contents We encourage submissions to: The Editor edmail@photoreview.com.au T: (02) 9948 8600 Office 4 Clontarf Marina, Sandy Bay Road Clontarf NSW 2093
INSIDE
Cover image by Sarah Louise Jackson. See page 30.
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Editorial If disaster strikes, will you have a plan for or your precious photographs?
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Products & Trends In this issue we look at the new, improved ved Australian ent Consumer Laws (now with added ACCC!) and the recent spat over GST-free imports.
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Photo Challenge Can you capture the force of nature?
INSPIRATION 10
52 SUBURBS IN 52 WEEKS: LOUISE HAWSON The impetus for Louise Hawson’s ‘52 Suburbs’ project arrived on eight legs.
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PARTY GAMES: ANDREW MEARES Photographing the pollies in their native habitat requires an acute sense of balance.
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BIFB ‘11 PROFILES 26 FRANCES MOCNIK 28 LISA ROBINSON 30 SARAH LOUISE JACKSON
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BOOK REVIEW: STEVE PARISH 50 YEARS PHOTOGRAPHING AUSTRALIA The iconic landscape and wildlife photographer looks back on half a century of picture-taking.
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contents
Photo Review
A U S T R A L I A
BUYERS GUIDE Editor Don Norris dnorris@photoreview.com.au
DSLR 52
OLYMPUS E-5
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SUBSCRIBE TO PHOTO REVIEW AND SAVE Have Photo Review delivered to your door just $29 per year. You can also order back issues of Photo Review magazine or a selection of digital photography pocket guides.
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NIKON D7000
Trade News Editor Keith Shipton keiths@photoreview.com.au
PENTAX K-R The latest Pentax DSLR for photo enthusiasts.
MIRRORLESS INTERCHANGEABLES 56
PANASONIC LUMIX GF2 A simpler interface and Full HD video make the smallest G-series model more attractive for snapshooters.
INSIDER 40
Technical Editor Margaret Brown mbrown@photoreview.com.au
Nikon’s flagship DX ‘pro-sumer’ model comes with higher resolution plus Full HD video recording.
SUBSCRIPTIONS S 34
The latest DSLR for the Four Thirds System adds 720p HD movie recording.
THE MYTH OF PROTECTIVE UNDEREXPOSURE
Subscriptions One year (4 issues) $29.00 including GST and delivery in Australia. See page 35 this issue or phone: (02) 9948 8600 or online: www.photoreview.com.au
How to get the best results when photographing landscapes with cloudy skies.
Some quick adjustments you can make to improve shots taken when the lighting proved less than ideal.
BUYERS GUIDE 47
LENS 58 58 59 59
LIGHTING EQUIPMENT FOR SERIOUS PHOTOGRAPHERS Useful gear for modifying ambient lighting so you get the pictures you want.
Publication Manager Pauline Shuttleworth pshuttleworth@photoreview.com.au
Advertising Phone (02) 9948 8600 pshuttleworth@photoreview.com.au
SHOOTING: PHOTOGRAPHING CLOUDS
EDITING: FIXING COMMON LIGHTING ERRORS
Publisher David O’Sullivan dosullivan@photoreview.com.au
Media Releases edmail@photoreview.com.au
TECHNIQUE
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Creative Director Darren Waldren
Accounts Manager Heather Hampson mpaccounts@photoreview.com.au
Look after the shadows for optimal exposure.
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Contributor Steve Packer
AF-S NIKKOR 24-120mm F/4G ED VR LENS SIGMA 70-200mm F/2.8 APO EX DG OS SIGMA 85mm F/1.4 EX DG LENS PANASONIC LUMIX G FISHEYE 8mm F/3.5 8mm
DIGITAL COMPACTS 60 60 60
NIIKON COOLPIX P7000 FUJIFILM FINEPIX REAL 3D W3 LIQUID IMAGE VIDEOMASK 310
NET EFFECT 64
A PHOTO POTPOURRI Our editor is a magpie of the Net, grabbing an app from here, a how-to from there, some captivating images from somewhere else - and presenting it to you, dear reader, as research!
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Inspiration
ELECTION 2010 Joan Victory (left) and Lilly Patterson knit and wait for a raffle to be drawn at the Rooty Hill RSL club as Julia Gillard addresses an audience upstairs at the Rooty Hill RSL in western Sydney as part of a television show on Wednesday 11 August 2010.
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Inspiration
Party Games PHOTOGRAPHING IN FEDERAL PARLIAMENT IS A COMPLEX BALANCE OF TRUTH AND PROPAGANDA, AND COMPLYING WITH AND OCCASIONALLY BREAKING THE RULES, SAYS EXPERIENCED POLITICAL SHOOTER ANDREW MEARES.
By Steve Packer ANDREW MEARES IS CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER IN the Canberra bureau of Fairfax, publisher of The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age in Melbourne and The Canberra Times. He’s based in the Parliament House press gallery, including for the 20 weeks of the year while parliament is sitting. Meares started his career as a Fairfax cadet in 1991 and was assigned to parliament for the first time in 1996. At the Walkley Awards in December he won the award for best online journalism for his coverage of the 2010 Federal election using a mobile phone camera and Twitter to document moments on the edges of the campaign. The judges said he ‘combined great storytelling and sharp observational skills with an innovative use of technology’. We thought it would be interesting to hear, in his own words, what it’s like to photograph amid the turmoil of the nation’s loftiest corridors of power.
Do you have a free rein when taking pictures at Parliament House? No. Photography is regulated in every square centimetre and it’s very complicated. We have negotiated access, which is a bit of a nightmare, but we’re allowed into the chambers to photograph both in the Senate and the House of Representatives. A steady stream of pictures comes out of that, and then there are the press conferences and other events in parliament. There are rules for what we can and can’t do outside the building, in the corridors, in the MPs’ rooms, in the press gallery and in the actual chambers, and the rules change whenever we take a step left or right. There’s
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tips: shooting
Shooting Tip:
Photographing Clouds HOW TO GET THE BEST RESULTS WHEN PHOTOGRAPHING LANDSCAPES WITH CLOUDY SKIES.
By Margaret Brown
Well-defined, interesting cloud formations can turn otherwise run-of-the-mill photos into special pictures, so it’s worth the effort to seek them out. You may even wish to make the clouds the main focus of the shot. Meteorologists identify many types of clouds, from the common blue-skies cumulus (shown in the illustration on this page) and towering cumulonimbus clouds that presage a storm to wispy, high-altitude cirrus and cirrocumulus clouds. As a photographic subject, clouds present an infinity of variety. They come in different shapes and sizes and can hide the sun or reflect its light. They may also cover part or all of the sky. Unfortunately, clouds can be quite difficult to photograph. It’s often difficult to gauge the correct exposure because cloudy skies can contain a very wide brightness range. Consequently, clouds are difficult to meter, and you must rely on judging exposure levels by looking at the brightness histogram provided by your camera. (Find out more about using histograms in our Insider feature on page 40)
Some clouds can contain a very wide brightness range, making it difficult to determine the best exposure setting.
Unless your camera has a large, high-resolution LCD monitor that is colour-accurate, the preview display in Live View mode can’t be relied upon to judge exposure. At best it will show whether an exposure is grossly off-the-mark. In many situations you’ll need to bracket exposures or take a couple of shots to get the result you want — and some post-capture adjustments are usually required. No special techniques are required to take good cloud pictures. However, there are a number of decisions you must take to achieve the results you want. 1. Composition: The first decision concerns the composition of the shot; specifically what will be included and what will be left out. In other words,
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Clouds can add interest to pictures without necessarily being the main subject.
what is the main subject of the picture. When the clouds are the main subject they typically occupy at least 75% of the frame. Anything less than about 50% makes the clouds an incidental item in a larger subject. Cumulus clouds are best photographed from a distance, which shows their structure by making their bases appear darker than the top and sides, thus highlighting their lighter, convective (puffy) nature. Flat clouds like altocumulus and cirriform (cirrus, cirrostratus and cirrocumulus) clouds show their structure better when you look up from below. Sometimes the subject will dictate whether you should shoot in portrait or landscape orientation, although in many situations that decision is a matter of your own taste. Take both shots and decide when you have time to assess them. The same advice applies when choosing which focal length to use; if in doubt, take a couple of shots with varying camera settings.
The same subject photographed with different lens focal lengths and camera orientations. The landscape format shot was captured with a 24mm lens while the portrait format shot was taken with a 45mm lens.
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This shot was taken on the Frankland River in southwestern Western Australia roughly 20 minutes after sunrise. The still conditions ensured the morning mist remained on the river and reflections could be clearly seen.
Cloud reflections can produce interesting pictures, particularly in still conditions and with low light angles. Still waters in lakes and larger rivers provide ideal conditions for these shots. 2. Time of Day: Although you can photograph clouds at almost any time of day, harsh midday light on sunny days can make metering more difficult. You may also be confronted with a subject brightness range well in excess of the dynamic range of your camera’s sensor. The ‘magic hours’ centred around sunrise and sunset usually deliver the most satisfying results. Be prepared to start taking photos before the sun actually rises and stick around after it has set because these times often yield the most dramatic colours. Take advantage of backlighting. Dramatic shots are possible when the sun is hidden behind a cloud — or any other object that prevents its light from directly entering the camera’s lens.
tips: shooting
Sunsets and sunrises can provide dramatic colours and exposures are usually easier to judge because the subject brightness range is much lower than when the sun is high in the sky.
Another shot of a storm front, this time taken from the Kangaroo Island ferry at 6:12 pm on December 7, when Adelaide was enduring severe storms. Exposure compensation of +1.0 EV was required to obtain the desired brightness levels. Backlit situations where you block the direct light from the sun by shooting from behind a solid object can produce some dramatic results.
Sea mist can create dramatic patterns as it flows across the landscape.
3. Weather: Be alert for potentially interesting weather events. Check the Bureau of Meteorology’s website (www.bom.gov.au) to find out when changes are likely to sweep in and watch for storm warnings so you can be in the right place to take advantage of the photo opportunities they present. Many photographers become storm watchers, seeking to record dramatic shots of lightning. But plenty of other weather events are easier to photograph. Look for unusual types of lighting, such as low-level clouds, sea mist, light scattering (which produces shafts of light through clouds) and diffraction phenomena that produce iridescence and rainbows of colour when the sunlight comes from particular directions.
The approach of a storm front can provide great opportunities for dramatic shots of cloud patterns and even rainbows.
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Eugene Tan, EOS Pro Photographer. “It was my ďŹ rst time in Hawaii, which is odd as I make a living from shooting beautiful waves and Hawaii is the world centre of surďŹ ng - I just hadn’t got there yet because I was distracted with less crowded spots. I took this shot at a remote beach I found. No hotels, no tourists, no Waikiki that’s for sure. It was about 35 degrees and I shot a series of images with my Mark IV, cooling off in the shorebreak. This clear wave wobbled and drew sand as I swam behind it creating this incredible abstract image. I love the buckled shape that the water is making. People think it’s not a real shot, so I love that it was captured in camera. It’s funny how in the land of giant waves, the small ones are pretty great tooâ€?.