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Archive for April, 2020

RAW Power 3 available for Mac and iOS, includes workflow improvements and new editing tools

17 Apr

Gentlemen Coders LLC, the creator of RAW Power for macOS and iOS, has released RAW Power 3.0. The latest version introduces more integration with native macOS and iOS Photos applications and delivers an improved workflow.

RAW Power 3 is the first, and currently only, third-party application to include full support for Apple Photos libraries on macOS and iOS. With this integration, photographers can rate and edit their images on their Mac or iOS devices with full iCloud synchronization.

The software was developed by Nik Bhatt, a former Apple engineer. While at Apple, Bhatt led the iPhone and Aperture teams. Of RAW Power 3, Bhatt says, “RAW Power has gained a strong following among serious photographers for its unique control over Apple’s RAW engine, combined with its robust and easy-to-use editing tools.”

RAW Power 3 includes a variety of improvements to its integration with Apple Photos and its overall workspace. Users can utilize tabs to view multiple albums in the library at the same time. Users can also rate, flag and filter albums, with ratings and flags automatically syncing through iCloud Photos. Click to enlarge the image. Image credit: Gentlemen Coders

From its first release, RAW Power has been designed to build upon the existing Apple Photos native application and add additional functionality and editing capabilities. RAW Power allows the user to keep their files organized at the system level while also performing more advanced edits to their photos. By leveraging Apple Photos, users can also avoid committing to a proprietary photo library or subscription-based software.

Considering the Mac version of RAW Power 3.0, the software works directly with your Photos library while adding additional editing and organizational tools. You can browse and create albums and folders, which are then instantly applied to the system’s photo library and changes are synced over iCloud when using iCloud Photos. RAW Power 3 specifically adds rating and flagging functionality to the software, something not available in Apple Photos. In the case of a flag, this will instantly appear on the image file in the Finder as well.

RAW Power 3 introduces a variety of user-requested features, including hot and cold pixel indicators, integration of LUTs and reordering of default adjustments within your customized workspace. Click to enlarge the image. Image credit: Gentlemen Coders

Additionally, RAW Power 3 includes a new section for recently viewed items. There’s a threshold for what counts as “viewed,” meaning that only images you spent more than a few seconds looking at will be included. To make it easier to view and work on multiple images or albums at once, RAW Power 3 includes tabs.

RAW Power 3 introduces a variety of new image adjustments, including: Auto Enhance with Face Balancing, Auto White Balance, LUTs with film simulations, Levels and a Channel Mixer. With the new adjustment tools, the total now available to users is 15. With so many adjustments now built into the software, RAW Power 3 includes a refreshed editing interface and new workflow functionality. Users can reorder and select the default adjustments, to ensure that adjustments they use less frequently do not clog up their workspace.

RAW Power 3 introduces two new Auto adjustment features, including Auto Enhance and Auto White Balance (shown here). Image credit: Gentlemen Coders

RAW Power 3 also adds LUTs. The software ships with 20 of them, including Bhatt’s own film simulation LUTS. Users can add their own LUTs as well. When using LUTs, users can adjust the strength of the effect using an intensity slider. With respect to existing image adjustments, there have also been tweaks. For example, there are now hot pixel indicators in the software.

Considering the new Auto Enhance image adjustment, this works by analyzing the image on a variety of criteria before applying varying levels of different RAW Power adjustments. Auto Enhance can adjust highlights and shadows, change the exposure, adjust white balance and more.

RAW Power 3 for iOS includes many of the same improvements as RAW Power 3 for macOS, including the new image editing tools, including LUT integration. RAW Power 3 for iOS also includes the ability to reorder and organize your workspace, which is even more important when working on the smaller display of an iPhone or iPad.

The iOS version of RAW Power 3 for iPhone and iPad (shown above) includes a nearly identical feature set as the Mac version, including batch editing. For example, you can batch process and apply Auto Enhance to selected images, as shown in this screenshot. Image credit: Gentlemen Coders

With the latest version of RAW Power, users can now manage their images either in the native Photos application or in the iOS Files app. You can switch seamlessly between Photos and Files, although some iOS limitations result in edits, ratings, flags and filters not syncing over iCloud when working in Files.

The same new rating workflow from the Mac version carries over to iOS, representing a first for iCloud photographers on iOS. By utilizing ratings and flags, you can easily sort and filter your image library to quickly find specific images.

RAW Power 3 also includes new one-tap integration with the popular Halide camera application and Halide has added RAW Power to its quick-launch integration within the app’s photo reviewer.

If you use Portrait mode on your iOS device, RAW Power 3, like prior versions, can access the depth data in your image files. By utilizing this data, users can selectively adjust different areas of the image depending on how close or far the subject was from the lens. For example, you can adjust the highlights and shadows in the background and foreground independently while also adjusting the depth mask threshold. You can see the mask created using depth data in this screenshot from the iPad version of RAW Power 3. Image credit: Gentlemen Coders

For users of Apple’s Portrait mode on their iOS devices, RAW Power 3 can access the depth data in the image file and allow users to create depth maps for selective edits. You can access and edit using the depth data on both iOS and Mac versions of RAW Power.

RAW Power 3 for macOS and iOS is available today from the App Store. For existing owners of RAW Power 2, the update is free on both platforms. For new users, RAW Power 3 for macOS is $ 39.99 and RAW Power 3 for iOS is $ 9.99. RAW Power 3 for macOS runs on macOS Catalina and Mojave. On iOS, RAW Power 3 runs on iOS 12 and iOS 13, although the app does not support iPhone 5s, 6 or 6 Plus or iPad mini 3 or earlier.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Ins and outs of ISO: where ISO gets complex

17 Apr

Fujifilm’s GFX 50S stops adding analog amplification when it gets to ISO 1600, with all ISOs above that using lighter and lighter tone curves. This means that, by ISO 12,800, there are three stops of fully recoverable highlights that would have been lost if the camera had applied more analog gain, making it possible to produce a very different rendering of the scene.

Fujfilm GFX 50S | ISO 12,800 | 1/90 sec | F2.8 | GF 63mm F2.8 R WR
Photo: Dan Bracaglia

Most people recognize that ISO establishes a connection between exposure and image lightness. As we saw in part one, ISO only connects the input and the JPEG output, without specifying anything what should happen in-between. The important takeaways from the previous article are:

  • ISO relates exposure to final image lightness by whatever means the manufacturer choses
  • ISO is not just analog amplification, and doesn’t dictate what happens at the Raw level

This provides plenty of freedom for manufacturers to use different combinations of analog amplification and tone curve, so long as a given exposure results in the expected lightness.

This is important because analog amplification can help reduce noise but it also reduces the dynamic range that gets retained. So it can sometimes make sense to keep amplification low and do more of the lightening using digital processing, rather than reducing the dynamic range of the images you’re capturing.

Tailoring the highlight response of JPEGs

Before the 2006 definition of ISO was adopted, cameras used the same tone curve for each ISO setting and added a stop of amplification each time you changed the ISO setting (in part due to lack of processing power). The following diagram is based on the tone curve and measured lightness levels from an Olympus camera.

Before 2006 most cameras did increase lightening by increasing analog amplification with each ISO step. They used the same tone curve for all ISO settings.

Once the ISO definition changed, it allowed the Olympus E-620 and the models up to the present day to use the base level of amplification but with ISO 200 exposures. This new ISO 200 mode was similarly noisy to the one on the older cameras, despite using lower analog gain – because most of the noise was photon shot noise, which directly relates to the illumination levels and exposure, not amplification. However, this new way of working afforded an extra stop of highlight capture that was previously amplified to the point of clipping.

If you ignore the exposure implications and give ISO 100 and ISO 200 modes the same exposure, you end up with identical values in the Raw files.

After 2006, this changed. Olympus, for instance, used ISO 200 levels of exposure but without any increase in amplification. This provided an extra stop of highlight capture, with no significant increase in noise, compared to the old ISO 200. All the higher ISOs used the same tone curve.

Many of its cameras indicate that ISO 100 is an expansion, or ‘pull’ mode, despite being the same as the ISO 100 setting on its older models.

All the ISO settings above 200 use the same tone curve, along with one stop less amplification than in older models. Interestingly, the ISO 100 mode is sometimes listed as an expansion mode on some Olympus cameras, because it clips highlights sooner than the other ISO modes (despite being exactly the same as the ‘full’ ISO 100 mode on older models).

DR Modes

Taking this logic further, some cameras have Dynamic Range modes that combine less analog amplification with tone curves that incorporate more highlight information.

Canon’s Highlight Tone Priority and Ricoh’s Highlight Correction DR modes both do this: using one stop less amplification than standard mode to preserve the highlight data that would otherwise be amplified to clipping. The side-effect of this is that the lowest available ISO setting goes up by a stop when you engage these modes.

Fujifilm takes this a step further, offering three Dynamic Range settings. The table below shows the relative levels of amplification and how they combine with exposure levels for the different DR modes:

DR100 DR200 DR400

ISO 200
exposure

 1X — —

ISO 400
exposure

 2X 1X —
ISO 800
exposure		 4X 2X 1X
ISO 1600
exposure		 8X 4X 2X
This table shows a simplification of the amplification level being applied at each DR mode and ISO setting. The colored boxes are the modes shown in the next diagram.

Another way of looking at it is that the DR modes’ tone curves require less and less exposure to correctly render middle gray, so are considered to be higher ISO settings.

This shows the ‘base ISOs’ of the three DR modes, which require less and less exposure to achieve the expected image lightness but keep amplification at its minimal setting, capturing one or two additional stops of highlight data.

Because most of the noise in an ‘ISO 800’ shot comes the randomness of the light you captured (which is dictated by the exposure used), there’s very little noise difference between using DR100 and DR400 modes with an ISO 800 exposure, but the DR400 shot has two stops more highlight information.

Because there’s no connection between ISO and amplification, and because the sensors it uses are highly ISO invariant, Fujifilm is able to offer a series different ISO modes with the sensor’s amplifier in its ‘base ISO’ state.

This can be useful for Raw-shooting photographers: the DR200 and DR400 modes essentially let you expose one or two stops to the right (ie shifting exposure to include highlights that would otherwise be lost), while maintaining a comprehensible preview image. Snapping a quick DR400 mode image lets you check which additional highlights will be captured, without the rest of the image becoming too dark to interpret.

High ISOs without additional amplification

At higher ISOs, there are some brands that stop applying additional amplification after a certain point, and produce all subsequent ISO settings using digital processing.

The pros and cons of amplification

Most cameras can capture their widest dynamic range at ‘base ISO’: the setting with the least amplification.

Adding amplification helps diminish the impact of any electronic noise added after the amplification step (downstream read noise), and boosts the output of the sensor to a level that’s well matched to the analogue to digital converter (ADC).

However, the sensor response remains unchanged, and any additional amplification beyond this ‘base’ level also pushes some of the initially captured signal to the point where it clips, this reduces the available dynamic range of the camera by up to a stop with every additional doubling of amplification.

In many modern sensors, the amount of downstream read noise is so low and the precision of the ADC sufficiently high that there’s only a small difference between the result you get from using a low amount of amplification, then lightening the results later, versus applying lots of amplification. This is a property we call ISO invariance (though should perhaps be called Amplification Invariance). Exploiting this characteristic by using a low amplification but with the exposure settings associated with a higher ISO setting has little noise cost and reduces the amount of highlight data that’s clipped.

The very high ISOs are created either by doubling the captured values before storing them or by adding a metadata flag to indicate that everything should be lightened by a number of stops during processing. Sometimes this is done because sensors’ amplifiers have a maximum gain level they can deliver, but it’s equally true that there’s very little benefit to applying large amounts of analog gain.

The beneficial side effect of preserving highlights can be seen in the GFX 50S example at the top of the page: this isn’t a case of software trying to ‘recover’ highlights from partially clipped data, this comes from multiple stops of highlight data being preserved in the Raw file, just not used by the default tone curve.

Even on a camera that doesn’t do this, it shows the benefit for Raw shooters of selecting appropriate exposure settings then reducing the ISO setting for some low-light shots or times where you need a fast shutter speed. There’ll be little noise cost but highlights such as neon signs won’t be clipped.

All ISO settings from a single amplification level

At its most extreme, there have been cameras that only have a single level of amplification and then generate all their ISO settings from that state (though this is rare). For this to work, you’d need a highly ISO invariant sensor, which wasn’t the case in the one instance we’re aware of.

ISOs in Log mode

Strictly speaking, most cameras’ Log modes stray outside the ISO standard, since they’re not in the sRGB colorspace. But, presumably to avoid your camera having to present you with a a totally different lightness scale, most cameras continue to use the ‘ISO’ terminology in Log mode.

In most cameras, when you switch from a standard color profile to Log mode, the minimum available ISO jumps significantly. This isn’t necessarily because more amplification is being applied, a lot of it will be because the Log tone curve is so flat.

Just like the DR modes we discussed above, if you want to capture more highlight information but you’re already at your lowest amplification level, the only option is to reduce your exposure and brighten the result using a more dramatic tone curve. This is essentially what’s happening in Log modes: the super-flat Log gamma curves require less exposure to deliver middle grey, so are considered higher ISO settings.

This is why, for instance, the Panasonic S1H’s minimum ISO changes dramatically when you change into one of its Log modes, or even into one of its color modes with a flatter tone curve:

Panasonic S1H color mode: Minimum ISO
(expansion turned off)
Standard ISO 100
Cinelike D2 ISO 200
Hybrid Log Gamma ISO 400
V-Log ISO 640

If you shoot them all at the same exposure values, they all clip at the same point, since they’re all based on the camera’s lowest amplification settings. The change in the available ISO settings is purely reflects that their tone curves accommodate an extra 1, 2 and 2.67EV of additional highlights, respectively, compared to Standard mode.

However, that’s not always the case. When you engage the S-Log modes on Sony cameras, there’s an increase in minimum ISO but this jump is the effect of the flatter tone curve combined with an increase in amplification. The size of the jump from standard mode to S-Log2 changes between cameras, but the change in tone curve accounts for 2.33EV of this shift: anything more than this comes from amplification.

Shifting from standard color mode to S-Log2 sees the ISO rating jump by at least 3EV on most Sony cameras. This 3 stop reduction in exposure doesn’t yield 3 stops of extra highlights, though: instead you only get 2.33EV of additional highlight capture because the analog amplification is also being increased (by 0.67EV on the a7R III, illustrated), presumably to overcome a little noise in the deep shadows.

As if to emphasize how far we are from the ISO standard at this point, this produces a JPEG in which a middle gray target would appear darker than the standard 118, 118, 118 RGB value. Instead the camera meters to expose middle gray at what videographers would consider IRE 32.

With this in mind, it’s always worth being careful of any camera where the ISO doesn’t increase when you shift to Log mode: it almost certainly means that some of these ISO settings are ‘pull’ expansion modes, which will prematurely clip highlights.

EI: explicitly separating exposure from analog gain

Interestingly, some more recent video cameras – often the ones that shoot Raw video – offer an EI ‘Exposure Index’ mode. This uses the camera’s base amplification setting at all times, and combines this with the exposure values usually associated with a higher ISO.

It’s terminology that dates back to push-processing film, where you would use a different exposure index than the sensitivity of your film.

Explicitly separating amplification from exposure considerations might let photographers make more informed choices about how to use their cameras

This approach is essentially like generating all your ISO settings from a single amplification level, with the benefit that you gain an extra stop of highlights for each higher EI step (ie: one stop less exposure).

For now, we’ve not seen a stills/video camera explicitly use an EI approach to exposure. But as the two worlds converge, we wouldn’t rule it out. Explicitly separating amplification from exposure considerations might let Raw shooters in particular make more informed choices about how to get the most out of their cameras.

What’s next?

This article tries to show how different cameras exploit the flexibility of the ISO standard to provide different modes and features. Unfortunately, the JPEG-focused nature of ISO makes it difficult to apply this knowledge if you’re shooting in Raw. Because the standard doesn’t define what should happen to the Raw files at different ISO settings, it’s difficult to work out the optimal settings to use.

In a forthcoming article, we’ll look at our Science Editor’s proposals to move beyond the current ISO system. Specifically, a system that accounts for Raw and is able to better exploit modern sensor performance.

Again, thanks to bobn2 for his pre-publication check of this article to prevent overly casual use of the word amplification.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Canadian non-profit PPOC speaks out against ‘porch portraits’ during pandemic

17 Apr

The growing trend of ‘porch portraits’ has drawn criticism from a number of people, prompting an official advisory against the activity published by the non-profit Professional Photographers of Canada (PPOC). The organization recommends that any type of front porch-based photography be avoided at this time in order to help curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

‘Porch portraits’ is the term used for a new type of photography session involving people, often families, posing on their home’s front porch. The photos commemorate the ongoing quarantines and this unique time in history, but have prompted criticism from some people, including many photographers, who have called the activity risky and unnecessary.

Under present social distancing efforts, the public is encouraged (or, in some places, required) to stay home except when necessary, with the only acceptable exceptions including work in cases where in can’t be performed at home, as well as trips for essential items like prescriptions and groceries. In some cases, the public is also encouraged to go out for exercise, but to maintain a distance from other people.

Traditional photography sessions aren’t something that can be performed under these restrictions, but a number of photographers have started conducting ‘porch portrait’ sessions, which, in the spirit of the activity, involves the photographer maintaining a distance from the subjects and remaining outdoors. That intention doesn’t always pan out in real life, however, and the PPOC notes that mistakes happen.

In its newly published advisory, the PPOC says:

‘We have been contacted by several photographers upset to see this happening in their area when they are abiding by the suggested public health measures and are staying home. We have also heard from photographers who don’t understand why they should not do these kinds of photography sessions, if they are being safe about it, are doing it for charity, and are following their region’s suggested public health restrictions.’

The PPOC’s official position against ‘porch portraits’ is based on concerns that, in addition to ultimately being unnecessary and nonessential, photographers may also make mistakes that put themselves and their communities at risk of contracting and spreading the virus.

PPOC Chair Louise Vessey explained:

‘I understand that photographers are suddenly cut off from most ‘in real life’ social contact and thus their clients; but this type of photography is not a necessary interaction, nor is it an essential service. Although most do it with the very best of intentions, it still leaves room open for mistakes that could potentially cost lives. Some photographers may knock on the door or ring the doorbell, pass someone in the street, a child could run over to hug them, or their built in photographer instinct to go over and fix hair, pose the client and assist could easily kick in. These potential actions risk passing on, or catching COVID-19.’

The PPOC ultimately states that photography is not an essential business or service and that it ‘strongly recommends’ that photographers do not conduct porch portrait sessions at this time. Vessey states:

‘These stories will still be there once the dust settles and we are on the other side of this Pandemic crisis. We can photograph and tell their stories when the time is right. This is serious! Any risk is not a risk worth taking no matter how small you believe it is.’

Some photographers have turned to other unique types of photo sessions that help maintain distance from other people. Ohio-based photographer Nick Fancher, for example, has started shooting ‘Remotrait’ sessions, which involves using FaceTime to capture unique portraits of clients projected on to different backgrounds in order to compensate for poor connection quality.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Slideshow: Sony World Photography Awards Open Competition 2020 winners and shortlisted images

17 Apr

Sony World Photography Awards Open Competition 2020 winners and shortlisted images

The World Photography Organisation has announced this year’s category winners and shortlisted entries in the Open competition of the Sony World Photography Awards, 2020. The annual Open competition, now in its 13th year, recognizes the best single images captured in 2019. Judged by Gisela Kayser, Managing and Artistic Director for Freundeskreis Willy-Brandt-Haus e.V. in Berlin, more than 100 photographs were shortlisted across 10 categories.

‘To have my image make the shortlist of this prestigious contest is an incredible honor, especially when it was selected from such a huge number of entries from around the world. I am over the moon to have my work recognized. Congratulations to all the shortlisted and winning photographers for their amazing work,’ Marc Le Cornu tells DPReview about his recognition in the Motion category.

Each category winner will receive a set of Sony’s latest digital imaging equipment and compete for the Open Photographer of the Year title. The overall winner will be announced on June 9th and be awarded a $ 5,000 USD cash prize along with recognition on the World Photography Organization and Sony’s online social accounts.

The ten category winners are:

Architecture
Rosaria Sabrina Pantano (Italy) for ‘Emotional Geography’

Creative
Suxing Zhang (China) for ‘Knot’

Culture
Antoine Veling (Australia) for ‘Mark 5:28’

Landscape
Craig McGowan (Australia) for ‘Ice Reflections’ – who was also a finalist for the International Landscape Photographer of the Year

Motion
Alec Connah (United Kingdom) for ‘Going Down!’

Natural World & Wildlife
Guofei Li (China) for ‘Tai Chi Diagram’

Portraiture
Tom Oldham (United Kingdom) for ‘Black Francis’

Still Life
Jorge Reynal (Argentina) for ‘A Plastic Ocean’

Street Photography
Santiago Mesa (Colombia) for ‘Colombia Resiste’

Travel
Adrian Guerin (Australia) for ‘Riding a Saharan Freight Train’

Due to the current pandemic, this year’s Sony World Photography Awards 2020 exhibition has been cancelled. The World Photography Organisation has launched the Stay Connected page to keep photographers inspired with educational resources. They will also recognize the work of past and current competition winners and finalists across their various online channels.

Open Competition, Travel, Winner: ‘Riding a Saharan Freight Train’ by Adrian Guerin (Australia)

Artist Statement: At 2.5km long, the iron-ore train in Mauritania is one of the longest trains in the world. It covers over 700km on its journey from the coastal town of Nouadhibou to the Saharan wilderness of Zouérat. More than 200 carriages are loaded with rocks in Zouérat, before the train begins its long journey back to Nouadhibou. I rode the train in both directions in July 2019.

On the first leg of the journey I learnt that in order to photograph the full length of the train I needed to stand on the rocks for height, position myself in a rear carriage to get the full view, and keep the sun behind me. Alas, none of this was possible until the morning of day three, at which point I had almost given up.

This shot was taken as I balanced on my toes atop a mountain of rocks, trying to remain steady as the train jolted from side to side.

Open Competition, Street Photography, Winner: ‘Colombia Resiste’ by Santiago Mesa (Columbia)

Artist Statement: In recent years, a number of protests have broken out across Latin America. Reasons for this unrest range from a proposed end to fuel subsidies in Ecuador to a rise in metro fares in Chile, and feelings of inequality and a general lack of opportunity in Colombia. In Medellín, north-western Colombia, workers and street vendors were taking part in a march when the Medellin riot squad dispersed them.

Open Competition, Still Life, Winner: ‘A Plastic Ocean’ by Jorge Reynal (Argentina)

Artist Statement: Each year, eight million tons of plastic end up in our oceans – equivalent to emptying a garbage truck into the water every minute. This is my protest against pollution.

In my language (Spanish), we use the words ‘Naturaleza Muerta’ to refer to still life, which ironically translates as ‘Dead Nature.’

Open Competition, Natural World & Wildlife, Winner: ‘Tai Chi Diagram’ by Guofei Li (China)

Artist Statement: These cheetahs had just eaten an antelope, and were licking the bloodstains off each other’s faces. It’s a very rare posture, and one that reminded me of the traditional Chinese Tai Chi diagram. The picture was taken in Botswana in January 2019.

Open Competition, Portraiture, Winner: ‘Black Francis’ by Tom Oldham (United Kingdom)

Artist Statement: Photographers for MOJO Magazine enjoy a rare degree of freedom and trust with what is usually an open brief. This allows us to capture our own experience with very high profile musicians. However, when photographing famous singers, we are often painfully aware of how many times the sitter has, well, sat.

I like to acknowledge this and asked Charles (aka Black Francis) to show me the level of frustration photoshoots can generate. He offered up this perfect gesture of exasperation, and the image ran as the lead portrait for the feature.

Open Competition, Motion, Winner: ‘Going Down!’ by Alec Connah (United Kingdom)

Artist Statement: Despite measuring 125 metres high, it took the four cooling towers of Ironbridge Power Station in Shropshire, England, just 10 seconds to be demolished on 6 December 2019. The towers had been a feature of the landscape for 50 years, but were brought down as part of a new development on the site.

The demolition had been a long time coming – the towers were close to a river, railway line and protected woodland, so their destruction had to be precise. This picture was taken from my garden, which is on the hillside opposite the site.

Open Competition, Creative, Winner: ‘Knot’ by Suxing Zhang (China)

Artist Statement: This picture is from my series ‘Hua,’ which means flower in Chinese. Flowers are often used as metaphors for life and eroticism in art. Hua explores the commonalities and connections between flowers and the feminine – in particular, emotional vulnerability and sensitivity. Qualities such as calmness, and emotions such as uncertainty, fear, anxiety, and loneliness are translated into conceptual and artistic forms.

In Knot, I use a combination of light and texture to create strong visuals that heighten the senses. I like to use symbolic and metaphoric ingredients in my work, which I hope allows the audience to blend their own subjectivity with the objectivity of the photograph, leading to different interpretations and emotions.

Open Competition, Culture, Winner: ‘Mark 5:28’ by Antoine Veling (Australia)

Artist Statement: When audience members were invited on stage to dance at an Iggy Pop concert in Sydney Opera House, Australia, on 17 April 2019, it showed the warm welcome Aussies extend to overseas artists who travel long distances to reach them.

A woman’s outstretched arm lunges to touch Iggy. He seems unaware of her approach as the crowd presses around him. One of Iggy’s assistants, Jos (in the grey checked shirt) tries to make some space around Iggy. The scene is reminiscent of a passage from the Bible: ‘Because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.”’ (Mark 5:25-34, line 28).

The image has been likened to religious paintings by Caravaggio, and his chiaroscuro technique. It went crazy on social media, making 40,000 people, including Iggy Pop, very happy.

Open Competition, Architecture, Winner: ‘Emotional Geometry’ by Rosaria Sabrina Pantano (Italy)

Artist Statement: Having returned to Sicily for the holidays, myself and a group of friends visited Fiumara d’Arte, an open museum showcasing sculptures made by contemporary artists, located along the banks of the Tusa River. Among these works is 38° Parallelo by Mauro Staccioli – a pyramid that stands at the exact point where the geographical coordinates touch the 38th parallel.

Open Competition, Motion, Shortlist: ‘NEOM Spin’ by Marc Le Cornu (United Kingdom)

Artist Statement: This image was taken during a commission to capture the area of NEOM in Saudi Arabia as part of a project for the NEOM tourism team. Our captain asked for a photo of his vessel, and I happily obliged! The golden hour light was catching the boat and its wake, and the patterns on the water looked incredible from above.

Marc elaborated a bit more for DPReview: ‘The inspiration for the shot came from our transport driver who requested a photo of his boat. I couldn’t just give him a standard photo, so I asked him to maneuver the boat in a circle whilst I captured the shot by DJI Inspire 2 drone from above. The light was perfect for giving a lovely, rich, warm feel to the image as it caught the boat’s wake and the boat itself, and the patterns left in the water from the boat’s wake created the final striking image.’

Open Competition, Natural World & Wildlife, Shortlist: ‘A Fever of Cownose Rays’ by Alex Kydd (Australia)

Artist Statement: A rare encounter with a fever of cownose rays on the Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia. The rays were circling and rubbing together in a behavior that is not fully understood. They were spiraling up and down the water column for approximately 20 minutes, at which point they disappeared.

Undeterred by my presence, they continued to focus on each other while I documented the encounter. There have been few reports of cownose rays in the Ningaloo Reef region in recent years. The image was taken while free-diving – it was a once-in-a-lifetime encounter.

Open Competition, Landscape, Shortlist: ‘Come on In’ by Kai Hornung (Germany)

Artist Statement: A small path in the ancient forests of the Anaga Mountains in Tenerife, Spain. The clouds hung inside the moss-covered trees, creating a spooky atmosphere. When I arrived at this spot, I was smiling while setting up my tripod – I just knew I was about to take one of my best images of that tour, if not one of my best pictures of 2019.

Open Competition, Creative, Shortlist: ‘Fractals and Flowers’ by David Swindler (United States)

Artist Statement: The Badlands of Utah, USA, are fascinating to explore and photograph. We had a really prolific wildflower bloom last year, which only happens every decade or so. The yellow flowers added a nice accent to the erosion lines and patterns in the ground. These patterns reminded me of fractal mathematics.

Open Competition, Culture, Shortlist: ‘Colourful Catrina’ by Sergio Carrasco (Mexico)

Artist Statement: My wife dressed as a Catrina – one of the most recognizable symbols of the Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico.

Open Competition, Street Photography, Shortlist: ‘Back Home’ by Liu Jon (China)

Artist Statement: After a downpour, there is often a moment of beauty. Here, a zebra crossing, an umbrella and a lone figure combine to make a colorful composition.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Two New Canon EOS M Cameras Will Debut Before the Year is Out

17 Apr

The post Two New Canon EOS M Cameras Will Debut Before the Year is Out appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.

Gear News - New Canon EOS M Cameras

While the camera industry has slowed in recent months, Canon continues to push forward.

New rumors indicate that Canon will be releasing two EOS M cameras by the end of 2020. While the details of these cameras are uncertain, they come as a welcome promise for a (hopefully) post-coronavirus world.

Prior to coronavirus concerns, discussion of two full-frame mirrorless models dominated the internet:

The Canon EOS R5, poised as a mirrorless-style 5D and packing true 8K video, along with in-body image stabilization and 20 frames-per-second continuous shooting.

And the Canon EOS R6, a camera that Canon has been fairly quiet about (but is rumored to have 20 MP sensor, 20 fps shooting, and 4K/60p video).

While coronavirus will potentially delay the release of these two bodies, the original plan was for them to both debut this summer, leaving the fall open for other Canon announcements.

Now we have an idea of what those announcements might be.

Note that we haven’t heard much about Canon EOS M models since the fall of 2019, when the Canon EOS M6 Mark II and the Canon EOS M200 debuted.

The EOS M line offers mirrorless APS-C bodies geared toward entry-level shooters. While some of these bodies offer advanced features such as electronic viewfinders, EOS M cameras are more compact than their full-frame counterparts and come at significantly lower prices.

EOS M cameras are designed to work with Canon’s EF-M lenses. But an optional adapter will allow you to combine EOS M bodies with Canon EF and EF-S lenses, making Canon EOS M cameras an excellent option for Canon DSLR users seeking a switch to mirrorless.

Rumors also suggest that we’ll see several new EF-M lenses debut before the year is out, which is a welcome development given the relative scantiness of the EOS M lens lineup.

So if you’re a Canon shooter looking to switch to mirrorless, or you’re planning to upgrade an existing EOS M body, keep an eye out for further news!

Now over to you:

Are you excited about new EOS M cameras? Which models do you think Canon will announce? Share your thoughts in the comments!

The post Two New Canon EOS M Cameras Will Debut Before the Year is Out appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.


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Photographer cited, had drone confiscated for documenting Hart Island mass burials with his drone

17 Apr
A drone shot of the New York skyline. Hart Island is located east of Manhatten at the western end of Long Island Sound.

George Steinmetz is a regular contributor for National Geographic and The New York Times. Over the span of his 30-plus-year career, he has received numerous accolades for his aerial photography work including three World Press Photo Awards. Steinmetz started out by piloting a foot-launched motorized paraglider to capture his aerial perspectives. These days he uses a drone.

This past Tuesday, while documenting a burial ditch located on Hart Island, due to the alarming number of COVID-19 fatalities in New York City, Steinmetz’ drone was confiscated by the New York Police Department (NYPD) and he was issued a Desk Appearance Ticket. He was cited for violating NYC Administrative Code § 10–126, which prohibits the takeoff and landing of drones within New York City (NYC).

A screenshot of Hart Island, captured in Apple Maps.

‘I’m not trying to be an advocate, but my encounter with the NYPD [on Tuesday] was not about any safety or privacy considerations that I assume the law was designed for. The officers who cited me were not local, and appeared to be working in conjunction with city employees involved with Hart Island interments. It was a clear example of a law being used for petty press intimidation. It doesn’t look good to see the city’s poor treated like toxic waste,’ Steinmetz tells DPReview.

‘Preparing for burials of what appear to be more COVID-19 victims this morning on Hart Island, New York City. For over 150 years this island with no public access has been used to bury over a million souls (whose) bodies were not claimed for private burial. With the morgues of NYC strained, the pace of burials on Hart Island has increased dramatically. I was cited by NYPD while taking this photo, and my drone was confiscated as evidence, for a court date tentatively scheduled for mid-August,’ reads the quote from Steinmetz’ official Instagram account.

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Preparing for burials of what appear to be more COVID-19 victims this morning on Hart Island, New York City. For over 150 years this island with no public access has been used to bury over a million souls who’s bodies were not claimed for private burial. With the morgues of NYC strained, the pace of burials on Hart Island has increased dramatically. I was cited by NYPD while taking this photo, and my drone was confiscated as evidence, for a court date tentatively scheduled for mid-August. #keepthememorycard

A post shared by George Steinmetz (@geosteinmetz) on

The post, documenting the mass burial site, currently has over 30,000 likes and 813 comments as of publishing this article. It has also ignited an online debate over ethics in photojournalism and the need to overhaul existing drone laws in NYC. While some online commenters criticized Steinmetz for invading the privacy of those being buried, and others questioned the legality of his flight, many more are supportive of the image he was able to capture.

‘This one hits close to home – George Steinmetz does incredible work and this photo is important. I hope some photojournalist groups will step in to defend him. There is a rough NYC working group forming to revise the avigation law. But it got stalled with COVID from what I understand. NYPD is supposed to get first crack at the rewrite which was scheduled for May before this happened,’ states Scott Harrigan in a comment on the Commercial sUAS Remote Pilots Facebook Group.

When asked to elaborate, Harrigan shared the following information with DPReview:

‘As of today, NYC currently has the ‘avigation’ law still on the books. NYC has recently shown interest in overturning this law after an architect was tragically killed last December by falling debris from a facade that went un-inspected.

As a result, detailed in that article above, NYC council members outlined three goals:

1. That the 1948 avigation law would be revised to allow commercial drone use.
2. That a bill would be proposed requiring a facade inspection within 48 hours following any NYC 311 complaint of an unsafe facade
3. That a study would be performed determining the efficiency of using UAVs to inspect NYC owned buildings (performed by DOB)

An informal working group has been formed, to address this law – a coalition of local architects, real estate developers, drone pilots, and drone manufacturers. Mr. Steinmetz’ ticketing highlights how the avigation law is being used inconsistently by NYPD to penalize drone flights at the officer’s whim with no enforcement guidance, rather than in a standardized manner that takes into account public safety. This particular flight posed no threat to public safety, was conducted in compliance with existing federal UAV regulations and was an important act of newsgathering.

It is my hope that this event will spur NYC policymakers to create a consistent legal framework that allows drone operators to perform the many tasks that benefit the public, such as newsgathering, facade inspections, search and rescue, construction progress monitoring, etc.’

‘I could be misinformed but I don’t believe anyone flying a drone has actually been held to the 1940 statute. The prosecutor may not feel it is applicable. This is a reason to clarify and reform the provision so that there is actual accountability for things that matter in New York,’ adds Brendan Schulman, DJI’s Vice President of Policy & Legal Affairs, followed on the same comment thread as Harrigan.

New York City Mayer, Bill de Blasio, has confirmed unclaimed COVID-019 victims are being buried on Hart Island, but not en masse, saying ‘everything will be individual and every body will be treated with dignity.’ Below is the first of a thread of tweets wherein he addresses the subject:

This isn’t the first time a drone has been used to capture images on Hart Island, which hosts numerous gravesites and is accessible by appointment. Melinda Hunt, who founded the Hart Island Project, which documents the information of those buried on the small island located Northeast of the Bronx, insists that the burials aren’t disrespectful.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Poll: What Post-Processing Software Do You Use to Edit Your Photos?

17 Apr

The post Poll: What Post-Processing Software Do You Use to Edit Your Photos? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.

Poll: What Post-Processing Software Do You Use to Edit Your Photos?

Here at dPS, we’d like to know what post-processing software you use to edit your photos so that we can deliver some post-production tutorials that better suit you.

Let us know below. You can vote for more than one if you use multiple editing platforms. If the software isn’t listed, please let us know what you use in the comments section!

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post’s poll.

The post Poll: What Post-Processing Software Do You Use to Edit Your Photos? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.


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New York court rules website didn’t violate image copyright by embedding Instagram post

16 Apr

A Manhattan federal court has dismissed professional photojournalist Stephanie Sinclair’s copyright claim against digital media website Mashable, ruling that it did not violate her copyright by embedding one of her Instagram posts on its website. The legal issue arose in 2016 when Mashable published an article on female photographers whose work includes the topic of social justice, putting Sinclair at #9 on its list.

According to court documents, Mashable contacted Sinclair in March 2016 and offered to pay $ 50 to license one of her images for use in its article on female photographers. Sinclair declined the offer, so Mashable instead embedded an Instagram post of the image that Sinclair had published on her public Instagram account.

Fast-forward to January 2018 when, according to the court documents, Sinclair contacted Mashable and demanded that they remove the embedded post from the article on the grounds of copyright infringement. Mashable refused to remove the Instagram post and 10 days later, Sinclair filed a copyright lawsuit against the publication and its parent company Ziff Davis, LLC.

The lawsuit raised questions over Instagram’s Terms of Service, its right to grant sublicenses for images uploaded to its platform, and whether sharing and embedding public social media posts without permission or a direct image license constitutes copyright infringement.

Instagram states in its Terms of Use that while it does not claim ownership of a user’s images, they grant the company a license to use it when they upload the content to the platform. Instagram says that when a user uploads images to its website…

‘…you hereby grant to us a non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable, sub-licensable, worldwide license to host, use, distribute, modify, run, copy, publicly perform or display, translate, and create derivative works of your content (consistent with your privacy and application settings). You can end this license anytime by deleting your content or account.’

Mashable argued that based on that Terms of Use, it had a valid sublicense from Instagram that allowed it to embed the image post on its website. The defendant argued, among other things, that:

‘…because Plaintiff uploaded the Photograph to Instagram and designated it as “public,” she agreed to allow Mashable, as Instagram’s sublicensee, to embed the Photograph in its website.’

Sinclair’s legal claim countered this, according to court documents, which cite multiple arguments, including a claim that because Mashable didn’t get a direct image license from the photographer, it shouldn’t have been able to get a sublicense for the content from Instagram. The court disagreed with that argument, however, with U.S. District Court Judge Kimba Wood noting:

‘Plaintiff’s right to grant a license directly to Mashable, and Instagram’s right, as Plaintiff’s licensee, to grant a sublicense to Mashable, operate independently. Mashable was within its rights to seek a sublicense from Instagram when Mashable failed to obtain a license directly from Plaintiff—just as Mashable would be within its rights to again seek a license from Plaintiff, perhaps at a higher price, if Plaintiff switched her Instagram account to “private” mode.’

As well, Sinclair had argued that it is ‘unfair’ that a platform like Instagram is able to force professional photographers to choose between keeping their accounts private or allowing the company to sublicense their publicly shared content because it is ‘one of the most popular public photo-sharing platforms in the world.’

Judge Wood acknowledges the nature of this issue, but ultimately states that:

‘Unquestionably, Instagram’s dominance of photograph- and video-sharing social media, coupled with the expansive transfer of rights that Instagram demands from its users, means that Plaintiff’s dilemma is a real one. But by posting the Photograph to her public Instagram account, Plaintiff made her choice. This Court cannot release her from the agreement she made.’

The copyright claim was ultimately dismissed, a conclusion that contrasts the ruling from a New York court in early 2018 on the case of an embedded tweet that featured an image of athlete Tom Brady.

In that case, the court found that embedding such tweets may constitute copyright infringement and the fact they were uploaded to a third-party server like Twitter didn’t change that. The basis of the latest ruling is different, however, focusing on the terms of use the photographer agreed to rather than the ‘server test’ used in the 2018 copyrighted tweet case.

Both of these legal claims follow a different legal case from 2007 in which the precedent was set for how the Internet of today operates: that a person or company who embeds content hosted by a third-party source like Facebook or Twitter are not in violation of copyright, but rather that the hosting company itself is liable.

DPReview contacted Mickey Osterreicher, NPPA’s general counsel, for comment. He had the following to say about this New York ruling:

‘I have not had an opportunity to review the court’s opinion and order in this case so I do not feel it appropriate for me to comment. I will repeat something that NPPA has stressed for many years – photographers read and understand the terms of service or the terms of use on each and every social media platform before agreeing to them or posting on those sites. They also must continue to vigilantly monitor those terms as they are frequently changed and updated.’

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Practice your portrait lighting in lockdown with this virtual studio program

16 Apr

With many people being off work at the moment it might seem the perfect time to practice our photography – except that in so much of the world we’re not allowed to go out of the house let alone meet up for a portrait shoot. Software company Elixxier claims to have a neat solution in its recently updated set.a.light 3D application that allows us to keep experimenting, perfecting and testing studio set-ups even when we have to stay at home.

Users of the application can create a virtual studio filled with lights, modifiers, backgrounds as well as a host of models to choose from. Photographers can pose their models and add lights to the scene while previewing exactly how each move and position will change the way the picture looks.

The program allows us a 3D view of the set-up we are creating so we can view the relationship between models and lights from the side or even above, and users have a choice of manufacturer-specific studio lights, speedlights and continuous light sources. A range of softboxes, snoots, barndoors and grids are available to alter the way the light looks, and colored gels can be added for atmosphere.

Users are able to shift the position of the lights and alter their intensity while seeing the effect immediately in the camera preview window. There is also a choice of lenses, apertures, shutter speeds and, of course, camera positions that all have an impact on the way the picture looks. You can even select the size of the sensor to match that of your camera so the settings, lens effects and looks can be mirrored in your real-life set-ups with a live sitter.

Not only can you experiment with your lighting set-ups using set.a.light but the complex range of options allows users to have precise control over the model’s poses. Legs bend and props can be placed under feet to get more shape into a pose, and even individual fingers can be carefully arranged. Models can be dressed, or undressed, the way you want them and glasses can be added for an extra challenge – in a range of colors and styles.

Once you are happy with the way the model looks you can actually ‘take’ the picture and the result is rendered out as a normal picture file. You can also save the lighting diagram and 3D plan so you can refer to it at a later date when preparing to shoot a person for real. The program is great to allow us to practice during this lock-down, but in normal times it lets us test and experiment at leisure without the cost of studio and model hire, and it should make us more prepared when we arrive at a real shoot.

The latest version of the program adds a community discussion area where users can share their setups with others and chat about how images could be improved.

The Basic version of the application costs €79 (approx. $ 90) at the moment, while the Studio version is €154 (approx. $ 170), and company offers a free trial of the full version for 15 days. For more information see the Elixxier website.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Apple announces new $399 iPhone SE model with 4.7-inch display, A13 chip and Portrait mode

16 Apr

Apple has announced a new version of the iPhone SE, its most affordable iPhone model. The new iPhone SE shares many of the features of the now-discontinued iPhone 8 model, including its glass-backed design and single camera.

Looking first at how the new second-generation iPhone SE compares to the original iPhone SE model, the new model is larger and now includes a 4.7″ HDR-capable Retina HD display rather than the 4″ Retina display of the original. Apple has upgraded its processors numerous times since the original iPhone SE launched with an A9 processor, and the new SE model comes with Apple’s A13 Bionic chip. Apple states that this chip results in 2.4 times faster CPU performance and 4 times faster GPU performance when compared to the A9.

Physically, the iPhone SE is very similar to the iPhone 8’s design. It utilizes a glass and aluminum design and is water-resistant to a depth of a meter for up to 30 minutes. The iPhone SE is 138.4mm (5.45″) tall, 67.3mm (2.65″) wide and has a depth of 7.3mm (0.29″). The phone weighs 148 grams (5.2 ounces).

The True Tone 4.7″ display is LCD and features IPS technology. The resolution is 1334 x 750 pixels at 326 ppi. During typical use, the contrast ratio is 1400:1. The phone can display wide color (P3) and has a maximum brightness of 625 nits.

Despite featuring a single camera, the iPhone SE (2nd generation) includes Apple’s Portrait mode (Night Mode is notably absent). The rear camera is a single 12MP wide camera, the same as the iPhone SE (1st generation), but the new phone has a faster F1.8 aperture compared to F2.2. The F1.8 lens includes six elements and features a sapphire crystal cover. Further, the new model now includes optical image stabilization, True Tone flash with slow sync and next-generation Smart HDR when capturing photos.

The iPhone SE (2nd generation) includes six Portrait Lighting effects. In these sample images, we see the Natural, Contour and Stage Mono effects. Image credits: Apple

The Portrait mode in the new iPhone SE includes advanced bokeh and depth control plus six Portrait Lighting effects: natural, studio, contour, stage, stage mono and high-key mono.

Additional camera features include panorama capture (up to 63MP), wide color capture, Live Photos, red-eye correction, auto stabilization, burst mode, photo geotagging and HEIF format image capture.

For video recording, Apple’s latest iPhone SE model can record 4K video at 24 fps, 30 fps or 60 fps, plus Full HD video 30 fps or 60 fps. The phone can also record with an extended dynamic range for video at up to 30 fps and includes optical image stabilization during recording. Full HD video can be recorded at 120 fps or 240 fps. Users can also record QuickTake video and the phone includes stereo recording. If you want to capture time lapse videos, the iPhone SE can do this as well, including with stabilization. Recording is captured in HEVC and H.264 formats.

The new iPhone SE includes a depth slider when using the Portrait mode. Here we see F1.8 (left) versus F16 (right). Image credit: Apple

The front camera is vastly improved in the 2nd generation iPhone SE. The megapixel count is up to 7MP from 1.2MP and the aperture is slightly faster at F2.2 compared to F2.4. The front camera includes Retina Flash, Auto HDR and can capture Portrait mode images with the same six effects as the rear camera. Further, you can record 1080p video at up to 30 fps using the front-facing camera.

In terms of connectivity, the iPhone SE (2nd generation) is much faster than the older iPhone SE. The phone includes Gigabit-class LTE, 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 with MIMO and Bluetooth 5.0. The new Touch ID should also be faster with the new model. In line with other recent iPhone models, the revised SE forgoes a headphone jack and includes only a Lightning connector.

Users should expect similar battery life as the iPhone 8. This means that the built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery will offer up to 13 hours of video playback and up to 40 hours of audio playback. The iPhone SE is now capable of wireless charging and includes fast charge with an 18W adapter (sold separately).

Image credit: Apple

Despite sharing many similarities with the iPhone 8, the iPhone SE (2nd generation) does have several differences. In terms of processing power, the iPhone 8 utilized an A11 chip rather than the A13 in the new SE. Further, the iPhone 8 did not include Apple’s Portrait mode or Apple’s latest next-generation Smart HDR image capture. Video features are similar between the two phones, but the iPhone 8 did not include extended dynamic range video capture, QuickTake video nor Stereo recording.

The iPhone SE is available in black, white and (PRODUCT)RED colorways. Available storage capacities are 64, 128 and 256GB. Pricing starts at $ 399 USD for the 64GB model and increases to $ 549 for the 256GB model. Pre-order begins at 5:00 a.m. PDT on April 17 with availability beginning on April 24. For more information, visit Apple’s iPhone SE product page.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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