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Better Technique. Better Insight. Better Pictures
Things you can try out to get better pictures (Each explained in 10 words or less!) The ART & TECHNIQUE OF HANDLING
BACKLIGHT
Exclusive Reviews Nikon D300S Fujifilm F70EXR Nikkor 16-85mm Metz Ring Flash
Getting the best out of situations where the light source is behind your subject ON ASSIGNMENT
Panoramic views of India’s diverse cultural landscapes
GREAT MASTERS
For the very first time in India: an interview with S Paul
DIGITAL TECHNIQUE PROFILE
How you can get huge 15MP prints from an 8MP camera
Ace lensman Mukesh Parpiani shares his experiences
November 2009
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SnapShots
GearGuide
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Look Who’s Shooting Rahul S R
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Book Review Itinerants
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Test
Nikon D300S Nikon’s APS-C flagship on BP’s test bench
A search for India’s finest wedding photographers For the first time in India
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Feature
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Shooting Technique
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Translucence Use backlighting creatively to capture magical pictures
See page no. 48 for details
ON THE COVER
Design: Pradeep Kumar B Nambiar
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AF-S DX Nikkor 16– 85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR Is this zoom lens a ‘jack of all trades’?
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Fujifilm FinePix F70EXR The smallest camera with 10x zoom
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Metz Mecablitz 15 MS-1 digital A ring flash with an innovative design
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PercepTool This plugin matches the way we perceives a scene
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MICRO TEST
Card reader and flash accessories
150 Things to Try Out Before You Trigger the Shutter Try a combination of these for better pictures Shapes Against the Light Learn to capture stunning silhouettes
InFocus
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Lighting Up the Edges How you can achieve the perfect rimlighting effect
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ON ASSIGNMENT
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DIGITAL TECHNIQUE
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104 Mukesh Parpiani Profile
His journey from photojournalism to the head of Piramal Art Gallery
India Stretched Panoramic views of India’s landscapes
Tips & Tricks
Unique approaches to landscapes, shooting from a height and more
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DIFFERENT STROKES
Making Money on Photography
180 Bling On! 182 The True Story of Fakes MARKET SENSE
History of Photography
How and why fake photographs were created
15MP Images from an 8MP Camera! without losing out on quality! Innovate with R, G, B Play around with the colours in your photos for a more unique look
PhotoFinish
184 Airborne Horses and the Story Behind the Picture
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My Best Shot
Prashant Panjiar On his favourite shot taken in Kanpur Great Masters
S Paul The legend shares a few good tales
Birth of Filmmaking
Turn to page no. 32 for details
India’s Biggest Photography Awards
Regulars Feedback.............................................................10 PHOTOCRITIQUE................................................... 90 Q & A..................................................................100 1000 WORDS........................................................ 118 Your Pictures...................................................120 BP Buyer’s Guide...............................................164
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Pentax K-x The Pentax K-x is an upper entry-level camera that borrows a number of features from the high-end K-7. This 12.4MP camera boasts of features like sensor-shift image stabilisation and an ISO range of 100–12,800. The camera can record 720presolution video (at 24fps) and has a True HDR mode, which blends three bracketed images into a single High Dynamic Range image. The K-x has a maximum shooting speed of 4.7fps, which is the fastest amongst entrylevel DSLRs today.
Inventors of the CCD Sensor Win Nobel Prize W
illard S Boyle and George E Smith, the inventors of the CCD (chargecoupled device) sensor, have been awarded a share of the Nobel Prize in Physics 2009. The two scientists shared the prize with two other recipients, each receiving a
invented the world’s first solid-state video camera. The prize is an acknowledgement of the manner in which the CCD has revolutionised digital photography. The transition from film to digital that has taken place so seamlessly in the past decade, was
AF-S DX Micro Nikkor 85mm f/3.5G ED VR
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This new image-stabilised 1:1 macro lens for DX-format cameras has a field-of-view equivalent to a 127.5mm lens (in 35mm parlance). Besides its macro abilities, the lens also doubles up as a portrait lens, due to its focal length and circular diaphragm. It uses 14 elements in 10 groups, with one Extra-low Dispersion element. It has an internal focus design, and its AF-S motor allows you to override autofocus manually. The lens features Nikon’s second generation VR II system, which claims you can shoot at a shutterspeed four stops slower than usual, without any camera shake.
Sigma DP1s A minor upgrade of the DP1, the DP1s is a largesensor compact camera. It takes most of the features of the DP1, including its APS-C-sized Foveon X3 sensor that gives an output of 14 megapixels, when interpolated. Like the DP1, it has a 16.6mm f/4 lens, which gives a field-of-view similar to a 25mm lens. Improvements from the DP1 include the ability to shoot RAW and JPEG simultaneously, and a Quick Set function that facilitates faster operation. This camera comes with many accessories like Viewfinder VF-11, Hood Adapter HA-11 and Electronic Flash EF-140 DG.
This photograph of Willard Boyle (left) and George Smith (right) was shot in 1974 in their laboratory. quarter of the USD 1.4 million prize given by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Boyle and Smith were honoured for inventing the first successful imaging technology using a digital sensor. They developed the CCD at Bell Laboratories, US in 1969, based on Albert Einstein’s theory of the photoelectric effect. The key challenge, while designing a digital imaging sensor, was to gather and read out a large number of digital signals in a short amount of time. A year later, the duo also
based on the CCD technology. Even today, a number of DSLRs and most compact cameras use charge-coupled devices to record images. Digital photography has made the medium a lot easier and more accessible for a number of people, and has also contributed to the explosion of images and media. The CCD is also used in a number of medical applications, particularly to photograph the inside of a human body for diagnostics and for microsurgeries.
Photography can never grow up if it imitates some other medium. It has to walk alone; it has to be itself. Berenice Abbott (1898-1991) Berenice Abbott was an American photographer, best known for her black and white work. Her photography mainly revolved around studying the archeology and urban design of New York in the 1930s. She was an integral part of the ‘straight photography’ movement, which stressed the importance of photographs not being manipulated, either by subject matter, way of shooting or the developing process. Better Photography
Image source: commons.wikimedia.org
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Tamron SP AF60mm f/2 Di II Macro 1:1 for Sony Mounts This Tamron lens that was announced a few months ago for Nikon and Canon mounts, now has a Sony version too. It is specially designed for APS-C-sized sensors. Along with its Nikon and Canon versions, it is the world’s first 1:1 macro lens with a maximum aperture of f/2. The lens has a built-in AF motor and focuses internally.
Adobe Photoshop Elements 8
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This software adds some interesting features to the simplicity of its previous versions. The new Photomerge Exposure function allows you to merge multiple shots of the same scene, to give a photograph in which the main subject is lit, and the ambient light details are also captured. The Content Aware Scaling function, introduced in Photoshop CS4, is included here and called ‘Recompose’, as it allows you to change the aspect ratio of a photograph without distorting the important elements. Visit www.adobe.com to download a onemonth free trial of this software.
Photoshop Mobile iPhone Application With the recent surge in mobile phone photography, it comes as no surprise that Adobe has introduced a new version of Photoshop for cell phones! Photoshop Mobile is an application for the iPhone, which lets you crop, rotate and even add various colour effects to your photographs. The software also comes with a 2GB online storage for photoshop.com.
ACDSee Pro 3 ACD Systems have released the full version of their image browsing and management software, ACDSee Pro 3. The upgrade features an improved interface and increased interactivity for online publishing. It also allows you to edit your images in a nondestructive manner. Go to acdsee.com to download a 30-day free trial. Better Photography
Canon Announces Pro Sports DSLR 1D Mark IV C anon has announced the EOS 1D Mark IV, the latest camera in their professional sports DSLR line. The Mark IV is a 16.1-megapixel camera that uses an APS-H-sized CMOS sensor (1.3X crop), just like the 1D Mark III. To maintain its burst rate of 10fps (unchanged from its predecessor), the camera uses Dual Digic 4 image processors. Significantly, the autofocus system of the camera has been completely revamped, with a new AI Servo II AF Focus Tracking System for moving subjects. The 45-point AF system now includes as many as 39 cross-type sensors, the maximum in any DSLR. The 1D Mark IV matches the just-announced Nikon
D3S in its high ISO capabilities, with the maximum ISO (with boost) being 102,400.
Nikon Refreshes the D3, Now Called D3S N ikon has announced the D3S, the new and improved version of their professional full-frame D3. The D3S has a 12.1-megapixel sensor, but its ISO sensitivity has been boosted to a maximum of 102,400. A sensitivity this high has not been seen before in DSLRs, and is now matched only by the subsequently launched Canon 1D Mark IV. Like the D3, the D3S shoots at 9fps (11fps in DX crop mode), but the buffer size has been doubled, allowing you to shoot as many as 48 RAW files or 130 JPEG images in one go. The camera retains the sturdy magnesium-alloy body of its predecessor; however, the layout of buttons has been updated, with a new Info button that provides quicker access to basic camera functions. It also incorporates sensor cleaning and the
Quiet Shutter mode-two features that its predecessor did not have. Besides the high-speed and low-light abilities, the D3S also offers the option of shooting 720p HD video. The camera is priced at USD 5,199.95 (approx. Rs. 2,43,000) and will hit the markets in late November.
Inventor of the First Digital Camera Honoured S teven Sasson, the inventor of the first digital camera received an Innovation Award in Consumer Products and Services category from The Economist magazine in a ceremony in London on 29 October. Sasson was awarded for his contributions to photography and imaging,
which have revolutionised consumer photography today. He retired earlier this year after working with Kodak for 35 years. Previously, YouTube’s founders Steve Chen and Chad Hurley won an award in the same category for their work in building multimedia content. november 2009
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GearGuide
How We Test Product Categorisation We first segregate products into categories for the purpose of equitability in testing. The DSLR is divided into entrylevel, semi-professional and professional categories. For compacts, we distinguish between advanced and basic compact cameras. Similarly, we also test consumer and pro lenses, flashguns, printers, and other photographic accessories and gear.
The Process We primarily test for features, performance, build, ergonomics, warranty and support. While this remains constant, the weightage we give to these parameter differs from category to category, because different types of consumers have diverse expectations from products.
Final Ratings Under each main parameter, we 36 list out hundreds of individual variables (for eg. colour accuracy for individual colours in different lighting, individual features, dynamic range, center-to-edge definition, light fall-off, etc.) against which we either give points or simply mark ‘yes’ or ‘no’. Thus, we arrive at a score for that parameter, and then, the final score, denoted as a percentage. Additionally, based on the current pricing of a product, a star rating for ‘Value for Money’ is considered. Value for Money does not affect the final percentage, because prices for products change constantly.
Nikon D300S
A Winner Reinvented K Madhavan Pillai looks under the hood of the Nikon D300S, the company’s newest APS-C flagship.
Our Seals of Approval Any product that scores 80% or higher in individual tests gets ‘BP Recommended’—a seal test of approval from our team. In comparison tests, we also tag products as ‘BP Best Performer’ and ‘BP Best Value for Money’.
BP Excellence Awards At the end of the calendar year, the five highest rated products in each category automatically gets nominated for the ‘Better Photography Excellence Awards’. A panel of experts then decide the winners. This is BP’s recognition of the very best products launched in the course of the year, and the companies that made them. Better Photography
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ikon’s latest release, the D300S is an improved version of the older Nikon D300, which I tested in January 2008. At the time, the D300 had walked away with two major Better Photography Excellence Awards. With an overall rating of 91%, it bagged the Camera of the Year 2007 and Professional DSLR Camera of the Year 2007. Two years down the line, the launch of the D300S generated a lot of mixed reactions from Nikon aficionados. The only obvious improvement in the D300S, over its successful predecessor, seemed to be the added ability to shoot video.
One would have expected the D300S to have an increase in resolution. Of course, other manufacturers are still trying to beat the incredible performance of the D300, despite adding megapixels. This is probably why Nikon has decided to continue with its high-quality pixel ratio. Thus, the question is—how do you really improve a product that still rates as being the best across parameters in the semi-pro DSLR category?
Features By simply glancing through the specifications, the new D300S seems almost the same as the D300. The D300S november 2009
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Nikkor AF-S DX 16–85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR
Jack of All Trades?
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Can a lens capable of doing it all, still deliver good quality? Raj Lalwani uses the Nikkor AF-S DX 16–85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, to find out.
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ince the past few years, kit lenses have steadily been improving in terms of image quality. They are usually convenient, versatile and priced reasonably. So, when the Nikon D300S arrived in our office for extensive testing, I was equally interested to use the Nikkor AF-S DX 16–85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR lens that is available as a kit option with Nikon’s flagship DX camera. The lens was first introduced when the D300 was announced, and is also sold separately, amongst a large range of standard zoom options that Nikon has for its DX cameras.
Features Features Performance Build Quality Ergonomics Warranty & Support Better Photography
The most compelling aspect of the Nikkor 16–85mm is undoubtedly its range. A 35mm equivalent focal length of 24–127.5mm means that you can use it as a general walkabout lens, and also to shoot vast landscapes and close-up portraits.
The focal length is rather similar to the classic 24–120mm lens that was extremely popular in the days of film, and is used even today on full-frame cameras. Also, with respect to kit lenses of DX cameras, a 24mm-equivalent lens is as wide as it gets. Another feature we really enjoyed was the VR II technology, which allows you to shoot at shutterspeeds four stops slower than usual. It worked extremely well on field, and we were able to shoot sharp images at 1/8sec quite easily, even while shooting at the telephoto end of the lens. The lens’s optics are impressive on paper—with the presence of three aspherical lens elements, ED glass elements and the High-Performance Nikon Super Integrated Coating. These features ensure that the large zoom range does not compromise on image quality. A minimum focusing distance of 0.38m throughout the zoom range is useful, and better than other lenses of this class.
aLSO LOOK FOR • Nikkor AF-S DX 18–105mm f/3.55.6G ED VR • Nikkor AF-S DX VR 18–200mm f/3.55.6G IF-ED november 2009
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Fujifilm FinePix F70EXR
A Bundle of Joy
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The FinePix F70 comes with the tag “smallest camera with 10x zoom”. Neha Mutreja finds out how it performs under tricky light situations.
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his July, Fujifilm launched the FinePix F70EXR, which is claimed to be the smallest camera with a 10x zoom. But its most exciting feature is its Super CCD EXR sensor. This sensor turns the F70EXR into a three-in-one camera that can shoot sharp, low-noise images, provide a wide dynamic range and a large amount of detail. As soon as the camera landed on our test bench, I was eager to test it and see how well it performs.
Features Succeeding the Fujifilm F60fd, the 10megapixel F70EXR has a Fujinon 10x zoom lens and a 1/2-inch Super CCD EXR sensor. The powerful EXR mode has three settings: Resolution Priority for recording fine detail; High ISO & Low Noise to reduce noise; and D-Range Priority to deal
with high-contrast lighting situations. Depending on the scene, you can choose any of these settings; or simply go for the EXR Auto mode that automatically applies one or more settings at the same time. In addition to this, there are some more useful shooting functions like the Pro Focus and Pro Low-light modes. While the Pro Focus mode simulates the shallow depth-of-field that is usually seen in SLRs, the Pro Low-Light mode automatically takes a series of four shots and then combines them to get a relatively noise-free image with a large amount of detail. The latter feature is also present in cameras like the Sony Cyber-shot HX1, and works rather well. The camera also has the usual features that we expect in basic compact cameras. It has a number of scene modes (Landscape, Night, Portrait to name a few),
What’s in the box • FinePix F70EXR camera • Camera strap • Instruction manual • Li-ion battery • USB cable • Warranty card november 2009
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Pretty Little Ring Metz has come out with a unique, palm-sized ring flash called the Mecablitz 15 MS-1 digital. Shridhar Kunte tests it and gauges its performance.
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ver the years, Metz has produced many innovative flashes—flashes that have been able alternatives for the dedicated or non-dedicated flash units produced by camera companies. Its most recent launch, the Mecablitz 15 MS-1 digital, is another unique model that is meant to be attached in front of the camera’s lens. Even before the flash arrived at our test bench, I had high expectations from it, and I had a feeling that it would not disappoint.
Features The most important characteristic of this Metz wireless macro ring flash is that it can be used with any modern DSLR from Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Pentax,
Samsung and Sony-Alpha. If you plan to upgrade your camera, then the flash’s firmware can be easily modified to suit the camera’s settings. Configuring this flash to a DSLR will offer full wireless TTL operation. The flash can also be connected to the camera with the help of a connecting cord, and then operated in the Manual mode. The system consists of two small flash tubes that are placed 180° apart, to achieve precise lighting. Each of these flash tubes can be individually set at three different angles: 0°, 10° and 20°. This can help you get really creative and add dramatic lighting effects. The tubes can be set manually with the help of two small notches (one for each tube) on the circumference of the flash. The light output ratio from the individual flash tubes can be varied from 1:8 to 8:1,
What’s in the box • Metz Mecablitz 15 MS-1 digital ring flash • 52mm, 55mm and 58 mm adapter rings • Bouncer disc • IR clip-ons • Belt pouch november 2009
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Ask your subject to pose for you. Better Photography
November 2009
Shooting Technique
On Assignment
Digital Technique
Shapes Against the Light Learn to capture stunning silhouettes
India Stretched Panoramic views of India’s landscapes
15MP Prints with an 8MP Camera! without loss in quality
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150 Things to Try Out Before You Trigger the Shutter
Before you click that photograph, stop and read this article. Gurjender Singh Virdi lists down 150 things you can do to ensure that you get that perfect picture every time. N ov e m b e r 2 0 0 9
Better Photography
Saikat Mukherjee
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Sho ot ing T echniq ue
Shapes Against the Digantika Mitra simplifies the idea of creating stunning silhouettes and shares how you can attempt them successfully.
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S h o ot ing Tech nique
Light
Silhouettes work best when the subject has a graphic form and structure. Construction sites, architecture and other urban elements make great subjects. Exposure: 1/2500sec at f/2.8 (ISO 400) N ov e m b e r 2 0 0 9
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Backlighting creates a unique sense of glow around translucent subjects like animal hair or leaves. Exposure: Details not available Better Photography
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Sho o t ing T echnique
Translucence Backlighting can make otherwise ordinary and everyday subjects look translucent and surreal. Raj Lalwani and Amit Sheokand tells you how to use this effect creatively, to capture magical images.
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ave you ever marvelled at sunlight passing through a window made of stained glass? Or have you tried passing the beam of a flashlight through the tips or your fingers or through a child’s hand? It glows red because our skin
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and blood vessels have a certain level of transparency, through which light can pass. Simply put, they are translucent. Backlighting creates magic in the most ordinary of scenes. But the drama of backlighting is especially brilliant when it passes through translucent subjects. Better Photography
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Sho ot ing T echniq ue
A slight underexposure is essential to capture rimlighting, and to ensure that the halo remains prominent with respect to the otherwise dark image. Exposure: 1/320sec at f/6.3 (ISO 400)
Lighting Up the Edges Raj Lalwani tells you how to capture the simple, yet beautiful effect of rimlighting that occurs when the subject is backlit. Better Photography
November 2009
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Sho o t ing T echnique
Subjects that reflect light are more prone to rimlighting. This is why it is more common in nature photography.
Rimlighting is common in nature, especially while shooting cloudscapes. The rimlight forms a golden outline and makes the scene more dramatic. Exposure: 1/320sec at f/14 (ISO 100)
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he effects created by light striking a subject from behind are beautiful and varied in nature. Besides silhouetted forms and the glow of translucent subjects, you can also capture scenes where the light falls on the edges of the subject—an effect called rimlighting.
subject becomes a silhouette. On the other hand, to capture rimlighting, the shooting angle is important since the background needs to be darker than the subject. Early morning and late evening are great times to capture this effect, as the light is soft and directional.
Use Light to Define the Subject
Subjects that reflect light are more prone to rimlighting. This is why it is more common in nature photography. Use rimlight to define the shapes of leaves, flowers and even animals. You can also shoot silhouetted portraits with lit edges that can add a cinematic mood. In conventional portraits, the light can outline the subject hair, and a reflector (or fill-in flash) can be used to illuminate the face. If you choose your subject carefully and shoot from the right angle at an appropriate time of day, it is actually quite simple to capture photographs where the main subject is outlined with a gorgeous rimlight.
Rimlighting can be used to define your main subject, making it stand out against the background. While subtle rimlighting simply defines the shape of subject, a stronger effect can help you create a beautiful halo around it. A halo effect adds a magical touch and can make an otherwise normal subject look extraordinary.
Pay Attention to the Background Rimlighting is different from a silhouette, as in the former, the light is not exactly behind the subject, but at a slight angle. While shooting silhouettes, include the bright background so that the main
Shoot Nature, Portraits and More
Expose Right for Rimlighting Since the edges of the rimlit subject are a lot brighter, they tend to get overexposed. Meter from the main subject and then underexpose by one and a half stop. Bracket your exposures. A slight difference in exposure changes the look of your image completely while capturing rimlight.
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Better Photography
Want to share your ideas and tips? Write to The Editor, Better Photography Infomedia18 Limited Ruby House, ‘A’ Wing J K Sawant Marg, Dadar (W) Mumbai-400 028, India E-mail: editor@betterphotography.in
foreground, a background and a middle ground. Depicting these three clearly in your photograph will lend a sense of depth, and also effectively guide the viewer into the image. Including a meadow in the foreground with a row of houses in the middle and a sunny sky in the background can make a breathtaking photograph.
Focus on a Small Area of a Large Expanse Debabrata Nandi
UNIQUE APPROACHES TO LANDSCAPES Colours as Your Main Subject Are there too many colours in the landscape you wish to shoot? Then look for one portion of the landscape that has the most vibrant blend of colours. Frame only that area and see what kind of creative results you get! You can shoot the same scene in different aspect ratios too.
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Invite the Viewer into the Photograph A landscape photograph can be visually perfect if it has three distinct layers: a
A distinct foreground, middle ground with the trees and the sky as the background together make this a visually strong and inviting image. Better Photography Better Photography
Framing only the colourful, wavy patterns of moss floating on a pond’s surface, has made this a rather appealing picture.
Even if you concentrate on shooting one part that best represents a grand landscape, the final picture can make the viewer visualise what the entire landscape really looked like! This will depend on what you frame and how you interpret it, making it look more intimate than traditionally wider scenes. Look out for elements within streams, rocks and plants that work better when isolated from their surroundings.
Saturate Colours Another way of adding more character and appeal to a landscape photograph is by saturating the colours using the incamera settings. While shooting a scene, experiment with colour settings like
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Sepia, Cool, Warm, Vivid, and even White Balance modes like Daylight, Tungsten, and Shade. Most cameras also provide colour alteration settings while in the playback mode. Alternatively, you can saturate the colours by using the Hue/ Saturation tool or Saturation slider in any image-editing software.
EASY IMAGE-EDITING IDEAS Converting Images to B&W Images shot by using a camera’s B&W mode often turn out to be dull and lifeless. This is why, it is preferable to shoot the image in colour and then convert it to B&W with the help of an image-editing software. An image shot in colour has a lot more depth in tones, as compared to an image captured directly in the B&W mode. Also, a software gives more control over contrast and tones, and this often makes the difference between a boring B&W image and an impact-driven one. Moreover, if you change your mind later, you can always go back to the original coloured version! n ov e m b e r 2 0 0 9
By boosting the saturation of colours, the photograph exudes more drama.
Add a Colour Cast If you want to change the mood of your image, you can add a colour cast by using any image-editing software. For instance, if editing a RAW image, add a colour cast with the help of the Temperature slider. You can use the Tint slider to adjust the amount of contrast you want to give to your image. If you are working with JPEG files, use the Selective Colour tool or the Photo Filter tool for surreal effects. Before
Raj Lalwani
Quick Tip When shooting from inside a moving plane, do not stick your camera to the window as the vibrations of the plane will cause blurred pictures.
After
Use the Black and White or the Channel Mixer tool to convert your image to B&W. Better Photography
Prof i l e
ShowCase
The Society’s Realist Ace photojournalist-turned-gallery curator Mukesh Parpiani prefers to portray the true essence of society and politics. He shares his experiences and beliefs with Digantika Mitra.
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here comes a time in the life of every photojournalist when he needs to use his entire sense and sensibility to capture an important moment, in a fraction of a second. Mukesh Parpiani recollects such a moment in his career as a photojournalist. Mrs Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India (mid-80s), was visiting the riot-affected areas of Bhiwandi, Mumbai. At one relief camp, Mukesh noticed a woman holding a child in her arms, pretending to cry and seek Mrs Gandhi’s sympathy. The woman pinched
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the child so hard that it began to cry. Mukesh was standing right behind her, when he saw Mrs Gandhi studying the woman’s pretence rather than her tears. He shot the moment the woman pinched her child and also captured Mrs Gandhi’s facial expression. The result was a brilliant photograph. “It was such an interesting moment. It just could not have been pre-planned,” says Mukesh.
A Realist at Heart As a photojournalist, Mukesh Parpiani’s main objective has always been to mirror
Children hold on to a ‘house full’ board, as they wade through a flood in Mumbai, sometime in the 1990s. Mukesh believes that photographs carrying a humorous undertone can be quite impressive; but it can be equally tough to portray in news photographs.
November 2009
My Best Shot
Great Masters
Your Pictures
Prashant Panjiar on his favourite shot taken in Kanpur
S Paul The legend shares a few good tales
Winners of Pthe rofile Light and Shades of Science contest
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Mukesh Parpiani
• The Mumbaibased Mukesh has worked with three newspapers: The Daily, The Indian Express and Mid-Day. • Currently, he is the head of Piramal Gallery at the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA) in Mumbai. • Today, he indulges in street photography. He finds India’s diversity to be an interesting subject for photographers. 105
Amitabh Bachchan practises a fight scene on the sets of Coolie (1983). This was taken minutes before the actor’s infamous lifethreatening accident. N ov e m b e r 2 0 0 9
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S Paul
S Paul, a visionary, celebrated photographer and powerhouse of enthusiasm, shares some wonderful stories of his life and career with Neha Mutreja.
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Mourning at Muharram A small child clings to his mother, while she prays along with a group of women during Muharram. Shot in 2005, this image has been honoured in many contests including the Islamic Symbols Contest Iran (2008), Humanity Photo Awards (2007) and B&W Annual Single Image Contest (2009). N ov e m b e r 2 0 0 9
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Histo ry
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The True Story of Fakes Neha Mutreja discovers how and why some of history’s most talked-about and controversial fake photographs were created.
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here was one shocking photograph that was believed to have been captured just before the terrible 9/11 attacks rocked New York city. It shows a tourist standing atop the World Trade Centre. In the background, a plane can be seen flying dangerously close to the building. It looked like the exact moment before the plane crashed into the first tower. The picture became an internet sensation for months. But it was later found out—to everyone’s dismay—that the image was a fake, courtesy of a Photoshop aficionado. While fakes like this might seem like a product of the digital era, the idea of creating such photographs came about nearly a century ago.
Politicians would alter their photographs so that they would The First Attempt look more heroic The earliest fakes were not really altered or and brave. manipulated images, but rather the result Better Photography
This photograph of the former US President Abraham Lincoln is actually a composite one of Lincoln’s head and someone else’s body, which was created by an anonymous artist.
of staging sensational scenes. One such example is a portrait of Hippolyte Bayard. The story goes that Bayard wanted to announce his own photography invention to the French government. Unfortunately, Louis Daguerre did it before him and received lifetime honour and fame for it. To protest the unappreciative attitude of the government, Bayard took a portrait of him ‘dead’ and sent the the print to the government. Behind the print, he wrote a note that explained how the government was unfair to Bayard—and that is why he decided to commit suicide. In reality, he continued to work and later and later invented ‘combination printing’. This involved combining two negatives to properly expose the sky and then a landscape or building. But the photography world knows him best as the creator of the very first fake photograph. November 2009
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Artists or Attention Seekers? After Bayard’s fake photo became known to the public, people began to realise what a powerful, convincing medium photography can be! Photographers saw this as a great way to achieve fame—so did Swedish photographer Oscar Rejlander. In 1857, Rejlander photographed a child tossing a chestnut that was frozen mid-air. In those days, it was impossible to capture moving subjects sharply, as the cameras were too slow. But the chestnut was clearly recognisable. People could not believe that Rejlander had actually accomplished this! Rejlander later admitted that the photo was a fake. He had suspended the chestnut mid-air with a fine thread—which is why the nut looked so sharp. He created many such images, and at one time even combined 30 photos together!
Every Leader’s Tool Politicians readily allowed alteration of their photographs to make them look like ‘brave leaders’. One example is an 1860s portrait of then US president Abraham Lincoln. There were no heroic-looking images of Lincoln then; so an artist created
a composite using Lincoln’s head and someone else’s body! Altering images found a rather harsh use later on. Leaders like Stalin and Hitler would literally erase their allies-turned-enemies from photos where they have posed together.
Questioning the Media’s Purpose Today, digital technology has allowed manipulation to such an extent that the changes can hardly be detected. One example is photographer Adnan Hajj’s image of a burning cityscape during the Lebanon-Israel war in 2006. The photograph looked quite real, but it was later found out that smoke was digitally added to the image. On the other hand, some organisations need to alter photographs. Photo editors digital enhance cover photos, so that their magazines can look appealing on the newsstands. The camera may not lie, however manipulation can literally change the meaning of a photo. Whether the concept is right or wrong, it depends on the purpose. Some see it as a fun way to create compelling works of art. Others see it as the quickest way to earn fame. But if it is a photograph that is meant to represent a fact then the only rational and ethical thing to do is to display it as it is to the rest of the world.
‘Proof ‘That Ghosts and Aliens Exist Creating fake photos is a great way to tell stories that people want to believe in. During the 1990s, thousands of images and videos that supposedly proved the existence of alien creatures and ghosts surfaced on the internet and were covered widely by media. But so far, most of the photographs and videos have been proven by scientists as just products of wishful thinking.
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Some Famous Photographs Suspected as Fakes Robert Capa’s Falling Soldier (1936)
Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima (1945)
Renowned photographer Robert Capa’s photograph of a falling soldier during the Spanish Civil war in 1936 is an iconic representation of the Civil war. But it has left experts perplexed for many years. Some argue that it was staged, while others believed that a group of soldiers were posing for the camera, when a sniper shot this man. A Spanish newspaper El Periodico recently revealed that when the photograph was shot, no war was going in that area.
This Pulitzer Prize-winning image was taken by American photographer Joe Rosenthal. Some began to wonder whether the photograph was spontaneous or staged. Rosenthal argued, “Had I posed the shot, I would, of course, have ruined it. I would have made them turn their heads so that they could be identified...throughout the country.” After a footage was found, which proved that the photograph was not staged, Rosenthal was vindicated.
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