionary optical design £1,199/$1,854/€1,637 The most widely used professional lens in the NIKKOR range £629/$973/€860 Compact and lightweight wide-angle lens with close focusing Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Maximum aperture f/2.8 Weather sealed lens mount Nano Crystal coating Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Manual-priority autofocus and manual focus 14 elements in 11 groups Minimum focus distance 28cm 98 x 131.5 mm, 1,000g Integrated lens hood Pros: Superb image quality. Versatile ultrawide lens. Excellent optics. Cons: Heavy. Expensive. Filters cannot be used without special adapters. 5.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Maximum aperture f/2.8, minimum f/22 Optical vibration reduction Nano Crystal and Fluorine coatings Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Rugged and reliable construction 20 elements in 16 groups, 2 ED, 3 aspherical, 1 HRI Minimum focus distance 38cm 88.0 × 154.5mm, 1,070g 82mm filter ring Pros: Exceptionally sharp lens at either end of the zoom range. Pro quality build. Cons: Heavy. It is very bulky. Can suffer lens flare. Possible zoom creep. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Fast aperture wide-angle lens Maximum aperture f/1. Minimum aperture f/16 Manual and auto focusing Nano Crystal coating Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Seven diaphragm blades Minimum focus distance 23cm 77.5 × 83.0mm, 355g 72mm filter ring Pros: Great low light capability with the f/1.8 aperture. Sharp from corner to corner. Cons: Reports of autofocus issues. Not an ultrawide lens. 3.5 www.bdmpublications.com 31
AF-S 28mm f/1.8G AF-S NIKKOR 28mm f/1.4E ED AF-S 35mm f/1.4G £495/$765/€676 FX-format wide-angle lens with 28mm focal length and fast aperture £1,951/$1,996/€2,222 An amazing f/1.4 low light performer with great resolving power £1,295/$2,000/€1,765 Ultra-fast wide-angle lens with outstanding optical quality Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Fast aperture wide-angle lens Maximum aperture f/1.8, minimum f/16 Weather sealed lens mount Nano Crystal coating Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Seven diaphragm blades Minimum focus distance 25cm 73 x 80.5 mm, 330g 67mm filter ring Pros: A sharp, fast, prime lens. Great centre sharpness wide open. Cons: Autofocus may need fine-tuning for best results. Quite bulky. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Pros: Fast focusing. Impressive image quality. Very fast max aperture. Great contrast and colour. Cons: Expensive compared to 28mm f/1.8G. Quite heavy. Some slight fall-off at f/1.4 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Fast, wide-angle professional lens Maximum aperture f/1 Minimum aperture f/16 Auto and manual focus Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Nano Crystal coat reduces flare Minimum focus distance 30cm 83 x 89.5 mm, 600g 67mm filter ring Pros: Fast lens with very wide max aperture. Sharp with fast autofocus. Cons: Can be a bit soft at f/1.4. Some chromatic aberration wide open in high contrast scenes. 5.0 4.5 AF-S 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5G ED VR AF-S 18-35mm f/3.5-4.5G ED AF-S 50mm f/1.4G £346/$535/€472 Popular zoom lens for use with FX-format SLRs £519/$800/€710 Lightweight and affordable wide-angle NIKKOR zoom lens £275/$425/€375 Fast 50mm lens with high quality optics, ideal for low light shooting Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Maximum aperture f/3.5-4.5 Optical vibration reduction Nikon Super Integrated Coating Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Weather sealed lens mount 16 elements in 11 groups, 1 ED and 3 aspherical elements Minimum focus distance 38cm 78 x 82 mm, 465g 72mm filter ring Pros: Compares well to more expensive alternatives. Lightweight. Sharp mid-range zoom. Cons: Variable aperture across the zoom range. May not focus well in low light. 4.0 32 Maximum aperture f/1.4 Minimum aperture f/16 14 elements in 11 groups 75° angle of view 9 diaphragm blades Filter size 77mm 0.28m minimum focusing distance 0.17x reproduction ratio 83 x 100.5mm, 645g www.bdmpublications.com Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Wide-angle zoom lens with close focus Maximum aperture f/3.5-4.5 Weather sealed lens mount Nikon Super Integrated Coating Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Manual-priority and manual focus 12 elements in 8 groups Minimum focus distance 28cm 83 x 95 mm, 385g 77mm filter ring Pros: Huge value for money. Great sharpness and image quality. Very little distortion. Cons: Zoom ring can be hard to turn. Variable aperture. Not as fast as rivals. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q High quality standard prime lens Maximum aperture f/1.4 Minimum aperture f/16 Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Coated optics 8 elements in 7 groups Minimum focus distance 45cm 73.5 × 54 mm, 280g 58mm filter ring Pros: Very reasonably priced. Light and compact. Impressive results. Cons: Users may choose the cheaper 50mm f/1.8G. Slow AF in low light. 4.0
NIKKOR FX-FORMAT LENSES AF-S 50mm f/1.8G AF-P 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6E ED VR AF-S 70-200mm f/4G ED VR £135/$208/€184 Compact, lightweight and affordable standard prime lens £700/$675/€849 Capture the action with this full-frame telephoto zoom with SPORT VR mode £859/$1,329/€1,174 High performance telephoto zoom lens for use with FX-format SLRs Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Affordable lightweight prime lens Maximum aperture f/1.8 Minimum aperture f/16 Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Weather sealed lens mount Minimum focus distance 45cm 72 x 52.5 mm, 185g 58mm filter ring Pros: Amazing quality for such a low price. Great bokeh. Sharp and fast. Cons: Can be noisy when focusing. Image quality may suffer wide open. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Maximum aperture f/4.5-f/5.6 Minimum aperture f/32-f/40 9 diaphragm blades 18 elements in 14 groups Filter size 67mm Image stabilisation 0.25x reproduction ratio 1.2m minimum focusing distance 80.5 x 146mm, 680g Pros: Vibration reduction smooth and solid. Fast focusing. Sharp with good contrast. Cons: Autofocus can ‘hunt’ on occasion. May be prone to some vignetting. 5.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Maximum aperture f/4, minimum f/32 Optical vibration reduction Nano Crystal coating Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Manual-priority autofocus 20 elements in 14 groups Minimum focus distance 100cm 78 x 178.5 mm, 850g 52mm filter ring Pros: Excellent centre sharpness with decent edge sharpness above f/5.6. Relatively cheap. Cons: Not as fast as its f/2.8 counterpart. Some pincushion and barrel distortion. 4.5 4.5 AF-S NIKKOR 105mm f/1.4E ED AF-S NIKKOR 500mm f/5.6E PF ED VR AF-S 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR £1,786/$2,196/€2,107 Unbeatable wide-open performance prime lens £3,699/$3,596/€4,336 The new super-telephoto with a compact build £1,179/$1,824/€1,612 Versatile super telephoto zoom lens for wildlife or sports Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Maximum aperture f/1.4 Minimum aperture f/16 9 diaphragm blades 14 elements in 9 groups Filter size 82mm 94.5 x 106mm, 985g 1m minimum focusing distance Angle of view FX-format 23° Angle of view DX-format 15° 0.13x reproduction ratio Pros: Fairly sharp wide open. Even sharper when you stop down. Improved AF speed. Cons: Expensive. Some may miss the inclusion of vibration reduction. 4.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Maximum aperture f/5.6 Minimum aperture f/32 9 diaphragm blades 19 elements in 11 groups Filter size 95mm 106 x 237mm, 1460g Image stabilisation 3m minimum focusing distance Angle of view FX-format 5° Angle of view DX-format 3° Pros: Super compact and lightweight supertelephoto. Quick autofocus. Sharp images. Cons: Very expensive and niche lens. VR reported to struggle at certain shutter speeds. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Constant-aperture telephoto zoom lens Maximum aperture f/5.6, minimum f/32 Optical vibration reduction Electromagnetic diaphragm Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Manual-priority autofocus and manual focus 19 elements in 12 groups, 3 ED elements Minimum focus distance 220cm 108 mm × 267.5 mm, 2,300g 95mm filter ring Pros: Outstanding performer at a reasonable price. Very sharp. VR is top notch. Cons: Autofocus considered a bit sluggish. Not well weather-sealed. Lot of zoom ring travel. 4.5 www.bdmpublications.com 33
AF Fisheye 16mm f/2.8D AF-S Micro 60mm f/2.8G ED AF-S 180-400mm f/4E TC1.4 FL ED VR £625/$967/€854 Frame-filling fisheye lens for dramatic wideangle images £369/$570/€504 Popular 60mm macro lens for use with Nikon FX and DX format £12,103/$12,396/€13,700 The new telephoto zoom lens benchmark with built in teleconverter Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q True fisheye, 180 degree angle of view Maximum aperture f/2.8, minimum f/22 Close Range Correction (CRC) system Seven blade diaphragm Integral lens hood Rear bayonet attachment for filters 8 elements in 5 groups Minimum focus distance 25cm 63 x 57mm, 290g Pros: Small, light and fairly quick to focus. Nice clear images. Creative possibilities. Cons: A niche lens with possible limited use. Built down to a price. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q True macro lens, 1:1 reproduction Maximum aperture f/2.8, minimum f/32 Non-rotating front element Nine blade rounded diaphragm Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus 12 elements in 9 groups Minimum focus distance 18.5cm 73 x 89 mm, 425g 62mm filter ring Pros: Top notch build quality. Sharp images. 1:1 macro or great portrait lens. Cons: Some instances of a tight and abrasive lens mount. Focus adjustment may be required. 4.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Focal length 262-560mm with teleconverter 9 diaphragm blades 27 elements in 19 groups Filter size 40.5mm 128 x 362.5mm, 3500g 0.25x reproduction ratio at 400mm Image stabilisation Built-in 1.4x teleconverter 2.0m minimum focusing distance Pros: Robust build. Sharp edge-to-edge wide open. Fast, accurate focusing. Built in teleconverter. Cons: Very expensive and designed for the pros. Heavy. Some vignetting on FX bodies. 4.5 5.0 AF-S 400mm f/2.8E FL ED VR AF-S 600mm f/4E AF-S 800mm f/5.6E FL ED VR £10,399/$16,100/€14,230 Professional FX-format telephoto prime lens ideal for sports £9,649/$14,945/€13,200 Professional FX-format super telephoto lens for sports and wildlife £12,995/$20,117/€17,766 An ultimate FX-format super telephoto lens for sports and wildlife shooters Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Fast-aperture telephoto lens Maximum aperture f/2.8, minimum f/22 Optical vibration reduction Nano Crystal and Fluorine coatings Tripod mount ring with ergonomic handle Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus 16 elements in 12 groups, 2 ED and 2 fluorite elements Minimum focus distance 260cm 159.5 x 358 mm, 3,800g 40.5mm drop-in filters Pros: Sharp images and immediate focusing ability. Crisp with well saturated colours. Cons: An extremely expensive lens. Some may find its weight restrictive. 5.0 34 www.bdmpublications.com Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Fast aperture super telephoto lens Maximum aperture f/4, minimum f/22 Optical vibration reduction Nano Crystal and Fluorine coatings Tripod mount ring with ergonomic handle Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus 16 elements in 12 groups, 4 ED and 2 fluorite elements Minimum focus distance 440cm 166 x 432 mm, 3,810g 40.5mm drop-in filters Pros: Sharp images from the superior optics. Top-level VR image stabilisation. Cons: A very expensive lens. Some may find tuning is required. For pro shooters. 4.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Fast-aperture super telephoto lens Maximum aperture f/4, minimum f/22 Optical vibration reduction Nano Crystal coating Includes 1.25x teleconverter Electromagnetic diaphragm mechanism 20 elements in 13 groups, 2 ED and 2 fluorite elements Minimum focus distance 590cm 160 x 461 mm, 4,590g 52mm screw-in filters Pros: Super fast and quiet autofocus. Razor sharp images. Lighter than it looks. Cons: A very expensive lens. There are cheaper alternatives out there. 4.0
NIKKOR FX-FORMAT LENSES AF Micro 200mm f/4D IF-ED AF-S 300mm f/4E PF ED VR AF-S NIKKOR 200mm F2G ED VRII £1,179/$1,824/€1,612 Telephoto Micro lens for close-up and nature photography £1,500/$1,730/€1,799 Impressive performance and compact build for sports and wildlife £5,995/$5,695/€6,913 High performance telephoto zoom lens for use with FX-format SLRs Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q True macro lens, 1:1 reproduction Maximum aperture f/4, minimum f/32 Close Range Correction (CRC) system Nine blade rounded diaphragm Optional lens hood HN-30 13 elements in 8 groups, 2 ED elements Minimum focus distance 50cm 76 x 193mm, 1,190g 62mm filter ring Pros: A truly great 1:1 macro performer. Superior sharpness with little chromatic aberration. Cons: Expensive macro lens. Autofocus can be loud. Some may find it too long and heavy. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Aperture range f/4 to 32 One Phase Fresnel and one ED Element Nano Crystal and Super Integrated coating Fluorine coated front lens element Silent Wave Motor AF system Nikon VR image stabilisation Internal focus and manual focus override Electromagnetic diaphragm mechanism Lighter & more compact than predecessor Pros: Lightweight construction. Compact build and very sharp. Cons: Some are reporting that, at moderate shutter speeds, the VR is inconsistent. 5.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Fast f/2 aperture prime F-Mount Lens/FX format Aperture range f/2 to f/22 Three ED elements, One Super ED element Nano Crystal & Super Integrated coatings Silent Wave Motor AF system VR II Image stabilisation Detachable, rotating tripod collar Rounded 9-blade diaphragm Pros: Very fast aperture prime lens. Sharp, with great colour rendition and contrast. Cons: A very heavy lens for its size. Bulky design. Very expensive. 4.0 4.5 AF-S NIKKOR 24-120mm f/4G ED VR PC-E NIKKOR 24mm f/3.5D ED AF NIKKOR 180mm f/2.8D IF-ED £1,079/$1,099/€1,244 Great performance from a versatile lens with a useful focal length range £1,899/$2,196/€2,188 A perfect lens for architecture and landscape photography £748/$1,001/€1,612 Versatile super telephoto zoom lens. For wildlife or sports Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q F-Mount Lens/FX format Constant maximum aperture Aperture range f/4 to f/22 Three aspherical and two ED elements Nano Crystal & Super Integrated coatings Silent Wave Motor AF system VR II image stabilisation Rounded 9-blade diaphragm Weather-sealed design Versatile ‘walking around’ lens Pros: Great all-purpose zoom lens. VR II mode is rock steady. Quick autofocus. Cons: Bulky for smaller camera bodies. Some vignetting and softness visible at 120mm. 4.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q F-Mount Lens/FX format Aperture range f/3.5 to f/32 Three ED and three Aspherical elements Nano Crystal & Super Integrated coatings Maximum tilt: +/- 8.5° Maximum shift: +/- 11.5mm PC rotation capability: +/-90° Close Range Correction system Rounded 9-blade diaphragm 77mm filter size Pros: Very sharp images from the ED optics. Rugged and dependable. Cons: Tilt and shift directions are tied together. Be aware of trying to over tighten locking knobs. 4.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Constant-aperture telephoto zoom lens Maximum aperture f/5.6, minimum f/32 Optical vibration reduction Electromagnetic diaphragm Silent Wave Motor for fast quiet autofocus Manual-priority autofocus and manual focus 19 elements in 12 groups, 3 ED elements Minimum focus distance 220cm 108mm × 267.5mm, 2,300g 95mm filter ring Pros: Sharp results from the superior optics. Relatively inexpensive. Good second hand deals. Cons: Older lens. Some may favour the more versatile 70-200mm f/2.8. 4.0 www.bdmpublications.com 35
NIKKOR Z series lenses Amazing sharpness and light gathering capability with the new NIKKOR Z lenses T he new Z Mount NIKKOR Z lenses are no less impressive than the Z series mirrorless cameras for which they are designed. Their optical performance takes photography to the next level and they boast amazing specifications of their own. They are comprehensively sealed to prevent the ingress of dust and moisture yet are still lightweight and well-balanced. At the moment there are 4 lenses available with more to be rolled out over the next two years . They cover useful focal ranges such as the 14-30mm f/4 wide-angle and 24-70mm f/4. 36 www.bdmpublications.com If you need fast primes, then having 35mm and 50mm f/1.8 lenses gives you the ability to shoot in darker scenarios and gather more light. Soon to be added to the list is the 58mm S Noct. This is the fastest NIKKOR lens in production and boasts a maximum aperture of f/0.95. This is a low-light performance lens with incredible depth of field control and amazing bokeh for portraits. If you already own NIKKOR F Mount lenses, you can use the FTZ mount adapter and still be able to use all your favourite lenses on the new system camera bodies. Q “Their optical performance takes photography to the next level and they boast amazing specifications.”
NIKKOR Z SERIES LENSES NIKKOR Z 58mm f/0.95 S Noct NIKKOR Z 14-30mm f/4 S NIKKOR Z 24-70mm f/4 S Coming soon The fastest Nikon lens ever made £1349/$1296/€1449 Compact build ultra-wide zoom £999/$996/€1087 A great lens for every occasion Q Soon, Nikon will be unveiling the NIKKOR Z 58mm f/0.95 S Noct. Noct is short for Nocturne as a nod to its undoubted low-light ability. It is a reimagining of Nikon’s old 58mm f/1.2 lens from 1977. The Noct is slated for a 2019 release and is a manual focus lens designed to deliver the ultimate in sharpness, amazing shallow depth of field and image reproduction. Pros: Very sharp images. Very solid design. Supremely large maximum aperture. Cons: Manual focus lens only. Will be very expensive. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Nikon Z mount 14-30mm focal range FX/35mm format Maximum aperture f/4 Minimum aperture f/22 14 elements in 12 groups 7 diaphragm blades Filter size 82mm 0.28mm focusing distance Approx. 485g Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Pros: Compact and lightweight. Retractable design. Superb image quality. Cons: Only an f/4 lens. No vibration reduction. Cheaper f/2.8 options around. 4.5 Nikon Z mount 24-70mm focal range FX/35mm format Maximum aperture f/4 Minimum aperture f/22 14 elements in 11 groups 7 diaphragm blades Filter size 72mm 0.3mm focusing distance Approx. 500g Pros: Perfect all-purpose lens. Sharp images. Lightweight design. Quick focusing. Cons: Some argue it is not as accomplished as its F mount equivalent. Expensive. 4.0 4.0 NIKKOR Z 35mm f/1.8 S NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.8 S FTZ Nikon F Mount Adapter £849/$846/€898 Amazing optical performance £599/$596/€675 A new kind of fast prime lens £269/$246/€298 Enjoy older lenses on your Z system camera Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Nikon Z mount 35mm focal length FX/35mm format Maximum aperture f/1.8 Minimum aperture f/16 11 elements in 9 groups 9 diaphragm blades Filter size 62mm 0.25mm focusing distance Approx. 370g Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Pros: Excellent image quality. Sharp images with low distortion. Fast autofocus. Cons: A little overpriced. Cannot be used on F mount cameras. 5.0 Nikon Z mount 50mm focal length FX/35mm format Maximum aperture f/1.8 Minimum aperture f/16 12 elements in 9 groups 9 diaphragm blades Filter size 62mm 0.4mm focusing distance Approx. 415g Q Q Q Q Pros: High quality. Great results across all apertures. Silent, fast, autofocus. Cons: A little overpriced. Noticeably large and heavy. No focus distance indicator. 5.0 Use any F mount lens No loss of quality Seamless integration Supplied with BF-18 body cap Pros: Works with recent F mount lenses and third party offerings. Cons: Older lenses not supported. Limited to this adapter only. 3.5 www.bdmpublications.com 37
Nikon Speedlights A range of lighting equipment to brighten up your world T here’s nothing quite like being able to bring light where it was once dark. Whether you’re using the Nikon 1 system or a full-frame Nikon DSLR, a Speedlight flashgun can light up your images, either mounted on-camera or as part of an off-camera lighting setup. Flashguns compatible with the Nikon Creative Lighting System can be operated wirelessly as single or multiple units, when used with any Nikon camera featuring a builtin flash commander mode. How you control light is one of the key methods that lets you excel as a creative photographer. Ambient light will take you so far but a Nikon Speedlight can take you even further, whether it’s just one compact flash unit or a whole army of top of the range flashes, used as part of a creative lighting system. Q “Flashguns compatible with the Nikon Creative Lighting System can be operated wirelessly as single or multiple units.” Speedlight SB-5000 Speedlight SB-910 £449/$599/€524 The first Nikon radio controlled Speedlight engineered for professionals £339/$525/€462 Professional i-TTL Speedlight for Nikon FX and DX-format SLRs Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Guide number 34.5/113 (at 35 mm) 55/180 (at 200 mm) 90-degree tilt up/7-degree tilt down/ 180-degree rotate head Covers 24 to 135 mm focal-length range Advanced Wireless Lighting Auto FP high-speed sync Approx. 1.8 s recycling time External filter, auto detection available 73×137×103.5 mm, 420 g Pros: Useful cooling system. Lightweight. Smaller build but with plenty of power. Cons: Arguably not much of an upgrade from the SB-910. Tricky menu system. 4.0 38 www.bdmpublications.com Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 90-degree tilt/180-degree rotate head Nikon CLS wireless control 2.3 second cycle time Automatic detection of sensor format AF-Assist illumination 17-200mm auto zoom range Multiple illumination patterns Automatic filter detection Guide number 34/111.5 (ISO 100, m/ft) 78.5 x 145 x 113 mm, 510 g Pros: Powerful flash with short recycle times. Professional grade wireless control. Cons: A little bulky and heavier than the SB-5000 unit. 4.5
NIKON SPEEDLIGHTS Speedlight SB-700 Speedlight SB-500 Speedlight SB-300 £229/$354/€312 Versatile, easy-to-use Speedlight for Nikon FX and DX-format SLRs £199/$307/€270 Easy-to-use Speedlight, compatible with Nikon D-SLRs and some CoolPix models £119/$184/€162 Simple and affordable Speedlight, for Nikon D-SLRs and some CoolPix models Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 90-degree tilt/180-degree rotate head Nikon CLS wireless control 2.5 second cycle time AF-Assist illumination Power zoom Multiple illumination patterns Automatic filter detection Powered by 4xAA batteries Guide number 28/92 (ISO 100, m/ft.) 71 x 126 x 104.5 mm, 360 g Pros: Versatile flash system. Auto mode or manual mode. Supports DX and FX cameras. Cons: Pricey. Suited to professionals. Cheaper third party options. Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 90-degree tilt/180-degree rotate head Nikon CLS wireless control i-TTL/Manual flash control Built-in LED video light Thermal cut-out, firmware is updateable Powered by 2xAA batteries Guide number 24/78.7 (m/ft at ISO 100) 67 x 114.5 x 70.8 mm, 273g Pros: Simple to use. Front LCD lights for macro work. Works with Nikon Creative Lighting System. Cons: Relatively low guide number. No flash zoom. No RF capability. 4.5 Speedlight SB-N7 £129/$199/€176 Powerful Speedlight compatible with the Nikon 1 system Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 120-degree tilting head Covers angle of view of 10 mm lens (Nikon 1 format) i-TTL/Manual flash control Thermal cut-out, firmware is updateable Powered by 2xAAA batteries Guide number 18/59 (ISO 100, m/ft) 58.4 x 68.4 x 62.3 mm, 114g Pros: Decent guide number for this price point. Swivel head useful. Cons: A little overpriced. Two AAA batteries will struggle to keep up. 3.0 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 120-degree tilting head Covers angle of view of 27 mm lens (FX format) i-TTL/Manual flash control Thermal cut-out, firmware is updateable Powered by 2xAAA batteries Guide number 18/59 (ISO 100, m/ft) 57.4 x 65.4 x 62.3 mm, 120g Pros: Lightweight. Small and easy to use. Reasonable battery life. Cons: Relatively low power. No high-speed sync. Uses AAA batteries. 4.0 4.0 Speedlight SB-R200 SU-800 Wireless Speedlight Commander £149/$199/€196 Compact but powerful wireless close-up unit £291/$175/€329 Control every aspect of your lighting Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Compatible with Nikon CLS For Remote use only Adjustable head positioning Lightweight and compact Analogue dials for Groups and Channels settings AS-20 stand for Remote lighting Requires triggering via an i-TTL camera with Commander mode Pros: Can be teamed with multiple units for macro work. Reliable illumination. Cons: The SB-R200s require the R1C1 commander unit. 3.5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Infrared transmission mode Range up to 20m Powered by one CR123A battery Four wireless communication channels Three wireless groups 60° lens coverage 68 x 96 x 58mm, 160g Pros: Adds creative off-camera lighting possibilities. Wireless and IR transmission modes. Cons: There are cheaper third party substitutes out there. 4.0 www.bdmpublications.com 39
SHARPEN YOUR KNOWLEDGE A guide to some of the core photographic skills “Learning more about the basics of photography and how each setting impacts on the other is essential.” I n automatic mode, a camera will do most of the heavy lifting for you. It will work out the shutter speed, aperture and ISO values to deliver what it thinks will be a well-exposed image. There is no doubting just how marvellous a digital camera is; a wonder of miniaturised technology and optics. If you are new to photography, using automatic is a quick and easy way to get shooting and producing results, but we would always advocate taking your camera out of auto and learning how to exercise more control over your camera. If you take a 40 www.bdmpublications.com shot in auto, what were the decisions made to give you the resulting picture? If it’s not coming out how you want it, what do you do to remedy the problem? Learning more about the basics of photography and how each setting impacts on the other is essential to taking better and more creative photos. The following pages will help you understand more about how it all works. It’s not magic; it’s just the application of good technical skills. Read on to discover more about how that expensive gadget you bought actually works and how you can master it. Q
SHARPEN YOUR KNOWLEDGE www.bdmpublications.com 41
Shooting modes Choosing the best setting for the correct shooting conditions A ll but the most basic budget compact cameras have a selection of shooting modes, usually chosen by a dial on the top or back of the camera. Easy-to-use, mainly automatic cameras in the range will only have a few shooting modes, while the more sophisticated cameras such as the DSLR may have as many as a dozen, including manual Auto The camera will analyse the scene automatically and then it will choose all the best settings for you. exposure options and user-programmable special settings. As newer models appear in the range or older models are updated, the shooting modes available will be revised and possibly expanded. Shown on this spread are some of the most often used modes selected from the mode dial on the top of the camera and in some cases, from the menu screen on the back of the camera. Q Auto (flash off) The settings are the same as in full auto mode but the flash will not be activated when you start shooting. Programmed AE Programmed auto is recommended for shots where there may not be time to adjust camera settings. P Shutter Priority Shutter speed is manually selected by the camera operator to blur or freeze motion. Aperture is set by the camera. S 42 www.bdmpublications.com Aperture Priority Aperture is manually selected to blur or bring background into focus. Camera chooses shutter speed. A Manual Exposure There is no automatic function in this mode. The user will have to manually choose shutter speed and aperture. M
SHOOTING MODES Bulb Mode Allows you to take photos for as long as the shutter button is held down for exposures longer than 30 seconds. B Effects Can be used to add filter effects to your images when they have been shot. This is all done in-camera. Scene - Portrait Helps to reduce the effect of distracting backgrounds. The background will be blurred to add a sense of depth to the composition. EFFECTS Scene - Landscape Landscapes taken during the day will have front to back sharpness. Colours will be made more vivid. Scene - Child Skin kept soft and natural whilst clothes and backgrounds are more saturated. Shutter speeds will be faster to capture movement. Scene - Sports For dynamic sports and activities with fast action. Shutter speeds will be high enough to freeze the subject’s motion. Scene - Close Up For close up and macro shots of insects, flowers and other small objects. Backgrounds will be out of focus. Scene - Night Portrait Uses flash to create a natural balance between your foreground subject and low light backgrounds. Scene - Night Landscape Will reduce noise and any overly strong colours such as street lights and neon for a balanced image. Scene - Party/Indoor This is used for indoor scenes and other social gatherings. Captures indoor background lighting more effectively. Scene - Beach/Snow More accurately capture the brightness of areas like snow or sand in bright daylight and avoid underexposure. Scene - Sunset Alters saturation in the captured image to maintain the rich colours and hues of the sunrise or sunset. Scene - Dusk/Dawn Like the Sunset setting, but now the cooler tones of dusk and dawn are maintained. No flash is used. Scene - Pet Portrait Faster shutter speed is employed. No AF assist light is used so as not to scare the animal. Scene - Candlelight The deep orange and red tones of scenes lit by candlelight are enhanced. No flash is used. www.bdmpublications.com 43
Focusing Getting the best out of your autofocus system A utofocus is so easy to use that the focus switch on some of your lenses may never have been moved to the manual position. Most of the time autofocusing gives excellent results. It is faster than manual focusing, and often more accurate. However, autofocusing operates by a series of rules (algorithms). There may be times when these do not give the results you want. Nikon DSLRs use a multi-sensor autofocus system called Multi-CAM, with up to 51 focus points, including a number of highly sensitive cross-type sensors. It is widely regarded as the best current AF system. The sensor sits in the base of the camera and a sub-mirror behind the camera’s reflex mirror reflects light down to the sensor. This light is split by a small lens assembly to form two separate images. One 44 www.bdmpublications.com image is formed on the first line sensor, the other on the second line sensor. If there is no deviation between the two images seen by the sensors, the lens is focused. However, if the spacing of the two images is not correct, a signal is sent to the lens motor to bring the subject into sharp focus. There are a couple of ways to help your camera to focus quickly on a scene. Most digital cameras have the option to select either single or continuous autofocus. Your camera will normally start to focus on the scene as soon as you halfpress the shutter button. In continuous focus mode it will continue to update the focus if you then move the camera, but in single AF mode it will hold the same focus setting as long as you hold down the button, until you actually take the shot. You can use this to focus the camera on low-detail targets by finding an object in the scene that’s the same distance away as your chosen subject, focusing on that, and then holding the focus and re-framing the shot. Similarly you can use it in reverse to focus on objects that aren’t in the centre of the frame. Moving targets Compact camera AF systems are usually somewhat slower than those in DSLRs, which means they can have a real problem focusing on moving subjects. The way around this is either to use continuous AF or, if your camera has this option, to use manual focus. If you can tell where your subject is going to be, such as a car going round a tight corner on a race track or a child on a swing, you can pre-focus the
FOCUSING camera on this point and wait to take the picture at the right moment. This method takes some practice and good reflexes, but it can produce excellent results. Close-ups Different lenses have different minimum focusing distances, but many modern zoom telephoto lenses also have macro-focusing capabilities for close-ups. All cameras and lenses have a minimum focusing distance, a closest point beyond which they cannot focus. For many compact cameras this distance can be very small, in some cases as little as 2cm (1in), but for standard DSLR lenses the distances tend to be longer. Most compact cameras have a ’macro’ setting, usually denoted by the symbol of a flower. To get closer focusing with a DSLR or CSC, special close-focus macro lenses have to be used. Depth of field is greatly reduced at very A typical autofocus array taken from a Nikon digital SLR. The centre AF points are the most sensitive. Some AF systems also have extra intermediate focus points. close focusing distances, and you may find that your AF system doesn’t focus on the right part of the subject, for example if you are trying to photograph the centre of a flower, but the AF focuses on the petals, because they’re closer. The best option is to use a tripod, and manually set the focus to the closest distance. Move the tripod until the front of the subject comes into focus, then carefully manually adjust the focus point to get the right part of the flower to look sharp. Q www.bdmpublications.com 45
Shutter speed and camera shake How shutter speed can make or break your photos T he shutter of your camera is simply a mechanical barrier that prevents light from entering the camera until it is needed, controlling when and for how long light is allowed in to expose the sensor. The latest digital cameras have high-speed electro-mechanical shutters capable of timing exposures with an accuracy measured in fractions of a millisecond. Along with the aperture setting and the amplification control, shutter speed is one of the three ways that photographic exposure is adjusted. When a picture is taken, the shutter is opened for a precisely measured amount of time allowing light to pass through. The duration of the exposure is set either automatically by the camera’s light meter or 46 www.bdmpublications.com manually by the photographer. The wider the range of available shutter speeds, the greater the creative versatility of the camera. Modern Nikon DSLR cameras have a very wide range of shutter speeds available, usually ranging from 30 seconds to as high as 1/8,000th of a second, and most also have a ‘B’ setting, in which the shutter stays open for as long as the shutter release is held down. The ‘B’ is from bulb; very old cameras commonly used an air-bulb attachment as a remote shutter release. Shutter speed can be manually adjusted in either full manual exposure mode or in shutter priority mode, the latter usually denoted by an ‘S’ or ‘Tv’ on the exposure mode dial. Shutter priority is a semi-automatic exposure mode in which the photographer sets the desired shutter speed, and the camera’s exposure system adjusts the aperture accordingly to produce the correct exposure. In automatic and program exposure modes the camera will set both the shutter speed and aperture automatically. Under normal daylight conditions, the shutter speed will usually be set to between 1/125th and 1/1000th of a second, since this is fast enough to freeze most movement and to reduce the shot-ruining effects of camera shake. However in low light conditions the camera may set a slower shutter speed, and with this comes an increased risk of movement blur caused by camera shake. Most cameras will display some sort of warning if this occurs. Q
SHUTTER SPEED AND CAMERA SHAKE “Modern Nikon DSLR cameras have a very wide range of shutter speeds available.” The misty water effect Avoiding camera shake When shooting hand-held and wishing to avoid camera shake, as a rule of thumb you can safely use a shutter speed roughly equivalent to the reciprocal of the focal length you are using. For example if you’re using a 100mm focal length then you can take a sharp hand-held shot at a shutter speed of 1/100th of a second or faster. If you’re using a 35mm focal length then 1/35th of a second is safe, and so on. One of the most effective uses of long shutter speed is photographing flowing water. It’s a beautiful if slightly over-used effect, but it is very easy to achieve. Any moving body of water, flowing stream or waterfall will do, as long as it has white splashing water. This scene is Meadfoot beach down on the Torquay coast in the south west of Devon. Capturing movement Freezing the action with a fast shutter speed produces a nice sharp image, but sometimes you might want to allow a controlled amount of movement blur to show that the subject was in motion. Below is a quick guide showing how this can be accomplished quite easily. Here’s an example shot taken hand-held at a focal length of 105mm and a shutter speed of 1/125th of a second. As you can see it’s sharp and shake free. In this first example, the camera was tracking a dog called Mabel who was running after her ball. She was running fast from left to right and a shutter speed of 1/1000th of a second was enough to freeze her movement. Shutter speeds of this short duration are often used in sport and various action events to capture a very brief moment during a frenetic sequence. Here’s the same hand-held shot at 1/10th of a second. At this speed it’s virtually impossible to hold the camera steady enough for a shake-free shot. As you can see, the result is blurred. If you just point the camera and shoot on automatic, you’ll end up with something like the top example. It looks nice enough, but it’s a bit dull. It was shot with a shutter speed of 1/200s and an aperture of f/5.6. Fixing the camera on a tripod eliminates camera shake. You now need to get the slowest shutter speed you can. The image above was taken from the same position as the top example, but with the addition of a 10stop ND filter to give a shutter speed of 4 seconds at the same aperture of f/5.6. This example shot was taken with a focal length of 105mm at 1/10th of a second as before, but this time the image stabilisation (in this case a sensor-shift system) is switched on. It has detected the vibration and corrected it by moving the sensor to compensate, resulting in a much sharper shot. This image of Cash, who was trotting towards his owner, uses deliberate motion blur. In this case, a shutter speed of 1/60th of a second was used, but the camera was also panned to match the speed and direction of travel of the dog. This allows the background to blur but keeps the dog relatively sharp. www.bdmpublications.com 47
Aperture and depth of field With aperture you can control how much of your picture is in focus O f the three main controls common to nearly all cameras, shutter speed, focus and aperture, it is aperture adjustment that is the least well understood. This is because it not only helps to control exposure, but also affects something called Depth of Field. Understanding the effects of aperture size is a vital skill for any keen photographer. At least there’s nothing mysterious about the name. The aperture is literally a hole through which light passes after it enters the lens. The diameter of this hole can be altered, allowing a greater or smaller amount of light to pass through on its way to the sensor. In the early days of photography, aperture was adjusted by slotting cards with different sized holes cut in them into the body of the camera behind the lens. These cards were known as ‘stops’, and this is still part of photographic terminology today. On modern cameras the aperture is controlled by an arrangement of curved shutters inside the body of the lens, which move to produce a continuously variable aperture, however the aperture settings are usually still referred to as ‘F-stops’. Aperture adjustment is used in combination with the shutter speed and ISO amplification to control photographic exposure. However it is also the primary means of controlling something called depth of field, a slightly technical concept that may need a bit of explanation. If you take a photo of a subject at a distance of about 3 metres with standard zoom lens, in good light with the focal length set to about 30mm, as long as the lens is focused correctly the subject should appear nice and sharp in the image. However you’ll usually find that objects about 1.5m in front of the subject, and for about 4 or 5 metres behind the subject, also appear sharp. This distance, from the closest point of acceptable sharpness to the most distant, is known as the depth of field. By altering the size of the aperture it is possible to control the extent of this depth of field, either reducing it so that only the main subject is in sharp focus, or expanding it so that an entire landscape can appear to be just as sharp. If you have an older camera to hand, take a look at the lens. It will have a ring for controlling the aperture setting, labelled with numbers usually from about F2 to about F22. The focus control ring will have distances usually calibrated in feet and metres, and “Aperture adjustment is used in combination with the shutter speed and ISO amplification to control photographic exposure.” 48 www.bdmpublications.com
APERTURE AND DEPTH OF FIELD alongside it you’ll usually find lines marked with the same numbers as the aperture ring, arranged in pairs either side of the focal distance mark with the larger numbers toward the outside. The purpose of this aperture scale is to help estimate the depth of field at a particular distance for any given aperture setting; with the focus set to a particular distance, anything between the two lines for the selected aperture setting should be acceptably sharp. Some older zoom lenses have a series of curved lines etched into the lens barrel for the same purpose. For some reason this scale is missing from most modern auto-focus, auto-aperture lenses, which would make the whole concept of depth of field much easier to understand. How aperture works Explaining exactly why altering the size of the lens aperture alters the depth of field is a little complicated, but a few simple diagrams should help to shed some light on the matter. For a start, let’s clear up some popular misconceptions about the difference between focus and sharpness. This is a highly simplified diagram of the arrangement of lens, aperture and sensor inside a modern digital camera. In this first diagram, three subjects at different distances from the camera lens are represented by the red, green and blue dots. The lens is focused on the green spot, so light from it passes through the aperture and the lens and appears sharply focused on the sensor. Light from the red and blue spots also passes through the aperture and lens, but light from the red spot focuses a short distance in front of the charged coupled device (CCD), while light from the blue spot focuses a short distance behind it. The light from these other spots still hits the CCD, but due to light scattering it is unfocused and spread over a wide area. What this means is that the red and blue spots will appear as large blurred spots on the final image, while the green spot will be sharp and in focus. The size of the blurred area of the red and blue spots is called the ‘circle of confusion.’ Film or CCD Apparent diameter of blue ‘circle of confusion’ Aperture (wide) Apparent diameter of red ‘circle of confusion’ APERTURE RING Lens The diagram below shows the same arrangement of camera and subjects, and the coloured spots are the same distance from the lens, but this time the aperture has been reduced to just a small hole. Again the lens is focused on the green spot, and the red and blue spots are out of focus. However the narrow aperture restricts the light scattering and the relative angles of the light paths, and as a result the ‘circles of confusion’ are much smaller. This makes the red and blue spots in the final image appear much sharper. They are still out of focus, but the effect is not so noticeable. To make circles of confusion as large as in the first image, the red and blue spots would have to be much further away from the green one. Film or CCD WIDE APERTURE Aperture (narrow) Apparent diameter of blue ‘circle of confusion’ Apparent diameter of red ‘circle of confusion’ NARROW APERTURE Lens www.bdmpublications.com 49
Focal length and zoom Understanding how focal length works in composing shots N early all modern compact cameras have zoom lenses, and most users of digital SLRs or CSCs will also have at least a couple of zooms in their kit. Focal length is one of your primary tools for adjusting composition. Selecting the right focal length for the scene allows the photographer to control perspective, angle “Selecting the right focal length for the scene allows the photographer to control perspective, angle of view and magnification.” 50 www.bdmpublications.com of view and magnification, and can radically alter the mood and style of the photo. Some focal lengths are more suited to particular types of photo, and the properties of wideangle and telephoto lenses can be used to produce particular effects. Understanding how focal length works and how it affects your photos is a vital photographic skill. Q
FOCAL LENGTH AND ZOOM Lenses and focal length There are basically two types of lens; those with fixed focal lengths, also known as prime lenses, and those with variable focal length, or zoom lenses. They both have their own advantages and disadvantages. Prime lenses are usually smaller and lighter than zooms, and also generally have much faster maximum apertures than a zoom lens at equivalent focal length. The optical quality of prime lenses is also usually a little higher than the equivalent zoom lens. Zoom lenses however are much more convenient, allowing the photographer to cover a wide range of focal lengths with just one or two lenses, rather than carrying around a bulky collection of prime lenses. There are some fast zoom lenses, but they tend to be extremely expensive. The focal length of a lens is an expression of its magnifying power, and is usually stated in millimetres. If you look on the front of your camera, usually inscribed around the front of the lens you’ll find the focal length, or a range of values for zoom lenses. For a typical DSLR kit lens this will usually be around 18-55mm. For digital cameras it is fairly usual to see two figures quoted, both the actual focal length and the ‘equivalent’ length. The reason for quoting both is simply that more people are more familiar with the sizes of 35mm lenses, so they know that 28mm is wide angle and suitable for panoramic shots, or that 200mm is a telephoto, suitable for long-range subjects. Real and equivalent focal lengths are different because most digital camera sensors are a lot smaller than a frame of 35mm film, and are fitted much closer to the lens than the film would be. Most consumer DSLRs use the APS-C sensor format. Exact sizes vary from one manufacturer to the next, but are typically around 22.5 x 15 mm. A frame of 35mm film measures 36 x 24mm, which means that the edges are 1.6x longer, so the focal length of the lens would need to be 1.6x greater to produce the same image size and magnification. This is usually referred to as the ‘conversion factor’ or ‘crop factor’. It means that a typical 1855mm DSLR zoom lens is roughly equivalent to the popular 28-80mm zoom lens often used on 35mm systems. Compact camera sensors are even smaller still. Because there are several different sizes of sensor in common use it is more usual for compact camera zoom lenses to be rated in terms of their magnification power, such as 3x, 4x, 10x etc. This relates to the difference between the minimum and maximum focal lengths. A lens with a range of focal length from 5.8mm to 17.4mm is called a 3x zoom, because 17.4 = 3 x 5.8. While in older prime lenses a 200mm lens would literally be 20cm long, modern optical systems use multiple lens elements working in combination, which means that the light path can be shortened while still maintaining the same effective magnification. As a result quite powerful telephoto and zoom lenses can be relatively compact. Wide-angle and telephoto are relative terms. On a 35mm film SLR a 50mm lens produces approximately the same perspective and magnification as the human eye, and has traditionally been the standard lens for this type of camera. Anything longer than 50mm is considered a telephoto, while anything shorter is considered wide angle. Digital SLRs tend to follow this rule too, although considering the crop factor the midpoint is approximately 35mm. Q Changing the angle of view can be used to produce some interesting effects. If we move closer to the subject while shortening the focal length we can see that although the subject fills roughly the same area of the final image, in a wide angle shot a lot more of the background is included. Shots in this set were taken with lenses like the AF-S 24-70mm f2.8E ED VR and AF-S 80-400mm f4.5-f/5.6G ED VR seen here. Magnification The most obvious effect of altering focal length is the change in magnification. Anyone who has ever used a zoom lens will be familiar with this effect. If you want to take a photo of something a long way away, you zoom in and the subject appears closer. 25mm 400mm Angle of view 25mm 250mm www.bdmpublications.com 51
“What your cameraʼs light meter sees is quite different.“ Exposure and metering Accurate exposure is the key to good photography U nderstanding exposure and how it affects your photographs is probably the single most important technical skill you can learn in photography. It’s certainly the one that most people get wrong, and apart from camera shake bad exposure probably ruins more photos than any other single cause. The main problem is over-reliance on automatic metering. Most modern cameras, even relatively cheap compacts, have sophisticated built-in TTL 52 www.bdmpublications.com multi-zone evaluative exposure meters that measure light levels at dozens, in some cases hundreds, of points within the frame, instantly comparing the results with a built-in library of exposure situations and automatically adjusting the shutter speed and aperture to deal with problems such as back-lighting, close-ups or moving subjects. In most cases these automatic exposure systems are very good, and can reliably cope with most common circumstances. However even the best automatic meter can be fooled, resulting in poorly exposed photos. By overriding the camera’s automatic settings and adjusting exposure manually we can avoid these problems and take much better photos. Fade to grey What you see here is a nice scene of a sunlit portrait, with a good tonal range, plenty of colour and some nice crisp sunlight. What your camera’s light meter sees is quite different.
EXPOSURE AND METERING Aperture ISO Shutter speed The photographer’s trinity. Aperture, ISO and shutter speed. One has an effect on the others. Try it out for yourself. Find any nice, average snapshot scene, properly lit and with good contrast. Start up your image editing software and open your picture. Light meters only see in black and white, so reduce the saturation of the shot to zero. Your light meter doesn’t see detail, so set your Gaussian blur filter to maximum diameter and apply it a couple of times. Use the eyedropper tool to measure the RGB colour value of the resulting tone. You should find that it averages out to a mid-tone grey with an RGB value of around 127,127,127. It’s an interesting and curious fact that any average scene reflects 18% of the light falling on it. Look out of your window, and unless you live in Antarctica the scene you see is reflecting exactly the same amount of light as the scene out of my window. That 18% reflection is exactly the same as a mid-tone grey, mid-way between black and white. Light meters are calibrated with this fact in mind. When your camera takes a light reading, the meter averages the scene and adjusts the exposure to produce that mid-tone grey (or 12% luminance, but that’s another discussion altogether). If you point the camera at a black stage curtain, it will try to make the black into a mid-tone grey, so it will over-expose. If you point it at snow it will try to make the white into grey, so it will under-expose. Adjusting exposure Let’s take a moment to explain how exposure is controlled, and what is meant by some of the terminology. On all cameras, exposure is adjusted by altering three basic settings; aperture, ISO and shutter speed. Between them they control the exposure of any shot. Shutter speed is self- explanatory, it is simply the amount of time that the sensor is exposed to light. This is usually controlled by an electrically operated mechanical shutter in front of the sensor that opens and closes very quickly for a precisely measured period of time, usually in the order of a few hundredths of a second. Obviously a shutter speed twice as long lets in twice as much light, one half as long lets in half as much. The aperture is literally just a hole through which light passes on its way to the sensor. The diameter of that hole can be adjusted to precisely calibrated sizes. A smaller hole lets in less light, and a larger hole lets in more. These calibrated aperture sizes, for largely historical reasons, are called stops, or f-stops. An aperture setting one stop larger lets in twice as much light. For reasons that are both historical and mathematical, the standard full-stop aperture settings that you are most likely to encounter go f/1, f/1.4, f/2, f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6 f/8, f/11, f/16 and f/22. The smaller numbers refer to larger apertures, and the larger numbers to smaller ones. Many cameras can set apertures in increments of 1/3rd of a stop, but the whole-stop numbers are the ones to remember. ISO is the amplification of the image brightness once captured by the sensor. A low ISO setting means it is amplified less, producing very clean images but with the result of needing longer shutter speeds or wider apertures, whilst a high ISO means it is amplified to a much greater degree. The practical upshot of this is that you can increase the ISO value to give you the option of shorter shutter speeds and smaller apertures, it is at the expense of a greater amount of noise in the image. Let’s consider an example. With your camera set to automatic exposure point it at a scene and take a light reading. For the sake of argument, say the light meter sets an aperture of f8 and 1/200th of a second. You can produce the same exposure by increasing the aperture by one stop to f5.6 and halving the shutter speed to 1/400th of a second, because this lets the same amount of light through to the sensor. Similarly, reducing the aperture to f11 and setting the shutter speed to 1/100th of a second will also produce the same exposure. However by altering one setting without altering the other you will change the exposure. In our example, changing the aperture to f5.6 but leaving the shutter speed at 1/200th of a second will increase the exposure by one stop, or one exposure value (EV), making the picture brighter. Decreasing the aperture to f11 will reduce the exposure by one EV, making the picture even darker. Similarly, changing the shutter speed while leaving the aperture alone will also change the exposure. Double the shutter speed to 1/400th at f8 and you reduce the exposure by one stop, halve the speed to 1/100th and you increase the exposure by one stop. Once you grasp the concept that all these factors are linked and that one will always affect the other, you are well on your way to understanding exposure and how to get much more creative control of your images. Q www.bdmpublications.com 53
TOP TIPS & PROJECTS Learn more about improving your photography “The list of tips weʼve compiled range from some of the simplest technical insights, that can give your skills a quick boost, to more in-depth knowledge.” A s we’ve mentioned, there is a bit more to photography than ‘full auto’ and simply snapping away to your heart’s content. Part of the skill (and all of the enjoyment) of photography is the knowledge that any shot you take was done so with you in full control. We understand you have to start somewhere, but in the fullness of time, when you find yourself hitting a wall and wondering what is required 54 www.bdmpublications.com to help you improve, seeking out some handy hints and tips can give you that important jump-start into some next-level photography. The list of tips we’ve compiled range from some of the simplest technical insights, that can give your skills a quick boost, to more in-depth knowledge that can help deliver the kind of images that rival those of the pros themselves. Q
TOP TIPS AND PROJECTS www.bdmpublications.com 55
BUY A TRIPOD The quickest way to improve your photography is to invest in a decent tripod. For the best combination of strength, rigidity and portability, the ideal choice is carbon fibre. Carbon fibre tripods start at around £120 ($175, €165) and can cost ten times more, so if that’s too expensive get a good quality aluminium one. Features to look for include a ratcheted centre column, portrait-format tilt and all-metal construction. Avoid ones with plastic heads, as they are seldom rigid enough to prevent camera shake on long exposures. EARLY BIRD CHOOSE THE RIGHT CAMERA When you’re looking to buy a new camera for your photography, make a list of your requirements and set yourself a budget. Don’t forget to allow for accessories such as lenses, a tripod and cleaning kit if you need them. Don’t fall in to the trap of thinking that a more expensive camera will make you a better photographer. You’re much more likely to improve your technique by overcoming the limitations of cheaper kit than by spending more money than you need to. 56 www.bdmpublications.com Shooting a landscape in bright midday sun is fine but if you really want your shots to shine, you’ll need to get up early and catch the light available just before the sun rises, and as it climbs above the horizon. The shadows are long, giving definition to objects and the light has that special golden ethereal quality. The same is true at the opposite end of the day, at sunset. The period of time around sunrise and sunset is called the golden hour. Simply switching the time you take photos can have a dramatic improvement on your shots. CHOOSE THE RIGHT LENS If you’re buying a compact system camera or DSLR, it will probably come with a standard telephoto lens that is ideal for general photography and snapshots but there is a wide variety of special lenses available for other types of photography. If you like to shoot landscapes, get a good wide-zoom lens but avoid super-wide lenses as these will distort the image. If you want to shoot wildlife, you’ll need a high quality fast telephoto but this will be expensive.
TOP TIPS AND PROJECTS VISUAL INTEREST PICK A PRIME THE HOLY TRINITY The rule of thirds is a simple guide that can help the composition of your shots and make them much more visually appealing. When framing a shot, you have to imagine that what you can see through the viewfinder of your camera is divided into thirds both vertically and horizontally with lines, just like a noughts and crosses game (or tic-tac-toe if you are in the US). Placing your main subject on an intersection where these lines meet is a simple and quick way to improve composition. Fast glass is much prized in the world of portraiture. Fast glass has very large apertures, letting in more light and offering faster shutter speeds in low-light conditions. A good portrait lens that has a maximum aperture of f/2.8 f/1.2 is fantastic at creating the background blur so sought after by photographers. The quality of defocused light this blurring produces is referred to as bokeh. The ability to shoot at f/1.2, for instance, means you can shoot more natural light portraits, without the reliance on strobes. ISO, aperture and shutter speed are the three pillars of exposure. The main idea is that altering one of these three settings has an impact on exposure and therefore how your image looks. One or both of the other settings will have to be altered to maintain a balanced exposure. As you develop as a photographer, you will realise that once you are in control, you can create images that look more as you want, rather than what the camera thinks is right when in full auto mode. USE THE HISTOGRAM DEPTH CUEING A photograph only has two dimensions and any indication of depth in a photograph is purely optical. One of the simplest ways to add depth is to use leading lines like the curve of sand on a beach image or railway lines converging towards the horizon. Another method is atmospheric perspective where mist and fog shroud distant objects making them lighter and with less tonal contrast compared to darker foreground objects. A histogram is a graphic representation of the tonal values in your shot and how they are distributed. If the graph is bunched at the far left, then your shot is very underexposed and you risk the loss of a lot of detail to shadow areas. If it is sliding off the right-hand side, then it will be overexposed and detail will be lost in the highlight areas. A good exposure will have all the major tones in the middle of the histogram. STOP THE SHAKES Camera shake is the unwanted movement of the camera taking the shot and of the subject of the shot. Modern cameras offer image stabilisation and it can work well up to a point but the lower the light, the more the likelihood is that your shots will be blurry as you need longer shutter speeds to gather enough light for a balanced exposure. If you buy one thing to go with your new camera, make it a tripod. Use a robust tripod and your images will be rock steady in all manner of challenging shooting situations. www.bdmpublications.com 57
MAXIMUM EXPOSURE Consider using longer exposures in your landscape shots. Photographers often employ exposures that last seconds or even tens of seconds, to show clouds streaking across the sky rather than looking static and puffy. Scenes shot with a much longer exposure will turn the water to a misty, milky fog. It is safe to say that your tripod is the key to the success of these shots. 58 ENHANCE YOUR PHOTOS COMPENSATE LEARN FROM OTHERS If your camera has the option to let you shoot Raw images, use it. A Raw image is the key to much greater post-processing possibilities. Raw images, as the name suggests, are just unprocessed raw data straight from the camera sensor with all the information you need to bring out a beautiful photograph. The act of cropping the shot into a more pleasing aspect ratio can save an image, as can turning it to black and white. The choices are endless, even if it’s just contrast, saturation, brightness and sharpness. As good as cameras are, they will often overexpose and underexpose your photos in challenging lighting situations. That’s where exposure compensation comes in. It’s a common setting found on digital cameras and it lets you override the camera by making the image lighter or darker based on how much positive or negative exposure compensation you dial in. A lot of cameras will let you preview the result on your LCD screen and once you are happy with how it looks, you can take the shot. Even the best pros had to pick up a camera for the first time. There are any number of photography forums that you can join and then get advice from other photographers. Why not join a local photography club? It’s a great way to meet fellow like-minded photographers of varying skill levels. It’s is also a good way of getting motivated to get out and take more photos. You’re also more likely to be able to chat with those who are well versed in using software to post-process their images. www.bdmpublications.com
TOP TIPS AND PROJECTS A SENSE OF PERSPECTIVE FURTHER AFIELD An average human, taking a photograph, is viewing the world from their eye level of about 5 feet. Simply changing that viewing angle can radically alter the shot. As a simple rule of thumb, shoot from low down, shoot from high up. Getting above or below your subject alters how you present your subject and how they fit in the world that’s around them. You can play with wide angle shots or telephoto shots. You have an amazing amount of choice. Anything to break away from the eye level world that we are used to. Find a lovely location that you want to photograph and research the area a little, then get yourself out there. Plan to arrive before dawn and get some amazing shots of the golden hour. Explore the area and experiment with composition and camera settings. In fact, just go crazy and enjoy the experience. That’s the key to photography. It’s there to be enjoyed. Don’t worry about making mistakes; keep those shots and review them when you get home and figure out why they didn’t work, it’s all part of the process. BATTERIES Your digital camera can’t operate without power, so make sure you fully charge the battery before taking it out for the day. If you’re going away for a holiday remember to take your battery charger and an adaptor for foreign mains sockets; and maybe consider investing in a spare battery or external battery pack in case you can’t charge it for a while. There are also several devices available that can charge your battery using solar energy or from a hand cranked mini-generator. OUT OF THE SHADOWS While a bright summer day may seem like the perfect time to take photos, at midday every scene will appear flat and featureless with shadows sitting directly beneath every object. The perfect weather for outdoor photography is a clear day with a few white clouds to help diffuse the light and take the edge off the shadows. The perfect time is around sunrise and sunset with long shadows defining the contours of the land. WHATEVER THE WEATHER Remember that the weather is part of the landscape too. While a nice sunny day is perfect for outdoor photography, natural weather effects such as mist, clouds and even rain can be used to create an attractive photo under the right circumstances. Make the weather part of your composition. Try capturing mist in early morning light, or raindrops hitting puddles or the surface of a lake. Cloud formations can add interest to the composition of a panoramic landscape shot. www.bdmpublications.com 59
LOW-LIGHT When shooting in low light the most important thing to remember is that your camera’s exposure meter will try to brighten everything up; this can cause problems with image noise at higher ISO settings. To capture dimly lit subjects against a dark night-time background, try reducing your exposure by a couple of stops. This will also help to reduce the blurring caused by camera shake and moving subjects during long exposures. NATURAL LIGHT PORTRAIT NIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY You can capture amazing photos of the stars on a clear night by setting your camera on a tripod, setting the aperture to its widest position and using the ‘B’ exposure setting and a cable release to hold the shutter open for five or six minutes. Make sure you’re well away from any light sources such as street lights or passing cars. If you point your camera towards the Pole Star (or the Southern Cross) you’ll capture the apparent circular motion of the stars as the Earth rotates. COLD CONDITIONS Cold conditions can cause a few problems for your digital camera, the main one being its effect on batteries. You’ll find that even on a cold morning after a clear summer night, your battery will only last around half as long, so keep a spare in a warm inside pocket and swap them over when the first runs out. When you take your camera back indoors, keep it in a sealed plastic bag until it’s warmed up, to avoid condensation problems. Shoot portraits outdoors to take advantage of natural light. Position your subject so that their face is well-lit but don’t believe the old tip about having the “sun over your shoulder”. You should avoid having them face directly into the sun, because this will cause them to squint. The best option is to have them stand in bright shade, or near a white wall or other object that will reflect a flattering diffused light. GROUP PORTRAITS Try to find a location that lets you position your subjects at different heights. A set of broad steps, a low wall, a park bench or even the trunk of a fallen tree make ideal impromptu stages, and add interest to what would otherwise be a fairly dull photo. Position shorter people at the front of the group or get those at the front to kneel, so that everyone can be seen clearly in the shot. PHOTO EDITING Get the best out of your photos you’ll need editing software. You can make simple edits with the Photos app that comes with Windows or with Photos on a Mac but for more accurate and detailed work you’ll need something more capable. The best is Adobe Photoshop but it may be too expensive for most hobby users. There are plenty of cheaper options, including ACDSee, Corel PaintShop Pro, Corel AfterShot Pro 3 and Adobe Photoshop Elements 2019. LEADING LINES There are many rules and guidelines for photographic composition but one that applies most often to landscape photography is the concept of leading lines. When composing your shot, try to find lines in the scene, such as roads, rivers, railway lines or hedges. Frame your shot so that these lines will lead the viewer’s eye into and through the scene. They will also help to give the scene a sense of scale and perspective and this will also help with your composition. 60 www.bdmpublications.com
TOP TIPS AND PROJECTS HARMONY AND BALANCE DEPTH OF FIELD RAW MODE There’s more to a good landscape composition than just a snapshot of some nice hills. Try to include foreground detail such as old walls, rock formations or plants. They will add depth and a sense of perspective and scale to your picture, and make for a much more interesting composition. Try to balance foreground detail with background detail to create a harmonious balance to your composition. Depth of field is the distance between the nearest and most distant objects in a scene that are in focus. It is controlled by a combination of aperture and focal length and is an important creative tool for improving your photographs. Use a narrow depth of field (wide aperture) to isolate subjects against a blurred background or use a large depth of field (narrow aperture) to capture an entire scene in sharp detail. Most high-end cameras have a feature called Raw mode. This is the equivalent of the negative in a film camera; you can take the Raw image data and process it yourself using image editing software such as Photoshop. The advantage is that the Raw mode file contains uncompressed data with more colour information and tonal depth than the processed JPEG image that your camera usually produces, so you can do more with it. TIME OF DAY When shooting landscape shots, the time of day is all-important. You can’t control the position of the sun in the sky, so you’ll have to wait for it to be in the right position to provide the best lighting for your scene. Make a note of sunset and sunrise times and try to visit the same location several times at different times of day. The favourite times for perfect lighting are an hour after sunrise and an hour before sunset, known as the ‘golden hour’. BLACK AND WHITE FOCAL LENGTH There are many subjects that can look great in black and white, particularly portraits, rough textures like old stone, and even landscape shots. However the black and white mode on your camera may not do the scene justice. You can get much more creative control over the final appearance of the image by converting the photo to monochrome using photo editing software. This is especially true if you shoot in Raw mode, with its much greater tonal range. Focal length, or the zoom setting of your lens, is one of your most important creative tools. Longer focal lengths let you get closer to distant subjects, whilst wide angle settings let you capture more of your surroundings. However, most people only ever seem to use the minimum and maximum settings. If you do this you’re missing out on a lot of creative potential. Use focal length creatively to improve composition or to focus attention on details in a scene. www.bdmpublications.com 61
MORNING DEW A clear and cold night can make for a lovely dew-covered morning. Make a point of capturing flowers and leaves covered in dew by using a macro lens to get in very close to your subject and reveal their beautiful and delicate patterns. The light of the morning sun, low on the horizon, can be used to illuminate your subjects, casting shadows and causing bright specular highlights on the reflective surfaces and smattering of dew drops. SHOOTING IN FOG CITY AT NIGHT The crisp, clean air of spring can often lead to very clear nights. Take your favourite camera, lens and tripod and go out and shoot some night time urban scenes. If you are looking at capturing a city skyline, you can actually shoot after sunset whilst there is still some light in the sky. This is known as the blue hour and cities look amazing shot against the deep blue of approaching darkness. Learn how to control the underexposure issues faced when shooting very bright fog-covered scenes. Your camera’s metering system can be confused by overly bright scenes and will try to average the scene as 18 per cent grey, or middle grey as it is known. By doing so, it will underexpose your shot by as much as 1 or 2 stops. Use your camera’s exposure compensation feature and set it to overexpose by 1 stop or more to return the foggy scene to a better, brighter exposure. You can check your histogram too to confirm it isn’t too dark. GET COMPOSED LONG EXPOSURES Another idea for a crisp, clear night is to shoot a long exposure image that captures the movement of the stars. You will be working in the bulb exposure range from 30 seconds up to tens of minutes. A robust tripod is essential for theses ‘bulb’ shots. The shutter will be open for a long time and you don’t want your camera moving part way through and ruining the shot. A programmable cable release is also a great purchase so you don’t have to sit there for ten minutes with your finger on the shutter release button. If you and a group of friends are out walking in the woods and three of you are shooting away with your cameras, there is every chance your photos may all look quite similar. You need to set yourself apart from the crowd by thinking about making some bold compositional choices that the others might not have considered. Be brave and don’t worry about making mistakes when it comes to your shots. Not every photo you take is meant to set the world on fire with its staggering compositional strength. The shots that don’t work should be there as a learning tool for getting it right next time. TIME TO GRADUATE If your skies are full of pale grey clouds, or it is just much brighter than the ground, try using a graduated neutral density (ND) filter to bring some detail back into the sky. Cokin manufacture many filters for landscape work and the ND filter is probably one of the most useful. A 2-stop ND filter for instance, is dark at the top of the filter and gradually fades to clear towards the middle. When placed in front of your camera lens, the top half of the image is darkened by 2-stops and its effect is reduced to zero in the middle. 62 www.bdmpublications.com
TOP TIPS AND PROJECTS DRAMATIC CONDITIONS SPRING CLEANING During the year, there are always likely to be periods with high winds. There are often some dramatic photo opportunities to be had down by the sea. Why not get down there at high tide and check out the wave action? High tides and windy conditions can create some epic crashing waves. Whether they are crashing over a sea wall or smashing into rocks and cliffs, they are a sight to behold. It goes without saying, but we will say it, always keep yourself safe. No shot is worth getting washed out to sea for. Why not spend some time removing unwanted photos from your hard drive and back them up to a portable USB drive. You’d be amazed at how much space you can recover on your computer by pruning out all the unwanted shots you’ve accumulated over time. We recently totalled up how much space was being taken up on our hard drive with photographs. It came to over 500GB. We reckon that over 80 per cent of the shots weren’t being used and that would save an enormous amount of space. Moreover, we did a grand total of everything currently backed up and it came in at over six terabytes! PHOTOSHOP MASTERY BE SAFE If you use Photoshop, Elements or Gimp etc., learn one new technique each month that the pros use for improving a photograph, and master it. As an example, Photoshop’s use of adjustment layers is critical in eking out every last pixel of detail from a landscape photo. It is also a non-destructive method whereby you do not alter the base image, so you can always go back to the original if you need to. Photoshop cannot make a badly composed, blurry image better or save you from bad technique but it can enhance a good shot and make it a ‘wow’ shot if done well. If you are thinking of trekking out into the great outdoors, bear in mind that you need to plan your day, wear the appropriate hiking gear and make sure someone knows where you are going. Keep your phone with you and maybe even a GPS tracker. Dressing in layers is important but remember it’s better to be too hot than freezing cold. Make sure you have all the gear you need. It would be pretty grim to arrive at an amazing location only to find you’ve left your memory cards behind, or your favourite wide-angle lens. STILL LIFE GO MONO Take the time to photograph still life objects indoors. You can start with something as basic as a sheet of white or coloured paper and a single lamp as your light source. Grab an object, it can be a bowl of fruit (we won’t tell anyone, we promise!) or bunch of flowers, and spend time learning how the different positions of a single light affect the look of your still life and the shadows it creates. Then you can use pieces of white card as reflectors and bounce light back into the scene to fill in any dark shadows. Stark landscapes and amazing weather conditions are ideal materials for black and white conversion. Indeed, many photographers like to shoot black and white images on dull days as a lot more detail can be revealed in the image when converted to mono. There are plenty of mono conversion methods you can learn to do in Photoshop. YouTube has countless tutorials that can aid you. We would recommend a third party app called Silver Efex Pro, which is part of the Google Nik collection. It is now completely free and many pros swear by it for their mono conversions. www.bdmpublications.com 63
NIKON CREATIVE Guides, techniques and tips for shooting like a pro “There is great knowledge to be gained from trying something new. You never know, your true calling as a photographer may be revealed.” I t’s time to get creative. It’s time to step out with your equipment and look for the next great photographic project that you can sink your teeth into. You may have had your camera for a while, been using it and getting some good results. The question you might ask yourself is, where next? If that is the case, you’re ready to start learning more of the creative techniques that professional photographers use to achieve outstanding results time after time. By trying new things and learning new techniques, you can turn your photographs from well-taken snapshots into creative masterpieces, of which you can be proud. It begins with the desire to 64 www.bdmpublications.com step outside your comfort zone and shoot the kinds of photographic projects that will test your skills and help you develop a signature look, or flair for capturing a particular subject. There is great knowledge to be gained from trying something new. You never know, your true calling as a photographer may be revealed in the next project you try. There are many more secrets and tricks in the field of creative photography than we have room to cover in this guide, but we can show you some great projects that will hone your technical skills, creating a solid foundation on which your passion can grow as you to learn and experiment further. Q
NIKON CREATIVE www.bdmpublications.com 65
Pet photography Time to get our furry friends ready for their close up W e love our pets. In fact for most people they are more than mere pets and become more like family members, the recipients of love, affection and lavish attention. It is likely then that their owners, at some point, are going to want photographs of their furry friends (or scaly, feathery or otherwise). We have a dog, and the number of photos that include him specifically outnumber those of all our other family members put together. However, pet photography presents its own special problems. Animals, as we all know, can be unpredictable, lazy, aggressive, hyperactive and downright cute. If you’re thinking of trying pet photography, here are a few pointers to get you started. Pet personality profile You don’t need to sit the pet in question on a psychiatrist’s couch and ask it to tell you about its mother, but before you start snapping away, find out about your subject’s personality and habits. Where does it snooze if the sun is out? What is its favourite toy? Is it lazy, sleepy, or does it like to perch on a garden fence or hide 66 www.bdmpublications.com in the grass? Take time to chat with the owner and observe your subject to gain some insight. It’s also worth spending a little time getting to know the animal yourself. Cats, dogs, horses, they all have personality, and you need to ensure they are comfortable being around you, and you around them. Scaring a pet right at the outset is not going to make for a particularly happy or productive photo shoot. Close quarters Think about getting in close to your subject. If the pet is comfortable with you, and if it isn’t too skittish, fill the frame with the pet’s face. Get the eyes nice and sharp. Just like humans, this is a natural point of focus, although focusing on the snout of a dog or cat can also make for an interesting image in its own right. A good portrait focuses on the subject and not the background. Yes, there are times when shooting wide can create a great environmental portrait, but make sure you get a good selection of close-ups. A macro lens is perfect for capturing details of the pet, and shooting with a wide aperture keeps any background distractions out of focus. “Think about getting in close to your subject. If the pet is comfortable with you, and if it isnʼt too skittish, fill the frame with the petʼs face.”
PET PHOTOGRAPHY Capture funny ‘moments’. Keep the eyes nice and sharp. Get in close. Try to keep background distractions to a minimum. Keep an eye out for interactions or displays of behaviour. Obviously if the animal is not content to keep still for more than a second, this can be a challenge. Keep snapping away; try using your camera’s continuous autofocus to track the animal as it moves. If it’s proving too difficult, let the animal play a while, and try again. Pets have very short attention spans, so keep it fun, break it up a bit if you have to and always reward and fuss them when they do well. On the level Your average dog is a couple of feet tall, cats even smaller. The average adult human is about 5’ 7”. If you photograph a pet while you’re standing up, all you’re going to see is the top of their head and their backs, not what you want for a portrait. Get down to their eye level, and see the world from their perspective. If you are able, get lower still. Try pre-focusing your camera and just holding it at ground level so you can look up at the pet. It’s worth a try just for a new angle on things. Lighting When meeting a new animal, bring a flash and with the owner’s permission, while greeting or playing with the pet, fire a couple of test flashes away from them to see their reaction. In daylight particularly, they never seem to mind the flash at all. If they do mind, then stick with natural light and use a white or silver reflector if you need to fill in any shadow areas. Indoors, a bright continuous light may be preferable. You can use a photoflood light that, rather than using old tungsten bulbs, uses three daylight-balanced energy saving bulbs. They are housed in a 22” reflector that you can cover with a diffuser to soften the light if need be. You can also try placing your subject near a window to use the natural light. If you’re am using flash with a willing subject then you can invariably use cross-lighting, avoiding shooting a flash directly at them. Be patient and carry on! As they say, “memory is cheap, but memories are priceless”. Pets are challenging subjects so you’re just going to have to stay sharp and keep shooting. The more you shoot, the greater your chances are of getting that perfect shot! Q www.bdmpublications.com 67
Nikon gear master The right tool for the job ou are out and about happily taking photographs, with gorgeous sunshine to brighten the experience. Itʼs your last day before venturing off home and you happen upon a scene that you want to capture. The sun is rising and its position is creating a dramatic lighting effect. What can you do to get the most from the opportunity? The problem is that the dynamic range of the scene before you is very extreme because the sun itself is part of the shot. You have options, of course. If you had the time you could wait until the next day when the sun is in a different part of the sky but then you wouldnʼt have the drama of the sun low to the horizon. You could bracket your exposures if you had a tripod. You could expose the shot so the sun and sky isnʼt blown out, but then the rest of your shot will be very underexposed if not totally in silhouette. Conversely you could exposure your foreground correctly and hope the sky Y doesnʼt blow out too much that you canʼt recover any detail when you come to process your shots. All these methods will work to varying degrees but many photographers also try to get a balanced exposure first time ʻin cameraʼ. This is where the use of some key filters can prove to be essential. The main image above was shot using a 2-stop graduated Neutral Density filter [1]. The filter is reducing the amount of incoming light where it is darkest and letting more light in as it fades to clear. There are various filter manufacturers who all make specialist holders able to be mounted to the front of your camera that can allow you to use up to 3 filters in one go [2]. You slot it in and adjust it so the darkest part is at the top and the point it goes clear is roughly level with the horizon as you look through the viewfinder [3] and [4]. As it is a 2-stop filter, you can compose your shot, take an average meter reading and capture your image knowing that the filter has balanced the tonal value of the scene and lets you keep detail in the sky without underexposing your foreground [5]. Many filter types are available and itʼs definitely worth having a couple in your camera bag. Q 1 neutral density grads 68 www.bdmpublications.com
NEUTRAL DENSITY GRADS 2 4 2-stop G ra 3 duated 5 “You keep detail in the sky without underexposing your foreground.” www.bdmpublications.com 69
Assignment: Circus Hints and tips on how to plan a styled photoshoot P lanning a themed photo shoot is a great way to explore your imagination and get your creative juices flowing. Once you have an idea, the prospect of planning and preparing for it can be quite daunting if you intend to start from scratch: sourcing your props and materials and finding suitable venues and models. However, the wealth of knowledge you pick up when planning your shoot makes the experience worth all the hard work; and the unique images you will create bringing your imagination to life makes it well worth taking up the challenge. Before you decide upon the nature of your shoot, it is a good idea to do a little research, to help you decide on a theme that interests you. 70 www.bdmpublications.com On this occasion we decided to do a Circus Shoot, since we have always been intrigued by the work of Diane Arbus, a female American Photographer who found beauty in people who would otherwise be deemed too ugly or obscure by the rest of society to be photographed. Many of her images were of circus freaks and the images were shot in black and white, making them stark and atmospheric. We decided our shoot was not going to be done in the same way, as we wanted a more modern style for our images and resolved to use plenty of colour but with a dark twist, to capture the personalities of our models. With this in mind, we began making a list of everything we were going to need. Three A4 pages later we realised this was going to be a big challenge but could not wait to get started!
ASSIGNMENT: CIRCUS Sourcing a venue and props For this shoot to succeed it was vital to find an atmospheric venue that would allow for both ambient light and the use of studio lighting. We would also need plenty of space for the acts to perform (preferably with a stage) and ideally somewhere with a changing facilities where the circus performers and makeup artists could prepare. We were told about a new music and arts based ‘Speakeasy’ style venue that had opened called The Lucky 7 Club which sounded perfect. We contacted the proprietors to ask if they would consider allowing us to use the club. With a minimal budget for the shoot we asked if they would consider letting us use the venue at no cost and they kindly agreed, on the understanding that we would let them have a few copies of the images produced, to help promote their establishment. Perfect! We now had a fabulous venue. Collaborating with other businesses is a great way to source what you need for your themed shoots and also a great way to make new contacts in your local community. Next we needed props, so we approached The Prop Factory, a Devon based company run by Carmen. She is a creative lady who along with her team create props for festivals, TV and all types of events. We had seen on her website that she had many circus props and also collaborated with photographers. Carmen kindly agreed to get involved with our project and so between us we set a date for the shoot. www.bdmpublications.com 71
Models, makeup & costumes Once you have established a venue you will need to source suitable models and acts to feature in your images. Sourcing models can be expensive if you decide to go through modelling agencies, so if you do not already have models that you work with regularly, an alternative can be to advertise on social media sites. This is not only a great way to find models but also one of the best ways to gain exposure for your images after the shoot and encourage other models to work with you. If you do not have your own page set up already to advertise on, there are plenty of Model & MUA Networking Groups on Facebook, where models and makeup artists advertise their services. Most of these people are trying to build a portfolio and will offer their services Behind the scenes shots Taking photographs behind the scenes is a great way to prepare your models for the shoot before it happens. Getting used to the camera pointing in their direction will help them get in to character prior to the start. Walking around taking shots of everything that is going on behind the scenes breaks down barriers and encourages communication between the photographer and models. This is also a good opportunity to discuss various ideas with individuals for poses and facial expressions, so that they have some idea of what is expected of them during their individual slot. Taking behind the scenes shots makes a great record of what is happening during the course of your themed shoot and for future events, a great reference to look back on to remind you of what worked, what could have been done differently and how your planning timed out. in exchange for images to use in their portfolio. On this occasion we used models and stylists already known to us, as we needed models with circus skills such as Hula Artists, Contortionists and makeup artists with the skills to create the looks we wanted to achieve for the shoot. Many of the costumes were sourced from eBay and charity shops and some were made for us by family members; if you do know people who can sew, then try and get them on-board. Having unique exciting costumes will add volumes of interest to your images. Creating the team To communicate, we created a Circus 2018 Facebook Group. All of the models, makeup The 24.3MP Nikon D600 is the smallest and lightest full frame camera created by Nikon. A quiet camera which is a very popular alternative to the D800 at a fraction of the price. Long lens Using a telephoto lens while obtaining behind the scenes shots is a great way of keeping your distance when capturing candid moments as they naturally occur. For our circus shoot we used a Nikon D600 and for the candid behind the scene shots a Nikon AF–S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8G VR lens was added. The wide maximum shooting at 2.8 meant we were able to take photos in poorly lit areas of the dressing room without the use of flash. This is a fast lens and along with the vibration reduction we were able to use it without a tripod, which would have been in the way with all the hustle bustle of everybody getting ready. An eye for details We also made use of the time we had, while the models prepared, to capture images of some of the props, artwork and curiosities within the club. Collating pictures of items that could be used as layers, backgrounds or brushes meant that later, during the editing process while creating composite images, we had the tools to make images that captured the atmosphere and details of the place where we were shooting. 72 www.bdmpublications.com The Nikon AF–S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8G VR is a popular all round lens suitable for a variety of applications. The optical image stabilisation unit allows for hand held precision of up to 3 stops lower than normal, with very little sign of camera shake. artists and stylists, in-fact anyone involved with the shoot were added to the group, so that we had a great platform to communicate on. This was somewhere we could share times and schedules for the actual day and also somewhere to discuss the ideas for all the individual images. The group formed a great community spirit with many of the models themselves, sharing their own ideas for the characters they were playing. Creating the team is a vital part of any group shoot. If all the participants are invited to project their ideas and contribute, it creates a great community spirit and breaks down any communication barriers. Everyone involved in your project will feel part of the team, encouraging new relationships and bonds which will result in a great friendly atmosphere on the big day.
ASSIGNMENT: CIRCUS www.bdmpublications.com 73
Lighting our models We decided that we would create a set of 20 images covering a variety of circus characters. The first of which would be Siamese Twins. This would be a composite image, allowing us to use 2 different images of our model Hayley’s head edited into one final image in Photoshop. Using a selection of props including a giant chair, a gramophone and various children’s toys and curiosities we found at The Lucky 7 Club, we set to work creating an obscure setting that our unusual character would look at home in. Our stylists Laura and Sammy set to work creating two different looks for our model, as we wanted both heads to have a different style in each image so that they did not simply looked duplicated; instead implying different personalities. The corner of the room we had set up in was fairly dark. With dark blue walls clad with wooden panelling and parquet flooring, we did not want to lose the atmosphere this environment created, so we decided to use a hard directional light to make shadows that would create drama and a sense of mystery, and not flood the area with light. To do this we used Elinchrom D-100 lights. These are small but robust 100W flash units which will power up again after one and a half seconds. The beauty of these lights is that they are quite compact and perfect for the area we were working in. These flash heads are portable and easy to set up and another benefit to this small light is that they are quite inexpensive; this is always a good thing when you are in a busy environment or out on location where accidents can happen. Being a small light helps create a harder light with shadows and is what we wanted to achieve during this shoot to create drama. If you want to achieve an even harder light, use smaller lights. However, a D-Lite 100 system will give you approximately twice the power of using speedlites. To achieve the look we wanted, we opted for a hard directional light, positioned high; in fact as far up as we could get away with while still capturing the highlights in the subjects eyes, combined with a fairly narrow depth of field. Using the elevated position of the light, similar to butterfly lighting, we cast shadows in the right places, i.e. under the cheekbones and the chin, which helped to cast shadows and define the models facial features. Using a light pointing in to an umbrella (positioning the umbrella fairly close to the bulb) and shooting forward to the subject, will achieve a hard light similar to that used in Hollywood lighting, and using the umbrella in this ‘shoot through’ way helps to get rid of any stark overly exposed areas, like a diffuser would. We decided to use this modifier in preference to using a soft box or beauty dish, which produces a much smoother flatter light and in turn takes away from the shape and definition of the face made by the shadows. Once our lighting was set we selected a 24-70 lens, which is a great all-rounder for wide captures, portraits and everything in between, that gave us flexibility in the type of images we wanted to try. Hayley is an experienced model so had no problem understanding our requests. However, many models are not so confident and so clear concise direction from you the photographer is paramount in achieving the photographs you are visualising. For this image we needed a selection of head positions ready for creating our Siamese twins look during post production; and then adjusted our light direction accordingly for each new pose. Clear concise direction will encourage your models’ confidence and help them understand what is expected from them to achieve the images you wish to create. 74 www.bdmpublications.com
ASSIGNMENT: CIRCUS Organising the shots Prior to shoot date one of the things we had discussed in our group was which characters we would need and the finer details of our characters’ personalities. Discussing some of the personality traits and expressions that the models could inject into the roles of the characters, helped make the images more believable and helped our models relate to the role they were required to play. The 20 images we decided on for the actual day were based on our memories of visits to the circus as children, as well as TV programmes and films we had seen previously. The final choice of images was: 1. Siamese Twins 2. Clowns – Happy/Angry 3. Ringmaster 4. Fortune Teller 5. Strong Man – or in our case strong woman 6. Circus Dog – photographed in dogs home 7. Dancer 8. Trapeze 9. Contortionist 10. Hula Girl 11. Candy Seller 12. Pierrot Clown 13. Ticket Seller 14. Man Putting on Makeup 15. Puppets 16. Ribbon Trapeze 17. Levitation – bed of nails 18. Knife Throwers 19. Performing Animals – photographed at the zoo 20. Little People – we decided to use children for this image and photograph it on a separate occasion, so that the children were not overwhelmed by the hectic surroundings of our shoot day. Given that we had 17 shoots to complete, 3 being photographed in separate venues, the time management of our shoot was paramount. We had use of the club from 9am until 5pm but had to allow for a lunch break as well as time for the models to get ready with the help of the stylists. This allowed us approximately 6 hours to do 17 shoots or 20 minutes per shoot. In order to stick to such a tight schedule a floor manager was delegated (Rosie) who also doubled as our ribbon trapeze artist. Her job was to plan out a schedule that gave each of the models time to have the hair, makeup and wardrobe done, and a time for their shoot. It would be fair to say that without Rosie making things run like clockwork through the course of the day our shoot would have been a disaster, so I would very much recommend that you consider an assistant when planning your themed shoot. This frees up your time to concentrate on the creative side of things like taking the pictures. Working with stylists and makeup artists is much like working with models: they are not mind readers and require a certain amount of communication on your part to achieve the looks you want them to create. Discussion prior to the day, researching looks and discussion ideas for the styling of each of our models, meant that not only did our stylists turn up knowing what was expected of them but they also had plenty of time to source the materials needed for specific make up styles. Any planning for your shoot that can be done prior, should be done in order to take away stress on the day. Time management on the day is one of the most important factors to take in to consideration when planning. It will not only alleviate stress but structure the day, so that you the photographer and models alike can work efficiently in the time slots given. www.bdmpublications.com 75
For most of our shoots we selected a 24-70mm 2.8 lens which is a great all-rounder for wide captures, portraits and anything in between and gave us the flexibility to try a variety of ideas during a shoot. Story telling images The most successful images are ones that are thought provoking and captivate the imagination of the person viewing them. With this in mind we wanted each of the images to not only be exciting and colourful but also to tell a story, much like the circus images by Diane Arbus that had inspired us to do this themed shoot in the first place. The images had to have depth that went past what you see at a first glance. Therefore, a lot of time was spent creating concepts and stories behind each of our images. Each of the images we created tells a story of its own. The strong man To give you an example of what we mean by a story telling image let’s take the concept of the ‘Circus Strong Man’, historically portrayed as 76 www.bdmpublications.com For wide angle portraits we selected a 12-24mm Nikon lens. This is a fantastic addition to any collection if you want to create dynamic portraits like our clown, where the body remains in proportion but the outstretched arm is enlarged. a robust male character, very muscular and often holding a glamorous assistant with one arm up above his head. How could we create a story telling image with a modern day slant, to illustrate the same concept, without falling in to this already portrayed image style? Firstly we thought about the character itself and decided the first change we would make was to use female models instead of the stereotypical man. We then thought about the word ‘strong’ itself and what it meant to us as a group. For the most part we decided it was a word to describe someone with physical attributes that made them appear very fit and powerful, so we needed to find a model who was physically fit and preferably with a bodybuilder type physique. We then discussed our concept further and went on to discuss mental strength and a completely different meaning of the word ‘strong’, such as someone who needs to be strong to cope with daily issues. We discussed different examples of people who have been strong in their own lives and who cope with a variety of different circumstances, illnesses and social pressures. We found our two perfect models: Carrie, a fitness instructor with a strong independent character and an incredible physique; also Claire, a Pilates instructor with stage 3 breast cancer, who shows strength on a daily basis fighting her illness and maintaining a strong mental attitude. We had found the story behind our picture. A strong person isn’t just someone who appears to be fit on the outside, a strong person is someone who is coping and showing bravery in the face of adversity too: someone like Claire.
ASSIGNMENT: CIRCUS www.bdmpublications.com 77
Expect the Unexpected With all the planning and preparation in the world, invariably there will always be a few things on the day of your shoot that you did not see coming. Learning to adapt and be flexible with your arrangements is a great skill to have as a photographer. When working with a large group of models for instance there may be people on the day who are unable to make it due to illness or perhaps their childcare has let them down, so having a plan B should these situations occur will put you at an advantage. Sourcing versatile models who are willing to step in to another’s role is advantageous; and if you are not too bad at hair and makeup, be prepared to roll your sleeves up and get your hands dirty. Inevitably with lots Post production Learn from your mistakes How you decide to edit your images post production will determine the final appearance of your images and as a photographer this may be what sets you apart from others in the industry; you may decide that a few simple tweaks to the white balance is all that you want to do. However, for our Circus 2018 shoot we decided to push our creativity one step further and use creative Photoshop techniques to enhance the images. For this final challenge we decided to take our imagery to a whole new level by creating a set of portraits by applying prints to three dimensional casts of our models faces. There are many great plug-ins available on Photoshop that create artistic finishes for your photographs and one of our favourites is Nik Software, which can be downloaded free of charge from Google. This has a selection of applications including: Colour Efex Pro, Silver Efex Pro and Analog Efex Pro. For the Circus images we wanted to create a dated finish with muted colours and so I adjusted the settings in Analog Efex Pro to create the desired effects. The best way to learn how to create the perfect themed photoshoot is to have a go. There will be ideas you had prior to the shoot that will not go to plan and some of your greatest ideas will come to you during the shoot, when you are inspired by the people you are working with and the environment you are photographing in. Learn from your experiences, be encouraged by your successes and do not be defeated by the things that don’t go to plan. Learn from the experience and plan another shoot. You are now armed with the tools necessary to improve on your first attempt and know what needs changing. Remember there aren’t any rules to being successful: preparation will help but ultimately the success of the day will be down to how you conduct the event. If you are enthusiastic, so too will your models and stylists. If you have a vision, and follow it through, you will create images bespoke to you, as well as creating great memories of a day that everyone involved will remember for a long time to come. Q 78 www.bdmpublications.com of different costumes being stretched in to different poses and positions there may be a few tears and burst buttons, so a little emergency kit containing items such as safety pins, cotton and thread, change for the car parking meter and a list of models and contact phone numbers will come in very useful on the day.
ASSIGNMENT: CIRCUS Credits Many thanks to: THE PROP FACTORY - www.propfactory.co.uk THE LUCKY 7 CLUB - www.thelucky7club.com ONYX - www.onyxaerialfitness.bco.uk MUA: Estelle Cole - www.belush.co.uk MUA: Jodie Boulter - Bronzed Beauty MUA: Deb Miller & Holly Shears HAIR: Sammy Bond HAIR: Laura Lewsey - Hair Addiction VIDEO: Nicky Simpson COSTUME: Jan Drayton DIRECTION: Rosie Cawthorne ASSISTANT: Charli Miller MODELS: Paula Valpy, Hayley Prescott, Deb Miller, Rob Miller, Alana Miller, Hannah Williams, Carrie Darby, Claire Street, Rosie Cawthorne, Emma Green, Monika Haglundh, Estelle Cole, Kyle Shorland, Shaun Rogers, Kim Platts, Erin Collins, Holly Shears, Jodie Boulter, Zoe, Bowden, Abi Woltman, Sarah Bell & Mark Bell. www.bdmpublications.com 79
Nikon lens master The right lens for the job hile the top wildlife photographers jet off to exotic locations to capture their photos, for those of us of more modest means, zoos and wildlife parks can provide many opportunities to photograph animals in more controlled and easily accessible locations. Most wildlife parks try to ensure that their animals are kept in surroundings that closely match their natural environment. Zoos and parks will usually actively encourage photography, and often build their enclosures to provide an unobstructed view of the animals, so by careful use of a telephoto lens it should be possible to exclude anything from the shot that might give away the fact that it was not shot in the wild. Most zoo animals are accustomed to visitors, they seem quite happy to pose for their photo, giving the photographer time to compose the shot. A wide aperture can reduce the depth of field so that the background is out of focus, W using a higher ISO setting also helps to provide a nice fast shutter speed to freeze any unexpected movements or chance of camera shake. A long telephoto zoom lens magnifies the view, allowing the photographer to crop out the surroundings and concentrate on the animals. Q The AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f5.6E ED VR image stabilised lens is a good choice for wildlife. It is both versatile and affordable. wildlife at the zoo Seeing exotic animals in the wild is beyond most of us. This is where one of Nikon’s powerful zoom lenses comes into its own at the zoo for a close up view. 80 www.bdmpublications.com
“A wide aperture has reduced the depth of field so that the background is out of focus.” If your wallet can take the hit, then the AF-S 800mm f/5.6E FL ED VR represents one of the finest super-telephoto lenses out there with huge reach provided by that 800mm focal length. www.bdmpublications.com 81
The power of silhouettes Strike the perfect balance of light and dark L et’s get that word out of the way first. Silhouette, what does it mean? It came into being as a result of severe economic demands imposed upon the French people by their finance minister Étienne de Silhouette in 1759. His name became linked with anything that was thought to be done cheaply. In the days before photography, making a portrait cheaply and quickly from paper became known as a silhouette. It is a term used to describe the image of a person or object that is represented as a solid shape. The interior of the shape is totally black and featureless. Only the edge of the object describes what the object actually is. The term silhouette was originally thought to describe pieces of paper that were cut out and stuck to a contrasting coloured backing sheet, although the actual name ’silhouette’ didn’t become a well-used term until the early 19th century. Portraits cut from black card, became a very popular and quick alternative to the portrait painting or portrait miniature. “It is a term used to describe the image of a person or object that is represented as a solid shape. The interior of the shape is totally black and featureless.” 82 www.bdmpublications.com Maintaining a good exposure for the brightest parts of the image can just about guarantee the rest will fall into dark shadow with little or no detail to be seen. A little nudge in the right direction with post-work will help.
THE POWER OF SILHOUETTES The basics of backlighting Bright light source or very bright scene. Meter the scene for the brightest part of the image, but not the sun. Don’t meter your subject. If they are correctly exposed, the background will blow out to white. Subject is placed between light source and camera. Camera faces subject with light source behind the subject. From that original meaning, it has now become a popular term to describe anything that appears as a shape dark against a much brighter background. The fields of architecture, moviemaking, fashion and photography all use the word silhouette as a descriptor for the form, shape and outline of an object, person, building and so on. In photographic terms at least, a silhouette is actually similar to a black and white shot. A black and white image relies on form, texture and composition since one of the key ingredients, colour, has been removed. Silhouettes are similar in the sense that they have had most of their detail and texture removed. The shot now relies on the composition, the form of the subject and being able to convey a mood, or story with the kind of presentation that is more akin to shadow puppet theatre. The pier is correctly exposed revealing too much detail. The sky is too bright for a successful silhouette. Basic ingredients Metering the sky so it is correctly exposed will drop the foreground subject into a silhouette. So what do you need to make a silhouette happen? First, you’ll need your subject to be backlit. Backlighting is the term used to describe a lighting technique whereby a strong light source such as the sun, flashgun or even just a bright window in a dark room is positioned in such a way that it is directly facing the camera, or is at a slight angle to it. The subject is then placed between the camera and the bright source of light. Because of the strength of the backlight, the subject is reduced to a dark shape since they are in shadow. Depending on the angle of the backlight, you can create a highlight on the edges of your subject which is known as rim-lighting or kick-lighting. www.bdmpublications.com 83
Given the right conditions, even night time shots can create some cool silhouettes. With a long enough exposure, a night sky with stars and clouds can still be brighter than an unlit foreground object. 84 www.bdmpublications.com
THE POWER OF SILHOUETTES Embrace the dark Partial silhouettes are also very effective. In this case, rather that the light source being directly behind the subject, it is slightly off to one side. This gives you what is known as a rim light. Shooting this technique requires you to throw away the rulebook in a sense, to achieve the very specific look that defines a silhouette. For a conventional backlit portrait, you would use some additional lighting from a flash or a reflector to make sure your subject didn’t fall into completely dark shadow and make sure detail is preserved. Now though, you are going to reduce the subject to solid black or at least as close as we can get to it without ruining the rest of the shot. The basic premise here, is that you are deliberately going to underexpose the shots by a specific amount to correctly expose the very brightest parts of the scene, which should then render the subject totally dark. Shooting silhouettes Although the capture of silhouettes is fairly straightforward, there are a few things to be aware of to make sure you actually get what you are hoping for. Modern cameras will always do their best to meter the scene for the best overall exposure and if you use a camera in fully automatic mode, then you lose any input in the decision making process when you take the shot. For the best control of the situation, you should consider shooting in fully manual mode. Now the decision making is yours alone and you can fine tune your shots to make sure they turn out as proper silhouettes. Q www.bdmpublications.com 85
Night photography Some tips for quality night shots A good quality, stable tripod, is essential for long exposure photography. W hether it’s the lure of bright city lights, barren moorland bathed in moonlight or a tumbledown barn in the country under a starry sky, night-time photography is a big draw for many photographers. It can be challenging, it can be very frustrating and timeconsuming, but once you get the bug for it and get those first few ‘wow!’ images under your belt, it’s a hard habit to break. There are a lot of photographers who find the whole process very relaxing. As you are normally dealing with much longer exposures than usual and having to carefully compose and focus your shots, it forces you to slow it all down and take a much more considered 86 www.bdmpublications.com approach. After all, if you set up a ten-minute exposure and the end result is disappointing, you could angrily pack up your gear, set off home, and miss out on a very rewarding aspect of photography. To make sure you get the most out of your photos, here are a few tips that should see you well on your way to capturing amazing night shots. Use a tripod This may sound a bit obvious, but if you want to take photographs where exposure times can sometimes be in the tens of minutes, you’re going to need something sturdy to put your camera on. You can of course set your camera to its highest ISO setting, open the aperture as wide as it will
NIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY go and shoot handheld, but to really do the image justice you’re going to need a solid tripod. One thing is worth mentioning; pay particular attention to the surface on which you’re setting your tripod. shooting at the water’s edge on a beach is a good example. The tripod may be pushed firmly into the sand and your long exposure is under way. One larger-than-usual wave and the feet of your tripod are swamped. Not a big deal, but the water can soak into the sand, which becomes soft, and the tripod can start to list over to one side ruining the shot. An attempt higher up the shoreline away from the waves might be in order. Keep the ISO low Because you have your tripod keeping things steady for the camera, you can use the lowest ISO setting your camera will allow. This is a big advantage from the point of view of image quality. High ISO settings create a lot of image noise, and can affect the sharpness of the shot, detracting from the overall quality of the image. Many modern cameras can produce fairly clean shots at high ISO, and it may well be that you can work in the 800-1000 ISO range if the situation demands it, but generally the lower the ISO setting, the better the result will be. A lot of cameras also offer Long Exposure Noise Reduction (LENR). This works by taking a second exposure of just the sensor noise which is then used to subtract the noise from your original shot. What this means is that if you take a five-minute exposure, it will then take another five-minute LENR exposure. For any exposure longer than a couple of minutes, the sensor may start to heat up and this introduces noise artefacts. This is what LENR is trying to remove. It’s just a personal preference but many don’t use LENR. Like a lot of recent DSLRs most cameras use a CMOS sensor which isn’t as prone to overheating, and you could take ten-minute exposures without any noise issues. If you want to try very long night-time images like star trails, consider taking multiple exposures of 30 seconds each and stacking them in Photoshop. For example, 30 exposures of 30 seconds each is equivalent to one 15 minute exposure. Shoot raw Shooting in raw mode is a method that allows you to extract the absolute last pixel of quality from your image and process it any number of creative ways non-destructively. You can happily alter white balance settings, crossprocess, split raw and any number of effects without losing your original image. Like using low ISO, it’s another way of keeping the image quality as high as possible. Lenses: zoom or prime? When you’re shooting at night there are any number of light sources, such as street lights, headlights, the moon, bright windows, neon signs, all of which are capable of introducing unwanted lens-flare that can ruin an otherwise excellent shot. Lens flare is caused by unwanted light scattered by the optical elements inside your lens. Zoom lenses particularly suffer from flare as they contain many more optical elements. Your best chance of reducing lens flare is to use a prime lens. A prime is a lens that only has one set focal distance and therefore uses fewer internal optical elements. Whether you use a zoom or a prime, a lens hood is recommended for both. Also, wherever possible, use a lens with as wide a maximum aperture as possible, such as f/2.8. You may well be shooting at smaller apertures than this but the image in the viewfinder will be brighter with a faster lens, helping you to see and set up your composition. Bulb mode With most current DSLRs the longest shutter speed you can use in normal operation is 30 seconds. However if you switch to Bulb mode (“B”) on your camera, you can keep the shutter open for much longer periods. “Bulb” in this case is a reference to the old squeeze-bulb, pneumatically activated shutter release systems from the earliest days of photography. What you don’t want to be doing though is standing there with your finger on the shutter release button for five minutes. Your finger is going to ache and you are going to move the camera and spoil the shot. Attaching a cable release instead is the answer. A good quality lens, whether prime or zoom, is expensive, but it is expensive for a reason. The cable release makes the process of shooting long exposures much easier. www.bdmpublications.com 87
This means you can activate the shutter and lock it open for as long as you need. These vary from the simplest ‘press to activate’ types to fully programmable interval timers that can take multiple shots with durations and intervals between shots set by the user. Take test shots at high ISO Since most modern cameras offer very high ISO settings, it makes sense, before committing to a long exposure or a sequence of long exposures, to ramp up the ISO to the max, take a shot and have a look at the composition, framing and exposure. However if you’ve just done your test shot at 2000 ISO and it looks great, how does that translate to shooting the same scene but at a lower ISO setting to get the quality? There is some maths involved but it’s not 88 www.bdmpublications.com
NIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY complicated, especially if you have your mobile phone with you. The mathematical bit At 2000 ISO your camera meter tells you that for the aperture you have set, a shutter speed of five seconds gives you a good exposure. Now you need to know how that exposure will change when you dial your ISO down to 100. Divide your high ISO number by the target low ISO number (2000/100 = 20), take your answer (20) and multiply it by the high ISO exposure value five seconds - this gets you a final answer of 100 seconds (1.6 minutes). Still with us? If you prefer, there are apps for iOS and Android that can do the heavy lifting for you. A popular one called Expositor, has a nice user-interface that can quickly calculate any combination of EV, ISO, F-stop and exposure time you care to dial in. It’s great for quickly and accurately working out the arithmetic without the need to do the sums in your head. Earth, sky and water Use this to your advantage. It may have been done to death, but a coastline shot taken with a long exposure reduces the sea to that wonderful misty blanket. If there are patches of clouds in the shot, they appear to streak across the sky when your exposures get up beyond 30 seconds or more. Of course, who can forget traffic trails? They are the staple of long exposure photography. The key word here is experimentation. Light painting Seen in the photograph at the top of this page, Expositor is a great app for helping you calculate those tricky exposure times. this refers to the technique of illuminating parts of your scene with additional light sources other than those in the shot. Light painting has become very popular and ranges from simply using a flashlight to illuminate a dark foreground subject, to using all manner of light sources, such as strobes, sparklers, coloured LED lights and even steel wool set alight to create huge showers of sparks, all of which create bizarre and abstract “light art”. It’s worth looking into if you’re thinking of taking night photography to a whole new place. It’s dark out there. Go take some photographs. What are you waiting for? Q www.bdmpublications.com 89
Assignment: Happy Colours Hints and tips on how to plan a styled photoshoot P lanning and photographing a styled shoot is a great way of exploring your creative ideas using your portraiture skills, combined with exciting colourful concepts you wish to try out. The idea behind a styled shoot is to collect ideas formed by a group of people with different skills, bring them to the table and create an elaborate concept, mock situation or event. The images resulting from your styled shoot can then be used by all involved for their own purposes, without any payment exchanging hands. Therefore a styled shoot is a great way of not only exploring new concepts but also gaining images which can be used for advertising and 90 www.bdmpublications.com promotion. Styled shoots are a great way of making new contacts and friendships within the industry which may lead to future collaborations and expand your knowledge in the theme of your chosen genre. In this assignment we will show you how to create your own styled fashion Shoot, using our 4 simple stages to guide you: Team, Theme, Location and Preparation. Having previously met imaginative display artist Hannah Taylor at previous events, we arranged to work on a project together. This would combine her beautiful handmade accessories and colourful event decorating ideas with our photography, to see what the results would look like. The team Once Hannah had agreed to work with us, the next person we needed to find was a makeup artist. You will find many makeup artists looking to work on styled shoots, as it is a way for them to expand their portfolio of work. Makeup artists all offer different styles and looks and many have been trained to apply special effects makeup if you are searching for a particularly adventurous look! For a more experienced specialist MUA (makeup artist) you may need to pay anywhere between £30 and £75 per hour but it is money well spent as a professional can create the look you wish to achieve.
ASSIGNMENT: HAPPY COLOURS “In this assignment we will show you how to create your own styled fashion Shoot.” For this shoot stylist Hannah already knew of a makeup artist she wanted to use. Billie Edge is an established MUA in the South West, who has the skills required to create the look we were aiming to achieve. Then we needed our models. We chose Monika and Alana for this shoot as we wanted blonde haired girls with blue eyes and a fair complexion. Finally we needed clothing to suit our theme. Days of Grace is a clothing store specialising in vintage clothing; their unique pieces were exactly what we were looking for to complement our styled shoot ‘Happy Colours’. www.bdmpublications.com 91
Theme - ‘Happy Colours’ The idea behind our styled shoot was mainly focused on happy vibrant colours. Hannah wanted to create strong statement decor and styling made up with fabrics from her past and present projects and ideas. Using a collection of bold and exciting materials, mixing styles and eras, the textiles Hannah decided to use in the bespoke decorations ranged from antique embroidery to modern bright eccentric print. The clothing we decided to use ranged from 100yr old silk oriental trousers through to ‘70s and ‘80s pieces; these were supplied to us by Days of Grace. The main inspiration for the shoot came from current catwalk fashion, including the eccentric use of mixed patterns, laying fabrics and the use of heavy embroidery. Accessories and decor Tablecloths were made up from fabric off cuts and clothing that Hannah loved but no longer fitted, along with favourite items from her own personal collection. Handmade alternative buttonholes and brooches were created for the shoot, based on a pattern found on the tablecloth, that complemented each other and added unique detail. The place setting details were also made Lenses for a styled shoot One of our favourite portrait lenses, and often used on styled shoots, is the Nikon Nikkor 85mm f/1.8. It is a very sharp prime lens, which is perfect for portrait work as it keeps the subject perfectly in focus, while also creating Bokeh should you prefer more depth in your images. Due to the exceptional sharpness of this little lens, it is also ideal for capturing details of the accessories and decor in the surroundings and the clothes worn by the models. The Nikon 24-70 is also a great lens for use on a styled shoot. Due to its wide-angle it is great for capturing an entire set in a fairly small setting. Often in the case of styled shoots, the sets created are in fairly small areas, so this is the perfect lens offering full flexibility for such a setup. An eye for details It is a good idea to make use of the time you have while the models get ready to assess your theme surroundings and set up the cameras with the correct lenses and lighting you require for your shoot. The 24.3MP Nikon D600 is the smallest and lightest full frame camera created by Nikon. It is a quiet camera and is a very popular alternative to the D800 with similar capabilities, at a fraction of the price. 92 www.bdmpublications.com The Nikon Nikkor 85mm f/1.8 AF-S G is a great portrait lens that makes capturing detail easy and is fast enough for shoots on the go. from fabric bought on Hannah’s travels. With a riot of colour and pattern it felt right to create a bold bouquet which had a strong shape that would stand out. The vision This came from Hannah’s favourite artist Henri Matisse; the use of bold colours and patterns was exactly what we were trying to achieve through styled photography. We also decided that by blending our models with some of the objects and patterns in our setting, we could create vibrant and interesting images.
ASSIGNMENT: HAPPY COLOURS www.bdmpublications.com 93
Location We decided that we would use natural light for this shoot. We did not want any flash lighting altering the colours or natural shadows in any way. Hannah Taylor decided to create the setting in her own back garden using an open sided out house, which had a clear roof and open front, which let plenty of natural light in. We would normally use a gold reflector in our styled shoots to give the models skin a warm glow but on this occasion, as we wanted the reflector to eliminate shadows and not to enhance the skin, we used a silver and white one, thus keeping the skin tones cool. This in turn drew attention to the colours and textures of our surroundings. We spent a lot of time preparing the space by putting up a selection of materials on the walls and laying the table with a selection of the bespoke decorations which had been prepared for our shoot. Hannah then added a selection of rustic items such as wooden ladders and old clay pots before filling the location with an abundance of flowers in the colours which would complement not only the surrounding fabrics but also the clothing the models were wearing. More time was taken to make sure the details were positioned correctly, making composition easier when setting up shots. In the past when we have done styled shoots the weather has been a very big factor to consider when deciding on the location for the shoot. When Positioning an elevated hard light, will create shadows in the right places, creating drama in your image, as well as accentuating your models facial features. planning your own shoot outdoors, it is vital that you discuss with the people you are collaborating with how you are going to proceed should the weather be bad. If you have spent weeks arranging an amazing setting, money on MUA’s and then hours getting your models ready, the last thing you want is to call the whole thing off. Communicating with the others involved is important. Always try and have a plan B in place for possible bad weather. When choosing your location, you will need to make provisions for the stylists to prepare your models for the shoot. Most makeup artists like to use natural light, so you need to make sure this is readily available at your shoot location. You will also need to check that there are facilities if your models have outfit changes during the shoot. Hannah had set aside a large room for our models and Billie the stylist. Clear concise direction will encourage your models and help understand what is expected from them so you can achieve the images you wish to create. 94 www.bdmpublications.com
ASSIGNMENT: HAPPY COLOURS During our shoot we selected a 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. This is a great all-rounder for wide captures, portraits and anything in between, giving the flexibility to try a variety of ideas during a shoot. For wide-angle portraits we selected the 12-24mm Nikon lens. This is a great addition to any kit bag if you want to create dynamic wide-angle portraits. Preparation On the morning of our shoot we arrived to find our set in place. Our makeup artist was ready to start work on the models who had been asked to arrive with no makeup and with clean hair untreated with products. This gave the stylists a blank canvas to work with. After quick introductions, we were ready to get started. Our models Monika and Alana were presented with a selection of garments both modern and antique to try on. Stylist Hannah and MUA Billie decided on looks which complemented each of our models and then discussed suitable makeup. The MUA was able to create subtle soft facial tones which did not take away from the details in our surroundings and the cleverly selected eye colours enhanced the blues of the models’ eyes. The rich colours of the lips complemented the fruits and flowers in our setting. We discussed ideas for our images, making sure everyone had input and the concept for our shoot was agreed upon. We wanted the feeling of an eccentric tea party and as such we wanted to introduce a few obscure poses, making use of the dinner table, and ideas which would inject a modern surreal twist into an otherwise antique style setting. It is important on a styled shoot that you not only capture interesting eye-catching images that appeal to you the photographer but also to make sure you are including as much of the set as possible. Your team has collaborated with you in order to obtain images that show off their work, so special attention must be paid to make sure that you have captured everyone’s contributions. It is always a great idea to have an assistant if you can, as it frees you up to concentrate on the photography. www.bdmpublications.com 95
Explore your imagination A styled shoot is your golden opportunity to explore ideas that you might not have the chance to photograph normally. Our theme contained both new and old styles in the textures and colours used, so we decided to use our props to add further contrast to our images. An example of this was having our model holding bright citrus fruits, which against the muted colours of the models’ dresses made interesting contrasts; as did the smooth textures of the fruit against the fussy ornate patterns in the background. We encouraged solemn, serious expressions on the models faces, to offset the bright and uplifting colour scheme. We also decided that removing areas of a model’s body in some of our images, using Photoshop during post production, and replacing with props and backgrounds, would create modern surreal images in contrast to our antique attire and rustic props. Post production A styled shoot is mostly about giving you the opportunity to work on a creative project and there is no reason why you cannot take your images to a new level using post production and create your own photographic art. Creative portraits can be created in Photoshop using masking layers and blending modes to enhance the colours in the models makeup and clothing. We used a selection of paint splash Photoshop brushes, to lift out some of the colours in our models outfits and makeup. After the shoot Once your shoot is over and you have finished preparing your final images, you will need to share them with the people who collaborated on the shoot. However, you may have multiple images 96 www.bdmpublications.com or some that are too large in file size to email; therefore you will need another method to share them. One is to use We Transfer, which is a free website that allows you to share images with others via the web. Alternatively a free Dropbox account can be created that lets you create and share a folder containing the images. Do be aware that once you go over your free allowance, you will be need to pay to upgrade your account. If you are using the images to gain more commercial exposure via social media, you may want to make sure your images are clearly watermarked with your name or logo. This will not only raise your profile and possibly attract prospective customers, it might also attract other professionals who may be interested in working with you on a styled shoot in the future.
ASSIGNMENT: HAPPY COLOURS Credits Many thanks to: Design and decor: HANNAH TAYLOR DECOR www.hannahtaylor-decor.com Clothes: DAYS OF GRACE www.daysofgracevintage.com Photography: VICKI-LEA BOULTER www.vickiboulter.com Hair & Makeup: BILLIE EDGE www.billieedge.com Model: ALANA MILLER & MONIKA HAGLUNDH www.bdmpublications.com 97
Tabletop photography Combine fun and learning with indoor photo projects A project for you Let’s get started with something that may sound like an easy project at first. We are going to set up and photograph a glass of wine. Rather than just plonking it on a table and photographing it in natural light, we are going to construct a little tabletop studio to light the glass of wine in a particular way in order to show it off to its best effect. It is a technique used by product photographers who have access to large, expensive studio set ups; but fear not, you’ll be surprised at what you can achieve with some card, one light and a little patience. A tricky situation “You never know, you may find a whole new photographic genre that gets you all fired up again.” T here will always be days when the weather is not conducive to outdoor photography projects. Getting enthusiastic about going out and tackling an outdoor project when it’s raining or just overcast can be a bit of a stretch sometimes. Here in the UK, the weather is notorious for having more rain than sunshine throughout the year. If the weatherman says it’s going 98 www.bdmpublications.com to be raining, remember that there’s always something you can photograph. Keep yourself motivated with some indoor photography projects. It’s a chance to try out new things and experiment. You never know, you may find a whole new photographic genre that gets you all fired up again and keeps you happily engaged until the sun comes out again. Photographing a glass of wine is a good subject to tackle as it will force you to consider a couple of things about getting it to look good. First, is the nature of how to light it and then how to control the inevitable reflections. By its nature, a glass is a round, highly reflective bowl but we can use that to our advantage. Reflections can make or break a shot like this. There will be the requirement for reflections that you do actually want in the shot and also reflections that you will want to eradicate. To do this our tabletop set will need a couple of things that let you control how light falls on the subject. Getting set up The first step is to place a large sheet of black, matte finish paper on the table [1]. Shiny paper may cause extra unwanted reflections and light bounces, so make sure it is non-reflective. Then we placed a clear glass shelf atop two pots [2] to raise it about 150mm above the black paper base. It doesn’t have to be glass. It could be a sheet of clear or even white translucent perspex. You could even use a plastic storage box as long as it’s clean. It needs to be a surface that is reflective enough to show a mirror image of the wine glass on its surface. If you are feeling brave, you could use a mirrored surface. Next you’ll need a wine glass. We have a large, good quality glass that has been washed, dried and given a good clean with a microfiber cloth [3]. Avoid holding it with bare hands as you will place fingerprints all over it. Place the glass atop the raised surface, in the centre.
TABLETOP PHOTOGRAPHY 4 1 A card trick 2 Next, we need to create a backdrop for the glass, but one that has a particular effect on the surface of the glass. For this you will need two sheets of stiff black card that you can place along the back edge of the glass and leave a gap between them of about 200mm [4]. This gap is where the light will shine through from behind. Now the gap will need to be covered with a sheet of white paper, thin enough to let light through. You can also use the lid of a plastic storage box if it is translucent enough. Bear in mind that if the gap between the two black cards is textured, creased or dirty, you will most likely see this in your final shots. We did try a thin white sheet of packing foam initially, but the fine textured surface showed up too much. We opted for a 500mm square piece of white translucent perspex [5] , the same material lightbox surfaces are made from. 5 Lighting your set 3 This is going to be a single light setup. We have a Nikon SB700 as our light source. If you were to fire the flash at close range, the white material between the black cards may be well lit in the middle and darker at the edge. This spotlight effect may be fine for you and there’s no reason not to go for it. We were aiming for a completely evenly lit white background. You could move the flash further away but too much stray spill light will illuminate areas of the dining room where we had set up, and create additional reflections. We put the flash inside a small, foldable softbox called a Rogue Flashbender. It is essentially a white sleeve with a diffuser on the front [6]. The flash fires up into the sleeve, illuminating it and the white backing throws light forward through the white diffuser. This turns the size of the light source from 60mm x 35mm into a more usable 320mm x 380mm. You do loose some power from your flash but the bigger lighting footprint is what we need here. The flash and its softbox were placed behind our set, with it facing the white perspex sheet that it was going to illuminate in due course. 6 www.bdmpublications.com 99
Camera and lens Next we set up the camera on a tripod in front of our set. We were using a Nikon D5500 with an old TwinLink wireless trigger. The wireless receiver was attached to the flash via its hot shoe connector. The lens for this project was a Nikon AF-S 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6 zoom lens. A decent little lens which would give us some compositional options and framing choices without having to worry about moving the camera and tripod. The TwinLink wireless trigger system is one of many cheap systems available to do away with wired connections to your flashes. The Nikon SB700. A great mid-range flash with plenty of power for our needs during the shoot. The Nikon D5500. A great little cropped-sensor camera delivering crisp 24MP images. The Nikon AF-S 18105mm f/3.5-5.6 zoom lens meant we could alter the framing of the shot without having to move the camera. 100 www.bdmpublications.com Composition and settings Our first priority was to get the scene framed as we wanted it. Shot in portrait orientation, the glass was put dead centre. The lens was zoomed so the glass filled the frame. The two black cards were moved apart so they weren’t in the shot, leaving the white perspex sheet as its background. The two pieces of black card either side of the glass serve two functions, they help reduce any glare from the flash behind the set, and they also reflect along the outer edges of the wine glass, giving it some definition. The camera was set to manual focus and we used Live View to get the front surface of the glass in sharp focus. Next we dialled in some manual settings on the camera. We used an aperture of f/11, a shutter speed of 1/160, which was the maximum sync speed the wireless triggers would allow and an ISO of 100. At this point you need to close curtains and draw shutters to darken your room as much as you can and take a test shot. The image should be completely black. This is good, as it shows that no stray light sources in the room are reflecting on the glass. With the camera ready. The flash needed to be set up. After a few trials, the flash was set manually to 1/4 power. The flash, inside the softbox, lights up the perspex sheet nice and evenly, giving a crisp look to the shot. Bring on the wine Now we can fill the glass. We used a small bottle of very cheap red wine. A little trick to note when shooting darker liquids like this is to dilute it slightly with clean water. This makes it more translucent and light will travel through it to make it appear brighter. The wine was gently poured from a jug into the glass. If you wanted, you could use a small funnel to minimise splashing. Once the glass was topped up to the
TABLETOP PHOTOGRAPHY After getting the set assembled and the camera and lighting sorted, this base test image was shot. It showed us that so far, all was working as hoped. appropriate level, it was time to do a quick check that there were no stray hairs, dust or particles in the shot. Photoshop is great at removing blemishes but the more you can clean off in the first instance, the better it will be. Then it was time for some more test shots to confirm the lighting was all good and that the wine/water mixture looked bright enough in the shot. You can always siphon more water in if needed. Backlighting technique This method of lighting we used is called backlighting. As the name suggests the light comes from behind the subject as viewed by the camera which is facing into the light. Because the camera has been set to record no ambient light, only the backlight has any influence on the final shot. The black paper beneath our subject and either side of the light source helped to eliminate any unwanted reflections. Close examination of the test shots also revealed that A little tip when shooting red wine is to dilute it with fresh water. This makes it more translucent and more light can pass through it, making it look brighter. the camera and tripod were not reflected in the glass either, although the pots the glass shelf are resting on showed up very faintly, but we can cope with that. Add deliberate reflections Yes, you did read the heading correctly. Why, after spending all this time trying to eliminate reflections are we going to add them back in? Well, our wine glass is looking great, but we can add a little extra modelling to the shot to enhance the glass. This is done with two more pieces of card, white this time and rolled into tall tubes, that are placed either side of the wine glass. These two tubes will reflect some of the backlight and be picked up as reflections by the wine glass. Where you place the tubes will dictate where the reflections appear on the glass. If they are moved closer to the backlight, the reflections will appear very close to the edge of the glass. If the tubes are brought closer to the camera, the reflections will appear closer to the vertical centre of the glass. The effect is subtle but it really adds a little ’something’ to the shot. The two white tubes added to the set up add a small white highlight either side of the glass for extra modelling. You can dictate where the reflections appear in the sides of the glass by moving the tubes back and forth. www.bdmpublications.com 101
This is our little tabletop photo studio. The final shot at the start of this article was created using this setup. This was the primary shot that was taken once the settings were dialled in. No white reflectors were used in this shot. 102 www.bdmpublications.com The two white reflectors were placed closer to the camera. This had the effect of placing the reflections towards the middle of the glass. The two white reflectors were placed directly either side of the glass, further from the camera. This keeps the reflections closer to the edge of the glass.
TABLETOP PHOTOGRAPHY A plastic tube or straw can be used to create some bubbles in the wine. If the timing and placement is right, you can get one bubble on its own, which adds a tiny piece of visual interest. The shots taken were reviewed on the computer and the preferred image was opened in Photoshop to clean up any unwanted splashes and blemishes. There was also a little brightness and contrast adjustment for the final image. Bubble trouble A couple of test shots later, we have decided to place the two white tubes closer to the backlight and our shot is looking good. Only one thing remains, bubbles. The simple inclusion of bubbles around the edge of the glass on the surface of the wine adds a little touch of interest and if we’re honest, looks pretty cool. If you have a helper, you can get them to use a long straw or a length of plastic tubing to gently blow some bubbles into the wine. We set ourselves the task of capturing one solitary bubble. It took a few goes, waiting for the blown bubbles to pop one after another until only one was left but we got it. Processing With the set still ‘live’ we downloaded all the shots to the computer and reviewed what we had taken. One shot stood out because of that single bubble, so we processed it in Adobe Camera Raw. We actually darkened the red wine slightly and made sure the glass ‘horizon’ was straight. Then we opened it in Photoshop and set about removing any stray hairs, particles or wine spots that distracted from the shot. After about 15 minutes of careful cloning, we had our finished image. Because of the care taken when setting up the initial shot, post-work was kept to a minimum and the only reflections present were the one we put there ourselves. So, the creation of the set may have taken a little time and the set up needed some patience but the reward is a great looking product shot. Let’s face it, if you’re feeling pleased with the result, you could always celebrate with a glass of wine! Q www.bdmpublications.com 103
Fireworks photography How to capture all the explosive action T here was a time, and not even that long ago, when fireworks in the UK really only happened on Guy Fawkes night on November 5th or as a climax to some massive celebration or event. If you wanted a chance to photograph a big display, you were fairly limited and had to travel large distances to find them, or buy your own and set them off in your garden. These days it would seem that firework displays happen with a much greater frequency. Local towns will often end staged events with a display and there are even fireworks competitions 104 www.bdmpublications.com where a number of teams with big budgets will each stage 10-15 minute displays. These competitions will often happen over a couple of consecutive nights so you get a couple of bites of the cherry so to speak. If you have access to a local display, what is involved in actually capturing the action? Photographing fireworks is easy and great fun, although it does require a little bit of preparation on the part of the photographer, and if you’ve never shot in full manual mode before, this is a good time to give it a go. It’s not in the least bit difficult and we can show you how. “These days it would seem that firework displays happen with a much greater frequency.”
FIREWORKS PHOTOGRAPHY www.bdmpublications.com 105
The basics Since this is a guide on shooting fireworks, you are going to be working in the dark. This means you will be dealing with longer exposures than normal and so the first order of business is to mention that all important tripod. Without the tripod, you cannot fix your camera in place in order to prevent unwanted image blurring due to camera shake. A blurry image cannot be rescued with post processing. Even a tiny amount of movement can ruin a shot. Get your camera locked down securely on a good, sturdy tripod. You can also hang a heavy weight from the tripod’s centre column in order to help minimise any kind of movement. Some people also think that if their camera has image stabilisation (IS), turning it on will also help. In fact, it can have the opposite effect. A camera with IS turned on that is locked in place on a tripod, can actually generate unwanted image blurring. The effect is generally more noticeable at longer focal lengths, but it is there. Remember then, turn off IS when the camera is securely mounted. lens has a focal length range perfect for this kind of work. You will also be dealing with apertures around the f/8-f/11 mark, so expensive f/1.4 lenses need not apply. Ultra wide-angle lenses are possibly going to be less effective if you are shooting from a distance, which is very likely given that the display has to be a certain safe distance from the crowds anyway. From a simple cable release to activate the camera without touching it, to more complex, programmable intervalometers, you have plenty of affordable triggering options for your DSLR. Remote release Since you’ve gone to all the trouble to secure your camera and lens to a tripod, manually pressing the shutter release button to capture your shots is just reintroducing the possibility of jogging the camera. To avoid this, you could use a remote release which can connect to your camera via a cable or by using a wireless version to trigger the camera instead. Using a remote Cameras and lenses The great thing about this kind of photography is that you don’t really need any specialist cameras or lenses. You are more than likely going to be dealing with exposures no longer than a few seconds, so as long as you can set your camera in manual mode and dial in a maximum exposure of 10 seconds, you will be fine. In addition, if your camera does have a setting for Bulb mode, which allows the shutter to be kept open as long as the shutter button is pressed, then this is also useful. Lens choices are also not critical here. Even a cheap point and shoot camera with a built-in Even point and shoot cameras can provide you with some great fireworks photos. They may not have ultra wide lenses, but since you are likely to be at a distance, that is not going to be an issue. A sturdy tripod is essential to eliminate camera shake and prevent blurry images. 106 www.bdmpublications.com
FIREWORKS PHOTOGRAPHY release removes the possibility of nudging the camera as you press the button. If your camera doesn’t have this facility, but does have a selftimer, you can use this at a pinch. The downside is that self-timers usually give you either a 10 second or 2 second countdown before firing. Even a 2 second delay may be tricky when it comes to trying to time the start of your exposures with the fireworks as they are going off. Focusing in the dark Cheap but powerful LED head torches are extremely useful in keeping your hands free for camera operation and button pressing. Once you’re all set up, it’s time to figure out how to focus in the dark. As a general rule, since you are going to be some distance from the action, you can set your lens to manual focus and set it at infinity and leave it there. The infinity symbol, which looks like the number eight on its side, will be marked on your lens. If your lens doesn’t have a focus distance window, you can always use a torch to illuminate a point about one third of the way into the scene or roughly 5m-10m. You can then set manual focus on that spot. Bring some light Speaking of torches, it makes sense to bring one. Better still, a head torch is great for keeping your hands free to alter settings and operate the remote release if you are using one. Head torches are lightweight and cheap to buy. Their LED bulbs mean that a set of batteries will last for ages and can provide plenty of light to work by. Setting up Shooting from a distance means you can set your lens to focus on infinity and just leave it there during the shoot. It makes sense to get to your venue early in order to nab the best spots to make the most of the display. Arriving late and having a sea of heads in your foreground, dominating the shot, is not going to work unless you can raise your camera on its tripod high above the crowd and use them to frame the bottom of the shot. If you do this, you may need a small stepladder or stool to get your head up to the same height as your viewfinder. As long as they are not too intrusive, you can use foreground crowds to frame the lower portion of your shots. www.bdmpublications.com 107
About Raw Yes, once again we have to talk about Raw mode. If your camera supports it, use it. You can glean so much more data from a Raw file than an already processed jpeg file. Besides, if you take all your shots as jpegs and use the wrong white balance for instance, all your jpegs will be processed with the wrong white balance. With Raw, it doesn’t matter what white balance you use, as you can alter it at the post-process stage anyway. Settings Until the fireworks actually start, it will be difficult to actually get your settings dialled in precisely. If you were to try to get a decent exposure without the light from the fireworks themselves, you may find that the ambient light is much dimmer, requiring a longer exposure. That longer exposure may result in the much brighter fireworks being badly overexposed and blown out to white. A very broad rule of thumb is to try starting with an aperture of f/11, a shutter speed of 2s and ISO 200. Once the display starts, you can grab some test shots and 108 www.bdmpublications.com analyse the images on your camera monitor screen. If the images are blown out, you can either reduce the amount of time the shutter stays open, increase the aperture to f/16 or drop the ISO to 100 or 50. Take another shot and see how it affects your photos. Try altering one setting at a time rather than making lots of changes at once. Be aware that different fireworks and their colours will have different intensities too. If the fireworks look too dark, you can increase the ISO gain, open up the aperture to f/8 or increase the exposure time. One thing to bear in mind is that longer exposure times will create much longer light trails in your photos. This comes down to personal choice of course, but bear that in mind. Take the shots Now you can concentrate on getting the shots. Firework displays have low-level and high-level displays. The high-level fireworks generally give the bigger explosions and are usually fairly easy to spot as you can see the fired rockets climbing much higher into the sky. It comes down to timing to guess when the rockets will actually explode, but keep your thumb on the remote release and get ready to press. If you have a decent sized memory card, just keep shooting. There is actually a great little trick you can employ once you are back at home to combine some of the shots that have little going on in them. Another option is to set your camera to Bulb mode. Then you take a small piece of black card and cover the lens with it. Be careful not to bump the camera with it. Open the shutter and keep it open using Bulb mode and only uncover the lens when there is firework activity that you want to capture. If the lens is covered, no light is getting in, so you can keep the shutter open as long as you want. Keep uncovering the lens for each light trail you want captured. Once you have amassed a few seconds worth of light trials, you can close the shutter again. You can experiment with different focal lengths to pick out details from the display and also try shooting in either landscape or portrait orientation.
FIREWORKS PHOTOGRAPHY Merging multiple shots in Photoshop means you can create an image absolutely bursting with light. Post-processing Once you have your shots in the bag, you can process them using your favourite processing software. You can recover quite a bit more from Raw files than jpegs. A certain amount of the highlights can be pulled back from overexposure and the darkest shadows can be lifted too, before the image starts to degrade. You can also merge a number of the more empty looking shots in Photoshop to create much more densely populated fireworks images, if that’s what you want. Just load a number of them into a document as a series of layers and set all of their Blend modes to Lighten to combine their brightness; crop it into a tighter composition and save that out as a single image. Firework photography is great fun and hopefully, after reading this guide, you’ll realise that it is quite easy to capture all the excitement and action from your next local display and create some wonderful images for yourself. Q www.bdmpublications.com 109
Nikon lens master The right lens for the job igital SLR systems offer the greatest versatility of any photographic system, and represent the best compromise between quality and portability. The best CSC systems are still some way behind, but are catching up fast. There are lenses and other accessories available to suit every type of photography, both amateur and professional. It is worth being aware that top quality DSLR lenses like this also command top prices. This photographer is using a very specialist lens to get this shot of a rural scene from a different perspective. The extreme nature of the distortion and the wide field of view this lens gives you is apparent, as is the visible curvature of the ground, adding to the scale and openness of this scene. The kind of lens that can do this is called a fisheye. Whereas most lenses are trying hard D to eliminate distortion, the fisheye uses it to its advantage to give you an unparalleled angle of view that can encompass 180°. In the case of the example lens shown here, the NIKKOR 16mm-f-2.8D fisheye can actually create such an image thanks to its 180° angle of view. Just be prepared to shell out well over £600 for the privilege. Beyond the standard fisheye prime lens, you also have the option of using Nikonʼs first fisheye zoom lens. Although this is definitely a niche lens, it has a very specific skill set that can produce some amazing and mind-bending images. The Nikkor 8-15 fisheye is Nikonʼs first zoom lens capable of capturing not only traditional 180°fisheye images that fill the frame but also completely circular 180°images. This is an exciting and creative lens not only for photographers but videographers who are striving to create that ʻwowʼ shot. Q the fisheye lens A cityscape shot with a difference. Taken with a 16mm fisheye lens high above the ground looking into the scene makes for an imposing image. 110 www.bdmpublications.com The AF Fisheye-NIKKOR 16mm f2.8D lens has a full 180-degree angle of view for a true fisheye effect.
THE FISHEYE LENS “Itʼs important to choose the right lens for the job, but top quality DSLR lenses are very expensive.” The AF-S FISHEYE NIKKOR 8-15mm f/3.5-4.5E ED uses advanced optical construction in Nikon’s first fisheye zoom lens. www.bdmpublications.com 111
Bridesmaids and pageboy catch a glimpse of the bride about to arrive. A classic candid shot where the subjects are not aware of the photograph being taken. The documentary style is further enhanced by converting it to black and white. Candid Photography Tell a story with your photographs B ack in the day, a formal event such as a wedding had a particular style of photography associated with it. The shots were generally quite serious and posed, as you might expect. Over time, it has become more and more popular to not only capture those standard formal shots, but also to inject some more documentary-style photography into the mix as well. It was as if you had your big day shot by an old school wedding photographer and also a paparazzi photographer too. Indeed, on some occasions, younger couples getting hitched have done away with the formal aspect of the wedding altogether and briefed the photographer to take nothing but candid images throughout the day. 112 www.bdmpublications.com
CANDID PHOTOGRAPHY A young girl catches the bouquet at a wedding. Although we were standing right in the crowd with camera in hand, because everyone was fixated on the moment, no attention was paid to the photographer who nabbed this natural shot. www.bdmpublications.com 113
Candid shots capture their subjects in more natural poses and exhibiting more relaxed behaviour. This is the draw for a lot of people who want to see a natural image, not uncomfortable, posed shots. Shooting this more naturalistic style is great in colour, but it can be enhanced even more by the use of black and white images. It lends an even greater feel of reportage to the shots. Take a look at any of the work of photo journalists like Robert Capa and you’ll see the power of the black and white image to tell a story is absolute. Ok, we admit, a wedding or comic convention is in no way the same as photographing the Spanish Civil War or the Normandy Landings, but there is a marked difference between ‘taking a photo’ and ‘telling a story’. Whether you’re shooting for colour or black and white, we have a few tips that can help you discover your hidden documentary maker. Eyes peeled To capture good candid shots, you need to be on the lookout for the kinds of interactions that could lead to some interesting images. Try to anticipate where people will be and position yourself accordingly. At a wedding for instance, you should be able to find out in advance where the action will be as the day unfolds. Also, watch for couples or groups interacting and get ready to capture a spontaneous burst of laughter or some silly behaviour. Natural light If you can possibly avoid it, don’t use flash for your shots. Apart from the obvious ‘rabbit in the headlights’ look that your subjects will have, it kind of gives the game away that people are being photographed every time the flash pops, and it can really kill the mood. When people know they’re under scrutiny, they tend to become more Traditional DSLR lenses can be very expensive, especially telephoto lenses with wide maximum apertures. As an alternative, the Nikon Coolpix P900 has a staggering 83x optical zoom and an affordable price that would make photographing subjects from a distance quite easy. 114 www.bdmpublications.com self-conscious. In these situations high ISO is the order of the day. Don’t worry about high ISO noise, just keep your images shake-free. Fast glass, long lens Using a traditional long lens for DSLRs such as a 70-200mm f/2.8 has several distinct advantages. Firstly, the maximum aperture of f/2.8 means you can shoot in lower light with slightly faster shutter speeds, although you will probably want to use a monopod for support if you’re shooting at the longer focal length to reduce chances of camera shake. The shallow depth of field also comes in handy to help separate your subjects from any distracting background. Primarily though, if you shoot with a long lens it keeps you at a respectful distance from your subjects who are less likely to be aware they are about to be photographed and will act naturally.
CANDID PHOTOGRAPHY Before, during and after Shoot with your camera set in continuous or burst mode. This enables you to pick out your subject, and if they are about to speak or act, you can fire off a short sequence of 5 or 6 shots over a few seconds. This means you can record the before, during, and after of a moment and choose the best image from that sequence. This is quite handy if you capture someone blinking, the next shot should have them with their eyes open again. You may quickly rack up the number of shots on your memory card, but your chances of capturing a ‘moment’ increase. Photographers sometimes refer to this technique in slang as ‘hosing it down’. Group shot! Be on the lookout for someone who may be herding a bunch of people together for a group shot. Keep yourself at a distance, off to one side, with your long lens, and capture the moments leading up to, and just after the group shot is taken. The group will be focused on the other photographer and you should be able to nab some interesting behaviour as people get themselves ready for the shot, and the possible relief on some faces that the shot is done. Point of view Don’t be afraid to mix up your shooting angles. If you are at a venue with any raised areas or upper floors, shoot from those elevated positions. One trick of street photographers is to fit a wide-angle lens to their camera and just let the camera hang down by their side, pointing slight upwards, and taking random shots as they walk through the crowds. The wide-angle improves your chances of getting more shots framed in useful ways, but worth a go. Use foreground objects to frame your subjects, get the camera down low, you just need to keep experimenting. Keep it with you To be able to capture those spontaneous moments, you’ll need your camera right? Of course. To that end, always keep a camera with you. It doesn’t have to be an expensive DSLR, a good point-and-shoot with decent low light capability will do the trick nicely. Just keep it with you and have it ready for action. You never know when you might need it. Q www.bdmpublications.com 115
Outdoor macro photography Learn more about this fascinating subject M acro photography is the capture of tiny objects and organisms on your camera sensor at life-size or greater using a specialist lens or other equipment. In the case of shooting with a full-frame DSLR, a macro image of 1:1 means that if you had an old 35mm negative measuring 36 x 24mm, at its closest focusing distance, you would be able to fill your camera’s viewfinder with that negative and photograph it. For a DSLR owner, the most obvious route into macro photography is to buy a macro lens. If budget is no consideration, then full-frame macro lenses with image stabilisation are a great choice. There are more pocket friendly lenses for 100mm full-frame and 40mm crop-sensor models. Macro lenses offer the best optical quality, but if you are on a budget, then there are alternatives that give you the chance to explore the macro world for little outlay. Close-up filters As the name suggests, close-up filters are macro filters that you can screw onto the front of your existing lenses. They come in a variety of lens thread sizes and also offer a selection of magnifications. A basic four piece filter set can let you magnify an image by a factor of +1, +2, +4 and +10. Optically, they are not perfect and you will experience a bit of distortion and chromatic aberration where the lens is unable to correctly focus all the colours at the same convergence point. That said, for around £15, it’s an inexpensive method of trying it out. Totally tubular Another option before taking the plunge and spending out on a macro lens, is to get a set of macro extension tubes. A macro extension tube contains no glass elements and you attach it between your lens and your camera body. This tube mounts the lens further away from the camera sensor. In practical terms, this results in the minimum focusing distance getting smaller, 116 www.bdmpublications.com the further the lens moves away from the sensor. Therefore, you can get much closer to your subject and still be able to attain good focus. One thing to note is that these macro extension tubes are more effective with lenses with shorter focal lengths around the 24mm - 50mm area than either very long focal lengths over 200mm or very short focal lengths of 16mm or so. The extension tubes also come in various widths from about 12mm to 36mm. Macro lenses There are various macro lenses to suit your pocket from Nikon and third party manufacturers such as Sigma. They range from 40mm up to around 200mm versions with the closest focusing distance ranging from 5-6 inches out to about 16 inches. The measure of a ‘true’ macro lens is its ability to resolve an image on the sensor of your camera that is at least life-size; or a reproduction ratio of 1:1 as we mentioned earlier. Prices will vary of course. Lenses such as the 40mm Nikon AF-S DX f/2.8G retails at about £180 and the 200mm AF NIKKOR f/4D IF-ED at a less wallet-friendly £1,000. The major difference between a 40mm macro and a 200mm (apart from the price) is a greater subject-to-lens distance on the longer focal length lenses. So, your expensive 200mm macro lens lets you keep further away from that pesky butterfly you’re trying to photograph without spooking it. Q
OUTDOOR MACRO PHOTOGRAPHY Close-up filters are a simple and costeffective way to turn your existing lenses into a kind of macro lens by acting as an additional magnifying element. Macro extension tubes offer another cheaper way of trying out macro photography. You can get surprisingly good results with these devices. The Nikon 200m macro lens is not cheap but if you are very serious about your macro photography, then you need to be thinking about lenses like this. www.bdmpublications.com 117
Nikon lens master The right lens for the job areful control of depth of field by adjusting aperture and focal length is one of the most striking creative techniques available to the photographer, and you donʼt need any special equipment to do it, just your camera and a zoom lens. For this striking portrait image, the photographer has used a 100mm, fast , macro lens with a large maximum aperture of f2.8. This has resulted in a narrow depth of field but by carefully focusing on the subjectʼs face the effect of this narrow plane of focus is to isolate the subject against what could otherwise be a busy and distracting woodland background. One consideration to bear in mind is that when working with very shallow depth of field, precise focusing is essential. The slightest movement and your subject will shift out of focus, so a good tripod is recommended to eliminate those shot-spoiling effects. C The AF-S VR Micro-NIKKOR 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED macro lens. Perfect for macro shots at 100% magnification, with the added bonus of image stabilisation for more opportunities to shoot handheld. If background blur is your thing, then the AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II is a magnificent piece of glass. It may be considered a telephoto lens, but it is very often used to shoot portraits. The longer focal lengths coupled with that f/2.8 maximum aperture mean you can achieve some amazing shallow depth of field portraits if you choose. The most recent version of this lens now incorporates an image stabiliser for better sharpness when working at slower shutter speeds. Q shallow depth of field If the background of your outdoor photo is distracting, you can blur it out by using a wider aperture to create a narrow depth of field. 118 www.bdmpublications.com
SHALLOW DEPTH OF FIELD “Large focal length lenses will demand higher shutter speeds and a good tripod.” The AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II has amazing picture quality and that f/2.8 maximum aperture will give you superb soft focus backgrounds. www.bdmpublications.com 119
Shooting panoramas and vertoramas We show you how to think big and shoot big T he word panorama means ‘an unbroken view of the whole region surrounding an observer’. In more simple terms, it means a photograph containing a wide view. A vertorama is simply a panorama that is shot in a vertical orientation. It all came about in the 1700s when artists would paint a horizontal image that encircled an entire room. These wide, expansive views are much prized by landscape photographers who strive to capture entire vistas to give the viewer of the final image a sense of the scale of the scene that was visible 120 www.bdmpublications.com to them whilst they were there. Conveying all this ‘bigness’ would normally require the use of wide angle lenses. These lenses have short focal lengths of around 14mm to 24mm and can capture an angle of view of around 90° measured diagonally across the frame. This angle of view is an aspect of landscape photography that can be a slight issue for some. Seeing is believing One thing that a lot of people comment upon is that the scene they view with their own eyes always looks far grander and more impressive than the photograph they take of it. Human vision is amazing, it can encompass an angle of view that is almost a complete 180° if you take peripheral vision into account. Of course a photograph is not going to be quite so impressive. However, there are methods that can let you capture super-wide vistas that go some way to emulating human sight. We have some tips on capturing entire majestic panoramas that will make your viewers go ‘wow!’.
SHOOTING PANORAMAS AND VERTORAMAS The images shown here are great examples of superwide panoramas. Both are comprised of multiple portrait orientated shots and were merged using the Photomerge option in Photoshop. www.bdmpublications.com 121
This coastal image was captured on a Nikon D810 using a 15-30mm Tamron ultra wide zoom lens. Although the shot covers a roughly 100° angle of view as measured diagonally across the frame, there was still a lot more to be seen either side of the image that couldn’t be captured in one go. The Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 wide angle zoom at around £1800 The Nikon 8-15mm f/3.5 - f/4.5 fisheye zoom at £1200 the benefit of that 14mm focal length has been lost. That said, even in a normal frame taken with a wide angle lens, it is still only a relatively small part of the bigger picture. The lens option Fisheye We mentioned that the best guy for the landscape photographer is the wide angle lens and those serious about capturing extremely wide views will be using a lens somewhere in the 14mm focal length range. Lenses like this have roughly a 105° angle of view, which is great. You can capture some impressive scenes with a 14mm lens. The problem for most budding photographers is that a major brand name lens like that is going to cost upwards of £1500 for a fixed focal length version. Step up to a variable focal length 14-24mm wide angle zoom lens and you can expect to pay a lot closer to £2000. That is out of the reach of most photographers. Manufacturers like Samyang do make a 14mm f/2.8 lens available in Nikon, Canon, Sony, Samsung and Micro Four Thirds fits at a much more reasonable £350. Be aware that a full-frame 14mm lens fitted to an APS-C camera for instance will actually behave like a 21mm lens, due to the smaller size of the sensor the full-frame image is projected on to. In this sense, Another option to capture large angles of view in your shots is to use a fisheye lens. A 15mm fisheye can capture an almost 180° angle of view image. The effect of a lens of this type is the distortion. Fisheye lenses are designed to actually show the spherical distortion you would normally not want to see in an image. The centre of the frame is quite acceptable but as you get to the edges of the image, you’ll see the curved outer corners produce a goldfish bowl effect. For landscapes, this is not usually a desirable effect. Yes, you can remove the distortion at the post-process stage but that involves enlarging and distorting the image still further to remove the spherical view created by the lens in the first place. Any views that have strong horizontal or vertical lines in them will appear like something you would see in a funhouse mirror, so they are to be used with caution for landscapes. This still doesn’t allow us to see the much broader canvas that our eyes see. 122 www.bdmpublications.com The Nikon AF NIKKOR 14mm f/2.8 wide angle prime for about £1100 The alternative What happens if you do not have a wide angle lens or a fisheye? What are your options then? A lot of photographers who step up to a DSLR for the first time, will probably purchase a camera with a kit lens. A kit lens is a utilitarian jack-of-all-trades that can get you started in the world of photography. If you choose a cropped sensor camera such as a Nikon D3500 or Nikon D5600, it invariably comes with a kit lens in the 18-55mm focal length range. In 35mm full-frame terms, the images you capture with it are actually more like a 27-82mm lens. A scene shot with this lens in landscape orientation is not going to be terribly impressive. It isn’t a problem though since you can use the multi-image approach instead. Rather than take one landscape orientation shot, you simply turn the camera to portrait orientation and shoot a sequence of images for stitching together later. Let’s explain in a little more detail. The process Essentially you are going to take a number of stills. Rotating the camera a few degrees left to right with each shot taken, whilst allowing enough overlap from image to image so that they can be stitched together. This can be achieved with programs like Photoshop,
SHOOTING PANORAMAS AND VERTORAMAS PT GUI or Hugin, that rely on features in each shot being matched together to create accurate stitching points; as a general rule, shoot with a shorter focal length lens and always try to overlap your images by 25% or more. For example, look for features that are right-most in your current shot like a car or building (something that isn’t moving). For the next shot you rotate yourself on the spot so that those features are now left-most in the frame. These matching features will help your software to stitch the shots together more accurately and avoid odd tearing and mismatches that can spoil the image. Another consideration is to try and avoid a scene where a lot of objects are very close to the camera. Unless you are using specialist panoramic photographic equipment and lenses, you will find that even slight unwanted movement and rotation of the camera (which is unavoidable if you shoot handheld) will result in big parallax shift errors in very near objects that even the best software will not be able to put right. Parallax shift describes how objects close to you seem to move a greater distance relative to those that are further away when you move your head or camera. The bigger picture The benefits of shooting multi image panoramas are twofold. You are of course capturing a much wider view than is possible with just a single shot; the other benefit is that when the image is stitched together, it creates a much larger file, containing more detail than a single ultra wide image. As an example, this scene was captured with 5 portrait orientation shots, each measuring 3333 pixels wide by 5000 pixels high. When the 5 shots were merged in Photoshop, the resulting panorama, once cropped, measured 9768 pixels wide by 4676 pixels high. Roughly speaking, the result is a 45MP image. Granted you do need a reasonably powerful machine with plenty of RAM to work with large files but the results are quite impressive. www.bdmpublications.com 123
Settings to use To capture a basic panorama from left to right you can set up your camera in the following way. First, set your camera to portrait orientation and set focus to manual. Select a point of focus roughly a third of the way into your scene. This is an utterly basic rule of thumb to quickly set yourself up to record as much sharp focus in your scene as possible. Working out the exact point into the scene that gives the best overall focus based on your aperture, referred to as the Hyperfocal Distance, is not to be approached lightly. For our purposes the most basic approach will do for now. Your camera settings need to be set in such a way as to produce as little noise as possible but keep a fast enough shutter speed to avoid camera shake or motion blur. Camera shake is a main concern if you are going to choose to shoot hand-held and we would always recommend using a tripod whenever possible. For shot-to-shot colour and exposure On the right are two approaches to getting more accurate panoramas. The first is to attach your camera to a Nodal Ninja so the camera rotates around the front lens element. A quick method to emulate this piece of equipment is to place your camera on a pole with the lens element as near to the centre of rotation as possible. consistency, it is always a good idea to shoot in manual mode and use a preset White Balance setting rather than Auto White Balance. If you shoot in Raw format, this is less of a worry since you can non-destructively alter the white balance of each shot to match your favoured colour temperature. With trial and error you can arrive at settings that yield enough detail on the ground and the sky without either losing detail in shadows or blown out highlights. It is also a good idea to use a narrow aperture of at least f/8 to ensure that your entire is a sharp as possible from front to back. More accuracy We would always recommend the use of a tripod when shooting panoramas. It creates a nice stable platform with rotation that is easy to control in both the horizontal and the vertical. You can level both the tripod and then the camera on the tilt-head by using a small spirit level that can attach to the hot-shoe of the camera. For even greater stitching accuracy, you can attempt to rotate the camera around its nodal point. The nodal point is the point around which the lens must rotate in order to completely eliminate parallax shift. Without specialist equipment it can be very difficult to achieve. The hi-tech method for shooting accurate panoramas is a device such as the Nodal Ninja. It is made from metal and is very robust with an optional levelling plate to provide a very quick way of getting things on an even keel. You can quickly shoot accurate and level panoramas with devices such as this. There is a very low tech way you can do it yourself, whereby you rest the camera lens barrel on a pole or stick (even a sawn-off broom handle) so the front lens is as near the pole’s centre of rotation as possible. It will be up to you to keep the camera as level as possible but it does help avoid those nasty parallax shifts. Oh, and people will wonder why you are rotating around a pole stuck in the ground! Starting position at 0° Rotate camera/body to 45° The Nodal Ninja is perfect for capturing accurate panoramas in horizontal or portrait format. Once the camera’s nodal point is established, you can shoot full 360° pans if you want. Rotate camera/body to 90° Rotate camera/body to 135° Rotate camera/body to 180° 124 www.bdmpublications.com
SHOOTING PANORAMAS AND VERTORAMAS Whether you are using a tripod or a more advanced Nodal Ninja, always try to get it as level as possible. Most tripods feature a small bubble level. If it doesn’t have one, you can always get a small spirit level that fits in the hot shoe attachment of your camera. www.bdmpublications.com 125
Go vertical There may be certain times when you might need to capture a panorama that doesn’t fit into our happy horizontal world. Sometimes, you need to think vertically. Vertical panoramas, or vertoramas as they are called, can produce some very spectacular and mind-bending images. The methods for shooting a vertical panorama are the same for those you would employ for a normal one. This time, you can actually shoot with your camera in landscape orientation but you pan from the ground and rotate the camera upwards to the vertical, and even over the vertical if you can stretch far enough (just don’t fall over). Shooting a vertorama in the woods, city centre or an enclosed space such as a church or cathedral 126 www.bdmpublications.com
SHOOTING PANORAMAS AND VERTORAMAS All the shots you see here were merged into their final panorama or vertorama by using the Photomerge option in Photoshop CC. The vertoramas will require some additional work to clone out either your own feet or the legs of the tripod you were using that will most likely be captured when shooting directly downwards with a wide angle lens. can produce some intense images. You are likely to end up photographing your feet or the legs of your tripod when shooting directly downwards but once you have stitched the images in Photoshop or other favourite program, you can crop or clone them out. With this in mind, make sure you give yourself plenty of room at the bottom of the frame for cropping. Go wide “There may be certain times when you might need to capture a panorama that doesnʼt fit into our happy horizontal world.” Shooting panoramas, whether horizontally or vertically, is a very diverting method of landscape photography. It does mean you are working with a large number of files and they need all that extra work to stitch them together but the result is a very large image file that is significantly larger than a single shot from your widest lens. Not only that, it contains a vast amount of detail and its larger combined resolution means that if it were ever needed, it could be printed at a huge scale with a reduced loss of detail. Give it a go: you can start with hand held versions and if you like it, you can upgrade to a good tripod; or better still, get yourself a Nodal Ninja for the ultimate panorama. Q www.bdmpublications.com 127
Food photography Get arty with some everyday food items B ack in the day, it was always something of a cliché to shoot or paint a bowl of fruit as an indoor still life project. It doesn’t have to be that way, especially in the world of digital photography. Using fruit as your still life subject can be given a little twist with this easy to setup tabletop project. Rather than having a bunch of fruit in a bowl, how 128 www.bdmpublications.com about something a little more creative? Sliced fruit pieces are a lovely, translucent material, in a range of great colours. All well and good, but what if you shine a strong light through them? Now things get interesting. Suddenly the fruit glows and internal shapes and structure are seen. This is not how you normally see fruit and it sounds like a great image to capture.
FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY These two comparison shots demonstrate the key visual difference that can elevate your food images away from the mundane. The image on the left is lit in a conventional way where the surface of the fruit reflects light as you would expect. The shot on the right is lit from below so now the light is transmitted through the flesh of the fruit and your food is given a great new look. Box clever To achieve this, you would need a light source of some sort that you can arrange your sliced fruit on. An old-style light box for viewing slides and negatives sounds ideal but they aren’t necessarily just lying around your house waiting to be used. As an alternative, you can use a plastic storage box lined inside with some thin white paper that you can shine a powerful torch or lamp through to give you your light box. For our example, we are going to use a 500mm square sheet of white translucent perspex purchased online quite cheaply. and water melon. The trick is to slice them nice and thin. Too thick and the light will have trouble passing through them. Slice up as much as you need (or have room for on your home-made light box) and arrange the slices to suit your needs. Our example is just a random assortment laid out on the perspex sheet. Setting up example, it was quickly realised that having the camera on the tripod was too restricting so we went hand-held with it instead. As the camera settings had given us a shutter speed of 1/160 and the flash duration itself was effectively freezing any movement, we could shoot without worrying about camera shake of motion blur. For a spot of variety, the 24-105mm zoom lens was swapped out for a 100mm f/2.8 macro lens for some close-up detail work. Shooting with the lens at its widest aperture of f/2.8 meant the power of the flashes had to be adjusted. The flash firing upwards was adjusted to 1/32 power and both top flashes were set to 1/128 power. The perspex is set on the legs of a small overturned table and one flashgun is set underneath to fire upwards into it. A two-flash setup is used above to create some fill light by bouncing off a piece of white card onto the perspex surface and cast some illumination on the slices of fruit. Our camera and a 24205mm zoom lens is set up in front and above to capture the image. All flashes are controlled wirelessly but you can easily replace flashes with lamps or powerful led torches. Dialling it in Slice and dice Now we need fruit. The citrus and pulpy type fruits are perfect for this kind of shoot. They have great texture and colour. This example employs apples, oranges, lemons, limes, kiwi Now we need to do a few test shots. After some test firings we have our settings dialled in. Bear in mind, if you are using lamps or torches, your exposure times will differ. Just make sure the most powerful light is the one underneath, shining through the fruit. The flash underneath firing up into the fruit was set on 1/16 power, whilst the two flashes above were each set at 1/64 power. The camera was dialled in manually at ISO 50, aperture f/5.6 and shutter speed 1/160 which is the max sync speed of the camera. This made sure the bottom light is getting through all the fruit slices without overexposing any of them. Variety Now it’s just a case of shooting away to your heart’s content. Rearrange your fruit as you see fit. Try different angles and zoom levels. In our Pick your fruit Once the shots were in the bag, they were reviewed and the favourite images processed through a raw editing program, in this case Adobe Camera Raw. There were some interesting compositions that would not look out of place as large format canvas prints. Creative dropping also heightens the abstract feel. In fact, the only problem that remained, was what to do with all the fruit that was left over. Fruit salad anyone? Q www.bdmpublications.com 129
Light up your photography A handy guide to lighting schemes for portrait work I f you’re new to portrait lighting then we have a little cheat sheet you can reference which shows a series of lighting setups and how the illumination will fall upon your subject as the angles change. You can use these as the starting point for creating your own lighting recipes. It shows the way light strikes a human head from various points around an imaginary clock face. The light is above head height and is pointing down at roughly a 30° angle. There are also some that show how two or three lights will interact with each other too. The diagrams also indicate which light is the key light , and which is the fill light. A key light is essentially the brightest source of light in the shot. A fill light is often used at lower power than the key light in order to lighten dark areas of shadow to make sure they don’t go totally black. Further on in this issue, we also have a few more of the most popular lighting setups listed in more detail for your reference. Good luck and enjoy. Q Key light Fill light Lower power High power 3D model and materials courtesy of Lee Perry Smith at Infinite Realities. 130 www.bdmpublications.com
LIGHT UP YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY Key light Fill light www.bdmpublications.com 131
Key light These images were lit with either a two or three light configuration with a key light, a fill light, and a light aimed at the backdrop to create a spotlight. 132 www.bdmpublications.com Fill light
LIGHT UP YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY Key light Fill light www.bdmpublications.com 133
Long exposure photography Take your time and explore this fascinating subject T he human eye is a wonderful thing. An organic marvel that is unparalleled in its complexity. We see the world as it happens in real-time but cameras allow us to compress time or expand it to show us things in whole new ways that our eyes cannot do. It has been determined that our eyes, although not governed in the same way as the moving parts of a digital camera, can detect flashes of light as short as 1/100s. Depending on the health and age of the viewer it can in some cases be as short as 1/200s. Given the way our eyes and brain perceive and process the things we see then, we have a natural ‘shutter speed’ of about 1/200s. This means that we can turn to our cameras to create the kind of images that reveal the world of motion beyond what we see. The camera offers two options. Using special lighting, you can capture things that literally happen in the blink of an eye or you can go in the opposite direction and delve into the fascinating world of long exposure photography. Long exposure photography is a very popular subject for photographers of all skill levels. Take a look on any image sharing site or in digital photography magazines and you’ll see plenty of examples of the genre. What is long exposure photography all about? 134 www.bdmpublications.com
LONG EXPOSURE PHOTOGRAPHY “We see the world as it happens in real-time but cameras allow us to compress time or expand it to show us things in whole new ways that our eyes cannot do.” www.bdmpublications.com 135
1 Just as a matter of interest, compare image 1, to image 2 on the left. You’ll see that the exposure time of image 2 is almost three times longer than image 1. A 10-stop filter was added to drive up the exposure time but given the speed of the moving water, any exposure over a few seconds will generally look much the same as a photo where the exposure is 30s. There may be a little more smoothing of the water as it flows but this is a good example of knowing how to gear the exposure time to your subject matter. Sometimes less is more than enough! 2 The technique Although the name is self-explanatory, let’s elaborate. A long exposure is usually defined as being several seconds in duration or longer. It is possible to have exposures that last many minutes, even hours in extreme cases. The camera is placed on a solid surface or mounted on a tripod so it doesn’t move and then the shutter is opened, and kept open, for a predetermined period of time. Any static objects in the scene are still captured sharply since the camera is not moving but any object that is in motion through the camera’s field of view, is blurred as it moves within the frame. The amount the object is blurred will depend on the length the shutter is kept open and the speed of the moving object in the shot. How you combine the two is a matter of artistic preference but experimenting is a lot of fun; but how do you get shutter speeds so long? Creating a long exposure A long exposure relies on several important factors in order to get your shutter speed down to a duration that will yield the kind of blurred motion you were hoping for. Your aperture can be set to its minimum, which is around f/22. This reduces the amount of light that can fall on your sensor and requires the exposure to be longer to allow the camera to gather more light but apertures this narrow can lead to the optical phenomenon 136 www.bdmpublications.com known as diffusion. Normally, you would be better off using an aperture of about f/9 or f/11. The settings These kinds of shots would require you to set your camera in manual (M) mode or Aperture Priority (AV). This way, you have control over how the camera reacts as you alter the parameters. Since you don’t want to focus accidentally on the wrong thing, we would also recommend you switch to manual focus. This way you can compose your shot, use live view to confirm you have the correct point of interest in focus and since it’s in manual focus mode, it will maintain focus with no further input from you. Next, you can set your camera’s ISO sensitivity to its lowest value. The less sensitive your camera is to light, the longer it needs to gather light for a good exposure. Most camera’s offer a minimum ISO of 100 but some will let you set ISO values down to about 31. In combination, the aperture and ISO values will affect your shutter speed durations, requiring it to be a longer duration in order to capture more light. The next factor you have to take into account though, is just how bright the scene is you are shooting. Your first port of call when attempting to get exposure times as long as possible, is to use apertures of f/16 or narrower. Beware of diffraction when you use apertures around the f/22 - f/32 area. You might suffer from soft images even though everything is in focus. You can also use the lowest ISO values your camera allows. The Nikon D810 above, can use ISO 31 as its lowest value; this enabled long exposures of the waterfall image on the far left based on the ambient light available at the time. Night time At night, you will be dealing with longer shutter durations as a matter of course since there is very little ambient light. In fact, you may find that you need to open up your aperture and even raise your camera’s ISO sensitivity to stop the exposure durations from being too long if you are in extreme low-light conditions. A typical city street scene at night, with your camera set to an aperture of f/9 and ISO 100 would need a shutter speed of anywhere between 2s to about 30s, which is perfectly manageable. A scene lit only by the stars in the night sky could take many minutes; as an example, a clear starry night, with only the most minimal amount of light from a nearby town would require a shutter duration of about 60 minutes, if you were using the same settings mentioned previously.
LONG EXPOSURE PHOTOGRAPHY This is an example of the popular photographic technique of shooting burning steel wool, which has been placed inside a steel whisk and spun around on a long tether, during the course of a long exposure. It can create some amazing light art. There are no shortage of apps for both iOS and Android mobile devices that can calculate different exposure times for you if you need them. The apps can also allow for the use of ND filters and recalculate correct exposures once they are added. it is way too underexposed or if it’s all bunched on the far right of the histogram, then it is too overexposed and you will lose detail in the burnt out highlights. Night time subjects Obviously, you need ensure that your exposure settings are correct, it would be very disheartening to spend an hour waiting for the exposure to complete, only to find it is either badly underexposed or overexposed. It is better to shoot at a much wider aperture of f/2.8 and a higher ISO, just so the exposures are shorter. This lets you fine-tune your exposure, then you can calculate the exposure time required when you use lower ISO and narrower apertures. There are plenty of apps for your mobile devices that can calculate the alternative exposures needed without the need for mental arithmetic. Check you histogram too; if the histogram is bunched too far to the left of the screen, then To be honest, anything is fair game when it comes down to what to shoot at night. The classic traffic trails are always a good place to start. Using an aperture of f/5.6 and an ISO of 100 as a starting point, you should be able to get shutter durations of about 4s. From there, you can alter ISO and aperture to get shorter or longer shutter speeds. Fireworks are also a popular subject to shoot with similar settings. Then comes astrophotography. This is taking photos of the night sky with short enough exposures of about 20s so the stars show no recorded movement; or actually deliberately using much longer exposures of 60 minutes or more, that reveal the movement of the stars overhead. Another trick is to take a back-to-back sequence of about 15-30 shorter exposures and blend the resulting images in Photoshop to create a star trail effect. Another popular effect is to shoot flames or other pyrotechnics with longer shutter durations. The path of a ball of burning steel wool in a metal egg-whisk as it is spun around on a tether can create some intense and surreal images. Always take care with fire and pyrotechnics of any kind though. It’s not worth getting burnt for a photo. A sturdy tripod is a must for anyone serious about doing long exposure photography. Use a tripod It goes without saying (but yes, we’re going to say it anyway), that these kinds of shots demand the use of a tripod to stop camera shake from ruining the shots you have patiently waited minutes or even hours for. A good, sturdy tripod is essential and there are plenty to choose from to suit your pocket. Try to avoid cheaper, light travel tripods for this kind of work, since they may not be as sturdy as you would hope. Even a light breeze might be enough to cause it to flex or vibrate just enough to ruin the shot. If you are using a heavy DSLR, then the rule for these shots is to use a heavy tripod too. www.bdmpublications.com 137
The humble cable release has come a long way from its simple squeeze bulb arrangement. Now they are electronic devices that can be programmed in multiple ways to shoot sequences with user-controlled exposure times and intervals between shots. Cable release Be aware that most cameras can handle exposures as long as 30s. For longer exposures, you will need to set the camera in bulb (B) mode. In bulb mode, the shutter remains open only as long as the shutter button is depressed. Once you let it go, the exposure will end. You could stand there for the duration of the shot with your finder on the button or you could use a cable release device that you can either lock during the exposure and unlock when the time is up, or use a programmable one with a timer that will do it all for you. These devices are called intervalometers and range from simple cabled devices with a single push-button activation to complex wireless versions that you can control from a distance. Too bright During the day, the problem is much greater as you might imagine. On a bright sunny day, even with your camera at its lowest ISO and smallest aperture, you would struggle to get exposures any slower than about 1/125s. Even if you had a lens that could stop down to f/32, you would still be looking at a shutter speed of about 1/60s. By comparison, a daytime scene like a woodland waterfall shrouded by trees has a much lower amount of ambient light. Camera settings of aperture f/9 and ISO 100 would yield a shutter 138 www.bdmpublications.com speed around 1/10s. That’s better but still not what we would call a long exposure. How do you overcome that problem? Going dark To achieve long enough exposures during daylight hours, you will need to use a Neutral Density (ND) filter. It is referred to as ‘Neutral’ since it is optically neutral in colour and shouldn’t create any colour cast in your final shot. Cheaper versions may not be as neutral as they claim, so beware of bad quality knock-offs. The filters also come in various densities. A 2-stop ND filter for instance will block enough light to make an example 1/500s exposure become a 1/125s exposure. A 10-stop filter would make the same example a 2s exposure. An ND filter is a bit like a welder’s mask for your camera lens, in that it blocks a large amount of light entering the camera and requires the use of longer exposure times. ND filters come in two varieties depending on your preference or pocket. The first and cheapest method is to buy a screw-on type. The downside to these is that you need to buy a filter that matches the filter size diameter of the lens you Whether it is the simple screw-on variety of ND filter or the filter holder system that you use, these different density filters are what you need to take your daytime shutter speeds from fractions of seconds down to seconds or even minutes. are using. If you want to use more than one lens with different size diameters, you would need a filter for each size. The alternative is to use a filter holder system that you can screw on the front of any lens you have provided you use an adaptor ring for each size of lens you want to use. The holder uses square or rectangular filters that simply slide into place and can hold two or even three filters in one go. Manufacturers such as Lee and Cokin make a number of filters and filter holders for various sized camera bodies and lens types.
LONG EXPOSURE PHOTOGRAPHY Compare the two shots of the North coast of Tresco shown here. The inset image uses a normal exposure based on the ambient light settings for a fast shutter of 1/400s. Adding a 10-stop filter and narrowing the aperture allowed us to reach a 2 minute exposure time in the same lighting conditions. Daytime subjects Just as with the night time alternatives, daytime subjects are down to creative choice. A popular subject for landscape photographers is to photograph streams, rivers and coastal scenes during the day with a 10-stop filter in place. This gives you shutter speeds of around 4s. If you are lucky enough to own a camera that offers lower ISO speeds down around the ISO 31 area, you can achieve shutter durations as long as 15s even on a sunny day. We have some examples taken on the moors as the sun was getting near the horizon. With the aperture set at f/22 and the ISO down to 50, when the 10-stop filter was put in place, the exposure was almost 3 minutes long. The clouds that were visible became wispy trails in the sky thanks to the longer exposure. Even city street scenes captured during the day take on an unusual quality when pedestrians and moving cars are reduced to ghosts as they pass by. Even fairground rides become surreal objects and their apparent speed defies the sense of what is normal. If you have never tried it, we can heartily recommend giving it a go. Even if you don’t have ND filters, you can still venture out at dusk and at night and experience the fun of capturing long exposure images. Q www.bdmpublications.com 139
Selective focus Where blur is beautiful “The visual quality of part of a photograph rendered out of focus by a lens is referred to as ʻBokehʼ.” S elective focus is the term used to describe the method by which you render one part of your shot in sharp focus and the area beyond and/or in front increasingly out of focus. Any shot that has a small area of sharp focus while everything else is blurred, draws the eye to that focused area. Typically it is achieved using lenses with very large apertures of f/2.8 to f/1.2 140 www.bdmpublications.com or even wider. The visual quality of part of a photograph rendered out of focus by a lens is referred to as ‘Bokeh’. Shots taken with extremely large apertures enhance this effect which is particularly noticeable in background highlights. NASA once developed a lens that had a maximum aperture of f/0.7 that was used by the famous filmmaker Stanley Kubrick for one of his early films. Q A picture like this can be taken using a long telephoto lens with a wide aperture. You can see how shallow the depth of field is. The eye is drawn to the rabbit as it is in sharpest focus. Both the foreground and the background are blurred
SELECTIVE FOCUS Below are some Lensbaby image examples. The Lensbaby optics are set at f/5.6 with a 50mm field of view. You will need to adjust your shutter speed and ISO accordingly to correctly expose your images. It is up to you to manually operate the ‘bellows’ to pick your point of focus and move it around the frame. As is the way in Photography, any lens that incorporates ‘fast glass’ usually comes at a price. Prices can range from £75 for a basic 50mm f/1.8 prime lens up to £1700 for an 85mm f/1.2 prime and a poverty-inducing £8000 for a 400mm f/2.8 super-telephoto lens. Another specialist lens that allows you to tinker with focus in interesting ways is the tilt-shift lens. It is made up of a special mechanism that can let the lens tilt up and down by about 7º and also shift left and right (or up and down if the lens is rotated) by about 12mm in each The Nikon PC-E 85mm f/2.8D. A great tilt-shift telephoto lens but hard to find! direction. A typical tilt-shift lens will set you back £1800. The so-called tiltshift effect creates images that look like miniatures and has become very popular of late. There are a series of lenses made by the company Lensbaby who manufacture effects lenses. One such lens is the Lensbaby Spark that behaves a little bit like a tilt-shift lens. It is cheap, made of plastic and is operated manually by hand. The front element is mounted on a plastic bellows that you have to squeeze in and out to focus and then bend up and down, left and right, to move that focus point around the frame. At £50 it is perhaps sitting at the far opposite end of the scale from a proper tilt-shift lens and it does take some getting used to. Its cheapness does make it accessible and it can be good fun once you’ve mastered the slightly odd focus system. In terms of the image quality, if you set your expectations low enough, it will yield Although not a true tilt-shift lens and with image quality that can’t match up to a good prime lens, the Lensbaby Spark is a fun effects lens that gives a great hands-on experience when exploring the world of shallow depth of field and selective focus photography. some decent results. The effect it produces could be described as ‘lo-fi meets tilt-shift’. You could argue that the effect could be produced in Photoshop, and you would be right, but it is a very hands-on way of experiencing how selective focus works. Q www.bdmpublications.com 141
Explore the macro world Who needs outer space when you can photograph ʻnear spaceʼ ? “As long as you have your camera, lens, tripod, a tabletop and a light source, you are ready to begin.” I t comes down to personal preference of course, but we would always recommend beginning your macro photography experience indoors. This type of photography does not require a lot of space. As long as you have your camera, lens, tripod, a tabletop and a light source, you are ready to begin. You’re in comfortable surroundings and you aren’t subject to the vagaries of the weather. You can concentrate on learning the craft and a cup of coffee isn’t far away either! To be honest, anything and everything is fair 142 www.bdmpublications.com game for macro photography. A lot of macro work can be seen on picture sharing sites like Flickr. The insect world is a popular subject for macro photography, as is plant life. Browsing through our images may give you inspiration. We did once read somewhere about a piece of advice given to budding macro photographers: “If you’re struggling to find a subject, go look in the fridge”. The chances are there will be some fruit or vegetable in there that will happily pose for your shots; something colourful with interesting textures or maybe something more minimalist and abstract. It’s up to you.
EXPLORE THE MACRO WORLD www.bdmpublications.com 143
“Looking through the viewfinder, it is now a case of finding the point of focus, the point of greatest interest.” All the images in this macro guide were shot on a Nikon D5500 with an AF-S 35mm f/1.8 lens using a 12mm macro extension tube. 144 www.bdmpublications.com
EXPLORE THE MACRO WORLD 1 2 3 4 Setting up In the case of our example, we set up the camera with a AF-S 35mm f/1.8 lens and 12mm macro extension tube [1] on a tripod next to the dining table. We had white card which was placed behind it and set up two flashes controlled by a wireless trigger [2], one directed at the subject and set manually to 1/128 power [3], the other pointed at the card to bounce some light from behind. This one was set at 1/128 power. If you don’t have off-camera flashes you could work on your kitchen table with a desk lamp or by a bright window. The camera was set in manual mode at 1/160th of a second with an aperture of f/1.8 and an ISO setting of 100 [4]. The macro lens is set to manual focus. The combination of shutter speed and low power flash meant that we could eliminate any possible camera shake or movement in the subject. A shutter-release cable is also a wise addition as it means you don’t have to touch the camera and risk it moving. At these magnifications, the slightest movement will be noticeable. For these particular shots we wanted to have very shallow depth of field. We wanted to pick out a very small area of focus and just concentrate on that. You could go the other way, of course, and set your aperture at f/16 or greater to resolve a larger area of focus. After a bit of fiddling around with the light positions, subject-to-lens distance and composition of the flower, we could make a start on the macro project. Focus Just to reiterate: make sure your lens is set to manual focus. If left in auto-focus mode it may struggle to lock on to your subject or may actually decide to focus on to another area. Looking through the viewfinder, it is now a case of finding the point of focus, the point of greatest interest. Since we are dealing with very shallow depth of field, it is quite important to spend some time getting this right. To help us, we used a very bright torch to illuminate the subject so it can be seen very clearly and manually fine-tune the focus. It is always good practice to check your focus after every shot because something might 5 have moved, albeit a tiny amount. At this kind of magnification and at such a shallow depth of field, that could ruin the shot. Since you’re at home, you can download the shots you’ve done so far and review them. We did the same with the first set of shots taken. They were OK, but not great. Something was missing, some little detail to lift the shots. Staring out the window, we noticed it was raining. Rain! There was a lightbulb moment and we raided the cupboard under the sink for an ancient, empty bottle of detergent with a spray nozzle. We cleaned it out and filled it with fresh water, set up another flower and sprayed it liberally with water. As we sprayed, the liquid started to ‘bead up’ forming globules that clung to the petals and leaves of the flowers [5]. Some dripped to the edges of the petals and hung there. This is where it really took off. Suddenly the flowers were looking much more visually appealing. So we sprayed and clicked away quite happily. At the end of the shoot, we had a great collection of macro shots and a very wet dining room floor! Q www.bdmpublications.com 145
! )' '! )''! $ #!"$"!$ "$ #$ # $$ # $!!#$$# www.bdmpublications.com !'')(%( )#$") Creative Black & White Action & Sports Macro Masterclass Pet & Animal Portraits Stunning Beach Scenes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