Editor’s Comment
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Readers Comments
4
We want to hear from you magazine@photocomment.net
Competition
5
Win a Sony Alpha A230
Competition Entries
6
A sample of the entries received
Cover Image by: Pernille Bærendtsen
Founder: Tristan Hall Design & Layout: Greg Wrench Contact: magazine@photocomment.net
Scoop
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All about what is happening in the photographic world locally and internationally
photocomment
Pernille Bærendtsen
16
Sony HVL-F58AM Flash
Review
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Gary Fong Lightsphere Universal II
Final Comment
To advertise in PhotoComment please email us at magazine@photocoment.net
Professional Portfolio 10 Review
Website: http://photocomment.net
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© 2009
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Editor’s Comment
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his month the magazine is full of great
must for anyone’s camera bag.
images! We look at the work of Pernille
Bærendtsen in our Professional Portfolio. She has
Don’t forget to visit Kameraz at the end of
spent a lot of time in Africa and has some
November. Their Photo Expo is happening from
awesome advice and great photos. We also have a
27-29 November. All the big brands will be there
quick peek at some of the entries we have had in
and I heard that Canon is giving away an EOS 50D
our 2009 Year End Photo Competition. The
with Lens. This show will definitely be worth a
images received so far have been amazing. If you
visit.
have not submitted your image yet, do it now! This is the only way to win this fantastic prize
Remember that we are looking for our readers to submit
from Sony. See Page 5.
their portfolios to be published in PhotoComment. Send them to magazine@photocomment.net, please also send
We review the new Sony flash that has everyone asking, is this the way forward in flash design? Keeping with the flash theme we also look at the Gary Fong Lightsphere Universal II. I know thats a mouthful, but it is an amazing product and a
your comments about our publication.
All the best. Greg Photocomment Designer
Readers Comments We welcome feedback about what you think of PhotoComment Magazine. Your stories, experiences, questions, inspirations, are all welcome and can be sent to magazine@photocomment.net enter “Letters” as the subject. Each month we will publish some of your feedback.
2009 YEAR END PHOTO COMPETITION We want your image that best defines your 2009
2009 is fast drawing to a close and with it memories of an exciting yet challenging year for us at PhotoComment and most likely you, our readers as well.
WIN this fantastic Sony Alpha A230 Valued at R5500
Before the year comes to a close for good we thought we would launch our first PhotoComment competition. Submit your image with a brief story of the moment that made your year to stand in line to win the grand prize. Judging will look particularly at the emotion evoked by the image in relation to the theme and caption. Closing Date: 15 December 2009 Send your entries to competition2009@photocomment.net
Rules: - This competition is only open to residents of South Africa. - Entry is free and there are no age restrictions,parental consent is required for entrants under the age of 18. - Entries must be received by PhotoComment on or before 15 December 2009.No late entries will be considered. - Entries are limited to one entry per person. - All entries into the competition must be suitable for publication on our website and in our magazine and therefore must be appropriate for a general audience.PhotoComment and Sony reserve the right to reject any entry on the grounds of illegality,infringment of any third party rights,the subject matter being offensive or contrary to standards of taste and decency,or on any other ground that it may from time to time consider appropriate.The decision of PhotoComment and Sony to accept or reject an entry is final and no correspondence will be entered into. - The judges decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.
- Images must be taken in 2009 - All entries must be the original work of the entrant and must not infringe the rights of any other party. - A signed model release must be available for all natural persons appearing in any image submitted. - Entrant agrees to the promotional use of submitted images by PhotoComment and Sony.This includes but is not limited to publication online and in print. - Prizes will only be delivered in South Africa - Prize is not transferable. - In the event where a competition is cancelled or suspended,all participants entrants / agree to waive any rights that they may have in terms of the competition and acknowledge that they have no recourse against PhotoComment,Sony,their employees,agents, partners, sponsors or promoters - By entering the Competition you hereby accept these competition rules.
The publication of the entries on these pages was by random selection. If your image does not appear here it is still eligible for the competition and will be included in the judging. All the images and their accompanying descriptions entered into the competition will be judged after the competition has closed.
Nikon updates ViewNX software
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ikon has announced version 1.5.0 of its ViewNX image viewing and editing software.The new version resolves minor issues and extends support to the recently released D3S digital SLR. It also enables location tagging via GPS logs from third-party receivers (including cellular phones) and supports Epson's E-Photo printing plug-in. Furthermore the software can also now run on Mac OS X version 10.5.8 and 64-bit versions of Windows Vista. Nikon has also updated its Transfer software to version 1.5.1.
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 Beta
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dobe Systems Incorporated recently introduced Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® 3 beta software for Macintosh and Windows®, a public preview of new and improved functionality to be delivered in the next major release. Lightroom is the essential digital photography workflow solution, helping serious amateur and professional photographers quickly import, manage, enhance and showcase all their images from one application. Available as a free download on Adobe Labs, Lightroom 3 beta delivers a preview of new tools that will be in Lightroom 3, including more intuitive importing, unparalleled noise reduction and sharpening tools, enhanced slideshow capabilities and direct publishing to online photo sharing sites like Flickr®. Adobe encourages photographers to test this early selection of new features and provide the product team with their feedback. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 beta is available as a free download to anyone on both Macintosh and Windows platforms. Visit http://labs.adobe.com/technologies/lightroom3/ to learn more and download the beta. Feedback can be submitted on theLightroom forums.
Inventor of Digital Camera Awarded Honorary Degree by University of Rochester Steven Sasson, the father of one of the world’s most popular electronic devices, is named a Doctor of Science
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he University of Rochester has conferred an
honorary doctorate on Steven Sasson, who invented the first digital camera while working for Eastman Kodak Company. Sasson developed the prototype in Rochester in 1975, as a 25-year-old engineer fresh out of college, and received a patent for it in 1978, along with his then-supervisor Gareth Lloyd. Sasson went on to spend 35 years working for Kodak before retiring in February. "The age of consumer film photography was born in Rochester, at Kodak," said University President Joel Seligman. "So it is particularly satisfying that this new era of digital imaging was also created at Kodak, through the innovation and foresight of Steve Sasson and his colleagues. We are proud to recognize this important achievement, and we look forward to the ever-improving technologies that will continue to develop out of this work in the decades to come."
Olympus launches E-P2 Micro Four Thirds camera
W
elcome back to the PEN story and the next chapter: “Back to Black”. This latest retrochic digital Olympus PEN builds on EISA’s 2009/2010 “Best Camera of the Year”, an icon of style and quality. To enrich photographic potential, the new E-P2 includes a port for an electronic viewfinder or external microphones. Two additional Art Filters combine with the new iEnhance function for yet more creativity and image enhancement. Two new Micro Four Thirds lenses are due in the first half of 2010: the M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 9-18mm F4.0-5.6 (18-36mm*) super wide-angle zoom and M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 14150mm F4.0-5.6 (28-300mm*) high-power telephoto zoom lenses. Cloaked in classic black, the hybrid photo and HD movie Olympus PEN boldly brings fun and simplicity back to SLR quality. It’s the next exciting chapter in a photographic story that is set to run and run.
Ricoh announces the GXR interchangeable unit camera system
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he new GXR is an interchangeable unit camera system in which lenses are changed by using a slide-in mount system to attach camera units to the body. The lens, image sensor, and image processing engine are integrated into the camera units so the body itself does not contain an image sensor. With world-leading small size and low weight* enabling easy carrying, the GXR interchangeable unit camera system features a highly rigid magnesium alloy body and multiple camera units that can be changed to best fit the scene to be photographed. You can enjoy easy lens changes as well as amazing image quality and shooting flexibility. Concealing infinite possibilities in its small body, the GXR is a revolutionary camera system that pioneers a new realm of photography.
O
riginally from Copenhagen, Pernille Bærendtsen is currently working in Tanzania as an Information Officer for MS Tanzania. She took a few moments to answer a few questions and share some of her images with us. To find out more about Pernille and see more of her thought provoking images you can look at her Flickr profile ‘Pernille in Africa’ or visit her website entitled “Louder than Swahili’ at www.pernille.typepad.com PC: When did your interest in photography begin? PB: When I was 14, growing up in rural Denmark. I always managed to find a place with a darkroom, so that I could develop photos myself. I’m educated as an Art teacher for secondary school, but the fun parts of photography didn’t escalate until I left Denmark for places with a bit more contrast and chaos. PC: What is your favourite subject matter? PB: People are always number one, especially if I can catch a person with a spectacular expression. Moreover, I am attracted to tableaus, composition, details, graphic elements, statements, substance and colours. Concepts which add on to the bigger picture, but which you wouldn’t notice at first. PC: Having travelled a fair deal in Europe and Africa, what is your favourite location photographically? PB: Nothing beats a low sun, blue sky and red soil – Southern Sudan, northern Uganda and Maasailand in Tanzania are extraordinary places to take photos. Moreover, I really like chaos and noise – shagalabagala na kilele - as the Tanzanians say. Stone Town on Zanzibar, and the areas of Kariakoo and Kisutu in downtown Dar es Salaam are good for a chat with people, and offers great contrasts and diversity. I find it challenging to take photos of people in Europe. I lived in Serbia for a while where this, however, was an occasional exception. Vojvodina, the northern part of Serbia, has very special light and fabulous, dusty colours. PC: From your background on your site one gets the impression that you are incredibly passionate about people’s rights and welfare, how does this impact your photography?
PB: I personally hate when people take photos of me without asking, or making me look like an idiot. I believe that counts for people of all sorts. I think everyone deserves to look his or her best. Everyone deserves dignity, no matter if you are a Sudanese refugee or a European development worker. For me photography is therapy, an activity which can turn a bad day into good. On another scale, I have been given so much over the past years living in Africa, and – maybe naively – I wish that I can give something back via documenting corners of this continent where few people go with a camera – and blog about it.
PC: You share a great deal of your images on your website and through flickr, what is your preferred medium of sharing images? PB: As I like to communicate in general, in words, too, I must say that my blog in combination with Flickr, Twitter and Facebook has worked exceptionally well for sharing my photos. Different target groups, though. PC: What equipment do you shoot with? PB: A Canon EOS 400 D. If I carry anything bigger I loose contact with people, and focus goes on the equipment. I don’t like to invade people’s privacy, and I need something I can carry easily on me when I get out the car and walk around. I also have a light weight Manfrotto tripod, and I need to buy a reflector. PC: When you go out to take photographs, do you go with some ideas or preconceived images that you would like to create for the day or are you a documenter of what you find? PB: I can go for days and think I need a certain photo of something, but usually I document what is there. I think that is the best part; to get something out of the existing reality.
PC: Your work provides an opportunity for you to peep into the window of people’s lives, how do you approach the taking of their images? What permission do you try to obtain? PB: If I go through work I am usually accompanied by staff from a local Tanzanian organisation who know their communities well, and who explains the aim of my work. If people say no to being photographed, I respect it. I will never pay for a photo, and I will never trick someone into being photographed. I try to take my time to chat and engage. The culture and attitude is obviously different from Copenhagen to a rural village in Africa, but just because people here have less inhibitions about being photographed, it doesn’t mean that the photographer has the right to overrule their opinion. If someone has an idea of how he/she wants to be positioned, I’ll listen to it, do it, but spend enough time to suggest more options, to play around a bit. For instance, the director of Yei Prison in South Sudan wanted to appear as a big man behind his table, however, I reckoned that a photo like that would ridicule him in a European way of reading the photo – hence, I had to suggest he showed me the prison
properly, a bit of walking around, chatting etc. for me to get other options. In northern Uganda I drove around a lot with the Sudanese refugees, whom I worked with, and I kept returning to the same places. This is probably the best way of taking photos if you want to engage with people and get good motives. They knew the white woman, and I got respect for returning, and therefore also access. Well, most of the times… You can’t force a good motive. It takes time. PC: What is your long-term objective for your photography? PB: I really do need to learn more about the technicalities of my camera, and to improve my editing skills. To be honest I have little clue of what I’m doing when it comes to this. You’ll never see me dressed up for photography, carrying all sorts of equipment. I believe I could learn a lot from working with an experienced photographer. I need to learn much more in these terms, to think long-term objectives - but I would definitely like photography to be included to a higher degree in my next job.
PC: What is your view on image manipulation? PB: One of my photos of an Akiye woman (a Tanzanian hunter-gatherer tribe) kissing her baby has been widely used as part of a Danish campaign for women’s right to land (http://ms.dk/sw115847.asp). A Tanzanian colleague told me she thought I should have erased the flies on the Maasai woman’s face. I would never do so when using a photo for this kind of documentation. I’d erase elements if they are disturbing graphically, and I have become fond of Light Room, and I do like to manipulate colours, light settings etc. PC: What advice would you give to those looking to travel east Africa? PB: Don’t let the camera go ahead of you, let yourself come first. Be open, curious, ask questions, take your time and respect people. PC: I spent two years largely in parts of Kenya and a few months in Dar Es Salaam with little more than a little point and shoot film camera. There are many times that I kick myself for not taking more pictures or any pictures at all. How often do you find yourself
thinking the same? Any one particular occasion that stands out in your mind? PB: I always carry my camera, except when alcohol is part of the plan. During Easter I was in Stone Town on Zanzibar and got invited inside a celebration (as the only woman) one late night, and was encouraged to take photos. I only had my mobile camera, and really regretted this!
PB: Getting my hands on a decent digital camera. Travelling in the Balkans (1997), then Africa. Sharing and getting response via social media.
PC: Where have you seen your greatest improvements in photography?
[o]
PC: Did you study photography or are you self taught? PB: Self-taught. I know very little about technique, and basically run on intuition, based on what I like visually.
W
hen Sony released their new top end flash, the HVL-F58AM, there was a great deal of mixed reactions. Some said it was too bulky and strange, others thought the new implementation of a swing head was pure genius. We decided to take the opportunity to compare how this different design in flash compared to a more conventional style or design like that used in the slightly smaller HVL-F42AM. Please note that we were not able to find the F58’s predecessor for a comparison (the HVL-F56AM) so in terms of actual power or guide numbers, the comparison of the F42 to the F58 is not 100% equal, however that is not really what we were looking for in this review. What sets the HVL-F58AM (you really wish they would give their flash guns a name like Speedlite or Speedlight of Nikon and Canon or is it the other way round... okay Sony, point taken) is the unique bounce and almost swing design opposed to bounce and swivel. A standard flash design follows something along the lines of the illustration at the bottom of this page, which in portrait format images give a narrower strip of light for bounce flash. The F58’s swing design allows for the flash head to swing to either of its sides by 90 degrees and then bounce, which in portrait format provides the same widespread light you get from bouncing the flash holding your camera in horizontal or landscape format. See the illustration on the bottom of the next page.
So here is the real question, does the design make a difference? In our time spent with the flash it most certainly looks like it does. In fact the quality of the light comes very close to that gained by using the world renowned Gary Fong Lightsphere with the only area where the Gary Fong has an advantage almost regardless of the flash you use is in its ability to fill the shadows around the eyes that comes from bounce or top lighting. The images on the right speak for themselves. These images were all taken in the evening with the same camera on full auto, about 2 metres from the subject. Top Right: HVL-F58AM BOUNCED Middle Right: HVL-F58AM with the Gary Fong Lightsphere Universal Bottom Right: HVL-F42AM BOUNCED
HVL-F58AM BOUNCED
In conclusion, the HVL-F58AM has a unique and practical design that can – excuse the play on words – outshine the competition. It does make for a slightly bulkier flash but that is a small price to pay for an interesting, functional and
HVL-F58AM With GARY FONG DIFFUSER
HVL-F42AM BOUNCED
F
or some time now you have seen the advert for
the Gary Fong products in our pages and if you are a person who is always looking to soften your shadows when using your flash you may have heard of the Gary Fong Lightsphere before. We decided that we would take the newer universal fit (one size fits almost all flash guns) and try it out while we were busy with the Sony Flash Comparison review also in this edition of PhotoComment magazine. The results were astonishing. I must be honest, I had worked with a Lightsphere before, on the recommendation of friends, when photographing a graduation ceremony. I did what I would advise no one else to do and that was use the item for the first time on the job. I was impressed by how less noticeable the gigantic shadows produced on the background of the stage were, but after the job was done I left it at that. This time round we got the chance to try it out with a little more earnest. The concept of this 'tupper ware look a like' diffuser is to create, within its dome capped cylinder, a type of bounce light you would get when working with a low white ceiling and produce softer shadows than traditional bounce card diffusers, from the likes of Lumiquest for example. This is one of those products that we can vouch for because it just works. The light is softer than a bounce card and fills in the shadows that foreheads make under eyes or chins under necks to make ceiling bouncing almost a thing of the past. All in all, if you shoot with flash often, then this is the solution you need in your bag all the time. It is a bit bulky, but we spotted a collapsible version in a shop the other day and while we have not compared this newer rubber based model to the more traditional plastic design, the concept is the same, and it looks like a great option if space in your camera bag is tight. [o]
? The famous Gary Fong Lightsphere UNIVERSAL - fits almost ANY on-
camera flash! ? The grip is so strong that it can support the entire weight of a camera, drive and flash securely. ? Attaches with patent pending grip system - WILL NOT FALL OFF! ? Includes translucent white dome, and accepts full line of Lightsphere Accessory Domes - AmberDome & ChromeDome. ? Available single diffuser with dome or in MONEY SAVING kits that contain everything you need to produce studio-quality lighting with your on-camera flash - without a bracket!
Odrinary Flash
With Gary Fong Lightsphere-II
Available Now From
Readers Portfolio This is your chance to get your images published. For each issue we (the editors assisted by a panel of industry leading photographers) will choose a reader's portfolio that inspires and celebrates the art and craft of photography best for that month. You stand a chance to win a prize from Tandem Focus Distributors, one of our advertisers, should your portfolio be published. Include a self-portrait accompanied by a brief introduction of yourself, your style and your philosophy. Send us no more than 10 of your best images with your contact details to magazine@photocomment.net enter “Readers Portfolio� as the subject. Make sure the images are in JPEG format and no larger than 640x480 (or closest too), we will contact you for larger files if needed. Needless to say that the standard will be high and uncompromising so please put your best foot forward.
- What would you like to see in the next issue? Let us know at magazine@photocomment.net - We will have our usual mix of informative articles and more portfolios to inspire us to take better photos.
TANDEM
Who are you taking photographs for?
H
alloween afternoon and we’re off to 'The Cow Artworks' in Parkhurst. We had received an invite to ‘trick or treat’ or rather pop in for a sweet and view the images on display. This little gallery has a primary focus on black and white photographs, which frequently hold one spell bound, as was the case on this All Hallows Eve. As I was looking over the images I stopped to ask myself why certain images held my attention for longer than others. I further went on to ask why I would look at an image amazed that someone else would simply pass over with a glance and vice versa. It is important when taking a photograph to decide who you are shooting for, yourself or a particular type of viewer, for without defining this yours may well be one of those images that are passed by. Another point struck me that evening, something I have touched on before. Tying in hand in hand with the question of whom you are shooting for is the question of, for what purpose am I taking this image? Once more I was struck with the camera’s ability to capture a moment in time and immortalise it despite the ever changing effect of light or time on a scene. Some of the images that held my attention the longest where those of cityscapes taken in the era of the pin striped suits, big American cars and art deco architecture.
I often think I was born in the wrong time. I stared at those images and was transported back in time imagining myself walking down those streets, looking up at the gigantic suspension bridges or dancing in a 1940’s nightclub – I can dream can’t I? There was another image that caught the eye of all of us there, a picture of a small boy who had pulled behind him a small ‘royal mail’ toy truck on a string that had obviously carried the letter to the post box he was meant to pop the mail in. The picture had captured the ‘decisive moment’ where your heart reaches out to him as he waves the mail in his hand and stretches to try and drop the mail in the slot... and your heart reaches out to him when you realize that the mail box even with his out reached arm it still twice his height. There are many images that I admire though there are few, very few that reach out to me so far as this one did that I just had to take it home. Perhaps images speak to us differently at different times in our lives, like a few months after the birth of a child when compared to before his birth. At other times images take us on a trip through time and draw upon our memories and desires while at another point they race us forward to some futuristic moment in time or require an interpretation full of imagination. All the same, whether we are admiring another’s work to be inspired or capturing our own images of yesterday, today or tomorrow one has to admit, there is magic in a picture. [o]