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Sony a7R III ties Nikon D850: Best mirrorless full-frame camera DxOMark has ever tested

28 Nov

DxOMark has just published their review of the Sony a7RIII’s sensor, and no surprises here: it ties the Nikon D850 as the best full-frame camera they’ve ever tested with a score of 100. This also makes it the best mirrorless full-frame camera DxOMark has ever tested, besting the former king, the Sony a7R II, which scored a 98.

From the moment Sony debuted the a7R III, it became clear there was only one competitor for this mirrorless beast: The Nikon D850. And as DxO makes clear in their review headline, the D850 has now met “its mirrorless match.” In fact, it would be a stretch to call one of the cameras better overall than the other. Here’s how their scores break down:

As DxOMark makes clear in its conclusion, which camera you prefer (or should prefer) has to do with your own use case:

Comparing the A7R III sensor to the Nikon D850’s reveals the advantage that the Nikon camera’s lower minimum sensitivity (ISO) value brings. Photographers who predominantly shoot in bright light or capture motionless subjects with the camera on a tripod will record the most information, be it color, tone, or detail with the Nikon D850 set to ISO 32. However, if they require values above that, the Sony A7R III sensor produces marginally better images.

By now it should be obvious why the Sony a7RIII tied with the Nikon D850 for our best camera above $ 2,000: it’s next to impossible to pick one over the other unless you have a specific use case in mind. Check out DxOMark’s full review for a deeper dive on this particular camera sensor, and if you want even more you can read our full review as well.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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OnePlus 5T first impressions review

28 Nov

The brand new OnePlus 5T is the Chinese manufacturer’s latest flagship model. Like its predecessors, offers high-end specifications, materials and design at a price point that is noticeably lower than the more established competition.

The 5T is in most respects pretty much identical to its predecessor, the OnePlus 5. However, there are two important changes: the AMOLED display now comes with an 18:9 aspect ratio, covering the entire front of the device, and the dual-camera has done away with the tele-module and replaced it with a secondary sensor that has been optimized for low light performance.

The camera switches to this sensor when light levels drop below 10 Lux and merges four pixels into one for improved image quality. Despite the lack of a tele lens, OnePlus says the new dual-camera setup offers a similar zoom performance to the OnePlus.

We’ve had the OnePlus 5T in our hands for a few days now and used its camera in a wide range of light conditions. Here are our first impressions.

Key specifications:

Dual-camera
Main camera: Sony IMX 398 1/2.8″ 16MP sensor, F1.7,
Secondary camera: Sony IMX 376K 1/2.78″ 20MP sensor, F1.7
27.22mm equivalent focal length
Dual-LED flash
4K video at 30 fps
720p slow-motion at 120 fps
Manual mode and Raw capture
16MP / F2.0 front camera
6″ 1080p AMOLED display, 18:9 aspect ratio
Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset
64/128GB storage, 6/8GB RAM
3,300 mAh battery

Image quality

In bright light the 5T captures images with pleasant colors. Auto HDR kicks in for high-contrast scenes, ensuring decent dynamic range and good highlight detail. Lens sharpness is good across the frame but if you zoom in to a 100% view, low-contrast detail, such as distant foliage or other fine textures, can look a little mushy. There’s also more luminance noise in the sky than we would like at base ISO.

ISO 125, 1/490 sec

When shooting against the light the 5T occasionally captures slightly too dark exposures to protect the highlights, but despite some shadow noise the shot below looks quite pleasant. Occasionally low-contrast detail in the shadows can be very mushy, though.

ISO 250, 1/1525 sec

The 5T camera deals much better with higher-contrast scenes, even when overall light levels are lower. The shot below was captured at ISO 640 indoors and shows very good edge definition. There is some luminance noise but it is very finely grained and not too intrusive. Overall detail is still good, despite shooting in low light.

ISO 640, 1/50 sec

Noise reduction and smearing of fine detail are more noticeable in this ISO 1000 shot but overall detail is still good considering the light conditions. However, skin tones on the subject are a little warm and just a touch underexposed. It appears the camera was aiming to protect highlights in the brighter background. Overall, the 5T does pretty well in this scene, though.

ISO 1000, 1/33 sec

Detail becomes noticeably softer in night shots, as the one below, but exposure is very good and noise well controlled. The OnePlus 5T tends to do a good job in static night scenes.

ISO 3200, 1/17 sec

The camera app doesn’t tell you when it switches to the more low-light efficient secondary sensor with its ‘Intelligent Pixel Technology’. But a look at the EXIF data reveals that images taken in very low light have a 20MP resolution, as opposed to the 16MP of the main camera. This also indicates that, if there is some pixel-binning going on, the images are then upscaled to full sensor resolution again.

Looking at the two samples below, the mode is capable of achieving good exposure and color in low light situations. However, level of detail is very low and images have an almost pixelated appearance when viewed at a 100% magnification.

We have also noticed that two images taken in quick succession can look quite different in terms of both exposure and detail rendition. If you click through to the full-size versions of the samples below you’ll see that the image on the left is pretty grainy, while the one on the right has an almost water-color like smeared look. The levels of detail are equally low on both images, though.


ISO 2000, 1/20 sec	ISO 5000, 1/17 sec

Zoom

OnePlus says that, despite the omission of a dedicated tele camera, the 5T’s 2x zoom produces similar image quality to the OnePlus 5. Looking at the sample scene below, this is true. Viewed at a 100% magnification the 2x zoom image shows noticeably lower levels of detail than the standard image, but the tele-lens on the OnePlus 5 did not produce much better results. Zoom images are not ideal for display at larger sizes but look nice at typical social media or web use resolution.

ISO 250, 1/553 sec

ISO 160, 1/504 sec

The same is true for zoom images captured in low light. The 2x zoom image below was taken in a dimly lit club. Fine detail is not great but the shot is perfectly usable at web size and the zoom function allowed me to get the framing I wanted, even when shooting from the back of the crowd.

ISO 1600, 1/20 sec

Bokeh

OnePlus says the 5T’s bokeh mode has been improved over the version used by its predecessor and our initial tests confirm that. There are still some minor artifacts around foreground subjects but overall subject separation from the background is pretty good, even in lower light and with human subjects.

In addition, the amount blur applied to the background is not too strong, resulting in a fairly natural bokeh rendition.

ISO 320, 1/464 sec, Depth mode

Video

We also shot a few videos with the OnePlus 5T and the results are pretty good, with decent detail, nice color and good exposure. Stabilization is pretty good when hand-holding the camera, but things get a little shaky while panning, as you can see in the clip below.

The video mode delivers decent image quality in this artificially lit indoor shot. Video stabilization keeps things nice and steady during handheld recording.

You can also record video using the 2x zoom settings. The results in the low light clip below aren’t quite broadcast quality but definitely usable, with good stabilization.

Conclusion

With its new 18:9 display and powerful processing components the OnePlus 5T is a great smartphone in general use. However, there’s a lot to like about its camera as well. Images show good exposure and color across all light levels, the bokeh mode captures images that look more natural than on many competitors and the zoom function produces usable results, even in very low light.

Like on the 5T’s predecessor, pixel level image quality is a bit of a weakness, though. The Auto HDR function produces some ghosting artifacts and mushy textures, and we also found more luminance noise in base ISO images than we’d like to see.

Low light image quality is decent but not up with the very best, and with the current software version OnePlus’ ‘Intelligent Pixel Technology’ doesn’t really offer any noticeable low light benefits over a fine-tuned conventional camera.

That said, OnePlus is known as a manufacturer that is frequently pushing software updates and improving the performance of its products. If the engineers are able to fine-tune image processing and video stabilization a touch more, the OnePlus could easily jump up a few spots in the smartphone image quality rankings.

Sample Gallery

There are 10 images in our OnePlus 5T samples gallery. Please do not reproduce any of these images on a website or any newsletter / magazine without prior permission (see our copyright page). We make the originals available for private users to download to their own machines for personal examination or printing (in conjunction with this review), we do so in good faith, please don’t abuse it.

Unless otherwise noted images taken with no particular settings at full resolution.

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You can also still have a look at our OnePlus 5 review gallery from June.

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Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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How to Apply Creativity to Your Images with Texture Overlays Using Luminar

28 Nov

How to Apply Creativity to Your Images with Texture Overlays Using Luminar

Layers of fun

One advantage that Luminar has over the average Raw processor is the ability to work with Layers. “What is a layer?” I hear you ask.

Well, your basic image is a single layer, like a sheet of paper on a table. Adding another layer is akin to adding another sheet of paper on top. With layers, you get the benefit of being able to control the layer opacity (the transparency effectively) as well as what parts of the layer are shown – a bit like choosing tracing paper or cutting holes out of the paper.

How to Apply Creativity to Your Images with Texture Overlays Using Luminar

Think of layers like a stack of paper. By cutting out parts of the sheet you can see the one below, or like with tracing paper, you can see through to the layer before.

Originally you’d need to erase the bits of the layer you didn’t want showing, which could be messy if you made a mistake erasing. These days you’d use a layer mask instead. A layer mask is a greyscale map running from white, where everything is visible, to black, where everything on the layer is hidden. Varying shades of gray indicate how visible a part of the layer is or the mask opacity. Lighter is more visible.

There’s a mantra I learned many years ago that helps you remember. “White reveals, and black conceals”.

The beauty of Luminar (by Macphun, soon to be Skylum) is that it hides some of the mechanics of this because rather than painting in black or white, you have a brush that either paints in, or erases the mask. It’s really great!

When you have a few layers together, the combined set of layers is called the layer stack. Working in layers allows you to apply effects to only certain parts of your photo, or to combine more than one photo into a more interesting composition.

Beginning

Let’s open Luminar and choose a photo. Click Open Image to begin.

Luminar opening screen.

Navigate to your photo and select it. This process will be easier when the new DAM (Digital Asset Management) module for Luminar 2018 comes next year. I’m going to work with this shot of an old cottage.

Original image.

Making a Layer

Luminar provides a few options for creating new layers. In the right panel, you have the Layers panel. To make a new layer, click the + icon in the panel header and select one of the following options:

Layers: click the plus symbol to make a new layer.

New Adjustment layer; which creates a layer that contains only the filters that you add.
Create Stamped Visible Layer; which copies the results of all the underlying layers (combining them) to a new flattened layer.
New Original Layer; which copies the base layer on top of the currently selected layer.
Add New Image Layer; which allows you to add any other image to the layer stack. This is the one that allows you to add texture and other files!

Add a texture file

Luminar doesn’t store textures, but you can use any texture file you like. Personally, I keep my favorite textures in a folder on Dropbox for easy access from anywhere, but you can use any cloud service you like for this.

From the Layer options, choose Add New Image Layer and navigate to your textures folder. Choose the texture you want to add to the current photo. Viola. It’s loaded.

Texture image.

Now obviously the texture file will load over your original image. This is fine, you’ll fix this shortly. But first, you should check that the file fits how you like. By default, Luminar will make it fit over the layer below, but you’re not stuck with it.

You have three options in the Layers menu for this. Right-click on the layer and from the Image Mapping option in the menu, choose from Fill, Scale to Fit, or Fit (as seen below). If you don’t like how these look, you have another option: the Transform tool.

How to Apply Creativity to Your Images with Texture Overlays Using Luminar

You can pull and drag your textures file into shape as required. It doesn’t have to retain its original aspect ratio as it’s adding to your original image and isn’t the actual focus of the final composition. In my case, the texture looks fine for now in regards to size.

Blending Modes

The next step is to go through the different blending modes to find one that suits the images best. Different ones work for different images, so it’s best to experiment. Overlay and Soft Light tend to get used a lot, but often Multiply or Screen can work too. Even Hard Light can be perfect sometimes.

Overlay Blend Mode.

Soft Light Blend Mode.

Whichever one you use, you’ll probably find that the effect is really strong. That’s fine because you’re working with layers, you can just reduce the opacity until the texture looks good.

For this image, I thought both Multiply and Color Burn looked great. I loved the saturation that Color Burn gave to the photo, but reducing the opacity to bring back some shadow detail removed too much of that. For that reason, I went with Multiply.

Multiply Blend Mode.

Color Burn Blend Mode.

Masking

You may not want the texture to appear on all parts of the photo. So you’ve got two options. Paint in the texture, or just paint out where you don’t want it. To access the masking functions, click on the brush icon on your texture layer. This opens a menu allowing you to choose the type of local adjustment you want to apply. Your options are Brush, Radial Mask, or Gradient Mask. You can also go with a Luminosity mask. For this image, the brush is the best option.

Access the masking tools.

Once the brush is selected, the options appear at the top. I’m going to remove the texture from the house. If you want to remove (hide) part of a layer, click the Erase option on the Brush settings menu. Set Size, Softness and Opacity to taste as you paint.

You will see this menu at the top of your screen when you active the Brush tool. Choose Erase to paint away effects, choose Paint to add it in. This allows you to make corrections if you go too far with your painting as well.

Once you’re finished, click Done on the end of the brush options bar.

How to Apply Creativity to Your Images with Texture Overlays Using Luminar

Adjusting the Texture

One good thing about Add Image is that the layer you’ve created has full access to all the Filters in Luminar. Let’s say you’re using either the Overlay or Soft Light blend mode. Any part of the image that’s mid-grey will be unaffected by the texture.

If your texture is dark, or light, the image will reflect this. You can easily change this by adding a Tone filter and adjusting the exposure. If the color from the texture is too strong, you can use Saturation to reduce this or use Hue Shift to change it.

Apply filters to the texture layer to fine tune it.

Finishing the image

Of course, you can also apply filters to the original image. Being a landscape, this would be a good time for you to try the Landscape workspace. When you click on the original image, layer Luminar hides the layers above it. To get to the workspaces, click on Clear Workspace and choose Landscape from the menu.

Landscape workspace.

Using the suggested filters in the workspace, it’s easy to add back the saturation I saw when I used Color Burn blending mode on the texture.

How to Apply Creativity to Your Images with Texture Overlays Using Luminar

To activate the texture again, simply click on the texture layer.

How to Apply Creativity to Your Images with Texture Overlays Using Luminar

Saving the file

Once you’re done, you’ve got a few options for saving your image. Using Save will create a .lmnr file, which is Luminar’s native editing file format – this will retain all layers and filters you’ve applied (similar to a PSD file in Photoshop).

By using Export instead, you can choose a range of other options, like JPEG, PSD or TIFF.

Export options.

Using Filters to add Texture

You’re not forced to use a layer to add textures with Luminar though. They also have a handy new filter called Texture Overlay. Pretty much everything you can do on a layer can be done with this filter. The only thing you can’t really do is rotate the texture at a random angle via Transform, but it’s very rare that you’d ever need to do this.

Start with the image you want the texture on again. Click the blue Add Filter button. Use the Search Bar in the Filters Catalog menu that appears to find the “Texture Overlay” filter. Click to add it.

The Texture Overlay filter added. These are the options and sliders for this filter.

To add your texture file, click “Load Texture…” This will open your file on top of the background photo. The default amount of 50, means you can see the mix of the original image and the texture at 50% opacity; it’s also in Normal blend mode.

The texture added at the defaults – 50% and Normal blend mode.

The Amount control can also run to negative figures, so you can add an inverse version of the texture, which is a cool feature. Here’s how -20 on the Amount slider looks.

If your texture is a different aspect ratio to your original image, you can use Keep Aspect Ratio to force it to fit the image. The two buttons below this allow you to flip the texture file horizontally, or vertically, or both (they appear blue when applied so you know if it’s been flipped).

Zoom will let you scale the texture file to fit the features of your underlying photo. Below Zoom is the Blend mode menu. From here choose the blend mode that suits in the same way as with our first method. Again Color Burn looks great at 100 Amount.

The effect is still a little strong, so you could pull it back by reducing the Filters Amount slider. Here 67 looks great.

Amount = 100, Filters amount = 67

Masking the Filter

Filter masking is really straightforward with this method too. You simply hover over the panel header to reveal the brush icon. Click on this to choose the mask type: Brush, Radial or Gradient. Choose Brush to apply your mask in a specific area.

Filter masks are useful and are applied the same way as a layer mask.

If you’re only looking to remove a small area of texture, switch to the Erase Brush in the brush toolbar that appears above the photo.

In this photo, I’ve brushed the texture away from the cottage.

You can add as many texture overlay filters as you like, just remember that the Filters Amount affects the whole filter set.

Getting Texture files

You can get plenty of commercial texture packs to get you started, but there are free ones out there too. When you’re out and about, consider capturing any textures you find interesting to try out yourself!

Please share your finished textured masterpieces created with Luminar in the comments below. We’d love to see what you make.

Disclaimer: Macphun is a dPS advertising partner.

The post How to Apply Creativity to Your Images with Texture Overlays Using Luminar by Sean McCormack appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Photo Mate Raw conversion app for Android goes freemium

28 Nov

Photo Mate, arguably the most comprehensive image viewer and Raw-developer application for Android devices, has been updated to version R3 3.2. But that’s not the exciting part: the best part is that it’s now available as a free ad-supported version.

The new version still offers most of the features available in the full app—such as decoding and basic editing of raw files, cropping, exporting, rating and image stacking. The workflow has just been augmented with ads, which will be visible in the gallery, and users have to watch a video ad before switching to editing mode.

Users who already own the app continue to get the full feature set and ad-free experience, while new users can decide between the ad-supported version or upgrade to the full version via an in-app purchase that removes ads and gets you access to the following extra-features:

Luminance and Sharpening
Layer editing
Custom export presets
Organizing and filtering of images in a library
Batch renaming and export
Custom watermarks
Display calibration
Side-by-side image comparison
Display of geo-tagged images on map

An upgrade to the full version will cost you $ 6.50 on Google Play, and more information is available on the Photo Mate website. You can also still read our comprehensive review of the app below:

Review of Photo Mate R2

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Researcher says he was threatened after finding major DJI security flaw

28 Nov

Drone maker DJI has been criticized roundly this weekend over its alleged response to security researcher Kevin Finisterre’s discovery of a significant security issue involving the company’s system. According to Finisterre, he began hunting for bugs in DJI’s system under its recently established bug bounty program. In the process, Finisterre says he discovered a major security issue, but rather than rewarding him for his effort, DJI accused him of hacking and threatened to report him to the authorities.

DJI announced its bug bounty program in August following a report that claimed the U.S. Army had banned use of the maker’s drones over security concerns. As part of its announcement, DJI had stated:

The DJI Threat Identification Reward Program aims to gather insights from researchers and others who discover issues that may create threats to the integrity of our users’ private data, such as their personal information or details of the photos, videos and flight logs they create.

According to a long report on the matter published by Finisterre, he spent many weeks communicating with DJI through email about the scope of its bug bounty program, which hadn’t yet been publicly defined. After receiving confirmation that it included the company’s servers, Finisterre went to work in writing up a report disclosing his discoveries. Speaking of which…

Due to multiple security issues, including publicly available AWS private keys for DJI’s photo-sharing service SkyPixel, Finisterre reports that he was able to get access to highly sensitive user data, including: identification cards and passports, flight logs, and drivers licenses. Once he found this flaw, he claims that he alerted DJI to this vulnerability, and that the company acknowledged it.

After more than 130 emails back and forth between DJI and Finisterre, he states in his report that DJI said he would be rewarded with $ 30,000 under the bug bounty program (the maximum award). However, Finisterre reports that weeks later he received an agreement for his particular bug bounty that was “literally not sign-able.” As he goes on to explain in his report:

I won’t go into too much detail, but the agreement that was put in front of me by DJI in essence did not offer researchers any sort of protection. For me personally the wording put my right to work at risk, and posed a direct conflicts of interest to many things including my freedom of speech. It almost seemed like a joke. It was pretty clear the entire ‘Bug Bounty’ program was rushed based on this alone.

Efforts to alter the agreement didn’t pan out as hoped, says Finisterre, who goes on to claim that several different lawyers advised him that DJI’s final offer was, “likely crafted in bad faith,” and that it was “extremely risky” for him to sign it. It was about this time that Finisterre also receive a legal demand from DJI ordering him to delete/destroy the data he had gathered during his investigation, while appearing to threaten Finisterre with the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

In a statement to Ars Technica, who was the first to cover this spat between DJI and Finisterre, the Chinese drone giant referred to Finisterre as a “hacker,” claiming that he had accessed one of the company’s servers without permission and that he had tried to claim it under the company’s bug bounty program without following “standard terms for bug bounty programs.” The statement goes on to claim that Finisterre “refused to agree to these terms, despite DJI’s continued attempts to negotiate with him, and threatened DJI if his terms were not met.”

For his part, Finisterre says that he ultimately turned down the $ 30,000 in favor of going public with what he sees as an unsettling and unacceptable experience, concluding with the following statement:

If you that are wondering if DJI even bothered to respond after I got offended over the CFAA threat, you should be happy to know it was flat out radio silence from there on out. All Twitter DM’s stopped, SMS messages went unanswered, etc. Cold blooded silence.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Moment counterweights let you use add on lenses with DJI Osmo Mobile

28 Nov

Moment has launched 50g and 100g counterweights for DJI’s Osmo Mobile, making it possible to use Moment’s add-on lenses with the handheld gimbal stabilizer for your smartphone. This also ostensibly makes the Osmo Mobile the first smartphone gimbal that supports add-on lenses.

Normally, if you try to use an add on lens with your smartphone gimbal, the added weight throws the stabilizer off. The counterweight compensates for that weight, enabling users with large and small smartphones to use them, the lenses, and the gimbal together. As demonstrated in the video above, Moment’s counterweights clip onto the Osmo Mobile’s arm and can be easily removed when the add-on lens isn’t in use.

Interested Osmo Mobile owners can pre-order the counterweights now for a discounted $ 32, with shipping expected to start on December 11th.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED

28 Nov

The team at Aputure via Kayell Australia (thanks) sent me the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D LED studio light to try out and that’s exactly what I’ve been doing! I had planned a day’s worth of food shooting, but that wasn’t to be after the client delayed the session. So I went about doing what I like to do and photographed myself holding a coffee in preparation for a portrait series I’m working on called “In My Shed” which is literally just that, but more on that later… Back to the light, and what a light it is!

Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED

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What’s in the box of the Aputure Light Storm

The Aputure Light Storm is an LED light with only one light source, as opposed to a panel with lots of little LEDs on it. The COB stands for “chip on board” which is basically multiple little versions of those LED’s you’re used to seeing, but all mounted on a board with a blob of phosphor flowed on top of them.

The phosphor is the bit that gives the LED light its color temperature (The D or the T) The version I have is called the 120D, the D is for Daylight. This means it’s closely daylight balanced, as opposed to the other model, the 120T which is more closely tungsten balanced. If you’re super interested in how they’re made, search on YouTube, it’s pretty interesting. Anyways…

Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED

I must admit, when I first started talking about the C120D with some industry peers, the initial feedback I got was, “It isn’t built very well.” and, “It won’t be bright enough for what you need to do!” but I pressed ahead despite those second-hand reservations and I’m very glad I did.

The unboxing part is always exciting for me, new gear and all that, and this little fellow was no different. The Aputure Light Storm COB 120D kit comes with its own semi-rigid case complete with a small reflector, power supply, cables and a remote control with a working distance of 100 meters. Everything you need to be up and running with some stunning light in less than five minutes is included.

Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED

Stunning light

So, I say stunning light, and I guess, like almost everything in photography, that’s a subjective statement. But I really love the light this unit produces, in the situations I’ve used it. I held off working on this article as I wanted to get some good use in with the light as I’d originally planned for this review. That was to use it as my key light for food photography.

I prefer to use a big soft window for food photography, but sometimes you don’t have that option, so you need to create your light. I typically use a Jinbei HD600 which is a portable studio flash. It’s a great unit, but I wanted to try out a constant light source and see how that worked for what I was shooting.

Let’s kick it off with your dinner and dessert. Thanks to Trackside Noodle Bar for letting me use these images! There are images that they’re going to use in their marketing and menus. Entree and dessert for you, mains we’ll have a little bit later

Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED

No surprises with continuous lighting

I think the best bit, given I’m not a full-time photographer and I don’t shoot as often as some of you, is that using LED lights means that I see exactly what I’m going to get.

So you light your scene and adjust it, and you can see the adjustments immediately as the light source is always on. You can do the same when you use strobes or flash, but you need to make an exposure to check (I’m shooting a Sony a7rmk2 and so I see what I get on the screen at the back).

I find it super easy to set up my plate of food, use the light’s remote to back off the power if I need to do so, and click – job done.

Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED

When I came to the main course, I wanted a bit of light coming back in from the left of the plate. So a really simple bounce card (aka white square of card that can stand on its own) sitting out of shot on the left and I was good to go. You can see my hand-drawn “artist’s” impression of my setup, below.

Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED

Or, as a real photo, without my awesome drawing skills!

Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED

Self-portrait time

A funny thing happened on this journey. As I mentioned at the start, I did a little self-portraiture in my shed for a project I’m working on. I shared the image with Aputure and it’s now in their catalog! So, that was kind of cool…

For this portrait, I had the light set up outside the shed window, the camera on a tripod being controlled via my iPhone which if you look really closely, you might spot on the window ledge (Sony’s Playmemories app). I could adjust the light power from inside the shed using the controller. The light was running on a vLock battery, I used the Core SWX Slim which meant I could take the light anywhere, I also used a Bowens S Mounted 90cm deep para reflector.

Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED

Summary

The summary, after working with this light for a couple of months is that it’s a great unit! Well built, plenty bright, easy to transport. I only have one minor negative point, and it’s that the controls have to be so big, but then the light itself is quite compact, so I guess all the controls and battery mount have to go somewhere! Like I said, minor.

The Aputure Light Storm COB 120D LED studio light is a fantastic addition to my regular portrait and food photography kit. This is a five-star review of a well deserving product! Let there be light.

Disclaimer: this product was provided to the author for review, but all reviews on dPS are 100% unbiased opinions of the author.

The post Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED by Sime appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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What to Photograph on Vacation When You’re Feeling Uninspired

28 Nov

Vacation is a great time not only to recharge and relax but also to practice your travel photography skills. Whether you’re a pro with lots of gear, or a hobbyist with your first camera, there are plenty of photo opportunities in a new place. In fact, there can be so many that you can easily get overwhelmed or uninspired to shoot anything at all.

If you hit a wall and don’t know what to photograph while traveling, here are some ways to fire up your creativity.

What to Photograph on Vacation When You're Feeling Uninspired

1. Shoot with a different lens

An easy way to literally change your perspective of the world is to use a lens you don’t normally shoot with. Trade your zoom lens for a prime and notice the way you view and capture the world from a fixed focal length.

If you usually shoot close-ups, try your hand at shooting wide, or vice-versa. If cost is an issue, invest in affordable or third-party lens options, or simply rent a lens.

2. Change up your camera

Similar to the point above, try your hand and shooting with a totally different camera. If you normally shoot with a DSLR, restrict yourself to shooting with a point and shoot or even your cell phone. Many small, compact cameras have improved greatly in image quality, and they might surprise you with their quailty.

By giving yourself a new technical challenge, you’ll open up room for creativity.

3. Put yourself on assignment

One of the best ways to shoot more is to have an objective or project in mind. Even if you’re not on official assignment, you can invent a similar scenario. Think of the ideal photography project that you’d want to do for a client, such as luxury vacation photos of Mexico, and aim to make that photo portfolio.

These are the type of personal project that you could easily use later in your portfolio if you ever seek out paid, professional work.

4. Start a themed personal project

On the note of personal projects, here’s an easy one that you can do over the course of one trip or many. Pick out a theme or photography subject that interests you and capture versions of it in new places you travel.

As an example, you could photograph cultural foods unique to the region you’re in and put them in an album of “Ethnic Foods from Around the World.” Or focus on a topic such as unique doors of Italy, as I did on a recent trip.

Having a theme helps you focus and gives you something to look out for and photograph as you travel.

personal project photos - What to Photograph on Vacation When You're Feeling Uninspired

This photo came about by simply talking to a beekeeper about my personal project surrounding farms. Before I knew it, I was suited up and having close encounters with honeybees.

5. Take advantage of Golden and Blue Hour

There are certain times of day when just about everything looks photogenic thanks to the positioning of the sun. While sunset and sunrise are obvious times of day, also consider Golden and Blue Hour, those times of the day just before/after sunrise and sunset.

On most days, this is when the lighting gets the most dramatic and optimal for shooting in natural lighting.

6. Do some research

If you’re in a new part of the world and don’t know what to photograph, check out what others have shot before. Go online and check Instagram hashtags or do a Google image search for the town you’re in. Find the iconic shots that others have taken and visit those places yourself.

Not only does this put you on a fun discovery quest, but it also gives you a chance to put your own unique twist on famous places.

travel photography tips - What to Photograph on Vacation When You're Feeling Uninspired

This photo came about thanks to poking around Google Maps and Google Image search.

7. Find some meetups

Thanks to social media and the availability of quality camera gear, there are talented photographers in just about every corner of the world. And odds are, there are easy ways to meet them in person. Try to attend Insta Meets or Meet-Ups for photographers in new places that you visit.

Or if you follow and admire a certain photographer’s work on social media, shoot them a message and see if they would like to meet and shoot in person. These are great ways connect to locals and get inspired to shoot in a new place.

8. Just go shoot (or don’t)

If you’ve reached the end of this article and still feel overwhelmed, just pick up any camera you have and go out and shoot! Don’t worry about finding the perfect image; just snap away at whatever inspires you.

Or keep your camera in your bag and just enjoy the moment. Sometimes, a little break from photography is exactly what you need to inspire your creativity.

Sometimes the perfect photo unfolds in front of you when you least expect it.

Over to You

What tips do you have for getting past a creative slump? Please let us know in the comments below!

mobile phone photography - What to Photograph on Vacation When You're Feeling Uninspired

Did you know that smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S8 can capture lightning? I gave it a shot on a pure whim and captured this image.

Attending a cultural performance might inspire your creativity as well. Milan, Italy.

The post What to Photograph on Vacation When You’re Feeling Uninspired by Suzi Pratt appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Why Volunteering is a Great Way to Grow as a Photographer

28 Nov

Many years ago as I was making a start freelancing, I saw an opportunity to give away my services and a selection of photos by volunteering to cover a community event. Our city administration was hosting a tree planting at our local park, so I went to down with my spade and my camera, to plant some trees and to record the event in pictures. The following day I visited the office of the event organizer and presented them with a selection of prints, (this was back in time when I was only using film.)

Silkworms feeding close up - Why Volunteering is a Great Way to Grow as a Photographer

Silkworms feeding on a leaf in northern Thailand.

I enjoyed planting trees. I enjoyed covering the event photographically. And I enjoyed the on-going business relationship that I developed with the city administration as a result of covering their community event and not charging them.

Volunteering has many benefits

If you are just starting out on your photography career, or even if you have no desire to work as a professional photographer, there are a number of benefits to be gained by volunteering your time and skills to the right people or organizations.

A woman prepares raw silk before she spins it in north Thailand.

Covering a community event was easy and enjoyable for me as I had had years of experience as a newspaper photographer. I knew the style of photos that would be useful and appreciated so it was not difficult to produce them.

Whether you are just starting out as a pro photographer or you just want to help out, producing a series of photos that will be useful for someone else is a great way to stretch you into new photography experiences and help you to develop new skills.

Spinning silk thread by hand.

Maybe you are not so confident when photographing strangers. Covering a community event will give you a good reason to go beyond your normal comfort zone, and you may even discover you like it.

Perhaps you have heard of a non-profit wanting some product shots, or a local service club that needs new photos of their executive members. Once you start to look, I am sure you will find plenty of opportunities to offer your services.

Adding red pigment to water for dying thread close up - Why Volunteering is a Great Way to Grow as a Photographer

Adding pigment to water for dying thread.

Treat it like a paid gig

Approach your volunteer work as though it is a paid job. Be professional. Clearly communicate your intentions. Listen carefully to the needs of those you are providing the photos for so you can ensure they will be happy with the results and be able to make practical use of the photos you take.

Ask them how they will be using the photos so you have a good idea of what they need. It is no good to give them a series of vertical headshots if they already have horizontal space designed for them on their web page.

Dyed silk thread.

Do your best work

Don’ be tempted to produce less than your best because you are not getting paid. It’s always good to do your best work possible. Your reputation is important, especially if you are interested in potential paid work that may come as a result of your volunteering. If you provide photos that are not up to standard you are not likely to be invited back or recommended to other potential clients.

Be pleasant to work with. No one wants a bad experience dealing with a volunteer. People like working with others who make their lives easier. Being professional in your manner and approach to the work, and those organizing it will be beneficial towards future relationships. But choose carefully who you give your time to because occasionally you may come cross someone who wants to exploit your generosity with no concern for you.

Hand winding silk thread in preparation for weaving.

Choose who you work with carefully

Some people may struggle to appreciate you are giving your skills and time for free and expect too much from you. If this happens, once you’ve fulfilled what you have said you would do, tactfully back out of a situation that you think is turning sour or if you feel you are being manipulated.

In these circumstances, it’s not likely to turn out well for anyone involved to persevere. Remember, it’s you who are working for free and it is important you have options so you can choose how much and to whom you want to give your work. Be generous, but be generous of your choosing.

Preparing silk thread fo weaving. Why Volunteering is a Great Way to Grow as a Photographer

Preparing silk thread for weaving.

Set your expectations reasonably

You will reap what you sow. If you don’t expect anything in return for your volunteered services and you might be pleasantly surprised when something comes back your way in the future.

It may be in the form of paid work for the same organization. It could be from a contact you made during the photography session. A paid job could come from someone who has seen the photos you’ve produced and appreciates your skills.

But to volunteer yourself and then expect something in return is only setting yourself up for disappointment. You will grow as a photographer when you take on situations you might not normally photograph and it’s a good feeling to see your photos being used productively.

Women weaving silk on a traditional loom in northern Thailand.

The best thing about giving your service and photos for free is seeing the benefit they receive from them. Giving of what you find enjoyment in is a great reward in itself.

I continue to offer photography and video services for free from time to time as I still enjoy being able to help non-profits and individuals who are helping others. The photos accompanying this article were produced for a non-profit organization here in Thailand who help facilitate a local silk weaving cooperative.

Thai woman working on a traditional loom weaving silk.

Have you given back with your photography services?

If you have had experiences, good or bad, in volunteering your photography services please share them in the comments below so others can be encouraged to share their skills too.

The post Why Volunteering is a Great Way to Grow as a Photographer by Kevin Landwer-Johan appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Proposed UK bill will let police officers ground and seize drones

28 Nov

The UK has unveiled another drone bill proposal, one that will grant officers the power to seize drone parts when they are necessary for proving that the drone was used to commit an offense. Under the bill, officers will also have the authority to order a drone operator to ground their drone when needed.

This marks the latest bill out of the UK that focuses on tightening drone security and safety. Back in July, the UK government revealed that it would soon require drone operators in the nation to register their UAVs and to complete a safety test before operating the device.

The new proposed legislation, simply called the Drone Bill, snowballs into the previous announcement, with UK officials saying in a statement that mandates will require operators to register their drone and also to use apps for planning a safe flight. The upcoming law may also include a ban on operating drones near airports or above 400ft.

The Drone Bill is scheduled to be published next spring.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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