Issue 7 preview

50 Lux Conversations ___________________________ Sarah Anderson Marian Drew Jessica Tremp Technical Guides ___________________________ Photoshop Interface Introduction to Curves The Shutter Buying a Film Camera __________________________ Minolta SRT 101

Issue #7 | July 2014

Call for Content

Have you enjoyed reading this and previous issues of 50 Lux magazine?

Then read on....

We are seeking feature articles, study-guides, essays, and practical classroom / workshop materials from practicing and former professional photographers, Arts and Media teachers, and feature writers. You must have a background in professional imaging, photography, and video production.

Your writing must be of a professional standard suitable for students, teachers, and other photographic educators.

We are also seeking high quality photographs and photographic media from students, and emerging professionals. This usually takes the form of 1-3 images from secondary students and a folio of 10 plus images from tertiary students and graduates. If we are interested in your work we may arrange a feature interview.

We regularly feature current working commercial and artistic photographers, and photojournalists. We can accommodate suitable work from video and hybrid artists.

Photography covers a wide range of topics and 50 Lux has so far covered, buying film and digital SLR cameras, setting up a darkroom, processing film, and printing negatives. We also cover photography related events, gallery exhibitions, and have preservation and display features ready for publication.

With the introduction of the National Arts Curriculum from years F to 10, we are particularly interested in Lesson Plan’s and Unit’s of work aimed at younger primary and middle years photography students.

We are also interested in submissions for feature articles for tertiary students that include the setting up and running of a photographic business, selfmarketing and promotion, and developing an on-line presence.

If you have suggestions for other photography related topics please contact us with a sample or links to your writing.

Interested? The first thing to do is read our style guide and terms and conditions. Remember we are a not for profit organisation. Images must be 300DPI TIFF, PNG, or PSD (flattened) and be at least 5-10 megabytes. Very large JPEGs maybe considered, but tend to pixelate on newer high resoultion screens. Please do not watermark your images. Written submissions must be 1500, 2000, or 2500 words in length and be submitted in .DOCX, .DOC, .TXT, or Pages format. The submission deadline for issue 8 is Friday 8 August 2014.

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Welcome

Welcome to Issue 7. A big thank you to every one returning after Issue 6, following the blurb in the Age Green Guide - thank you Terry Lane - we have had well over 20, 000 downloads of that magazine.

It has been downloaded by people as far away as Canada, Norway, and Brazil. Our words may be in English, but our images speak all languages.

In the background we have been working on the Web site, my background is in photography, museums, and teaching, so we are working on a comprehensive glossary of photographic terminology - it’s longer than you might think. There will also soon be a directory of well known and respected photographers. The reasoning is that while you can Google or Bing a name, read the Wikipedia entry and be fairly confident that the information is correct, teachers often need their students to have a deeper knowledge. We have been drawing on a wide range of books, monologues, and catalogs for our glossary.

So who do we have in this issue? Sarah Anderson is an architectural photographer. Her work is used by a range of people from building developers to interior designers and lifestyle magazines.

Issue #7 | July 2014 50 Lux Magazine PO Box 319 Croydon Victoria Australia 3136 Published by: Andrew Renaut editor@50lux.org To advertise contact: sales@50lux.org Web site and layout: Andrew Renaut Graphic Elements: Meg Armstrong Animation: Victoria Gridley Marketing: Meg Sceri

Jess Tremp is a self taught photographer. Her artistic work has appeared in a number of exhibitions, and she has since moved into the wedding market.

We also have an interview with artist Marian Drew, by Agata Krajewska. Agata is a student at Australian Catholic University.

Out technical section introduces a series on image adjustments using curves. There is a guide to thinking about photography as a career. Our camera review is the Minolta SRT-101.

Unfortunately our original model of gaining revenue from advertising to cover the costs of producing this magazine is not viable, so we are regretfully starting to charge a nominal fee for each issue. $3 is less than a cup of coffee and for that you get 3 interviews and the technical information. We have other writers waiting in the wings, but would like to give them some form of payment for their efforts.

If you have already subscribed prior to the release of this issue, we are allowing your free subscription to continue until the middle of next year. At the moment you don’t need to do anything and you will be able to download the PDF directly. If you go in via the Web page or from Issuu, you will need to pay.

We hope you will stay on board and continue to spread the word.

Andrew Renaut Managing Editor editor@50lux.org

Notice To Readers and Advertisers: The publishers of 50 Lux Magazine take every care in the production of each issue of this publication but we are not liable for any editorial error, omission, mistake or typographical error. In the case of advertising material supplied, we as the publishers, make no representation and provide no warranty as to the accuracy of descriptions or offers within said advertising.

As publishers we accept no liability for any loss, which any person may incur while relying on the accuracy or description of any statement, image or photograph herein. The views expressed by all contributors are not necessarily those of the publisher.

50 Lux Magazine reserves the right to decline any advertising for any reason.

Copyright 50 Lux Magazine 2013: ALL of the content published in this magazine is subject to copyright held either by the publisher in the whole or in part by the contributing photographers, their agents, or estates.

Any infringement may incur legal action. No part of this magazine may be used in part or in full in any way without the express written permission of the publisher.

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Contents

4

Welcome

03

Student Showcase

06

Sarah Anderson

08

Marian Drew

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Jessica Tremp

46

Look before you leap

74

Working with Curves

78

Using Your Camera - Sensor

90

Review - Minolta SRT-101

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Parting Shots

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Featuring Sarah Anderson Sarah Anderson is a Melbourne based commercial photographer.

Sarah specialises in architectural photography, a role that even twenty years ago was difficult to sustain on a full time basis.

However, with the large number of apartment developments currently under construction, architectural photographers are in high demand.

Marian Drew Marian Drew is a Queensland based artist. One of her favoured mediums is photography. Here Photo-Media works have appeared in over 20 solo shows across Australia, North America, and Europe. Presently, Drew is an Associate Professor at Queensland College of Art, Griffith University.

Jessica Tremp Jessica Tremp lived her early life in Switzerland and came to Melbourne to ‘follow a boy’. She stayed and when the relationship ended joined a group of people who were going through the same stage of life. The group formed a loose photographic collective and Jessica has been making photographs since.

Cover

Copyright - Jessica Tremp.

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Student Showcase

I first got into photography after my cousin had opened my eyes to the world of light graffiti; where I was sleeping over one night and we just stayed up until 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning just playing with all kinds of concepts and various lights and exposures. I was hesitant at first to ask my parents for a camera as it would have costs a lot to get a decent DSLR and whether I would actually invest time and effort into 8

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photography, so I left the thought of getting into it at the back of my mind.

During VCE Studio Arts Units 1/2, I wished to explore my theme of Escape and Freedom through photomanipulation and it was then that I figured that I should take my own photos to manipulate rather than stock images from the internet where copyright

Khoi M Nguyen

might be an issue. Not only that, it is an ever growing world that we live in, where technology is advancing at a rapid pace, so I figured I would flow with the times and get comfortable within the world of technology.

course I would always continually progress in my skills and knowledge - to explore the world of photography and be, from time to time, inspired by an amazing concept or photograph and to turn that concept into my own.

I can only see photography as a hobby for me in the future, or as another tool in my inventory that I can Khoi is a student at Emmanuel College. use to assist me in producing my artworks; and of This image appeared in Top Shots at MGA. 50 Lux | 50lux.org 9

In Conversation With...

Sarah Anderson

Although Sarah Anderson photographs corporate events amongst other general photography, her specialisation is architecture and interiors. Architectural photography has become increasing important to building developers, and where once it was reserved for major buildings and bespoke architect designed homes, it is now a major part of most commercial building projects.

As you will read, Sarah’s interest in photography began at an early age, and her passion grew through secondary school. After graduating from the R.M.I.T. BA stream, she began assisting in 1998 - just at the end of the film era. She now runs a successful practice from Phoenix Studios in Melbourne.

What brought you to photography?

I don’t really know to be honest. It was something that I wanted to do since I was very small. I’m not really sure why. I wanted to do photography since I was a little kid. I think when I first wanted to be a photographer I actually didn’t know that you could do it as a job. Then when I was a bit older I found out that my uncle was a photographer and I used to visit him at his studio. I didn’t really do anything about it as such, but had in the back of my mind it was something I wanted to do.

When I started year 11 and 12 at high school, I began to think I should start to do work more on my photography. However the school didn’t offer it as a subject. My parents told the school that if they couldn’t offer it in some way they would move me to another school as that is what she wants to be. So they created an add on to the ceramics class. I was enrolled in ceramics, but did photography. They at least had a darkroom that enabled me to learn those aspects of the craft.

It actually worked out quite well. One of my first influences was my art teacher. He put a lot of effort in to helping with my work. I was the only person doing it, and he got in a Geelong photographer named Cricket to talk to us. She worked in fashion and ended up becoming my mentor. My art teacher

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Image copyright: Sarah Anderson.

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In Conversation With...

Marian Drew Interview by Agata Krajewska

Marian Drew is a renowned Australian photographic artist with an impressive number of solo exhibitions and awards from all around the world.

Her innovative approach to photography as a medium has led to the creation of many mesmerizing series, such as Still life/Australiana, Illuminated landscapes or Ornamental, just to name a few.

Her work centers on themes such as environmental decay, death, time, history, landscape, and our relation to the latter. Being more interventions than documentations themselves, Drew’s photographs are very evocative and remain in memory for a long time.

I found her works so powerful and influential I began to long to know more about her practice and methodology behind it. The interview is a result of this longing.

Images copyright: Marian Drew 14

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How did your career start? Did you want to be an artist in your youth?

No I didn’t know about art in my youth. I discovered art at high school and loved doing it and did well at school – so it was natural I wanted to go to art school.

You have been “painting with light” in many of your projects. What initiated the idea of using torch in your compositions?

I liked the idea of interfering with photographic process and I already liked drawing so the torch allowed me to bring them together – drawing and photography. I didn’t want to sit behind the camera and ‘take ‘ a picture – I wanted to be involved in the construction of that picture.

Series such as Illuminated Landscapes, Australiana/ Still life, Lorikeet Island just to name a few, have been created in the darkness. Why did you shift to this perspective?

Darkness allows for the artist/photographer to affect the lighting of the image. Darkness allows for a space for reflection and introduces feelings and the personal within that external space.

Water has been a frequent theme in your works.

What draws you to this particular subject matter?

Water is a great metaphor – water is the source of life, it leads us places, it gives us birth but also can drown us, -as a material it is fascinating and fundamental to life and as a form it is kind of magical – translucent, reflective, transforming (ice, steam) moving and fluid.

Water teaches us how to behave – to find a way.

In one of your interviews you described photographs as actually quite destructive in helping us understand who we are and how we fit into the world yet, you have maintained working mainly with camera in your practice. Could you please explain why?

Photography represents a particular way of seeing – it sets up the idea that the world is out there and we are outside that world. It shows the world as if through a stable stationery single view window. It reflects a philosophy of the nineteenth century that saw humans as separate from the ‘world ‘ and it sets up the idea of collecting the word through images. It breaks time into tiny pieces discrete and separated from the continuum. All of these ideas do not support an integrated, interrelated exchange that is life as a

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Image copyright: Marian Drew.

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In Conversation With...

Jessica Tremp

Jessica Tremp was born in Perth and wisked off to Switzerland for her child hood. She returned to Australia and settled in Melbourne before a recent move to central Victoria.

Jessica is somewher between self taught and formaly taught, and her photographic practice spans both artistic and commercial.

Jessica’s work has been exhibited at the Ballarat International Foto Beinnale - 2009 BIFB Chillout Photography Prize winner, and at the Edmund Rice Gallery in Melbourne. She was one of the 5 finalists in the ‘2010 Projections’ in the arts category for best emerging photographers in Australia and won Gold at the Paris ‘Prix de la Photographie’ in the portraiture/self portraiture section in 2011.

Her first solo show was in Sydney at Mick Gallery in November 2011.

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Over Unto Silence copyright: Jessica Tremp 50 Lux | 50lux.org 21

Welcome to 50 Lux. Can you tell us a little of your background?

I was born in Perth, but as my father was Swiss, we moved to Switzerland when I was a one year old. I grew up there and returned to Australia to live in Melbourne when I was eighteen. I guess you could call that my rebellious stage. My mum is Australian so coming back was something I wanted to do to see the connection.

I imagine it was a fairly strict Germanic upbringing.

Yes in a way, but my Mum is kooky enough to balance it out. I lived in a little alpine village about an hour from Zurich. So as you can imagine I was outdoors a lot. It was idylic. When I turned eighteen however, I found myself stuck in a fairly conservative school system. I wasn’t at all passionate about the course I was taking and so I decided to just leave and give Melbourne a go. I’d be lying if I didn’t say a boy had something to do with it too.å Did you move directly to Melbourne?

Yes, but I didn’t like it here immediately. It just grew on me and I fell in love with the place after a while.

Now that we are living an hour or so from the city, I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else.

One country town to another.

Yes, with some time in the inner city in between.

Did you do any photography when living in Switzerland?

Here photography is often integrated into the school curriculum. Over there it wasn’t. It was more of a personal interest. I photographed a lot of my friends.

I never pursued it seriously though. I really didn’t pursue it seriously here either. I always liked having a creative outlet, whether it was photography, drawing, painting, singing.

Did you have your own camera then?

Yes, I had a Canon film SLR. I loved photographing in black and white. I didn’t have access to a darkroom until I came here. I had done a short course at the C.A.E. here in Melbourne and there was a little bit of darkroom involved there. I became friends with the teacher and he showed me a how he worked on his own imagery. I loved it in there. Hours would just fly by, especially if you had a good bottle of wine, I could have spent days in there developing and printing, it 22

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Tapad og fundid, Icelandic for lost and found. Copyright: Jessica Tremp 50 Lux | 50lux.org 23

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Applying for a course Look before you leap.

With open day season approaching, we consider some of the things that may help you make a decision about the courses you might consider in 2015.

This year there is the added dark cloud of potential changes to fee structures. These changes are more likely to affect government institutions than the private ones who have always charged full fees. Nonetheless, if you are considering a government loan such as HECS, the amount and way that this is calculated and paid back may change.

The following is general advice gained from speaking to course advisors and administrators. It is a guide only and should not be taken as final. Speak to course advisors in the institutions you are considering enrolling in for exact details.

It is that time of year again. The time when students are completing their VCE, HSC, or whatever the final year of secondary school is called in your state or territory. For most students the decisions they make in 2014 are going to be ones that may affect them for a very long time both in their career choice but also in a finical sense. It is likely that the changes in the 2014 Federal Budget will affect students who are hoping to get into public universities more then those thinking of going to private colleges.

getting adequate return on the investment, and the ability to service the ensuing debt. It may also be worth considering that there is an intention to not pay Newstart Allowance (Unemployment Benefit) for six months to people under 30. So a graduate may have no means of support whilst they either find a job to support themselves or continue to study. In an arts area such as photography this may mean particular hardship as not everyone is able to find a great job in the industry the moment they graduate.

If they do decide to setup their own practice there Private institutions are (mostly) run by private are considerable costs of equipment, transport, companies, and there is an expectation that they will insurance etc. to consider. As much as the Labor be run, if not for outright profit, at least at a break- Party Opposition, and some of the minor parties are even level. They are not sustainable if they make an against these changes, there is no guarantee that ongoing loss. Some may get government subsidies they will be elected at the next election, or that their while others don’t. policies won’t change and they will leave the changes in place.

The Federal Budget opens the public institutions to the ability to set their own fees. The minister for I have interviewed over 20 successful young education suggested that some fees would rise while photographers for this magazine over the past 18 others fell, and that the market would ultimately be months. They have come from a variety of different the decider of where the fees were set. It would be institutions, both private and public. Some have expected that there would be a rise in the scholarships been talented enough to find good jobs in relatively to support those worthy students who didn’t have short periods of time after graduation, some have the ability to pay. been lucky enough to secure positions before graduation. Others, while working in the industry This is a complicated piece of legislation and we are have found things more difficult. They continue with not going into the merits of the decisions. A student, their jobs in hotels, do “event” photography at nightand most likely their parents, will need to assess clubs, or have returned to learning to expand their their own financial position, the likely prospects of 26

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skills to make themselves more employable across a broader spectrum of areas. Each year there are dozens of photography graduates across Australia.

Not everyone reaches the graduation stage either, and these people are also part of the equation. Then there are the people who enter the industry without formal qualifications. It is a crowded market and many fall by the wayside.

prepared to put in the effort to clean up the images following the job. There is still the cost of having reliable equipment, transport and insurance. It is still a business.

Unfortunately, the consensus among those I have interviewed is that the photography courses don’t cover the business aspects very well. So if you are So if you have read this far and are still interested in thinking of becoming a photographer, my first piece a career in photography what advice is good advice? of advice might be that it is a good idea to do some Firstly I’ll offer some of my own observations, then business studies concurrent to your course.

A you can read what the people running the courses number of people I have interviewed have done the have to say.

New Enterprise Incentive Scheme (NEIS) program.

Photography is a business.

For a start it is a hard industry to do well in financially.

The most financially successful photographers also seem to be great bushiness people too. They have good accountants behind them who know the complexities of small business and how to make the best of legal tax deductions. I once went to a seminar run by Australia’s, at the time, biggest wedding photography business owner. He recounted how he and his wife sat down with the accountants and worked out what they wanted in the next financial year. A new Ferrari, an upgrade to the swimming pool, three months holiday in Europe. They then worked backwards. How many weddings were needed, how may photographers were there in Melbourne who could maintain their standard, how may retouchers were needed, how much film and processing, how may sales people, office staff, how much office space did they have etc. In other words they set targets at each step of the business. Of course they had been in the wedding industry for 30 years and did thousands of weddings each year. You only got the boss if you were prepared to pay about five times the normal rate, and that was higher than the lone operators such as myself could charge.

Of course weddings are covered in a completely different way to 20 years ago, they are now done in a pseudo documentary style. Many operators simply had over all the images unedited to the client, and so don’t have to consider the printing, album, and framing costs, and the associated labour expenses.

However, you are still likely to get your break as wedding photographer assisting, and then by doing the weddings of friends and family. There isn’t the cost of film and processing, but you will still need to have a rapport with the people involved, and be

Find a mentor.

Another piece of advice that comes up regularly is the need for a mentor. Should you be lucky enough to reach third year of the courses, you will probably be required to find one anyway. If you are reading this with the intention of applying this year, it is not to early or to late. Think of the genre and style of photography you are interested in and research who is doing that type of work successfully locally.

Approach them with a polite e-mail or phone call. It may take sometime for them to get back to you if they are particularly busy. It is not always possible to sit in on a shoot, but discuss their work-flow, how they structure their business, where they find their clients. Be prepared to talk about your own goals and have your folio prepared. The person may or may not be able or willing to take you on in the long term. Don’t be offended if they don’t, their practice may involve lots of travel, or it may be small scale.

Go to exhibitions.

Here in Melbourne we are lucky to have 3 major galleries devoted to photography; Monash Gallery of Art (MGA) , the Centre for Contemporary Photography (CCP), and the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV).

If you are interested in non-commercial photography there are events, talks, and other gatherings held in these spaces. If you are really interested, and have the time, there is also the opportunity to volunteer.

Volunteering is a great way to make contacts, and understand the “back-end”.

Go to the college and university graduate exhibitions that take place towards the end of the year. All of the courses have major exhibitions of their student work. Walk up the stairs of the Photography Studies 50 Lux | 50lux.org 27

College, five minutes walk from Flinders Street Station, and be amazed at the work that adorns the walls. They will happily give you a tour - but ring first if you are interested because there might be events or classes in progress.

Get involved with a camera club or group.

The old fashioned stereotype of old men looking at slides of flowers and beaches probably still exists somewhere. However, there are also some great dynamic groups of people who get together regularly.

These include the Melbourne SIlver Mine. Ask at places like the CCP. If the group isn’t well known, take a friend or parent.

There are dozens of events that include everything from darkroom sessions to walks. If you have an interest in equipment there are two markets in Melbourne and Sydney each year. The Australian Photographic Collectors Society also runs regular auctions through the year for its members, and markets for the general public. These are a great place to meet like minded people.

Even if you simply join a group on Red Bubble, there are unlimited possibilities to interact with people who share your passion.

You could even start your own group with friends.

There are also outlets such as MeetUp where you can start your own group.

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Working with Curves Part One - the basics

Not so long ago everybody was talking about curves in relation to image editing. It was considered the way to adjust contrast and tonality in an image. Today while using the curves panel in Photoshop is still a valid way of doing things, it has become somewhat secondary to getting the contrast and tone of your image correct. Although you will probably have done most of your image adjustments in Camera Raw or Lightroom prior to importing them into Photoshop, knowing how Curves operates can help with final adjustments for output. Here we begin by look at the basic terminology and tools. Next issue we look at applying those tools and developing your technique.

This is the raw image used for illustration in this article. It has simply been opened in Camera Raw then saved to a PSD file in Photoshop.

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There are around twenty-two items listed under the Image Adjustments menu. As the saying goes there are many ways to skin a cat. It also holds true that some of the image adjustment techniques are more interesting than really relevant to photographers.

You will find any number of tutorials, blog posts, and endless unresolved discussions on forums discussing ways to adjust images. Teachers, lecturers, and practicing photographers all have their own individual ways of interpreting these tools as well. Here we are going to look at one way of doing image adjustments.

As you will have already worked through your basic image adjustments in the Camera Raw plug-in or the Lightroom interface then exported a copy the image as a TIF, PSD, or DNG, (see previous issue), this tutorial takes the next step and looks at working with Curves on an adjustment layer within Photoshop.

The Histogram.

The Photoshop histogram is a bar graph that plots the intensity levels of the Red, Green, Blue (or Magenta, Cyan, Yellow) channels within the image combined into a grayscale. This is known as the Master Channel.

The x-axis is divided into 256 sections and the y-axis plots the level of intensity, the higher the peak the more there is of that combination. Where there is no y-axis plot, there is no information in the image.

At the left of the x-axis the darkest areas are plotted, while the lightest areas are plotted on the right. A histogram is not an accurate tool, but is a useful guide. The histogram in the Curves panel is overlaid with a line, by adding points and dragging them you can change the contrast and tonality of the image.

Levels.

Much of what we are going to discuss here can also be achieved using the direct levels panel so we’ll look at Levels first as those adjustments are achieved directly with sliders. Before Camera Raw, Lightroom, and other software designed specifically for editing photographs, working with Levels and Curves was the standard way adjustments to contrast and tone were achieved in Photoshop.

Levels work in a very similar way to working with the Highlights and Shadows sliders in Camera Raw or Lightroom. The main difference is that you are working directly to the clipping points on the histogram. You then drag the relevant sliders into meet the edges of the histogram avoiding clipping the highlights and shadows. See the figures **** for instructions. The thing to remember is that you are working visually, Before we start there are some terms that need so it is important to have your screen calibrated. You will also need to have an understanding of where the explaining: image is going to be reproduced. If you increase the Clipping. contrast too much then the end device may not be able to cope with the output resulting in the image This is an area of the image that has been over or being clipped by the device. under exposed beyond the range of the equipment or the colour space that you are working with. This Curves. means that all the detail has been lost from this part of the image. When editing an image the clipping Working with curves on adjustment layers achieves a point is where the highlights or shadows have been similar result to levels. However, Curves allows you cut off or ‘clipped’. We adjust our image so that to accurately control the tonal balance and contrast our histogram covers the area with usable image of your image on the Master channels and each of detail and cuts off the area that has been over or the individual Red, Green, and Blue channels. It also under exposed or are outside the parameters of the allows you to target individual points on the Tone Curve and by selecting individual pixels, change the working space. values of only those particular pixel tones.

Specula.

As with all the image adjustments controls in These are the highlights that are caused by points of Photoshop there are two ways of working with bright light selected from a shiny surface. This could curves. There is the direct method available through be a point of light caused by sun light reflecting from the Image → Adjustments menu or you can use a mirror, the surface of water, or a piece of chrome an Adjustment layer as described here. The two on a car. These points of light will always be over panel layouts are quite different, so make sure that exposed in relation to the remainder of the image, you follow the method described here. This is the so that when we make our adjustments we can allow adjustment layer Properties panel, not the Curves them to “clip” because they contain no detail. panel.

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Using your camera The Sensor

In this series of articles we look at how your camera works. This fourth article looks at the sensor in a “digital” camera. The sensor collects light that has passed through the lens. The sensor converts the light to an electrical charge. The analogue signal is then converted to a digital one processed and saved to the memory card..

Sensor size.

Around five years ago Canon declared it was exiting the ‘Pixel War”. There was a race on by camera manufacturers to see who could cram the most pixels onto their sensors. The race was akin to car manufacturers in the late 1960s and 1970s to put the most powerful engine in an Australian car.

Unfortunately this coincided the greatest number of deaths on our roads. Governments intervened and muscle cars became a thing of the past. However, by the mid 1980s, turbo-charged cars had entered the market, and it could be argued that these were more unpredictable and dangerous than the preceding muscle cars.

priced above the most expensive APS-C bodies, and are therefore aimed at professional and advanced amateur users. The larger area of the sensor allows for larger photo-sites for a given number of pixels.

In turn larger photo-sites can collect more of the available light, and thus require less amplification of the light, this,in turn can result in less noise on the final image.

APS-C APS-C (DX in Nikon speak) was derived from the relatively short lived APS film format of the 1990s.

The specification allowed for smaller film and three different aspect ratios. The format was generally used on compact cameras at the time. However, If you think that is a strange comparison, think of some manufacturers released “mini” SLR cameras this as how cramming more pixels on a sensor led using the format. Some of the early digital SLR to smaller pixels, these were less sensitive to light, cameras were based on these bodies. and led to more image noise. In other words it was a self defeating race. Often sensors with lower The term APS-C is a loose one. Although all the pixel counts produce better images. Here we look sensors are 3:2 aspect ratio, their overall size varies at sensor types, physical size, and pixel density. slightly. The original film specification was 16.7 Currently there are around 6 main groups of physical x 25.1mm, sensors can be anywhere from 13.8 x sensor sizes available for mainstream cameras - we 20.7mm to 19.1 x 28.7mm. are going to exclude the medium format sector for This variety of sizes results in a slightly different angle this discussion. These are known as: of view from a lens of a given focal length. This is known as the crop factor and is indicated as 1.5x Full Frame Full frame (FX in Nikon speak) - these sensors measure Nikon, Pentax, Samsung, and Sony, and 1.6x for approximately 24 x 36mm which is the standard Canon who make their own sensors.

SLR camera film frame size. This means that lenses made for film cameras will cover the frame area of Lenses designed for full frame sensors and 35mm film the sensor. Full frame sensors have about twice the cameras will magnify the image by the crop factor area of a sensor in the APS-C category. This generally when fitted to a APS-C body. For example, a 50mm makes a full-frame sensored camera more expensive standard lens from a 35mm film camera will become to produce. While there are about ten bodies a 75mm lens (80mm on a 1.6x crop) on a APS-C size currently available with full frame sensors all are sensor. This works OK if you are after a telephoto lens 36

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Green - Full Frame - equivelent to 35mm film.

Red - APS-C. Blue - Micro-Four-thirds.

Purple - typical compact.

The diagram above gives an approximate indication of the relative sizes of the image sensors commononly fitted to cameras. Depending on the device you are viewing this diagram the actual size of the sensors may be smaller or larger. as the image will be more highly magnified. However, amateurs upgrading from a small compact and if you are after a wide angle lens, the magnification phone cameras. becomes an issue and you will generally need to seek Compacts. out a specialised APS-C lens.

Although, there are a couple of CSC in this sector Pentax Q and some of the Ricoh GXR modules, the Four Thirds and Micro Four Thirds This format was designed by Kodak and Olympus in small sensors in this sector are fitted to compacts the early 2000s and was designed specifically for the with fixed lenses. Sensor areas are very small and digital camera era. It’s intent was to be an open format are generally in the 6.6 x 8.8mm to 4.29 x 5.76mm with a standard mount that any manufacturer could range. Thats about the size of the nail on your little adopt. However, as all the other companies already finger. It is unlikely that you could physically fit a lens had their own formats and mounts, only Panasonic designed for a full frame camera to a camera using a has really taken up the option. Canon, Nikon, and sensor this small.

Pentax continued to use their existing mounts. Sony took over the Minolta mount, and then adapted it for Sensor types.

There are two main types of sensor used. These are their smaller E-series mount. the older CCD (Charged Coupled Device) and CMOS The 4/3 format is 13 x 17.3mm and has an aspect (Complimentary Metal Oxide Semiconductor). Both are capable of equally good image output. However, ratio of 4:3. This results in a crop factor of 2x.

CCD’s tend to use more power and produce more Both Olympus and Panasonic have developed heat that CMOS designs. Each photosite on the variations of the CSC (Compact System Camera) sensor converts the light to a voltage, this voltage is format bodies that do not have the mirror read, and converted to a series of digital information mechanisms of the SLR. Some bodies are closer to (0s and 1s). The sensor it-self is an analogue device. point and shoot cameras with no view-finder, others The digital conversion is undertaken by an analogue have a pseudo SLR style with electronic viewfinders. to digital processor.

CX So far this a Nikon only format used on the Nikon 1 series of interchangeable lens bodies. The sensor measures 8.8 x 13.2 mm, the aspect ratio is 3:2, and results in a 2.7x crop factor. Although, the quality is good, it is not a match for the larger sensor cameras (primarily 4/3’s) and the series seems to aimed at

To achieve full colour there are three methods employed. The oldest uses three CCDs. Light passes through a prism and is split into red, green and blue wavelengths. A CCD chip is provided for each of the three wavelengths and recorded separately.

As higher densities of pixels have become possible, 50 Lux | 50lux.org 37

Buying a Film Camera

Minolta SRT-101

The first thing you notice about the Minolta SRT-101 is its weight. In the last issue we looked at the Pentax M series, these were pretty much the peak of the pre-plastic electronic cameras that morphed into the digital bodies of today. The SRT-101 has it origins in the late 1950s. It was innovative at the time and a good example fitted with the bright 55mm f1.4 can give interesting results with the shallow depth of focus that is available. Nonetheless it is not a camera that you would want to heft around all day. The basic body chassis has a large number variations that we discuss. Minolta first merged with Konica, and then the camera division was sold to Sony. Sony’s SLT series is the descendants of SRT series, but almost all of the Minolta engineering is now gone.

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on the top front of the body. It was a dual range type, and depending on the age of the body the range switch is located either on the rear or later the font of the body. The exposure-reading needle is visible in a small window on the top plate. The SR-7 was produced from 1962 until the late 1960s. Later models without the stepped viewfinder housing, Minolta was a pre- World War Two camera share quite a lot in common with the SR-T-101. The manufacturer established in Osaka Japan, by Kazuo SR-7s turn up from time to time at camera markets Tashima in 1928 to produce cameras in partnership in usable condition, but are more of interest to the with two Germans. The company was originally collector rather than a day to day use proposition. called the Japanese-German Camera Shop and went through a number of name changes in its 79 year As I have said, the SR-T-101 used the same basic chassis as the other earlier SR bodies, its big claim history. to fame was that the meter was a through the lens The SR-T-101 was a development of the original system rather that the earlier clip on or external SR line that began with the SR-2 in 1958. The SR-2 “eye”. Although beaten to the post by the Pentax competed directly with the pre-Spotmatic Asahi Spotmatic, it proved popular. The long history of Pentax’s, the Miranda T and the Topcon R. None of lens making made the Rokkor lenses particularly these cameras had built in exposure meters. The desirable. There is an instant return mirror, depth Miranda introduced in 1955, was the first Japanese of field preview lever, and even a mirror lock-up for 35mm camera to have an eyelevel viewfinder. The long exposures on a tripod. (Locking the mirror up original Topcon was introduced in 1958, and was a before the exposure removes the vibration from the little more basic compared to it’s competitors. mirror mechanism. Take care though not to lock the mirror up in bright sunshine as the cloth shutter can Topcon soon took the lead though, and was the first be burnt.) to have a camera with a built-in meter that used a through the lens system in 1963. Other cameras had The 101 has a cloth, horizontal travel, focal-plane built in meters, but they weren’t linked in anyway to shutter that appears to be very robust. The range the shutter or aperture. The Topcon was aimed at is from 1 second to 1/1000th of a second, but has professionals, and competed with the Nikon F that a relatively slow flash synch speed of 1/60th of a had been introduced in 1958. Both the Nikon and second. Although, to be fair this was a time when Topcon had interchangeable prisms and focusing electronic flash wasn’t common. The camera has a screens. When the Pentax Spotmatic arrived it flash shoe, but must not be used with an electronic changed the camera landscape. Other manufacturers flash as the pins will short circuit and damage the quickly needed to also include built-in metering to flash unit. Later versions have a single pin hotshoe. compete.

The first thing you will notice when picking up an SR As with most Japanese cameras, the basic chassis of camera is that they are quite heavy. Nonetheless, a camera was used for many generations of bodies. they handle quite well. The large bright viewfinder This, and the fact that millions of cameras were made, makes it relatively easy to focus. The 58mm f1.4 was kept the prices down, and the market competitive. the most common standard lens, and this large piece With the SR-2 Minolta pretty much got everything of glass helps with finder brightness, but also adds to right from the start, except the through the lens the bulk of the camera.

(TTL) meter. They, as did Miranda and Topcon, used a bayonet lens mount that Pentax was to take Metering is a little tricky. The system uses two another decade to embrace. The Minolta had up needles that need to be matched. The plain needle to date styling that even today looks quite modern. matches the light level to the shutter speed that is The SR-1 was launched after the SR-2 as a slightly visible in the lower edge of the finder. The second cut down version, while the SR-2 was updated to needle with the loop on the end matches to the Light the SR-3 in 1960. However, versions of the SR-1 and Value scale on the lens and is closely related to the SR-3 featured quite ungainly add on meters. These aperture value. The good news is that the ISO range clipped to front of the camera, and engaged via a pin is from 6 to 6400, far wider than the 1600 ISO top of to the shutter speed dial. the Pentax Spotmatic.

The Minolta camera line was a long and proud one for the Japanese company. Here we begin our look at the pre-Sony Minolta’s. We start with the SR-T101. Although not the first Minolta SLR, it is the first model that we would consider as a usable, if slightly quirky, camera for regular use.

The SR-7 was the first 35mm SLR to have a built in meter, but it wasn’t a TTL system, and uses an “eye”

The metering system on bodies with the CLC tag uses two cells that have deferent sensitivities. The 50 Lux | 50lux.org 39

Preview Read the full version

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