Tuesday 31 May 2022 CHneaawndnAsoPonSn-wCEitmhOCirSarnoRornl7e’sse&sxcciaRtimn1ge0ras FIRST LOOK Passionate about photography since 1884 Creative colour How to use colour for maximum impact Slicing time Try this unusual and eye-catching technique Remembering Early AF Demarchelier The story of the evolution of autofocus technology A celebration of the work of KELSEYmedia £3.75 the late fashion legend Camera buy9icn2g36gbu2i8d-e8710c93-m4o0dee9ls-bfe0aftuer-e8d8ifn4o0ubr5co7m39pree9hensive listing ia
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7days COVER PICTURES © DIANA KENYERES / Many of us don’t give much beauty photographer Patrick Demarchelier, who © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER/COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERYthought to how certain colourspassed away recently. I had the great privilege of © GETTY IMAGESmake us feel, how they interactinterviewing him for an AP feature back in 1997. with each other in a pleasing or He had taken a short break during a studio shoot jarring way, and how we can use in New York to speak to me over the phone and our understanding of colour to opened our conversation by telling me to be brief inform our composition and create images with as the shoot was costing his client $15,000 a day! strong visual impact. This week Tracy Calder Also this week, we take a first look at two exciting presents a masterclass in using colour creatively. new APS-C mirrorless cameras in Canon’s rapidly We also pay tribute to the legendary fashion and expanding R system. Nigel Atherton, Editor This week’s If you’d like to see your words or pictures published in Amateur Photographer, here’s how: cover image SOMETHING TO SAY? Write to us at [email protected] with your letters, opinion columns (max 500 words) or article suggestions. Our cover pic this week is PICTURES Send us a link to your website or gallery, or attach a set of low-res sample images (up to a total of 5MB) to [email protected]. a portrait of Hertfordshire JOIN US ONLINE Post your pictures into our Flickr, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram communities. model Astrid Flint by the talented Diana Kenyeres amateurphotographer.co.uk facebook.com/ flickr.com/groups/ @AP_Magazine @ap_magazine amateur.photographer.magazine amateurphotographer In this issue This week in 1951 3 7 days 4 It’s good to share TREASURES FROM THE HULTON ARCHIVE 14 Mastering colour 20 Inbox See Goons 24 Reader portfolio by Chris 26 Patrick Ware Demarchelier British comedians ‘The remembered Goons’, seen here in 32 Evening class image taken from a 34 Slicing time 1951 Picture Post story 40 Film stars about the group. From 45 OPPO Find X5 Pro left to right is Harry 50 Accessories Secombe, Michael 51 Tech talk Bentine, Spike Milligan 53 Buying Guide: and Peter Sellers. The Cameras Goon Show was 66 Final analysis broadcast on radio between 1951 and 1960 and was known for its surreal humour, puns, catchphrases and wacky sounds. Not too dissimilar to a typical AP planning meeting then. SUBSCRIBE The Getty Images Hulton Archive is one of the world’s great cultural resources. Tracing its origins to the founding of the London Stereoscopic AND SAVE! Company in 1854, today it houses over 80 million images spanning the birth of photography to the digital age. Explore it at www.gettyimages.com. See page 38 for details 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9
*NOTE: PRIZE APPLIES TO UK RESIDENTS ONLY Our favourite photos posted by readers on our social media channels this week AP picture of the week Spring Greens by David Ball DJI Mavic Pro 3, 1/120sec at f/2.8, ISO 100 Nottinghamshire-based landscape photographer David tells us, ‘I live in the countryside, which is a great place for catching the farmers at work throughout the year. This spring, I knew they would be out working, so during my lunch break, when I heard the tractors in a nearby field, I nipped out with my drone for an hour and captured this image of the farmer cutting the grass down ready to be collected.’ Instagram: @davidballphotography_ #appicoftheweek Win! To congratulate the AP Pic of the Week winner, Fujifilm is giving the winner a £25 voucher* to spend on any photo prints or gifts at myFUJIFILM.co.uk, so that they can print their image any way they like! Simply go to myFUJIFILM.co.uk, select what you want, then enter your given voucher code at checkout. The voucher is valid for 6 months and can be used in multiple transactions. No monetary eligibility or exchange. Need help using your code? Contact [email protected] 4 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
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We also liked... All Eyes on the Dandelion by Claire Norris Canon EOS 5D Mark III, EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM, 1.6sec at f/13, ISO 100 ‘I started my photography journey in the first lockdown when I got my DSLR. Some of my first photos were of dandelions and I always seem to come back to them. As my skills have grown I have experimented with different refractions in the drops. This particular image has my eye refracted in the drops,’ says Claire, who lives in south-west England. Instagram: @clairenorris.photography Ready Steady Go! by Katharina Held Sony A6300, 1/400sec at f/5.6, ISO 500 ‘I love taking pictures of nature and wildlife, but during the lockdowns it became an obsession. I am incredibly lucky that a peregrine family lives close to me and with a lot of patience I was able to capture this young peregrine, which was exploring its surroundings. A magical moment.’ Instagram: @kathi_shelduck Want to see your pictures here? Simply share them with our Flickr, Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook communities using the hashtag #appicoftheweek. Alternatively, you can email your best photograph to us at [email protected]. See page 3 for how to find us. 6 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
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Canon EOS R7 Andy Westlake examines At a glance Canon’s high-end APS-C format RF-mount mirrorless camera £1350 body only Handling Stabilisation ■ 32.5MP APS-C sensor ■ ISO 100-51,200 The compact body boasts 5-axis in-body ■ 30fps shooting stabilisation is on board, ■ 4K 60p video a large, comfortable promising up to 8 stops of ■ 2.36m-dot EVF shake suppression along ■ 3in, 1.62m-dot handgrip and a good array with automatic horizon vari-angle LCD of physical controls. correction. Lenses You can fit RF and RF-S lenses directly, and EF and EF-S DSLR lenses via a mount adapter. However, EF-M lenses can’t be used. We got our hands on the exciting EOS R7 a few days before its official launch IN A long-expected move, Canon has announced two new mirrorless cameras that employ the APS-C sensor format, but use the same RF lens mount as its full-frame models. This means they’re not part of the EOS M system that Canon has used for APS-C mirrorless until now, and can’t use EF-M lenses. Of the two, the EOS R7 is the more advanced, boasting a higher-resolution sensor, faster shooting, a larger viewfinder and in-body image stabilisation. As the numbering suggests, Canon sees it as a successor to the EOS 7D Mark II APS-C DSLR, which means it’s one of the most ambitious APS-C mirrorless cameras yet made, going head-to-head with the likes of the Fujifilm X-T4 and Sony A6600. Canon has built the EOS R7 around an updated version of the 32.5MP sensor from the EOS 90D DSLR and mirrorless EOS M6 Mark II. In concert with the Digic X processor, this offers a standard ISO range of 100- 32,000 that’s extendable to ISO 51,200. The EOS R7 can shoot at 15 frames per second using the mechanical shutter, or 30fps using the silent electronic shutter. Autofocus employs Canon’s Dual Pixel CMOS AF II, with each pixel split into two to enable on-sensor phase detection. There are 651 selectable focus points covering the entire image area, which are claimed to work in extremely low light equating to -5EV. The EOS R7 also inherits the intelligent subject detection and tracking system from the flagship EOS R3, which is capable of 8 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
Canon EOS R10 Small and light, yet impressively well-featured At a glance £1000 with 18-45mm lens Dual slots ■ 24.2MP APS-C sensor ■ ISO 100-51,200 Canon has included dual ■ 23fps shooting UHS-II SD card slots, allowing ■ 4K 30p video you to back up files to both ■ 2.36m-dot EVF ■ 3in vari-angle LCD while shooting. Canon’s EOS R10 is compact and lightweight recognising humans, animals or vehicles. CANON’s junior APS-C RF-mount also possible to record 4K at 60fps with a In terms of video, 4K 30p recording is mirrorless model is smaller, lighter and 1.6x crop. The camera records files to a less expensive than the EOS R7, while being single card UHS-II SD card slot and uses the available that’s oversampled from 7K, with a clear step above the firm’s popular EOS LP-E17 battery. no time limit. Microphone and headphone M50 Mark II. In effect, it can be seen as a sockets are built in, with Canon Log 3 also on mirrorless equivalent of the EOS 850D At 122.5 x 87.8 x 83.4mm and 429g, the board for easier post-processing. A switch on DSLR, but with additional features that move EOS R10 is even smaller than the EOS top selects between stills and video modes, it closer to the EOS 90D level, which should 250D DSLR. One of the sacrifices made to with separate settings for each. increase its appeal to enthusiasts. achieve this is a relatively small viewfinder, While the EOS R10 shares many of the whose 0.6x equivalent magnification is Canon has squeezed this rich feature set EOS R7’s features, it’s built around a similar to the EOS M50 Mark II. Beneath it, into a body that’s smaller and lighter than the 24.2MP sensor and lacks in-body IS. Its the fully articulated touchscreen offers EOS 850D DSLR, yet still boasts a large, continuous shooting speeds tops out at 1.04m-dot resolution. comfortable handgrip and a good array of ‘just’ 23fps with the electronic shutter, but it external controls. It employs two electronic matches the R7’s 15fps with the mechanical Design-wise, the EOS R10 is more dials for changing exposure settings, with the shutter. The camera also employs a similar enthusiast-friendly than you might think, rear dial unusually placed around the focus autofocus system to the R7, including the given its petite size. It features dual control area selection joystick. On the front, a switch same subject recognition and tracking. dials, an AF-point joystick, an AF-ON button around the depth-of-field preview button Video recording is available in 4K on the back and an AF/MF switch on the selects between auto and manual focus. You resolution at 30fps, along with Full HD at up front. It also benefits from a good-sized get a 2.36m-dot electronic viewfinder and a to 120fps, using the full sensor width. It’s handgrip. It’s due in July for £900 body-only, 3in, 1.62m-dot vari-angle touchscreen. Power £1,000 with the 18-45mm lens, or £1,250 is provided by Canon’s familiar LP-E6N with the 18-150mm lens. battery, which promises 500 shots per charge using the viewfinder, and 770 with the LCD. RF-S 18-45mm and 18-150mm lenses Canon is promising a similar level of weather-sealing to the EOS 90D, but neither CANON also introduced EOS R10 with 18-45mm (left), and EOS R7 with 18-150mm of the RF-S lenses are similarly protected. two RF-mount lenses designed for APS-C. Firstly, First impressions the RF-S 18-45mm F4.5-6.3 IS STM is a compact, From our short time hands-on with the EOS collapsible design with a R7, it looks set to be an exciting camera. Not 29-72mm equivalent range. only does it out-spec any of Canon’s APS-C It will be sold in a kit with DSLRs, it does so in a lightweight body that the EOS R10, or on its own handles very nicely, despite its small size. It’s for £320.Meanwhile, the due to hit the shops in June, and we’re really RF-S 18-150mm F3.5-6.3 IS looking forward to getting our hands on it for STM offers a 29-240mm a full review. equivalent range for £520. Both lenses include optical stabilisation and stepper motors for autofocus. www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 9
E ST. 1997 4.9 out of 5 based on over 40,000 reviews Trade-in to INSTANT trade up QUOTES AVAILABLE We part exchange ONLINE more than just cameras TRADE IN FOR CASH‡ on selected items Step 1 Fill in the form online and receive an instant quote Step 2 See what your old equipment could be worth‡ We’ll collect your gear in the UK for free Used item Value†† £ Sony A1 Body £4,330 Sony A7R III Body £1,212 Step 3 Nikon Z7 Body £1,249 Nikon Z 24-200mm f4-6.3 VR Lens £584 We credit your Wex account Canon EOS R6 Body £1,696 or send cash‡ direct Canon RF 70-200mm f2.8L IS USM Lens £1,702 to your bank account T&Cs: ‡Trade-in for cash is applicable on selected items, online only. Wex Photo Video reserve the right to remove trade-in for cash applicable items and alter trade-in values at any time. For more details visit wex.co.uk/help/terms-and-conditions. ††Trade-in values based on used item being of very light use (grade 9) and are subject to change. Subject to full inspection. Wex Photo Video is a trading name of Warehouse Express Limited (Company Registration Number: 03366976). Registered in England & Wales. Registered Office: 13 Frensham Road, Norwich, Norfolk, NR3 2BT, United Kingdom. VAT Number: 108237432 © Warehouse Express Limited 2022. Visit wex.co.uk/trade-in 9c23t6ob2re8c-8e7ivce3-4y0oeu9r-bin0sfeta-8n8tf4q0ubo5t7e39e9
Panasonic unveils 9mm f/1.7 for Micro Four Thirds PANASONIC has unveiled aperture changes, critical for the modern The Leica CL with a 23mm lens the new Leica DG content creator, allowing you to record Summilux 9mm F1.7 ASPH beautiful 4K video and stills without Leica axes CL and TL2 ultra wideangle prime for its disturbing your subject.’ to focus on full-frame Lumix G cameras. The lens (right) can also be used on The lens measures 60.8x52mm (diameter LEICA has revealed that it has Olympus and OM System x length), weighs approximately 130g, and discontinued its CL and TL2 mirrorless Micro Four Thirds cameras. has a filter diameter of 55mm. APS-C format cameras to focus on The Leica DG Summilux producing full-frame cameras. 9mm F1.7 ASPH has an The Leica DG Summilux 9mm f/1.7 ASPH The news came via an official Leica equivalent focal length of lens costs £449 and can be ordered now. Camera AG statement posted on an online 18mm in full-frame terms, forum on 16 May 2022. The statement which equates to a 100° cites the decline in sales of compact and diagonal angle of view. Its system cameras with smaller sensors in maximum aperture of f/1.7 the photography market, whilst sales of is very fast for a lens this full-frame systems have been rising. As a wide, while the minimum result, Leica has discontinued the APS-C aperture is f/16. Thanks to models and said, ‘Going forward, the a close focusing distance of company will primarily focus its attention 9.5cm, it can shoot half on the production of full-frame cameras.’ life-size macro photography. Leica says it will provide ‘comprehensive Other specs of the newly customer care’ for the CL and TL2 systems announced lens include an for six years from the date of purchase. optical configuration of 12 elements in 9 groups, including two aspherical lenses to suppress astigmatism, along with two ED lenses and a UHR lens to minimise chromatic aberration. It also features a 7-bladed aperture, and a dust-proof and splash-proof design. Unlike previous Leica G lenses, though, it doesn’t have a physical aperture control ring. The Summilux 9mm F1.7 ASPH lens is said to offer ‘fast, accurate autofocus and smooth Cosina to add 35mm F2 for Nikon Z-series COSINA has revealed more details of its The Voigtländer APO-Lanthar The Ricoh WG-80 upcoming Voigtländer APO-Lanthar 35mm 35mm F2 Aspherical comes in black or orange F2 Aspherical lens for Nikon Z-mount cameras. The lens was previously available Waterproof Ricoh for Sony E-mount camera systems and is WG-80 splashes down constructed of 11 elements in nine groups, including five low-dispersion elements and RICOH Imaging has announced the two double-sided aspherical elements. new Ricoh WG-80 – a shockproof and It features a 12-blade aperture diaphragm, ‘breakproof’ compact digital camera that’s minimum focus of 35cm, a 52mm front filter waterproof to 14metres underwater for up thread and an aperture range of f/2 to f/16. to two hours. It has a 28-140mm (equiv.) Though it’s a manual focus lens it features lens with f/3.5-5.5 aperture, a 2.7in electronic contacts that allow it to talk to screen and a 300-shot battery life. Nikon Z-mount cameras. In addition to The WG-80 has several modes to help providing EXIF data, it can work in tandem with white balance and colour reproduction with in-body image stabilisation and supports underwater and the six LED lights around three types of focus assist functions: the lens are designed to aid with macro changing the focus point frame colour, focus shooting. The ring light brightness level can peaking and focusing enlargement. be adjusted (five levels), and there is a Cosina says it expects to ship the lens from self-portrait assist mode. June 2022 for £849. The WG-80 is available now at £329. www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 11
$12.4m Man Ray nude Books smashes auction record Thelatestandbestbooksfrom the world of photography PHOTOGRAPHER and artist Man May Ray’s 1924 masterpiece was sold © MAN RAY/CHRISTIE’S Absolut Cuba by Raúl Cañibano Ray’s iconic surrealist alongside other pieces from a Surrealist photograph ‘Le Violon d’Ingres’ has collection compiled by Rosalind Gersten £60, Edition Lammerhuber, hardback, 192 smashed the world record price for a Jacobs (a retail executive and fashion pages, ISBN: 9783903101807 single photograph at auction by fetching buyer for Macy’s) and her husband US$12.4million at Christie’s New York Melvin Jacobs (who was chief executive The work of Raúl Cañibano is a big on 14 May, well above its record pre-sale of Saks Fifth Avenue). favourite here at AP, as evidenced by estimate of US$5-$7million. the large feature we published about The sale of the photographic print The previous highest price for a Man his work last year. His new book, came after a fierce, telephone-bidding Ray photograph at auction was the Absolut Cuba, is wholeheartedly period that lasted for nearly ten £3.13million which was paid at a recommended for anybody who enjoyed minutes during Christie’s New York’s Christie’s Paris auction in 2017 for that piece, and indeed for anyone who loves black & auction dedicated to ‘Noire et Blanche’ (1926). white, street, documentary and travel photography. Surrealist art. Beautifully presented, the book is a love-letter to Prior to the auction ‘Le Violon Cuba, covering nearly three decades of work. The many had predicted the d’Ingres’ was Cubans are presented as they are, in everyday Man Ray image was set to situations, with each picture captured with love, become the world’s most created in tenderness, charm and at times just the right expensive photograph, but 1924 amount of humour. few could have predicted A stunning book, it is truly a masterpiece of its hammer price would be photographic excellence that everyone can learn over $12million. from. It’s a book that can be returned to time and The ‘Le Violon d’Ingres’ again and you’ll find something new each time – a image depicts a nude fantastic addition to any bookshelf. woman (model Alice Prin, also known as Kiki de One of a Kind: The Unique Montparnasse) with World of Island Animals by f-shaped violin markings Mario Ludwig on her back. It reached over $8million more than £35, teNeues, hardback, 224 pages, ISBN: the previous record 9783961713905 auction price for a single photograph – the If you’re looking for a wildlife $4.34million paid for photography book with a difference, Andreas Gursky’s ‘Rhein this could be it. As it documents II’ image during a endemic species (animals that exist Christie’s auction in only on their respective islands), it’s November 2011. likely that a book like this is the only way you might see many some of these creatures for Rotolight SmartSoft Box for AEOS 2 yourself. For instance, there’s the comet moth which lives on Madagascar, the flightless cormorant on ROTOLIGHT has unveiled the world’s first electronic The new Galapagos and a bird-of-paradise in New Guinea. SmartSoft Box for its AEOS 2 RGBWW LED lights, Rotolight German photographer Mario Ludwig has had many along with a brand new native iOS and Android app. SmartSoft box wildlife photography books already published and The Rotolight SmartSoft Box fits over the AEOS 2 and has a doctorate in biology – so there’s also plenty of allows users to electronically adjust diffusion, focus and facts to digest in the book. With more than 160 spread without the need for gels or additional modifiers. beautiful pictures, it’s a great addition to any wildlife Rotolight says it provides 1.5 stops of electronically photography fan’s collection. variable diffusion, providing the flexibility of a soft output and a harder light source. The SmartSoft Box can be quickly mounted to the AEOS 2 and is adjustable via the light’s touchscreen display or via the Rotolight app. The new app will allow users to switch between lighting modes, adjust colour, power, flash settings and SFX. The Rotolight SmartSoft Box is available for pre-order now at £439 and will ship in August. The Rotolight Native iOS and Android app version 1.0 will be available free from 1 June via the Apple or Google Play Stores. 12 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
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Technique Tracy Calder Tracy has more than 20 years of photo industry experience and co-founded Close-up Photographer of the Year. She has written many photography books and is a regular teacher at West Dean College of Art & Design. Instagram @tracy_ calder_photo P re-Raphaelite artist Edward Burne-Jones was having Sunday lunch with a friend in 1881 when his companion mentioned that he had recently seen an Egyptian mummy ground up at a colourman’s warehouse. The painter, it transpired, had no idea that in order to make the tube of paint known as Mummy (or Egyptian) brown, muscles, flesh, bones and even bandages were sometimes ground and mixed with a drying oil and amber varnish. Burne- Jones was so horrified that he raced to his studio, grabbed his tube of Mummy brown and gave it a ‘decent burial’ in the garden. This story is one of 75 colour- related yarns in Kassia St Clair’s wonderful book The Secret Lives of Colour. The book opens with a discussion about the picture of a dress that went viral in 2015 because nobody could decide if it was blue/black or white/gold. The level of discomfort this ambiguity caused is interesting. Why should anyone care if something appears black to some and gold to others? And yet they really did. Reading this book makes one thing clear: colour has the ability to spark intense emotions. How we see colour Mastering As most of us know, colour is not a physical property of an object: bananas and sunflowers are not actually yellow, leaves and peas are not green, and the sea and sky are not blue. As Sir Isaac Newton noted more than 300 years ago, objects appear coloured due to the way they reflect and absorb light. The light that’s reflected from an object’s surface enters the human eye, hitting the retina at the back, which is covered in millions of light-sensitive cells known as rods and cones (due to their shape). These cells send signals to the brain, which then translates this information into what we understand as colour. (There are plenty of more in-depth explanations online!) How the brain ‘reads’ this information varies slightly (or sometimes even significantly) between individuals – hence the confusion over the aforementioned dress. As Josef Albers notes in his book Interaction of Color, ‘If one says “Red” (the name of a color) and 14 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
© ROSS HODDINOTT Red and green sit opposite each other on a traditional colour wheel and are considered complementary colour Colour can influence our emotions and dictate the way we feel about an image. Tracy Calder introduces key points from colour psychology and theory, and shares some practical tips www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 15
Technique there are 50 people listening, it can Wallflowers in the Wild be expected that there will be 50 (see the whole series at reds in their minds. And one can be sure hiyamarianne.com) that all these reds will be very different.’ 1/100sec at f/4, ISO 100 Once the brain gets involved, it uses a mixture of experience and guesswork to FIVE CRUCIAL COLOUR TIPS process the information and label the colour as yellow, green, blue etc. Embracing colour psychology The idea that colour can have a profound effect on the mind and body is nothing new. In fact, the Egyptians believed that certain colours could be used to treat fatigue and skin disorders. But it wasn’t until 1810, when multi-skilled poet, artist and politician Johann Wolfgang von Goethe published Theory of Colours that colour psychology became a field worthy of exploration by prominent philosophers, physicists and artists. Goethe believed that colours could impact (and influence) our moods and emotions, and it’s a theory that has been tested by artists, interior designers, fashion labels and healthcare providers ever since. Blue and green, for instance, are considered cool colours and are said to boost feelings of tranquillity and peace, whereas red and yellow are thought to be warm and are linked to danger, excitement and sometimes raised blood pressure! (Of course, the psychological effect of colours can vary between cultures: black, for instance, is associated with death and mourning in some parts of the world, whereas white has similar connotations elsewhere – and, yes, I know white is not strictly a colour!) Understanding colour theory To understand colour theory, we need to return to the experiments of Newton. Having proven that colour is not a physical property of an object, Newton went on to show that a ray of white light can be refracted via a glass prism to create a visible spectrum of colour – comprising red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. He was not the first to © TRACY CALDER Use hot colours sparingly Think about visual weight When red and yellow have the same colour Warm colours such as red and orange Certain colours have more visual ‘weight’ saturation they work well together attract the eye, even in very small quantities. than others. Pure yellow, for instance, is The artist Henri Matisse once declared, ‘a perceived as visually light, whereas blue and thimble of red is redder than a bucketful’. red are deemed visually heavier. The ‘weight’ As a result, these ‘hot’ colours should be of a colour will affect how dominant or used sparingly in a composition. recessive it appears in an image. 16 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
Product and brand photographer: HiyaMarianne Marianne’s ‘To me, colour is the most obvious component of putting together a photograph, and I tend to struggle when I get top tips for using colour a brief that requires something more neutral. Colour can influence our moods and emotion, too. I think pairing up 1 Plan your image and colours is definitely instinctual, but I’m always finding new combinations that inspire me. I collect colour palettes on palette – I sketch my images in Procreate. It’s the Pantone colour app – this allows me to point my phone’s camera at any scene and create a palette out of the easier to experiment with different colour colours. On Pinterest, I have dedicated boards for some of my favourite colours and also for colour combinations. combinations at this stage rather than doing When I find a new combination, I start a new board to collect visual samples, and then start playing with the it in the studio. It also makes it easier to combination in the studio. source backdrops and props. ‘Colour is definitely something that 2 Use consistent you can train your eye on. Just let go Pink Breakfast lighting. Make sure of the notion that you need to be 1/100sec at f/16, ISO 100 your flashes have the same colour “brave” to love colours. Finding temperature and light quality, so you don’t colours that resonate with you will end up with mixed light muddying your colours. help you to develop a distinctive style. 3 Use a colour Even though I love the hot side of the checker tool to help you calibrate your colour wheel with its reds and yellows, colours when editing. www.hiyamarianne. I tend to stay in the pastel end of the com, Instagram @ hiyamarianne shade spectrum, which cools things down. I also tend to stay away from primary colours.I don’t use a physical colour wheel, but I’m aware of where colour combinations sit on it. I decide whether to go for an analogous palette or monochromatic palette or a complementary palette etc, but it’s definitely become intuitive. If you’re just starting out, Adobe Colour has a tool to help you create different types of colour palette (color.adobe.com).’ Sky & Sun 1/2500sec at f/2.8, ISO 100 Experiment with pure hues Limit your colour palette Aim for maximum impact ‘Hue’ describes a pure colour that has not When you use shades and tones of the same For maximum contrast and impact, include been mixed with black, white or grey. By using hue, the effect can be soothing on the eye, colours that sit opposite each other on an two or three pure hues in a composition – because of the lack of contrast. Tint is a hue artist’s colour wheel (complementary think brightly-coloured spices at a food with white added, shade is a hue with black colours). Just remember that the strength of market – you can create images that have added and tone is a hue with grey added. this colour combination may well overpower serious, and instant, visual impact. Sometimes, less is more. subtler details in the composition. www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 17
Technique MASTERING COLOUR Photographer and retoucher: Nigel R Glasgow ‘As a tour manager and sound engineer the point? I do a lot of 30-day challenges, for travelling around with bands and musicians, example, and sometimes I will limit myself I was hit hard when travel and mass to a 2MB memory card so I can shoot as gatherings were postponed due to Covid. though the camera is loaded with a roll of I didn’t want to make banana bread, and film. I’ve gone through phases (or fashions) I’d always had an interest in photography, when it comes to colour – I had a huge so I decided to dive in and use my time to orange and green phase and an orange and learn about cameras, lighting, Lightroom etc. teal phase too. If we use the woman in the People say that I’ve learnt quickly, but I still green beret as an example, for that shoot put the hours in. I still watch videos on how I started to look out of the window and to use my camera etc – sometimes for observe nature, and I fell in love with the 12-16 hours a day! There are no excuses, colours of autumn. I thought wouldn’t it you’ve just got to get on with it. be great if I put a lady with red hair among ‘I’ve always been fascinated with light and the foliage, wearing a green beret to create I got very into Edward Hopper (his painting maximum contrast (see below). I am still A detailed colour wheel teaches and inspires Nighthawks fascinates me) and Rembrandt, learning/experimenting and always will be.’ discover this rainbow, but he is thought to be the first to translate this and I started to learn about colour information into what we now understand as an artist’s colour wheel. At first, Newton theory. I bought myself a colour wheel Geisha arranged the colours in a grid format, for £1, which I keep in my bag and noting the relationships between them, but 1/100sec at f/5, ISO 100 he later positioned them onto a rotating disc (or wheel). How much of the wheel still refer to now and again. I learnt was apportioned to each colour depended on its wavelength and its width in the how to use the Colour Grading panels colour spectrum. (If you spin one of these discs, the colours will recombine in Lightroom and Photoshop and I to create white – another of Newton’s great discoveries.) The colour wheel is tried to kind of grade pictures before a useful aid for painters, photographers, I took them (as a tour manager I’m used to planning!). I also started using the 3D modelling software Elixxier, which allows you to create lighting set-ups on your computer ahead of a shoot. ‘I like to gamify things and make them fun – if it’s not fun, then what’s Autumn Leaves Nigel’s Lady in Red 1/100sec at f/6.3, ISO 1000 top tips for 1/100sec at f/2.8, ISO 100 using colour 18 1 Look outside photography for inspiration. I’m drawn to the work of Edward Hopper and Rembrandt, but you might also find inspiration in music or other art forms. 2 Be a lifelong learner. If you don’t know something, then look it up. I grew up in a time before the internet, now it’s easier. 3 Look at stuff you hate. Whether it’s music, photography or painting, ask yourself why you hate something and think about how it makes you feel. www.nigelrglasgow. com, Instagram @ nigelrglasgow 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
Red and red/ violet sit next to each other on a traditional colour wheel and are considered analogous © TRACY CALDER designers and scientists as it allows the conscious decisions about how we use colour wheel (yellow, red and blue, for relationship between primary colours, colour to convey personal style as well as example). These colours produce good secondary colours and tertiary colours to influence the moods and emotions of those contrast while retaining a sense of be seen at a glance. people around us. This knowledge can be harmony. A split-complementary scheme applied to many areas of our life – from uses one base colour (such as green) and Using an artist’s colour wheel fashion choices and home décor to, of the two colours on either side of its course, photography. complementary colour. In this example, A traditional artist’s colour wheel uses the the complementary colour would be red, so additive colour system, which has three Making the most of colour the two colours either side would be orange primary colours: red, yellow and blue, harmonies and violet. This scheme results in relatively placed equidistant from each other. Colour strong contrast, but the visual tension is wheels that feature red, green and blue as The first thing to note is that there are six much lower than that seen in designs that their primary colours use the subtractive easily identifiable colour harmonies on use just two complementary colours. colour system. (You can learn more about an artist’s colour wheel: complementary, both colour systems online.) When you analogous, triadic, split-complementary, Tetradic is used to describe a scheme mix two or more primary colours together tetradic and monochromatic. that features four colours arranged in you get secondary colours, which are Complementary colours sit opposite complementary pairs on the wheel placed on the wheel between the primaries. each other on the colour wheel (red and (blue-green, red-orange, violet and yellow, When you mix secondary colours (or a green, for example) and when used for example). Balancing such contrasting primary and a secondary colour) you get together, they produce images with colours can be challenging, but if you tertiary colours, which fill the gaps between maximum contrast and impact. Using allow one colour to dominate it can be an the primary and secondary colours. When just two complementary colours in a effective strategy. Finally, monochromatic you look at an artist’s colour wheel you can composition can result in pictures that schemes contain tints, shades and tones of see the effect one colour has on another pop. Analogous colours sit next to each the same hue (green in all its guises, for – and that’s where the fun starts. other on the colour wheel (yellow and example). These schemes can be very green, for example) and when used in a soothing to the eye due to the lack of Most of the time, we make decisions composition they tend to harmonise well. contrast. So, whether you decide to trust around colour intuitively: when we get (There are plenty of examples of analogous your intuition, consult a colour wheel or dressed in the morning most of us don’t colour schemes in nature – think agaves take inspiration from the pioneers of colour consult a colour wheel before pairing up with their blue/green leaves.) photography, having a basic understanding a top and trousers, for instance. But by of colour psychology and theory will fine-tuning this instinct we can remove Triadic schemes comprise three colours greatly boost your creative toolkit. some of the guesswork and make that sit equidistant from each other on the www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 19
YOUR LETTERS Amateur Photographer Inbox Scanning perfection Email [email protected] Regarding Jon Bentley’s column on film scanning, Editorial I shoot 6x6cm and 6x9cm on 120 roll film, mainly Group Editor Nigel Atherton monochrome Fomapan, GP3-Shanghai, or Deputy Editor Geoff Harris Ilford-Harman film, and digitise them using Technical Editor Andy Westlake an Epson Perfection V600 Photo flatbed scanner Features Editor Amy Davies which can generate huge printable files Technique Editor Hollie Latham Hucker from the negatives. Dan Mitchell Online Editor Joshua Waller Iwntoeersnet shopping Deputy Online Editor Jessica Miller I’m lucky in that I have Production Editor Jacqueline Porter and use a camera shop in the town where I live Design atg-media.com (Calum Booth) Write to the Editor at [email protected] and include your full postal address. Please don’t send letters in (Wessex Cameras) and the post as there is no one in the office to receive them. Replies are from the Editor unless otherwise stated very good they are too. Photo-Science Consultant But recently, while browsing online, I came Professor Robert Newman across a mini tripod being sold by a dealer Special thanks to The moderators of the AP in Winchester which was on sale second-hand but website: Andrew Robertson, lisadb, unused for £29.99 – it was £100 new when Nick Roberts, The Fat Controller it came out. I phoned them up to buy it. Advertisement sales & production LETTER OF THE WEEK Unfortunately, a very Head of Market Liz Reid bored voice on the line told me they couldn’t take Ad Production Neil Hepden (01233 220245, Instax Mini Evo orders over the phone, so I left it, and as far I know [email protected]) they are still trying to sell the item. I do hope the Management shop doesn’t close down and quote the old-saw Chief Executive Steve Wright reason of ‘people buy over the internet’. Chief Operating Officer Phil Weeden Occasionally you I’m not quite sure which Managing Director Kevin McCormick came first, people buying over the internet, or Subscription Marketing Director Gill Lambert publish something people buying over the internet because they Publisher Liz Reid have to. To my mind, internet shopping Retail Director Steve Brown about instant cameras, excludes a lot of customers, which Brand Marketing Manager perhaps vintage nowadays you’d think shops would be eager Rochelle Gyer-Smith to attract. Melvyn Dover Print Production Manager Georgina Harris Polaroids, but little of People largely buy Print Production Controller Hayley Brown over the internet because they prefer Subscriptions the modern variety, so to, not because they have to, but the end result of 51 issues of Amateur Photographer are I was very interested a course is that they will published per annum. eventually have to. UK annual subscription price: £152.49 few weeks ago by your Internet shopping may Europe annual subscription price: €199 USA annual subscription price: $199 test of the Instax Link Rest of World annual subscription price: £225 Wide printer. This year UK subscription and back issue orderline 01959 543 747 Fujifilm has brought out Overseas subscription orderline an exciting new Instax 0044 (0) 1959 543 747 camera. I’m surprised Toll free USA subscription orderline 1-888-777-0275 by little mention of it in UK customer service team 01959 543 747 Customer service email [email protected] the photographic Customer service and subscription postal press, but despite address Amateur Photographer Customer Service Team, Kelsey Publishing Ltd, some apparent supply Kelsey Media, The Granary, Downs Court, Yalding Hill, Yalding, Maidstone, problems later on, I Adrian takes his Instax Mini Evo everywhere with him Kent ME18 6AL was able to acquire an Find current subscription offers on our website shop.kelsey.co.uk/AMP example soon after release. effects available by turning dials, but Already a subscriber? Everywhere I go with the Instax Mini a few are really useful. Manage your subscription online at shop.kelsey.co.uk/site/loginForm Evo, people stop me and ask about The ability to review a shot before Classifieds it. Although not in the same quality or printing, and to print several copies Telephone 0906 802 0279 price league as its X100 and X-Pro of the same shot (eg for a group of Premium rate line, operated by Kelsey Publishing Ltd. Calls cost 65p per minute ranges, Fujifilm has done another people) are advantages compared from a BT landline; other networks and mobiles may vary. LETTER OF THE WEEK WINS A SAMSUNG 64GB EVO PLUS MICROSDXC CARD WITH SD ADAPTER. NOTE: PRIZE APPLIES TO UK AND EU RESIDENTS ONLY great job of retro styling. to more traditional instant cameras. Lines open Monday-Friday, 10am-4pm Email [email protected] So is it any good? For a camera Also you can transfer the photos Kelsey Classifieds, Kelsey Media, The Granary, Downs Court, Yalding Hill, that costs less than £200 and you’ve taken to a mobile or tablet Yalding, Maidstone, Kent ME18 6AL also acts as a mini Bluetooth photo (though most effectively with a card Distribution in Great Britain MMarketforce UK Limited, 121-141 printer – definitely yes. The ‘hybrid’ reader as Fujifilm has awkwardly Westbourne Terrace, London, W2 6JR Telephone 0330 390 6555 digital/instant print concept is not limited the ability to do this via Distribution in Northern Ireland new, but so well packaged to make Bluetooth to pictures actually printed and the Republic Of Ireland Newspread. Telephone +353 23 886 3850 it great fun for casual portraits. and at low resolution). The Mini Evo Printed by Precision Colour Printing Subjects seem more happy to be could perhaps do with a better Kelsey Media 2022 © all rights reserved. Kelsey Media photographed with this cool-looking sensor, but that might have made is a trading name of Kelsey Publishing Ltd. Reproduction in whole or in part is forbidden except with permission in camera than with characterless it more expensive. writing from the publishers. Note to contributors: articles submitted for consideration by the editor must be the mobiles, even more so when the In summary, the Instax Mini Evo is original work of the author and not previously published. Where photographs are included, which are not the classic ‘film wind-on’ lever is pulled great fun and worth a mention in AP. property of the contributor, permission to reproduce them must have been obtained from the owner of the copyright. and a blank print appears from Adrian Johnson The editor cannot guarantee a personal response to all letters and emails received. The views expressed in the a slot and gradually turns into a magazine are not necessarily those of the Editor or the Publisher. Kelsey Publishing Ltd accepts no liability for good-quality picture. Gimmicky? I’d be interested hear other readers’ products and services offered by third parties. Maybe, with all the lens and print views on instant photography. Kelsey Media takes your personal data very seriously. For more information of our privacy policy, please visit www. Win!The Samsung 64GB EVO Plus microSDXC memory card kelsey.co.uk/privacy-policy. If at any point you have any with SD adapter offers fast U1, Class 10 rated transfer queries regarding Kelsey’s data policy you can email our speeds of up to 130MB/s, offers 6x Multi Proof protection and a Limited Data Protection Officer at [email protected]. 10-year warranty. www.samsung.com/uk/memory-storage/ www.kelsey.co.uk 20 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
YOUR LETTERS The original OM-1, which In next week’s issue has been my go-to camera Best of Britain since I bought it in 1974, © JOHN CUTHBERT Top tips for how to shoot 20 is a beautiful all-metal and of the UK’s most photogenic glass machine without any buildings bells and whistles, and in Contemporary masters my opinion, Olympus Peter Dench highlights the best contemporary British photographers missed a trick here. All Garden variety they had to do was take Three experts share their tips to help the original camera, fit it you capture stunning garden images with a digital sensor, and Fujifilm 23mm F1.4 WR present it to the world for Angela Nicholson tests Fujifilm’s impressive new 23mm lens what it was. OM users On sale every Tuesday Question: when is an Olympus OM-1 not an Olympus looking to enter the OM-1? Answer: when it’s an OM System OM-1 realms of digital photography would have exclude some customers Less video flocked to it in droves; it would have been like but then it also includes I understand that modern a Leica at less than a a lot of customers for cameras are good for quarter of the price. whom physical bricks video but, personally These days I use a and mortar shopping I have only ever used Fujifilm X-T3, but alongside is a challenge. A retailer that feature by mistake. it in the camera bag my that offers both surely The red v**** button on OM-1 sits there quietly excludes no one, though my Sony A7 fortunately is asking to be used, and I share your frustration well out of the way, not once every week or so that the telephone seems next to the shutter button I put a film through it. And to be rapidly falling out as on some. By all means the camera works as well of favour as a method of mention the capability today as the day I bought communication for an of v**** performance it nearly 50 years ago. increasing number of in a review as briefly Chris James businesses. as possible. But please More video miss out the reviews of I personally think it was microphones, specialist very mean-spirited of I do feel that video is lenses, cages, tripod Olympus not to allow its of interest to quite a heads, gimbals used camera division to keep significant number of by v*deographers. the brand name, like photographers – after all, The magazine is called other companies have © PALLY LEARMOND it is still all about Amateur Photographer, not managed to do when they recording images. There Amateur Cinematographer. split (such as Ilford) and always used to be a Richard Bond instead call itself OM section devoted to movie System. So I think it was understandable for the Not the OM-1making in AP and very interesting it was, too. I’m sure the new Olympus new company to want to As a result of a review of OM-1 is a very fine remind the world of its the Bell and Howell camera and that it will association with the Autoload Reflex, a please a lot of Olympus Olympus pedigree. standard 8mm camera, fans. There is just one The new OM-1 may be I was lucky enough to problem… namely, it isn’t quite different, but it’s buy one. Joining Sutton an OM-1. I understand a remarkable machine Coldfield Movie Makers how the new bosses at in its own right. Whether has helped keep this Olympus might have there’s a market for a interest alive. wanted to capitalise digital version of a simple, Making a movie either on the name and the all-manual camera like with film or video is heritage of the original the old OM-1 is a matter challenging, as whatever model but calling it an of frequent debate, given CONTENT FOR NEXT WEEK’S ISSUE MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE is filmed needs to tell OM-1 is both a bit sad that the cost would not be a story of some sort, and disingenuous. much different. however simple it might YOUR FREE APOY ENTRY CODE be. Putting it together to be coherent, with Enter the code below via Photocrowd to get commentary if necessary, one free entry to Round 5 – Best of British. Go to sound effects and music amateurphotographer.co.uk/apoy 2022 to enter involves a lot of time APOY15528855 and effort. Grahame Tench www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 21
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Whether it’s film or digital, mirrorless or DSLR THERE’S SOMETHING FOR EVERY Nikon PHOTOGRAPHER AT GRAYS 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9Facebook: Grays of Westminster YouTube: Grays of Westminster Twitter: @nikonatgrays Instagram: @nikonatgrays LinkedIn: Grays of Westminster
Reader Portfolio Spotlight on readers’ excellent images and how they captured them 2 The Horsehead and Flame Nebulae 1 This was the first time I captured the Horsehead and Flame nebulae. I really wanted to make the hydrogen alpha region behind the dark of the horsehead pop with colour. ZWO ASI 183MC-Pro, William Optics Redcat 51, 300sec at f/4.9, Gain 111 Mark Coull, Stonehaven EQ6-R Pro Equatorial mount; William 5 Optics 50mm guide scope; ASI About Mark 120mm mono guide camera; ZWO Mark is a multimedia ASiair Pro; ZWO EAF (electronic designer and member of automatic focuser); Fujifilm X-T2; Mearns Camera Club. Fujifilm 18-55mm lens. Favourite subjects Favourite lens I love exploring the stars and deep- Fujifilm 16mm f/1.4; William Optics sky objects. Some, such as the Redcat 51 Telescope. Pleiades and Andromeda, are visible to the naked eye, but others can only Favourite accessory be captured with a telescope/lens ZWO ASiair Pro, a wireless and camera. astrophotography controller that you use via an app to polar align, focus, How did you get into photography? and move your telescope. All your I’ve always had an interest, but never photos taken are saved onto it. acted on it until 2016 when after seeing a friend’s photographs, Dream purchase I thought I could do it too. Sky-watcher Esprit 100 telescope. What do you love about photography? What software do you use? I love the social aspect and getting I use PixInsight to stack, calibrate outside, and most recently the and process, then Photoshop and challenge involved in capturing the Lightroom for further enhancements. night sky. There’s something relaxing about being alone in the dark with just Where do you find inspiration? the stars for company. I’ve barely scratched the surface of what is available to capture in the First camera night sky. I get a lot of my inspiration My first camera was a Nikon D3300; from my peers on Instagram, Twitter my first dedicated astronomy camera and YouTube. Every time I finish is the ZWO ASI 183MC-Pro Cooled. gathering data on a target, I’m always excited to move on and discover the Current kit next. There are so many that the William Optics Redcat 51 telescope; excitement of discovering something ZWO ASI 183MC-Pro; Sky-watcher new is what drives me. 24 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
NOTE: PRIZE APPLIES TO UK AND EU RESIDENTS ONLY The Reader Portfolio winner chosen will receive a copy of YOUR PICTURES IN PRINT Skylum Luminar AI, worth £79. See www.skylum.com Submit your images Luminar is a fully featured photo editor for Mac and PC designed for photographers of all skill levels, blending pro-level tools with remarkable ease of use and an enjoyable experience. A new Library feature lets you organise, find and rate images easily, while Please see the ‘Pictures’ section on page 3 over 100 editing features, plus a suite of fast AI-powered technologies under the hood, will make any image stand out. for details of how to submit. You could see your photos here in a future issue! 34 The Pleiades The North America Nebula 2 This was the first time trying an LRGB 6 At almost 15 hours of integration image and I really wanted to bring out time, this shot is made up of an RGB as much of the dusty areas and details as image where I’ve then added the I could. I also processed this while hydrogen alpha to it to make those suffering from Covid. regions stand out. In doing so, I also ZWO ASI 183MC-Pro, William Optics Redcat retain the natural star colours lost 51, 180sec at f/4.9, Gain 53 when doing narrowband imaging. The Andromeda Galaxy ZWO ASI 183MC-Pro, William Optics 3 At only two hours of integration (the Redcat 51, 300sec at f/4.9, Gain 111 total exposure created by combining many shorter exposures) time, I really wanted to push the data and test my processing skills in PixInsight. ZWO ASI 183MC-Pro, William Optics Redcat 51, 180sec at f/4.9, Gain 53 The Orion Nebula 4 The challenge when capturing the Orion Nebula is to not blow out the core. With trial and error, I discovered ISO 800 was the sweet spot. Fujifilm X-T2, Sky-watcher 72ED, 120sec at f/5.9, ISO 800 The Rosette Nebula 5 The is an image created in the style of the Hubble Palette and I really wanted the colour to be bright and bold. I removed the narrowband stars and added RGB stars for correct star colour. ZWO ASI 183MC-Pro, William Optics Redcat 51, 300sec at f/4.9, Gain 111 www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 25
PATRICK DEMARCHELIER TRIBUTE Patrick Demarchelier Remembered The French photographer, who died in March, was one of the greats of recent decades, and injected a strong sense of personality into the fashion industry, says Damien Demolder H aving heroes is a Left: Patrick © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERY dangerous business. Demarchelier, Some of them go and © MARGARET GIBBONS / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERY photographed by © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERY die on you, while his assistant others fall into disgrace. French Demarchelier. I do however Margaret Gibbons fashion and portrait photographer hope that he has influenced me Patrick Demarchelier has managed somewhat, not so much with the Above right: to do both, and it’s hard to know glitz and glamour of his celebrity Gigi Hadid for how to feel. sitters, but with the natural-looking images he created of them. Allure, 2016 Demarchelier was among the first Right: Christy photographers I idolised when my As far away from the kitchen table Turlington with photographic brain was being slowly in my family home as they are, I felt moulded in my teenage years. rose, 1990 Having exhausted the collection Far right: Diana, of books between 770 and 779 on Princess of Wales the shelves between Printmaking for Vogue, 1990 and Music in our local library, I resorted to actually buying I could relate to the people in photography books and requesting Demarchelier’s pictures. He had them for birthdays. I think I saw somehow got beyond the gloss the American Photography Master and the marketing and was able to Series Fashion Photography by present the real person having a real Patrick Demarchelier advertised life, so we could feel as if we knew by a photo book club in AP and, them a bit. That was his magic for hoping it might inspire me, signed me then, and a magic he retained up and bought it. Along with the fashion pictures by Tony McGee and others in my parents’ daily newspapers, this book really caught my attention and gave me something to aspire to. Of course, I never went into fashion or beauty photography, and the subjects I have photographed in the intervening years have been quite different. I also have had fewer Vogue covers than Monsieur 26 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9
PATRICK DEMARCHELIER TRIBUTE and was well known for throughout his long and distinguished career. © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERY Me Too I’m certain Demarchelier’s career would have been even longer and more distinguished had he not had to duck out of view in the last four or five years after he was named as one of many fashion photographers alleged to have behaved inappropriately towards models. In the aftermath of the #MeToo explosion in the film industry, the Boston Globe newspaper published an investigation in which it interviewed models and workers in the fashion business who claimed they had been sexually harassed, assaulted and raped by photographers, agents and executives. Seven women, including a former assistant, accused Demarchelier of sexual misconduct, and while he said they were lying, the publisher Condé Nast announced it www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 27
PATRICK DEMARCHELIER TRIBUTE would no longer be working with him, and his career rapidly petered out. Demarchelier was never charged with anything and he never got to defend himself in court – just as his accusers never got to state their cases – so we lack the certainty of the Harvey Weinstein verdict. ‘People lie and they tell stories,’ he said when approached by the Boston Globe. ‘It’s ridiculous,’ he said, adding that some models ‘get frustrated if they don’t work’. With the accusations coming out at the beginning of 2018, his official Instagram account had dried up by the summer, and it has since posted only archival images and posts about exhibitions. He was 74 years old when the story broke, so perhaps he just decided to retire and couldn’t be bothered with it all any more. Or perhaps he didn’t have a choice. Now, though, we are left not knowing if it is okay to like his pictures, in the same way that it might be uncomfortable listening to Michael Jackson’s Thriller, and we have to decide if the art is separate from the artist. I’m hoping that it is, otherwise if I have to stop listening to and looking at the work of people whose personal behaviour we might disapprove of, even the drunken, drug-taking, philandering Old Masters will have to go. Paris to New York © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERY Despite years of working in weekend, and got himself a job in a Above: Nude In 1975 Demarchelier tried his New York and London, and with local lab printing passport pictures. (Stephanie hand in New York, but his style was predominantly English speakers, Seymour), 1989 considered ‘too European’. It took Demarchelier never lost a heavy In the early 1960s, aged 20, a while for him to find success until French accent that made him very Demarchelier moved to Paris to work he was taken on by publisher Condé difficult to understand for those in another lab, this time printing Nast, where he shot campaigns and not used to him. Hairdresser Sam news images. He moved to a model fashion stories for all the major McKnight and former Vogue UK agency where he was employed fashion brands, both privately and editor Alexandra Shulman both as the in-house photographer, and through the host of magazines he say they regularly had to translate then moved once again to work as covered for the publisher. He did Demarchelier’s ‘indecipherable’ an assistant to the Swiss fashion very well there and really rocketed in English for clients and models. photographer Hans Feurer. Feurer the 1980s. He remained with Condé shot for Elle, Marie Claire and Nova Nast until the early 1990s, when he Born just outside Paris on 21 magazines, which gave Demarchelier became the lead photographer for August 1943 and brought up in a leg-up in that world, as well as Hearst Corporation, which published Le Havre, Demarchelier was one introductions to editors, art editors Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, O and of five brothers, whose mother was and fashion houses. half French and half English. His father worked in a travelling circus, but left the family behind when he moved to Africa, and Demarchelier’s mother remarried. Her new husband bought a 17-year-old Patrick his first camera – a Kodak – which inspired him to learn to process and print his films. He hadn’t been an enthusiastic student at school but threw himself into photography, shooting portraits of his friends and weddings at the 28 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
PATRICK DEMARCHELIER TRIBUTE Esquire. A ‘seven-figure sum’ enticed certainly would have done by 1990, © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERY him back to Condé Nast in 2004. when he photographed Diana, Princess of Wales, with a new short other occasions, including for Above: Gigi Hadid Famous faces, and more and very stylish hairdo for the cover another Vogue cover for the October for Vogue UK, of Vogue. Shot in stunning black & 1994 issue and an especially striking 2016 It’s almost pointless to try to list all white in a plain white dress – which cover story for Vanity Fair. the famous people Demarchelier could actually have been a sheet photographed during his career. In – pearls, tiara and a beaming smile, The connection between all the short, if you were a supermodel in the picture caused an instant pictures taken by Demarchelier of the 1980s or 1990s, you would have sensation around the world. It Diana is that they all make us at some stage been in front of his made Demarchelier a household feel closer to the subject. They lens for a magazine shoot, an name and empowered the princess advertising campaign, or for one of at a difficult time in her life. She is his books. You may also have been quoted as saying the pictures were shot alongside him at a fashion designed to ‘disarm my enemies’ party, backstage or in some exotic and to give her an added element location. The list of fashion icons of independence in the world he shot really is endless, and I’m beyond the royal family. And sure I don’t need to mention they certainly did that. Cindy Crawford, Kate Moss, Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington or Diana had seen Demarchelier’s Naomi Campbell to remind you who work in Vogue the year before and the faces of the 1980s and ’90s were. asked him to come to Highgrove to photograph her. The picture His style also attracted fashion- that had caught her attention was conscious celebrities, too, with of Vanessa Duve on the beach Madonna, Janet Jackson, Paul with her towel wrapped around Newman, Robert De Niro, Johnny Demarchelier’s son Victor. Victor Hallyday, Leonardo DiCaprio, was much the same age as Prince Jennifer Lawrence, Prince and Tom William, and Diana liked the casual Cruise all sitting for him at some and atmospheric nature of the stage for magazine covers, publicity picture – which appeared as the and album covers. The political cover shot on the UK August 1989 elite weren’t unaware of the issue. When Diana’s portraits were Demarchelier effect either, and his done, the then Vogue UK editor portraits of Michelle Obama, Cherie Liz Tilberis – who was a friend of Blair and Hillary Clinton gave them both Diana and Demarchelier – a glamour and an approachability asked to use one on the cover of they would have valued a good deal the magazine. And the rest is for their public profile. history. Demarchelier went on to photograph the princess on many If you didn’t know who Patrick Demarchelier was before, you Kate Moss, Laetitia, 1997 1992 © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERY © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERY www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 29
PATRICK DEMARCHELIER TRIBUTE Christy, Linda and Naomi, 2016 © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERYpresent her as a normal, suits his cool Gallic style. The Gisele © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERYrelatable, if very glamorouspictures are alive and striking, andBündchen, 1999 and elegant, person. And this was none can be ignored. They feature a crucial factor in forming and astonishing examples of beauty, reinforcing Diana’s relationship with sensuality, luxury and impossible the outside world and her ‘People’s cool even when shot without the Princess’ characterisation. The style assistance of props or location. They of these shots has heavily influenced are bright, stylish and mostly happy. the images of the new generation of The sitters are still very chic, but royals, particularly those of the they can smile and look as though Duchess of Cambridge. they are having a good time in front of the camera. This is one of the Style and substance things that attracted me to Demarchelier’s work in the first It is remarkable that all of the images place, that the subjects looked real, made available to AP for this article that they smiled a lot, that they are in black & white. If you look at looked healthy and that he Demarchelier’s Instagram account presented them as people you’d like (it’s well worth it) you will note that to know. His 2005 Pirelli calendar the majority of images shown there was a bit dark and mysterious – and are also in black & white. He shot black & white – but most of his work a lot of colour too, but the ’60s feel was light and airy. of his black & white – printed with shades of Helmut Newton contrast Rather than being purely about and tonality, and some Bailey-esque fashion, Demarchelier’s images have white backgrounds – perhaps best a cultural element to them that’s 30 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
PATRICK DEMARCHELIER TRIBUTE possible because of his skills with ‘Patrick had little of the ego of people. The individuals portrayed most fashion photographers. His in his pictures shine through the aim was to achieve what was asked clothes (even when they aren’t for in the best possible way – rather wearing any) and the marketing, than to swerve it to a vision of his and many take on the weight of own, possibly something more portraits. In recognition of the complicated, dark and edgy. Instead, importance of his work the French he appreciated a conventional Minister of Culture awarded him notion of womanly beauty and L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres through his skill was able to bring (Order of Arts and Literature) out the very best of whoever was in in 2007 for his ‘significant front of his lens. I always admired contributions to the arts, literature, the beauty and casual sexiness he or the propagation of these fields’. brought to his photographs.’ It is said that he was easy to work with and that he didn’t have a massive ego. He preferred a small team rather than an entourage, and was happy to move lights around himself. The Daily Mail quoted Alexandra Shulman as saying ‘…unlike many Vogue photographers, he wanted to deliver what you wanted. It was one of the secrets of his success. © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERYStill loved © PATRICK DEMARCHELIER / COURTESY OF CAMERA WORK GALLERY Whatever may or may not have happened between Demarchelier and those who accused him of misconduct, he passed from this world still well-loved by fellow photographers, models and those he worked with throughout his career. If the comments below the announcement of his death on Above: Christy and Instagram are anything to go mouse, 1999 by, there are plenty of former supermodels, editors and assistants who thought he was a fantastic person to work alongside, and many credit him with giving them the break they so needed at the beginnings of their own careers. He is said to have been happy to take a risk with new faces and to give people a chance. His death notice has attracted over 4,300 comments, almost all of which, as far as I can see, regard him in a very positive light, and come from leading figures from his beginnings to the modern age, including Amber Valletta, his long-time hairdressing partner Sam McKnight, Gigi Hadid, Christy Turlington, Christie Brinkley, Gisele Bündchen, Greg Williams and Kate Hudson, among many others. I rather like a quote from another former editor of Vogue magazine, Anna Wintour, who wrote in an essay for Christie’s auction house, ‘Patrick takes simple photographs perfectly, which is of course immensely difficult. He makes attractive women look beautiful and beautiful women seem real.’ That sums him up for me rather well. Patrick Demarchelier died on 31 March 2022, aged 78. Left: Kate Moss, The exhibition Beauty of Women III, which 2010 includes works by Patrick Demarchelier, is currently on view until 8 June – visit camerawork.de/en/virtualgallery/ www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 31
Evening Class This week Martin Evening shows you how to add a colouring effect using Photoshop Goldstream BEFORE Park Goldstream Provincial Park is located just off the Malahat Trans-Canada Highway on Vancouver Island. The parkland area is an especially popular tourist destination during the fall when the river levels rise and chum salmon swim up the Goldstream River to reach their spawning grounds. On this trip, I took my Fujifilm X-T30, with an 18–55mm zoom lens. The widest view on this lens is equivalent to a 28mm lens on a full-frame camera. Therefore, the lens is not quite wide enough for all landscape subjects. But no matter, an easy solution in such circumstances is to shoot a panoramic sequence of images and stitch these together later using the Photo Merge feature in Lightroom, to which I added a colouring effect that added more colour contrast to the scene. Martin Evening has a background in advertising and landscape photography. He is also well known for his knowledge of Photoshop and Lightroom, plus books on digital imaging. Visit www.martinevening.com. MARTIN’S EDITING STEPS TO APPLY COLOURING EFFECTS 1 Create a Panorama Merge 3 Edit the White Balance and Tones I selected the eight photos I had shot and chose Photo>Photo Merge>Panorama. When photographing woodland, the camera In the Panorama Merge Preview dialog, auto White Balance will tend towards magenta. I also selected Fill Edges to autofill the I select a Daylight White Balance preset to full preview area. restore the natural green vibrance. In this step I fine-tuned the tone settings as well. 2 Apply a Guided Upright Adjustment Having clicked OK to the Panorama preview, I went to the Transform panel and added two vertical Upright Guides. I manually adjusted the angles of the two guides so the trees appeared upright. 32 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
Fujifilm X-T30, 18mm lens, ISO 160, 1 sec, f/8.0 FINAL Get the book The Calibration Panel Martin Evening is the author of The colouring treatment here was achieved using the Calibration panel (found in the worldwide both Lightroom and Camera Raw). These days, this panel is mainly retained to bestselling series provide backward compatibility. In the early days of Camera Raw, Adobe would use Adobe Photoshop a sample camera to build the profiles for interpreting the colours captured by the for Photographers. First sensor, but there could be some variance between different cameras of the same launched in 1998, the latest model. The answer was to provide Calibration controls so that advanced users edition is packed with could tweak the hue and saturation of the RGB primaries. These days camera practical examples of how sensors are much more consistent, but the Calibration panel is retained so those to use Camera Raw and early users who relied on custom calibrations can still see their photos rendered Photoshop to enhance correctly. But as I show in the following steps, Calibration panel adjustments can your photographs. On sale also be used to apply unusual colour effects, such as a faux colour infrared look. now priced £45.59. 4 Add Texture and Clarity 5 Apply a Calibration Panel 6 Darken the corners colouring effect To add the colouring effect, I expanded the Calibration panel and adjusted the Primary colour sliders. The ideal Calibration settings to create a colour infrared image will vary. You can combine this with a tweak to the White Balance and HSL panel settings. Next, I zoomed in to a 100% view and To finish, I went to the Effects panel and added adjusted the Texture slider to help bring a darkening Post-Crop vignette adjustment to out more emphasis on the natural textures darken the corners of the image. However, I of the trees. I also added more Clarity to noticed how this darkened the overall image, increase contrast in the mid tones and give so I compensated for this by adding a little definition to the scene. extra Exposure via the Basic panel. www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 33
Technique TIME-SLICING KIT LIST Brighton Royal Pavilion. This image Tripod was made from 30 slices taken over A strong, sturdy tripod 2.5 hours makes life so much easier when shooting time-slices. You want all the frames to stay aligned, so zero movement is a must. If you end up with a little movement, the time-slice is not lost, as you can always auto- align it in Photoshop later, but it’s always preferable to reduce the chances of movement from the start. A time-lapse remote An intervalometer is probably the most important item when it comes to time-slices – it triggers the camera and sets the shooting interval between shots. I use a LRTimelapse remote for this, but you can pick up a cheap intervalometer for about £15 on Amazon. Photoshop I use this to splice together all my time- slices – it’s simply a process of using layer masks to show each slice of an image. If you have an older PC/Mac, I’d make a smaller number of slices at first – 20 is a good start. You don’t want your system slowing down. PhotoPills This iOS and Android app helps a lot. I use it to pinpoint my timing for a shoot, checking when the sun will go down or where it will set. I like to avoid shooting directly into the sun’s path, so PhotoPills helps avoid that. It also has a time-lapse calculator on it, which comes in very handy. 34 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
Matt Kenneally Matt first picked up a camera 12 years ago, while still a graphic designer working for lots of well-known brands. Through his technique of time slicing, he was able to combine both passions – photography and design. This has now become a full-time job, leading Matt to be published in magazines, selling prints and making a start on his first book. To see more of Matt’s work, head over to Instagram @Matt_Kenneally Slicing time Looking for a creative new way to take and process your cityscapes? Matt Kenneally talks through his unique ‘time-slice’ process ▲ W hat even is time-slice images work better than others. For photography? It’s a question example, if the object you’re shooting I get asked a lot. People naturally moves with time, it looks more see me shooting and often natural when showing this in a sliced wonder why I need to stand in a spot for image, as you can with my image of the hours to get a single picture. The answer is London Eye. I knew I wanted the slices to simple: to get one time-slice image, I first rotate from the centre of the wheel so that need around 700 individual ones. not only did the slice look like a wheel, but it would even show the passing of time in A time-slice photograph is similar to the small details (such as the pods getting a time-lapse, in that it is used to show brighter in each image). the passing of time. However, unlike with a time-lapse, I try to show the passing of Be prepared for problems. My most time in just one image. Choosing the memorable moment so far was the first correct scene is the first challenge, as you time I went to shoot Big Ben after it had have to perfectly blend the images so that been unveiled. I got to the location, only you can see the passing of time while still to find there was a Christmas video being ensuring they line up correctly. You need filmed and the area was blocked off. I an eye for detail and a lot of patience. managed to find a spot nearby that still captured the image how I wanted it, but Preparing for the unpredictable then 30 minutes into setting up, I was told by a security guard that I couldn’t shoot To plan for a shoot, I always make a trip there either! All this after not being able to to scout the location first. As I need to be shoot for a week due to a severe storm. But standing in the same spot for a long time, I’d waited five years for Big Ben to be ready the last thing I want is to get set up, only and I wasn’t going to give up; eventually, to be told I then can’t shoot in the location I got the shot and it came out exactly how or it’s closing, so I have to leave. As I wanted it to. So you definitely need unpredictable as it is here in the UK, the a little perseverance when it comes to weather has a huge influence on whether shooting time-slice photography. my images are usable or not, so I always check the weather before heading out to How to shoot shoot. Location and weather aren’t the only things I have to consider when The reason time-slice photography can take planning my time-slices – I also have to so long is because as I mentioned earlier, think about what I’m shooting and how it you need many different images to will actually look once it’s sliced. Some condense and edit into the final one. In www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 35
Technique TIME-SLICING order to be able to achieve the look of passing time, you need to ensure each The London Eye. slice differs from the previous one. Made from 40 slices taken If there is only an hour between your first over a period slice and your last one, it’s unlikely you’ll of three hours see much difference in your images, as not enough will have changed in such a short SIX STEPS TO A SIMPLE TIME-SLICE length of time for it to make an interesting and eye-catching effect. I find working around sunrise or sunset is ideal, as the natural light change can show the passing of time much more easily, but that doesn’t mean you can only shoot around these times. If you’re photographing in a city, the buildings lighting up will also help show the time difference and make for some eye-catching slices. You also want to make sure you choose to photograph an object/area that looks good in both the day and at night – the last thing you need is to be halfway through, only to realise the second part of your time-slice will be dark and boring. To shoot a time-slice image, I start by shooting a time-lapse, also known as a day-to-night time-lapse. I usually start just before sunset and shoot through golden hour and into blue hour. Most of my shoots last around three or four hours, to ensure I have enough images to choose from for my time-slice. That way I know each will look different while still blending together effectively. The editing process After shooting, I’ll select the images that stand out to me the most, and those will be the ones I use to make up my time-slice. I always do a test slice just to see how the Select your images Apply your edit Move over to Photoshop I use the library tab in Lightroom as this Now, go over all the shots and apply a In Photoshop, select all the images you’ve makes it easier to select the images you want rough edit (you’ll also get time at the end edited and right click>Edit in>Open as to use. Pick your first image, then move along to fine-tune). If you decide to do some Layers. If you are worried you might have 10 images and select the next one. Repeat cropping, make sure all the images have knocked the tripod, you can just do a quick this step till you end up with the number of the same crop applied to them – you can auto align by selecting all the layers and slices you want for your final creation. do this by syncing the crop. going to Edit>Auto-Align layers. 36 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
transition in the sky will come out in the Tower Bridge. This final image; they might look great as image was made separate images but the end result can from 31 slices come out completely differently. The best taken over a period place to start is the start. of three hours So I select my first image for the start of my time-slice, and then decide how much passing time I want to show in the image. The more time you want to reveal, the bigger the gap should be between the images you choose to use. Sometimes I’ll count ahead 10 images and select that one; other times it might be 20 images, and so on. Once you have started this process, you just repeat it until you have all the slices you need for your time-slice image. As I mentioned, when prepping for an image and choosing an object/area to shoot, I’ll usually have an idea of how I want to slice the image, but this is when it comes down to practice – I have to hope it turns out the way I want it to and I’m happy with how it looks. I sometimes go with a standard vertical slice, or I’ll try out a few different shapes and patterns that I think might work better with the scene. It’s all about trial and error when it comes to editing. You might decide at the end that you don’t like the image you’ve made, but you’ll find that if you choose different images to slice, and a different pattern to go with, you’ll uncover the perfect combination. An image you once thought was useless will now become one you fall in love with and that’s what I enjoy most about time-slice photography. You can design your final image however you want, and make it unique to you. Setting up guides Select your slices The final edit Guides help you keep slices nice and straight With your first layer selected, use the Now your time-slice is complete, save it in and evenly spaced out. Go to View>New rectangular marquee tool to draw a box Photoshop and you should be able to return Guide Layout. Enter the number of columns around your first slice, then on the right hand to Lightroom and find the slice added to your you need for your time-slice; this will be the side below your layers, click the Layer Mask library. Make any final adjustments. I love to same as the number of images you’ve button to create a mask around the first layer. see what people create, so please tag me on chosen to make your time-slice with. You now have your first slice, so repeat. social media – @Matt_Kenneally. www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 37
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Testbench CLASSIC CAMERAS Konica C35AF, the The Rikenon 50mm world’s first autofocus camera f/2 AF fitted to a K-mount Ricoh XR-S FILM STARS Autofocus? It’ll never catch on John Wade reviews the first fumbling attempts When she moved towards the projector, the image naturally went out of focus. Then the to bring automatic focusing to SLRs camera’s shutter release was pressed and the image automatically snapped back into focus. O ne day in late 1977, camera This action was repeated several times down manufacturer Konishiroku UK (the the length of the room. In this way, the world’s predecessor of Konica) held a first autofocus camera was demonstrated and press conference to announce launched to the UK market. a revolutionary camera. To demonstrate its capabilities, a piece of film containing the image of a lens-testing chart was placed in the film plane of the camera, which was Konica C35AF mounted on the front of a projector. Light from the projector shone through the film To outward appearances, the Konica C35AF and, using the camera’s lens, the chart’s was a typical auto-exposure 35mm compact sharply focused image was projected onto of the 1970s with a Hexanon 38mm f/2.8 a sheet of white card, held by a young lady lens, shutter speeded 1/60-1/250sec, in a kimono at the other end of the room. built-in flash and motor drive. The magic came courtesy of a Visitronic passive autofocus module made by Honeywell. The system used two mirrors, one Polaroid’s SX-70 Sonar Autofocus, How the which worked using sound waves, Polaroid camera inaudible to humans folded to a flat package 40 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
The Canon 35-70mm f/4 AF lens mounted on a Canon A-1 From a sales brochure of the time: an Polaroid SX-70 Sonar Autofocus The Chinon AF 50mm explanation of the Rikenon lens’s internal f/1.7 lens mounted parts and workings Polaroid’s SX-70 system, launched in 1972, on a Chinon CE-4 ejected an instant print from the front of a stationary, the other pivoting, with a prism folding camera as the exposure was made, Cosina that reflected twin images from the two which would self-develop to full colour in 28-70mm zoom mirrors onto a charge coupled device normal lighting in around a minute. In 1978, autofocus lens (CCD), which acted as a focusing sensor. autofocus was added to the spec. As the shutter release was pressed, the pivoting mirror began to turn, and the The system worked the way bats navigate focusing sensor recognised where the without bumping into objects in their images from the two mirrors coincided as flightpath. A device mounted above the lens the point where image contrast was at its emitted ultrasonic waves, inaudible to the greatest. At the same time, the lens was human ear. Based on the time that it took for travelling from infinity to close focusing. the sound to bounce off the subject and back When the sensor recognised the point of to the camera’s receptor, the distance was highest contrast, a solenoid was activated, estimated and the lens automatically which stopped the lens at the appropriate focused. The information was also used to focusing distance – all in 80 milliseconds. determine the strength of the in-built flash required to light the subject. The autofocus era had arrived, though there were those at the time heard to murmur that Standalone autofocus lenses it was only a fad and would never catch on. Nevertheless, the race had begun to be the Autofocus for 35mm SLRs arrived courtesy of first with an autofocus single lens reflex standalone lenses for use on manual-focus (SLR). That race was won, surprisingly cameras. They incorporated the focusing perhaps, by Polaroid. mechanism, driven by AA batteries, entirely in the lens. The first, in 1980, was the Rikenon 50mm f/2 AF, made for cameras with the K-mount pioneered by Pentax. It used solid state triangulation, which operated From the rear, left to right: the Rikenon, Canon and Chinon standalone lenses www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 41
Testbench CLASSIC CAMERAS The Pentax ME F top plate shows similarities with the ME Super Pentax ME F, the first 35mm SLR purpose-made as an autofocus camera The ones that got away With the lens removed, showing the contact pins that Leica patented several autofocus sensor communicated information between the Pentax’s lens and body technologies during the 1960s and early 1970s. The company showed an AF camera much in the way the Honeywell module Other manufacturers that produced called the Carrefot at Photokina in 1976 worked: the system recognised correct focus standalone lenses in varying focal lengths and, in 1978, it displayed an autofocus as the point where two images from twin included Cosina and Vivitar. SLR. Neither went into production. rangefinder-like windows coincided, then passed the information to a motor which Pentax ME F In 1983 Nikon launched the F3AF, an rotated the lens for correct focus. autofocus version of the F3, along with This was the first production camera built 80mm f/2.8 and 200mm f/3.5 Nikkor The Rikenon was followed in 1981 by specifically as an autofocus SLR. It arrived in autofocus lenses. It wasn’t the success the Canon 35-70mm f/4 AF. Designed for 1981 and was based on a modified version the company had hoped for. Canon SLRs that used the FD mount, this of the ME Super, retaining that camera’s use was the first autofocus zoom lens. It also of twin buttons on the top plate to set shutter Also in 1983, Olympus introduced the worked using solid state triangulation, but speeds. Its modified K-mount added five OM30 which, when fitted with its 35-70mm the sensor was placed at 45° across contact pins between the body and lens to AF Zoom, permitted autofocus. However, the picture frame to retain accuracy pass information back and forth. it wasn’t popular and soon vanished irrespective of whether the camera was from the market. held horizontally or vertically. The lens was a 35-70mm f/2.8 Pentax AF Zoom whose focal length was changed by Nikon F3AF In 1982, the K-mount Chinon AF 50mm the old method of pulling the lens barrel with its f/1.7 hit the market with a different in and out. It was smaller than previous 80mm autofocusing method. As the lens was standalone autofocus lenses, but was still f/2.8 activated, a light-emitting diode (LED) sent bulky compared to a traditional manual-focus autofocus out an infrared beam to hit the subject, which lens, thanks to compartments needed to lens was reflected back to hit the lens’s infrared house four AAA batteries and the motor that receiving sensor. The angle at which the adjusted the focus. The camera’s reflex mirror The Olympus beam was received used triangulation to worked in the usual way to direct light to the OM30, indicate subject distance and a micromotor viewfinder, but was semi-silvered to also allow set the lens accordingly. light through to bounce off a second mirror equipped with its 35-70 AF autofocus lens 42 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
What to pay Canon T80 with the AC 50mm f/1.8 mounted, Konica C35AF: £20-40 alongside the AC 35-70mm f/3.5-4.5 (left) and Polaroid Sonar Autofocus: £70-120 AC 75-200mm f/4.5 autofocus zoom lenses Rikenon 50mm f/2 AF: £15-25 Canon 35-70mm f/4 AF: £50-75 Chinon AF 50mm f/1.7: £20-30 Pentax ME F: £70-100 Canon T80: £25-60 Minolta 7000: £15-40 and onto twin rows of sensors, one is one of those times.’ So ran the advertising Early autofocus today positioned just in front of the film plane, blurb for the Minolta 7000 in 1985. This was the other an equal distance behind. As with the first body-integral autofocus camera, So how practical is it to use old autofocus other systems, these recognised the highest which removed the auto functions from the lenses today? Well, it’s not impossible, contrast between the two images and the lens and placed them in the camera body. As and because the early standalone lenses lens motor set the distance appropriately. a result, the autofocus lenses were about the confined the technology solely to the lens same size as manual lenses, and the camera itself, you can even use them with the The ME F could also be used with manual- was only marginally larger than its manual- appropriate adapters on mirrorless cameras. focus lenses, with the in-body autofocus focus contemporaries. Most older autofocus lenses function system providing focus indication in the adequately on well-lit contrasty subjects, but viewfinder. The camera was far more For use in low light, the Minolta utilised focusing is slow, and the lenses aren’t good streamlined than previous SLRs that used the near-infrared AF-assist feature of the in low light. They are also prone to hunt for autofocus lenses. But it was not a great camera’s dedicated flashgun to provide focus or default to infinity on subjects like commercial success. instant focus readings in conditions where it plain walls, wire fences or textured surfaces, would be extremely difficult to manually focus and they can misfocus on reflections. These Canon T80 a conventional camera. The 7000 featured days it’s probably best to think of these the world’s first automatic multi-program lenses as novelties from the past, rather In 1983 Canon took a new look at SLR selection that involved taking data from the than useful additions to your armoury. design with the T-50, a fully-automated autofocus lenses and translating it into exposure camera with built-in electric motor information that set the most appropriate drive. The T-70 which followed took that exposure mode. With a zoom lens attached, thinking forward into a better-specified it changed mode according to the focal camera. Then, in 1985, came the T80, length being used. The camera’s Canon’s first purpose-built autofocus SLR. multi-mode exposure system offered shutter priority, aperture priority and Earlier, in 1982, Canon had developed a manual settings. The Minolta 7000 system for the AL-1 SLR in which three CCDs was launched with 12 autofocus received a portion of the lens’s image via a lenses from 24mm f/2.8 through to pattern etched into the semi-silvered reflex 300mm f/2.8. Minolta called it ‘the mirror. When the correct point of focus was evolution of photographic perfection’. identified as the spot where image contrast It marked the start of a whole new was at its peak, a message was passed to way of producing autofocus SLRs. three LEDs at the base of the viewfinder. Red LED arrows then told the photographer Above right: which way to turn the focusing ring on the Minolta Dynax lens until a central green LED lit to indicate 7000, the first correct focus. The T80 took this technology, body-integral kept it in the body and used it to drive a autofocus SLR motor in the lens to adjust focus. Right: The inner The lens bayoneted to the body using workings of the a modified version of Canon’s FD mount. Minolta 7000 Manual focus lenses could be used, but the T80 was launched with its own three IMAGE COURTESY OF SONY UK autofocus lenses: the AC 50mm f/1.8, AC 35-70mm f/3.5-4.5 and AC 75-200mm f/4.5. These AC lenses were not compatible with Canon’s later autofocus EOS cameras. The T80 sold for only a year before Canon returned to manual focus with the T90, the company’s last, and some say best, manual-focus camera. Minolta 7000 43 ‘Occasionally in one’s lifetime, a startlingly innovative product comes along that changes forever the way things used to be done. This www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9
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SMARTPHONE TEST Testbench The main camera gives attractive images with good levels of detail 26mm equiv, 1/1900sec at f/1.7, ISO 100 OPPO Find X5 Pro This high-end smartphone houses At a glance a Hasselblad-branded triple-camera system. Andy Westlake sees £1,049 whether it lives up to expectations l Android smartphone I n February 2022, Chinese been co-developed by the two l 6.7in screen smartphone maker Oppo companies. But does this bring l 256GB storage announced it had entered any obvious benefits? l Triple camera system into a partnership with the l 12MP standard output legendary Swedish camera maker Features and design l 4K 60p video Hasselblad, to collaborate on l www.oppo.com/uk making smartphones. The Find In many respects, the Oppo Find X5 Pro represents the first fruits X5 looks like a typical flagship provides a smooth user should provide enough power for of this cooperation, with this smartphone of 2022. Measuring experience. Corning Gorilla Glass even an intensive day’s use. An flagship device emblazoned with 164x74mm, its front face is Victus promises resistance 80W rapid charger and USB-C the Hasselblad logo right beside almost entirely covered by the against scratches and drops of cable are included. its Oppo badge. Its triple camera 6.7in screen, with just a ‘hole up to 2m. The device also boasts system, with ultra-wide, wide, and punch’ cut-out for the selfie IP68 dust and water resistance. One area where the Find X5 Pro telephoto lenses, is said to have camera. The screen is bright, does stand out lies with its detailed and colourful, and Inside, there’s the latest 8-core design. On the back, the three Qualcomm SnapDragon 8 Gen 1 camera lenses and the LED processor. The 5000mAh battery flash are enclosed in a www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 45
The ultra-wide camera records plenty of detail 15mm equiv, 1/2000sec at f/2.2, ISO 106 smooth, beautifully sculpted The power button is placed on Camera system Camera app housing that gives a real the right-hand side, but unlike impression of premium design. most Android phones, the volume Oppo has used a similar set-up to Oppo has used a conventional- It’s comfortable in your hand and control buttons are found on the last year’s Find X3 Pro, but has looking Android camera app. subtly encourages your fingers to left. Double-clicking either can dropped its gimmicky ‘microscope Most users will likely gravitate to steer clear of the lenses. But the activate the camera app when camera’. The main camera offers the fully automatic Photo mode. super-smooth back cover means the phone is in standby, and they a 26mm equivalent view, f/1.7 Here, you can select between the the device is prone to sliding off can then also be used to take aperture and optical stabilisation. three lenses by tapping icons at any surface that’s not perfectly pictures. As usual, there’s a It’s joined by a 15mm-equivalent the bottom of the display, and flat, so I’d use a protective case. USB-C port at the base. f/2.2 ultra-wide camera and a there are touch buttons to enable 46mm f/2.4 ‘telephoto’ camera. HDR, AI image enhancement, and Portrait mode does a good This provides a very natural the 50MP mode. job of blurring backgrounds perspective, but doesn’t offer anywhere near the reach offered Switch to Pro mode and you get 46mm equiv, 1/640sec at f/2.4, ISO 99 by other devices. Neither the manual control over ISO, shutter ultra-wide nor the telephoto speed, exposure compensation, lenses are optically stabilised. focus and white balance. An exposure histogram and focus Both the main and ultra-wide peaking display are available, too. cameras use sensors that Slightly confusingly, in the Pro measure 8.2x6.1mm, which is mode you switch lenses using a about half the area of the 1in different touch button at the top sensors used in many enthusiast of the screen. There’s still a zoom compact cameras. Meanwhile, control in the same place as on the telephoto camera uses a the Photo mode, but it now 13MP sensor that’s about a applies digital zoom. You can quarter of the area. All three give record images in DNG raw format, a standard output size of 12MP, and there’s also a ‘Raw Plus’ but you can also get 50MP files option which records additional from the main and ultra-wide multi-shot computational data. cameras. On the front, there’s a 32MP fixed-focus selfie camera. Specialist modes include Night, Portrait, Panorama and Long Have you considered trading in your old equipment for either cash or Part-Exchange? 46 9c236b2T8el-l8u7scw3h-a4t0yoeu9h-bav0efea-t8c8amf4e0rabW5o7r3ld9.ceo9.uwwkw/.atmraateudrpeho-toignrapher.co.uk
SMARTPHONE TEST Testbench Verdict The camera is particularly IN THE Find X5 Pro, Oppo has impressive in low light produced a fine Android flagship 26mm equiv, 1/20sec at f/1.7, ISO 4169 that looks fabulous, performs well, and takes great pictures Exposure, which has settings for to a high-resolution DSLR or vastly better than Samsung’s and video. As such, it strikes an light painting, traffic trails, and mirrorless camera. implementation, for example. enticing middle ground between moving water. There’s also an the cheaper, highly competent, ‘XPan’ mode that aims to Colours are bright and Portrait mode does a good job but plainly styled Google Pixel 6 simulate the experience of using saturated, while the auto white of detecting a subject and Pro, and the Samsung Galaxy Hasselblad’s legendary 35mm balance generally does a good blurring away backgrounds, and S22 Ultra, which is class-leading panoramic rangefinder camera. job of delivering natural-looking you can adjust the strength of in terms of lens range and Except in reality, it just ends up images. However, the high the effect using a virtual features, but painfully priced. shooting a wide, thin crop from dynamic-range processing can aperture slider. As always, the main camera and upsizing it be a bit hit-and-miss. It can work though, the cut-out around fine One thing I really appreciated to a blurry mess. Unlike the real brilliantly in adding colour and detail such as hair can look is the balance Oppo has struck XPan, you can’t change lenses. detail into a bright sky that would unnatural if you examine the between the three cameras. normally be over-exposed to pure images closely. The mode While other firms have been For video, you get a choice of white. But on the other hand, it doesn’t just work on humans, known to concentrate their efforts Auto and advanced modes. It’s can leave other images looking but can also deliver convincing on cramming marketing-friendly possible to record 4K video at flat and unnatural. So it pays to results with other subjects, specs onto the main camera 60fps, or Full HD at up to experiment with turning it on and although it gets things all wrong alone, Oppo has included an 240fps for slow-mo effects. off in high-contrast situations. with complex subjects like ultra-wide camera that’s every bit flowers. Other times the visual as good, while also delivering Image quality The wide camera is touted as effect veers towards ‘fake very creditable quality from the doing double-duty for macro, miniature’ territory, although the telephoto. But the latter lens is On the whole, the Oppo Find X5 because it focuses the closest. results can still be interesting. also this camera system’s main Pro delivers nice images that But experienced photographers weakness, as it offers nowhere look great when viewed on its won’t be surprised to learn that Video quality is very creditable near as much reach as those on own screen. However, if you the most effective close-up too, with lots of detail and clear competing devices. stare at them at 100% on a images will usually come from sound. The stabilisation does computer monitor with much longer zoom settings. However, a great job of keeping footage Ultimately, the Oppo Find X5 lower pixel density, they’ll look if you try to shoot close-ups with watchable when you’re walking Pro isn’t the cheapest flagship distinctly over-processed. the telephoto camera, the device with the camera or simply smartphone available, nor is it will switch to using the main panning across a scene. But the best featured. But it’s still Unusually, the ultra-wide camera with digital zoom. The I was most impressed by the a very impressive performer with camera is every bit as good as results are still okay, but only for low-light performance, and the a well-balanced spec. For Android the main one, with both lenses social media use. way the camera is capable of recording plenty of detail from rendering a full range of users looking corner to corner. The telephoto Low-light images are brightness and colour even to acquire a camera is also very good in impressive, and I rarely saw any under streetlights at night. It’s high-performance bright light, but the smaller need to engage the specialist not magic, though; if there’s not smartphone sensor and narrower aperture Night mode, as the regular Photo enough light for you to see camera, it should means that detail is lost more mode does perfectly well on its much, it won’t either. But I certainly be on quickly when light levels drop. own. I was also really impressed haven’t seen another phone the shortlist. The 50MP mode can deliver by the Panorama mode, which camera capable of such a bit more detail in good light, records loads of detail with no video quality in low light. Recommended but it’s nowhere close in quality visible stitching artefacts. It’s Data file Main camera: Display: 50MP, 26mm 6.7in AMOLED, f/1.7, AF, OIS QHD+ resolution Ultrawide camera: (3216 x 1440), 50MP, 15mm 525ppi, 500 nits f/2.2, AF Operating System: Telephoto camera: Android 12 13MP, 46mm Dimensions: f/2.4, AF 163.7 x 73.9 x Selfie camera: 8.5mm 32MP, 90°, f/2.8 Weight: 218g www.amateurphotographer.co.u9k c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9 47
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Testbench ACCESSORIES Samsung Portable Tough SSD T7 Shield Along with IP65 dust and water resistance, this portable SSD is rated to be drop-proof to 3m. Andy Westlake investigates a high-speed Colours SSD with extra shock resistance The Samsung T7 Shield comes in a choice of three colours: blue, black or beige. ● £134.79 (1TB), £250.99 (2TB) ● www.samsung.com/uk Recommended ALL PRICES ARE APPROXIMATE STREET PRICES Portable SSDs have now replaced conventional Mobile- Cables hard drives for working with image or video files on friendly the move, as they’re smaller, faster, and much more Samsung supplies robust. Certain cameras and video recorders can The T7 Shield is compliant two cables with a USB-A even save files directly to SSD. with the USB power and USB-C connectors. This isn’t as convenient (or indeed Samsung’s T-series SSDs have long been highly specification, promising as environmentally aware) regarded for their speed and reliability. Latest in the trouble-free use with as a USB-C cable with line is the T7 Shield. This is a variant of the existing mobile devices. T7 SSD, but with its aluminium shell covered in a a USB-A adapter. ridged rubberised armour for increased robustness. At a glance The firm claims it’s now shockproof against a fall THE SAMSUNG T7 FAMILY from 3m, compared to 2m before. ● USB 3.2 Gen2 NVMe SSD ● 1000MB/sec write, Samsung’s standard T7 portable Otherwise, the T7 Shield promises the same SSD costs around £120 for 1TB, performance as the standard T7. It’s rated for 1050MB/sec read and £218 for 2TB, and comes in sequential write speeds up to 1000MB/sec, and ● 88x59x13mm, 98g red, blue or grey. The firm also read speeds up to 1050MB/sec. That’s about ● 1TB or 2TB capacity offers the T7 Touch, which includes twice as fast as SATA-based SSDs, and nearly a fingerprint reader for additional ten times as fast as portable hard drives. In biometric security. It’s available in principle, such speeds are quick enough for black or grey and costs around recording 8K or even 12K video, using cutting-edge £135 for 1TB, or £251 for 2TB. cameras like the Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K. The drive also offers optional password protection for your files using AES 256-bit hardware encryption, via Samsung’s accompanying apps. Installers for Mac and Windows PCs are included on the device itself, while the Android app must be downloaded from the Google Play store. I found this function worked as expected when tested on Windows and Android devices. The apps are simple and intuitive to use, and admirably consistent between platforms. However, if you do enable password protection, you won’t be able to access the drive from iOS devices, or use it to record video from external recorders. In terms of speed, it’s certainly a snappy performer. Benchmarked using CrystalDiskMark on my Dell XPS 15 running Windows 11, the 2TB model I had for review registered a sequential read speed of 988MB/sec, and a sequential write speed of 550MB/sec. This may not be as fast as specified, but such tests are very machine dependent. Notably, it’s twice as fast as older SATA SSDs I tested at the same time. Verdict Samsung’s T7 Shield is small, fast and tough, making it a good choice for working in the field. However, if you’re only planning on using the drive indoors, the standard T7 should do essentially the same job for a lower price. 50 9c236b28-87c3-40e9-b0fe-88f40b5739e9www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
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