SNAPSHOT ISSUE 1 VOLUME 2 FEBRUARY 2014
SNAPSHOT ISSUE NUMBER 1. VOLUME 2. FEBRURAY 2014
Contents: ROCK STEADY :
Stay Rock Steady when shooting your next landscape scene with Vanguard ALTA Pro 253 carbon fibre and 263 aluminium series of tripods.
SHOOT THE STREETS :
Watch the team from Ricoh ‘Shoot the Streets’ of Melbourne with the latest in the GR digital series. Click the interactive link to hit the streets with GR.
ART ATTACK :
Coming hot on the heels of the ground breaking Art 35mm f1.4 and Art 18-35 f1.8 lenses from Sigma, we previewed the Art 24-105mm DG OS HSM lens.
STRAP ON IN :
Not one for shooting in the studio? Prefer your photography with a little more action? We preview the Black Rapid Sport R strap with BRAD system on board.
COVER SHOT :
This month cover shot by NSW South Coast landscape maestro Tony Heyward captures the feel of summer. Read about his work in this special feature.
photo credit :
Cover shot by the Sydney based landscape photographer TONY HEYWARD. http://www.tonyheywardimages.com.au
ROCK STEADY THE VANGUARD ALTA PRO SERIES TRIPODS
ROCK STEADY THE VANGUARD ALTA PRO SERIES TRIPODS The team here at snap shot have been looking at the Alta Pro series of tripods from Vanguard. we road tested a pair of Vanguards Alta series being the the Alta Pro 263AGH kitted with the AGH-100 pistol ball head along with the carbon fibre Alta Pro 253CB50 kitted with the SBH-50 ball head for use in a landscape shooting environment. Images by Tony Heyward Photography. www.vanguardworld.com
Alta Pro 253CB 50 The lightweight Alta Pro 253CT tripod and SBH 50 ball head are an impressive pair. Alta Pro tripods have impressive stability and flexibility, more angle possible than most. Their ‘Multi-Angle Central Column’ System allowed us to move the central column from zero to 180-degree angles in variable vertical and horizontal positions. This would make macro-photography and special wide-angle shots a breeze. The ‘Swivel Stop-n-Lock System’ securely repositions the central column with a simple movement, taking just few seconds. We were impressed by features like the advanced camera vibration and shock control, carbon fiber legs adjusting to 25, 50 and 80-degree angles, friction lock legs, magnesium die-cast canopy and unique hexagon shaped central column. Non-slip spiked feet have retractable rubber tips great for indoors or out. The SBH-50 ball head has a smooth fluid like motion, acurate spirit level for lining up shots plus a 360 degree indicator for shooting panoramas. With a tidy $349 RRP this is one serious carbon fibre tripod worth getting.
Alta Pro 263AGH Possibly the most flexible tripod/ball head pair we’ve ever used. Yep that’s a big statement, we know. Alta Pro 263 is the aluminum cousin of the carbon fiber Alta 253 tripod. It has marginally more flexibility from sharing the same ‘Multi-Angle Central Column’ System as the Alta 253 allowing the central column to move from zero to 180-degree angles. The tripod features aluminum alloy legs that adjust to 25, 50 and 80-degree angles, quick-flip leg locks, hexagon shaped central column plus the non-slip, spiked rubber feet combo. The GH-100 pistol grip ball head features a 72-click point panorama, offering 72-point rotation with click-into-place positioning that moves the camera 5 degrees per click and prevents jumps in shots to ensure a perfect 360-degree panorama. Aim comes from the ‘Grip Position Release System’. and enables you to unlock, reposition and lock gear into place with ease. Its one-handed, maximum comfort and convenient operation frees your other hand to make lens zoom adjustments. Feature packed for its $299 RRP price.
AVAILABLE AT ALL GOOD SPECIALTY CAMERA STORES
WATCH THE GR SHOOT THE STREET OF MELBOURNE. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XiKXWFg3cM
COVER SHOT:
PHOTOGRAPHER : TONY HEYWARD The cover shot for this issue of SNAP SHOT was captured by the NSW South Coast photographer Tony Heyward. His images also appear in Vanguard tripod story. A true fine art photographer specializing in landscapes, coastal scenes and nature images, Tony’s local area is within the Macarthur region and Southern Highlands. Tony’s photographic journey took a turn in 2002 with a photographic tour through the Nepalese Himalayas and Northern India. Many of these images were published on websites and in magazines globally. After working for many years with film, shooting in some of the remotest parts of the world, his artistic vision is truly his own. Tony is now working exclusively on the Pentax K series digital system with Sigma glass. He also shoots scenes with Vanguard tripods for the Australian distributors. Having embraced digital photography and the full control over processing, his images are rich, fine-art representation of the world as seen through his lens. To view the full portfolio of Tony’s work visit www.tonyheywardimages.com.au
ART
ATTACK
THE SIGMA
ART24-105m F4 LENS
ART
ATTACK
THE SIGMA ART 24 - 105m F4 LENS
The SIGMA 24-105mm F4 DG OS HSM is the latest in the recently introduced Art Series range of lenses developed as part of Sigma’s new Global Vision range. Covering the most commonly used zoom range, from wide-angle to medium telephoto, the focal length is nothing new to the world of photography. So why all the hype around this new lens? The first thing to impress is the Australian RRP of $899.00 putting it on a good footing against the likes of Canon and Nikon’s offerings in the same arena. Where this lens gains it’s hype from is it all new design aimed at resolving the latest generation of high resolution 24mp plus sensors like those of the Nikon D800 and Canon EOS 5D III. Cast your mind back to 2004 when the Canon 24-105mm EF L Series first entered the market. Back then the 5D Mk 1 was sporting a nifty 12mp sensor. So how have Sigma managed to create this new 24-105mm F4 DG OS HSM Art Series? Typically lenses with a high zoom ratio tend to suffer from astigmatism, field curvature, distortion, chromatic aberration, and other optical aberrations. To minimize these, Sigma’s 24-105mm f4 DG lens features optimally arranged high performance single and double sided aspheric elements produced by precision glass molding and incorporating FLD “F” Low Dispersion glass and SLD Special Low Dispersion glass.
Minimizing axial chromatic aberration at telephoto distances, this lens offers exceptional image quality throughout the zoom range. In addition, it avoids the reduced peripheral brightness that is common with lenses in the same class. With its large aperture 82mm filter size, this lens is no light weight. On the streets this lens feels and operates just a incredibly as it looks on paper. This lens is no light weight thanks to its 19 lens elements in 14 groups bringing it to 885g in total. Not zoomed the lens measures 10.9 centimeters. The zoom of the barrel is taught giving a pleasant level of resistance, with the broad rubber zoom ring provides loads of grip. The auto focus is very fast and responsive thanks to the HSM focusing motor. A great feature is the manual focus override when in AF for fine tuning. Any lens this size the optical stabilizer ‘OS” system is invaluable, especially when reaching out at the full 105mm focal length. The Sigma OS system allowed us to hand hold with confidence down to 1/30 seconds. Housing all of this is the beautiful new TSC (Thermally Stable Composite) on the barrel which those style concince photographers looks stunning. All up a very impressive, multi tasking addition to the Art Series.
QUICK SPECS f4 - f22 82 mm filter thread 19 elements / 14 groups 885 grams total weight ‘OS’ Optical Stabilizer ‘HSM’ auto focus Canon / Nikon / Sony $899.00 RRP WWW.SIGMA-GLOBAL.COM
MTF CHART
VIGNETTING CHART
GET STRAPPED IN THE BLACK RAPID SPORT RANGE OF CAMERA STRAPS
We’ve all seen amazing extreme shots which will stay imprinted on our minds for a lifetime. Ever spared a thought for the photographer that capture that image? It’s easy to get caught up in the awe of the image and forget some of the insame places we photographers take our camera in search of an image. Padded bags, lens hoods and caps won’t stop you from droping your camera when going extreme. So we checked out the Black Rapid range of Sport straps for DSLR cameras.
Designed to carry DSLR cameras from enthusiast level through to pro the Sport can support a heavy load. The Sport R-Strap is BlackRapid’s strap for the most active photographer. With a unique shoulder pad shape and integrated ‘Brad’ system to securely fit it to your shoulder. The Brad system is an underarm stabilizing strap that attaches to the front and back of your R-Strap. Designed to work with all R-Straps, it works well with the Classic, Cargo, Metro, and Curve. A great option for the photographer out in the field with a $149.00 RRP. www.blackrapid.com
QUICK SPECS SPORT Topside Material: Polyester with Ballistic Nylon Underside Material: 1 cm thick Foam Pad with Knitted Mesh Width of webbing: 2.5cm Length of Brad: 50.5cm Hand/machine washable, air dry. Length 167.5cm Width 9.5cm Reg | 8cm Slim ConnectR - CR-2 FastenR - FR-3
Photographer Jeremy Allyn
PRODUCED BY CR KENNEDY & COMPANY PORT MELBOURNE WWW.CRKENNEDY.COM.AU