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ISSue 11 I Volume 07 I FeBRuaRy 2012

SHOWCASE

Editor Hoshang S. Billimoria Technical Editor Rohinton Mehta Executive Editor Mathew Thottungal Senior Correspondent Sujith Gopinath Copy Editor Aswathi Nair Photography Mahesh Reddy Creative Director & Head Production Atul D. Bandekar Design Ajit Manjrekar, Sanjay Awad, Ajay Paradkar Production Dinesh Bhajnik, Deepak Narkar, Ravi Parmar Product Manager Perseus Master Publisher Girish Mallya Circulation and Subscription Sanjeev Roy (Asst. Operations Manager) Sachin Kelkar (Subscription Supervisor) Head Office - Mumbai 2nd Floor, C Wing, Trade World, Kamala Mills Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel (W), Mumbai 400013 Tel: + 91 22 43525252 Fax: + 91 22 24955394 Email: sp@nextgenpublishing.net Subscription Tel: + 91 22 43525220 Fax: + 91 22 24955394 Email: subscriptions@nextgenpublishing.net News Stand Distribution India Book House, Mumbai 400 002, Tel: +91 22 2284626 Fax: +91 22 22835099 Marketing Offices Ahmedabad Chandan House, 3rd Floor, Mithakhali Six Roads, Ahmedabad 380006 Tel: + 91 79 40008000 Fax: + 91 79 40008080 Bangalore #903, 9th floor, ‘B’ Wing, Mittal Towers, MG Road, Bangalore -560001 Tel: +91 80 - 66110116 New Delhi Plot No.225, Okhla Industrial Estate, Phase III, Okhla, New Delhi 110020 Tel: + 91 11 42346600 Fax: + 91 11 42346679 Chennai Unit No:20,Third floor, Modern Towers, 35/23 West Cott Road, Royapettah, Chennai 600 014 Tel +91-44-39149889/90/91 Fax +91-44-39149892.

Pune 401B, Gandhi Empire, Plot no.2, 5th floor, Sareen Estate, Kondhwa Road, Pune 411040 Tel: + 91 20 32930291 Fax: + 91 20 26830465 Hyderabad

Richard G.C. +9199492 17127 Views and opinions expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of Next Gen Publishing Ltd. Next Gen Publishing does not take the responsibility for returning unsolicited material sent without adequate postal stamps for return postage. No part of the magazine may be reproduced in part or full without the prior express written permission of the publisher. Printed by Girish Mallya, Next Gen Publishing Ltd., Trade World, 2nd Floor, C Wing, Kamala Mills Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel (W), Mumbai 400013. Published by Girish Mallya on behalf of Next Gen Publishing Ltd., Trade World, 2nd Floor, C Wing, Kamala Mills Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel (W), Mumbai 400013. Printed at Kala Jyothi Process Pvt. Ltd, 1-1-60/5 RTCX Roads, Hyderabad - 20. Published at Next Gen Publishing Ltd., Trade World, 2nd Floor, C Wing, Kamala Mills Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel (W), Mumbai 400013. Copyright 2006 SMART PHOTOGRAPHY All readers are recommended to make their own independent enquiries before sending money, incurring expenses or entering into commitments in relation to any advertisement appearing in the publication. Smart Photography does not vouch for any claims made by advertisers for their products and services. The editor, publisher, printer and employees of the publication shall not be held liable for any consequence in the events of such claims not being honoured by the advertisers. All disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of competent courts and forums in Mumbai only.

Editor – Hoshang S Billimoria

Welcome

A

re we witnessing the beginning of the end for the optical viewfinder? Canon’s new EOS 650D appears to be taking a step in this direction by building AF sensors into the main sensor.

By doing this, Canon delivers faster focussing when the rear screen is used to compose a picture. The introduction of both Phase Detection and Contrast Detection AF also indicates the importance Canon has placed on autofocus when Live View is in use. Add to that the Chief of Canon’s statement that D-SLRs from the Canon stable will become smaller and lighter, and you find the haze clearing. Canon is getting ready to face the ILCC market. Adding icing to the cake is the new EF 40mm f2.8 pancake lens.

H. S. Billimoria

Here’s What Makes us

#1

WE ARE GLUED TO THE GLOBAL IMAGING INDUSTRY Our team is updated with all the benchmarks and road blocks that the field of photography and imaging across the globe experiences. This helps us record the changes in the global perspective, thus making us the first to predict which products will be a rage in the Indian markets.

OUR TESTS ARE CONDUCTED BY EXPERTS All equipment go through a series of tests at the hands of our experts. Our reviewers are experts in the field of photography across the country and have many years of experience. That gives us the foresight to distinguish between a passing trend and a big change in the field of photography and imaging. And finally, our reviews are not extended to just fill up the pages!

WE’RE IMPARTIAL Loyalty towards our readers is a given, and their best interests are always on our mind.

Every verdict is honest and not influenced by advertisers or personal favorites. So when we say a product is a ‘BEST BUY’, then, it is just that!

WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU There is no debate on why we are here. Our sole goal is to provide you options and better your judgement in product purchase while, sharing tips and tricks to improve your images. Our biggest joy is in building a bridge between you and your perfect picture!

August 2012 Smart Photography

5

Contents August 2012

44

42

45

REVIEWED: SONY SLT A-77 CANON EOS 650D FUJIFILM X-PRO 1 OLYMPUS SH-25MR l

ISSUE 5 VOLUME 08 AUGUST 2012

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INDIA’S NUMBER 1 IMAGING MAGAZINE!

89

MASTERCRAFTSMAN

Born to be Wild...

- Shivang Mehta

Regulars 10 Mailbag

Canon EOS 650D

LEARNINGS

Basics of Photography: Creating Monochrome Images using D-SLRs The Magical Clone and Healing Brush Tools in Photoshop Lens Adapters Contact Sheet Wildlife Photography Megapixel Madness Disorder

Cover Photograph: Masood Hussain

14 News Watch 30 Picture of the Month 32 Kaleidoscope - Ruchee Soni

Just a moment!

Smart Photography thanks the readers who participate in the Picture of the Month contest.

We would like to bring to your attention a few changes in the rules for submission. From now on, you may send in your images with the longer side measuring atleast 17 inches. Please note that the images have to be horizontal. This permits readers to submit panoramic shots, which was not possible with the current size of 17 x 11 inches.

6

Smart Photography August 2012

36 If I Were You

39 Ask Uncle Ronnie 42 Master Craftsman - Shivang Mehta 50 Special - Scrapbook 138 Tidbits

D I G I TA L S E R I E S

WIDE ANGLE ZOOM L E N S for APS-C Format Digital SLR

Round Your World

TO FIT CANON • NIKON-D

AF11-16mm f/2.8

TO FIT CANON • NIKON-D

APS-C Sized Sensor Model Only

Capture it all or create images with more impact. The Tokina AT-X 107 DX is Fisheye zoom lens that gives the photographer a 180º field of view with dramatic curvature of field or “fisheye” effect. That's wider than the human eye can see! The AT-X 107 DX creates an entirely new view on everything from street scenes to nature's beautiful vistas. This lens will open a new dimension to your photography.

The front element of the AT-X 107 DX has a newly formulated WR or “Water Repellent” optical coating on the glass. This new coating makes marks such as spots left by water or finger-prints much easier to clean than standard multi-coating.

The rear optical group of the lens contains 1 SD (Super-Low Dispersion) glass element to reduce the number of elements (pieces of glass) in the optical design in order to make the lens more compact, light-weight and faster focusing. ** Please note, the Tokina AT-X 107 DX lens itself is not waterproof or water resistant. *** Will not AF when used on Nikon D60 and D40 SLR camera body.

AT-X 116 PRO DX

APS-C Sized Sensor Model Only

The Tokina AT-X 116 PRO DX is an ultra-wide angle lens with a fast f/2.8 aperture for better photography in low-light situations. Many photojournalists consider having an f/2.8 aperture a must for any lens in their camera bag.

Based on the award-winning optical design of the AT-X 124 PRO DX (12-24mm f/4) lens, the AT-X 116 PRO DX has a slightly shorter zoom range to maintain optical quality at wide apertures.

Tokina’s exclusive One-touch Focus Clutch Mechanism allows the photographer to switch between AF and MF simply by snapping the focus ring forward for AF and back toward the camera to focus manually. There is no need to change the AF-MF switch on Nikon cameras*** and there is no second AF/MF switch on the lens for Canon, everything is accomplished by the focus ring. *** Will not AF when used on Nikon D60 and D40 SLR camera body.

for APS-C Format Digital SLR

Super Wide-Angle Zoom AF12-24mm f/4 AT-X 124 PRO DX II TO FIT CANON • NIKON-D

for APS-C Format Digital SLR

Ultra-Wide, Ultra-Speed

AF10-17mm f/3.5-4.5 AT-X 107 DX Fisheye

www.tokinalens.com

for APS-C & Full Format Digital SLR

Full Frame Wide Zoom

AT-X 16-28PRO FX

AF16-28mm f/2.8

APS-C Sized Sensor Model Only

TO FIT CANON • NIKON-D

APS-C and Full Sized Sensor

Designed for professional digital SLRcameras like the Canon EOS 5D Mark II and the Nikon D700 and D3x.

The 16-28 zoom range gives the professional photographer a supe r-wide angle of view to get close to subject for dramatic e ect or to take in enti re scenes.

The 16-28 f/2.8 uses a newly developed silent DC motor that allows the lens to focus faster and mo re quietly then previous generations. The DC motor coupled with a new GMRmagnetic AF sensor work together to increase AF Speed.

This lens can auto focus with the Nikon D60 and D40 and other silent wave bodies.

The AT-X 124 PRO DX II 12-24mm f/4 AF lens gives the Digital photographer an ultra wide-angle zoom lens that has the equivalent angle of view to an18-36mm in full frame (FX) format.

The Nikon mount of the AT-X 124 PRO DX II has a new built-in AF motor drive, which the original 12-24 does not have. The AF operates smoothly and quietly due to a DC motor that uses a newly designed AF control gear assembly.

This lens can auto focus with the Nikon D60 and D40 and other silent wave bodies.

Dimensions (mm) Diameter

5.5 in.

f/3.5~f/22

N/A

70

71

350

Built-in

104° ~ 82°

11.8 in.

1:11.6

f/2.8~f/22

77

84

89.2

560

BH-77A

AT-X 124 PRO DX II 12~24mm f/4

C, N/D

13/11

99°~61°

11.8 in.

1:8

f/4~f/22

77

84

89.5

540

BH-777

15/13

107°1’~76° 8 ’

11 in.

1:5.26

Mount

AT-X 16~28 PRO DX 16~28mm f/2.8 Auto Focus Lenses

C: CANON AF

C, N/D

N/D: NIKON AF-D

1:2.56

f/2.8~f/22

■ The external appearance and specifications shown in this catalog may be changed without any advance notice.

Kenko Tokina Co., Ltd.

TOKYO JAPAN

India office : Kenko Tokina Imaging India Pvt. Ltd.

N/A

90

133.3

950

Lens Hood

180° ~ 100°

13/11

Weight (gram)

10/8

C, N/D

Length (mm)

Filter Size (mm)

C, N/D

Diagonal Angle of View

AT-X 107 AF DX 10~17mm f/3.5~4.5 AT-X 116 PRO DX 11~16mm f/2.8

LENS

Aperture Range

Magnification Ratio in Macro Mode

Closest Focus Distance from Film Plane (in Macro Mode)

Optical Construction Elements / Groups

T E C H N I C A L S P E C I F I C AT I O N S

Built-in

1g = 0.03527 oz 10mm = 0.39370 inch 1m = 3.28084 feet

URL:www.tokinalens.com E-mail:kenkoindia@tokina.co.jp

IBC, M-38/1, Middle Circle, Connaught Place, New Delhi-110001 TEL : 011-4157-1155

Contents August 2012

82

LEARNINGS 58 Basics of Photography: Creating Monochrome Images using D-SLRs 66 The Magical Clone and Healing

66

Brush Tools in Photoshop 75 Lens Adapters 80 Contact Sheet 82 Wildlife Photography 90 Megapixel Madness Disorder

REVIEWS

93 Sony SLT A-77 98 Canon EOS 650D 103 Fujifilm X-PRO 1 108 Olympus SH-25MR 8

Smart Photography August 2012

90

Mailbag Reviewed: NikoN d3200 l CaNoN PoweRShot a4000 l PaNaSoNiC Lumix dmC tZ30 (ZS 20) l SoNy CybeR-Shot dSC-hx20v ISSue 4 Volume 08 july 2012

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Photography SubScriber’S copy

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88

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C.P. Satyajit

Pushing the Creative Envelope ...

Nikon D3200

issue 4 | volume 08 | july 2012

AF-S Nikkor 85mm F/1.8G

showcase

Kedar Karmarkar

Learnings

Basics of Photography : Post Processing in D-SLRs The Shadows/Highlights Tool Fungus Photography Tips Give your Photos a Velvia® Touch with a Black & White Adjustment Layer

Write to us at: Mail Bag Smart Photography, Trade World, C-Wing, 2nd Floor, Kamala Mills Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel(W), Mumbai 400013.

E-mail: sp@nextgenpublishing.net

The best teacher

I have been a regular subscriber/ reader/lover of your magazine for many years now.

Photography is a serious hobby of mine, and so is travelling.

The tutorials, learnings, reviews have taught me plenty. I keep experimenting as advised by the writers. Thank you for the wonderful information you churn out every month. Recently I purchased a Nikon D3100 and took it to Kerala, Kanyakumari, Rameshvaram and Madurai. The results were pleasing. I hope you can feature my in your magazine.

Thanks and Regards, Dr. Prakash Lalpotu, Maharashtra

Win

Letter of the Month

A Uniross 1H LCD CHARGER Worth Rs.1,095/Every Month For the LETTER OF THE MONTH

Survival of the fittest During a two week trip to Switzerland and Austria, my wife Manjula and I carried our own favourite cameras along with us. I with my Canon 5DII; she with her LUMIX FX150. At the top of Jungfrau, she dropped her camera on to a concrete floor about fifteen feet below. A bump threw it a further 10 feet below. I knew we would have to pick up the mortal remains of the camera and bury it at this great place. To our utter surprise, it miraculously survived with just two dents. The lens, LCD and CCD mechanism were intact! A miracle of miracles indeed. I am confident that no camera could have survived this free fall. This photo was taken with her camera after the great scare.

Kind regards, Ashok Dilwali via E-mail

P.S. A major experiment was going on in Geneva about the God Particle while she was putting the strength of the Lumix to test!

Tech Editor’s reply: Amazing! It definitely speaks of Panasonic quality.

10

Smart Photography August 2012

Mailbag

Pride of Gujarat I have been a regular reader of your magazine for quite sometime. I wanted to share a little snippet of news with you.

The Gujarat State Lalit Kala Academy conducted their 15th National Photography Competition, with the theme “Pride of Gujarat”. I secured the second place in the contest. This was a great moment for me. I would appreciate if your team would feature this image in the magazine.

Thanks and Regards, Dinesh Bhavsar

Correction?

I am 81 years old, and have been closely associated with photography since 1947. I read all the magazines published in India, as well as a select few foreign ones. This is with reference to the ‘Quiz Time’ results published in the July 2012 issue. The country of Voigtländer is Germany; not Austria as mentioned. I wish to say that Voigtländer Kautex Werke and Rollei (for Rolleiflex and Rolleicord) Kautex Werke-both 12

Smart Photography August 2012

were in the city of Braunschwerg, Germany. Voigtländer was the first company to bring a 35mm still camera (Bessamatic) with a zoom lens (36mm-82mm). At one time, Germany was the “Maternity Home” of all the best cameras, such a Zeiss-Ikon, Kodak Retina, Agfa Isolette, Rolleiflex and Rolleicord, Linhoff etc. Hope the required rectification will be made.

Thanks and Regards, B.K. Majumdar, Bhilai

Editor’s Reply: Dear Mr. Majumdar, The quiz was about the countries of origin. We quote from “The Register of 35mm Single Lens Reflex Cameras”, 2nd Edition, Pg. 250 by Rudolph Lea, Witting Books: “Voigtländer was the first and oldest opticalphotographic firm in the world, having been founded in 1756

by Christopher Voigtländer in Vienna during the reign of Maria Theresa.”

News Watch International

SNIPPETS

Ricoh issues firmware 1.51 for GXR modules

Panasonic launches Lumix DMC-G5 16MP midlevel mirrorless camera

Ricoh has issued a firmware update for all the camera modules of its GXR modular camera system.

Version 1.51 is supposed to improve image quality in photos taken when combining negative exposure compensation with the multi-area ‘Multi-P Auto’ white balance setting. Downloads are available from Ricoh immediately.

Panasonic has unveiled the LUMIX DMC-G5, a mid-level mirrorless interchangeable lens camera. The G5 is built around a 16MP LiveMOS sensor that the company implies hasn’t been used in a G-series camera before.

In principle the G5 will sit above the existing G3 in the company’s lineup.

Firmware updates from Nikon and Sigma

Nikon has updated the firmware of its D4 professional SLR to version 1.02, allowing more-vivid display of images shot in the Adobe RGB colour space, improving the stability of FTP upload connections and fixing various other minor issues. Meanwhile Sigma has released firmware updates for its SD1 and SD1 Merrill SLRs (versions 1.07 and 1.02 respectively).

Reuters to use robotic D-SLRs during the Olympics

Two photographers for international news agency Reuters are taking robot-controlled D-SLRs to the London Olympics, which will begin shortly. Fabrizio Bensch and Pawel Kopczynski are rigging the cameras into fullyarticulating mounts, which they will be able to control remotely by computer, using a joystick. As well as camera orientation, they will also be able to zoom the lenses attached to the cameras and trigger exposure.

14

Smart Photography August 2012

Panasonic reveals DMC-FZ200 high-end superzoom Panasonic has revealed the Lumix DMC-FZ200 - a 24X superzoom with an impressive constant F2.8 lens and high-resolution electronic viewfinder.

That fast lens means that it should be easier to capture high-quality images at the full extent of the zoom, without having to use high ISO settings.

images at 10 frames per second and shoot 1080i60 movies (from 30p sensor output).

Panasonic to introduce Lumix DMC-LX7 with F1.4-2.3, 24-90mm equiv. lens

Panasonic develops 45-150mm F4.0-5.6 ASPH tele-zoom Panasonic unveiled the LUMIX G VARIO 45-150mm F4.0-5.6 ASPH Mega OIS, a compact entry-level telephoto zoom for Micro Four Thirds cameras. At just 73mm, and weighing 200gms, it is the smallest lens in its class.

Panasonic creates DMC-FZ60 and FZ62 mid-price 16MP superzooms Panasonic is to offer the Lumix DMCFZ60, a mid-priced 24X superzoom with MOS sensor. The FZ60 doesn’t retain the FZ200’s constant-F2.8 lens or high-res viewfinder but its sensor allows it to capture full-resolution

Panasonic has announced the Lumix DMC-LX7. The LX7 features a slightly smaller sensor than the LX5, allowing it to offer the brightest lens of any compact camera with a really impressive F1.4-2.3 24-90mm equivalent range. Based around a 10.1MP MOS sensor, the camera is equipped with a fully re-designed lens, image sensor and image processing engine for superior performance and stunning image quality.

News Watch International

SNIPPETS

Canon significantly improves EOS 7D

Canon has announced a firmware update that will add a series of features to the EOS 7D. In an unusual move for a camera that has been on the market for almost three years, Canon is performing the most comprehensive firmware upgrade ever. It will be available from August 2012.

Schneider-Kreuznach to launch Micro Four Thirds lens Schneider-Kreuznach plans to market new optics for compact system camera lenses, in the Micro Four Thirds format. The first lens features a f/2.0 maximum aperture and 14mm focal length, reportedly with autofocus and diaphragm control.

Ritz Camera and Imaging files for bankruptcy

Once the largest US retail chain with over 1,000 retail stores, Ritz Camera has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in less than 3 years after emerging from its first bankruptcy. As part of the restructuring, Ritz Camera and Imaging plans to close 128 retail locations from 265 retail stores in 34 states and cut staff of 2,000 in half.

Nokia to restructure its business

Nokia has announced sweeping changes to its business, including the reduction of 10,000 employees and transitions within its top management level. In addition, Nokia plans to sell its high-end phone unit to Vertu Company.

16

Smart Photography August 2012

Samsung releases 12MP EX2F ‘Smart Camera’

Samsung has launched EX2F, the successor to its EX1 high-end compact camera. The 12 megapixel EX2F combines a number of features to deliver incredible picture quality in all conditions. With the segment-leading advanced F1.4 24mm lens, the wide range of aperture steps delivers clear images and video even in very low light conditions. The magnesium-bodied EX2F features a 1/1.7” 12.4MP BSI CMOS sensor and the fastest lens of any compact camera on the market - F1.4 at its widest 24mm equivalent setting (slowing down to F2.7 at the 80mm equivalent end). The EX2F will be priced at $549 and will be available in the market from August 2012.

Fujifilm Canon issues announces the allergy warning for XF14mm F2.8 and EOS 650D has issued a warning to owners XF18-55mm F2.8-4 Canon of the EOS 650D/Rebel T4i stating that Fujifilm has announced the XF14mm F2.8 and XF18-55mm F2.8-4 zoom lens for its X-Pro1 camera. Also published is a road-map for the system, detailing an additional five lenses that will be released by mid-2013. The XF14mm F2.8 offers a 21mm equivalent field of view, while the 18-55mm offers a 27-84mm semi-fast standard zoom. Prices and availability have not been announced for these lenses. They are expected to arrive towards the end of 2012. Other forthcoming lenses include an 84mm equivalent F1.4 portrait lens and walk around options of a 35mm equiv. F1.4 or a 41mm equiv. F2.8, with zooms to follow in mid 2013.

the rubber hand-grips of some models may turn white, and produce a chemical that could cause an allergic reaction.

According to Canon, the chemical, zinc bis (N,N’-dimethyl dithiocarbamate), is not used in the production of the camera but is a potential by-product of a chemical reaction between other substances found in the hand-grip. Canon has identified a certain number of cameras where an excess of ‘rubber accelerator’ was used in the production of this component. This could potentially trigger such a chemical reaction.

Canon advises owners of affected cameras to thoroughly wash their hands with water if they have come in contact with the rubber grip.

News Watch International

Nikon announces development of F-Mount 800mm super telephoto lens Nikon announced the development of a super-telephoto, fixed focal length lens to add to its line-up of full frame (FX) NIKKOR lenses. The 800mm, AF-S lens, with a bright aperture of f/5.6 and VR system, will be fully compatible with the auto focus system of all Nikon FX-format cameras.

resistance.

The lens will also be on show to the general public visiting Photokina 2012, the world’s largest photo and imaging exhibition, in Germany, from 18th - 23rd September 2012.

The new lens has been developed to further strengthen the NIKKOR line-up of super-telephoto lenses. It will boast the longest focal length possessed by any NIKKOR autofocus lens, and has been designed with field sports, news and wildlife photographers in mind. In addition to its superior optical performance, the lens will offer dust and water

Nikon unveils APS-C DX format 16.7x zoom lens Nikon Corp. introduced a zoom lens with the world’s highest zooming ratio of 16.7x in the APS-C DX format category. The AF S DX NIKKOR 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6G DV VR is equivalent to 27-450mm in 35mm format maintaining an F5.6 brightness in the telephoto end. The other features include: quiet autofocussing with SWM, manual priority M/A system, and closest shooting distance of 0.45m in the telephoto end. The lens will retail at 136,500 yen (US$1,700).

Sigma to launch APS sensor size 13.9x zoom lens Sigma Corp. announced that it will launch a compact yet powerful lens with a 13.9x zooming ratio. The 18-250mm F3.5-6.3 DC MACRO OS HSM, equivalent to 27-375mm in 35mm format, is capable of macro-photography at 35cm throughout its focussing range. The company has successfully reduced the weight of the lens by 160g and size by 11.5mm in length and 5.5mm in diameter compared to its former model by, improving optical design and structure. Mounts for Sigma, Nikon, Canon, Sony and Pentax will be available soon at a suggested price of 84,000 yen (US$1,050).

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Smart Photography August 2012

Canon showcases Selphy CP900 Wi-Fi compact photo printer Canon has unveiled the Selphy CP900, a Wi-Fi-enabled dyesub compact photo printer. The CP900 can print borderless 4x6” photos in as little as 47 seconds. The built-in screen and control interface allows you to browse computers on the same Wi-Fi network to locate your images. There are also iOS and Android apps that allow direct printing to the CP900.

The CP900 will cost around $100.

News Watch International Legendary photographer Sunil Janah passes away Legendary progressive photographer Sunil Janah, who documented the Bengal famine of the 1940s with his black-and-white camera and shot to instant fame, died recently in the US. Janah’s photographs of the famine published in the party journal People’s War brought him instant fame because of the horror that he captured on his camera.

In fact, he went on to become one of the most famous photographer of India and was sought out by Life magazine’s Margaret Bourke White. He also documented the various tribes of India with iconic anthropologist Verrier Elvin. Smart Photography pays its humble tribute to this renowned artiste. May his soul rest in peace.

Lexar to introduce XQD cards Memory card maker Lexar has announced it will offer XQD format cards later this year. The company says that the cards will support the Nikon D4 and ‘future XQD-based camera models,’ and will be available from the third quarter of 2012. The XQD format was developed by companies including Sony and has been promoted through 20

Smart Photography August 2012

the Compact Flash Association. Despite this, Nikon is the only camera maker to have made use of the format so far.

Visit www.ingemorath.org for more details.

Frank Hallam Day wins the Leica Oskar

Nikon recalls more than 200,000 Barnack Award camera batteries The Leica Oskar Barnack Award was Due to potential burn hazard, Nikon has recalled more than 200,000 of its camera batteries sold with the D800 and D7000. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Health Canada announced the voluntary recall. Recalled are the Nikon EN-EL 15 rechargeable lithiumion battery packs with lot numbers E and F. No injuries have been reported.

About 5,100 of the batteries were sold in the United States, 1,100 in Canada, and 195,000 worldwide

awarded to Frank Hallam Day. He secured a €5000 cash prize, a Leica M9-P camera and a lens costing around €10,000. The series on Alumascapes put together by Frank is the result of a month-long journey through Florida, wherein he photographed the ultra-modern, high-tech and luxury recreational vehicles entwined in the jungles, all the while appearing as essential islands of security in a dark and hostile environment.

Cosina announces Voigtländer Color Skopar SL II 28mm

Isadora Kosofsky wins Inge Morath Award F2.8 lens The Magnum and Inge Morath Foundations have declared US photographer Isadora Kosofsky as the winner of the Inge Morath Award for her project on the elderly. She bagged a $5000 grant, which will go towards the completion of a long-term documentary project on the lives and relationships of the elderly.

Kosofsky (18), began her work with the elderly after the death of her grandmother, who raised her.

Cosina has announced the Voigtländer Color Skopar SL II 28mm F2.8 manual focus prime lens for Nikon and Canon D-SLRs. The latest in Voigtländer’s SL II range, it offers a wideangle 74.8° field-of-view on full-frame D-SLRs or short-normal angle of around 53° on APS-C cameras. The lens will sell with a recommended retail price of €529 for Nikon, which includes an AIS chip to allow use of all metering modes, or €549 for the Canon version.

News Watch Business Kodak wins approval to auction digital imaging patents Though the motion was contested by Apple and FlashPoint Technologies, Eastman Kodak Company has obtained the required approval from the Bankruptcy Court to conduct an auction to sell its Digital Capture and Kodak Imaging Systems and Services (KISS) patent portfolios.

In a press release, Kodak mentioned that Apple and Flashpoint had asserted “ownership” interests in a small number of the 1,100 patents in the portfolios. The Bankruptcy Court, however, found that all of the patents in the Digital Capture and KISS patent portfolios are a

property of Kodak’s estate. Accordingly, the Court granted Kodak the right to sell these patents free and clear of Apple and FlashPoint’s claims at the auction, subject to the applicable provisions of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

Kodak is selling the patents under Section 363 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code which permits a sale free of any adverse claim or interest. The patents will be sold in a fair, competitive process overseen by the Bankruptcy Court.

At closing, the winning bidder can obtain an order of the Bankruptcy Court that protects it against any third-party ownership claims.

Fujifilm announces price Hasselblad to rise for motion picture films revamp itself as a single Fujifilm has announced an increase in the prices of its manufacturing centre motion picture films, worldwide. According to a press release, the increase rate will be between 5% and 35%, depending on products and markets.

Fujifilm points out that the price increase is due to the increasing costs of raw materials and the Japanese Yen appreciation, as well as the dramatic and rapid acceleration of digitalisation in the motion picture film industry since last year.

Rupee-hit Fujifilm to exit low-cost camera market Fujifilm is set to exit India’s ultra low-cost market, where the models are priced below Rs.4000, within the next three months. This step will be taken to improve revenue generation. The recent fall of the rupee has affected the margins of the ultra low-model cameras, as they come from Japan and China. Last year the company sold the C20; and this year the C25 and L30. Since the import has been stopped, the stock is expected to be exhausted in the next three months. According to Fujifilm India, the Indian digital market is expected to reach 35 lakh units in 2012 from the 28lakh units of last year.

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Smart Photography August 2012

Hasselblad is expected to consolidate its current production and service functions in Denmark and Sweden to a central facility in Gothenburg, Sweden. According to a press release, the decision to relocate operations based in Copenhagen, Denmark, is part of the company’s long-term growth and efficiency strategy outlined last year.

“We plan to implement strategies to provide our customers with the premium quality service they expect from Hasselblad,” commented CEO Dr. Larry Hansen. “In this case, we believe this is best achieved by managing this vital element of our business in the future from a single centre in Sweden. As a result, our deliveries will be more efficient and turnaround times for customers across the world will be reduced.”

Hasselblad also plans a move from its current Copenhagen administrative HQ to new modern premises closer to the airport in August.

News Watch Business

Olympus to partner with Sony in capital tie-up

It is reported that Olympus and Sony will enter into the final negotiation for the financial tie-up which Olympus has been considering in order to raise the equity ratio to about 10% from the current 4.6%, and to strengthen its digital camera business. The decision is expected to be finalised next month. Industry watchers see Panasonic and Sony as the most likely candidates for restructuring the D-cam business since both companies are strong in the image sensor technology. Panasonic, in particular has been considered the best choice for Olympus as they have been cooperating in developing the Micro Four Thirds mirrorless lens interchangeable camera system. Sony will invest approximately 50 billion yen (US$625 M) to become the top shareholder of Olympus holding about 10% of the issues shares. If the negotiation with Sony goes unsuccessful, Olympus may negotiate with Terumo, with which Olympus has a financial relationship.

Canon to manufacture D-cams in Brazil

Canon has set up its digital camera production in Brazil by establishing Canon Industria de Manaus Ltda., located in the state of Amazonas. The D-camera market in Brazil is regarded as the fourth largest one, following U.S.A., China, and Japan. An increase in demand is expected in light of hosting the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and the Olympiad in 2016. Canon intends to tap the potential market by launching the local production. The company has already established a marketing subsidiary in Sao Paulo and plans to set up marketing subsidiaries in Columbia and Peru by 2014.

SanDisk to announce its highest-capacity USB flash drives 70 million Nikkor SanDisk has announced a new range of flash drives including the company’s fastest, slimmest and highest-capacity USB products. The USB 3.0-enabled SanDisk Extreme USB flash drive can transfer, store and share large files up to 10 times faster with speeds of up to 190MB per second.

According to a press release, the drive can transfer smaller files almost instantaneously and larger files such as a 3GB file in 20 seconds or a 40GB file in four minutes. The SanDisk Extreme USB flash drive is backed by a lifetime limited warranty and available worldwide now in 16GB to 64GB capacities.

Also new from SanDisk is the Cruzer Facet USB flash drive in 8GB to 32GB capacities; the Cruzer Pop USB flash drive, in 8GB to 32GB capacities; and the 128GB Cruzer Glide USB flash drive, the company’s highest-capacity USB drive.

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Smart Photography August 2012

lenses produced till date

Nikon has disclosed that the total production of Nikkor lenses for Nikon interchangeable lens cameras reached 70 million as on May 2012, since its first release in 1933.

The company last year added the Nikon1 advanced cameras with interchangeable lenses in the non-reflex type. The company said total production of AF-S lenses equipped with the Silent Wave Motor (SWM), the autofocus motor developed by Nikon, has reached 30 million units.

News Watch National

New range of Samsung Smart Cameras released Samsung announced the launch of its new, smart cameras across the WB, ST, ES and DV series. The new launches are the WB100 with a 26x High Zoom lens, the ST200F and DV300F with WiFi connectivity and the ST66, DV100 and ES90. While along with a 16-megapixel image sensor, the Samsung WB100 sports a 26x Optical High Zoom lens and 22.3mm ultra wide-angle lens.

Photographers who wish to capture moving images will be assisted by Samsung’s Dual Image Stabilisation (OIS + DIS) function that helps compensate for unsteady photographs. On the other hand, the Samsung DV300F is the first DualView camera from Samsung to feature the built-in WiFi functionality. The DualView Samsung DV300F

is a 16 Megapixel camera, with a 1.5 inch front LCD screen display for easier selfportraits, a 3 inch rear LCD screen, a 25mm wide angle lens, an impressive 5x optical zoom with OIS and a F2.5 lens that delivers professional quality images even in dim light.

Fujifilm introduces 30x optical zoom-FinePix SL300 The introduction of Fujifilm’s new Fine Pix SL300 makes it possible to capture distant objects with the help of the 30x optical zoom.

FinePixSL300 features a 14 megapixel CCD sensor with sensor-shift image stabilisation, a 30x optical zoom with a focal range of 24-720mm, 720p HD video at 30fps, a bright 3-inch 460k dot LCD screen, faster start-up, improved auto-focus speed and an upgraded response time.

Kingston ships next-gen secure USB flash drive

Kingston has started the shipment of its second-generation, lower priced DataTraveler Locker+ G2 that works interchangeably between Mac OS X and Windows systems. Data will be secured using a password set by the user. The stylish, durable metal casing also features a key loop for easy attachment to a backpack, briefcase or purse. The DataTraveler Locker+ G2 is available in 4GB, 8GB, 16GB and 32GB capacities. It is backed by a five-year warranty and free technical support.

August 2012 Smart Photography

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News Watch National

Tamron unveils high speed standard zoom lens Tamron has announced the unveiling of SP 24-70mm F/2.8 Di VC USD (Model A007), the world’s first full-size highspeed standard zoom lens equipped with VC (Vibration Compensation) image stabilisation, and USD (Ultrasonic Silent Drive). This announcement was made at a grand launch function which was held in Jaypee Siddartha Hotel, New Delhi.

Speaking on the occasion Nitin Goyal, General Manager Tamron Co., Ltd. India said, “Sensing the market growth and the positive response from the end users, Tamron has organised this event to show the company’s commitment and seriousness towards the Indian market.”

The new 24-70mm is compatible with full frame and APS-C

80 million Epson HTPS panels shipped Seiko Epson Corporation has announced a total shipment of 80 million high-temperature polysilicon (“HTPS”) TFT liquid crystal panels for 3LCD projectors; sufficient for more than 26.5 million projector units.

Currently, 3LCD projectors are widely used in a variety of market spaces. In the home theater segment, projectors offer a compelling movie-viewing experience with 3D and high contrast capable of producing jet-black shadows, while in the education segment, projectors 26

Smart Photography August 2012

Nitin Goyal at the launch in New Delhi

format D-SLRs. The lens will available at MRP of Rs. 71,900/-.

facilitate effective learning at school.

Projectors also offer effective support for events in the commercial segment by delivering lectures, art and entertainment in large spaces.

The market for projectors is expected to grow nearly 10% every year.

Transcend introduces 32GB SDHC Class 10 USH-I Cards A new 32GB SDHC Class 10 UHS-I (Ultra High Speed Class 1) memory card is the latest from Transcend’s line

of superior memory cards. Equipped with the fastest type of Toggle mode flash chips available, Transcend’s SDHC Class 10 UHS-I memory cards can now capture and store up to 32GB of stunningly-detailed images and flawless, stutter-free Full HD video.

In addition to remarkable transfer speeds, 32GB SDHC Class 10 UHS-I can store eight hours of 1080p High-Definition footage or over two thousand RAW images. When paired with a high-end card reader, the UHS-I card provides ultra-fast file transfers at up to 70MB/s and 85MB/s respectively.

Transcend SDHC Class 10 UHS-I memory cards are currently available in 8GB (US$25), 16GB (US$49), and 32GB (US$89). All are backed by Transcend’s limited lifetime warranty.

News Watch

Kenichiro Hibi takes over as new MD of Sony India

National Canon India enters cinematography imaging arena

Sony India announced the appointment of Kenichiro Hibi as the company’s new Managing Director. Hibi will be responsible for spearheading the overall growth and profitability of the company within the region, by driving robust business strategies, providing insightful leadership and guiding excellence in market performance across all categories. Kenichiro Hibi replaced Masaru Tamagawa, the former Managing Director, Sony India, who has currently taken over as the new President of Sony Europe.

SanDisk reveals suite of retail products

Team Sandisk and Manisha Sood at the launch in New Delhi

SanDisk Corporation recently announced a suite of new retail products that includes four new USB flash drives and a high-performance memory card. SanDisk unveiled the new products in India to kick off a global launch.

The new SanDisk Extreme Pro microSDHC UHS-I card is the world’s fastest memory card. It is ideal for smartphone and tablet users.

“India is an important market for SanDisk, and today serves as the global launch platform for our new USB flash drives and industry-leading memory card,” said Manisha Sood, country manager and director, India and SAARC, SanDisk.

EOS C500

In a move to expand Canon’s market penetration in India, Masaya Maeda, Managing Director, Chief Executive Officer & Global Head - Imaging Communication Products (ICP) division, Canon Inc., Japan, visited the country recently to announce Canon India’s ambitious entry into the cinematography imaging business domain. On the occasion, Maeda san also unveiled three advanced Cinema EOS range cameras including the EOS C300, EOS C500 and EOS 1-DC, along with eleven new Cinema EOS lenses. This ambitious launch will help the company widen its product portfolio in India and further accelerate the industry’s transformation in terms of image capturing effects with technology and innovation.

In addition to the path breaking launches, Canon also introduced the Canon Professional Services (CPS) which will provide membership for selected media houses (company membership), especially targetting the regions of Mumbai, Delhi.

August 2012 Smart Photography

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News Watch National Canon to make D-SLRs smaller and lighter; ILCCs imminent Canon also takes into account Masaya Maeda san, Managing the costs of developing and Director and Chief Executive, R&D. There is a lot of technology Imaging Division, Canon Inc., built into the higher-end D-SLRs recently made his first visit to and the price reflects this.

India. Canon India used this opportunity to launch a variety Canon recently announced of new products in the Indian plans for a plant in Brazil. Are market. Of particular importance there any similar plans for was the launch of products in the India? cinematographic sector for which You must understand that the plant Canon launched 3 cine cameras for Brazil was necessary because and 11 lenses. Also launched was Masaya Maeda san with Alok Bharadwaj at Canon India press meet of the geographical distance from the EOS 650D which has been Japan. Currently, Canon has no plans for focussing much faster. Also for the first positioned as a flagship camera in the setting up a plant in India. time, Canon will be using both Faceentry-level D-SLR range of Canon.

Detection and Contrast-Detection Using Maeda san’s arrival in India as a Are Smartphones beginning to autofocus for better focussing. pivot, Canon held a press conference affect the camera market? during which Maeda san along with Yes. But only in some segments. Canon is Companies like Fujifilm and his colleagues answered a range of steadily building Wi-Fi into its camera to Olympus are moving out of lowquestions. Accompanying Maeda san allow social networking. end compacts. What is Canon’s on the dais were Kensaku Konishi san, strategy? former Managing Director, Canon Canon is committed to the lower-end, What does Canon think of the India, and currently the President megapixel race where competitors as long as it can sustain the pricing. and CEO, Canon Singapore, Dr. Alok have launched 40 megapixel D-SLRs? Bhardwaj, Senior Vice President and Canon believes that apart from the When is Canon’s ILCC being Seiji Hamanishi san, Asst. Director, pixels there are other important factors launched?

Imaging Communications Products like lens quality, autofocus performance No comments. However, Canon is Division, Canon India. Reproduced and the quality of software which are moving towards making its D-SLRs below are some of the questions that very important. Megapixels alone smaller and lighter. (We, however, were answered by the Canon team: cannot deliver optimum picture quality. understand that Canon’s ILCC will be launched definitely before Photokina The EOS 650D’s on sensor AF Why are lenses made by in September 2012). system delivers faster focussing independent camera makers so when using the LCD screen in much cheaper than Canon lenses?

In recent times, Canon’s pricing Live View mode. Does this mean It must be remembered that Canon of D-SLRs and lenses has followed that Canon will sooner or later lenses are developed keeping in a premium pattern. For instance, abandon the optical viewfinder? mind the technology embedded into the EOS 5D MarkIII is priced at a Canon is still committed to the optical Canon D-SLR bodies. The quality of viewfinder. At the same time, it is further considerable premium to its close raw materials used and the technology competitor. Is there any reason developing the capabilities of the put into the lens is clearly superior for this? electronic viewfinder. The autofocus and that explains the higher pricing.

Canon’s pricing is determined not by sensor on the main sensor enables last the prices of the competitors alone. minute focussing and therefore makes

H. S. Billimoria 28

Smart Photography August 2012

World’s 3rd Largest Consumer Electronic & Imaging Show

3 rd to 6 th January 2013, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.

Formerly known as Photofair I Stall Bookings Opening Shortly Organised By:

Co-Organised By:

IndIa’s no.1 PhotograPhy MagazIne

Photograph by

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Participate

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WIN!

MK 393 PD Tripod

Sponsored by:

Picture of the Month We are sure that all of you have a few pictures that you think are prize worthy. It happens very often that you don’t know where to send the image that could put a feather in your cap. If you have such images (we’re sure you have many!), send us ONE such horizontal image. If it qualifies, we shall publish it as a double-spread. a. You have to guarantee that the picture was shot by you b. If there are people in the picture who can be identified, we’ll need a model release

c. The picture should not have been printed elsewhere (magazine newspaper, or offered to any publication) d. Mark the entry as “Picture of the Month” and rename the file using your name e. You may send images via print/e-mail to: Next Gen Publishing Ltd.,2nd Floor, C Wing, Trade World, Kamala Mills Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel (W), Mumbai 400013 (or) sphoto.india@gmail.com

A note to our readers 1. The picture has to be horizontal.

2. Kindly ensure that the longer side should measure atleast 17 inches, at 300ppi.

3. Low resolution images will not be accepted.

4. We do not check images on online galleries.

5. Kindly ensure complete contact/address details are provided. Winners will have to collect their prize from SP’s Mumbai office or send an authorised representative to do so.

6. Please make sure that your picture does not have your name/logo on it.

Finally, a platform for all photographers to exhibit their talent and GET NOTICED!

Kaleidoscope

Mystical Curves

Image Courtesy : Rishabh K Collection Camera:Nikon Canon EOS 5D Mark II Camera: D90 Shutterspeed: speed:1/200sec 1/400sec Shutter Aperture:f/6.3 f/8 Aperture: Ruchee Sensitivity:ISO ISO400 100 Sensitivity:

Soni Ahmedabad

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Smart Photography August 2012

Flying Moods!! “W ith an academic and professional background in Architecture, I was inclined towards the more subtler forms of arts, colours and nature. Not satisfied with a basic foundation course in pho-

tography, I followed up with a Diploma in Photography from the Centre for Photography (CEPT), Ahmedabad. But given the hectic and mechanical work schedule, I believed that essentially some creative distractions, especially

Look Ma, no Hands!

Bird Type : Indian Roller (Coracias Benghalensis) Camera: Canon EOS 1000D Lens: Canon 55-250mm IS Aperture : f/5.6 Shutter speed: 1/4000 sec.

ISO: 800

the abundance in nature through her lens.

the environs of nature would enable me to think differently and sharpen the required creative focus”, says bird and photography lover Ruchee Soni.

This underlying belief enabled her to embark on a journey to discover

In her quest to understand nature; especially birds, she started educating herself in Nature Conservation and Omithology. Her architectural sense definitely aided her, helping her create some good compositions and frames. Gradually she realised that Bird Photography, had almost become a field of study for her.

Ruchee understood that once she would be exposed to the bird’s behavior patterns, breeding habits, nesting periods, habitat and migration etc, photography would only get more exciting and adventurous.

Bird Photography means to frame a moment that is quite literally, fleeting. The best training would

Flair in the Air

Bird Type : Eurasian Spoonbills (Platalea Leucorodia) Camera: Canon EOS 1000D Lens: Canon 55-250mm L USM Aperture: f/5.6 Shutter speed: 1/3200 sec.

ISO: 400

be out there on the field. To add value to her work, she grabbed the opportunities that came along.

Tracking back from her first exposure through an exhibition that was held at CEPT, (which was sponsored by Nikon), she has upped her ante to develop, educate and train herself to understand the avian species closer.

This has resulted in her work not only getting better, but immensely rewarding at the same time.

Ruchee believes that her this is only a start and there are miles for her to walk before she can fly!

Equipment:

Camera: Canon 60D and Canon 1000D Lenses: Canon 100 – 400mm L USM and Canon 550 – 250mm lens August 2012 Smart Photography

33

Mixed Feelings

Bird Type: Great White Pelicans (Pelecanus Ornocrotalus) Camera: Canon EOS 60D Lens: Canon 100-400mm L USM Aperture: f/5.6 Shutter speed: 1/3200 sec.

ISO: 200

Hold on to me

Bird Type : Black-Rumped Flameback Woodpecker (Dinopium Benghalense) Camera: Canon EOS 1000D Lens: Canon 55-250mm IS Aperture: f/5.6 Shutter speed: 1/160 sec.

ISO: 200

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Smart Photography August 2012

Hopscotch

Bird Type : Red-Wattled Lapwing (Vanellus Indicus) Camera: Canon EOS 1000D Lens: Canon 55-250mm L USM Aperture: f/5.6 Shutter speed: 1/320 sec.

ISO: 400

Barefoot in the Park

Bird Type : Sarus Cranes (Grus Antigone) Camera: Canon EOS 60D Lens: Canon 100-400mm L USM Aperture: f/9 Shutter speed: 1/250 sec.

ISO: 250

Ow, I’m Here!!

Bird Type : Spotted Owlet (Athene Brama) Camera: Canon EOS 60D Lens: Canon 100-400mm L USM Aperture: f/7.1 Shutter speed: 1/400 sec.

ISO: 400

Get featured & win an Epson PictureMate PM245, worth Rs.9999/-!

CALLING ALL PHOTOGRAPHERS! Kaleidoscope is the perfect way to jump-start your career... So simply send us a selection of your images along with full details of your vision and the technical information at sp@nextgenpublishing.net. We accept both film and digital images.

All pictures that are forwarded to Kaleidoscope should be 8x10 inches in size (or larger) and at 300 ppi. However, we will re-size them according to the layout considerations.

August 2012 Smart Photography

35

E-mail your images at sp@nextgenpublishing.net

If I Were You Our Imaging Expert

No one can take a picture that everyone likes. But, almost every picture can have a scope of improvement. Many-a-times, we are not our best critic, while others can immediately point out the faults. In If I were you, our expert comments on how your pictures could be taken to another level.

Rohinton Mehta, Technical Editor, Smart Photography

Lazy Lions

Smart Photography reader Gokul. S has sent us this picture of two lions for critique.

The EXIF data says that the picture has been shot using a 135mm lens on a Nikon D80. I take it that it was a 18-135mm zoom lens. The equivalent focal length in terms of 35mm format is 202mm. Hence, by the rule of the thumb, your shutter speed should have been at least 1/200sec. (Your picture is reasonably sharp, but could have been sharper).

I have ‘opened up’ the image a wee bit (Edited image 1).

Not being satisfied with the composition, I cropped the image as seen in Edited image 2. The edited images were slightly sharpened.

The lion at the left has been chopped off. I assume that you wanted a tighter shot of the other lion but the lens did not have enough ‘reach’, therefore the lion on the left got included by default.

Picture Info

Camera: Nikon D80 ISO: 100 Shutter Speed: 1/40sec Aperture: f/8

Original Image

I feel the image is a shade too dark (though some may like the darker version). A slight extra exposure would have sufficed.

Unfortunately, the LCDs of modern cameras are overly bright and this can cause you to misjudge the exposure. Get into the habit of checking the histogram. And to ensure that highlights don’t get clipped, I suggest that the highlight overexposure warning (also known as ‘blinkies’) remain enabled at all times.

Edited Image 1

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Smart Photography August 2012

Edited Image 2

If I Were You

The Snarling Monkey

Smart Photography reader Mohan Krishnan captured this monkey viciously snarling. The expression is good, but the subject is too much to the centre of the frame. Moreover, the monkey’s right hand and a part of his foot have been inadvertently cut off. This should be avoided (unless you are trying for a close-up of the face).

I adjusted the contrast using Levels in Photoshop. This adjustment brightened up the monkey, but the little white flowers became too bright and started competing for

attention. Hence, using the advantage of the white Mask that automatically forms when Levels is used, I toned down the white flowers with the Brush tool (with black as the Foreground colour).

Next, I cropped the image. Observe that I have left more space in the direction of the monkey’s gaze. Finally, the image was sharpened.

Note: The foliage in the background is somewhat disturbing.

If needed, that could be toned down too.

Original Image

Picture Info

Camera: Nikon D3100 ISO: 200 Shutter Speed: 1/125sec Aperture: f/4.5

Edited Image

August 2012 Smart Photography

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If I Were You

Note: If I Were You is meant to encourage and guide readers, and help them improve their photography. Please ensure that the required camera/exposure details are sent to us (or are available in the EXIF data). From now onwards, we shall not accept images for this section if the required data is not available. Readers are requested to send their images at 300ppi for 8 x 10-inch size. If they are too small, it gets difficult to work on them, and hence may be rejected.

The Figure SP reader Munsi Hansda from Kolkata has taken this photo at Diga in West Bengal. He wants to know if the picture could be improved. I assume that he wanted to show some similarity between the tree and a human figure.

Since the background is at close proximity with what could be considered as the main element in the picture, it would not be possible to throw it out of focus during the shoot. To add to that difficulty, you have opted for f/11. Why? Narrow apertures give greater depth of field; you should have opted for a much wider aperture, which would also have allowed a faster shutter speed. As it stands, there is a lot of clutter in the background. Frankly, it is not easy to improve this picture.

I have tried to soften the background using Gaussian Blur in Photoshop. First, I added a lot of blur, and then carefully

Original Image 38

Smart Photography August 2012

brushed out the areas where the blur was not desirable.

Then, using the Multiply Blending Mode, that layer was darkened.

However, I am not too happy with my own edit. Just goes to prove that Photoshop should not be considered as a magic bullet.

Picture Info

Camera: Panasonic FZ50 ISO: 100 Shutter speed: 1/20 sec Aperture: f/11

Edited Image

Ask Uncle Ronnie Maxim asks Maximum Questions!

1. If I have f/4, f/2.8, f/1.8 lenses, which will be the sharpest at f/4?

2. What is the minimum shutter speed to get sharp pictures on a tripod, for different focal lengths; for example, using a 70-300 mm lens at 70mm or 300mm, or 50mm prime lenses?

3. While taking multiple shots of the same picture, is it better to use the Single shot mode and fire twice/thrice one after the other, or use the Continuous firing mode?

4. Does VR/IS help us under 1/500 second even during day time if I need faster shutter speed at aperture priority mode?

5. What camera parameters does exposure compensation alter?

Is this function equal to raising brightness levels in Photoshop?

6. Are pictures shot at 1/500 sec or more, affected by slight regular hand shaking?

I can ask some more next month, though I think it’s enough for now.

Maxim, via E-mail Sure, Maxim. It’s enough for now!

1. Assuming that all the three lenses are of the same focal length, with similar optics, and with the subject at the same distance, the f/1.8 lens should be the sharpest at f/4. This is because the f/1.8 lens would be stopped down a little over 2-stops from its widest opening (which generally defines the optimum aperture). In the case of the f/2.8 lens, it would be 1-stop down

Did you know... Ronnie has over 35 years of experience in photography?

In fact, he has taught several thousand photoenthusiasts in various institutions and through workshops, as well as judged many national and international photo contests, including the prestigious International Photo Contest held at Colombo, Sri Lanka. So, if you have any photo-queries, whether conventional or digital, don’t hesitate. Just go ahead and Ask Uncle Ronnie at sp@nextgenpublishing.net, ‘cause he knows it all!

from the widest opening, and in the case of the f/4 lens, the lens would be used wide open.

2. In theory, and assuming that you are using a high performance tripod, and that the subject is not moving at all, all shutter speeds should provide the same sharpness (not considering the extra depth of field that would be achieved with the narrower apertures/ slow shutter speeds, that could make some images appear sharper). In practice however, certain shutter speeds (like 1/15, 1/8, 1/ 4, and 1/2 seconds) tend to cause greater mirror vibrations and hence a slight loss in critical sharpness.

3. You must set the camera to Continuous High firing mode. In a sequence of, say 3 shots, the first could be slightly blurry due to the application of finger pressure on the shutter release button (and thus shaking the camera), and the last shot could also be slightly blurry as a result of releasing the pressure on the shutter release button (which can also cause a slight camera movement). The middle shot is likely to be the sharpest.

4. Sorry, your question is not clear. I am unable to understand what you mean exactly.

5. If you set exposure compensation in Aperture Priority mode, the camera will apply the compensation to the shutter speeds. If you are using Shutter Priority mode, the compensation will be applied to the apertures.

Using ‘plus compensation’, the subject brightness increases compared to what it would have been without the plus compensation.

Using ‘minus compensation’ the subject brightness decreases, compared to what it would have been without the minus compensation. The effect is similar to that of raising/lowering the brightness levels in Photoshop.

6. Faster the shutter speed, sharper the picture (sharper at the point of focus). However, when using wide or medium telephoto lenses with stationary subjects, you are unlikely to see a difference in sharpness between, say 1/500 sec and 1/1000 sec. If your subject is moving, then, depending on how fast it is moving, the faster shutter speed will provide a sharper image. Also note that with heavy and long telephoto lenses, one must strive to use the fastest shutter speed possible under the given lighting situation.

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Ask Uncle Ronnie

Elements and Groups

Can you please explain to me in detail about the elements and groups in the description of a lens? What are they and is having more elements and groups in a lens good or bad?

Prady S, via E-mail Consider a magnifying glass. It is a single element convex lens. Optical lenses however, are made with many elements, both convex and concave.

This is done to correct the various inherent optical flaws (also known as aberrations) that exist within the lens elements. Certain elements are grouped together as a unit and the whole unit moves together as the lens is zoomed/focussed. Each unit is called a group.

Lens designing is complex; designing a zoom lens is even more complex. Modern zoom lenses may have anything from 12 to 24 (may be even more) individual elements bundled together in various groups.

Each element has two surfaces and the more the elements, more the surfaces. More surfaces mean greater chances of image-degrading flare. If you compare any zoom lens to any prime lens, you will see more flare in the zoom, primarily because more elements go into the making of a zoom lens. Modern lens coating technologies (like Nano coat for example) do help in reducing flare. And, under right conditions, using a lens hood also helps to reduce the imagedegrading flare.

Rain Covers

What is your take on commercially available ‘rain covers’ for still/video cameras?

A. S. Pathan, Lucknow Hopefully, we will be able to share some views on this in the next issue of SP. 40

Smart Photography August 2012

Program Shift

What exactly is ‘Program Shift’? What benefit do I get in using it?

Pankaj, via E-mail

The asterisk next to ‘P’ denotes that Program Shift is enabled.

When using Program mode, your camera automatically selects the shutter speed as well as the aperture depending on the available brightness. These exposures are ‘pre-set’ into the camera. Let’s say that for a particular lighting situation, the camera selects, 1/30 sec at f/8. Now, you feel that 1/30 sec is likely to produce camera shake; you would have preferred say, 1/60 sec or even 1/125 sec as the shutter speed. If your camera offers Program Shift mode, you simply turn designated dial till the exposure reads (in our example) 1/60 sec at f/5.6 or 1/125 sec at f/4.

Note that 1/30 sec at f/8, 1/60 sec at f/5.6 and 1/125 sec at f/4, all allow the same quantity of light to hit the film/sensor and hence the density produced will be the same (but depth of field will differ). This way, without changing the exposure suggested by the camera meter, you can change the variables (shutter speed /aperture) to suit your needs.

In most cameras offering Program Shift, an asterisk (*) is displayed next to the P symbol when Program Shift is enabled.

A Noisy Problem!

Can a camera sometimes provide noiseless (or with less noise) results and at other times; noisy results?

Sandeep Patel, Nashik Sounds like you are testing me! But the answer is ‘yes’. In hot weather (and especially if the camera has been in direct sunlight for a while), digital cameras will give noisier results. You’ll also notice that you can use higher ISOs in bright light conditions (to get faster shutter speeds) and come away with little or no noise.

The same high ISO in low light situations will give more noise, especially in underexposed areas.

Ask Uncle Ronnie

Whites Getting Overexposed

I photographed some white birds. Most of them were overexposed. What can I do to prevent this from happening?

N. K. Palia, Dehradoon Could be for a variety of reasons. But without seeing your overexposed pictures, it is difficult to say. Here are a few possible causes: 1. In Manual exposure mode, you have not ‘nulled’ the meter (that is, you have not aligned the cursor to the centre of the scale)

To ‘null’ the meter, you have to align the cursor as shown here.

2. In Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority or Program mode, your exposure compensation was inadvertently set to ‘plus’.

The cursor shows a 2-stop over exposure through the exposure compensation feature.

What Type of Monitor?

Please suggest what should I buy: CRT, LCD or LED monitor for my photo editing job.

Vivek Jaiswal I was one of the advocates of CRTs for Photoshop. I had always felt that CRTs were better in terms of colours and sharpness. However, CRTs are no longer made and/or are difficult to find. For the last 1.5-2 years I have been using a LCD monitor (a 24” Dell), and I can now vouch for its great image quality.

The best LCD/LED monitors for Photoshop are made by NEC and Eizo. They are very expensive (over Rs.1.5 lakh).

Recently I came across a 30” Dell for about Rs.80,000. Going by the specifications, I feel this should be the perfect monitor for Photoshop users (not considering the NEC and Eizo). You may check it out on Dell’s website. Do remember that there are many LCD/LED monitors from various manufacturers, starting at somewhere near Rs.6,000, but my experience with some of them have been pathetic (from Photoshop’s point of view).

We photographers spend a small fortune in camera bodies and lenses, but when it comes to monitors, we often become ‘penny wise and pound foolish’. We must realise that unless we get consistent and faithful colours from our computer monitors, we (Photoshop users) are wasting our money on buying fancy equipment.

Optimum Aperture 3. You photographed the white birds against a darker background. With dark backgrounds, the meter ‘sees’ very little brightness and hence orders the camera to provide more exposure, leading to overexposure of the white subjects. If you haven’t changed the camera settings after the shoot, check it now. You are likely to find one of the three causes mentioned above to be the culprit.

The water was dark green. Due to this, the meter has overexposed the bird as well as the water.

The optimum lens aperture is two stops down from the widest opening. Would that hold true for all lenses?

Yogesh, via Email Not necessarily, though in most cases, the optimum aperture is between 2-3 stops from the widest opening. Here’s something interesting to note: The English say that the optimum aperture is between 2-3 stops from the widest opening; the Germans say that the optimum aperture is generally half of the narrowest aperture. Hence for a lens offering an aperture range, say, from f/1.4 to f/16, the optimum aperture could be between f/2.8 and 4, or f/8!

It’s best to conduct a trial and come to your own conclusions.

August 2012 Smart Photography

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Shivang Mehta

Mastercraftsman

. . . d l Wi

Born to be

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Smart Photography August 2012

Mastercraftsman

Shivang Mehta Faridabad

India’s national parks are a unique and challenging experience; especially for those who visit them with a camera. Blessed with pristine landscapes and abundant wildlife it offers countless photographic opportunities.

But the million dollar question is, how do you make the most of them? Most people can only dream about giving up their day jobs to become wildlife photographers. Here is a man who is living that dream. Meet Shivang Mehta; he gave up on his Journalism and PR career, to sweat it out in the field of nature and wildlife photography. Through photography, he wanted to show people the importance of a healthy environment and strong natural reserves. Having set up ‘Nature Wanderers’, he regularly conducts field photography training camps across India, Sri Lanka and Africa (in association with Canon India). Excerpts:

© Shivang Mehta

August 2012 Smart Photography

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Shivang Mehta

Mastercraftsman

When did you first realise your inclination towards photography and how did you start pursuing it seriously as a career option?

© Shivang Mehta

Photography for me was a byproduct of my inclination towards wildlife and nature. I have always pursued my passions since childhood.

Writing was a medium of expressing my thoughts, and I adored it. That explains why I picked journalism as a career option while my college mates at SRCC chose to be MBAs and Post Graduates in Economics.

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Similarly when I started exploring the wilderness of India, my interest in nature and wildlife gradually grew. It made sense for me to capture these fine intrinsic moments of natural history for my personal records.

These records were then shared with people and organisations who were in need of such material. After a while, circumstances made it difficult for me to juggle my corporate life and the jungle life. That’s how my career took off in the direction of nature and wildlife photography.

Most wildlife photographers keep their spouses away from the limelight. You work in close co-ordination with your wife (Kahini Ghosh Mehta), on all your photo safaris, photo tours and workshops etc. How do the two of you get this right?

The credit for me choosing this profession goes to Kahini because she got me closer to wildlife and nature. Her childhood and upbringing has been eco-friendly, as she hails from Chhindwara – bordering the Pench National

Š Shivang Mehta

Shivang Mehta

Park in Madhya Pradesh. I started exploring the wilds with her before marriage.

Kahini and I have always been a team. Our first meeting was at a media house where we worked together. Then we began exploring jungles together and decided to operate and manage a small campsite in the periphery of Corbett National Park. During that period, we had the privilege to work with some superb naturalists and field experts. The little field knowledge we have is because of those interactions. We enjoyed showing the beauty of Corbett to our guests (some of them were great photographers), and then slowly we started living our lives behind the lens. Our company Nature Wanderers and the work we currently do is all a by-product of the years of fieldwork we did in Corbett.

For you, is field craft and knowing the animal behaviour more important than the technical aspects of photography? How do you then balance the two, to avoid making any clichĂŠ images?

Photography as a science is no rocket science. With a plethora of info available on the Internet and with magazines like SP, picking up the technical aspects of photography is a cakewalk. You can get it right if you keep reading and playing around with your camera. However when it comes to August 2012 Smart Photography

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Shivang Mehta

Mastercraftsman

© Shivang Mehta

nature and wildlife photography (or in fact any other genre of photography), field work becomes the most critical element of your journey. Specifically, when I think of wildlife photography, field wildlife knowledge definitely helps you to becomes a better photographer.

With time your anticipation skills improve and you are able to predict the behaviour of the subject. Therefore improving your visualisation abilities.

You cultivate an intuition about the frame and moment. As you sink deeper into this, your urge to be there on the field in order to realise some of your dream frames increases.

However as a wildlife photographer I always believe that nature is full of mysteries and learning on the field (be it the photography part or the field wildlife knowledge part) is a never ending process. Every day teaches you something and as students of Mother Nature, we should always be grateful to her for unfolding her mysteries one by one!

attempt is to create images that tell a compelling story - be it a series or a single image.

As of now I have fond memories of the Cicada photograph I took in Bandhavgarh in 2011; which was also in the top Sanctuary Asia wildlife photos for 2011.

Do you have a single image or collection of images that stand out as a career highlight?

What makes it more special than your other images and why?

Do you always wonder from where do tiny droplets of water fall on your body when you are patiently waiting for a bird shot or a tiger in the forest? You look at the cloudless sky to check if it’s drizzling. Here is the very interesting reason for that…

Purpose or goal based photography always helps me perform better as it keeps me focussed. The purpose or goal can however be subjective. I have spent days and months running after elephants in Corbett, hours shooting a small Cicada clinging to a tree branch and years shooting tigers across national parks of India. Every project I undertake is challenging because my

Cicadas are the culprits. Clinging on tree tops, Cicadas apart from making the loud buzzing sounds drink tree sap. Tree sap is the principal food of cicadas. They take the necessary nourishment and water from the sap, with waste matter and fluid accumulating in a rectal pouch. If it is necessary, the waste can be released

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and disposed of all at once through the anus!

Can we have the story behind the favourite image?

Here is a Cicada caught spraying in Bandhavgarh (Image featured above).

It took quite some effort to shoot this, as this guy was at a distance and even the biggest lens was not effective enough to get the shot. The subject was near, but too far and small for the long telephoto. It was too far for a macro lens as well. Experimenting with various combination of equipment, I finally decided to use the cropped sensor of a Canon 7D and mounted a Canon 100-400mm lens along with a 2x converter to shoot this one. The frame was perfect but at 400 ISO the shutter dropped to 1/20 which was not good enough.

Using a remote trigger we tried to time the shot with the timing of the spray.

The first 10-15 odd attempts were unsuccessful. Finally, we decided to use

Shivang Mehta

© Shivang Mehta

the interval-meter and let the camera take a shot every second for a minute or so.

This was the one spray shot that we got right in the series.

Your work seems to be governed by a very simple principle – catching the perfect moment.

Does the perfect moment come easily or you have to shoot a lot to get it right? In fact, how long do you wait for it to happen?

Moments are short and quick and they don’t come easy while you are on the field. This is where subject knowledge comes into play.

Normally while shooting subjects or a series I work on for the first time I do a lot of field research. This is done to figure out the behavioral aspects and the moods that will appeal in the photograph. Then comes the location research. Light for instance is the most determining factor while shooting wildlife. A proper location study when combined with the subject study will reveal what is the proper time frame to shoot the subject in the desired light. The waiting time is something which cannot be defined. It may take a couple of days or weeks.

the only key. Some days are golden and some are just full of dust with no result!

Some photographers advertise photography courses where they promise that all you need is just one outing/lesson, and in a day’s time you can take astonishing photos like a true professional.

Shivang, you have spent the last decade as a wildlife photographer, are there any short cuts in progressing from taking snapshots to making a good wildlife photographer?

© Shivang Mehta

There is absolutely no short cut! Field work and field work alone can help you to grow as a However if the quality of ground work and field work photographer. is good, sooner or later you People accompany me for will get there. Patience is August 2012 Smart Photography

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Shivang Mehta

Š Shivang Mehta

Mastercraftsman

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Smart Photography August 2012

© Shivang Mehta

Shivang Mehta

photo tours and attend my workshops and after the first dose of 3-4 days, they hardly pick up their cameras for days or months. As facilitators we can only give the initial push. We can lay the foundation in the form of photo tours where you can come repeatedly and shoot. But you cannot progress as a photographer if your camera is lying idle at home!

I don’t buy the excuse that once back from a forest, an amateur gets busy with the hectic work schedules and there is no time for photography.

Wildlife around cities is something which is a very good practice ground for both amateurs as well as pros. It is important we become sensitive to city wildlife and spend our weekends exploring such areas. India is studded with natural jewels. It is a pity if we are unaware and insensitive to this natural wealth we have!

Mathew Thottungal

© Shivang Mehta

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Special Scrapbook

The

Jungle Diary

I

n the famous “Jungle Book”, Rudyard Kipling acknowledged the undisputed status of the mighty Bengal Tiger as the king of the beasts. Although the cat family includes many attractive animals, there is an aura of power and majesty surrounding the tiger. Observing a male tiger patrolling his territory in a reserve can be likened to an unchallenged ruler strolling through his domain. In this month’s Wildlife Special, we focus on five wildlife photographers from across the country who spoke about the most challenging image they have documented in the wild. Sit back, and read through to find out how these renowned photographers managed to get their most challenging and compelling frames.

The five featured photographers in alphabetical order are: Ashok Kandimalla, Balan Madhavan, Munish Kaushik, Sujan Chatterjee and Vikram Potdar

Ü Ashok Kandimalla Hyderabad

Bird: Tern Challenge: A few photographers and I were on a boat when we spotted a tern pair. One of them was incubating, but the pair was unfortunately being bothered by a cormorant. After a few warning pecks which did not do the job of sending away the cormorant, this tern moved aggressively towards its tormentor and chased it away. Then it flew a couple of loops and landed next to its mate (not in the photograph) squawking rather loudly. It sounded to me liked a victory cry, though I don’t know for sure! This photograph was taken at the Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary near Mysore, in Karnataka.

Tech data: This photograph was taken with a Nikon D90 and the lens used was the Nikkor AF-S VR 70-300mm lens. The image was captured handheld which is the best method when photographing action. That is why I prefer a light lens at the expense of faster (and heavier) lenses. The high ISO performance of modern D-SLRs is so good that the slow lenses are hardly a problem. The shutter speed was 1/1000. I always use 50

Smart Photography August 2012

Mathew Thottungal

aperture priority and use an aperture of f/8 with this lens as that is its sweet spot.

Auto ISO was used and floor (minimum) shutter speed was set to 1/1000 which is what is needed to freeze action. ISO was allowed to float to a maximum value of 1600. In this case an ISO of 320 was chosen by the camera.

Ü Balan Madhavan -

Trivandrum, Kerala

Insect: Dragonfly I am a strong believer of the school that a photograph does not replace a thousand words, instead, what an image does is “evoke emotions” in the viewers mind. It is this emotional aspect that attracts the viewer’s attention and makes the picture communicate. In short, it is art and art only.

Challenge: Ripples and reflections. Though a dragonfly image could have been shot in your backyard pool, I had to travel to the other side of the world to capture this one. I was part of the RAVE, which stands for Rapid Assessment Visual Expedition’.

It is a unique project of the ILCP- ‘The International League of Conservation Photographers, in Southern Mexico in

which around a dozen of the world’s leading conservation photographers were invited to document the unique biological diversity of the Yucatan region. On a free day in the Calakmul Bio reserve where I was documenting how nature reclaimed the abandoned Mayan pyramids, I was watching dragonflies moving around by the side of a pond. It began drizzling suddenly, and the drops created amazing patterns on the surface of the pond. I saw a bare twig, so I waited for the dragonfly to land on it. What I got was this image.

The reflections of the insect and the twig were quite dramatic. The water drops added the spice to the image.

One of my favourites, for its simplicity and artistic merit.

The fact is that good nature photography is not about very sharp and focussed images of rare birds or animals shot in a common way; but its visual poetry where even ordinary subjects become objects of excitement.

Equipment: Camera: Canon 5D Mark II and Canon 7D bodies Lenses: 17mm TS, 24mm TS, 24 – 85 zoom, 100 Micro, 100 – 400 zoom and 300mm f/2.8

Scrapbook

Photograph by Ashok Kandimalla

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Special Scrapbook

Photograph by Balan Madhavan 52

Scrapbook

Ü Munish Kaushik -

Noida - NCR

Bird: Plain Prinia Challenge: In this particular frame, I found this Plain Prinia in the reeds, bathing in the beautiful morning sunlight. It was trying to gather nesting material to build its nest. Aware about the fact that Prinia’s are small and swift birds, I knew I will have a hard time to get the perfect frame I wanted. A long wait ensued, and after countless minutes I was able to get what I was looking for. The challenge was to maintain consistent focus, on a small, but fast moving bird, without disturbing this little fella, since the bird was collecting nesting materials, while hand-holding this heavy lens in humid conditions for over two hours.

Equipment: I use Canon EOS 7D, along with Canon EF 70-200 F4L, Canon EF100-400 F4.5-5.6L IS, Canon EF 100mmL IS Macro to shoot all my work.

Ü Sujan Chatterjee -

Kolkata

Bird: Fire-Tailed Myzornis Challenge: The photo which I consider to be one of my favourites is that of a ‘Fire-tailed Myzornis’, which was captured in the Eaglenest Sanctuary in western Arunachal Pradesh. The photograph was shot in January 2007; while leading a birding trip to Eaglenest. The magnificent bird was seen

near Bompu camp at 6000 plus feet. It was desperately feeding on sap oozing from the bark of a tree and kept coming back to the same spot every now and then.

Even though the light was poor, the bird gave me ample opportunities to document some pretty good moments to highlight its brilliant neon green colour and the little black dots on its head.

Equipment: I primarily use a Canon 40D body and a Canon 300 F4 IS lens. I rarely use flash or tripod while shooting.

Ü Vikram Shashikant Potdar Pune

Mammal: Tiger Challenge: Wildlife photography is a challenging task. It requires passion, perseverance, skill, patience, time, and of course money. This portrait was a result of a tiger cub, barely 15 months old, suddenly emerging from the bushes.

He was cleaning his mouth with his tongue. In fact, the kill was hidden in the bushes so the cub was quite aggressive and started spraying to mark his territory. The documentation was all the more challenging because this picture depicts the licking and spraying of the aggressive cub while seemingly looking straightway into the camera, as if to suggest that he was posing for the picture.

Equipment: I use my Nikon D700 and D300s and a whole range of Nikon lenses.

Special Scrapbook Photograph by Munish Kaushik

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Scrapbook

Photograph by Sujan Chatterjee

August 2012 Smart Photography

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Special Scrapbook

Photograph by Vikram Shashikant Potdar

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Smart Photography August 2012

Learnings 58

Basics of Photography: Creating Monochrome Images using D-SLRs

66

The Magical Clone and Healing Brush Tools in Photoshop

75

Lens Adapters

82

Wildlife Photography

80

Contact Sheet

90

Megapixel Madness Disorder

Learning Basics of Photography Smart Photography has been continually receiving requests to start a basic course for beginners. With this in mind, we have asked a very knowledgeable photographer from Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, to take over writing these articles. We have also requested him to be as jargon-free as it is possible, so that newcomers to photography feel comfortable to pursue the hobby.

The author, Ashok Kandimalla has been in the photographic field for over three decades and has extensive experience in both film and digital photography. Being an electronics engineer by profession and a photographer, he possesses a unique and deep insight into the technical aspects of digital photography and equipment. He has published several articles on photography and some of his writings have also been published in the well-known international magazine Popular Photography.

An avid collector of photographic books and vintage cameras, Ashok has a keen interest in the history of photography and a passion for sharing his knowledge on photography through teaching and writing. He is presently working as a Management and Engineering consultant. You can see his work at http://www.flickr.com/photos/ashok_kandimalla. He can be reached at kashokk@gmail.com

Creating Monochrome Images using D-SLRs Photography started in monochrome, meaning that there was only one colour in an image plus of course shades (or different tones) of it. This “colour� was essentially black and hence the alternate name for monochrome – Black and White (B&W). Colour film as a photographic media came several decades later and slowly dominated photography. However, monochrome photography has its own charm, elegance and beauty. It is also worth remembering that some of the greatest practitioners of photographic art like Ansel Adams (landscapes) and Yousuf Karsh (portraits) produced their masterpieces predominantly in monochrome.

Processing colour film and printing in colour became relatively cheap due to the advent of mini-labs and consequently during last few decades, photography was mostly done in colour. On the other hand, processing 58

Smart Photography August 2012

of monochrome film and printing negatives commercially became progressively difficult. Due to all these reasons monochrome photography slowly was relegated to a niche market practiced by a few enthusiasts who had the needed skill and expertise.

While digital dealt a severe blow to film, it did wonders to resurrect monochrome photography by making it very easy to digitally process (or convert) an image into monochrome with the help of post-processing.

Moreover, new generation D-SLRs have considerable amount of monochrome processing built into them. This is the subject of our article this month. Before we get deeper, it is worth knowing two important aspects peculiar to monochrome processing viz. use of filters and toning.

Effect of colour filters in monochrome photography:

Filters are used very commonly in monochrome photography. These filters can be yellow, orange, red, green, etc. To the uninitiated, use of colour filters in monochrome photography may seem strange. To understand why these filters are useful, you need to first know what a filter does.

Any photographic filter essentially passes the light of the colour of the filter and blocks its complement colour. Thus, a red filter passes red (wavelengths of light) and blocks blue which is its complement colour.

The colour that is passed is rendered lighter and the colour that is blocked gets darker in the image. So, if you use a red filter, the objects with colour red will appear lighter and those of blue (blue being a complement to red) will be rendered darker. Thus, a red filter will make the blue sky very dark. The stronger (deeper) the red colour of filter the darker will be the

Basics of Photography

blue sky. This will be obvious if you compare Pictures G2 and G3. Orange and yellow filters also darken the sky but less intensely. Consider this example: If you have a red object against a blue sky and both are of the same tone, using a red filter will render the object light and make it stand out against the blue sky which will be rendered very dark. Not using a filter may cause both the subject and

background to sort of merge as the tones are same although the colours are different. The difference in colours is not of consequence in monochrome photography as it is the tones that are more important. Green filters brighten foliage and also soften skin tones.

Hence, they are used in portraiture.

filters. What this means is that when you choose a colour filter through a menu, its effect will be seen in the monochrome image you create.

There is no need to mount any physical filter in front of the lens as was the practice when film was used.

D-SLRs have “built-in� commands for colour filters. You can call these digital

Note that the colour filters do not give any colours or even a colour tint to the monochrome image!

Picture G1

Picture G2

Picture G3

Picture G4

Picture G5

Picture G1: Colour image Picture G2: Monochrome image without a filter Picture G3: Monochrome image but with red filter. See how the blue sky has become darker and the red car lighter.

Picture G4: Sepia Toning Picture G5: Cyanotype Toning

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Basics of Photography

Toning in monochrome: A monochrome image can be given a colour tint (although there is still only one colour and shades of it) – to make them look like old photographs.

During the early years of photography, due to the materials and processes used, images used to take a brownish tint (called sepia – Picture G4) or a bluish tint (called cyanotype – Picture G5). Now, with digital technology, you can also add a colour tint to the monochrome image to make it look as if it was created long ago. Whether this succeeds in fooling people or not, will have to be tested, but you now know what toning means! As was the case with colour filters, D-SLRs have builtin commands to add toning to your monochrome images.

Note that all the monochrome pictures from G2 to G5 were generated “in camera”. Now, let us see how you can get monochrome images from your DSLR camera. As in the previous articles of this series, we will be using Canon 7D and Nikon D7000 as the reference cameras while discussing about the operation and various options available. However, what you read here is applicable reasonably to the other D-SLRs in the Canon and Nikon DSLR lineup.

A monochrome image is created with the help of commands that under the group Picture Styles (for Canon) or Picture Controls (for Nikon). These are set before you take a photograph and affect JPEG images only. Please refer to “Basics of Photography – Picture Settings”, Smart Photography, November 2011 issue, where Picture Styles / Controls were dealt with in 60

Smart Photography August 2012

detail. Note that while Nikon calls these individual items (like contrast, sharpness, etc.), “settings”, Canon calls them “parameters”.

Important When you set monochrome options and take a RAW image (either alone or along with a JPEG), the RAW image will be rendered in monochrome to look at, on a monitor screen. However, the entire colour information is present inside a RAW image and can be brought back if needed. However, there is no colour information in a monochrome JPEG image! (More on this later).

Names of the buttons will be highlighted as - Button Menu options and screen displays will be highlighted as – Option

All about Picture Styles in Canon D-SLRs: Picture C1

Picture C2 Picture C2. Picture Style screen. Here the Monochrome Picture Style has been highlighted.

Picture C1. The buttons and dials are Menu, Picture Style (PS), Information (Info) Main Dial (MD), Quick Control Dial (QCD) and Set.

Basics of Photography

There are two sections to this.

Section 1 - Choosing the Monochrome Picture Style Section 2 - Customising the Monochrome Picture Style

1. Choosing Monochrome Picture Style

First press - PS (Picture C1) You will be presented with a screen (Picture C2) which has the predefined as well as user defined Picture Styles.

Each of the icons is one Picture Style, as defined below : S = Standard P = Portrait L = Landscape N = Neutral F = Faithful M = Monochrome 1, 2 and 3: these are the Picture Styles that you can define and store (more on this later).

Our main interest is the M or Monochrome setting.

You can highlight the Monochrome Picture Style using MD or QCD and select it by pressing SET. That is all there is to choosing the Monochrome Picture Style!

2. Customising the Monochrome Picture Style:

might have defined.

Highlight the Picture Style that you want to customise (here Monochrome, Picture C2) by scrolling using MD or QCD. Now press Info. You will now be shown a new screen (Picture C3) with a group of four parameters - Sharpness, Contrast, Filter effect and Toning effect. The values of these four parameters together as a group define the Monochrome Picture Style that you had selected.

Now highlight the parameter you want to change (Picture C3) by turning the QCD and select it by pressing SET. For the first two parameters, turn the QCD to input the values you want using the sliders and press SET. If you have selected Filter effect parameter you will be presented with a screen (Picture C4). Now turn the QCD to highlight the filter you want. (Here as an example Or:Orange filter has been highlighted for selection). Select it by press SET. Other filter options available to you are Ye:Yellow, R:Red and G:Green. Select N:None if you do not want any filter effect.

When you select the Monochrome picture style as just described, the camera will take default values of various parameters such as sharpness, contrast, etc. However, you can change these to suit your requirements. This is how you go about it: First press PS (Picture C1). You will now be presented with a screen (Picture C2) which has the predefined parameters plus any of the Picture Styles that you

Picture C4 Picture C4. Highlight using QCD the option you want. Here Or:Orange filter has been highlighted. It can be selected by pressing SET.

Picture C5 Picture C5. All the toning options are shown here.

Likewise, you can alter the Toning effect too (Picture C5). The Toning effect options available to you are Sepia, Blue, Purple and Green.

These give a colour tint to the image as already described. Highlight the toning you want and select it by pressing SET. Select N:None if you do not want any toning effect.

Picture C3. Scroll by turning the QCD to highlight the parameter you want adjust and select it by pressing SET. Here Filter effect highlighted for selection.

Picture C3

Picture C6. This shows the screen after you have selected the Or:Orange filter.

Picture C6

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MENU. This will take you to the menu screen. Scroll up and down using MS▲ and MS▼ and highlight the Shooting menu icon and select it by pressing OK.

Picture C7 Picture C7. See how the Orange Filter effect (Or) you have set is in blue, while the default settings are in white.

Pressing SET will now take you to a screen (Picture C6) which shows all the parameters as you had set. Note that though this looks similar to the screen earlier (Picture C3) the Filter effect parameter is now changed from None to Or:Orange.

Now in the Shooting menu scroll using MS▲ and MS▼ and highlight option Picture Control. Select it by pressing OK (Picture N1). You will now go to the Set Picture Control screen (Picture N3).

Picture N1: The Shooting menu icon is circled in red. The buttons and dials are - Delete (Del), Menu, Zoom out (Zout), Zoom in (Zin), Command dial (CD), Multi-selector (MS), OK and Information (Info).

Note that there are four arrow keys on the multi selector (MS) pointing in four directions. These are left arrow (MS◄), right arrow (MS►), up arrow (MS▲) and down arrow (MS▼). These are for scrolling and highlighting the options.

Set Picture Control option in the menu is highlighted here.

Picture N1

Finally, pressing Menu will save the altered parameters. The Picture Style screen will again appear (Picture C7).

Once again though this may look like the previous screen (Picture C2) notice that there is an important difference.

The new values that you have set will appear in blue. In the present case, the Filter effect that you have set, that is Orange (Or) will be in blue. All default values will be in white. A neat touch!

All about Picture Styles in Nikon D-SLRs: There are two sections: Section 1 - Choosing the Monochrome picture Control Section 2 - Modifying the Monochrome Picture Control 1. Choosing the monochrome Picture Control There are two ways you can choose the Picture Control you want.

Method 1: Refer to Picture N1 and then press 62

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Method 2: Alternatively, you can press Info twice.

This will show the Information screen (Picture N2). Press MS◄ and MS► to highlight the Picture Control icon.

Pressing OK will now directly take you to the Set Picture Control screen (Picture N3).

Regardless of the method you followed, you will be presented with the Set Picture Control screen (Picture N3). Here you will find a list of the Picture Controls that are available to you. The first six Picture Controls that are built into the camera are called by Nikon as the “Preset Picture Controls”. In addition you will be shown

Basics of Photography

any Custom Picture Controls that you might have created (more of that later).

Picture N2

First go to the Set Picture Control (Picture N3) screen as explained previously.

Picture N5

Picture N2. Information screen. Here the Picture Control icon has been highlighted.

Contrast: Choose Automatic or choose a value between -3 for high contrast scenes for reducing contrast, and +3 for low contrast (example foggy) scenes for increasing contrast. This is because negative numbers give less and positive numbers give more contrast.

Picture N5. Filter effects Picture N6

Picture N3 Picture N3 This is the Set Picture Control screen. The Monochrome Picture Control option is highlighted here.

Picture N6: Note how the modified preset Picture Control is now marked with an asterisk (*).

Picture N7

Picture N4 Picture N4. Here Sharpening setting has been highlighted for modification.

Scroll and highlight the MC Monochrome Picture Control (Picture N3) by using MS▲ and MS▼. Select it by pressing OK. That is all there is to choosing a Picture Control!

2. Modifying the Monochrome Picture Control

Sharpening: (Picture N4) Here you can choose an Automatic setting A or choose between 0 (no sharpening) to 9 (highest sharpening).

Picture N7. This is the Picture Control grid.

Scroll and highlight the MC Monochrome Picture Control that you want to modify by using MS▲ and MS▼ (Picture N3). Now press MS►. This will take you to the screen (Picture N4) that shows five settings that together as a group define the Monochrome Picture Style that you had selected. The settings that you can modify are:

Brightness: Remember that this does not affect exposure. The camera simply makes the image brighter while processing. The value of -1 reduces and +1 increases the brightness.

Filter Effect: (Picture N5) You have a choice of 4 filters - Red, Orange, Yellow and Green. These are indicated on the monitor as R, O, Y and G. Choose OFF if you do not want any filter effect.

Toning: (Picture N5) You can see a number colour bars against this setting.

The first three bars are pure Black and White (shown as the icon ), Sepia and Cynaotype. The rest are Red, Yellow, Green, Blue Green, Blue, Blue Purple and Red Purple. The monochrome image will now be toned (tinted) in the colour you have chosen. Choose OFF if you do not want any toning effect.

Scroll and highlight the setting you want to change (Pictures N4 and N5) by using MS▲ and MS▼. Use MS◄ and MS► to modify the setting to what you want. Press OK to save the changes.

If you want to reset to the default values, simply press Del and start all over again.

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There is another useful tool that you should know about - the Picture Control Grid (Picture N7). Its purpose is to show the relative strengths of contrast of all the Picture Controls along with the Monochrome Picture Control you are modifying. To activate this, simply press and hold Zout (N1).

Another useful indication is the previous setting underscore. This is a short yellow line underneath the setting value that shows the previous value – a smart idea.

This is very useful since you will have a reference to base your changes.

Further Options: Both Canon and Nikon offer more choices. If you want to keep the default parameters intact, you can do so by saving the altered set of parameters as a user-defined Picture Style / Control.

This can be recalled like any other Picture Style / Control. The default Picture Styles / Controls are thus left undisturbed.

Canon allows three user-defined Picture Styles and Nikon allows nine user defined Picture Controls.

The procedure to create your own Picture Styles / Controls has been explained in “Basics of Photography – Picture Settings”, Smart Photography November, 2011 issue. Readers are advised to refer this article for details. Apart from this, Nikon D-SLRs allow you to save the Picture Controls you have created on the memory card and transfer them to other Nikon cameras that are compatible with the Picture Control system. Thus, if you 64

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have more than one camera that follows this system, you can have the same settings across all of them thus ensuring consistent JPEG processing across.

Monochrome image as an afterthought: What if you want to create an in camera monochrome image but did not choose the monochrome Picture Style (Canon) or Picture Control (Nikon) before you took a photograph? Not a problem if you had created a RAW file. You can apply the monochrome Picture Style (Canon) or Picture Control (Nikon) to this RAW file later in the camera itself. For this reason, it is always safer to photograph in RAW + JPEG formats.

Oops I want a colour image! You may recall that when you use Picture Styles or Picture Controls to process an image, the effect is felt only as a processed JPEG file. This is also the case when you create a monochrome image using Picture Styles / Controls. That is, a JPEG file in monochrome is created. If by any chance you want a coloured rendering of the same image, it is very difficult, if not impossible to convert a monochrome JPEG image into colour as this can only be done (if at all) with extensive postprocessing. However, if you have a RAW file and even if it is rendered in monochrome, a full colour JPEG can be easily generated without any loss of quality. This is because every RAW file has all the colour information embedded. This is one more reason to always capture a RAW file!

To summarise, a coloured RAW image can be converted into a monochrome image. Conversely, you can start with a monochrome RAW image and get a full colour JPEG out of it. Both these

conversions can be done in-camera. Note that these RAW conversion commands are not available on the Canon 7D but are available on the later model, the 60D. They are however, available on Nikon D7000.

Conclusion Monochrome photography, one of the most beautiful forms of art has made a remarkable come back thanks to digital technology. Superior quality monochrome images can be obtained through postprocessing especially if you start with a RAW file compared to in-camera conversion. However, if you are averse to post-processing, in camera processing to generate a monochrome image is a painless process. If you capture a RAW file also in addition to the monochrome JPEG, then you can easily generate a colour image too, just in case you want it sometime later. D-SLRs also give you the advantage of built-in filters thus saving you the headache of mounting and un-mounting filters as was necessary when film was the media. Mastering monochrome photography needs a lot of practice as you will need to mentally map the tones regardless of the colours.

Also not all scenes / subjects are amenable to monochrome rendering. Identifying a suitable scene is the first step in getting a good monochrome photograph.

Needless to say, practice helps and digital experimentation costs nothing. So, create some monochrome photographs right away!

This is last in this series of articles explaining the various options in D-SLRs. We at Smart Photography hope that these tutorials have helped you use your D-SLR more efficiently.

All photographs by the Author

When you modify a preset Picture Control, an asterisk (*) will appear next to the Picture Control (Picture N6) to tell you that you have modified it from the default settings.

Learning Photoshop The author, Rajendra Prasad, an Associate of Royal Photographic Society of London, and a banker by profession, has been in the photographic field for over two decades and has extensive experience in both film and digital photography. At present he is the Chairman of Digital Imaging Division, India International Photographic Council, Delhi. Rajendra has a passion for sharing his knowledge on photography through teaching and writing. He has published several articles on photography in photographic magazines and journals of IIPC & FIP. He has also published an e-book An Introduction to Digital Photography which was released at Indore IIPC workshop by Sri Jaipal Reddy, Minister-Information & Broadcasting. He has also given talks on photography at Doordarshan. He has taught several photo-enthusiasts through workshops on photography in several Indian cities. His photographs have also won many accolades in different photographic salons. He has also served as a judge in various contests. His other hobbies are electronics and painting. He maintains a photoblog digicreation.blogspot.com and can be reached at rajdigi25@gmail.com

The Magical Clone and Healing Brush Tools

T

in Photoshop

raditionally, photograph retouching was an art. It was performed by gifted artists with backgrounds in both, painting and photography. Their tools included a magnifying glass, a collection of brushes and semitransparent dyes.

But now with the help of Photoshop anybody can restore and retouch a photograph which a traditional retoucher would have probably dismissed as damaged beyond repair.

Photoshop’s wide array of retouching tools are the cause of many of the absolute best works created with the software. With a skilled and experienced hand, these tools lead to phenomenal results. Retouching is the digital equivalent of plastic surgery and botox, except the results look more natural. The Clone Stamp Tool (formerly known as the rubber stamp tool) and the Healing Brush Tool are generally used for retouching. It’s great for cleaning up rubbish, stains or spots from your images.

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You can even clone IN items such as flowers, books etc. to improve the image as long as you do it right. In the following tutorial we are going to learn how to use the Clone and the Healing brush tools effectively for some practical situations. I am using Photoshop CS5 so the screenshots may differ from the other versions.

How to activate: You can activate the Clone Stamp Tool and Healing Brush tool in the Tools Palette or via its shortcut keys. “S” activates the Clone tool, and “J” for the Healing Brush.

Which tool to use Clone or Healing Brush and when?

It depends whether you need to cover or blend the area to be retouched.

The Clone Stamp tool: The Clone Stamp, as its name suggests, clones pixels from one part of an image

Learning Photoshop and applies them to another area. It is basically a paint brush that uses a part of an image as its palette, rather than a solid colour. If the area to be retouched is damaged, then it should be covered up completely. In that case, the clone tool should be used to cover that area with the sampled area. The Clone Stamp tool may be used to cover up: dust marks, rips, and fold marks, distracting objects, such as stray hairs and telephone wires.

The Healing Brush Tool: When this tool was introduced in Photoshop it was explained as “The Healing tool looks like a smart Clone tool on steroids”, and indeed Healing tool is a close relative of Clone tool.

It not only clones but also takes into account the colour, texture, shading, transparency and lighting of your destination area, and attempts to blend in your source areas. Therefore, you may say it is a smart clone tool. It is designed for removing blemishes on the skin, dust in sky, and other areas where you are trying to blend imperfections out of your image. Healing Brush tool is generally used when you’re retouching a face because you’ll probably want to blend the sampled area with the retouching area. The blending helps to camouflage the retouching.

Tip for straight lines : Ever wondered how to get a perfectly straight line when painting with a brush? Then you’re going to love this tip. Click the mouse button to put down one dot of a brush stroke at the point where you want to begin painting your line, then place your mouse pointer all the way on the other end of the line that you want to paint. While holding the Shift key, click the mouse button.

What you’ll see is Photoshop will connect the two points with a perfectly straight brush stroke. This works with EVERY painting tool in Photoshop’s arsenal whether it is Paintbrush, Healing Brush, Spot Healing Brush, Clone Stamp, and yes, even the Eraser.

And you thought the artists just had really steady hands, didn’t you?

Removing blemishes from a portrait using Photoshop

You have probably heard the saying “no one is perfect”. This becomes very apparent when you have to work on portrait photos. Removing blemishes is a quick and easy task and can be sometimes very effective, especially with Wedding, Fashion and Glamour portraits. Please note, if you are doing paid work for a client, it is important to get the approval to remove blemishes from the person, and then make subtle and well-made alterations. Do not remove permanent scars, moles or other disfigurements unless you are specifically asked to do so. You should concentrate on removing small blemishes, spots, sunburn or anything that is not long lasting. Sure, while excessive airbrushing in order to sell products is bad, zapping that zit from a nice photo is totally legit. The trick is to do it in a manner that is natural.

The goal is to maintain as much of the original skin texture as possible and use techniques that look natural, and not pasty and fake. Here in this tutorial we are going to use the Clone and Healing brush to remove blemishes. For removing acne we shall use the Healing brush. Open the image into Photoshop to begin with! The first step is to identify the blemishes to be removed. These could be moles, acne, spots or any other imperfections that detract from the photograph. Here in the screenshot you can see that the girl has acne on her face and dark circles under her eyes. We will learn how to remove them in a proper way: August 2012 Smart Photography

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1

Creating a new blank layer The Healing brush tool can work on a blank layer. Working on a blank layer gives you opacity control and this is a nondestructive method of retouching because you don’t alter the actual pixel of your image. Press SHIFT+CTRL+N to create a new blank layer over your image and you will see that Photoshop has automatically named it as Layer1. You can see the layer in the layer panel. If your layer panel is not open press F7 to open it. Select the Healing brush tool by pressing the shortcut key “J”. When you select the Healing Brush, the option bar becomes active. Make sure that in the tool option bar you have selected the Sample all Layers option bar. This will let the Healing Brush select the pixels on the layers below your blank layer.

2

Brush selection To make things more effective, we need the right kind of brush. If too hard then it will show. I normally use hardness and spacing of 10%, the diameter will change as you work so there is no set size for this. You can experiment with these settings; these are just what I find most effective but you may change it and experiment with other settings.

A soft brush creates strokes with blurred edges that blend in the paint better. Kindly note small corrections blend in better than large workovers.

Remember you want your Photoshop work to be obscure. For a better blending and if you need more source points, press ALT and just click a couple of times on different areas of the image to reset the source point.

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Learning Photoshop

3

Selecting the Brush Modes Try the Lighten brush mode when fixing skin problems. With the brush mode set to Lighten, Photoshop will only replace pixels that are darker than the good texture data. Since pimples and other skin blemishes are usually darker than normal skin tone, only the pimple or blemish itself gets replaced, leaving more of the surrounding original image intact. If a blemish happens to be lighter than the normal skin tone, use the Darken mode. You can quickly switch to the brush modes for the Clone or Healing Brush from your keyboard by holding down the Shift key and pressing the + or - keys.

Select “Aligned” and the sample point will move as you move the mouse. Most of the time, it is best to select “Aligned”. When using the clone stamp tool, take help of any horizontal of vertical line of some sort as needed and make sure the brush edges are aligned with it when you set the source point and when you make that initial click. As long as you have those first two clicks aligned, the rest will remain aligned.

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Setting Clone Stamp preview (Photoshop CS4 and CS5 only) Open Clone source panel (Window > Clone Source). It has options for the Clone Stamp tools or Healing Brush tools. You can set upto five different sample sources and quickly select the one you need without re-sampling each time you need to change to a different source. Select Show Overlay, to view an overlay of your sample source to make it easier to clone the source in a specific location. This is a big time-saver! This works great for aligning objects that were a hit and miss in the past, such as straight edges, critical areas, and so on. You can also scale or rotate the sample source for a better match of the size and orientation of the cloning destination by changing the other options available in this panel.

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5

Removing blemishes After opening the images and identifying the blemishes you can start healing them. Zoom into the “problem area” in order to make the blemish more visible and easier to work with. You can do this by hitting CTRL and the + button, or by selecting View > Zoom In. For best results with the Healing Brush, you should use a brush size that’s just slightly larger than the area you’re trying to fix, which means you’ll usually need to change your brush size quite often as you make your way from one problem spot to the next.

The fastest way to change your brush size is with the left and right bracket keys on your keyboard. Press the left bracket key ([ ) to make the brush smaller or the right bracket key ( ] ) to make it larger. Use a feathered brush for nice and soft results.

First place the brush over an area of skin that is similar to that you wish to change.

Make sure it is an area with no blemishes, lines or other effects as these will be transferred, blended and noticeable in the result. If the area has small pores, that is ideal as it will make the effect even more natural. When you have placed

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the brush over a suitable area, press the ALT key and left click on the mouse, this selects that area as a benchmark and will use it for healing until repeat that process again. Now you can start working. Place the brush over the scar, scratch, acne or blemish and start to “paint” over it whilst keeping the left mouse button pressed.

When you release the left mouse button, the blemish should be erased...it’s magic!

Throughout the “healing” you will see a marker cross which indicates where you are pulling the healing information from.

You will notice that it moves as you move the mouse. Remove stray hairs similarily.

Be careful not to let it run over an area that is different to your selected patch, otherwise it will show in the result. That’s it! It doesn’t take a ton of work to touch up your pictures.. While you are zoomed in close, press the space bar and move the mouse around the image to remove all other blemishes, remembering to select a new area close to the area you wish to change each time. Your end result should be a nice, clean image with unnoticeable results, a clean portrait to be proud of.

Learning Photoshop

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Removing dark circles under the eyes After removing the acne and stray hairs it is now time to remove the dark circles under the eyes. For this again create a new blank layer by Pressing SHIFT+CTRL+N. We shall do all our dark circle removal on this layer. We shall do it with the clone stamp tool.

Press “S” to activate the clone stamp tool. In the Stamp tool preset set the mode to lighten because we are going to lighten the dark circles, choose brush opacity around 20%,

Flow-100%, aligned and sample all layers. Take a big soft brush and place the brush over skin which is lighter than the dark circles. Press the ALT key and left click the mouse, this selects that area as a benchmark and will use it for cloning. Now start to experiment. Place the brush over the dark circle and start to “paint” over it whilst keeping the left mouse button pressed, just paint slowly until all the dark spots are gone.

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Lowering the opacity of top layer for a natural result While it is a good idea to clone out all the dark circles some people may not want them removed because it is not their natural look. In that case you can make their effect less pronounced without removing them fully. We are working on layers so if you want to reduce the effect of cloning, go to the opacity slider on the layer panel and pull it back till you get the look you want. Generally reducing the opacity to 65% or so does the work. This reduces their prominence without really removing them; just like using concealer makeup.

Some pointers for fine-tuning:

Work in small areas and strokes Do not sample from the same area over and over (doing so will create a noticeable pattern).

Adjust the size, blending mode, feathering and opacity, as needed.

Sample often The Clone and Healing brush tool works best in this case when you simply click once rather than clicking and dragging.

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 Closing comment With the retouching tools in Adobe Photoshop, you can be your own professional air-brusher in just a few steps. The above technique is also deceptively used by glamour and fashion magazines and other marketing material to improve the appearance of models in advertisements.

The more tools you learn to use, the better your retouching will be. For retouching purpose, generally the Clone Stamp Tool, Spot Healing Brush, Healing Brush, and Patch Tool are used. Once you get the above tools under your belt, there are more advanced tools that you can use, like Content Aware, and Vanishing Point and Liquify.

These tools can be a lot of fun to experiment with. Do not under any circumstances, remove permanent fixtures or fittings such as doors, walls, trees or bushes or anything that will be there when a person visits that place.

Misrepresentation is not the work of a professional.

The purpose of retouching should be simply enhancing an image. Until the next time, have fun and be well!

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Learning

Y

Lens Adapters

ou can find lens adapters that allow you to use your favourite lenses of one make on to camera bodies of another make. As an example, you can use your Canon lenses on Nikon bodies, Nikon lenses on Canon bodies, Canon/Nikon lenses on Olympus/Panasonic bodies etc. Such adapters are available from various manufacturers like Adaptimax, Bower, Fotodiox, Novoflex, Vistek etc.

But why would you want to use brand ‘X’ lens on brand ‘Y’ body? Why not use a lens made by the original body manufacturer? Here’s one reason.

Your friend uses a brand ‘X’ system and you want to use his lens on your brand ‘Y’ camera body because that particular focal length is not available in your brand ‘Y’ system. Or maybe the two of you just want to share one lens between you (to save on the cost) but

Adaptimax

you use bodies of different makes.

Obviously, there are advantages and disadvantages to this method. As an example, by using a suitable lens adapter, I could attach a Nikon 300mm f/4 lens on to a Panasonic G-series Micro Four Thirds body to get a 600mm f/4 equivalent focal length (the crop factor for Micro Four Thirds bodies is 2x). The disadvantage would be the loss of autofocus!

A particular lens adapter that I’ve come across (from Fotodiox), when combined with a suitable lens, actually serves as a ‘shift-lens’. Using this combination, you can very easily create a mini-panorama.

Using a firm tripod is a must. The adapter fits between the lens and the camera body. With this particular adapter, you attach the adapter to the tripod via its own collar. Take the first

Fotodiox

shot by sliding the camera body to the extreme left, the second shot with the body centred and the third shot with the body to the right. (Generally, we would mount the body on to the tripod and move the lens; since a tripod collar is provided on this particular adapter, we can shift the body instead!). Moreover, the design is such that it is not practical to mount the camera body on the tripod as the tripod’s mounting plate fouls with the adapter.

Note 1: In this case we should use a lens with a wider coverage (a fullframe 24mm lens for example). Doing so will ensure that corners don’t get darkened when the lens/body is shifted. If you use a APS-C lens instead, chances are that you will get vignetting.

Note 2: Infinity focus is not very sharp when using this adapter.

Novoflex

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Shown here are the three ‘body shift’ shots of the adapter/camera and the final panorama.

Thanks to Satish Rajpathak and Sarvesh Rajpathak from Pune for the loan of the adapter and the panorama pictures. The final picture is of course created using the Photomerge feature in Photoshop.

When taking pictures for a panorama, it is necessary to overlap the images by 25% to 40% (depending on the focal length of the lens). When using the Fotodiox lens adapter to create a panoramic view, you do not have to bother about the overlap amount as the adapter takes care of that.

Rohinton Mehta

Learning

Photo credit: Satish Rajpathak and Sarvesh Rajpathak

Learning

Contact Sheet D

uring film days, almost every photographer kept a ready reckoner of the shots he produced. It was known as ‘Contact Sheet’. Of course you know that, but newcomers may not! Also, quite a few number of photographers feel that contact sheets could be made only of images shot on film. Not true.

A contact sheet is a print, depicting thumbnail images of the photos we have shot. But wait, you say, “I have all the images on my computer. Why would I need a contact sheet”? In a way you would be right. But see it this way – you want to show your edited images to Printscreen 1

someone who does not have a computer; or, even if he has, he has to put ‘on’ the computer to view your images.

Wouldn’t carrying a contact sheet be easier?

The contact sheet feature was available in few of the earlier versions of Photoshop but was dropped in the recent versions because it was possible to create a contact sheet only in 32-bit mode. Now, in Photoshop CS6 (64-bit version), you can once again create contact sheets. I shall create a contact sheet of some of the images I have edited.

1. First, see that all the edited images are placed in a suitably named folder.

2. Go to File > Automate > Contact Sheet II. A dialog box named Contact Sheet II will open (see Printscreen 1).

3. In the ‘Source Images’ section, select ‘Folder’ in the Use box. Then click on Choose and select the folder wherein you have placed the images.

4. The inputs for the ‘Document’ section are pretty straightforward. In our example, I have opted for a 12 x 18 inch print. See the other options I have selected.

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Printscreen 2

5. In the ‘Thumbnails’ section, decide on the number of thumbnails for each column and row.

You can also decide if you want the thumbnails to be aligned column-wise or row-wise.

6. Hit the OK button and Photoshop will create the contact sheet. If all the thumbnails cannot fit on a single sheet, Photoshop will automatically create a second contact sheet.

7. Save the work using the Save As command.

Rohinton Mehta

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Wildlife Photography

Wildlife and Nature photography go hand in hand and hence, even though the title says wildlife photography, it will ‘talk’ of nature photography as well. So first, what is ‘wildlife’? Animals (including birds) insects, micro-organisms, and even plants fall into this category. Pets are not included in this list.

Rohinton Mehta

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Learning

W

ildlife photography can be very exciting (and so can other genres!), but it requires stricter discipline. It goes without saying that one has to be really passionate about wildlife; if you don’t love nature, if you are inclined to be lazy, if you don’t want to take the trouble of getting up early, and sleeping late, if you cannot do without the comforts of your cosy bed, maybe wildlife photography is not for you. It can be rewarding, but believe me, it is tough.

Study the user manual

Illustration by: Ajay Paradkar

Don’t put the subject’s life in jeopardy! your camera to the hilt, you may be better off buying a less expensive but ‘easier-to-use’ model. Don’t go by what your neighbour has; go by what you are comfortable with!

Know your subject

The photographer has cleared away small branches and leaves to get a clear view of the nesting chicks. This should be avoided at all costs.

It is important for a wildlife photographer to love nature, and hence he should go all out to preserve it. This also means to avoid doing anything that can put the subject’s life in danger. For example, clearing of plants or leaves that cover a nest so that you can get a clearer view, is a big ‘no-no’. Predators and other birds of prey would find it easier to locate the nests and kill the chicks. Handling of chicks or eggs in a nest, staying within close proximity of a nest (so that you can get some shots of parent birds coming in) should be totally avoided. If the parent birds are disturbed, they may never come back to the nest again and the young chicks may die of hunger and starvation.

Remember, life – any life – is more important than your pictures!

(It is for this reason that many photography competitions do not allow pictures of nesting birds.)

Cameras don’t take pictures; you do!

Whatever equipment you have, make sure that you understand how to use its features. Make sure that you know your basics of photography. The best camera in the world (if there is any such thing) will not give you great photos if you do not know how to use it. Do remember, modern cameras are complex. You may have pots of money, but if you are not inclined to study

This goes without saying, but all the same, I am saying it. A story goes that a wildlife photographer who had photographed many charging African elephants, stood his ground when an Indian elephant charged at him. He expected the Indian elephant would make a mock charge just like the African elephant does. You may have guessed it – he is not around to read this article!

Know your subject. Know its likes and dislikes. You don’t stand anywhere near a hippopotamus because he ‘looks so cute’.

You don’t eyeball a wild animal because in animal language that is a challenge to fight.

You don’t surprise a bear, because he’ll go for you. You don’t go close to a rhinoceros thinking that he has poor eyesight and won’t notice you and then run because he is getting closer to you, because that may be the last time you’ll run! It attacks anything that moves fast. When you get too close to an animal – get within his fear circle – he will either flee or fight. If he flees, you live. If he does the opposite, you may die.

Study your intended subject beforehand and stay healthy. We need you around to read our magazine!

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Illustration by: Ajay Paradkar

Equipment Don’t carry everything you possess. Carry only what is definitely needed for the particular shoot.

Note: If you go in Lens, with a tripod collar for a heavy longer focal length lens, one with a tripod collar would be advantageous.

You mount the heavy lens on to the tripod (instead of the body), thus preventing unnecessary strain on the camera mount.

There are lots of lenses and camera bodies to choose from. If you are an enthusiast (but not a pro) just starting with wildlife photography, you could go in for slow lenses like the 55-

Canon 500mm f/4

The equipment you need for wildlife photography will of course depend on the subjects you wish to photograph and your bank balance. Long telephoto lenses can be very expensive. And did I mention that you have to regularly go to a gym and build up your muscles? A 500 mm prime lens can weigh about 4-5 kilograms; a pro D-SLR body about 1 kg. Add a couple of other lenses and extra bodies, total it up with a pro camera bag weighing in at about 4-5 kg, and you need to be ready to lug around about 18-20 kgs. Oh, I forgot my close friend, the tripod!

(I did try to indicate earlier that wildlife photography is not for those wanting comforts.)

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Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6

Canon 55-250mm f/4-5.6

Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6

Learning

250mm f/4-5.6, 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6, 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6, or the 300mm f/4 primes. Mid-level photographers could consider lenses like the 100400mm f/4.5-5.6, 50-500mm f/5-6.3, 150-500mm f/5-6.3, 200-500mm f/5-6.3 etc. If you are really serious (and have the money to spare), or are a pro, then consider ‘fast’ pro prime-lenses like the 300mm f/2, 400mm f/2.8, 500mm f/4, 600mm f/4, or ‘fast’ zooms like the 200-400mm f/4. You could also consider using teleconverters like the 1.4x, 1.7x or 2x that will increase the focal length of your lens by a factor of 1.4, 1.7 or 2 respectively. Personally speaking, I would try not to use the 2x since it does show a drop in image quality.

Also remember, teleconverters work better with prime (single focal length) lenses than with zooms.

Nikon 200-400mm f/4

Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3

Tamron 200-500mm f/5-6.3

Sigma 50-500 f/5-6.3

Nikon 300mm f/2.8

Nikon 400mm f/2.8

Canon 100mm macro

Nikon 60mm macro

If possible, do keep a 50mm lens or a short zoom lens ready, just in case an animal comes too close (as it often happens during African safaris). With a long lens, you may cut off parts of the animal if it approaches too close.

What about wide-angle lenses?

Speaking strictly from wildlife perspective, you may feel that having them is not important, but you don’t always need a close-up of an animal. You may also want to show the surroundings, the environment.

Jungles and forests provide us with beautiful landscapes, so having a good wide-angle lens should be considered.

For macro and close-up work, the choice is rather limited. Depending on the subject and cost, you can choose from 60mm, 90/100/105mm, 180/200mm macro lenses.

Remember, a long focal length macro lens allows you to stay at a comfortable distance from spooky/ dangerous critters and also offers a narrower coverage of the background (which is very important because it does not capture unnecessary or disturbing background).

When choosing camera bodies, the choice is very wide. Your first decision is likely to be based on the cost. Do remember, it is the lens that eventually gets you the picture, not the body. So spend more on the lens. I am not saying that the body plays no part in the image quality, for it does! But in my opinion, the lens is more important. This is the way I would decide: 1. Do I need most of the features a pro-body offers?

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Learning

2.

3.

4.

5.

Do I need the build quality of a pro body? Of course, we all love to have a strong build quality but consider the cost (and the weight) too. If you expect to shoot wildlife on regular basis, a pro body could be considered. On the other hand, if you are likely to go for a wildlife safari once in a year or two, you could do with a mid-level camera body.

If ‘burst shooting’ is your love, consider a camera body that has a large buffer and the capability to fire away many frames per second. When shooting hand-held, shooting in a quick burst of 3 or 5 frames can be an advantage since the mid frame is likely to be the sharpest. Don’t make that a regular practice though; use this technique for very important shots.

Consider too the inherent image writing speed. If your camera is not capable of writing fast, having a fast memory card does not serve any purpose.

Consider the shutter life of your intended camera body. Pro bodies offer a much longer shutter life (check the specifications).

I see many rich photographers go in for the latest and the most sophisticated camera bodies. There’s nothing wrong in that but be very honest with yourself and ask yourself whether you know all (or at least most) features on the camera? Be very honest and tell me if you really know how to set up the camera for optimum image quality. Do you know how one setting, directly or indirectly, has an effect on the other 86

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settings on the camera? The reason I’m mentioning these things is to prime you into seriously studying the camera; only then will you get the best out of it. And let me add, modern cameras are not easy to understand and set up.

What about ILCCs, Prosumers and Compacts? Can they be used for wildlife and nature photography? Of course, they can be used, as long as you know their limitations. Compacts generally have limited focal range and hence are not of much use in wildlife photography, but they can certainly be used for macro and landscapes in the forests/jungles. Prosumer cameras (Bridge cameras), due to their unusually long focal range, can serve reasonably well for wildlife photography.

Here’s something you should keep well in mind though. Don’t expect sharp results at the longer focal lengths unless you use a firm tripod. Because of their light weight and ease of use, one is often tempted to use such a camera hand-held. As a example, a prosumer model with a 600mm equivalent lens offers 12x magnification over a normal 50mm lens in the 35mm format. This means that hand movement during exposure is also magnified 12 times! Also keep in mind that due to their smaller sensors, such cameras cannot compete with D-SLRs and ILCCs in the digital noise department and in dynamic range.

Olympus OM-D (ILCC)

Panason

n Cano

er

Pow

000

A4 Shot

(Com

p

act)

ic Lumix F (Bridge c Z50 amera)

Learning

Approaching wildlife

What else does one need?

As mentioned earlier, a thorough knowledge of photography in general, adequate knowledge of using your own equipment, good knowledge about the subject you intend to photograph, good shooting discipline, being at the right time at the right place and of course, a good dose of luck.

The last part – luck – plays a very important part. I remember a 2-day visit to a wildlife sanctuary in Maharashtra, and all we could see were crows!

Most animals walk on four feet while we walk on two. Our vertical position makes us look ‘different’ in animals’ eyes. Animals have an inherent fear of mankind, may be due to the years mankind has spent hunting animals. Hence taking pictures without them noticing you could yield better pictures. That’s where ‘hides’ come in. A hide is any camouflaged cover from where you can photograph wildlife without them noticing you. There are various types of hides but a easy-to-get hide can be your own car. Animals feel safe as long as you are in your vehicle. You can attach your camera to a special clamp which could be fixed at a convenient place in the car or a car window mount and take pictures safely without getting out of the car. A bean-bag can also be used on the window glass of your car (See images below).

Novoflex Uniklemp Bean bag support

Berlebach clamp for attaching to car’s window pane

Various types of camouflaged hides are available. An easy and inexpensive hide can be made from a 1/4-inch plywood attached to two L-shaped brackets. The plywood should be painted/covered with a camouflage material and have a hole in it for the lens (See sketches below) Illustration by: Ajay Paradkar

Fine. But what about ILCCs? If you can tolerate the shutter lag (the shutter lag in these cameras have certainly improved but they still cannot match the unnoticeable shutter lag in D-SLRs), then of course you can use these cameras for wildlife. Because of their compact size and lower weight, they can be conveniently carried over long distances. As a comparison, a 600mm lens with a pro D-SLR body may be around 6-6.5 Kg, whereas a 600mm equivalent lens with an ILCC may be around 1.2 Kg! As an experiment, I recently made a decent-looking 9 feet tall photo of a grey heron using a (hand-held) ILCC with 300mm lens (equivalent to 600mm in the 35mm format).

I am not suggesting that you use such equipment hand-held; in my case it was an experiment.

Note that even ILCCs (currently) cannot match the noise levels and dynamic range of D-SLRs.

Illustration by: Ajay Paradkar

Learning

Camouflaged hide

When setting up a hide, don’t do it in one go. If the birds/animals suddenly see a hide where none existed before, they get suspicious. Hence the hide should first be placed far away from the actual site. After a couple of days they’ll get used to the hide. Now move it closer to the final place. Again leave it there for a few days and repeat moving it closer and closer till the final destination is reached.

Birds and animals are quite clever.

If they see you getting into a hide, they will be vary of you and may not approach the hide. Hence wildlife photographers often play a trick on them. Here’s the trick: Go in a small group, talking loudly so that birds and other animals can see and hear you.

Then one of them, the photographer, slips away from the group and quietly gets into the hide. The others walk back, again talking loudly so that the birds/animals can see you leaving.

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Fortunately for us, animals cannot count and won’t notice that one less person has walked back. Once inside the hide, don’t do anything that can disturb the animals.

When approaching wildlife, don’t approach them directly. If you think they have seen you approaching, walk away from them in a way that they can definitely see you leaving. Wait for a while. Then, slowly and cautiously, zigzag your way back.

Some more tips

1. Pictures showing animal activity always get more viewer attention than those that just show them standing or sitting doing nothing.

2. Be patient and wait till you see a glint in their eyes and then take the shots.

3. Take many pictures. Remember, some shots may be slightly out of focus, some may have some disturbing out-of-focus twigs or

leaves in front of the animal; some pictures may have the animals looking away from you; some may be shaky due to low shutter speeds; there are variety of reasons why some pictures fail to impress.

4. Whenever possible, use a firm tripod. If not possible, consider a monopod or a bean bag.

5. Focus accurately on the eyes.

Remember, fast lenses enable crosstype focussing sensors and as such could be more reliable.

6. When a bird or an animal is surrounded by twigs/leaves/grass or other such elements, autofocus may be difficult or even impossible. Focus manually at such times.

7. Keep an eye on your shutter speeds. Faster shutter speeds ensure sharper images (at the point of focus) by avoiding camera movement during exposure and also prevent fuzziness caused by subject movement. For hand-held shots, try to maintain a minimum shutter speed of 1/the effective focal length.

8. Unless depth of field is your main consideration, try to use the optimum aperture of your lens. The optimum aperture is generally 2-stops down from the widest opening.

9. A camera that allows you to shoot at higher ISOs without disturbing noise is a bonus. The Canon EOS 5D Mark III and Nikon D3/D3s/D4 fall in to that category. In low light (and lots of wildlife subjects are found in low light), such cameras allow you to increase the ISO (without fear of digital noise) which in turn allows you to use faster shutter speeds, providing sharper pictures.

Learning

Canon 5D Mark III

Nikon D3

Nikon D3s

10. Use a faster shutter speed than what you would normally use when the subject is close by.

11. Use image stabilisation if your camera has the provision. Note that at shutter speeds faster than 1/500sec, image stabilisation may not be of help. If you are using a tripod, switch off the

stabilisation (unless you have one of those lenses that allow the use of stabilisation with a tripod).

12. When shooting hand-held with long heavy lenses (something that you should avoid), try to trip the shutter as soon as focus is achieved. Waiting for a while could further tire your hands, resulting in the possibility of shaky pictures.

13. Anticipating what your subject is about to do and acting on that can get you some extra-ordinary pictures.

If you, for example, see a tiger crouching low and walking very carefully through the bushes, get ready to fire away.

When you see a deer stamping its feet, or when you hear a monkey giving out a warning cry, you can be certain that a predator is nearby.

14. Consider having two camera bodies, each with a different focal length lens. For example, on one body you may attach a 100-400mm lens; on the other, a 24-70mm.

Remember, especially during safaris in game reserves, wild animals often come very close to the vehicle you are travelling in. With a telephoto zoom, it is possible that you may cut off a part of the animal because it is too near. The second camera body fitted with a different focal length lens may help.

15. Always set your camera to ‘Continuous High’ firing mode, but learn to fire only one shot if necessary. When the action starts, you don’t want to fiddle with the controls, trying to set the camera to continuous firing mode!

16. Shoot in Camera Raw if possible. In this mode, you don’t have to worry about the White Balance because you can change the WB as desired during post processing in your favourite Raw Converter.

17. Don’t rule out shooting in JPEG. In JPEG, you can shoot many more frames before the ‘Buffer’ fills up and locks the camera! However, if shooting in JPEG, ensure that you set the proper White Balance and that you set the JPEG for the highest image quality.

18. Learn to use Exposure Compensation. When shooting in one of the auto modes, and photographing lighter subjects (lighter than mid-tone), compensate your exposure on the plus side. When photographing darker subjects (compared to mid-tone), compensate the exposure on the minus side. This assumes that you want your light tone subjects to stay light; your dark tone subjects to stay dark.

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Illustration by: Ajay Paradkar

Learning

M

l e x i p a eg

With most of us reading this article, photography is a passion. Call it madness if you like.

Wildlife photographers are even a further different breed, often putting in their life’s savings in their equipment.

Higher megapixel cameras seem to the ‘in-thing’ today. Just mention a Canon 5D Mark II, 5D Mark III, Nikon D3x, D800, even the low-cost D3200, and it seems to re-invent life for wildlife enthusiasts. So, is this investment justified?

Or is it an overkill? What does one have to do to get the most out of these megapixel monsters?

If you have ever used one of these cameras, by now you may already have the answer. For one thing, as good 90

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It seems the world is going crazy with MMD (Megapixel Madness Disorder). How relevant is higher megapixel when it comes to general photography? What are the advantages and disadvantages of higher megapixel cameras, especially for wildlife? This short essay tries to answer these questions.

Note: What holds true here also holds true with most other genres of photography.

Rohinton Mehta

as they are, these monsters are ‘nonforgiving’. Any defect in your lens, any focussing error howsoever small, any movement of the camera (the subject too), usage of wrong apertures and poor shooting technique, will all stand out like a sore thumb. You may have noticed that some of your lenses, that delivered excellent sharpness with your 6, 12, or 16 megapixel cameras, no longer gives you the same/similar results with your new megapixel monsters.

Why is that, you may ask? The imaging sensors of these cameras are capable of recording extremely fine detail. Along with that, lens flaws are also brought out (all lenses have some flaws). This simply implies that, for the ultimate image quality that these cameras are capable of providing, you need to use the best

(read, most expensive) lenses available.

It is not that your older lenses won’t work, its just that they may not be able to provide the highest image quality that you may expect. However, if you never enlarge your pictures to poster size or more, you may not notice the difference.

I did mention ‘usage of wrong apertures’. What the heck is that?

We all know that using very narrow apertures (like f/16, f/22) to increase depth of field, does have an adverse effect on image quality. When light passes through very narrow openings, a phenomenon called ‘diffraction’ causes the images to go ‘soft’. This is more noticeable at the edges of the frame. Hence you need to find the

Learning

diffraction limit of your own lenses/ camera body combination and try not to go beyond that particular aperture.

For example, on the D800/D800E, the effects of diffraction generally become noticeable at around f/11. Please note too, that the size of your film/digital sensor and the size of the pixels play a part here. Cameras with smaller sensors reach the limit of diffraction faster than, say, a full-frame sensor camera. (That’s why most compact cameras are limited to f/8).

Okay. What about the widest available aperture? Lenses do not give their best performance when used wide open.

If possible, stop down by at least one f/stop. Modern ‘big-gun’ lenses like the 500mm f/4s and 600mm f/4s do provide good resolution when used wide open, but they too will perform better when stopped down a bit.

What’s all the fuss about ‘shooting technique’? Applicable all the more to high megapixel models, shooting without a proper support can cause a loss of critical sharpness that your camera/lens combo is capable of achieving. Again, this might have gone unnoticed with your 6/12/16-megapixel cameras but with higher megapixel models, chances are, that you’ll notice the loss of critical sharpness. If your camera offers a Mirror Lock Up facility, make sure you use it, especially when using long telephoto lenses and high MP models.

Have you read Nikon’s Technical Guide on the D800/D800E? In case you haven’t, here’s a part of it: On page 2, Shooting Techniques: “At

the high resolutions offered by the D800/800E, even the slightest camera motion can result in blur”.

Further on page 2: Lesson 1: Use a tripod. “Use a tripod to reduce blur when photographing static subjects. It should be as sturdy as possible; avoid extending the legs or centre column further than necessary. A large head helps keep the camera steady”.

Page 3, Why use Live View: “At the high resolutions offered by the D800/ D800E, even the slap of the mirror can sometimes be enough to blur photographs”.

Page 9 gives an idea of what happens if the focussing is not 100% accurate. It says, “The superior resolution of D800/ D800E makes small amounts of focus blur more obvious”.

A note to our readers: Similar problems can occur with high megapixel models from other manufacturers. Nikon D800/D800E is quoted simply because the details mentioned above are easily and readily available.

Ever wondered why Nikon have mentioned this? Have you read of such caveats before in user manual/ technical guides for other low/medium megapixel cameras? This simply confirms that to produce the best results from high megapixel cameras, you need a firm support.

The lessons we learn here are:

1. We must go a couple of notches up in our shooting discipline if we want to successfully use our megapixel monsters to their full advantage.

2. Use the best quality lenses.

Keep in mind that high megapixel cameras often have low frames per second firing rate because there’s just too much of data to be worked upon and transferred to the memory card.

In wildlife photography, especially with shots of flying birds, and for sports and photojournalism, this can be a limitation that you may have to put up with.

High megapixel cameras offer a big advantage when we need to crop our images This is a big plus point in favour of wildlife photographers. Even with long telephoto lenses, it may not always be possible to get that close-up look.

Cropping away the unwanted areas may re-frame our shot as desired. The penalty is a loss of pixel data that results in loss of image quality. But when we crop away pixels from high megapixel cameras, we often still leave enough pixels to make decent size prints.

So, if you can use the best quality lenses with your high megapixel cameras, have a high shooting discipline, a good idea of image editing, and do not mind lugging around a heavy tripod, you could possibly end up with image quality that equals that of medium format! If you do get into this megapixel rat-race, consider faster memory cards, faster computers, more RAM, faster card reader, larger storage (both internal as well as external), more time at the computer to attend to the larger files, and more money to spend on buying high-grade lenses.

Those who do not ‘need’ (as opposed to ‘want’) such high resolutions may be better off with D-SLRs of modest resolutions.

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Reviews 98

93 103 108 D-SLR Review

SLT Review

Canon EOS 650D

Sony SLT A-77

ILCC Review Fujifilm X-PRO 1

Compact Review Olympus SH-25MR

D-SLR CAMERAS

Change in Rating System Smart Photography’s new rating system exercises stricter evaluation in view of improvements in the overall performance of photographic equipment. Marks will be awarded for the following parameters...

Design & Build Quality..................... (out of 20)

Design & Build Quality..................... (out of 20)

Design & Build Quality..................... (out of 20)

Key Features............................................ (out of 20)

Key Features............................................ (out of 20)

Key Features............................................ (out of 20)

Ergonomics.............................................. (out of 20)

Ergonomics.............................................. (out of 20)

Ergonomics.............................................. (out of 20)

Final Rankings Recommended .......................................... 75-80% Best Buy..........................................81% and above

Performance Autofocus.....................................................(out of 5) Metering.......................................................(out of 5) Noise control............................................(out of 5) Distortion/Sharpness...........................(out of 5) LCD/Viewfinder.....................................(out of 5) Auto White Balance............................(out of 5)

Performance Autofocus.....................................................(out of 5) Sharpness.....................................................(out of 5) Distortion control..................................(out of 5) Aberrations.................................................(out of 5) Darkening of corners..........................(out of 5) Extra Features............................................(out of 5)

Performance Autofocus.....................................................(out of 5) Metering.......................................................(out of 5) Noise control............................................(out of 5) Distortion/Sharpness...........................(out of 5) LCD/Viewfinder.....................................(out of 5) Auto White Balance............................(out of 5)

Value for Money........................ (out of 10)

Value for Money.................................. (out of 10)

Value for Money........................ (out of 10)

Grand Total................................ (out of 100)

Grand Total.......................................... (out of 100)

Grand Total................................ (out of 100)

LENSES

COMPACT CAMERAS

SLT Review Sony SLT A-77

No More Reflex...

T

he last four years have seen many camera manufacturers attempting to eliminate the ‘reflex’ with their innovative methods.

While Nikon, Olympus, and Panasonic eliminated the mirror itself in their interchangeable systems, Sony adapted the concept of the pellicle mirror, which they call Translucent Mirror Technology, thereby retaining the mirror, yet eliminating the problems associated with the reflex action. The Sony SLT A-77 (also known as Alpha-77) is the first in the SLT (Single Lens Translucent) series reviewed by Smart Photography.

Design and Build Quality The Sony A-77 has a tough engineering plastic exterior. It has a broad hand grip and incorporates some design elements reminding you of Nikon and

Pentax cameras. Some of these are the command dials at the front and back of the hand grip and the power switch mounted along with the shutter release button, typical of Nikon. The fully articulated LCD screen is designed intuitively and can be rotated and locked. The camera features metal lens and tripod mounts and a well-mounted built-in flash.

Key Features The 24.3 megapixel Sony SLT A-77 uses an Exmor APS (23.5 x 15.6mm) HD CMOS sensor for imaging. The sensor unit features a dust reduction system using charge protection coating on the low pass filter along with image-sensor shift mechanism that dislodges any dust that may settle on the sensor. The camera features an in-body sensor-

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Inside the Box l l l l l l l l l l l

Camera BC-VM10A Battery Charger Power Cord Rechargeable battery pack NP-FM500H USB cable Shoulder strap Body cap Accessory shoe cap Eyecup CD-ROM Instruction Manual August 2012 Smart Photography

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SLT Review

Sony SLT A-77

Sharpness &

Aperture: f/16

Noise

Detail

Shutter Speed:

0

1/13sec. ISO:10

JPEG Compression

JPEG, Fine Quality, 100% (17 MB)

JPEG, Standard Quality, 100% (6.09 MB)

ISO:50

ISO:16000

Colour Accu

racy

Colour checker shot using Auto White Balance in sunlight. Auto Levels applied.

shift image stabilisation system.

The A-77 features TTL phasedetection autofocus system with a sensitivity range of -1 to +18 EV (ISO 100 equivalent). Focus modes available are Single shot AF, Auto AF, Continuous AF, and Manual Focus. Focus area options are wide-area, 19-point local frame, fixed centre spot, predictive focus, auto-tracking focus point, and focus lock. The 19 focus points include 11 cross type sensors for faster focus with fast lenses. The camera uses 1200-zone evaluative metering and the metering modes are Multi-segment, Centre-weighted, and Spot. Exposure can be compensated up to +/-5 EV with increment options of 1/3 and 1/2EV. Exposure bracketing provides the option of 3 or 5 bracketed frames in 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 2.0, or 3.0-stop increment.

Sensitivity ranges from ISO 100 to 16,000, which can be expanded to ISO 50 if required. Shutter speeds range from 30 to 1/8000 sec, with the option of Bulb setting. The maximum flash sync speed is 1/250 sec. The built-in flash has a Guide Number of 12m at ISO100 and covers up to 16mm (24mm equivalent). It offers flash exposure compensation of +/-3 EV with options of 1/2 and 1/3 EV increments and has a recycling time of approximately 3 sec. The flash modes available are Auto (Flash off ), Auto, Fill flash, Red-eye reduction, Rear-curtain sync, Slow sync, High-speed sync, and Wireless. For using the wireless mode, you have to August 2012 Smart Photography

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SLT Review Sony SLT A-77 couple the camera with a compatible flashgun. White Balance options are Auto, Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Incandescent, Fluorescent (Warm White, Cool White, Day White), Flash, Custom Temp 2500 to 9900k with 15 steps, Custom Filter, Custom, and AWB Micro Adjustment. White Balance bracketing is available for three frames.

The SLT A-77 offers still image formats of JPEG, Raw, Raw+JPEG, and 3D still image in MPO, while the movies are recorded in AVCHD and MP4 formats. The maximum image size for still images is 6000 x 4000 pixels, whereas the best movie quality is 1920 x 1080 (50p/28Mbps or 50i/24Mbps). JPEG quality options are Standard, Fine, and Extra Fine. Creative styles available are Standard, Vivid, Neutral, Clear, Deep, Light, Portrait, Landscape, Sunset, Night Scene, Autumn Leaves, B/W, Sepia, Saturation, and Sharpness. Shooting modes are AUTO, AUTO Advanced (AUTO+), Scene Selection, Sweep Panorama (2D/3D), Tele-zoom Continuous Advance Priority AE, Movie, Program AE, Aperture priority, Shutter-speed priority, and Manual. Scene selection further provides options of Portrait, Landscape, Macro, Sports, Sunset, Night view / Night portrait, and Handheld Twilight. The camera can shoot continuously at up to 12 frames per second for a maximum of 13 JPEG images in Extra Fine quality, and 18 images in Fine quality. This, according to Sony, makes this the world’s fastest continuous shooting speed in comparison to conventional D-SLRs. Self-timer can be set to either 10 or 2 sec. It uses a Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo or an SD/SDHC/SDXC 96

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Translucent Mirror The Translucent Mirror (an improved pellicle mirror design) used in Sony SLT-series cameras reflect a small part of light towards the AF sensor while the rest passes through it and reaches the image sensor. This enables faster full-time continuous phase detection AF and smooth, uninterrupted live-view both through the viewfinder and on the LCD. The main advantage of this is full-time autofocus during movie recording. Since the mirror does not move, it eliminates the shake caused by the flipping of the mirror. The advantage over mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras is that unlike the contrast detection AF used in these, the SLT cameras use phase detection method for AF all the time, which is generally faster and more reliable. The disadvantage is that since a very small part of light is reflected, it cannot produce adequate illumination for an optical viewfinder. Theoretically, since a part of light is reflected, it reduces the light available for image formation and hence the image quality could be affected.

Hence SLT cameras feature electronic viewfinders (EVF). Since the display is an EVF, there is a small lag between the actual scene and the image displayed.

memory card for storage.

The A-77 features an electronic viewfinder along with a 3.0-inch, 921,600-dot TFT Xtra Fine LCD. The camera is powered by a rechargeable NP-FM500H battery pack. It measures approximately 142.6 x 104.0 x 80.9mm and weighs approximately 653g without battery, memory card and accessories.

Ergonomics The Sony A-77 is designed well, adopting the better design elements of most D-SLRs in the market, and hence most users will find it comfortable to adjust the settings. When you get the camera in your hands, the first thing you are likely to notice would be the beautifully designed multi-aspect articulated LCD. This is an excellent component, allowing you to view the scene from practically any angle. The images appeared crisp on the LCD, though we observed some ‘pixel jitter’ in shadow areas, which seems to be common with most electronic displays.

The placement of the command dials, and the shortcut buttons on top are all welcome measures. However, the camera has its share of problems. The small joystick on the back panel is troublesome to operate. Adding to the problem is the difficulty to navigate through the disorderly multitude of buttons. Also, the camera is on the bulky side, and the thickness of the hand grip could be a major problem for people with small and medium-sized hands.

Performance The Sony A-77 was tested with the supplied Sony DT 16-105mm f/3.5-5.6 lens. Autofocus was fast and precise, though not silent with the supplied lens. All metering modes performed as expected. The camera controlled noise brilliantly. Native print size was 13.33 x 20 inches at 300 ppi. At 25 percent screen size, images appeared noise-free up to ISO 3200. We would consider even ISO 6400 to be usable. Viewed at 50 percent, the images up to ISO 1600 appeared free of noise. At 100 percent screen size, we

SLT Review

Sony SLT A-77 did not find any perceptible noise up to ISO 400. You can safely use sensitivities up to ISO 1600 with this camera. White Balance was good under daylight and shade, but the camera produced distinct casts under most other White Balance modes. So you might need to manually +

Smooth shutter release

+

Impressive continuous burst rate (though only for 1 second!)

+

Tilt and swivel LCD

+

Continuous focussing even during movie recording

+

Good noise control

-

Disorderly buttons

-

Default White Balance settings need refinement

-

Bulky hand grip

FINAL SCORE Design and Build Quality

tweak the White Balance under other light sources.

The 16-105mm lens exhibited prominent darkening of corners on the A-77.

Flare was observed with slight magenta fringing. It did not produce any barrel or pincushion distortion, which is good.

Movie recording was smooth and the continuous AF was a much needed relief from frustrating focussing problems associated with many other cameras in movie mode. But as I mentioned before, AF is audible, and more so in movies, especially if the lens is forced to hunt for focus. The 12 frames per second continuous shooting speed makes you feel like you are firing off a Kalashnikov (an AK-47 rifle fires approximately 10 rounds per second).

The non-reflex nature of the mirror made us believe that the camera has also Key Features 18/20 eliminated the darkening of the frame 16/20 Ergonomics during exposure caused by mirror flip.

Performance But contrary to this, we observed that the Autofocus 5/6 frame darkened out during exposure.

Metering 5/6 The camera has a mechanical shutter mechanism, and not a full electronic one Noise Control 4/6 (which uses the read-out time to act as LCD/VF 5/6 shutter speed), and this might be the cause AWB 4/6 of the viewfinder momentarily darkening Sub-Total 23/30 during the exposure.

17/20

Value for Money

8/10

Grand Total

82/100

Verdict The Sony SLT A-77 greatly reduces camera shake and slamming noise associated with mirror flip. A 24-megapixel camera with competitive pricing, the A-77 is a good buy, especially if you are looking for highquality HD movie capability in an interchangeable lens camera.

Sujith Gopinath

Value for Money The Sony SLT A-77 retails at an MRP of Rs.69,990 (body only). At this price, the camera seems good value for money. The Sony DT 16-105mm f/3.5-5.6 lens, with which we tested the A-77, retails at an MRP of Rs.34,990. Sony’s range of lenses and accessories is, however, much more limited and considerably lesser than either Canon or Nikon.

SPECIFICATIONS

Effective Pixels : 24.3 million Sensor : 23.5 x 15.6mm, Exmor APS HD CMOS Dust Reduction : Charge protection coating on low pass filter and sensor shift Sensitivity : ISO 100 to 16000 File Format : JPEG, Raw, Raw+JPEG, MPO (3D) Max. Image Size : 6,000 x 4,000pixels (Normal mode) Image Quality : Standard, Fine, Extra Fine, Raw, Modes Raw+JPEG Movie Format : AVCHD / MP4 Best Movie Quality : 1920 x 1080 (50p/28Mbps/PS, 50i/24Mbps/FX) (AVCHD) White Balance : Auto, Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Incandescent, Fluorescent (Warm White, Cool White, Day White), Flash, Custom Temp 2500 to 9900k with 15-step, Custom Filter, Custom, AWB micro adjustment Image Stabilisation : Sensor-shift mechanism Monitor : 3.0-inch, 921,600-dot TFT Xtra Fine LCD Focus Modes : Single-shot AF, Auto AF, Continuous AF, Manual Focus Focus areas selection : Wide area, 19-point local frame, fixed centre spot focus, predictive focus, auto-tracking focus point, focus lock Exposure Modes : AUTO, AUTO Advanced (AUTO+), Scene Selection, Sweep Panorama (2D/3D), Tele-zoom Continuous Advance Priority AE, Movie, Program AE, Aperture priority, Shutter priority, Manual Exposure Comp : +/- 5EV (1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps) Built-In Flash : 16mm (focal length printed on lens) Coverage Flash Modes : Auto (Flash-off), Auto, Fill flash, Red-eye reduction, Rear Sync, Slow sync, High-speed sync, Wireless Guide Number : GN 12 (in meters at ISO 100) Flash Comp. : +/- 3EV (1/3 EV, 1/2 EV increments switchable) Shutter Speed : 30 to 1/8000 sec, bulb Flash Sync Speed : 1/250 sec Viewfinder Type : Electronic viewfinder (colour) Continuous : Up to 12 fps in Tele-zoom Continuous S hooting Limit : Extra Fine: 13 frames, Fine: 18 frames, Standard: 18 frames, Raw: 13 frames, Raw+JPEG: 11 frames Recording Media : Memory Stick Pro Duo/PRO-HG Duo, SD/SDHC/SDXC Power Source : Rechargeable battery pack NP FM500H Dimensions : Approx. 142.6 x 104.0 x 80.9mm (W x H x D) (excl. protrusions) Weight : Approx. 653g (excl. battery, card and accessories) August 2012 Smart Photography

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D-SLR Review Canon EOS 650D

A High Performer!

84

T %

Rs.55,995 (body only)

Inside the Box l l l l l l l l

Camera body Battery Pack LP-E8 Battery Charger LC-E8/LC-E8E* Wide Strap EW-100DB IV Interface Cable EOS DIGITAL Solution Disk Software Instruction Manual Camera Instruction Manual

*LC-E8E comes with a power cord

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he Canon EOS 650D, also known as Rebel T4i in the USA and EOS Kiss X6i in Japan, was introduced in June 2012. It is considered to be Canon’s entry-level flagship camera. The 650D comes from a good heritage; the 600D, which was awarded the ‘Best MidPriced D-SLR’ at the SP 2012 Awards.

An update to the EOS 600D (that was announced about 14 months earlier), it aims to improve on Live View and video performance of the earlier model. It also claims to be the first D-SLR to offer touch-screen capability. Let’s see how this new baby performs...

Design and Build Quality The Canon EOS 650D is a sleek-looking digital SLR with interchangeable

lenses. The outer body is made from engineering plastic, and though not built to the standard of some other Canon D-SLRs, appears adequately robust. The hand-grip is very comfortable, with the shutter release button in the perfect natural position of the index finger. The 650D comes with a new 18-55mm IS II lens.

Key Features The Canon EOS 650D is a 18 megapixel D-SLR using a newly designed APS-C size hybrid CMOS sensor.

At a first glance, the new EOS 650D looks very similar to the EOS 600D. The 650D has a stereo microphone between the pop-up flash and the accessory shoe, and the power switch now has a dedicated position for video. The Mode Dial too has some changes – Handheld Night Scene

D-SLR Review

Canon EOS 650D and HDR Backlight Control positions have been added and the A-DEP position has been removed. The DISP (Display) button too has vanished. Let’s first see the key differences:

Processor ISO sensitivity

Touch-screen control Continuous shooting GPS

EOS 650D EOS 600D DIGIC 5 DIGIC 4 Up to ISO 12,800 Up to ISO 6,400 Up to 25,600 with boost Up to 12,800 with boost Yes No Up to 5fps Up to 3.7fps Optional No

Improvements over the 600D

The Creative Zones offer P (Program) with Program Shift, Tv (Time value, same as Shutter Priority), Av (Aperture Mahesh Reddy

1. The DIGIC 5 image processor is 6x faster than the DIGIC 4, allowing the camera to record at a maximum of 5fps as compared to 3.7fps on the 600D. 2. Newly-designed Hybrid CMOS imaging sensor: The new sensor includes certain pixels dedicated to Phase-Detection autofocus. This first sets the approximate focus, then the Contrast-Detect autofocus fine-tunes the focus. This, claim Canon, improves the AF speed.

3. All 9 AF points are cross-type; the 600D has only 1 cross-type AF point (at the centre).

4. Newly designed shutter assembly.

5. The new DIGIC 5 image processor is capable of correcting peripheral illumination (with Canon lenses), and chromatic aberrations on JPEG images.

6. The 650D can combine 4 images to create a new low-noise image.

7. Superior flash technology for radio-controlled flash.

greater overall image sharpness and saturated colours), Close-up, Sports (uses faster shutter speeds to freeze the action), Night Portrait, Handheld Night Scene (instead of a long exposure in low light, the 650D will take 4 shots in quick succession, each for a shorter duration, and align them automatically for the final picture), and HDR Backlight Control (3 shots will be taken at different exposures to form an image with detail in highlight as well as shadows).

Like with other Canon D-SLRs, the EOS 650D’s Mode Dial offers Basic Zones for beginners and Creative Zones for advanced users.

The Basic Zones offer Scene Intelligent Auto for fully automatic shooting, Flash off, and Creative Auto (CA). In CA mode (not to be confused with chromatic aberration), the user can have control over the depth of field, drive mode, and flash firing. Control over the ambience (Standard, Vivid, Soft, Warm, Intense, Cool, Brighter Darker, and Monochrome) is also possible. You can even control the amount of blur in the background. Additionally, the Basic Zone incorporates ‘Image Zone’ which further extends user-friendliness to beginners. Available are: Portrait (background is blurred to make the subject stand out. Also makes the skin and hair look softer), Landscape (for increased depth of field, August 2012 Smart Photography

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D-SLR Review Canon EOS 650D vale, same as Aperture Priority), and M (Manual) exposure. Four metering modes are available: Evaluative, Partial, Spot, and Center-weighted Average.

The Evaluative metering is best used as general-purpose metering suited even for backlit subjects. The Partial metering is effective when the background is much brighter than the subject. The Spot metering is generally used when one wants to target a specific part of the subject, while the Centre-weighted Average metering is weighted at the centre and then averaged for the entire scene. Exposures can be compensated up to +/- 5 stops in 1/3-stop increments.

The 650D also permits flash exposure

Sharpness &

8sec. ISO:100

utter Speed: 1/

JPEG Compression

JPEG, Fine Quality, 100% (7.66 MB)

100

The camera employs a 3-inch flipout type, 1.04-million dot resolution LCD monitor wherein you can set the menu functions, use Live View, shoot movies and play back still images and movies. A dedicated button at the right of the LCD, marked ‘Q’, offers quick and easy control for selecting and Noise

Detail

Aperture: f/8 Sh

compensation and Auto Exposure Bracketing, both in +/- 2 stops in 1/3stop increments. The 650D comes with a 18-55mm IS II f/3.5-5.6 kit lens. This lens can be used with the IS (Image Stabiliser) ‘on’ when using a tripod.

Canon does suggest however, that the IS may be switched ‘off’ when using a tripod, just to save on battery power.

JPEG, Standard Quality, 100% (207 KB)

Smart Photography August 2012

ISO:100

ISO:12800

Colour Accu

racy

Colour checker shot using Auto White Balance in sunlight. Auto Levels applied.

setting the various shooting functions.

What is more, the LCD offers an easy description (Feature Guide) of the selected function. With more and more gadgets offering touch-screen operations, the 650D has joined the bandwagon. Various functions can be selected via the touch-screen. Shutter release can be activated through the touch-screen in Live View Mode.

Images can be recorded in JPEG, Camera Raw (14-bit), or Raw + JPEG. When shooting in JPEG, 8 image quality settings are available; 2 for high and medium each, and 4 settings for low quality. File sizes range from 6.4 MB to 0.3 MB ( JPEG); 23.5 MB for Camera Raw. ISO sensitivities range from 100-12,800 but can be boosted to 25,600 using a custom function. Auto ISO can be set if required. Advanced users can opt for the following Picture Styles (not available in Basic Zones): Standard, Portrait, Landscape, Neutral, Faithful, and Monochrome. Autofocus can be set to One-Shot (suitable for still subjects), AI Servo (for moving subjects), or AI Servo Autofocus (automatically switchable between One-Shot AF and AI Servo AF). Using the Auto Lighting Optimizer function, brightness and contrast can be corrected automatically when shooting in low-contrast environment. The 650D applies digital noise reduction at all ISO speeds, but it is particularly effective at high ISOs. An excellent feature is the Multi Shot Noise Reduction. When enabled, the camera takes 4

D-SLR Review

Canon EOS 650D shots in a continuous burst and then merges them to create a single JPEG image with comparatively lower noise.

Unfortunately, this works only with JPEG images. The 650D also offers lens peripheral illumination correction and correction for Chromatic Aberrations for approximately 25 lenses. These can be applied automatically if the concerned function is enabled.

Additionally, you can also register the data for unregistered lenses. When shooting in Camera Raw, the supplied Digital Photo Professional software can be used to correct both, peripheral illumination as well as CA. In Creative Zone mode (P, A, S, M), using the cross-keys on the camera back, you can select any of the 9 AF points you wish to use. Note that in the Basic Zone mode, the camera will normally focus on the closest subject as mentioned in the User Manual.

Note too that the central AF point is about twice as sensitive as the other AF points in detecting vertical and horizontal lines, and this high-precision AF point gets activated with lenses having f/2.8 or faster apertures. The EOS 650D lets you shoot continuously at a maximum rate of 5 frames per second. Depth of field preview is available by pressing a small button (on the body) to the left of the lens.

While recording video, the 650D can autofocus continuously. This is the first Canon EOS camera to do so. Video recording is in HD (1920 x 1080).

There’s a stereo microphone at the top, and you can connect external microphones if you so wish. Through the mini-HDMI port, you can view your movies on an HD TV.

Note: Canon also offers two new lenses suitable for video (the pancake EF 40mm f/2.8 STM, and EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM).

We believe these lenses would offer smoother autofocus and without the accompanying motor noise.

low-contrast situations, when the system struggled a bit. Any prospective buyer would like to know about the digital noise levels. Here it goes. The native image size that the 650D produces is 17.28 x 11.52 inches at 300ppi. At 25% screen size, we found no noise throughout the standard ISO range. At An electronic flash with a Guide Number 50% screen size, slight traces of noise was visible from ISO 3200 onwards of 13m (43 feet) at ISO 100 is built-in, (only if you started looking for it!), while with x-sync up to a maximum of 1/200 sec. In Program mode however, the flash at 100% screen size, slight traces of noise was seen at ISO 800. Noise was can sync with the shutter, only between 1/60-1/200 sec. This is done on purpose, visible in increasing degree between ISO 1600 and 12,800, but I would not to prevent possible camera shake. Flash hesitate to use these high ISOs if the exposures can be locked (FE Lock) for situation demanded. On the whole, very off-centred subjects. The Recording media on the 650D is SD / SDHC / SDXC impressive control over digital noise. memory card. The camera is powered The 18-55mm IS II f/3.5-5.6 kit lens by a Li-ion battery pack (LP-E8). The really impressed me, especially camera body weighs approx. 520 g. considering that the lens costs a mere Rs.4000. This is the price one pays Ergonomics these days to buy a decent filter!

The Canon EOS 650D, with its Images were sharp at all focal lengths, ergonomic grip, is very comfortable to though, as expected, slight softness handle. Start-up time is very fast. The user interface is simple and the swivelling was seen at the corners. JPEG images exhibited some softness at higher ISO LCD panel is very useful for low-level/ high-level shots. Though I am not a fan of sensitivities, presumably due to the Touch-Screen technology, focussing on a Noise Reduction feature kicking in. I felt that the optimum performance was particular element in the frame through between f/8 and f/11. Control over the touch-screen, seemed convenient.

Images on the LCD are crisp and punchy. corner darkening with the lens wide open was very good. Flare was seen The dedicated ISO button lets you in strong against-the-light shots and so change the sensitivity quickly, without was violet fringing. Barrel distortion was going through the menu. seen up to 35mm (56mm equivalent) setting. We weren’t too impressed with Performance the Hand-held Night Scene feature. We Pictures shot through the 650D were somehow couldn’t get the final images crisp and with good colours in most to be sharp. lighting situations. In Shade and Incandescent light, colours were a bit Value for Money warmer. Exposures were good with all The Canon EOS 650D body is available the metering modes, and autofocus at an MRP of Rs.55,995. With the EF-S worked very well, except in low-light/ August 2012 Smart Photography

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D-SLR Review Canon EOS 650D Light/Scene based : Shoot by ambience, shoot by shots lighting or scene type White Balance : Auto, Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten, White fluorescent, Flash Custom WB correction & WB bracketing available Flash colour temperature information communication SPECIFICATIONS provided Effective pixels : 18 million Noise reduction : Applicable to long exposures Sensor type/size : CMOS, 22.3 x 14.9 mm & high ISO shots Dust delete feature : Auto, Manual, Image brightness : Auto Lighting Optimizer Dust Delete Data appending correction Image type : JPEG, Raw (14-bit), Raw+JPEG : Provided Picture style : Auto, Standard, Portrait, Landscape, Highlight tone priority

Neutral, Faithful, Monochrome, Lens peripheral User Def. 1-3 illumination correction : Provided + New Hybrid CMOS sensor DOF preview : Provided AF type : TTL, phase deference detection + Very good overall performance with dedicated CMOS sensor + Easy user interface 9 AF points. All cross-type at f/5.6 Center AF point is double + Multi-shot Noise Reduction cross type at f/2.8 Metering range for : EV 0.5-18 - Only 6 Raw shots in Continuous Burst AF - Hand-held Night Scene feature Focus modes : One shot AF, AI Servo AF, AI Focus AF, Manual focus (MF) FINAL SCORE AF assist beam : Small series of flashes fired by built-in flash Design and Build Quality 16/20 Metering modes : 63-zone TTL full aperture metering Evaluative, Partial, Spot, Key Features 17/20 Center-weighted Ergonomics 17.5/20 Exp. Metering range : EV 1-20 Exp. Modes : Program AE (Scene Intelligent Auto, Performance Flash off, Creative Auto, Portrait, Autofocus 5/6 Landscape, Close-up, Sports, Night portrait, Handheld night scene, Metering 5/6 HDR backlight control, Shutter Noise Control 6/6 Priority, Aperture Priority, Manual ISO sensitivity : Basic zone modes: ISO 100-6400 LCD/VF 5/6 set automatically AWB 5/6 Creative zone modes: ISO 100 6400 set manually, automatically, Sub-Total 26/30 Max. ISO settable for ISO Auto, or ISO Expansion to ‘H’ Value for Money 7.5/10 (25,600 equivalent) Grand Total 84/100 Exp. Compensation : Manual: +/- 5 stops in 1/3 or 1/2 stop increments AEB: +/- 2 stops in 1/3 or 1/2 stop Verdict increments The EOS 650D is considered by Canon AE Lock : Auto: Applied in One-Shot AF with to be their flagship entry-level model.

Evaluative metering when focus Considering its performance with is achieved the new EF-S 18-55mm IS II f/3.5-5.6 Manual: By AE lock button kit lens, I would have no hesitation Shutter speeds : 30-1/4000sec; Bulb. Varies in suggesting it even to advanced according to shooting mode photographers!

1/60sec-1/4000sec in Scene

18-55mm IS II f/3.5-5.6 kit lens, the MRP is Rs.59,995. At this price, we would consider the Canon EOS 650D fair value for money.

Rohinton Mehta

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Intelligent Auto mode Built-in flash : GN 13 m / 43 ft at ISO 100 X-sync : Up to 1/200 sec Wireless master unit function provided : EX-series Speedlites External flash Flash metering : E-TTL II autoflash Flash compensation : +/- 2 stops in 1/3 or 1/2 stop increments FE Lock : Provided : None PC terminal Drive mode : Single, Continuous, 10-sec Self timer/remote control, 2-sec Self-timer, Continuous shooting after 10-sec Self-timer (2 to 10 shots) Continuous shooting: Up to 5fps JPEG Large/Fine: Up to 22 (30) shots Raw: Approx. 6 (6) shots Raw + JPEG Large: Approx. 3 (3) shots Figures in brackets apply to UHS-1 compatible 8GB card Aspect ratios : 3:2, 4:3, 16:9, 1:1 Focussing : AF (Face+Tracking AF, Flexizone – Multi, Flexizone – Single, Quick mode AF Manual focus: Approx 5x, 10x magnification possible Continuous (Pre) AF : Enable/Disable selectable Touch Shutter Release : Touch-selected AF point executes One-Shot AF; Picture is taken after AF is achieved Metering modes : Real-time Evaluative metering with image sensor Evaluative metering (315-zone), Partial, Spot, CW averaging metering Grid display Two types Movie compression : MPEG-4 AVC / H.264 Variable bit rate Audio recording : Linear PCM format Movie recording : MOV format Max. Recording size 1920 x 1080 Full HD Frame rate : 35p / 25p / 24p Exp. Control for : Program, manual movies LCD monitor : 3-inch, 1.04 million dots Recording media : SD / SDHC / SDXC memory card Battery : LP-E8 AC Adapter ACK E8 (optional) AA / LR6 batteries with Battery Grip BG E8 (optional) Dimensions WxHxD :133.1 x 99.8 x 78.8 mm Weight : Approx. 520 g (body only)

ILCC Review Fujifilm X-PRO 1

Making a Comeback!

A

mongst manufacturers of colour films, Fujifilm is the only real survivor. In the last two years, it has strengthened its range of digital compacts and aggressively entered emerging markets. Sensing the opportunity in the mirrorless camera segment, Fujifilm has now come out with an ILCC that not only has a fairly large sensor (APS-C sized) but also reminds one of the rangefinder cameras of yore like the Leica!

The X-Pro 1 is Fujifilm’s first attempt in this direction and at first sight looks pretty impressive. How good is it? Read on...

Design and Build Quality

The Fujifilm X-Pro 1 reminds you of a Leica rangefinder. Its build quality is very good, though the shape makes it look a bit ‘boxy’. The top and bottom

plates are made of metal, while the rest of the body is made using engineering plastic. A nicely designed hard rubber grip ensures confidence that the camera will not slip out of your hand. The tripod mount is made of metal. A lens hood is provided with the XF-series 35mm 1:1.4 lens.

[XF-series lenses currently available for the X-Pro 1 are: 18mm f/2, 35mm f/1.4 and 60mm f/2.4 Macro (equivalent to approx. 28, 50 and 90mm respectively in the 35mm format). The 14mm f/2.8 (21 mm equivalent), and 18-55mm f/2.8-4 (27-83mm equivalent) were announced on June 26th, 2012 and should be available shortly. Another 5 lenses will be announced in early 2013, bringing the total count to 10 lenses.]

79

%

Rs.1,41,998 with the 35mm lens

Inside the Box l l l l l l l l l l

Camera body, with body cap NP-W126 rechargeable battery BC-W126 battery charger USB cable CD ROM Clip attaching tool Metal strap clips Owners Manual Shoulder strap Protective covers (2 nos)

August 2012 Smart Photography

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Mahesh Reddy

ILCC Review

Fujifilm X-PRO 1 Key Features

Sharpness &

Detail

Noise

38sec. ISO:200

1/ Shutter Speed:

Aperture: f/5.6

ression

JPEG Comp

ty, , Standard Quali e Quality, JPEG JPEG, Super Fin (3.59 MB) 0% 10 ) 100% (5.57 MB

ISO:100

ISO:25600

Colour Accu

racy

Colour checker shot using Auto White Balance in sunlight. Auto Levels applied.

The Fujifilm X-Pro 1 is a 16.3 megapixel, mirrorless, interchangeable lens APS-C size sensor camera that does away with the Anti-aliasing (Low-pass) filter in an effort to create sharper images. It uses what Fujifilm calls ‘X-Trans CMOS Sensor’. The new sensor assembly, claim Fujifilm, uses a non-conventional colour filter array that minimises the generation of moire and false colours. Its sensor cleaning system uses an ultrasonic vibration device to vibrate away any dust that may collect on the sensor assembly.

Pressing the View Mode button offers a choice of display. You can choose between Automatic display, Viewfinder only or LCD monitor only. The Automatic display operates using an ‘eye sensor’ – when the camera is brought close to the eye, the LCD monitor ‘shuts down’ to preserve battery power, and comes ‘on’ when you move the camera away from the eye. The Viewfinder display can be set to Optical viewfinder or Electronic viewfinder. The X-Pro 1’s optical viewfinder always allows a sharp, clear view of the subject without any display lag but suffers from parallax errors; the electronic viewfinder ‘sees’ through the lens (no parallax errors), offers precise framing, and allows you to preview the effects of White Balance settings, exposure, and depth of field. What you use is your choice.

If you need control over the display of indicators in the August 2012 Smart Photography

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ILCC Review Fujifilm X-PRO 1 viewfinder and LCD monitor, the X-Pro 1 lets you do that too. It offers Standard, Custom and Info Display. The following displays can be customised for viewing: Framing grid, Virtual horizon, Focussed distance, Histogram, Exposure, Exposure compensation, Metering, Flash mode, White Balance, Film simulation, Dynamic range, Remaining exposures, Image Quality/ Size, and Battery level.

The X-Pro 1 lets you shoot in Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority and Manual exposure mode. Don’t search for the Exposure Mode dial, for there is none! When the lens aperture ring as well as the shutter speed dial is set to ‘A’, the camera is in Program mode. To set Aperture Priority, you move the lens aperture ring from ‘A’ to the aperture of your choice but leave the shutter speed dial to ‘A’. To set Shutter Priority, you set the shutter speed of your choice but leave the lens aperture ring on ‘A’.

To set the camera to Manual exposure mode, you set both, the aperture and shutter speed. The X-Pro 1 uses a lens mount that Fujifilm term as ‘X-mount’; it has 10 contact points for transferring messages to and fro between the lens and the body. An Exposure Compensation dial on the top right lets you compensate the exposure in 1/3 EV steps in P, A, and S mode. Exposure control is via TTL 256-zone metering.

3 metering modes are available: Multi, Spot and Average. The X-Pro 1 offers a fair amount of independent control over highlights and shadows.

ISO sensitivities on the X-Pro 1 range from 200-6400 but H (12,800), H (25,600) and L (100) are also on offer.

The user can also set Auto ISO (Auto 400, Auto 800, Auto 1600 and Auto 3200). Note that when shooting in Raw, sensitivities of L (100), H (12800) and 106

Smart Photography August 2012

H (25600) cannot be used. Images can be recorded in JPEG, Raw or Raw+JPEG. Shutter speeds range from 1/4 sec – 1/4000 sec in P mode, 30 seconds to 1/4000 sec in all other modes. ‘Bulb’ mode is available for a maximum time of 60 minutes.

On the left of the 3-inch LCD monitor, there are 3 buttons: Drive, AE and AF. The Drive button lets you choose between 6 fps and 3 fps in a continuous burst, Auto Exposure Bracketing (+/- 1/3, 2/3 or 1 stop), ISO Bracketing (+/- 1/3, 2/3 or 1), Film Simulation Bracketing, Dynamic Range Bracketing, Motion Panorama, and Movie. Note that when Dynamic Range Bracketing is enabled, ISO sensitivity is restricted to ISO 800. The AE button lets you select between Multi, Spot (measures about 2% in the centre of the frame) and Average metering patterns.

The AF button lets you select between AREA and MULTI. When AREA is selected in AF Mode (Shooting Menu), and S is selected for Focus mode, the electronic viewfinder and LCD monitor offer a choice of 49 focus points; the optical viewfinder offers 25 focus points. The Focus Mode Selector at the camera front allows you to select between single AF (S), continuous AF (C) and manual focus (M). Focus modes are Single AF, Continuous AF and Manual focus.

Pressing the Menu/OK button takes you to the Shooting Menu (5 tabs), Set-up Menu (3 tabs). White Balance can be set to Auto, 7 Presets, Kelvin temperature setting and Custom. Multiple exposures and sweep Panorama shooting is possible (horizontally as well as vertically). A Function button on the top right corner can be used to select any one of the following: Multiple exposure, DOF preview, self-timer, ISO sensitivity,

Image size, Image quality, Dynamic range, film simulation,White Balance, AF mode, Movie recording, Raw/JPEG toggle, and Custom settings.

The X-Pro 1 can record High Definition movies, during which time focus, exposure and White Balance are adjusted automatically.

There is no built-in flash on the X-Pro 1, but the camera offers a dedicated accessory shoe for optional EF-42, EF-20 and FE-X20 shoemounted flash units. Flash can be synchronised up to 1/180 sec in P and A modes; Up to 1/160 sec in S or M modes. The camera is powered by a rechargeable li-ion battery.

The camera is powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery. Images can be stored on SD/SDHC/SDXC memory card. The X-Pro 1 body weighs approx. 450 g including battery and memory card.

35mm 1:1.4 Lens

The 35mm (equivalent to approx.

50mm in the 35mm format) f/1.4 lens is constructed with 9 elements in 6 groups (includes 1 glass moulded aspherical element) and offers an aperture range from f/1.4 to f/16 in 1/3 EV steps. The diaphragm uses 7 blades.

Minimum focussing distance is 28cm, while the maximum magnification is 0.17x. The lens weighs 187 g and the lens mount is made of metal. The filter diameter is 52 mm.

Ergonomics

The X-Pro 1 is comfortable to hold and easy to use, but operating the Drive, AE and AF buttons while viewing through the viewfinder may take some time getting used to. When the camera is put ‘on’, there is a discomforting sound, as if something is loose within. If you look into

ILCC Review

Fujifilm X-PRO 1 the lens, you will see the aperture blades opening out, making that odd sound. A part of the lens hood (and also a smaller part of the lens itself) can be seen when viewing through the viewfinder. The buttons and dials offer a positive feel.

Performance

We reviewed the X-Pro 1 with the 35mm (approx. 50mm in 35 mm format) lens. We would term the overall performance of the Fujifilm X-Pro 1 as excellent, though it is not without some irritants. Images shot with the X-Pro 1 were sharp and with good colours. Noise control was good, though pixel peepers may find an overzealous noise reduction feature slightly softening texture at higher ISO sensitivities.

The native image size was 16.32 x 10.88 inches at 300 ppi. At 16.7% screen size, images were usable at all ISOs, though we could observe a very slight softening of detail after ISO 1600 (however, most users are not likely to notice this). At 50% screen size, again, images were usable at all ISO sensitivities, though noise can be noticed at ISO 1600 onwards. When further enlarged to 100% screen size, noise was visible from ISO 800 onwards but we would safely use images up to ISO 6400. Depending on your acceptable standards for noise, you may find ISO 12,800 and 25,600 unacceptable for large images.

White Balance performance was good, with very slight colour casts in different lighting situations. Flare was visible in direct against-the-light shots and so was slight purple fringing. Slight darkening of corners was seen at all aperture settings, but in all fairness, this was very mild and most users may not even notice it. The 35mm lens showed a very slight barrel distortion. Autofocus was slow and difficult in low light/low contrast situations.

Value for Money

The Fujifilm X-Pro 1 is available at an MRP of Rs.1,04,999 (body only).

With the 35mm (50mm equivalent) f/1.4 lens, the MRP is Rs.1,41,998.

This definitely makes it very expensive in spite of its good performance.

SPECIFICATIONS

Effective pixels : 16.3 million Image sensor : X-Trans CMOS, 23.6 x 15.6 mm Lens mount : Fujifilm X mount Sensitivity : ISO 200-6400.

Auto 400, Auto 800, Auto 1600, Auto 3200 Extended sensitivity : ISO 100, 12800 or 25600 : 256-segment TTL; Multi, Metering Spot, Average Exposure control : P (with Shift), A, S, M Exp. Compensation : +/- 2 EV in 1/3 EV steps Shutter speeds : 30 - 1/4000 sec In P mode: 1/4 – 1/4000 sec Bulb: Max. 60 min Time: 30 sec – 2 sec.

Burst mode : Approx 6 or 3 fps Focus modes : Single AF, Continuous AF, Manual focus Focus-area selection : Multi, area with focus-area size selection, 49 (7x7) areas available in Electronic Viewfinder & LCD monitor 25 (5x5) areas available in optical viewfinder Autofocus system : Contrast-detect TTL AF with AF-assist illuminator White Balance : Custom, Colour Temperature selection, Auto, Direct Sunlight, Shade, Daylight, Fluorescent, Cool White Fluorescent, Incandescent, Underwater Flash : No built-in flash, Accessory shoe with TTL contacts X-sync : Up to 1/180 sec Hybrid Viewfinder : Optical Viewfinder: Approx. 90% coverage Electronic Viewfinder: 100% coverage, using 0.47-inch 1, 440K dot colour LCD LCD monitor : 3-inch, 1,230K dots resolution Movies : Full HD (1920x1080)/HD (1280x720) 24fps, stereo sound, max. 29 minutes Power supply : NP-W126 rechargeable battery Dimensions (WxHxD) : 139.5 x 81.8 x 42.5mm excluding projections Weight : 450 g including card and battery

+

Newly designed X-Trans CMOS sensor

+

Retro camera design

+

Excellent build quality

+

Panorama feature

+

Excellent Virtual Horizon feature

-

Autofocus struggles in low light/low contrast

-

No built-in flash

-

Noisy AF in Macro

-

No dioptre corrections

-

No direct buttons for ISO, WB, & Image Quality

-

No Raw At ISO 100, 12,800 and 25,600 settings

-

Expensive

FINAL SCORE Design and Build Quality

17/20

Key Features

16/20

Ergonomics

17/20

Performance Autofocus 3/5 Metering

4/5

4/5

Noise control

Distortion/Sharpness

4/5

LCD/VF

4/5

Auto White Balance

4/5

Sub-Total

23/30

Value for Money

6/10

Grand Total

79/100

Verdict The Fujifilm X-Pro 1 provides very good image quality with great detail and quite accurate colours. It provides good dynamic range and very good control over digital noise, even at high ISO sensitivities. Though it is not flawless, it offers image quality as good as some D-SLRs. Its major problem lies in its very high pricing.

Rohinton Mehta August 2012 Smart Photography

107

Compact Review Olympus SH-25MR

The Taskmaster

81

%

Rs.21,990

O

lympus has yet again come out with technological innovations to drive their camera sales, this time, with a new compact camera, the SH-25MR. What makes this 16-megapixel model special is that it uses ‘iHS’ technology, which is the term used by Olympus to denote Intelligence, High Sensitivity, and High Speed. And ‘MR’ in the

Flash Output

camera’s designation stands for MultiRecording, which means you can capture high-quality still images along with movies.

Design and Build Quality The Olympus SH-25MR’s exterior is largely made of engineering plastic, except for the front, which is metal. The device looks sturdy and the lens has a

Macro

Inside the Box Camera Li-ion battery pack l Basic Manual l Warranty Card l USB Cable l USB-AC Adapter l Wrist Strap l CD-ROM l AV Cable l l

108

Smart Photography August 2012

Aperture: f/3.9 Shutter Speed: 1/40sec. ISO:100

: f/4

Aperture

00

c. ISO:1

: 1/40se

Speed Shutter

Compact Review

Olympus SH-25MR Mahesh Reddy

three-segment construction. The touchsensitive LCD screen occupies most of the back panel with only three buttons lining up at the sides along with the fourway controller. The camera has a plastic lens mount, which is at the left end of the base. This is worrying since the off-centre placement can put considerable strain on the tripod mount when the camera is mounted on a tripod.

Key Features The 16-megapixel Olympus SH-25MR uses a 1/2.4-inch Type (6.16 x 4.62mm) back-illuminated CMOS sensor. The camera features sensor-shift image stabilisation. It uses a 24-300mm equivalent f/3.0 – 5.9 lens. In the Normal mode, the lens focusses from 0.1m to infinity at the wide-angle end and from 0.9m to infinity at the telephoto end, while in Super Macro mode, it focusses as close as 0.01m. Focussing method used is TTL iESP autofocus with contrast detection. Autofocus modes are Face Detect and iESP, Spot, and AF Tracking. The Face Detection feature can track up to eight faces. Metering modes are ESP and Spot. Exposure can be compensated up to +-2 EV in 1/3 EV steps. Shutter speed ranges from 4 to 1/2000 sec while sensitivity ranges Noise

ISO:80

ISO:6400

August 2012 Smart Photography

109

Compact Review Mahesh Reddy

Olympus SH-25MR

from ISO 80 to 6400. Still images are recorded in JPEG format with maximum pixel resolution of 4608 x 3456. The camera has a continuous shooting speed of 10 frames per second for up to 12 images at full resolution. Movies are recorded in MOV/H.264 format with at best quality of 1080p. The internal flash has a working range of 0.2 to 9.4m (W) and 0.9 to 4.8m (T) at ISO 3200. It offers Auto, Red-eye reduction, Fill-in, and Off modes.

White Balance modes are Auto, Overcast, Sunlight, Tungsten, Flourescent, and Custom. The shooting modes are i-Auto, Program, P + Movie clip, Scene Modes, Magic Filter, Panorama, Movie, 3D Photos, Multi-Recording, and Beauty & Makeup. Scene modes include Portrait, Landscape, Hand-held Starlight, Night Scene, Night Scene with portrait, 110

Smart Photography August 2012

Sports, Indoor, Self-portrait, Sunset, Fireworks, Cuisine, Documents, Beach and Snow, Pet (cat), Pet (dog), 3D, and Backlight HDR. The camera offers 12 magic filters, which are Pop art, Pin hole, Fish eye, Drawing, Soft focus, Punk, Sparkle, Water colour, Reflection, Miniature, Fragmented, and Dramatic.

The SH-25MR uses a 3.0-inch, 460,000-pixel touch-responsive TFT colour LCD for image display. The camera has 43MB internal memory and accepts an SD/SDHC/SDXC card for external storage. It has a builtin GPS tracker, which can be used for inserting location information into image metadata. The camera is powered by an LI-50B Li-ion battery pack. It weighs 208g including battery and card, and has dimensions of 109.2 x 61.8 x 30.6mm (WxHxD).

Ergonomics The Olympus SH-25MR is easy to operate. The menu is straightforward, without any confusing buttons or dials to operate. Images appeared crisp on the display. Though the mode dial is small, it is very smooth to operate. The camera has a well-defined grip, but the grip is plastic, and hence slippery, unlike rubber grips on some cameras.

So do not forget to attach the strap while working with this camera.

Performance The Olympus SH-25MR performed surprisingly well during our tests. AF was fast and precise even under low light. The metering modes performed as expected.

Flare was controlled well and we did not observe any chromatic aberration. The lens controlled darkening of corners very well. We did not observe any darkening at the wide-angle end with wide open

Compact Review

Olympus SH-25MR

aperture (automatically selected by the camera). The images were sharp edge-toedge. The lens did not produce any form of distortion.

Both auto and preset White Balance performed well under natural light, i.e., Daylight and Cloudy. While the White Balance performed rather poorly under Fluorescent light, the preset mode in Incandescent provided better results than Auto White Balance. Native image size was 11.52 x 15.36 inches at 300 ppi.

At 25 percent screen size, images were free of noise up to ISO 800. Viewed at 50 percent, the images were absolutely noise-free (on visual inspection) up to ISO 400, though it could be used up to ISO 1600. At 100 percent screen size, the images remained noise-free up to ISO 200. The camera can be safely used up to ISO 800 without considerable noise. The GPS tagged the images accurately with location information. We would consider this very good performance for this type of a camera.

Value for Money The Olympus SH-25MR retails at an MRP of Rs. 21,990. At this price, the camera seems good value for money.

SPECIFICATIONS

Effective pixels : 16 Million Sensor : 1/2.4-inch Type (6.16x4.62mm) CMOS Max. Recorded : 4608 x 3456 pixels Max Aperture : f/3.0-5.9 Internal memory : 43MB Lens focal length : 24-300mm equivalent Focussing Method : TTL iESP auto focus with contrast detection Focus range : Normal W:0.1m-∞ / T:0.9m-∞

Macro W:0.1m-∞ / T:0.9m-∞ Super macro 0.01m-∞ Metering Modes : ESP light metering, Spot metering Exposure comp. : +/- 2 EV in 1/3 steps LCD monitor : 3.0 inch, 460,000-pixel TFT colour LCD Touch panel : Yes : Pop art, Pin hole, Fish eye, Drawing, Magic Filter Soft focus, Punk, Sparkle, Water colour, Reflection, Miniature, Fragmented, Dramatic 3D Photos : Yes Panorama : Yes Image stabilizer : Sensor shift : Face Detect&iESP, Spot, AF mode AF Tracking : Yes AF Tracking Face Detection : Yes(up to 8) Pet Detection : Yes Shadow Adjustment : Yes Technology Shutter speed : 4 - 1/2000 s Sensitivity : ISO 80 - 6400 White Balance : Auto, Overcast, Sunlight, Tungsten, Flourescent, Custom Shooting Modes : i-Auto, Programme automatic, P + Movie clip, Scene Modes, Magic Filter, Panorama, Movie, 3D Photos, Multi-Recording, Beauty & Make-up Scene Modes : Portrait, Landscape, Hand-held Starlight, Night Scene, Night Scene with portrait, Sports, Indoor, Self-portrait, Sunset, Fireworks, Cuisine, Documents, Beach and Snow, Pet (cat), Pet (dog), 3D, Backlight HDR Internal Flash Modes : AUTO, Red-eye reduction, Fill-in, Off Working range : 0.2 - 9.4 m (wide) (ISO 3200), 0.9 4.8 m (tele) (ISO 3200) Continuous shooting : 10 fps, max. 12 frames (full resolution) Removable memory : SD/SDHC/SDXC/UHS-I Card Movie recording : MOV/H.264 with sound Movie recording : 1080P,720P,VGA(360P,180P@ size (pixels) Multi-Framing) Movie format : QuickTime Motion JPEG Battery : LI-50B LI-ion rechargeable battery HDMI : Yes(Type D) GPS : Available Dimensions : 109.2 x 61.8 x 30.6mm (W x H x D) Weight : 208g (Including batteries/card)

+

Excellent performance

+

Good features

+

Competitive pricing

-

Slippery grip

-

White Balance could have been improved

FINAL SCORE Design and Build Quality

16/20

Key Features

17/20

Ergonomics

16/20

Performance Autofocus 4/5 Metering

4/5

4/5

Noise Control

Distortion/Sharpness

5/5

4/5

LCD/VF

AWB Sub-Total

3/5 24/30

Value for Money

8/10

Grand Total

81/100

Verdict The Olympus SH-25MR is a capable super zoom compact that is sure to impress everyone with its superlative performance. Though it does not offer priority modes, the camera deserves a Best Buy for its no-nonsense performance.

Sujith Gopinath

August 2012 Smart Photography

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Tidbits

Market Trends

T

he first half of 2012 clearly shows a big jump in production and shipment of ILCCs. Production was up 84%, and shipments 88%. Compact digital cameras did not have such a good time.

Shipments were down 14%. D-SLR shipments followed ILCCs and were buoyant. Europe, the US and Asia saw the D-SLR market jump by 50%.

The following were the most popular ILCCs and D-SLRs in Japan in the month of June 2012: Canon EOS 600D Panasonic GF5 Nikon1 J1 Olympus PEN E-PL3 Nikon D5100 Nikon D3100 Sony NEX-5 Olympus PEN mini E-PM1 Olympus PEN E-PL2 Nikon D90 Canon EOS 600D In the area of compact cameras, the following took top honours: Canon IXUS 420 Canon IXUS 600 Sony Cybershot DSC-WX100 Canon Powershot A2300 Casio Exilim EX-2R 200 Nikon Coolpix S3300 Panasonic Lumix DMC SZ7 Fujifilm Finepix F770EXR Sony Cybershot DSC-WX50 Panasonic Lumix DMC-S2

138

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