Advanced Photographer Magazine Issue 43

MEGA TEST WHICH DSLR SUITS YOU? THE MAGAZINE THAT TAKES YOUR IMAGES SERIOUSLY

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BIG TEST

TOP SAMSUNG

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PAGES OF THE LATEST ST PHOTO GADGETS

Full review and our verdict on Samsung’s latest flagship CSC, the NX30

INSPIRATION

Projects special Up your game and earn letters after your name

WILD THINGS Inspiration and advice for your best-ever nature shots RAW MASTERCLASS MODERN SPLIT TONING FOR A TRAD LOOK

LIGHTING ACADEMY CREATIVE FUN WITH A STRIPBOX

PHOTO A B S O L U T E

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Welcome

WILL CHEUNG FRPS, EDITOR Will has worked in photo mags for nearly 30 years and been taking pictures for even longer. His photographic interests are very broad, from nature to portraits.

A warm welcome to the issue. After months of short days and long nights, spring is here and with it comes the chance to exercise your shutter finger even more.

Nature is a very popular spring subject and that’s what we concentrate on this issue with inspiration from Roger Hance FRPS and plenty of how-to-do-it technique too. It’s a massive and very diverse subject so how you decide to explore it is up to you, but there’s huge potential whether in your garden or out in the great outdoors.

You will have noticed that many capable photographers have letters after their names. ARPS, BPE, CPAGB and AFIAP are typical examples of what you might have spotted. These photographic awards and distinctions are highly prized and sought after and if you’ve never fully understood how to achieve them, we’re here to help. In this issue we kick off with the RPS distinctions and stories of how six readers achieved their L, A and F, plus how you can earn them too.

In the Photo Kit section we have part two of a giant review of APS-C format DSLR cameras. We’re testing 11 cameras in total: four last issue, three this issue, and four in the concluding part next issue. It’s unmissable reading if you’re in the market for a DSLR. If you’re looking to downsize, we also test Samsung’s new flagship CSC, the feature-rich NX30, which proved pretty impressive.

Finally, we try a selection of the latest accessories, from a card reader to an A3+ inkjet printer, that promise to help you get more from your picture-taking and to tempt you to part with your hard-earned cash.

See you again next month.

Will Cheung FRPS, Editor

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Contents

MALE ORANGE-TIP BUTTERFLY “Taken at about 6.15am in my sun lounge,” says Roger Hance FRPS. “Using natural light and a small aperture I was able to get a very sharp image. Early in the morning I place a butterfly on the desired flower, grass stem or plant. They are quite torpid until the room temperature starts to warm up when they become quite active. The butterfly was released afterward quite unharmed by its ‘modelling session’.”

WWW.ROGERHANCEFRPS.COM

18 CAPTURE: It’s a wild world

The cover story...

Canon EOS 40D, Canon 100mm f/2.8 macro, 1/125sec at f/16, ISO 200

10 INSPIRE: Nature calls

SEE PAGE 62 FOR DETAILS

Inspiration, technique, opinion 7 UPFRONT Launches from Nikon, Samyang and Lee to name but a few, plus opportunities to learn from top pro photographers.

10 SECOND NATURE: INSPIRE He might have started out kneading dough to earn a crust, but these days Roger Hance FRPS is a natural, working his camera and lens to produce beautiful wildlife images.

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LIGHTING ACADEMY: Working with stripboxes

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18 INTO THE WILD: CAPTURE Whether you’re headed for true wilderness or the local nature reserve, don’t set out until you’re armed with our shooting advice.

26 GET A DISTINCTION: PROJECTS Ever fancied letters after your name? Well, a panel of ten of your best shots could earn you the right to write LRPS…

43 EXPOSED Taking 3600 exposures in a year sounds like small fry when editor Cheung recently took 600 shots in just one day. So what kept his trigger finger busy?

44 TOP SPOT To some it’s a modern blot on the landscape, to others it’s the place with the concrete cows, and to many, it’s roundabouttastic. But Milton Keynes is a top spot for photographers.

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Contents

26 PROJECTS: Distinctions

65 GROUP TEST: APS-C DSLRS PART TWO

44 TOP SPOT: Milton Keynes

80 FULL TEST: Samsung NX30

Photo Kit: the latest gear tested 48 TRAINING DAY It’s

56 LIGHTING ACADEMY

65 APS-C TEST: PART 2

89 ACCESSORIES

never too late to learn, but where are the best places to do so? We have the answers.

This issue, we’re quickly up to speed with a one-day course with Damian McGillicuddy.

Let’s do a striptease. Well, not exactly, but you can surely tease some interesting light out of a stripbox.

The only way to find out which APS-C DSLR is the best for you is to test them all. Thankfully, we’re doing it for you. Over three issues, resident techie Dr Fyfe puts 11 to the test.

This issue he checks out three mid-level models.

• PNY High Performance 3.0

62 SUBSCRIPTION OFFERS Get your favourite

52 RAW MASTERCLASS

photo mag delivered.

Split toning in digital means the colour palette is your oyster, and you’re in full control from the outset.

114 NEXT ISSUE Purrfect pet pictures, plus top spots and kit for a day in London.

Want to read Advanced Photographer on your iPad? Save up to 35% by subscribing at the App Store today!

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80 SAMSUNG NX30 With a price tag reminiscent of the E-P5 and X-Pro1, Samsung’s latest mirrorless camera seems destined for enthusiast kitbags, but do its Android operating system, APS-C sensor and wireless bells and whistles add up to an exciting prospect?

card reader

• EyeFi Mobi & Toshiba FlashAir wireless cards

• Tiffen ND 3.0 filter • SpiderPro Camera Holster • Bushman Gobi panorama head • Canon PIXMA iP8750 • Interfit Pro-Flash One Eighty • Elgato Thunderbolt Drive+ • Chillblast Fusion Photo OC V

98 DXO FILMPACK EXPERT Digital may now be king, but the look of film is more popular than ever.

Maybe it’s time to invest in some emulation software…

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INSPIRATION

Nature calls

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INSPIRATION

Nature calls

PROVE YOUR WORTH Roger Hance took his time going from film to digital and has never looked back. Now his subjects have moved on from loaves of bread to mini beasts, and he’s always happy to give a talk to his camera club chums WORDS CHARLOTTE GRIFFITHS PICTURES ROGER HANCE FRPS

MALE ORANGE-TIP BUTTERFLY “Taken at about 6.15am in my sun lounge. Using natural light and a small aperture I was able to get a very sharp image. Early in the morning I place a butterfly on the desired flower, grass stem or plant. They are quite torpid until the room temperature starts to warm up when they become quite active. The butterfly was released afterward quite unharmed by its ‘modelling session’.”

Canon EOS 40D, Canon 100mm f/2.8 macro, 1/125sec at f/16, ISO 200

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CAPTURE

Nature calls

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CAPTURE

Nature calls

The natural world has held a fascination for photographers since the medium’s invention and while the way we capture images is utterly different, many of the challenges are similar.

Here’s some advice for how you can take your best-ever nature images WORDS WILL CHEUNG PICTURES VARIOUS

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© MICK VOGEL

NURTURE NATURE

PROJECTS | DISTINCTIONS

A right Royal affair For more than 100 years, valiant photographers have tested their mettle by trying out for the Royal Photographic Society’s much-acclaimed Distinctions.

Five who have achieved the accolade share their stories WORDS MEGAN CROFT PICTURES VARIOUS

You wouldn’t normally come across the names Will Cheung and the Duchess of Cambridge in the same sentence, but the Advanced Photographer editor and Her Royal Highness have more in common that you might have first thought. Both are members of the Royal Photographic Society (RPS) and join the likes of many sirs, lords and illustrious characters who were members before them. It’s one of the oldest formal assemblages of photographers in Britain and is championed by the Queen herself who is patron of the charity, a royal tradition initiated by Queen Victoria in 1894.

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Royal and high society endorsements aside, the RPS has a relatively humble existence dedicated to inspiring photographers of all levels to improve and hone their skills, techniques and style through exhibitions, workshops and distinctions. It is with the latter, however, that the similarities between Will and the duchess end. Will, along with just 663 other photographers worldwide, has scaled the photographers’ equivalent of Everest to earn the privilege of appending his name with the coveted letters FRPS. The FRPS, or Fellowship, is the ultimate decoration for a photographer.

It’s hailed as the most respected achievement in the industry and has been around almost as long as the society itself. In the early years a photographer earnt their ‘F’ by filling in an application form, but today the process is significantly more scrupulous. Now photographers must prove their worth by presenting an immaculate, coherent panel of 20 images demonstrating creativity, skill and technique of a high enough standard to withstand close scrutiny from the judges.

There are three RPS Distinctions and before a photographer can even begin to think about a Fellowship they must first

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conquer the Licentiateship (LRPS) and Associate (ARPS) distinctions. Nearly 3500 photographers have made the grade for Licentiateship for which they submitted a panel of ten high-quality images. Predictably, the bar is raised higher for the second of the Distinctions, the Associate (ARPS). 15 images, again in panel format, adhering to the criteria set out in one of six categories, will gain a photographer this accolade. It takes a sizeable leap in ability before completing the set and gaining an FRPS. With the exception of the FRPS, challengers are welcome to join fellow

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entrants and their guests to watch a live assessment of the panels. Far from being reminiscent of school days when you would be put through the humiliation of having your marks read out to the whole class, the RPS is a friendly bunch and the assessment day is an opportunity for learning and camaraderie. Panels are judged anonymously and your identity is only revealed if you’re successful. If you didn’t quite make the grade you are able to leave with your dignity intact.

Non-RPS members can apply for the L and the A. However, a successful application means membership is

processed automatically and only then can you use the letters after your name.

To achieve any of the Distinctions, let alone more than one, is considered to be a true hallmark of your credibility as a photographer. To get a real-life perspective on what it’s like to gain one of the most prestigious honours in photography, we asked six photographers to share their experiences.

And if they inspire you to try for a Distinction yourself, you can find out more at the website: www.rps.org.uk.

Downloadable application forms and handbooks are available here too.

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© BARRY BADCOCK LRPS

PROJECTS | DISTINCTIONS

TOP TO T OP P SPOT SP S PO OT T

Milton Milt Mil M Mi ilto lto ton on nK Ke Key Keynes ey eyn yn yne ne nes es s

www.advancedphotographer.co.uk w ww www ww. w.ad adv dva van nce ced edp dph pho oto tog ogr grap aph phe her. er.co co. o.u ukk

TOP SPOT

Milton Keynes

Milton Keynes One of the UK’s first new towns might not sound too promising as a location for great pictures but as we see here, make the effort and the rewards are rich WORDS & PICTURES WILL CHEUNG

Bright conditions are useful for reflections in a shiny shopfront or tall building; use a wide-angle lens so you capture it all.

Nikon D800, 16-35mm lens, 1/320sec at f/13, ISO 200 www.advancedphotographer.co.uk

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RAW MASTERCLASS MASTER DIGITAL SPLIT TONING

START IMAGE

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RAW MASTERCLASS MASTER DIGITAL SPLIT TONING

RAW MASTERCLASS

FEELING BLUE Split toning in the wet darkroom needed chemicals, good timing and a fair degree of skill. Doing it on the computer still needs skill but it’s much easier, as we show here WORDS & PICTURES WILL CHEUNG

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RAW MASTERCLASS MASTER DIGITAL SPLIT TONING

The story behind the picture The original was taken in Amsterdam on a September morning. It had been raining a little earlier but it had stopped by the time I shot this. The emergence of some sun with the rain clouds in the distance looked good

and as it was still relatively early I got a picture without too many people cluttering it up.

The original colour image had a light, airy feel, but I preferred something a little more moody and atmospheric.

The beauty of shooting Raw and working non-destructively means you can play to your heart’s content and still have the original safe. I made virtual copies of the image in the Lightroom catalogue and then went to work.

STEP BY STEP: SIMULATING A CHEMICAL PROCESS

Safe start In the Develop module I went to Lens Corrections and ticked Enable Profile Corrections and Remove Chromatic Aberration, then went to Photo>Create Virtual Copy, which you can do by pressing Ctrl (or Cmd on Mac) with ’.

Monochrome moves I used the Saturation controls in the HSL/ Color/B&W tab to make the image monochrome, moving all the sliders to -100. I did it this way to maximise control.

Fine-tune it With the image monochrome, I moved down to the Luminance panel and simply had a play with the sliders. I knew I wanted to darken the sky and lighten the leaves so the Blue slider went down to -39 and the Green went to +26 but the other colours got minor tweaks too.

Add colour Moving down to the Split Toning panel, I went to the Highlights section, picked a random hue and set a high Saturation value to give me a start. I then clicked on the colour box to bring up the Highlights colour picker and moved the sampler brush around, giving a live preview. I settled on a gold-ish hue.

Shadow hues I did the same thing but this time in the Shadows section of the Split Toning panel and picked a very strong blue.

There’s much fine-tuning to be done and you can go back at any point to tweak the colours, but you need a foundation to work on.

Get a balance At this point we have an image with gold highlights and vivid blue shadows. The Balance slider in the Split Toning panel lets you adjust the relative weights of your chosen colours. As with the previous steps we can come back and adjust more later.

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RAW MASTERCLASS MASTER DIGITAL SPLIT TONING

I did try keeping the image full colour and also took it to total monochrome. But in the end I used Lightroom 5’s split-toning skills.

Split toning in the wet darkroom meant using two chemical toners – gold for the highlights

and blue for the shadows was popular. Careful timing throughout, and removing the print at the right moment, was crucial and even if you kept things constant, rarely could you get two prints looking identical.

In digital that’s not an issue and the colour palette is as broad as your imagination – or your taste – will take you.

Here I decided to aim for a traditional(ish) split-tone effect and to enhance the mood too.

CAMERA Nikon D800 LENS 24-120mm f/4 at 55mm EXPOSURE 1/80sec at f/8, ISO 280 SOFTWARE Adobe Lightroom 5

Sky darkening I’d darkened the sky by using the Blue slider earlier but it was still too pale, so I used a Graduated Filter from the topright corner (under the Histogram) and decreased the exposure to give a stronger effect.

Add grain To further the film look, I added grain in the Effects panel. On the Navigator panel top left I clicked on 1:1 for a 100 per cent view then moved the grain sliders around. I wanted a gritty look so used plenty of Roughness, 74, and an Amount of 58.

Darker corners Before leaving the Effects panel I added some Post-Crop Vignetting. Not too much and the amount was -37 but I gave it maximum Feather at 100. As the effect is applied to however the image is cropped, adding a vignette now makes no odds.

back the blacks Adding the vignette in the previous step 10 Pull perhaps made the corners too oppressive so I used the Histogram

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Fine-tuning The image is almost there, but hitting F to give a fullscreen view revealed a couple of annoying highlights: a car on the far left and a bright saddlebag. It was the Radial Filter (Ctrl+M) to the rescue, hitting Invert Mask to make the area inside the selection active.

Here, for the car, I moved the Exposure slider to -1.44.

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and clicked on the left arrow to turn on the shadow warning. I moved the Shadow slider to +53 to take out some of the blackness and also just tweaked the Highlights and Contrast sliders too.

Final step I used exactly the same technique as in Step 11 to dull down the bright saddlebag. The Radial Tool, while not having total control, works well on general areas like this. If Adobe could give the Radial Filter more control over its shape that would be lovely. Anyway, we’re done.

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LIGHTING A C A D E M Y

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LIGHTING A C A D E M Y

LIGHTING A C A D E M Y

Part 43

Square and octa-shaped softboxes are rightly popular, but there’s also a case for expanding your modifier armoury with a stripbox WORDS & PICTURES WILL CHEUNG

Use a lighting brolly and you get a wide spread of light as the flash bounces into the brolly and is then scattered broadly. That’s why brollies are often used to light large areas or groups of people because the light is bounced all over the place.

More control is afforded by a large square or octashaped softbox. The light is more directional as it’s sent forwards by the modifier’s shape. In the case of a square softbox there is a defined transition from light to dark and this makes the technique of light feathering possible. However the greater surface area does mean that there is a wide spread of light and this does not suit every occasion. For example, if you want rim lighting effects , you will find the long, thin stripbox could fulfil your needs perfectly. Fit it with a honeycomb grid and the lighting gets even more selective and controlled.

Our model is Amber Tutton and we used two Profoto B1 heads for this shoot. This innovative battery-powered studio flash system (tested in Issue 41) offers TTL functionality with Canon DSLRs but can be used manually too. For these images of Amber we used a B1 fitted with Profoto RFi 1x4 foot stripbox as a main light and a three-foot Octa as a fill. We used a Canon EOS 5D Mark III with an 85mm f/1.8 lens.

Wide open For the main image the key light with the stripbox was placed to the left of Amber giving almost a split lighting effect. Angling the stripbox away from the background to feather the light meant this prevented any light reaching the white backdrop to keep it a nice dark grey. There was a white reflector panel to the right for some fill, while a second B1 fitted with a zoom reflector was on a boom arm above Amber’s head, which gave her hair nice highlights.

The overhead light did a great job on Amber’s head but it was angled so that some of its output also

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bounced off a Lastolite Trigrip reflector to lighten her eye shadows too.

I love shooting portraits with wide lens apertures and this was shot almost wide open on the Canon 85mm f/1.8, but this can be difficult with most mains flash units because even at minimum power there’s too much light. Moving the light further away isn’t an option because light quality gets harder and I want the soft wraparound light of a softbox in close proximity to the model; so the only option is a 4x or 8x ND filter on the lens. The B1 lets you use just 1/256 of its full power on occasions when you want minimal depth-of-field.

MAIN & ABOVE The main light was a Profoto stripbox positioned camera left and feathered, aimed away from the background to stop any light spill onto the white cloth backdrop. A white Interfit reflector panel to camera right provided fill.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III, 85mm lens, 1/125sec at f/2, ISO 100

ISSUE 43 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER 57

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Photo Kit

INDEPENDENT REVIEWS OF ALL THINGS PHOTOGRAPHIC PHOTOGRAPHIC EQUIPMENT IS naturally very important to advanced photographers tographers and therefore it’s also very important to Advanced dvanced Photographer magazine – so every month we’ll be reviewing a wide variety of the latest photo oto kit.

We’ll be including items that are relevant to the main technique features in each issue so cameras and lenses will feature heavily, vily, but so too will accessories and software.

BEST IN TEST

Look out for this badge of honour in o our comparison tests

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ACCESSORIES Whether

you’ve £20 in your back pocket or you’re ready to make a serious investment, one of these fantastic photographic accessories should fit the bill.

• PNY High Performance 3.0 card reader

• EyeFi Mobi & Toshiba FlashAir wireless cards

65

APS-C TEST: PART 2

The only way to find out which APS-C DSLR is the best for you is to test them all. Thankfully, we’re doing it for you. This issue, we check out three mid-level models.

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80 SAMSUNG NX30 With a

price tag reminiscent of the E-P5 and X-Pro1, Samsung’s latest CSC seems destined for enthusiast kitbags, but does its features list add up to an exciting prospect?

• Tiffen ND 3.0 filter • SpiderPro Camera Holster • Bushman Gobi panorama head

• Canon PIXMA iP8750 • Interfit Pro-Flash One Eighty • Elgato Thunderbolt Drive+ • Chillblast Fusion Photo OC V

98 DXO FILMPACK EXPERT While digital might now be king, the look, grain, fidelity and contrast of film are more popular than ever. So maybe it’s time to invest in some emulation software…

ISSUE 43 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER 63

Photo Kit

APS-C DSLR GROUP TEST

APS-C DSLRS: PART 2 Last issue, it was the turn of four flagship models, this issue three mid-level DSLRs strut their stuff. Could one of them be your next partner? Or is your perfect mate in part 3?

WORDS & PICTURES IAN FYFE

Last month, we started our monster APS-C DSLR test with four top-of-therange models – this time we’ve lined up three mid-level cameras: the Canon EOS 70D, Nikon D5300 and Pentax K-5 II. This level of camera has wide appeal, because they are options either as an upgrade for enthusiasts who want advanced performance without spending a fortune, or as a backup camera to a more advanced or full-frame model. They’re cheaper than the more advanced models, and this is obviously because they have less advanced specifications, but crucially the sensor and processor technology isn’t always different and it’s a case of deciding whether you really need all the bells and whistles of the top models.

Often the most immediately noticeable differences are in build quality and handling. Bodies are smaller and less robust with the obvious disadvantages, but the flipside is that they’re more compact and lighter, which may be what you’re looking for, particularly in a second body. Less space for buttons can also result in more restricted control with less direct access, meaning you might have to use the menus to access more advanced settings, slowing things down.

Other things like smaller and dimmer viewfinders with narrower field-of-view coverage and single rather than dual memory card slots are seemingly less important, but can be significant.

A drop down from top- to mid-level has an impact on what the camera is capable of too, particularly with things like the focusing system and continuous shooting speed – generally, focusing options are more simplistic and shooting isn’t as fast. These are big considerations if you’re into sports and action, but not so important otherwise. There can also

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be a compromise in things such as the control of flash, and flexibility in bracketing and white-balance settings, for example.

Of course, not all of these things apply in all cases, and with the three mid-level cameras we’ve looked at here, differences in capabilities vary considerably – our tests of handling, resolution, metering, ISO performance and white-balance reveal compromises in different areas. The significance of these depends on how you intend to use the camera, and which system, if any, you’re committed to already.

ISSUE 43 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER 65

Photo Kit

ACCESSORIES

GEAR, GLORIOUS GEAR Welcome to our regular visit to the exciting world of photographic accessories.

This issue, we start at a £20 card reader and finish with the latest photo editing workstation from Chillblast, taking in plenty of exciting stuff along the way WORDS & PICTURES WILL CHEUNG & IAN FYFE

A photographer’s life would be very dull if it was just about cameras and lenses.

Accessories, big or small, cheap or expensive, enrich the joy of producing pictures beyond all measure, and with such an enormous range available, there is something for everyone.

Of course, which accessories appeal can depend on your specific photographic interests as well as budget but many

are essentials. You could argue that this issue’s selection of the latest accessories lies more in the ‘want’ column, rather than ‘need’, but that does depend on your perspective. For example, the Chillblast Fusion Photo OC V photo editing workstation is a top-end, high-powered computer with a high price tag, but if you do a lot of memory-thirsty processing, it could be worth the investment.

PNY High Performance Reader 3.0 A portable, multiformat card reader is just the ticket for photographers on the move, especially one with the superfast USB 3.0 interface like this model It is all very well shooting high-resolution images and large movie files, but you have to manage the files afterwards. To aid a smooth workflow, a fast card reader is definitely worth its weight in gold.

This new reader from PNY is USB 3.0 compatible, with claimed transfer speeds of 600MB per second. It’s not only rapid but it covers all the main formats – CompactFlash, SD and microSD – and even has compatibility for xD. The unit itself is slim and compact with card slots on three sides. What I’d like to see – and many card readers miss this simple trick too – is some indication of which format card goes where and in which orientation, just to avoid error.

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Some accessories can open up new ways of capturing images and thus expand your creative horizons. The Bushman Gobi panoramic head and Tiffen ND 3.0 ten-stop extreme exposure filter are fine examples of this type of accessory and are great fun to use too.

We hope you enjoy our choice of photo goodies and that they will inspire you to greater things.

THE VERDICT For £20 you get a high specification card reader that’s also very versatile and small enough to be stowed in a side pocket whenever you travel. Recommended.

HOW IT RATES FEATURES

25/25

Multi-format, integral USB 2.0 lead

PERFORMANCE

25/25

Fast and reliable

HANDLING

25/25

Straightforward to use

VALUE FOR MONEY

23/25

Cheaper USB 3.0 readers are available IMAGES The PNY USB 3.0 multi-format card reader comes with an integral USB 2.0 lead and a separate USB 3.0 lead is supplied too.

Very usefully and interestingly, while the card reader has an integral USB cable, this cable is USB 2.0, not USB 3.0. Thus for the card reader to deliver its fastest transfer speeds, you need to use the supplied USB 3.0 cable, but having the option is convenient when travelling.

I tried this reader with CompactFlash and SD cards. Using an Apple Mac Mini 2.3GHz Intel Core i7 with USB 3.0, an Integral Ultima 800x CF card, 13GB transferred over in just under three minutes, 174 seconds to be exact. With a PNY Pro Elite Plus SD card which offers 95MB/s, the same amount of data downloaded in 168 seconds. Both impressive times.

OVERALL

98/100

A fine, compact unit PROS Compact, multi-format, fast CONS Integral cable only USB 2.0

AT-A-GLANCE SPECS PRICE £20 CONTACT www.pny.eu INTERFACE USB 3.0, USB 2.0 compatible COMPATIBLE CARDS CompactFlash, SD, microSD, xD TRANSFER SPEED Up to 600MB/s DIMENSIONS (WXHXD) 96x57x10mm WEIGHT 34g, 58g with supplied cable WHAT’S IN THE BOX USB 3.0 cable

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