Table of contents for February 2017 in Digital Camera Magazine

The alley cat Nayan Khanolkar Winner, Urban At night in the Aarey Milk Colony in a suburb of Mumbai, leopards slip ghost-like through the maze of alleys, looking for food (especially stray dogs). The Warli people living in the area respect the big cats. Despite close encounters and occasional attacks, the cats are an accepted part of their lives. The leopard is not only the most versatile of the world’s big cats but possibly the most persecuted. With growing human-leopard conflicts elsewhere grabbing the headlines, Nayan was determined to use his pictures to show how things can be different with tolerance and planning. Positioning his flashes to mimic the alley’s usual lighting and his camera so that a passing cat would not dominate the frame, he finally – after four…

When did your passion for photography begin? I started taking pictures as a teenager, but when I was eight years old I used to borrow my dad’s camera and go around pretending to take pictures, even though there was no film in the camera. I’m dyslexic, and that definitely made me a more visual person. When I was 12 or 13, I started assisting local wedding photographers on Saturdays. Later on I did the wedding pictures myself. Was it a useful experience? It wasn’t the sort of thing I really wanted to do, but it was the only thing that was happening in Carlisle. Looking back on it now, I realise that a good wedding photographer is someone who goes into a situation and takes control, and it taught me…

NEW GEAR / EXPERT TESTS / BUYING ADVICE P CANON 1300D vs NIKON D3400 Two beginner SLR models go head to head to see which one comes out on top PENTAX K-70 The new mid-range 24.4-megapixel SLR from Pentax is tested by our review expert Manual LENSES Seven mighty manual-focus primes are pitted against each other INSTANT CAMERAS We test six instant cameras to see which delivers the best print to hand instantly! CAMERA PHONES Want to snap more on your mobile? We reveal what you should look for Also reviewed 108 GOPRO HERO5 BLACK For adventurers on the go! 110 SONY 50MM f/2.8 Capture macro close-ups 111 SIGMA 30MM f/1.4 f/1.4 prime lens on a budget 123 CAMERA GLOVES Keep your hands warm this winter Reviews you can trust…

ACT ION CAMER A www.gopro.com IT’S no secret that GoPro as a company has been struggling – and no wonder with all the jumping, crashing and extreme sports it’s been backing. As the company faltered, the copycats moved in, with a swathe of action cameras that have been as good, if not better than the Hero4. GoPro needed to do something big in response – and that has arrived in the form of the GoPro Hero5 Black. It’s not just a refinement of the Hero4: it’s a revolution in the action camera market. Spec-wise it appears much the same as the Hero4, but what it lacks in upgraded video specifications, it more than makes up for elsewhere. Features such as voice activation, manual exposure control and a two-inch touchscreen really…

What’s so good about autofocus anyway? Those who like being in control often shy away from multi-point AF, where the camera decides which parts of a scene it’s going to focus on, often in a seemingly arbitrary process. Instead, they’ll single out the central AF point. This invariably means choosing an object in the scene that’s our preferred distance away, autofocusing, then maintaining a light press on the shutter button while they swivel the camera and compose the shot. For landscapes, street photography, reportage and action sports, manual focusing is a viable alternative. These manual lenses have a very particular advantage for manual focusing. They have longer, more accurate focus scales and most have depth of field index markings. With these lenses you can manage depth of field and hyperfocal…

JAMES ABBOTT Photographer and journalist James is a professional photographer and journalist. He’s an advanced Photoshop user and has created hundreds of tutorials to help others improve their skills. jamesaphoto.co.uk SOFTWARE Photoshop CC GET IT FROM www.adobe.com Get Start files from www.bit.ly/dc186files WATCH VIDEO www.bit.ly/dc186video Download the video www.bit.ly/dc186bonus THE great thing about modern day digital photography is that it’s just so good. Image quality is fantastic and it’s easier than ever to check your photographic work and learn from your mistakes. Film photography made this a little more difficult, but one of the best things about analogue was that it was a much more organic process that you felt involved in. However, things could go wrong with a single frame or the entire film – such as light leaks,…

DOUBLE-SIDED POSTER 2017 wall planner plus competition listings guide To tie in with our special 2017 photography competition feature, we’re giving away a wall planner so you can plot your photographic year! Download the PDF now via www.bit.ly/dc186planner and use your colour printer to output your own copy. watch video www.bit.ly/dc186video Download the video www.bit.ly/dc186bonus Whenever you see these logos on a page in the magazine, you can find related content online 47 MINUTES OF VIDEO Follow along with all our regular Photoshop and Lightroom pros so you can master your editing skills. You’ll find all the videos on a private YouTube playlist via www.bit.ly/dc186video 162-PAGE GEAR BUYER’S GUIDE If you’re after new kit then a peak inside our Camera Shopper guide is a must. This issue of Camera Shopper…

NEW 16.3MP M IRRORL ESS CAMERA FUJI X-POSED Fujifilm lifts the lid on a camera aimed at CSC first-timers Available from January, the Fujifilm X-A10 is a new entry-level mirrorless body in the popular X Series range of interchangeablelens compact system cameras. Priced at £499/$499, it comes bundled with an XC 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 OIS II lens. At the camera’s heart is a 16.3-megapixel APS-C sized sensor and its sensitivity range stretches from ISO 200 to ISO 6,400, expandable up to ISO 25,600. It offers the familiar array of Fujifilm Film Simulation modes – a total of six, including Provia, Velvia and new Classic Chrome. The X-A10’s retro styling, complete with two command dials for adjusting exposure settings, means it fits neatly into the X Series line-up. Around the back…

Whether it has the legs to go the distance and be seen as another creative way to get your pictures and films out there or it’s destined to be a short-lived phase in the history of photography, there’s no doubt that ‘immersive’ imaging is currently a hot topic. Everyone’s jumping on the 360-degree and virtual reality (VR) bandwagon, from Google and Facebook to Nikon and the BBC. But you don’t need the backing of a corporation with deep pockets to give it a go. While immersive imaging might once have required expensive camera rigs and a painstaking process, it can now be realised using nothing more than a smartphone and a viewer made from cardboard The terms ‘360’ and ‘VR’ are often used interchangeably, but there are some clear distinctions.…

For our latest Shootout, Claire Gillo recruited two photographers who, although a couple in real life, fancied taking each other on in a street photography showdown… READER 1 Emma Drabble CameraS: Panasonic GX8 and GH4 Location: Ross-on-Wye AFTER training as a documentary photographer in Marseilles, Emma has now turned to the world of commercial and commissioned photography to earn a living. She’s shot subjects ranging from actors to dressage horses, and is a keen user of the Lumix G range of cameras – so much so that she’s now a Panasonic Ambassador for Europe. Emma encouraged Andrew to also apply for this Shootout, as she felt that their different outlooks and camera systems would provide an interesting contrast. READER 2 Andrew Higgins Camera: Nikon D7000 Location: Ross-on-Wye ANDREW has been…

GET RATE D! Email your shot to digitalcamera@futurenet.com (subject line: Rate My Photo) Rob says: I took this image at a night shoot of the Lancaster bomber ‘Just Jane’ at the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre at East Kirkby. It was an organised shoot and the set-up incorporated a number of re-enactors dressed in period clothing. A smoke machine was used to generate the atmospheric smoke in the background. It was a matter of trying to capture the image when the smoke had drifted behind so it didn’t obscure the plane or actors. My exposure time was 20 seconds. I wanted to capture a moody scene, evocative of the era with the plane and actors nicely backlit, but with some detail also visible so it wasn’t just a silhouette. Andrew says:…

TURN OVER! This month’s assignment is to shoot in the city at night Every issue, we challenge you to take the most creative and arresting shot around a theme, and share it at the online community at Photocrowd (www.photocrowd.comg). Here, you’ll be able to browse the entries and vote on your favourites. The best entries receive a critique from our judging panel – and one winner receives a special prize! Your mission in issue 184 was to capture autumnal scenes. We had a lot of incredible colourful entries for this challenge; but the winning shot, taken by Waldemar Matusik, has a subdued finish and a gloomy appeal that gently reminds us of the transition between autumn and winter. His use of complementary colours got us to take notice! Here are…

MACRO PRIME L ENS www.sony.co.uk THERE have been 50mm ‘macro’ lenses from the likes of Canon and Zeiss that, while giving a natural perspective with a full-frame SLR, don’t deliver the full macro benefit. Instead they only offer a maximum magnification ratio of 0.5x at their closest focus distances. Like Sony’s older A-mount 50mm macro, this new E-mount optic boasts 1.0x magnification, reproducing small objects at full life-size on the image sensor. Build & handling Although the lens is compact and light, it feels well-built and fairly robust. It lacks a weather-sealed mount but is dust- and moistureresistant. The inner barrel doesn’t rotate during focusing but does extend at shorter focusing distances, revealing calibrated markings for focus distance and magnification. No lens hood is supplied, but the front element is…

In the saturated world of photography competitions, knowing which ones are worth entering can be a challenge. Fortunately, we’ve hand-picked the cream of the crop for the upcoming year, with all the dates, details and winning insights you need to succeed. Use our handy calendar and tips to devise a winning strategy and ensure you don’t miss any key deadlines. Whether you shoot animals or architecture, taking part in prestigious competitions gets your work noticed. Preparing photos for judging is also a great way to set yourself a new creative challenge and curate a strong body of work. The requirements are diverse, and there are no shortcuts to success. Heed the advice of the past winners and judges we speak to. We’ve done our homework to make sure that…

Lady in red The vibrant dash of red from the umbrella contrasts with the muted snow tones, providing a focal point in an otherwise plain scene. “What I needed was a subject that could completely break the perfection of the image,” Beniamino says. Straight ahead Beniamino photographed the scene head-on so that the symmetrical elements such as the trees appear upright. “Because it was a really geometric situation, it was important to have a neat and straight image,” he says. “Simple composition helps in that.” He used Lightroom to straighten the viewpoint even more. Trinity of trees Repeating lines can effectively capture a viewer’s attention. By framing the three trees equally in the frame, Beniamino has come up with a classic composition; the parallel vertical lines are comforting and calming…

CHRISTINE says: This shot was taken at a one-off event with a ballerina posing for shadows, reflections and silhouettes. I particularly liked the grace and shape of her arms and the tutu. The photo was taken on my Canon EOS 7D Mark II with an exposure of 1/125 sec at f/11 and ISO 100, with multiple studio flashes lighting the dancer Andrew says: As this was only your first attempt at shooting in a studio environment, I have to take my hat off to you and suggest you try it more often. You’ve captured a lovely image. Your lighting set-up has certainly worked well for that intriguing shadow against the white backdrop: since that sounds like it was your main intention, it’s a big tick for a job well done.…

Sebastião Salgado is one of the world’s most celebrated photojournalists. His epic scale black-and-white images focus on global social issues, such as the effects of industrialisation, poverty and famine. His many prestigious awards include twice being named Photographer of the Year by the International Center of Photography in New York. What’s his back story? Salgado was born in Brazil in 1944, one of eight children; his family owned a cattle farm. He graduated with a Master’s Degree in Economics from the University of São Paulo, then worked for São Paulo’s Ministry of Finance. In the late 1960s he was involved in protests against Brazil’s military dictatorship. This led to his Brazilian passport being revoked for 10 years after he’d moved to Paris in 1968, to study for a doctorate in…

CSC www.ricoh-imaging.co.uk SPECIFICATIONS Sensor APS-C CMOS sensor, 23.5 x 15.6mm, 24.2MP Lenses Pentax KAF2 Memory SD/SDHC/SDXC, UHS-I Viewfinder Optical pentaprism, 0.95x, 100% Max video resolution 1,920 x 1,080 ISO range 100-102,400 Autofocus points 11 (9 cross-type) Max burst rate 6fps Screen 3-inch vari-angle, 921,000 dots Shutter speeds 1/6,000 sec to 30 sec, Bulb Weight 688g Dimensions 126 x 93 x 74mm (body only) Power supply D-LI109 lithium-ion battery, 410 shots The kit lens has a long focal range, is weather-resistant and has a non-rotating front element – perfect for use with filters PENTAX is pitching the dustproof, weather-resistant and cold-resistant K-70 at the outdoor photography market. However, the K-70’s specs suggest It’s an all-rounder suited to a much wider range of subjects. Its 24-megapixel APS-C sensor has no anti-aliasing filter,…

STANDARD PRIME L ENS www.sigma-imaging-uk.com SIGMA’S 30mm Art-line lens for Canon and Nikon APS-C format SLRs has excellent build quality and handling and good optical performance. This new sibling offers the same effective 45mm focal length and f/1.4 aperture rating for Sony E-mount cameras, or 60mm in Micro Four Thirds fit. It’s from the Contemporary line, which is more budgetfriendly than the Art series. It’s also only a third of the weight of the 30mm Art lens, at just 140g, making it a well-balanced optic for small compact system cameras. Build & handling The optical design includes two aspherical elements to boost image quality and compactness. Sigma claims the new lens rivals its Art-line optics for image quality. The built-in stepping motor enables quick and virtually silent autofocusing, with smooth…

JAMES PATERSON Editor, Practical Photoshop With a decade as a working writer and photographer behind him, James knows which Photoshop and Lightroom tools and techniques matter the most to you. SOFTWARE Photoshop CC GET IT FROM www.adobe.com Get Start files from www.bit.ly/dc186files WATCH VIDEO www.bit.ly/dc186video Download the video www.bit.ly/dc186bonus Apply picture styles to raw files Make raw photos look as bright as JPEGs Have you ever noticed how if you shoot with your camera set to Raw+JPEG, the JPEG can look more vibrant than the raw? This is because the JPEG has a picture style applied to it in-camera, boosting colour and contrast, while the raw file is left untouched. But there’s a quick and easy way to get your raws looking just as vibrant… Tucked away in Camera Raw’s Camera…