Digital Camera Preview (Issue 112)

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DIGITAL CAMERA

192 BEST ZOOM LENS UPGRADES ES

PAG

lement age supp With 28-p d’s biggest The worl hoto and best p e in z a g ma

REVEALED: GREAT-VALUE ALTERNATIVES TO YOUR KIT LENS

MAY 2011

The definitive guide to SLR photography

112

GIVE YOUR SHOTS THE PRO LOOK

Composition & SLR secrets that work every time!

10 new spring skills

MAKE MORE OF LONG EVENINGS

Shoot your best-ever spring landscapes Get eye-popping shots of poppies Secrets of great dragonfly shots

Easy dusk and night photo techniques page 54

ISSUE 112

Visit us online at www.photoradar.com

MAY 2011

£4.99

“I nearly tore my shoulder out trying to get out of the quicksand” Michael Clark (page 35)

Landscapes Portraits Action

CREATIVITY

INSPIRATION

Take funky flower shots you’ll love all year round

Heather Angel on the best way to shoot wild animals

ZOOM BURST SKILLS

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PRO WILDLIFE TIPS

TECHNIQUE

FLOWER MACRO MAGIC

Get pro-quality flower shots with just a £30 reflector

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Contents ISSUE 112/MAY 2011

18

70

08

70

38

30

Expert photo advice

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10 Things to Try Right Now

Kick-start your creativity by tackling a new subject or new technique today

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Your Mission Winners

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Postcards from the Edge

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Give Your Shots the Pro Look

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Shoot!

The winners of our latest photo challenge explain how they got such great shots Extreme photographer Michael Clark talks about covering the world’s toughest race

Composition and SLR set-up tips from some of the UK’s top pros

Fifteen pages of expert camera skills and advice to help you perfect your photography

Digital Camera May 2011

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Essentials

70

The Photo Fixer

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Photoshop School

89

Photo Advisor

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The Digital Camera Interview

This issue our roving troubleshooter helps a reader take better safari-park shots

Expert advice on enhancing photos and adding creative effects after the shot We answer all your SLR and Photoshop questions and give feedback on your shots Wildlife photographer Heather Angel discusses her long and distinguished career

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My Life in Focus

Bird and wildlife photographer David Tipping shares some hard-won wisdom

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Hotshots Stunning shots submitted by our readers

Photographer of the Year 2011

Details of this year’s massive competition, plus advice from previous winners

36 49 50 S 105 107

Viewfinder Your opinions make for a lively read

Reader survey 2011 Tell us what you think of the magazine!

ubscribe! *

Save money and get great free gifts

Overseas Subscriptions A sweet deal for non-UK subscribers

Next Month What’s coming up in issue 113

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Subscribe today!

Get a fantastic Camlink Airstrap for your SLR A handy multi-format memory card reader

Turn to page 50 for full details. In the US or Canada? See page 105

“Once I get the idea for a shot I stick with the animal until I get it – unless it disappears”

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On Your Disc O Free with issue 112 of Digital Camera

TEACH YOURSELF PHOTOSHOP

98

1

Fix exposure with George Cairns

2

Brighten with Levels with George Cairns

3

Improve landscapes with George Cairns

5

Get HDR-style shots with George Cairns

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Exposure in CS5 with George Cairns

Cameras and gear

108 110 116 122 124 127 128

How We Test... Our in-depth ranking system revealed

Canon EOS 1100D In-depth test of new entry-level SLR

Sony A580

110 128

4

Recover details with George Cairns

MAGAZINE SUPPORT VIDEOS

Sony’s mid-range SLR evaluated

Software review Perfectly Clear Photoshop plugin Boost lighting & colour with George Cairns

Field Tested Latest photography accessories rated

Mini Test: multi-purpose packs Lug your SLR and gear around in style

Group test Best zoom lens upgrades revealed

* Exclusive VIP content for existing subscribers

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New subscription offer with Ali Jennings

Get the old postcard look with Ali Jennings

Dramatic water droplets with George Cairns

Whenever you see this logo on a page, there is corresponding content on the video disc

THIS PRODUCT IS NOT ENDORSED OR SPONSORED BY ADOBE SYSTEMS INCORPORATED, PUBLISHER OF PHOTOSHOP CS5, PHOTOSHOP EXTENDED, PHOTOSHOP LIGHTROOM AND PHOTOSHOP ELEMENTS PRODUCTS

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hotshots

inspiring reader photography

Hotshots Seven pages of inspirational photographs taken by readers from around the world Digital Camera May 2011

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hotshots

inspiring reader photography Previous page

Seagull Becky Hitchcock England

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“I was in Norway last summer photographing sea eagles, but was taken by the antics of the gulls following the boat. Sailing along the fjord edges, it was possible to get black water with the subject still in the light.”

Canon EOS 7D with Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM at 400mm; ISO1600; 1/1600 sec at f/4.5

Floating Away Rebecca Cozart USA

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“I propped a purple folder behind a dandelion. Then I sprayed it with water and shined a flashlight on the drop.” Canon EOS 7D with Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM; ISO100; 1/25 sec at f/2.8

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lov e s …

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“The shallow depth of field, deep, textured colour and highlighted foreground dandelion seed make this shot really striking.” Ali Jennings, digital editor

Deep Cold Water John Mclachlan UK

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“I wanted to get the low, hanging mist on the reservoir with colour provided by the setting sun. I found my spot, put the camera on my tripod and waited. It was brief, but everything came together as I hoped.”

Nikon D80 with Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM at 12mm; ISO100; 2 secs at f/18

Venice Carnival 2011 Couple Carmen Morosan UK

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“I saw this couple walking slowly through the crowds in San Marco Square. I knelt down and shot at a slightly tilted angle. The pink veils on their backs helped to filter down some of the bright light and soften the shadows.” Canon EOS 5D Mk II with Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM at 60mm; ISO100; 1/125 sec at f/13

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TRAVEL

01 Explore new horizons

Go the extra mile to get great travel images

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he mistake many of us make when taking travel pictures is that we try to fit our photography around our holiday rather than the other way around. As a result, we tend to fall into the trap of rushing things, rather than taking the time to set things up as meticulously as we would if we were, say, shooting a landscape at home. This image of a lone figure on the prow of a ship in Alaska, taken by Travel Photographer of the Year category winner Eric Kruszewski, is a case in point. “To get this shot I had to lash my tripod to the railings of the boat, as the sea was quite choppy,” says Eric. “I waited until it was almost dark to ensure that the sky wouldn’t blow out, and I used a cable release to expose the scene for 30 secs – you can just about make out some motion blur in my brother’s bright red coat, but given the conditions I think he did pretty well to stand still for so long!”

Get started today...

* When everyone else is looking one way, look in the other direction. Also, try to capture a moment rather than a scene. This will provoke an emotional response in the viewer. At the very least, you want them to say, “I wish I was there…” when they look at it. * When you think everyone else has gone to sleep, don’t be afraid to poke your head out of the window to see if there’s a shot to be had. * Keep an eye out for complementary colours – in this image it’s the warm reds and oranges against the deep blues of the background that really makes the shot. * More of Eric’s work, and all of the winning images from the Travel Photographer of the Year 2010, will be on show at the Royal Geographical Society in Kensington, London from 6 May to 10 June. For more details visit www.tpoty.com.

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Eric Kruszewski

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10things…

For more expert advice on shooting wildlife, see page 70

…to try right now

EXHIBITION

03 Northern exposure Be inspired by the world’s best photographers

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f your images are starting to look a bit samey, or if you’re just in need of fresh inspiration, a top tip is to flip through some books of images taken by favourite photographers. But an even better option is to see these images as original prints, and that’s where Bradford’s National Media Museum comes in. The Lives of the Great Photographers, which is on display at the museum until 4 September, is a compelling new exhibition containing images from the museum’s extensive archive. Including prints by Robert Capa, Henri CartierBresson, William Fox Talbot and Eadweard Muybridge, it presents a unique cross section of photos from some of the world’s greatest photographers, and sheds light on the exceptional lives they led. For more details visit www. nationalmediamuseum.org.uk.

Use the habitat to frame your shot. Green foliage helps add colour and will contrast with the dark tones of the subject Motion blur can also be used to create a more unusual shot

Above Good wildlife portraits need eye contact, as this shot of a baby gorilla illustrates Henri Cartier-Bresson

wildlife

02 Gorillas in the mist

Learn how to photograph primates in their natural habitat

Andy Rouse

Rouse, whose latest book, Gorillas: Living On The Edge, is out now, has this advice for those wishing to photograph primates…

Get started today…

* Good portraits need eye contact, and since flash is rightly prohibited in Rwanda, the only way to overcome the deep shadows around the eyes is to shoot when it’s overcast, and wait for the subject to look up. * Tell a story – while it’s tempting to shoot close-ups and portraits, don’t forget to take a wider view that places the subjects firmly in their natural habitat. * Gorillas: Living on the Edge is available from www.andyrouse.co.uk (£25 plus P&P); 25% of profits will go to a mountain gorilla project.

Richard Sadler, FRPS

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f all the subjects on a wildlife photographer’s wish list, gorillas are certainly among the most appealing and challenging, as pro wildlife photographer Andy Rouse explains: “The best time to shoot gorillas is under cloud cover during the rainy season, as the diffused light helps to reduce unflattering shadows, but it also means light levels can be very low. Shooting handheld means shutter speeds must be kept high to reduce camera shake, and the only way to achieve this is to set ISO to 800 or higher.” The fact that it’s so challenging is what makes it so rewarding: “Gorillas exude calm when you’re with them, and this clearly convinces photographers to slow down and take their time.”

Top Dessau, Germany, 1945 – a Gestapo informer is recognised by a woman she denounced during the war Above Portrait of American photojournalist Arthur Fellig – aka Weegee – taken by British photographer Richard Sadler in Coventry, 1963

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…to try right now PORTRAITS

04 Beauty and the beast

Use setting and landscape to convey character and mood so that the first thing you notice is this striking girl and scenery. Only after a moment or two do you spot the dead buck, and the bullet hole in its flank. If a photo is immediately provocative or repellent, people won’t engage with it in the same way. The idea is not to turn them away, but to draw them in and make them engage with what’s going on.”

“For this image, I spent two days with the subject, so I could get to know her, and for her to get used to me”

Get started today…

* Technical details are obviously important, but the key to a successful environmental portrait is the setting – not only does it help add a sense of time and place, it also says something about the character of the subject. * David will sometimes spend ten days or more with his subjects, but he stresses this isn’t essential. “Some subjects don’t need lots of time – what’s key is that they’re comfortable with you.” * The winning images from the National Portrait Gallery’s Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize are on display at the Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens until 26 June.

David Chancellor

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e’re often told to get in close to capture an intimate portrait, but an environmental portrait is often every bit as revealing. This controversial image, which won the 2010 Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize, is from a series called Hunters by Cape Town-based photographer David Chancellor. “Josie, the girl in the photograph, was 14,” David explains. “She’s from a big hunting family in the States, and this was her first hunting trip to Africa. I spent two days with her, so I could get to know her, and for her to get used to me.” “For me it was important that, first and foremost, the image was beautiful in some way,

The contrast between the ethereal beauty of the subject and the dead antelope on her lap, plus the tranquillity of the setting, are the keys to this award-winning image

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Give your shots THE PRO LOOK

A clean, non-distracting background is crucial in sports photography, as in many other photographic genres. That includes keeping advertisements out of the shot, too

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39 Opening image: Bob Martin

Give your shots THE PRO LOOK

Give your shots

the

pro look What’s the best way to learn to ‘see’ like a pro? Four top specialists in landscape, wildlife, portrait and sports photography share their composition and SLR set-up tips

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hat is the secret of perfect photo composition? For some photographers, it’s placing your subject on a third. For others it’s a strong foreground or a clean background. The truth is, there are many ways to frame your subject, and the traditional rules of creative composition needn’t always apply if they don’t fit in with your vision for the picture. Knowing when to break the rules of composition is just as important if you’re thinking conceptually and want to give your picture a

different interpretation. The other big thing to remember is that you won’t always have time to explore a subject or scene from every angle and focal length. People, weather, wild animals, and so on won’t always give you that luxury. So how do professional photographers manage to take so many striking pictures with such a high success rate? All of the pros in this feature would be the first to admit that they are no more or less creative than anyone else. The difference, they’ll tell you, is patience, diligence, and how well you pay

attention to what you’re seeing through the lens. To the professional, every part of the frame matters. Pros think beyond where to place the subject, and extend their creative vision to all four corners of the frame, carefully considering what to include – or what to exclude. To help you get the pro look, we’ve spoken to landscape ace Tom Mackie, wildlife expert Paul Hobson, wedding guru David Hares and sports legend Bob Martin. Discover how they approach composition, and how they set up their SLR for the perfect shot…

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Give your shots THE PRO LOOK Why this works

• Shot from an unusual and interesting viewpoint • Shooting into the light, Tom has managed to preserve vital detail in the trunks and canopy • Low angle emphasises the height of the trees better than a head-on shot could • Strong blue sky is the perfect plain background and complements the yellow leaves

Composition for landscapes Landscape pro TOM MACKIE explains how he interprets his environment

All images Tom Mackie

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hotography is about seeing. But it’s also about what you don’t see. For celebrated landscape photographer Tom Mackie, this is one of the most important points to remember when shooting scenes. The first thing Tom does once he’s ready to take a picture is scour the scene, looking for any patterns or geometric shapes he can make a feature of in his composition. “I really don’t like cluttered landscapes, and composing for patterns is a good way of giving a sense of order to the natural world. This helps the viewer’s eye navigate more easily through the frame.” For Tom, composition is a

process of dissecting all the detail out of the landscape.

Forget the detail

“On my workshops, people always say they want to ‘see’ a scene like I do,” Tom adds. “The best way I can think to describe my composition process is that before I put my camera to my eye I look at the scene and try to picture it as a pencil sketch with no detail whatsoever. I mentally strip those details away so I’m concentrating only on lines. Once you can do that, it’s just a case of arranging those lines within your frame to form a pleasing composition. You then fine-tune this

ABOVE Towering aspen trees in Colorado. Tom sees his compositions as an arrangement of lines in the frame RIGHT Tom uses the lines in the rocks to add depth, but also to lead your eye towards the hiker

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Give your shots THE PRO LOOK

arrangement by extracting details that detract from your main subject. What you don’t include is often as important as what you do include in your frame.”

ForegrounD BAsiCs

Strong foreground interest is probably the most important consideration at this point, something that the average amateur often forgets about. “The foreground is crucial because it adds depth to your pictures,” Tom adds. “Another thing people forget is the effect of merging shapes. A lot of amateurs don’t realise that their eye sees so much detail, but their SLR doesn’t record it.” A camera will flatten out a scene, he says, which can ruin any attempt at pre-visualisation. Tom cites sea stacks (rocks) as an example. “Your eyes will see them as separate shapes, but your camera merges them

ABoVe Tom breaks the rules by framing this yellow tulip in the centre in order to fit his theme of independence Top righT nD filters help to smooth out water and to capture much stronger reflections ABoVe righT Foreground interest is the first element Tom seeks when planning his compositions

In TOM’S BAG Canon EOS 5D Mk ii SLR, Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0 L USM, Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8 L ii USM, Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM, Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L iS USM and a Canon TS-E 24mm 3.5L. “i don’t like carrying big lenses, let alone spending thousands on them. Rather than buying a 300mm lens, i use my 70-200mm optic with a 1.4x teleconverter, which gets me close to that mark at 280mm, and takes less space in my bag.”

together, leaving a large blob as your subject. You need to make sure you’re in the perfect position and check your LCD carefully to avoid this.”

BreAk The rules

Some locations allow for more compositional and creative freedom than others. Changing tides call for different framing, such as wide angles at low tide, while woodland scenes are harder to compose because the patterns and structure of the trees dictate the composition to an extent. “And if the sky is flat and not doing anything for your picture, don’t

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include it… You need to know when to break the rules.” Knowing when is part of what separates the amateurs from the pros. You should always have a good reason why you’re doing it. “If I notice in the middle of a field of red tulips there’s one yellow one growing, I will break the rule of thirds and frame the yellow flower in the centre to convey a theme of independence,” Tom explains. “This wouldn’t have worked as strongly were it on the third.” To see more of Tom’s pictures, visit www.tommackie.com

LAnDSCAPe TipS

1

If you’re using a leading line, a common mistake is that any line will do. It needs to be engaging.

incorporate a warm glow of tungsten light from a cottage, for instance.

2

4

3

5

Before you mount your camera on your tripod, walk around with it and take a few sample shots to find the best position; this saves having to constantly readjust your tripod. Use contrasting colours. You may have a nice twilight scene, but without some balance to the cool, blue tones, its impact might be lost. You might try to

Be selective and ruthless with the elements in a shot. If you’re struggling to find a good way of framing an awkwardly shaped tree, why include it at all? It sounds obvious, but only include something if it looks good. Get yourself a Lee Big Stopper nD filter. they smooth out water to help you capture better reflections in your foreground.

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thePhotoFixer

reader Glyn loves wildlife photography, but needs some guidance. Can Paul Grogan help him get shots with bite?

HeLp Me TAKe A WALK ON THe WiLd Side

dave Caudery (Future)

Q

I recently bit the bullet and invested in a Canon 7d, plus a few lenses and accessories. Photography is my life, and I’d love to turn professional, but it’s a very steep learning curve. My favourite subject is wildlife, but I sometimes get bogged down in all the settings. Can you help me unleash my camera’s potential…?

Glyn Ridgers,

essex

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We ansWer a reader sOs

shooting big game

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ollowing a hit and run accident in 2009, and a heart attack in 2010, reader Glyn decided to sell his decorating business and follow his dream of becoming a photographer. Following a stint with a friend’s Nikon D80 which got him hooked, he bought a Canon EOS 7D and has never looked back. In September he enrolled in a City and Guilds photography course, and has been honing his

camera skills ever since. His favourite subject is wildlife, but he confesses to shooting in auto mode more than he should, and wants to take more control of his camera. To help Glyn realise his objectives, I meet up with him at Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire to enable him get up close and personal with a few very big cats. Can I help him tame his camera’s settings? Read on to find out…

THE DIAGNOSIS

Background information

Glyn knows his way around his 7D, but isn’t sure how to take control of the aperture settings and focusing modes

The Photo Fixer investigates

Both of these shots were taken at a relatively wide aperture of f/4, but because they were taken from quite high up and at a focal length of just 100mm, the backgrounds are distracting. Closer inspection of the stag image reveals it’s not quite as sharp as it could be either

Glyn shoots in raw, but only because that’s what he’s been told to do on his course, and though he does try to venture into manual mode, he admits to panicking a bit when he has to use it in earnest. He rightly uses his 7D’s histogram setting in live-view to evaluate exposure, and he understands the need to set a wide aperture to get a shallow depth of field, but he isn’t sure when – and by how much – he should bump up his ISO. Plus, while he’s aware that his camera has more than one focus point, he’s only ever used the central one. A glance at the shots on the left also suggests that he’d benefit from a few composition pointers – specifically getting down to the subject’s eye level and filling the frame. While both of these shots were taken at a relatively wide aperture of f/4, because they were taken from above, the ground isn’t far enough away to blur it out, making it a bit distracting. Digital Camera May 2011

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thephotoFixer

We ansWer a reader sOs SHOOTING ADVICE

Useful kit

When shooting wildlife, a lens with a focal length of at least 300mm is essential for getting frame-filling images

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Teleconverter If you want extra reach but can’t afford a longer lens, teleconverters are a great option. They fit between your lens and camera and provide a magnifying effect: a 1.4x converter, for example, multiplies a lens’s focal length by 1.4. The only down side is a slight loss in quality, and an increase in the lens’s maximum aperture.

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Monopod Monopods are an essential tool in any wildlife photographer’s kit bag. not only do they help to steady the camera, enabling you to use slower shutter speeds that you would if you were shooting handheld, they also help take the weight of heavy lenses – a godsend if you’re out shooting for a whole day.

3

Bean bag When a monopod isn’t practical, or if you need even more support, a beanbag is a worthwhile investment. They can be used on car sills, logs, posts and even on the ground. They essentially cradle the lens in the hollow created by the weight of the lens itself, and are surprisingly effective.

PHOTO FIX #1

shoot wide open

T

hankfully, it’s quite overcast when we arrive, making the conditions ideal for rendering fine detail in fur (see right). Overcast skies also tend to result in relatively constant lighting conditions, which means that once Glyn has worked out his exposure settings, he can leave them alone and concentrate on composition and focusing. To enable Glyn to get up close, I lend him a Canon 300mm f/2.8L IS lens (equivalent to 390mm on his 7D). I then recommend setting aperture priority mode, and selecting as wide an aperture as possible. At ISO100, this gives him a shutter speed of around 1/30 sec, which is too slow to eliminate camera shake, so I suggest upping the ISO to 1600 to ensure a shutter speed closer to 1/500 sec.

Glyn is understandably worried about noise at this high an ISO, but I reassure him that the 7D performs well at high ISOs, and that a sharp shot with a bit of noise is preferable to a blurred shot that’s noise-free!

A fleeting burst of sunlight has resulted in harsh highlights in the shot on the left, resulting in a loss of fine detail in some of the lion’s fur

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We ansWer a reader sOs

PHOTO FIX #2

eye of the tiger Far left Selecting the wrong focus point, or leaving the camera to select its own focus point, can result in out-offocus images Left Manually selecting the focus point enables you to position the subject’s eye precisely where you want it, without having to lock the focus and recompose your shot

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s you can see from the images above, when Glyn selects the wrong focus point, or if he lets his SLR select the focus point for him, he runs the risk of focusing on the wrong thing. If his subject is right in the middle of the frame, he can simply select the central focus point and fire away, but for most subjects and scenes, this will result in fairly static-looking shots. For off-centre subjects one option is to manually select the central focus point, position it over the edge you want to be in focus, half-press the

shutter release to lock the focus, and then recompose as necessary. This technique works well up to a point, but if Glyn wants to position, say, his subject’s eye in the same place in the frame for more than a few shots on the trot, it’s easier to select the focus point that’s nearest to that eye, so that he doesn’t have to re-frame every shot. Taking control of his focus points in this way enables Glyn to position his subject’s eye precisely where he wants it, and to concentrate on what’s happening in the frame, so that he can

capture fleeting moments or expressions that he might miss if he had to recompose. Once he’s got the hang of manually selecting the focus point, Glyn attaches his 1.4x teleconverter (see useful kit, opposite) to get in really close and fill the frame for a more intimate portrait. Because the tiger’s busy eating, it stays fairly still, which means all Glyn has to do is select the focus point closest to the tiger’s eye and wait for it to glance up, without having to worry about locking the focus and re-framing.

did we fix Glyn’s pics? Turn over to find out...

PHOTO FIX #4

On track

P Meerkats rarely stay still for long, so focus tracking is essential for sharp shots

hotographing lions and tigers while they’re lazing around or tucking into raw steak is all very well, but capturing animals on the move is another thing entirely, and as Glyn discovers, few animals move around more than meerkats. It’s all but impossible to get sharp shots of them using single-shot autofocus, so I encourage Glyn to set his focusing mode to AI Servo (Canon’s focus-tracking mode) and to shoot at his 7D’s highest frame-rate (8fps). This is because AI Servo tends to work best when you fire in short bursts, and will also increase Glyn’s chances of getting a decent shot! Even then it’s more miss than hit, and the only time they stand still long enough to fire off a few frames are when they adopt their look-out pose. Digital Camera May 2011

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thephotoFixer

We answer a reader SOS THE VERDICT

Animal magic The Photo Fixer says

photo Fixed!

“Using Canon’s 300mm f/2.8 lens was a revelation to Glyn and made him realise how hard it is to get decent wildlife shots with anything shorter. Even with a Land Rover to enable us to get closer, he struggled to fill the frame with his own Canon 70-200mm f/4 lens. “At around £4,000 a pop, though, it’s out of his price range, so I recommended Sigma’s superb 150-500mm f/5.6-6.3, which at closer to £700 offers great value for money and a longer reach – albeit with a narrower maximum aperture. “Lens choice aside, Glyn quickly got the hang of exposing and focusing his shots, and his composition improved no end as the day progressed. All he needs to do now is keep an eye on his settings – he has a tendency to change them by mistake!”

Glyn says

“Wow! Spending a day at Longleat was fantastic, and has really boosted my confidence. I was very impressed with the Canon lens that Paul lent me – it was amazingly sharp, and at f/2.8 the backgrounds were beautifully blurred. When we shot the meerkats, the depth of field was so narrow that if the eyes were in focus, the nose was completely blurred! Paul’s focusing tips were also great – I’ll never use automatic AF point selection again.” With thanks to Longleat Safari Park, which offers guided 3-4hr tours in 4x4 Land Rovers. For full details visit www.longleat.co.uk

This classic lion portrait has it all: soft, even lighting, an out-of-focus foreground that leads the eye right into the frame, and just a hint of a catchlight in the lion’s pin-sharp eyes

Do you need help? How you can contact The Photo Fixer for assistance

Could your photography benefit from the help of an expert? If you’d like a day out with the Digital Camera experts, send us an email at digitalcamera@futurenet.com. Make sure you put ‘Photo Fixer’

in the subject line, and explain what your favourite photography subjects are, which area of your photography you would like to improve and what camera kit and accessories you own.

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The ultimate photo challenge

ll winner POTY 2010 overa ight Australia Wr n Jo Exit Wave

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