Blog

21 Settings, Techniques and Rules All New Camera Owners Should Know

The post 21 Settings, Techniques and Rules All New Camera Owners Should Know appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.

In this article, we’re going to share 21 photography settings, techniques, and rules you should know as a beginner photographer.

Some are very basic while others go a little deeper, but all have been selected from our archives specifically for beginners and new camera owners.

Enjoy!

Introduction to useful modes and settings on your digital camera

1. Digital Camera Modes Explained – I spoke with a family friend recently who had just bought a new point and shoot camera. She came up to me with her camera when no one was watching and embarrassedly asked me if I could tell her what all the little icons on the dial on top of her camera meant. This article explains what each of the most common digital camera modes means and does. Knowing these photography modes can take your shots to the next level.

2. Aperture and Shutter Priority Modes – This introduction takes you through these two very useful settings that can be found on many digital cameras. Aperture and Shutter Priority mode take you off of Auto mode, giving you more control over your images without thrusting you fully into Manual mode. They are great settings to explore and master.

3. Introduction to White Balance – One of the most common problems that I see in beginner photography is shots with incorrect colors. We’ve all seen them: portraits where your subject’s teeth and eyeballs (and everything else) have a yellowish tinge. Learn what causes this and how to combat it with this tutorial on white balance.

4. Understanding Histograms – “Histograms are scary.” This is what one reader said to me recently when they discovered that they could view these little graphs on their camera. While histograms might seem a little technical, it is amazing how simple a histogram is to interpret. Know what to look for, and with just a glance you can tell if your image is under- or over-exposed. It’s a useful tool to master.

5. Automatic Exposure Bracketing (AEB) – This feature is another of those often-unexplored settings that many cameras have built into them. It will allow you to get well-exposed shots in even the trickiest of lighting situations.

Other basic camera techniques

6. How to Hold a Digital Camera – This beginner tutorial covers a topic that most camera owners skip over without realizing that it is a foundational lesson in photography. Get this wrong and it can dramatically impact the quality of your shots.

7. Shutter Release Technique – Another basic tip that many do intuitively, but which can drastically improve your photography if you don’t do it.

8. How to Use Focal Lock – Yet another beginner technique that many of us take for granted, yet is at the core of how all digital cameras focus automatically. Get this wrong and you’ll take a lot of shots of out-of-focus subjects and in-focus backgrounds!

9. How to Take Sharp Digital Images – “My shots are fuzzy.” It’s a problem we’re frequently asked about, so we wrote this tutorial to help you get the sharpest images your camera can take.

10. Shooting with an In-Camera Flash – Flash photography with a built-in flash can lead to some terribly blown-out images. This article offers a few tips on how to avoid this. And here are 7 Strategies for Avoiding Flash Blow Out.

11. How to Get Shallow Depth of Field in Your Digital Photos – A great technique to learn if you’re into many types of photography (portraits, macro, etc.) is how to control the depth of field in your shots. That way, you can make your main subject pop by making your background nicely blurred. This tutorial walks you through how to do it.

12. Understanding Exposure – This post takes new camera owners through the three main elements of exposure. Once you’ve read it, also check out our introductions to ISO, aperture, and shutter speed.

Camera care and maintenance

13. How to Avoid a Dirty DSLR Sensor – One of the fastest ways to ruin every single shot you take with your new DSLR is to end up with a dirty image sensor. This tutorial gives some basic tips on how to ensure it stays as clean as possible.

14. How to Clean a DSLR Lens – As much as you try to protect them, lenses tend to get grimy over time. This tutorial shares some basic tips on how to clean lenses so that your shots will be as clear as possible.

15. 7 Digital Camera Predators and How to Keep them at Bay – This tutorial takes you through 7 of the most common ways that digital cameras get damaged, what to look out for, and what preventative actions you can take.

Composition tips

16. The Rule of Thirds – Whether you follow it or break it, the rule of thirds is a topic you should at least know about.

17. Points of Interest – An image without some visual point of interest is unlikely to hold the eye of anyone viewing it.

18. Getting Horizons Horizontal – The perfect way to ruin that lovely sunset or landscape shot is to make it lean to one side. Get your horizon horizontal!

19. Fill Your Frame – This is not applicable to every shot you take, but many photographers could drastically improve their photography by getting in close to their subject and filling the frame.

20. Getting Backgrounds Right – The background can make or break an image. This tutorial walks you through a number of things to look out for and techniques to use to get the background just right.

21. Adding Randomness to Your Photos – Learn how to set your images apart from everyone else’s by injecting creativity, variety, and a little randomness into your shots.

Of course, these 21 photography settings, techniques, and rules for beginner camera owners just scratch the surface of all there is to learn about the art of photography. Subscribe to our blog here to get more free daily tips to help you keep learning and improving.

Our guide to getting creative control over your camera

If you’re looking for a complete guide to taking control of your camera, then you might like to check out our course, Photo Nuts and Bolts, which walks you through everything you need to know to start taking beautiful photos.

Here’s the intro:

Grab this great dPS course here.

The post 21 Settings, Techniques and Rules All New Camera Owners Should Know appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.

Digital Photography School

October 13, 2020
Hands-on with the new Panasonic Lumix DC-BGH1

Hands-on with the new Panasonic Lumix DC-BGH1

Panasonic’s Lumix DC-BGH1 is a new type of product for Panasonic: a box-style video camera that is designed to be as adaptable and flexible as possible.

It’s built around an oversized Four Thirds sensor very similar to the one found in the GH5S, and the ‘GH’ in its name is designed to invoke that series of cameras, but the BGH1 expands far beyond those models in terms of what it can do.

The idea is that it can be connected to a wide variety of other devices, depending on your needs. The expectation isn’t that anyone needs everything the camera offers, but instead that it offers a wide number of users the couple of features they need.

Video specs

The core video specifications of the BGH1 are similar to those of the GH5S, but with the added ability to capture 4K/60p footage in 10-bit quality. The 60p footage is 4:2:0, with 4:2:2 available for 4K at up to 30p.

Panasonic has also reworked the sensor’s output, optimizing for noise at the base ISO steps of its two gain modes (rather than trying to offer the most consistent performance at all settings). This decision has helped lower noise and hence boost DR at those settings.

In turn, this has prompted Panasonic to expand how much of the V-Log gamma curve the camera uses. The V-Log system works by using the same curve shape, with each camera using different extents of the curve depending on how much dynamic range they can usably capture, so that the footage of any two Log-capable Panasonic cameras can be used with a single set of LUTs, when they’re being processed.

So, while the BGH1 is still classified as shooting V-Log L, it’s using a larger region with more DR than the GH5S does.

All the usual features

As you might expect from a camera whose name explicitly references the GH series, the BGH1 does pretty much everything the GH5S does, in video terms. This includes Variable Frame Rate mode, with 1080 capture at up to 240p and 4K at up to 60p, output at a variety of frame rates.

There’s also 10-bit HLG capture and anamorphic support, with corrected previews output over HDMI or SDI. The BGH1 uses the latest improvements to Panasonic’s DFD autofocus system.

The only thing missing, really, is the ability to output waveforms or vectorscope, which Panasonic says it expects to be offered (often with more precision) by many of the things you might connect the BGH1 to.

As a self-contained unit

Before we discuss how the BGH1 can be used with other equipment, it’s worth pointing out that it can be used as a self-contained camera. Not the most ergonomic one, perhaps, but it has a series of customizable buttons and a control dial to mean that, other than the lack of screen, the BGH1 can be operated as a standalone device.

In its simplest form, the camera can be framed using the Lumix Connect app on a smart device, and set to record.

Internal capture

Anyone using the BGH1 as a standalone camera, or building it into a rig with an external monitor will find the inclusion of dual UHS-II SD card slots immediately valuable.

The provision of internal capture options also means it can be attached to a drone and can record onboard while in flight. But Panasonic’s expectation is that only a proportion of users will ever make use of the SD card slots.

A hotshoe sounds useful

A hotshoe might seem like an odd addition to a video camera with no mechanical shutter, but its provision means it’s compatible with Panasonic’s DMW-XLR1 module, that provides XLR balanced audio inputs.

HDMI

As you’d expect, the BGH1 includes an HDMI socket, to allow the output of Raw or gamma encoded streams. This is the most consumer-friendly of the camera’s outputs, allowing the use of external monitors and recorders while shooting.

As well as Raw, the port is fast enough to allow a 10-bit stream of DCI 4K at up to 60p.

SDI

Under one of the covers on the camera’s corners is an array of SDI connectors.

The first of these connectors can be used to output a video signal. It’s a 3G SDI socket so the output is limited to Full HD but can output a signal with less latency than is possible using HDMI, which is essential for audio syncing in some live environments.

The next one along is a timecode in/out socket, allowing the camera’s use as part of multi-camera shoots.

But it’s the third socket in the line that shows the camera’s ambitions: a Genlock port that allows perfect synchronization with other devices. Whereas timecode allows multi-device sync as precise as a single frame, Genlock allows even finer precision, for applications such as 3D, VR and volumetric capture, where multiple perspectives need to line-up exactly, in order to work.

Ethernet

Another way of using the camera is via its Ethernet connection. The BGH1 supports power over Ethernet, in addition to video transmission and camera control signals, allowing it to run without a battery or plug-in power. Additionally, up to 12 cameras can be operated remotely from the Lumix Tether app, which provides a complete array of camera controls.

Panasonic says that it’s working on firmware that will allow the streaming of video using the RTMP system over Ethernet, meaning the camera can be sent to an interviewee, configured remotely and then stream back to the studio using a low-latency RTMP connection.

Panasonic says it will release an SDK to allow users to develop their own software to fully control the camera, though it only refers to USB control, since the same SDK will also cover many of the company’s existing cameras.

The BGH1 will be able to output over HDMI, SDI and USB simultaneously, if you so require it.

Batteries

If you’re not using Ethernet or the camera’s 12V DC input (shown above) to power the camera, the BGH1 can use Panasonic’s large VW-VB video camera batteries.

These are available in capacities of 43, 65 and 86 Wh (7.28V 11,800 mAh), which will provide battery life way beyond anything we’re used to in the stills sphere. For reference, a Sony NP-FZ100, which is one of the most powerful batteries we usually encounter, is rated at 16.4Wh.

Weight

In order to allow drone use, the BGH1 has been designed to be as light as possible. Rather than the 730g of the stabilized GH5, the BGH1 weighs just 545g without a battery.

The use of 7.2V batteries allowed a higher voltage, lower current design, which reduces heat built-up, and the camera also features a fan much like the one in Panasonic’s full-frame S1H, since this adds less weight than adding additional metal to act as a heatsink.

Conclusion

The Panasonic Lumix DC-BGH1 doesn’t look like most of the cameras we review and its sheer flexibility, as much as its physical shape, makes it a little hard to get a handle on. To a degree, it feels like Panasonic hasn’t so much tried to design a camera to do a particular job, they’ve tried to design a camera that can lend itself to a vast range of different jobs, probably beyond the expectations of the company itself.

To an extent, we won’t know what the BGH1 is really for until videographers and production companies start using it and pushing to explore its potential.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

October 13, 2020
Video: From its origins to a harrowing kidnapping, the story of Adobe

The YouTube channel ColdFusion published an in-depth look at the history of Adobe. In the photo and video industry, Adobe is a giant. While some people may not be in favor of the company’s more recent push toward a subscription model, nearly everyone can agree that Adobe and its software has had a massive influence.

Tracing Adobe’s history requires going back all the way to 1982 when John Warnock and Charles Geschke founded the company in Warnock’s garage. How did the pair decide on the name Adobe? There was a creek behind the Warnock home called Adobe. And the company’s first logo? It was designed by John Warnock’s wife, Marva Warnock, a graphic designer and illustrator.

Adobe co-founders John Warnock and Charles Geschke

Warnock and Geschke had worked together at Xerox Parc and developed a printing code, PostScript. The duo had pitched their development to Xerox but the higher-ups weren’t interested. After being rebuked, Warnock and Geschke left the company to found Adobe. It wasn’t long before others took notice of Adobe, including Steve Jobs, who the very same year Adobe was founded tried to buy the company for $ 5M USD. Warnock and Geschke refused to sell outright but did eventually sell Jobs a 19% share of the company at five times its valuation, making Adobe the first company in the history of Silicon Valley to turn a profit in its first year.

With a license in hand for PostScript, Apple’s foray into laser printing changed publishing forever, allowing people and businesses to print and publish content without the use of expensive photo typesetters. As Dagogo Altraide states in his video below, the idea that you could purchase a Macintosh computer and Apple LaserWriter printer, underpinned by Adobe’s PostScript coding, and be able to publish completely changed the industry.

Adobe’s first few years went very well, and the company became publicly traded on the NASDAQ index in 1986. The Adobe more familiar to us today started to take shape in 1987 with the launch of the vector-based drawing program, Adobe Illustrator, which is still used today. Adobe Photoshop, on the other hand, was not developed in-house at Adobe. Thomas Knoll began working on a grayscale image editor while a PhD student in Michigan. Upon advice from his brother, John, Thomas took a sabbatical from his post-graduate studies to turn his project into a fully-fledged image editing program.

As Thomas continued his work on the program, John gave demonstrations in Silicon Valley, including to Adobe and Apple. Adobe purchased the license to distribute the software in late 1988. Adobe Photoshop was released exclusively on the Macintosh in January of 1990 with a lifetime license and price of $ 895. This price may seem steep, but digital photo retouching services cost upwards of $ 300 an hour at the time.

Thomas Knoll showing off Adobe Photoshop on a Macintosh computer

In the video above, Altraide recaps an incident in 1992 in which Charles Geschke was held at gunpoint and kidnapped as he exited his vehicle in Adobe’s parking lot. The pair of kidnappers held Geschke for a $ 650,000 ransom and told his wife, Nan, that Charles would be killed and dismembered if she didn’t follow their instructions. After four days in captivity and with the help of the FBI, Charles was rescued, and his captors were arrested and eventually sentenced to life sentences.

Adobe’s business moved forward and the next year, Photoshop was ported to Microsoft Windows, beginning a rapid expansion in Adobe’s software offerings and influence. To learn what happened next and find out more about Adobe’s torrid pace of acquisitions and developments in the decades since watch ColdFusion’s full video above. For more from ColdFusion, click here.

(Via Fstoppers)

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

October 13, 2020
Canon Japan launches range of EOS-inspired traditional cut-glass tumblers

To inspire users before a shoot, or to help them unwind after one, Canon Japan has launched a range of traditional ‘Edo Kiriko’ cut glass tumblers with designs based on photography themes. The company has employed the Mitsuwa Glass Crafts studio in Tokyo that uses traditional Edo Kiriko cutting techniques to shape light as it passes through the glass. The studio has come up with a series of designs that either look like a lens, feel like the dials on an EOS camera, actually have a lens designed into the base or which are decorated with the visual expression of the sound of a shutter.

There are two basic shapes of glasses to choose from, each with variations in the design of the cuts and patterns. One has the ribbed pattern of a lens focusing ring cut into the sides and is made from a mixture of black and clear glass, while others have an aperture iris pattern in the base and come in red or blue glass.

The designer said that the idea was to capture the things we can’t see in the lines cut into the glass such as the sound of a shutter tripping, as well as the shapes and patterns of light.

Edo Kiriko is a particular way of cutting glass in Japan and is considered a highly skilled craft. All glasses have to be cut by hand and have to use specific materials, and when colored a very thin layer has to be used – which made creating the jet black especially difficult.

The glasses will be available to order from December but may take up to three months for delivery as they are all handmade. Prices will be from ¥13000 (approx. $ 125). While these glasses are made for Canon users they can be enjoyed by owners of all camera brands without adapters. For more information see the Canon Japan website.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

October 13, 2020
Leica M10 Monochrom sample gallery

$ (document).ready(function() { SampleGalleryV2({“containerId”:”embeddedSampleGallery_5101613002″,”galleryId”:”5101613002″,”isEmbeddedWidget”:true,”selectedImageIndex”:0,”isMobile”:false}) });

The Leica M10 Monochrom takes the M10 body but includes a newly-developed 40MP full-frame sensor, with no color filter array. Like previous Monochrom variants, this makes the M10 M capable of producing stunning ‘true’ black and white images. We’ve been shooting with the new Monochrom for a few days with a mixture of old and new glass. Take a look!

See our Leica M10 Monochrom sample gallery

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

October 12, 2020
Canon to Release 16 New RF Lenses Before the End of 2021
The post Canon to Release 16 New RF Lenses Before the End of 2021 appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.

Canon’s full-frame mirrorless lineup has seen the addition of two incredible camera bodies this year, but Canon is determined to keep shooting for the stars.

According to Canon Rumors, we’ll likely see the addition of a whopping 16 new lenses to the RF lineup before 2021 is out. These will round out Canon’s existing set of RF lenses and fill in key gaps, while doubling the native options for Canon’s full-frame mirrorless shooters.

While the 2021 lens roadmap isn’t confirmed, Canon Rumors claims that it “comes from a great source” and that “most, if not all [is] accurate.”

So what are these 16 lenses we’ll be getting over the next year?

First, we should see the Canon RF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM, which is supposedly “about the size of a coke can;” if this is accurate, then Canon shooters are in for a treat. A compact 70-200mm f/4 lens that you can carry everywhere is a dream come true for plenty of photographers, including landscape photographers after intimate nature shots, as well as some portrait photographers and potentially even street snappers.

We’ll also get the Canon RF 50mm f/1.8 STM. This is the RF version of the ultra-popular Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM, and Canon Rumors claims that it will be “better optically and in build quality than the EF version.” Expect that it’ll be relatively affordable, giving hobbyist shooters a clear-cut entry point into the Canon mirrorless world and giving more serious photographers a lightweight prime to keep on the camera when shooting casually.

Honestly, these two lenses are alone worth the hype, but add to it 14 additional lenses and you’ve got yourself a truly robust lens lineup.

Here are the other Canon RF lenses you can expect to see before 2021 is out:
- Canon TS-R (tilt-shift) 14mm f/4L
- Canon TS-R (tilt-shift) 24mm f/3.5L
- Canon RF 10-24mm f/4L
- Canon RF 14-35mm f/4L IS USM
- Canon RF 24mm f/1.8 IS STM Macro
- Canon RF 35mm f/1.2L USM
- Canon RF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
- Canon RF 135mm f/1.4L USM
- Canon RF 100-400mm f/5.6-7.1 USM
- Canon RF 400mm f/2.8L IS USM
- Canon RF 500mm f/4L IS USM
- Canon RF 600mm f/4L IS USM
- Canon RF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM
- Canon RF 1200mm f/8L IS USM
Key among these new lenses are a slew of super-telephoto primes, including a 400mm f/2.8, a 500mm f/4, and a 600mm f/4, all of which will serve wildlife and bird photographers well. And the ultra-wide zooms (the 10-24mm f/4 and the 14-35mm f/4) should certainly be compelling for landscape photographers of all stripes, especially if Canon can keep the price down to a reasonable level.

For Canon shooters, this has been a good year.

And next year is shaping up to be even more exciting. It’s clear that Canon is now all-in with regard to their full-frame mirrorless lens lineup.

So if you’ve been thinking about grabbing a Canon mirrorless body, now’s a great time!

Now over to you:

What do you think of these 16 new RF lenses? Which lenses interest you the most? Are you impressed by Canon’s dedication to its RF-mount? Share your thoughts in the comments!

The post Canon to Release 16 New RF Lenses Before the End of 2021 appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.

Digital Photography School
October 12, 2020
Report: Nikon firmware for using CFexpress Type B cards with D5, D850 and D500 will arrive ‘before the end of 2020’

Back in February 2019, Nikon announced it was working to develop a firmware update for its D5, D850 and D500 DSLR cameras that would bring support for using CFExpress Type B memory cards. Since then, we haven’t heard a word about these development from Nikon, but Nikon Rumors says it ‘can confirm’ the much-anticipated firmware update will arrive before the end of the year.

According to Nikon Rumors’ report, the firmware update will arrive ‘before the end of 2020.’ Nikon Rumors says Nikon ‘may say something about [these updates]’ this coming week when it launches its Z6 II and Z7 II mirrorless cameras.

Image credit: B&H Photo

Despite promising a firmware update, Nikon never confirmed the details of what kind of performance we can expect from CFExpress Type B cards when used with its D5, D850 and D500 DSLR cameras. While CFExpress Type B support will make it easier to use the open and more popular format — not to mentioned larger maximum capacities, since XQD cards top out at 240GB compared to the current 1TB maximum capacity of CFExpress cards — it doesn’t necessarily we’ll expect improved speeds over using XQD cards when using them inside the camera. However, you will see improved speeds over XQD cards when importing the cards to your computer if you’re using a CFExpress Type B memory card reader.

We contacted Nikon for a comment on the updates on Friday October 9, but haven’t received a response. We will update this article if we get any further information from Nikon.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

October 12, 2020

Opinion: Camera names are getting ridiculous

Canon’s EOS 5D Mark II changed the camera industry forever. In more ways than one.

Looking back, I can’t honestly say I recognized the long-term impact of Canon’s big announcement at Photokina 2008. It’s only with hindsight I can see the significance of the unveiling of the EOS 5D Mark II.

It ushered in the era of Full HD video in DSLRs: that was obviously a big deal. But it was also the herald of an insidious trend in consumer cameras whose enormity is only now becoming clear.

At the time it seemed innocent enough. After all, the ‘Mark II’ was an iteration on an existing design. Sure the whole video thing meant that the second-gen model was arguably even more significant than the original ‘first-sub-$ 4000 full frame digital’ EOS 5D, but that ‘Mark II’ branding seemed logical, given how much it appeared to have been developed from its forebear.

The Canon EOS 5D Mark II was the herald of an insidious trend whose enormity is only now becoming clear

Hemmed-in by the 30D, 40D, 50D APS-C series on one side and the flagship 1D series on the other, it made sense that Canon wouldn’t want to squander the remaining seven single-digit options available to it on a like-for-like replacement (a decision justified with the arrival of the 6D, five years later). So Mark II it was. And, without any fanfare, an uncontrollable naming phenomenon had begun.

In isolation, it might have been fine, Canon had already had Mark II models in its professional EOS-1D range, so where was the harm in releasing it into the consumer market? Meanwhile, though, another insidious trend in nomenclature was developing: the quasi-algebraic insistence on adding ‘X’ to everything.

Again, it started harmlessly enough: Nikon used it to signify its high-resolution pro DSLRs and later-on, Sony would use it to denote the presence of a CMOS sensor its compacts. But it rapidly expanded, to the point of near ubiquity. Panasonic dubbed its rangefinder-ish enthusiast G-series mirrorless cameras ‘GX’ and Canon decided ‘G X’ was a good way to style the large-sensor successors to its own G-series of compacts. To add to the fun, Fujifilm decided to use ‘X-series’ as the branding both for its mirrorless cameras, which use the ‘X’ mount and a diverse range of fixed lens cameras, which don’t.

But the perniciousness of both of these creeping trends came when they started to cross-breed.

It’s not just a circle, but it’s interesting to see that every brand has used the letter ‘x’ in its model names at one time or another.

Canon, having already produced models called G1 X, G3 X, G5 X, G7 X and G9 X, decided to adopt ‘Mark’ designations for its compacts, giving us three G1 Xs, two iterations of the G5 X and three of the G7 X. Thankfully Panasonic thankfully kept the GX7 Mark II and Mark III nomenclature to the Japanese market, instead confusing the rest of the world with a GX8 that wasn’t considered part of the GX7 series, before following on with the GX9, which was.

The Canon G7 X Mark II, not to be confused with the Panasonic GX7 Mark II (GX85). Likewise the G7 X III and GX7 III (GX9).

But, as ever, it’s Sony that’s really exhausted all possible permutations. Probably not helped by a period where it seemed determined to address every possible industry niche and replace each model before the previous generation had arrived in the shops, its naming system has got properly out-of-hand. So, we now have multiple ‘Marks’ of the very, very different RX0, RX1, RX10 and RX100 ranges. This system has become so unwieldy that the RX100 series has apparently divided into parallel short- (Mark 1-5) and long-zoom variants (Marks 6 and 7) necessitating the creation of the RX100 Mark 5A. Surely that’s a sign that this all needs to stop?

It just causes problems. As well as me not being able to remember any camera’s names anymore, it also means that some once-useful terminology has been squandered: I feel Olympus’s latest E-M1 model, for example, might have been better received if its had been pitched as ‘Mark II’ version of its predecessor. But I’ll acknowledge that calling it the E-M1 Mark II – Mark II was probably wasn’t an option.

Loath as I am to draw automotive parallels, it’s worth nothing that, with a few exceptions such as Toyota’s defunct US-only Scion brand, most motor manufacturers manage to avoid the obsession with the letter ‘x’ or calling things Mark II. This allows simple names that can’t be confused, such as Solara, Nova, Alpine or Bonneville.

Between pitching this article and finding the time to write it, Nikon has announced it’s joining the far-from exclusive club with its Z6 and Z7 replacements. Hoo – and I can’t emphasize this enough – ray.

I’m sorry: I know none of this matters. Camera naming schemes make not the blindest bit of difference to the pictures any of these models take, or how enjoyable the photographic experience they give is. But, possibly because I have to remember and write about them all, and perhaps because my brain is becoming less agile with age, I’m finding it all too much. Is it really too much to ask that camera companies stop calling all their cameras the same bloody thing?

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

October 11, 2020

10 Ideas for Photographing Nature in your Backyard
The post 10 Ideas for Photographing Nature in your Backyard appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Karen Quist.

Have you noticed how many photographers are fascinated with nature? Even if we specialize in another genre, few of us can resist a gorgeous flower or a branch of autumn leaves.

One of the best things about photographing nature is that it is so accessible. You don’t need to travel far to find it, because it’s all around you. You may take it for granted because you see it every day, but your own backyard is a treasure trove. Every hour of every day and every season brings something new.

Summer lavender | 1/200 sec | f/3.5 | ISO 100

The term “backyard” needn’t be taken literally here. If you don’t have a backyard, you’ll find plenty of nature to photograph just by wandering the streets or public parks and gardens.

Tech details: All of the photographs in this article were shot on my Canon 5D Mark III. Unless otherwise stated, I have used my Canon 100mm f/2.8 macro lens. I have included details of ISO, aperture, and shutter speed settings.

1. Flowers and leaves

Flowers and leaves are often the first things that come to mind when we look for subjects in our own backyards. They offer an endless variety of colors, shapes, and textures for you to photograph. You could create a collection based on a single color scheme, or try to find as many different leaf or flower shapes as possible.

Cymbidium orchid | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro | 1/100 sec | f/4 | ISO 640

Violet leaves | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/30 sec | f/8 | ISO 800

Geranium leaves | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/40 sec | f/8 | ISO 320

You should also experiment with different lighting and conditions. I love backlighting for leaves and flowers, as it creates a luminous, almost three-dimensional effect, and you can see details such as veins. Some shapes look better with strong, directional light, and I love how colors are enhanced by water droplets.

Erlicheer daffodils | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/640 sec | f/4 | ISO 100

The same flower shot with the sun at my back | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/800 sec | f/4 | ISO 100

Backlighting a leaf reveals details you wouldn’t see if you lit it directly | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/250 sec | f/4 | ISO 100

Flowers are seasonal, and in temperate zones, spring and summer offer the widest variety. There are still flowers to be found in winter, although you may need to look harder. Don’t forget that weeds, such as dandelions, are also beautiful! Autumn provides the greatest color spectrum in leaves.

Liquidambar leaves photographed en masse | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/80 sec | f/4 | ISO 640

A single leaf isolated against a dark background | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/30 sec | f/4 | ISO 640

2. Fruit, berries, and seed pods

When the summer flowers disappear, fruits and berries are nature’s way of providing for birds and animals throughout the colder months. Many berries and seed pods ripen towards the end of autumn, bringing color to the winter garden. Citrus trees bear fruit in winter, and persimmon trees lose their leaves to reveal branches of shiny orange fruits. Think also of acorns, pine cones, and nuts.

Kumquat | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/50 sec | f/4.5 | ISO 2500

Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/500 sec | f/8 | ISO 800

Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/1250 sec | f/5 | ISO 500

Orange rosehip | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/160 sec | f/5 | ISO 500

Bunches of red berries | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/100 sec | f/5 | ISO 500

3. After the rain

Raindrops are fascinating through the lens. Try photographing them from various angles and in different lighting.

When photographing a single droplet, or a string of them, isolate them by keeping the background uncluttered. You can do this by creating distance between the droplets and the background, and by using a wide aperture to ensure the background is blurred. Notice also how water sits in nice round droplets on some types of leaves, but on others it disperses.

Arthropodium leaves after the rain | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/80 sec | f/4.5 | ISO 800

Raindrops hang from the slats on the back of a garden chair | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/125 sec | f/4 | ISO 1000

Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/125 sec | f/4 | ISO 640

Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/125 sec | f/4 | ISO 1000

4. Mushrooms, toadstools, and fungi

These are abundant in autumn and winter, but some species pop up throughout the year after rain. Look in damp, mossy places, on the sides of trees, and in log piles for them.

My personal favorites are the red toadstools with white speckles. They are evocative of fairy tales and magic, and their colors are a nature photographer’s dream!

Toadstool | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/250 sec | f/6.3 | ISO 1000

Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/160 sec | f/6.3 | ISO 1000

But don’t ignore the tiny, dull-colored mushrooms and fungi. The mushrooms in the photo below were growing in a crevice on the side of my herb garden. You can see by the scale of the woodgrain how tiny they were. From above, they were nondescript, but when I laid on the ground beneath them and shot into the backlight, they became translucent and I could see their delicate structure.

These tiny mushrooms were no bigger than the fingernail on my pinky finger! | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/160 sec | f/8 | ISO 800

5. Look up; look down

We have a gigantic tree in our backyard. It was probably planted when our house was first built in the 1920s, and its canopy is as big as the house itself. One of my favorite things to do in the warmer months is to put a picnic rug on the lawn and lie on my back gazing up into the tree’s branches. It is free therapy!

Watching the leaves change from bright spring green through to darker green in summer, the first blush of color in autumn, through to a rich claret just before they drop, never ceases to delight me. I have photographed it time and time again through the seasons. Even lying on the ground with my 35mm lens, I can only capture a small portion of the canopy.

Sigma 35mm ART lens | 1/60 sec | f/11 | ISO 160

Sigma 35mm f/1.4 lens | 1/100 sec | f/11 | ISO 160

If you are lucky enough to have trees in your garden, try standing or lying directly underneath them and shooting up into the branches. Notice how the light changes from early morning throughout the day into late afternoon and evening. Branches, whether they are naked or covered with leaves, contrast beautifully against a blue sky. They are also stunning at sunrise and sunset and on moonlit nights.

Sigma 35mm f/1.4 lens | 1/200 sec | f/11 | ISO 200

If you don’t have any trees, look for interesting cloud formations to photograph. You can create a collection of skies to use as Photoshop overlays, which can add interest to other outdoor photos such as portraits. Look for vertical cloud formations, fat white fluffy clouds, and those lovely soft colors around the edge of the clouds at dusk and dawn.

You can also turn your attention downward. On the ground are a million microcosms among the moss, the lawn, between the paving stones, and in the fallen bark and leaves. You won’t see them until you get down to ground level, so lie flat on your tummy and peer into another world.

The moss on a tree trunk | Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/40 sec | f/4 | ISO 640

6. Black and white beauty

We tend to think of color photography when we think of nature, but don’t dismiss the idea of black and white images. Nature provides sculptural shapes and contrasting textures that make great black and white subjects. If you have succulents or cacti in your garden, they are often more interesting in black and white than they are in color (except on those rare occasions when they flower). Ditto with white flowers against a dark background. Smooth pebbles, rough bark, snail shells, acorns, and pine cones all look fabulous in black and white. Try strong, directional lighting and a high contrast edit.

When I converted this file to black and white in Lightroom, I played with the sliders in the B&W panel. The photo on the left has the blue slider pulled all the way down to -100 to darken the sky. On the right, the blue slider is set to zero.

Canon 5D Mark III | Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro | 1/100 sec | f/8 | ISO 100

7. Experiment with sun flare and haze

Your backyard is one of the best places to experiment with effects and new techniques. Firstly, you can become familiar with how things look at various times of the day and throughout the seasons. Secondly, you don’t need to travel far, so you can respond to anything on a whim. If you spot something amazing while you’re sipping your morning coffee, you needn’t even get out of your pajamas to capture it!

The subjects in the two photographs below are both visible from my desk. Every morning last summer, I noticed how this shaft of hazy sunlight would hit the planting of succulents on a pedestal, so I knew exactly what time to capture it at its best. Also sitting at my desk, I saw how the sun caught a spray of orchids just after the rain, and I rushed outside with my camera.

Canon 85mm lens | 1/800 sec | f/4 | ISO 100

Shot with sun flare and no lens hood | 1/1000 sec | f/4 | ISO 100

For comparison, this is the same scene shot with a lens hood to reduce flare | 1/320 sec | f/4 | ISO 100

8. Snails, bugs, and spiders

For nine months out of the year, there are a million creepy-crawlies in my backyard. This includes butterflies, cicadas, crickets, praying mantises, caterpillars, moths, bees, wasps, and spiders (I could happily do without the latter two). At the time of writing, it is winter in Melbourne, so most bugs are hiding or dormant.

9. Birds and other wildlife

I’m going to begin this section with honesty.

Confession number one: Photographing wildlife of any kind requires more patience and a longer telephoto lens than I possess.

Confession number two: I have the greatest admiration for those who do wildlife photography. I have a Pinterest board just for animal photos (I have a clear bias towards squirrels), and on 500px I follow a number of photographers, one of whom only photographs squirrels!

The kinds of animals and birds you’re likely to find in your backyard obviously depends on which part of the world you live in and how built-up your neighborhood is. You will know which kinds of critters visit your backyard and what their habits are. With that in mind, find a spot where you won’t be too conspicuous and be prepared to wait. If you’re using a long lens, you might consider working with a tripod or a monopod to avoid camera shake. Have your ISO and aperture all set to go, plus a fast shutter speed to freeze motion. If you have been watching an animal’s behavior over several days or weeks, it may be possible to focus roughly on the area you expect them to appear (for example, the birdbath).

Also read: Guide to Attracting Critters to Your Garden for Backyard Wildlife Photography

10. Portraits in nature

Nature provides us with the perfect canvas for portraiture. Look for a bank of flowers, a bed of autumn leaves, or just a green hedge. The colors in nature never seem to clash.

When photographing children and pets, in particular, I almost always prefer an outdoor location over a studio. My eldest daughter usually runs a mile when she sees the camera, but the chance to roll around with the dog in glorious leaves was clearly too much for her to resist (see the image below).

I love how the soft hues flatter my daughter’s skin tone. If you are shooting outdoors with lots of colors, such as flowers or autumn leaves, pay attention to your subject’s outfit. These portraits might have been too busy if my daughter had been wearing a patterned outfit.

Not even teenage daughters can resist these leaves! | 1/400 sec | f/4 | ISO 320

1/320 sec | f/4 | ISO 320

Conclusion

So there you have it: Plenty of inspiration to get outdoors and photograph nature in your own backyard. It’s time to stop reading and get out there with your camera.

Here are some additional articles that will help improve your outdoor and nature photography skills:
- 3 Habits Every Outdoor Photographer Should Develop to Avoid Missing Shots
- 5 Tips for Better Nature Photography
- 27 Serene Images of the Natural World
The post 10 Ideas for Photographing Nature in your Backyard appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Karen Quist.

Digital Photography School
October 11, 2020
5 Must-Have Lenses for Wedding Photographers and Why
The post 5 Must-Have Lenses for Wedding Photographers and Why appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Lily Sawyer.

Have you ever wondered which lenses for wedding photographers are best?

There is a plethora of choice when it comes to lenses, and lens companies come up with new products all the time. Many photographers are attracted to these bright and shiny things and end up with a huge collection of lenses, many of which hardly see the light of day.

But if you have to pare back to the absolute necessities and are allowed five lenses in your wedding photography bag, these are the ones that I would recommend. I have been a professional wedding photographer for seven years now, and deciding on these five lenses took some time and serious consideration over the course of my career.

They are:
1. The 70-200mm f/2.8
2. The 24-70mm f/2.8
3. The 85mm prime
4. The 35mm prime
5. A macro lens (105mm or 60mm for Nikon, 100mm or 60mm for Canon)
Let’s look at each lens individually to see why.

1. 70-200mm f/2.8

It’s big, bulky, and heavy, but I wouldn’t do a wedding without this lens. The 70-200 f/2.8 is my workhorse when it comes to weddings. It is a versatile lens that gives you amazing sharpness at all focal lengths. The bokeh is beautiful, especially at 200mm and even with a stopped-down aperture (thanks to the compression created by the long focal length).

A 70-200mm f/2.8 makes a wedding photographer invisible. You don’t have to be close to people’s faces; you can capture candid expressions and serendipitous moments from a fair distance away. This lens is especially useful during the wedding ceremony, when you would rather be far away and out of sight or hidden behind a wall or door. It allows you to capture the exchange of rings, the vows, and the kiss discreetly.

If you require an even longer zoom while staying at the same distance, you can choose to photograph using Crop mode (if you shoot full-frame and your camera offers this option). This will generally give you a 1.5x crop factor (it only uses a portion of the image and enlarges it approximately 1.5x). If you do this, make sure that you have enough pixels for the crop in case you feel the need to straighten or change your composition in post-processing.

For example, if you are shooting with a 12 MP camera in its full-frame mode, when you convert to your Crop mode the camera becomes a 5 MP camera. This is below the minimum amount of pixels you need (generally around 6 MP) to enlarge prints to a decent size.

And if you have to crop in post-processing, 5 MP will not offer enough pixels to do so without compromising print output sizes.

However, if you are photographing with a 36 MP camera in Crop mode, it drops to 15.3 MP. While this is a significant resolution reduction, it still leaves you enough wiggle room for minimal and sensible cropping if necessary.

If you use Crop mode, don’t forget that when photographing on a full-frame camera, or when using a lens designed for APS-C cameras, the camera only uses the center of the sensor. So if you forget to compose accordingly in-camera, you will get a nasty surprise after you have taken the image: cut off heads and limbs, and badly cropped compositions are two examples.

When using APS-C lenses on a full-frame body, the rest of the unused sensor area is blacked out. But when using full-frame lenses in Crop mode, this is not the default. You will still see the entire full-frame sensor if you don’t change your settings.

70-200mm is an excellent focal length for flattering portraits. When photographing at 200mm, I typically stop down to around f/4 or f/5.6 at a shutter speed of 1/200-1/400th, and the sharpness of the image is stunning against a creamy bokeh background. My 70-200mm f/2.8 lens also has a built-in lens collar you can use to steady your setup when hand-holding (and you also have the option to attach it to a tripod).

Without a tripod, you can steady yourself as much as possible by leaning against something strong like a wall or a stable surface such as a table. You can also keep your arms pinned against something sturdy to reduce camera shake, especially when using your lens for portrait work at the longer end of its focal length.

There are also 70-200mm f/4 lenses, which you can purchase at vastly cheaper prices compared to the f/2.8. I personally do not have the f/4 version, but if you’re on a budget and you don’t mind not having the option to photograph at a wider aperture, then I see no reason why you should avoid the 70-200mm f/4. It is lighter and smaller (it has fewer glass elements compared to its more expensive counterpart) which lessens the weight you have to carry around at a wedding.

2. 24-70mm f/2.8

The 24-70mm f/2.8 offers the focal length versatility needed when you are photographing on the go, which is what wedding photographers require for most of the day. You can use this lens to capture wider location scenes, candid photos of people, guests arriving, people milling and chatting while waiting for the ceremony to start or during the wedding breakfast, some decorations and details, the first dance, and the leaving photos, to cite just a few.

I use this lens for photos that do not require close portrait work, although it can definitely be used for that type of image. The 50-70mm range will yield pleasing results, like the image directly below. However, my preference is to use prime lenses for portraits.

The 24-70mm lens sees a whole lot of action on the wedding day, and is definitely my other workhorse for capturing people, wider shots, and behind-the-scenes images.

Many photographers use a much wider lens for location photographs, such as a 14-24mm f/2.8. But while I would love to add this lens to my arsenal, this is not an absolute necessity. With the 24-70mm, you can photograph location scenes wide enough. And should you need to capture a wider scene, you could photograph a few images and stitch them together in Photoshop as a panorama. This is easy enough to do by making sure the exposure setting for the series of shots is the same, standing on a fixed point, then capturing a set of images while adjusting your composition slightly.

You can do the same for a photograph of all the guests, too. In fact, the two times mentioned above are the only times I need an ultra-wide lens for a wedding, so I cannot yet justify adding it to my list of must-haves.

3. 85mm prime

This is my all-time favorite lens, and the one I use for portraits of the bride and groom, bridesmaids and groomsmen, individual guests and small groups (the list goes on!).

As a fixed lens, an 85mm prime requires more work on your part; you have to zoom in and out with your feet. But the extra effort is worth it. The portraits are cleaner, the backgrounds are creamier, and it is a fabulous lens in very low-light conditions.

The best thing about this lens is that it is tack sharp from the sweet spot on. Accurate, light-sensitive, with great results; this is my go-to lens, and it never leaves my bag. As a prime lens, the 85mm is fast, small, and extremely reliable.

I have photographed an entire wedding of a relative (as a guest) using only an 85mm lens. I was asked on the day if I could cover the wedding and I agreed, with only the D700 and my 85mm lens in hand (I generally carry that combination with me for personal snapshots and photos of my family).

The photos from that wedding are published on one of the UK’s top wedding blogs, which is proof that you can photograph a wedding with what you have, given that you know your gear well enough.

The 85mm for Nikon F-mount cameras comes in either as an f/1.8 version ($ 480 USD) or an f/1.4 version ($ 1597 USD), with a huge price difference between the two due to the glass elements and optics. You can also purchase the 85mm f/1.8 S for Nikon Z-mount cameras for just under $ 800 USD.

Canon has an 85mm f/1.2 available for $ 1999 USD, as well as an f/1.4 version ($ 1599 USD) and an f/1.8 version ($ 419 USD). For Canon mirrorless users, there’s the Canon RF 85mm f/1.2 (for an admittedly premium price). And Sony offers an 85mm f/1.8 for $ 598 USD and an 85mm f/1.4 for $ 1798 USD.

I have the Nikon 85mm f/1.8 and it has always performed marvelously for me. The f/1.4 has been on my lens list forever, and while I could buy it I have held off, given that I have never felt the need to upgrade.

4. 35mm

One of my early serious lens investments was the amazing 35mm f/1.4. If there is a lens I can always rely on, it’s this one.

It’s an ultra-versatile lens that you can use to photograph the bride getting ready, which is the time when wedding photographers are usually under pressure to capture everything. This includes the location, the many accessories, any small details, candid shots, the dress, the natural interactions between the bride and her loved ones, and group portraits. Plus, you must do this in a very short amount of time, often in small spaces like cramped hotel rooms.

A 35mm lens is also perfect for photographing wider scenes, because you can get images without the exaggerated distortions caused by a wider focal length.

This lens is super fast and sharp. It has yet to fail me. With this lens, you can get close, which is very handy when you are in a crowded space.

As if that weren’t enough, my 35mm lens opens up to f/1.4, which allows you to photograph in extremely low light, especially if you are too pressed for time and space to use off-camera flashes.

Even though the 35mm focal length is already covered by the 24-70mm f/2.8 (discussed above), the difference between f/1.4 and f/2.8 (two extra stops for four times the light) cannot be underestimated.

The 35mm is also offered as an f/1.8 version by Nikon, but it’s a DX lens that you can purchase for cheap (under $ 200).

You may wonder about the astronomical difference in price compared to the professional f/1.4 counterpart. First of all, you cannot use the DX lens on a full-frame camera without losing pixels, and the lens becomes 52.5mm which can be very limiting in tight spaces.

Secondly, the 35mm view is close enough to what the eye naturally sees, and I like that view. It allows you to capture images that give the viewer the impression that they could have been there seeing the scene themselves. This is an important element in any wedding photography, specifically wedding photography with a documentary style.

If you ever get to physically hold each lens in your hands at the same time, the enormous price difference between the f/1.4 version and the f/1.8 version won’t even be in question. The f/1.4 is considerably heavier and much bigger than the pocket-sized f/1.8. But don’t be fooled by appearances; the f/1.8 is also an outstanding lens with exceptional capabilities in its own right, and for crop-sensor cameras may be more than sufficient. It is definitely easy on the budget.

If you already have a 50mm lens and your budget is constrained, then a 50mm prime could replace the 35mm prime on this list. It is also an incredible lens.

Although a 50mm doesn’t give you as much room to maneuver in smaller spaces as a 35mm, the bokeh on the 50mm is stunning and it’s impressively sharp too, which is one of the top benefits of prime lenses. Like the 35mm lens, the 50mm is available as an f/1.8, f/1.4 or, for Canon cameras, an f/1.2 maximum aperture. The price difference is small between the f/1.8 and the f/1.4, but it jumps up to a huge number for the f/1.2.

5. 105mm (100mm) or 60mm macro lens

A macro lens is the last of my must-have lenses for wedding photographers. It’s absolutely key if you want to capture detailed images of rings. You can also use your macro lens for photographing jewelry and other accessories while the bride is getting ready.

If the bride’s dress is adorned with jewels, a macro lens would also be ideal for photographing the details.

In addition, macro lenses are also great for portraits if you do not require an aperture wider than f/2.8. This makes macro lenses versatile options to carry around, especially 60mm macro lenses, which look and feel minuscule compared to the 105mm options (100mm for Canon). These macro lenses can generally stop down to f/32, which is handy, especially when photographing location landscapes in extremely bright sunlight.

Some photographers even use the 105mm macro lens as a substitute for the 70-200mm lens if the latter is just too out of reach. You can use the 105mm in Crop mode, which gives you 157.5mm; this is long enough to still be very inconspicuous at a wedding. A 105mm lens is also smaller and lighter, and it opens up to f/2.8. Plus, it doubles as a macro lens.

The post 5 Must-Have Lenses for Wedding Photographers and Why appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Lily Sawyer.

Digital Photography School
October 11, 2020