NZ Photographer Issue 21

Page 1

Issue 21

April 2011

Helping you take better photos

How To:

Time-Lapse 50 Years Since Yuri - We have the photos Binh Trinh – Hasselblad Masters Finalist Sports Competition Winner What’s Better Than Flickr? 500px!

1

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


CONTENTS

4 500px .com

10Fifty

Years On

Yuri Gagarin

6Binh Trin

14

Pic of the bunch

Finalist, Hasselblad Masters Comp

18How to: Time Lapse 24 Critique

28Cool Stuff 2

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


Editorial The proliferation of digital cameras and cellphones and video cameras has meant that almost every angle of the quake was covered and shared almost instantly. At the same time, the demand for content consumption has been immense as well – within minutes the internet was flooded with searches from all over the world by Kiwis and others who wanted to know what was going on. I myself found out about the quake via Twitter, and immediately started streaming TVNZ’s live coverage. After all that, we at NZ Photographer

A

fter such a traumatic event as the

would like to run a tribute to Christchurch

Christchurch earthquake last month

in the May issue (22) from our readers’

it’s hard for people outside of the

images. Please send whatever images (that

area to know what to do to help. I’ve been

you own) that you want to share with the

involved with several fund-raising events in

world that best describe your experience

Auckland, and it’s heart-warming to see the

in and around the earthquake and the

massive efforts by so many people to give

aftermath.

whatever they can to the tens of thousands of people affected by the disaster. When it comes to us as photographers, though, we actually have a responsibility to record the events of the Christchurch area for the future. As far as natural disasters go, this must be the most widely covered disaster New

Zealand

has

ever

experienced.

And if you haven’t yet donated to the earthquake relief fund or Red Cross, please do. Our brothers and sisters in Chch will be suffering for a long time to come.

ABOUT

Whether you’re an enthusiastic weekend snapper or a beginner who wants to learn more, NZ Photographer is the fun e-magazine for all Kiwi camera owners – and it’s free! EDITOR Ollie Dale, ANZIPP editor@nzphotographer.co.nz GROUP EDITOR Trudi Caffell ART DIRECTOR Jodi Olsson ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES Phone Alastair on 09 523 4112 or email alastairn@espiremedia.com ADDRESS NZ Photographer, C/- Espire Media, PO Box 137162, Parnell, Auckland 1151, NZ WEBSITE www.nzphotographer.co.nz NZ Photographer is an Espire Media publication

Cover Image: Single Image Competition Winner Pieter ten Broek

go extreme. there’s no turning back. You go to extremes to get just the right shot, and with the SanDisk Extreme ® line of CompactFlash ® cards, you’ll get that shot, every time. Engineered to be lightning fast with blistering read/write speeds of up to 90MB/sec, these cards are also rigorously stress-tested for extreme shock, vibration, temperature and humidity so you can take it to the extreme—no matter what.

90MB/second

60MB/second

For more info contact info@lacklands.co.nz


Getting to know

500px.com The Flickr Alternative

I

f you’ve never used Flickr, it’s a photo

the major difference of a voting system that

sharing website. If you have used Flickr,

rates all the images, so the bollocks get’s

you’ll know that it’s overflowing with family

down-rated into oblivion and you’re left with

holiday snaps and terrible macro pictures of

the cream on top.

flowers, with the odd spot of brilliance here

It’s early days yet for 500px.com on

and there.

the global scale, but there is already

Enter www.500px.com. It’s WAY easier on

an

the eye, with a great layout design, and

photographs

enormous

amount uploaded

of and

inspirational ready

to

impress – join up and submit your best work and see what the world thinks of it. If you do join, make sure you add yours truly as a friend http://500px.com/OllieDale

4

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


Full Time / Part Time Office / Studio Space Available Looking for an office / studio in Auckland? Studio 3D is superbly located close to Auckland City, with full kitchen and bathroom facilities, secure storage, huge 2-wall cyc and shared office space. The lease has changed hands and we’re looking for a new studio partner. Full time or part time options are available, or simply hire the studio when you need it. Call 0800-47-69-22 to arrange viewing times. First in, first served!

The Professional’s Professional Introducing the Epson Stylus® Pro 3880 and UltraChromeK3® Ink with Vivid Magenta. Featuring a three black inkset, the Pro 3880 delivers outstanding tonal range, especially in black and white prints. What’s more, the addition of Vivid Magenta and Vivid Light Magenta expands the colour gamut, making it easier to reproduce difficult colours. So if you’re looking for exceptional tonal range, an ultra wide colour gamut and durable photographic prints that last 406 years,* look no further than the Epson Stylus Pro 3880! * For more information visit www.wilhelm-research.com www.epson.co.nz

NOW WITH VIVID MAGENTA 5

NZ Photographer

Dec

Epson Stylus® Pro 3880


HASSELBLAD

Binh Trinh

Finalist, Hasselblad Masters Competition

One of the most respected brands of the photographic industry,

around the world. New Zealand has never produced a

Hasselblad hold an annual photographic competition that

Hasselblad Master in any category, but this year one of our

produces some amazing images from photographers

own, Central Districts resident Binh Trinh, has made the finalists of the Emerging Photographer category.

6

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


B

inh’s photos he submitted for the Hasselblad Masters are images he created working with hundreds of

naked people in mass-nude images, and were taken recently as personal work. “These are not like a lifetime’s work; it’s not the best of the best I’ve been taking over many years. To actually get five images within a two-week span to be good enough for this competition... it’s quite an amazing feeling!” Binh has talked to another finalist, from Israel, whose chosen works were all personal works as well. “I love personal work because you have no constraints; you have no-one judging you or whatever. You can do whatever you want, and I think that’s when you get the most creative. “I was lucky – my models were willing to do whatever I wanted because they trusted me in whatever vision I had.” The Hasselblad Masters are open for public voting; there are 11 judges, with the last vote going to the public vote. Binh says that according to Hasselblad the competition will be as tight as last year, so the public voting will be important. “If I win I’ll be the first New Zealander to become a Hasselblad master, so hopefully the people will vote for me and help me achieve that feat!” Last

year

there

was

another

Kiwi

photographer, Greg Wilson, who was a finalist in the Wedding category. Previous to that Binh is unaware of who from New Zealand may have made the finalists list. When asked why he thinks it might be that New Zealand hasn’t yet produced a Hasselblad Master, he replies that Kiwis may need to open their minds a bit more. “This is no offence to the NZIPP, AIPP or even the WPPI, but I’ve entered a lot

7

NZ Photographer

Apr ‘11

of competitions around the world, and


8

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


“You need to enter competitions where the judge is Steve McCurry, or the director of the Tate museum, because they are much more up-to-date with what fine art photography is truly about. By entering you’ll open up your horizons a lot more and be open to change your style of photography. “People always ask me ‘How do you improve so quick?’ and I say ‘Easy – you just enter lots of competitions.’ I’ve found different competitions look for

“You’ll probably fail a lot of the time – I’m

I approach photography.” for

lucky – I’ve been successful, but that’s because

really big international competitions go for

photographers to consider is, even if you

every time I fail I learn why I fail and why other

more contemporary photos.

never enter a competition, you should at least

people won. And I try not to be defensive

“The winning images tend to not have too

look at the images that have won competitions

about it and say ‘But my images were good

much Photoshop done to them – they tend to be

around the world, as it will give you a very

enough!’ Instead I ask ‘Is it because their style

more about the photo, more about the content.

diverse range of quality photos.

was different?’ and most of the time that’s what

different things in images, and I find the

Another

really

important

point

it comes down to.

Something gripping about the photo rather than

“Maybe the NZ style of photography

just an effect that’s added, and I’ve found that

is very different to the European or North

“I’m so used to my own style that when

as I’ve entered more and more of these big

American styles and what they’d consider

I start learning to open my mind, suddenly

awards, my mind’s started changing as to how

as award winning?”

my images start to do well again.”

For more of Binh’s work, visit www.binhtrinh.com. To vote for Binh Trinh in the 2010 Hasselblad Masters Competition, go to

9

NZ Photographer

Apr ‘11

www.hasselblad.com/Masters/2010/Finalists/binh-trinh.aspx


FEATURE

50 Years On Half a century since Yuri Gagarin Photos and text by Martin Sanders

50 years ago this month, Yuri Gagarin officially became the first man into space; in reality he was probably the first man to make it back from space alive. When he did return as a Russian hero, he visited London, where a young Martin Sanders had the opportunity to photograph him.

10

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


11

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


F

ifty years ago on 12th April 1961 the Russian Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human being to go into

space. He was launched into orbit aboard Rostock 1, and the flight lasted one hour and forty minutes. Shortly

after,

he

visited

the

Soviet

Trade exhibition in London, where I took these photos. I had recently completed a photographic apprenticeship and was trying to make my way in Fleet Street. For the technical, I was using a twin lens reflex camera (Rolleiflex type) using Kodak Tri X film rated at 400 ASA (now ISO). Most of the shots were taken using the available light of the TV lights, and straight flash when he was near the spaceships. The crowd scenes were taken holding the camera upside down above my head using the Fresnel screen to see the image. The Russian success spurred the Americans on in the space race, and less than a year later John Glenn became the first American in space on 10 Feb 1962. President Kennedy then promised to have a man on the moon by the end of the decade, which was achieved on 20 July 1969. Because of Yuri Gagarin’s undoubted propaganda value he was banned from further spaceflight, however, while retraining to be a fighter pilot, he died in a MiG-15 crash on 27th March 1968. He was 34 years old. 12

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


>> If you like anything to do with space, you love a good conspiracy theory, and spy novels from the cold war are your cup of tea, then this post will intrigue you. It’s another chapter in Yuri’s life that, disturbingly, smells terribly like a cover-up! Cosmonaut Crashed to Earth

13

NZ Photographer

Apr ‘11

‘Crying In Rage’


COMPETITION WINNERS

From the Author: An image of mine shot at Manu Bay, Raglan, of one of New Zealand’s promising young surfers, Billy Stairmand.

Pieter ten Broek

T

his month’s winner is Pieter ten Broek

Xavier Wallach’s tennis shot is perfectly

– great shot!! After narrowly missing

timed. Well done, lads!

out in last month’s Food competition,

Pieter wins this issue’s cover and a $100

Pieter’s surfing image really grabbed us as a

voucher from the fabulous people at Giclée

true sporting moment.

Print. For all YOUR fine art and canvas printing

There were a couple of other great moments we wanted to mention – Eddie Kyle’s speedway crash is a great one, and

14

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer

needs, visit www.gicleeprint.co.nz The “Best of the Rest” are here for your viewing pleasure...


Susan Pretorius

Shane Perry

Allen Hogan

15

NZ Photographer

Apr ‘11

Rachel Leatham


Agnes Arnold Eddie Kyle

16

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


Andrew McWilliam

Liz Hardley

Suzi Hurley

NZ Photographer

17

Adrian Rumney

Richard Chilcott

Apr ‘11

Jenny Atkins


HOW TO

HOW TO: TIME-LAPSE By Steve Thomson

A list of the gear you’ll need: DSLR camera, tripod, intervalometer, neutral-density filters to shoot during the day, large and fast CF memory cards (if you want to shoot RAW), software to combine the images into a movie – Adobe After Effects is ideal, Quicktime Pro will do for beginners

A

s a nice segué from last month’s

want to become a master of the technique –

astro-photography

let

a tripod is a must, as is an intervalometer

It was good because it was a hobby that

me introduce you to time-lapse

of some description (we referred to these in

turned into something that earned some

photography. If you’ve never heard of time-

last month’s article), and if you really want

good money early on.

lapse, you must be a hermit – it was first used

to get creative you need to learn some other

The WOW Stock Foootage website came

in 1897, in Georges Méliès’ motion picture

cinematic techniques, like panning, using

about because we changed our contract with

Carrefour De L’Opera, so the technique’s

cranes, jibs, dollies, etc.

Getty to license it ourselves; Initially they had

article,

been around for a while! Time-lapse photographers,

is

a

strange

because

it’s

gets added to the library.

One kiwi who has made a business out

it exclusively. They take such a massive slice

beast

for

of time-lapse photography is Steve Thomson.

we thought we’d have a go at marketing it

actually

a

He is a graphic designer, and is the Creative

ourselves.

cinematography technique – the end product

Director

makes

We’ve sold work to shows such as Oprah,

is a movie clip, rather than a single image.

imagery for TV stations & advertising. Their

CSI Miami, Melrose Place and Ugly Betty.

extensive library of time-lapse footage can

We’ve also had shots in a Linkin Park music

be seen at www.wowstockfootage.com

video and a General Electric TVC that went

Why the finished movie looks so trippy is because the frequency of the capture of

of

Brandspank,

which

images is much lower than the frequency of

I called Steve and he was gracious enough

playback, giving the effect of time passing

to share his experiences with us, along with

Our time-lapse work is all done using

much faster than usual (you may have to read

a few tips for those of us game enough to

Canon DSLRs, and for our real time video

that bit a few times to get it).

give it a try:

footage we shoot on a RED ONE camera.

around the world.

The film industry uses standards of 24,

“For me, time-lapse photography started

The first issue people come across when

25 or 30 frames per second - which

just as a hobby. When I was travelling 6

trying time-lapse is flicker – it’s something that

means that to make one second of footage

years ago I shot a bit of time-lapse, then I

I’ve really got to grips with over the years

you’ll need to take at least two dozen

sent them to Getty Images and they licensed

and is something that everyone needs to

photographs!

them for me. Since then, whenever I can in

know how to avoid.

You’ll also need a few extra bits of kit if you 18

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer

my spare time, I go out and shoot stuff that

The camera is a mechanical piece


Intervalometers are different to the usual remote shutter releases in that they have in-built timers and can be programmed with various settings. Canon make their own one, the TC80N3, and Nikon have the MC-36 for Nikon cameras with 10-pin plugs. There are LOADS of third-party manufacturers of intervalometers, and here’s one that the editor of NZPhotographer uses: The Giga T Pro Wireless Timer Remote from Hähnel

“It’s the shizzle – this thing is wireless, programmable, and inexpensive – about a third the price of the camera manufacturer’s own model which wasn’t even wireless! As well as the timer functions it also has a remote trigger, meaning you can use it on a shoot as a wireless remote, which can be really useful. Different models can be purchased to work with Canon, Nikon, Olympus and Sony DSLR cameras. Recommended! (I bought mine from Apix)” – Ed

of equipment, and although it says the shutter speed is 1/1000th of a second, it’s not really; it’ll be more like 1/997th or 1/1002 of a second, and because of that there is inter-frame brightness fluctuation, which is the complicated way of saying it flickers. It’s the same with apertures – the aperture doesn’t stop down to exactly f/8 every single time - because it’s a mechanical process it’ll be slightly different. The way I avoid this is by keeping shutter speeds less than 1/200th of a second, and apertures f/5.6 or larger. All that means is that the fluctuation caused by the mechanical process is less of an issue; at 1/5000th of a second the difference will be much more pronounced than at 1/125th of a second. To shoot time-lapse during the day you’ll need neutral density filters to get those values down. I always shoot at 50 ISO unless I’m shooting at night. (Because shutter speeds are so long when shooting at night, the mechanical flickering disappears.) When you start getting to use cranes and dollies to get moving time-lapse sequences you need some full-on gear. I’ve been

19

NZ Photographer

Apr ‘11

involved with that kind of shooting as a


>> For possibly the best time-lapse photography in the world visit Tom Lowe’s website www.timescapes.org – there is some truly amazing footage to watch and be inspired by!

director, but it’s better to rent that gear when you need it. Large CF cards are vital because you have to shoot RAW to get good sequences; then you have more control over the post production. My workflow is this: I shoot RAW plus the smallest Jpeg size, which allows me to immediately open the Jpeg sequence in Quicktime, and to be able to do that in the field is quite useful. I then import the RAW sequence into Adobe After Effects – because that’s my world working with BrandSpank, that’s the most efficient way for me to do my post production, which of course there is a lot of – 20

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


More examples from WOWstockfootage.com : Here are some shots taken from our year living in Central Otago - www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHumJm747t0 This is a link to a YouTube channel showing usages of our clips in various campaigns -

www.youtube.com/wowusages

Here is a link showing some high profile usages -

http://wowstockfootage.com/look-at-us.php

This is a showreel of some of our clips -

www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEbu7kKPcvw

YouTube channel here -

www.youtube.com/WOWstockfootage

Facebook - www.facebook.com/WOWstockfootage

21

NZ Photographer

Apr ‘11

Twitter - www.twitter.com/WOWstockfootage


painting birds out or averaging out flickering water or trees. If you don’t want to buy expensive

1.

List of essential gear: camera, tripod, remote

or

intervalometer,

warm

clothes, thermos of hot coffee.

5. To make a star-trails shot, either repeat this process 200 or 300 times and use the startrails.exe file I mentioned above to

movie-editing software you can simply buy

2. Pick a location that will give you

generate the image, or set your camera

Quicktime Pro for $20 or $30, then open an

an interesting foreground - trees,

to Bulb mode, change your aperture to

image sequence in Quicktime Pro and save

mountains or buildings, or other static

f/8, and be ready to use your lockable

it as a Quicktime movie, or export it as a

objects. Wait until at least 90 minutes

remote for periods of 15 minutes to a

smaller sized movie

after ‘sunset’ to allow the refracted

Shooting time-lapse is like fishing – you’ve

light of dusk to disappear.

couple of hours. If you have a lot of incident light in your

gotta go out 20 times, and one time you’ll

3. Compose your image, and initially

scene you may want to close your aperture

get a whopper; the rest of the time you get

set your camera to manual mode,

even more. This will be very trial-and-error

tiddlers. It really is just about shooting lots

ISO 400, 30”, f/2.8 or your widest

based photography, but can be extremely

before you get anything good.”

aperture, and a white balance of

rewarding when you get it right!

Another technique for single images is to create

Daylight (ironically). These settings

Be aware, though, that digital cameras

multiple layers of the same image in Photoshop

can vary greatly depending on

don’t like their sensors being used too much

(at least 2, but try more to see the effect) and set

exactly what you’re photographing,

- the sensor will heat up over a long exposure

the upper layer(s) to screen mode - this means

how much light pollution there is, etc.,

so consider shorter exposures using the star

your stars will get brighter while your sky stays

but it’s a good starting point.

trails software above rather than one long

dark, and is ideal for pulling great detail out of an under-exposed night shot.

4. Take a test shot and adjust your settings

accordingly.

Repeat

battery-draining exposure.

this

So, here’s a simple list to follow for your first

process until you are capturing an

attempt at a nightscape; adjust this according

image with good tonal range (dark

to your location, time of night, etc.

sky, bright stars).

Steve Thomson is the Creative Director of Brandspank, and says “We are always looking for new contributors. If there are time-lapse shooters out there who have got WOW shots - we would like to represent them.” There you go readers, your first joboffer via NZ Photographer!

22

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


06—10 APRIL THE PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY OF NEW ZEALAND NATIONAL CONVENTION

We are excited to be welcoming you to the North Shore in April 2011, to showcase our neighbourhood and the talented photographers and speakers who are attending. We have some very unique Field Trips to enjoy, or you can spend the day learning at the workshops. Sadly, you can’t do everything so choose carefully— a Devonport/Downtown Auckland tour, Sunset at Muriwai or Cultural Chaos north of the City are options as is the chance to really get to grips with lighting techniques. The North Shore is different from Auckland, the people, the villas, the beaches and the slower pace of life. Photo opportunities abound and following the Convention it is only 3 hours’ drive to the beautiful Bay of Islands or the famous Hokianga and the giant Kauri forests. We want you to come and enjoy, learn and socialise with your photography friends. For this we have kept one evening free by popular demand. Local accommodation will go quickly so get in early. It’s a SHORE THING — we want you to come www.shorething.co.nz North Harbour Stadium, Stadium Drive, Albany Early Bird registrations received by February 11th are in the draw for Light Room 3

GUEST SPEAKERS Charlie Waite — Widely revered internationally as the doyen of English landscape photographers. His distinctive style combining graphic finesse with an almost spiritual quality of calm and serenity is immediately recognisable. Michael Hall — His fine art work focuses specifically on exploring human impact upon the landscape. He is currently undertaking an extensive project to document the causes and effects of climate change to improve ecological awareness around the world. Ans Westra, CNZM — New Zealand photographer and legendary documenter of New Zealand society. Her work is represented in major Art Galleries throughout New Zealand. Her major publications include ‘Washday at the Pa’ 1964. Harvey Benge — is a camera artist interested in the international urban social landscape and the notion of parallel lives. He works from both Auckland and Paris. Gerard Saide, PSQA, SSAPS — talks of photography as a universal language. He encourages everyone to be aware of the power and impact of the photographic image on the way we think, feel and respond to issues. Ian Handricks — from Contacts to Kimonos — an entertaining speaker with a different career in photography.

Registration: Liz 09 480 7677 Convention Convenor terry@cockfield.net.nz Terry 09 444 7256


CRITIQUE

OP 1

There’s no better way to learn than by

at Iris, NZ’s professional photography

having your work critiqued! In this section

awards.

you get to have your work critiqued by

located

professional photographers Lisa Crandall

(www.imageme.co.nz). She also runs

Visa,

and Ollie Dale.

photography workshops, and is a Master

and BMW. He is also a qualified

Her in

studio, Takapuna

ImageMe, in

Ollie Dale has been a professional

is

photographer for 8 years, and has

Auckland

clients such as the Auckland Airport, Microsoft,

Westpac,

Unitec

Lisa Crandall is a multi-award winning

of Photography in the New Zealand

commercial member and Associate of

portrait photographer. In 2008 she was

Institute of Professional Photography

the New Zealand Institute of Professional

named ‘People Photographer of the Year’

(MNZIPP).

Photography (ANZIPP).

Sized Up

YOUR WORK CRITIQUED

Camera: Sony A100

LISA’S COMMENTS: There are lots of enjoyable

like grass criss-crossed with the shadows from

Shutter: 1/160 sec

elements in this wintery image from Central

the branches. And I LOVE the subtle view of

Aperture: f/6.3

Park. I like the dark and foreboding trees in

windows on a skyscraper, in behind the trees

ISO: 100

the left-hand row that create a lovely arched

on the top left-hand side. This peek of the city

Author: Nicola Bailey

shape where they meet the row from the right-

adds a wonderful depth to the image, and

hand side. I also like the glowing, emerald-

gives us a clue to where we are.

24

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer


The photo has a blue cast - the white

horizon onto a third,

balance is not accurate to true life. This is

and also to move the

particularly noticeable in the grass, which

area between the rows

looks blue-green rather than the yellow-green.

of trees (the heart) away

In Op1 I have adjusted the white balance

from the centre. I chose

to get a more neutral result. However, who’s

to crop out the right hand

to say that we always have to be neutral? I

row of trees, because

think the blue cast actually adds to the chilly

the left hand row seems

mood of the image. There’s no reason why

more dramatic and well-

we can’t play with our white balance for

structured, and it contains

creative reasons. I’m not sure if this blue cast

that wonderful peek of the

was intentional or not, but either way, I like it.

skyscraper.

I am not so satisfied, however, with the

When cropping, I had to

composition of this photo. The image is

choose whether to emphasise

roughly cut in half - the bottom being grass

the grass and lose the top

and the top being the trees. Also, the open

of the trees (Op2), or to

area where the two rows of trees meet,

emphasise the trees and lose

which seems to be the natural destination

most of the grass (Op3). I

for the eye, is centred. It is also a slightly

think that an important part

disappointing heart to the image - it contains

of developing your skill as a

a poorly placed tree (who planned this park?)

photographer is to take the

and some random stuff like a red traffic light.

time, when you are shooting,

Although tiny, the red light draws attention to

to decide what the subject

itself because it is the only warm colour in this

of your image is. If you are

cool-coloured image.

attracted to several things

There

is

a

commonly-used

rule

of

and the shape of the trees

According to this rule, the horizon is best

- you need to decide what

placed a third of the way down the image, or

your priority is. If you don’t

two-thirds of the way down. I think this image

choose a subject, and you

would have benefited from following the rule

give equal treatment to the

of thirds.

various elements you like

OP 4

in the scene, you will dilute

and this is true for compositional rules too...

the magic. The image will

but they need to be broken for a reason. The

look ordinary. In this photo,

composition needs to feel right for the image.

I think the trees need to be

Sometimes a horizon placed halfway down

emphasised within the composition, in order

the image can look perfect - for example, if

to do them justice. Personally I like the crop

the image features a dramatic reflection and

of Op3.

you want to emphasise how similar the top

In addition to cropping the photo, I

and bottom halves are. That’s not the case

lightened a path from the bottom left hand

here.

corner up to the area between the rows of

I have cropped this image to get the

OP 3

- like the glowing grass

composition called ‘the rule of thirds’.

People often say ‘rules are made to broken’

OP 2

the image. I also lightened the tree trunks a little so that we can see some detail in them. Because this image contains stunning shapes, it looks absolutely gorgeous in black and white (Op4).

trees, to guide the viewer to the heart of

25

NZ Photographer

Apr ‘11

Call for entries: Get your images critiqued by professionals – send an image to critique@nzphotographer.co.nz with a brief description of how and why you took the shot, and we’ll tell you what we think and if it could be improved. The views and opinions expressed in this section are only two people’s ideas on photographic imagery. You may have different, constructive ideas about how good or not the images are, and what could be done to them. You’re welcome to send those ideas in to editor@nzphotographer.co.nz. We agree that the opinions contained in this critique section are by no means the only opinions that could be held about these images.


COMPETITIONS

OPEN COMPETITION (single Image) B

ecause our How-to this month is a little

printing needs, visit www.gicleeprint.co.nz

bit difficult for most photographers,

One entry per person, and you must be in

we decided it’s time to hold another

New Zealand or hold a NZ Passport at the time

one of our Open Competitions – only this time there’s a twist... your image needs to have been taken in 2011!!

Images must be 100dpi, 1600 pixels wide, and sent to competitions@nzphotographer.co.nz

So, the subject matter, post production

by 5pm on Monday the 30th of May, 2011.

techniques, composition and theme are all up

Winner will be published in Issue 23, out on

to you, but the photo needs to have been taken

Wednesday the 8th of June, 2011.

recently. Rather than encourage a trawl through your photos from 2003 we want to see what you’re all creating NOW. HINT: Go back to Issue 20 and read our article on how to win our competitions! Thanks again to our sponsors of our competitions - for all YOUR fine art and canvas

26

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer

of entry to qualify to win.


ASTRONOMY PHOTOGRAPHY (single Image)

Seeing Stars? Photograph them

in New Zealand or hold a NZ Passport at

and Win!

the time of entry to qualify to win.

H

int: read the articles on Astronomy

Images pixels

must wide,

be and

100dpi,

Photography AND how to win

1600

sent

competitions from Issue 20, and

competitions@nzphotographer.co.nz

to by

you’ll be in the running for this one! Have a

5pm on Monday the 2nd of May, 2011.

go at capturing something astronomical on

Winner will be published in Issue 22, out

a long summer’s night and send it in to win,

on Wednesday the 11th of May, 2011.

win, win! Thanks

again

to

our

sponsors

of

our competitions - for all YOUR fine art

and

canvas

printing

needs,

visit

www.gicleeprint.co.nz

27

NZ Photographer

Apr ‘11

One entry per person, and you must be


GADGETS

COOL STUFF

O

lympus just loosed a trio of

packs a backlit CMOS sensor with 24x

E

(25-600mm) optical zoom and Dual Engine

most fervent and deep-pocketed rangefinder

E

lovers. Nonetheless, Leica has a habit of

chap by the name of Tom Guilmette got to

putting together even more limited editions

work with a Vision Research Phantom Flex

of its shooters, one of which has recently

camera recently, and, being the true geek that

been subjected to a thorough unboxing and

he is, he put together a video composition

video overview. Only 500 special edition

of staggering slow-motion footage. When

Titanium M9s cameras have been produced,

pushed to its limit, the Phantom is capable of

each one individually numbered and costing

filling every second of 1080p recording with

nearly £20,000 (or about US$32,000) in

2,800 frames, though Tom mercifully ran it at

a set with a Summilux-M 35mm F1.4 lens,

a lower 2,564fps speed. That’s still sufficient

also made from titanium. With a full frame

temporal resolution to let you track the wave

18 megapixel CCD sensor and dual image

of an impact’s vibration as it travels up a

processors inside, it’s a fully fleshed-out beast

BlackBerry’s body -- oh yeah, it’s as awesome

of a portable shooter, but you’d probably

as it sounds.

expect nothing less given the fact it costs

Source: Engadget

compact cameras. Let’s start big with the €329 (NZ$640) SZ-

30MR. According to Olympus, the 30MR

TruePic III+ processing. It also lays claim to being the first to simultaneously record 1080p video while shooting 16 megapixel stills -- a feature Oly dubs, Multi Recording. The SZ-20 lacks the MR and dials back the zoom to 12.5x but costs a relatively modest €219 (NZ$420). Olympus also announced a silver or black TG-810 compact for €299 (NZ$570). First and foremost is the cam’s claim for ruggedness: crushproof at a weight of 100kg (220 pounds); waterproof to 10 meters (32.8 feet); shockproof at a distance of 2 meters (6.56 feet); and freezeproof a temps to -10 degree celsius (14 degrees F). Otherwise, it boasts a 14 megapixel CCD sensor, a 5x (28-140mm) optical zoom, 720p movie mode, TAP control (for gloved use), GPS, and an electronic compass. All three cameras feature a 3-inch LCD; HDMI; high ISO and sensor-based mechanical image stabilization; smart panorama, 3D photo, pet detection, and beauty modes; and SDXC and Eye-Fi card compatibility. Look for them to hit retail in March. ED – not sure when these models will arrive in NZ Source: Engadget

28

Apr ‘11

NZ Photographer

ven in its “standard” magnesium alloy body, the Leica M9 is an exclusive piece of kit that prices out all but the

more than most cars. Update: Leica reached out to clarify that the M9 Titanium costs $26,500 in the US. Source: Engadget

ver wanted to see flowing water slowed

down

to

the

point

of

transforming into a series of airborne

droplets? This video has that. And more. A


NEXT ISSUE

In the next issue of NZ Photographer… Christchurch: A Photographers’ Tribute (Submit your images NOW!) How-to: Landscape Photography Astro Competition Winner Getting to know: Becky Nunes Plus Much More!

Issue 22, Out Wednesday 11th of May 2011

Have you subscribed to NZ Photographer? It’s free!

29

NZ Photographer

Apr ‘11

Simply visit www.nzphotographer.co.nz to get a copy of NZ Photographer delivered straight to your inbox every third Wednesday!


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.