pdf - Photo Review

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pdf - Photo Review

PhotoReview
A U S T R A L I A
$9.95 Incl. GST
SEP-NOV 2012
www.photoreview.com.au
REVIEWS
Nikon D800
Pentax K-01
Olympus OM-D
Canon 650D & EOS M
Sony A57, NEX F3, & R100
Plus six lens reviews
HOW TO
Sensor formats
Group portraits
Best printing papers
Ken Duncan’s image presentation tips
ISSUE 53
I S S N 1839-5899
ALEX WEBB & REBECCA NORRIS WEBB | In two minds
CHRISTIAN SPROGOE | From the ground up
Each
Story
Smile line
Whisker
Custom
Bond
Adventure
© Nick Rains
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contents
Display your images on
Photo Review’s gallery at
www.photoreview.com.au.
PhotoReview
For magazine submissions,
send Don a link to your images
[email protected]
A U S T R A L I A
$9.95 Incl. GST
SEP-NOV 2012
INSIDE
Cover image by Alex Webb
See page 14.
REVIEWS
Nikon D800
Pentax K-01
Olympus OM-D
Canon 650D & EOS M
Sony A57, NEX F3, & R100
Plus six lens reviews
14
05
Editorial
08
Trends
HOW TO
Sensor formats
Group portraits
Best printing papers
Ken Duncan’s image presentation tips
This issue we look at some of
the more unusual accessories
developed for digital picturetaking.
ISSUE 53
I S S N 1839-5899
ALEX WEBB & REBECCA NORRIS WEBB | In two minds
CHRISTIAN SPROGOE | From the ground up
10
Photo Challenge
A beautiful spread of challenge’s
‘portal’ images – and a new challenge
to be going on with.
INSPIRATION
14
IN TWO MINDS:
ALEX WEBB & REBECCA NORRIS WEBB
Photographic collaborations are intrinsically interesting,
but they are particularly so when the collaborators are
married.
26
FROM THE GROUND UP:
CHRISTIAN SPROGOE
It’s dirty, dusty work being a commercial photographer
for mining companies, but it doesn’t show in the clean
perfectionism of this man’s images.
26
2
Photo Review AUSTRALIA ISSUE
contents
ADVANCED
62
Editor
Don Norris
[email protected]
SONY RX100
LENSES
59
OLYMPUS M ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 12-50mm
F/3.5-6.3 EZ
59
0LYMPUS M ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75-300mm
F/4.8-6.7
INSIDER
36
UNSCRAMBLING SENSOR FORMATS
Full Frame/FX, APS-C/DX, 4/3, CX or digicam? How
to decide which camera to use for different tasks.
60
TAMRON SP 24-70mm
NIKKOR FX AF-S 85mm
F/1.4G
61
SONY DT 18-135mm
F/3.5-5.6 SAM
TECHNIQUE
38
61
CANON EF-S 18-135mm
SHOOTING & EDITING:
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Publisher
David O’Sullivan
[email protected]
Publication Manager
Pauline Shuttleworth
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Media Releases
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Advertising
Phone (02) 9948 8600
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OUTPUT:
KEN DUNCAN’S
IMAGE PRESENTATION TIPS
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35 this issue or
phone: (02) 9948 8600 or online:
Panorama and printing specialist Ken Duncan talks
to Photo Review about galleries, printers, inks, print
surfaces, framing, and the most appealing ways to
present images.
47
Creative Director
DarrenRiches
Waldren
Aaron
Accounts Manager
Heather Hampson
[email protected]
F/3.5-5.6 IS STM
How to shoot and edit portraits of large
groups of people.
42
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[email protected]
Contributor
Steve Packer
F/2.8 DI VC USD
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Technical Editor
Margaret Brown
[email protected]
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CANON 650D
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Photo Review Australia is
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MIRRORLESS INTERCHANGEABLES
54
FIRST LOOK: CANON EOS M
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SONY NEX F3
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OLYMPUS OM-D E-M5
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editorial
news
Sharing space
A DIVIDED EDITORIAL PAGE THIS TIME,
BUT ONE THAT DOESN’T STAND AGAINST ITSELF!
Photo Review editor Don Norris is
reasonably certain that he took his first
photograph with a well worn Leica
IIIc at age 14. Every picture from that
camera had a sort of soft, hazy look
because the original screwmount lens
was heavily scratched from years in
the field with Don’s geologist father
Robert M. Norris. But using the little
camera ignited a passion for picture
taking that is now into its fourth
decade. Convert those 40 years into the
cameras he’s used most intensively and
the sequence reads: Leica IIIc, Miranda
SLR, Nikkormat SLR, Nikon FM,
Nikonos III, Bolex H16, Mamiya C-33,
Wista 4x5, Olympus E10, Nikon D70s,
Nikon D90 and Nikon D7000. A few
years after taking up photography, Don
discovered the second great passion
in his life (after his family of course!)
when a summer job in Hawaii coincided
with buying his first surfboard. In 1984
he migrated from his native California
to Australia and these days he lives on
Sydney’s northern beaches from which
he not only edits this magazine but
alsoruns Australia’s most popular
surfing community website,
www.realsurf.com.
Since last issue...
Sticking to the surf’n’turf theme of
last issue, Don once again had the
opportunity to look at both a waterproof
camera and something a little more,
shall we say, terrestrial. The waterproof
model was the latest Panasonic Lumix
FT20. The cosmetics have been
reworked since the last model, but
more importantly, the class-leading
stills image quality and HD video are,
if anything, up a notch. While the FT20
is Don’s choice when surfing, he really
enjoyed an all-too-brief hands on with
the retro looking Olympus OM-D (see
also Margaret Brown’s review on page
58). The OM-D is a great camera for
street photography; small, quiet, discreet
and yet capable of delivering quite good
image quality.
FOR THE VERY LATEST PHOTO
NEWS AND REVIEWS
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A slight departure from my usual
practice on the editorial page this time.
I’ve decided to give over some of the
space to tell you about an important
exhibition of works by the great Eugène
Atget. Over the years, whenever I ask
photographers about whom they draw
inspiration from, the name Atget has come
up more frequently than just about any
other.
While we’re on the topic of matters
inspiring, this issue’s Inspiration section
features the diverse talents of American
husband and wife team Alex Webb and
Rebecca Norris Webb. He’s a Magnum
photographer of long standing and she’s
a poet who now blends photography with
her words. The two were working on a
new photographic project in Rochester,
NY, the home town of the once mighty
Kodak, when I got in touch with them. The
exigencies of being in the field and working
long days led them to ask if I’d mind
conducting the interview via email.
In one of those minor coincidences of
the ‘whodathunk?’ variety, West Australianbased writer, photography expert and
musician, Steve Packer also found himself
needing to conduct an email interview
with photographer Christian Sprogoe.
So peripatetic is Mr Sprogoe, that he
was obliged to organise his pictures for
the story while he was on assignment
somewhere deep in the heart of Mongolia.
Boulevard de Strasbourg 1912
Technical editor Margaret Brown
albumen photograph
George Eastman House, International Museum of Photography and Film,
leads off her equipment reviews with
Rochester, NY
reports on three new DSLRs. Nikon’s
new 36-megapixel D800 sounds as
though it should appeal to landscape
printing. And for all those holiday group pictures you’ll be taking,
photographers. Sony’s A57 and Canon’s new 650D are targeted
she tackles the fine art of the group portrait.
squarely at photographers making their first move into DSLR
We also have an interview with the redoubtable Ken Duncan
photography. Mind you, as Margaret goes on to detail in reviews
in which the panorama master is asked about everything from
of the latest Sony NEX model, the Pentax K-01 and the Olympus
galleries and presentation, to printers and inks.
OM-D, there are advanced compacts aplenty for those weighing
Speaking of presenting images, our magazine now has a
up whether or not to go the mirrorless route.
new sister entity in the form of ‘Talu Books’. Talu, which is Old
As has been her practice for some time now, Margaret has
English for ‘tale or narrative’, is a publishing venture aimed
also found room in a hectic testing schedule to take a look at
at the burgeoning ebook market. Among the titles featured
some of the latest lens technology. For this issue, she’s weighed
there are a number from Margaret Brown and Ken Duncan (you
up the variables on two M4/3 units from Olympus, a pair of FX
can see the photographic category at www.talubooks.com).
lenses from Nikon and Tamron, and a couple of DX lenses from
Thank you for buying our magazine. It is our sincere hope that
the houses of Sony and Canon.
it will both enlighten and inspire you on your own photographic
Along with her activities on the test bench, Margaret also
journey.
focused in on a diverse range of topics of interest to all

photographers. She brings you up to speed on the intricacies
of camera formats (don’t worry, there won’t be a quiz!) and the
Don Norris, Editor
manifold considerations of buying premium papers for inkjet
5
editorial
Must see Atget Exhibition
Cabaret au port Salut,street vendor selling
shellfish, rue des Fossés-Saint-Jacques,
5th arrondissement 1903
albumen photograph
Spring, by the sculptor François Barois,
jardin des Tuileries,
1st arrondissement 1907
albumen photograph
© Musée Carnavalet, Paris / Roger-Viollet / TopFoto
© Musée Carnavalet, Paris / Roger-Viollet / TopFoto
‘For more than twenty years by my own work
and personal initiative, I have gathered from all the
old streets of Vieux Paris photographic plates, 18’’
x 24’’ format, artistic documents of the beautiful
civic architecture of the sixteenth to the nineteenth
century: the old hotels, historic or curious houses,
beautiful facades, beautiful doors, beautiful
woodwork, door knockers, old fountains, stairways
de style (wood and wrought iron), the interiors
of all the churches of Paris. This vast artistic and
documentary collection is today complete. I could
say that I possess all of Vieux Paris.’
Rue de l’Hôtel de Ville, 1921,
gelatin silver photograph, 22.8 x 17.7 cm
Collection Art Gallery of New South Wales
If you’re in or near Sydney between August 24 and
November 4, 2012, I urge you to make time for a
visit to the Art Gallery of NSW for the Eugène Atget
exhibition. Although he was active from the late
1880s until the early 1920s, Atget is by any measure
one of modern photography’s seminal figures.
Atget’s modernity has nothing to do with the
technology he employed (indeed, the huge glass plate
camera he used was already ‘old tech’ even before
he took it up). He is a modern, I think, because of the
way his photographic approach anticipated the whole
idea of a personal photographic vision.
Bearing in mind Kierkegaard’s adage that ‘life
must be lived forward, but can only be understood
backwards’, I think it’s fair to say that Atget didn’t
start out with some grand conception of photography
as an expression of an individual artistic perspective
or some such. In fact, he initially set out to create a
sort of stock image collection that painters might use
6
Eugène Atget
as reference points for their own works.
But it wasn’t long before this prosaic activity
evolved into a different and much more personal
direction. Atget began to take photographs of the
streets and architectural details of the old Paris
that was then gradually disappearing thanks to the
modernisation program famously begun by Baron
Haussman some decades earlier.
His precisely composed, sharply focused glassplate images of streets, architecture and the myriad
fine details that gave the old districts their distinctive
character proved to be a commercial success not
only with painters, but with museums, publishers,
architects and designers.
Without apparently intending to do so, Atget
through his meticulous skill, diligence and
persistence, became one of the pre-eminent
documentary photographers of his age.
Creating a photographic record of something
before it is lost forever is now so common a
motivation for so many types of photographer that
it’s easy to forget that such intentions were rare in
Atget’s time.
Eugène Atget: old Paris brings together more
than 200 images from 1898 through to 1924. Such
is the diversity of the collection that the curators
have organised it into 11 sections corresponding, as
the AGNSW notes put it, ‘to the thematic groupings
used by Atget himself’. The images come from the
collections of the Musée Carnavalet, Paris and from a
compilation of Atget images first assembled by Man
Ray and now part of the holdings of George Eastman
House, Rochester, USA.
This is an exceptional opportunity to see original
photographs from one of the medium’s towering
figures. Highly commended.

www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/eugene-atget
Works of art
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trends
Canon enters ‘mirrorless’ market
credibility and the level of
marketing resources put
behind it. We will get a much
better idea about whether
these ‘digital rangefinders’
have a real future, or become
the digital equivalent of the
now-obsolete APS-C film
format.
After a slow start in
Australia – CSCs are still
under 10 percent of DSLR
sales – the format does seem
to be gaining some traction.
The new EOS M is compatible with Canon EF and EF-S lenses.
Pentax recently released a
backwards compatible model
– the K-01 – which can also
Photokina, the bi-annual international photo show,
be
combined
with
the
25
million Pentax K-Mount lenses
takes place in Cologne on September 18 - 23 this year,
manufactured
to
date.
And
the hero of the annual
and is generally prefaced by a series of new product
Australian
photo
gear
exhibition
in Melbourne in May
announcements as the camera companies jockey for
was
the
Olympus
OM-D
E-M5,
another
CSC camera.
clean air to draw attention to their latest marvels.
Now
Sony
has
swelled
the
ranks
of
the
large sensor,
Canon is first cab off the rank with the
fixed
lens
category
with
the
RX100
(see
page
62),
announcement of its entry into the mirrorless
which
joins
the
Canon
G1X,
several
Fujifilm
cameras
interchangeable/compact system camera category,
and, at at upper end of the market, the sublime Leica
the Canon EOS M. The camera won’t be available until
X2.
after its Photokina debut, but was previewed to local
All in all, the keen enthusiast is almost spoilt for
media in July.
choice
between DSLRs, CSC cameras and this other
Our ‘First Look’ review (page 54) by technical editor
emerging
group of fixed lens cameras with large, high
Margaret Brown gives the EOS-M the thumbs up
resolution
sensors. We’ve never had it so good!
(an impression compounded by those all-important
impromptu corridor briefings). Margaret notes among
other positives that the ability to use Canon EF and
EF-S lenses on the new camera has real appeal. And
that’s especially so in Australia, where Canon enjoys
long-standing market leadership among enthusiasts
and professionals.
At the EOS M media briefing the Canon PR manager
quoted figures from market researcher GfK to
underscore the strength of that leadership:
‘In total camera – all cameras combined – we are
sitting at 35 percent market share,’ he said. ‘We’ve
crossed over to more than one third, so more than one
in three dollars [in Australia] is being spent on a Canon
camera.
‘If you look at DSLRs excluding the compact system
cameras, we are number one at 63.4 percent by value,’
he said. – That is, almost two out of every three dollars
spent on DSLRs goes to the Canon brand.
‘And if you look at the total interchangeable lens
camera category – DSLRs and compact system
cameras – we are 55.6 percent by value – so again
more than one in every two interchangeable lens
cameras sold year to date at May is Canon EOS. ‘
Canon has held sway in DSLRS in Australia year after
year – no other brand has come close, except in the
low end of digital compacts. Which means there are a
lot of Canon lenses out there, perhaps gathering dust
on old EOS 350s, EOS D30s and the like, just waiting
for a slim new young body to come along with which to
make beautiful pictures.
With Canon in CSCs, the category grows in both
8
WHY? BECAUSE THEY CAN!
What is it about Apple iProducts which compels
people to create accessories for them which they
really don’t deserve.
Why, for instance, would you want to turn your
iPhone into an actioncam by purchasing a morphie
Outride casing – which alone costs about the same
price as a purpose-built actioncam? And there’s that
little matter of the iPhone’s touch screen, which
you would imagine severely limits the utility of the
casing if you want to actually use the iPhone
underwater, rather than simply taking it for
a swim. And I’m not discounting the
possibility that Appleheads have
that sort of relationship with
their devices.
(Just as an aside,
there’s another
mob making
a waterproof
casing for the
ubiquitous GoPro
actioncam. Which would
make perfect sense if the GoPro
didn’t already come in a protective polycarbonate – casing. Hero Armor uses a blend
of aluminium and stainless steel ‘to stand up to harsh
salt water environments’ – even though plastic seems
to be holding up pretty well in said environment in the
Great Pacific Garbage Patch!)
But back to iPhones: There are several companies
offering adaptor systems to marry your iPhone to
DSLR lenses. Which sounds as practical as dropping a
V8 engine into a Hyundai i30.
The iPhone SLR Mount from Photojojo is essentially
a casing that acts as an adapter for Nikon F-mount
or Canon EF-mount lenses. However, images appear
upside down on the device’s screen due to the
absence of a mirror. Well, if it was good enough for
Cartier-Bresson...
The Phocus system provides users with up to three
accessory lens choices – wide-angle, macro and
portrait – as well as the option of an adapter for DSLR
lenses. There’s even a cold shoe to mount lights, and a
tripod mount.
Want your iPhone to double as a scanner? No
problems with the iPICS2GO, a new device from ION
Audio.
The phone goes into the slot at the top of the
scanner. The image to be scanned is placed onto a
photo tray and slid into place directly underneath the
iPhone’s camera.
Sure, you could simply snap a picture of the photo,
but iPICS2GO does add LED lighting for cleaner
‘scans’.
Or you could buy a dedicated scanner or even a
scanner/printer/copier for about twice the price of
the iPICS2GO, and achieve scans about 10 times the
quality.
There are others, too many to mention – a boom
mic and a stabilising system for shooting ‘HD’ video,
a wireless remote shutter, or alternatively an app to
turn your iPhone into a wireless remote shutter... In
short you can turn your iPhone into a sort of Swiss
Army knife of photography. But have you ever tried to
use, say, the woodsaw or pliers or scissors on a Swiss
Army Knife?

The iPICS2GO turns your iPhone into a pretty
ordinary scanner for half the price (plus shipping)
of a dedicated photo scanner.
olympusomd.com
challenge
Photo Challenge: Portals and Thresholds
For our Portals and Thresholds challenge, we asked photographers to capture an
opening that might provoke a viewer to wonder where looking or even stepping through
might lead. Our winner, John Tarlinton, assures us that no special editing effects were
employed to create his rather spooky untitled study. Not sure that’s a portal we’d
particularly want to step through, John! But it has earned you a Kata Bumblebee 222 UL
with an RRP of $450.
Elana Bailey was our first runner-up with her restful composition, entitled ‘Feeling
French Provincial’. Norman Shapro submitted his serene image ‘Portal to Enlightenment’
via our website gallery. Oldest portal by far in the submissions came from Peter
Armitage’s picture of an intriguing geological portal that likely formed millions of years
before humans walked the earth with cameras. Also coming in for honourable mention
are Elana Bailey’s sepia toned ‘Church of Toledo’ and Roz Krugle’s smile-making ‘Blue’.
FIRST PLACE: Untitled by John Tarlinton
TAKE THE PHOTO REVIEW CHALLENGE 53
HERE ARE THE RULES:
Waves...
To enter the challenge all you have to do is send us
your best image (we’ll consider up to three images per
photographer).
The Photo Challenge we set before you is both simple and limitless. It might be something obvious, such as
waves that roll endlessly into your nearest beach. Or it might be the wavy form of clouds, or the wind billowing
a paddock of grain. Perhaps you’ll find the perfect wave in soft folds of fabric. Then again, maybe you’ll be
drawn to the detail of your nearest and dearest’s coiffure, a fluttering flag or that most universal human hand
gesture of greeting (and farewell). Waves are everywhere really and your challenge is to find and express this
universal phenomenon in the form of a dazzling image. As always the judges are keen to see a photographic
approach that avoids the obvious and captures the essence of the mysterious, hypnotic and yet utterly
commonplace phenomenon that is the wave.
The prize for this challenge is a
Kata Revolver-8PL Backpack RRP $295
Designed to provide easy one-point access to a large range of lenses
stored in a revolving internal magazine. It fits a DSLR with grip and
standard lens attached, plus 4-5 lenses and accessories, as well as
a laptop up to 15.4’’ and personal gear.
Please review the rules (right) and email your entries to
[email protected].
Deadline for entries is November 27, 2012 and the winning pictures
will be published in our March-May 2013 edition (Photo Review 55).
10
1) Competition is open to Australian residents only.
2) Entries should only be new images that have been taken
in response to the set challenge.
3) This isn’t a photo manipulation contest, so minimal
post-capture processing is a given. Sharpening, colour
correction and so forth are fine, but adding extra layers
isn’t.
4) Please supply a copies of your original images as jpegs
at 800 pixels on the longest side.
5) Please submit all images to photochallenge@
photoreview.com.au or preferably to the gallery at
www.photoreview.com.au and be sure to enter
‘Challenge53’ in the tags field. Any questions: please
email us at [email protected] (Photographers
whose work we publish in the magazine will be contacted
for the high-resolution version of their pictures.)
6) Please put your caption(s) in the File Info (metadata area)
of your image(s), or with the accompanying message.
When saving your images, please change the file name
so that it incorporates your first initial and last name and
the challenge you’re entering (eg, jsmith_chall53.jpg).
7) All photographers maintain copyright to their submitted
image(s). Photo Review retains the right to publish
submitted image(s) in the magazine and on
www.photoreview.com.au.
challenge
FIRST RUNNER UP:
‘Feeling French Provinical’
by Elana Bailey.
SECOND RUNNER UP:
‘Portal to Enlightenment’
by Norman Shapro.
11
challenge
HONOURABLE MENTION: Untitled by Peter Armitage
HONOURABLE MENTION:
The Archway, Giraween NP, Queensland. The result of millions of
years of natural phenomena starting with volcanic eruptions and
molten lava, later cooling down to form huge granite outcrops which
give this region the name, ‘The Granite Belt’.
‘Church of Toledo in sepia’
by Elana Bailey
HONOURABLE MENTION:
‘Blue’
by Roz Krugle
12
NEVER TAKE A RAINCHECK.
New Pentax
K30 with
Pentax18-55mm
zoom. $899
Great shots don't only happen on nice days. So Pentax designed the
brilliant new Pentax K30. It's completely weather sealed to shoot in
rain, hail, sleet and snow. Dustproof and waterproof, so trudging through the
Simpson desert or wallowing in a steamy Kakadu rainforest is no problem.
Precision engineered by Pentax, sensational ergonomic design, and great
shots thanks to the advanced Pentax 16 megapixel APS sensor. Plus there's
brand new optics and a foolproof 11 point autofocus engine. The Pentax K30 is
also a brilliant movie camera with full 1080p HD video at 30FPS. The new Pentax K30
is a major leap forward in cameras from
one of the great names in photography.
www.pentax.com.au | facebook.com/Pentax Snaps
| twitter.com/pentaxaustralia
Inspiration
Alex Webb, Boquillas, Mexico, 1979.
14
Inspiration
In Two Minds
A Q & A WITH ALEX WEBB AND REBECCA
NORRIS WEBB, PARTNERS IN LIFE - AND
PHOTOGRAPHY.
Photographic collaborations are intrinsically
interesting, but they are particularly so
when the collaborators are married. For the
last dozen years Magnum photographer
Alex Webb and poet-photographer Rebecca
Norris Webb have conducted photographic
and book-making courses and workshops
in their native USA and internationally.
During the first decade, they taught
together, they critiqued and helped each
other edit their work, but their personal
projects were two separate streams.
15
Inspiration
Alex Webb, Boquillas, Mexico, 1979.
COLLABORATION ON A PHOTOGRAPHIC PROJECT,
IT SEEMS, NEEDED A LONG GESTATION.
Cuba, it turned out, would be the
catalyst for their first combined
photographic project. Alex knew that
he wanted to create a book from
his images but he also didn’t want
it to be just another volume on the
much-photographed island nation.
As they talked and thought about the
project, he and Rebecca gradually
found themselves drawn to the idea
of combining their photographic
responses in a single work. The final
result was Violet Isle: A Photographic
Portrait of Cuba, which coincidentally
was published at about the time they
were celebrating their 10th wedding
anniversary.
Two years have passed and Rebecca
has just completed My Dakota, an
elegiac series of images and words
that arose in response to the untimely
death of her brother. A year earlier,
16
Alex produced The Suffering of Light,
a retrospective drawn from the
last 30 years of his work. But the
collaborative impulse hasn’t gone
away.
At the time of the following interview,
Rebecca and Alex were away from
their Brooklyn home base, working
on a new collaborative project to
document Rochester, New York,
the birthplace of that most famous
of photographic brands, the once
mighty, but now bankrupt Kodak.
Given the exigencies of the situation
- the time difference between Sydney
and New York and their intense
shooting schedule - we opted for an
email Q & A rather than the usual
interview.
I began with a few questions
addressed to both Alex and Rebecca.
Photo Review AUSTRALIA ISSUE Rebecca Norris Webb, “Roosters, Havana, 2008,”
from the book, Violet Isle (with Alex Webb), 2009.

Inspiration
Rebecca Norris Webb, “Storm Light,” from My Dakota (Radius Books, May 2012).
When you think of your favourite image from
the last year or so, how did it come about?
(Was it: devised; pre-visualised; intentional in a
general way; good luck; or a mixture?)
Alex Webb: My photographs are never the result
of pre-conception, they are about exploration
and discovery. I never know just what I am going
to find when I walk out the door. That said, I walk
out the door with some vague idea of the kinds of
things that intrigue me, the kind of light that moves
me. I try to put the odds as much in my favour as
possible. But ultimately serendipity and the vagaries
of the world have much to do with whatever it is
that I manage to capture in a photograph on any
given day. That uncertainty is part of what makes
photography for me so exciting and so frustrating.
Rebecca Norris Webb: ‘Homestead Blizzard’ was
a kind of collaboration between me and my home
state of South Dakota’s legendary bad weather.
Staying alone at a friend’s ranch, I’d awakened very
early one winter morning during the last year of
the My Dakota project to work on one of the spare
text pieces for the book. First thing, I headed to the
window to check on the subjects of the piece – a
pair of mating Great Horned Owls who were nesting
outside my window in the dead of winter inside a
snow covered juniper tree. Instead of catching a
glimpse of one of the owls returning to its nest after
a night of hunting, I was surprised instead by this
mesmerizing blizzard.
When a potential photograph first catches your
eye, what then tends to happen?
AW: Often, if I am alert, I respond immediately by
photographing. If the situation is one that is ongoing,
or if the parameters of the situation are such that
I can hang out and continue to photograph, I do
so. The ultimate decision as to whether I decide if
the photograph ‘works’ is a long one: culling the
work down from the first rough edit, to subsequent
smaller edits, to the final choice of an individual
picture. Time is one of the best aides in the process:
the more time that passes between the moment of
photographing and the final edit the better. I feel I
can be more objective about the work.
RNW: When I see an image that intrigues me for
some reason, my response is to photograph it.
Since I still use film, it’s often weeks later when I
first look at the contact sheet. Maybe it’s the poet
in me, but more and more I’m beginning to realize
that this waiting period is more important that I ever
realised. It’s hard to explain, but something happens
to this image in my mind’s eye while I’m waiting for
its unidentical twin – the image on the piece of film
I photographed – to be developed. The image floats
for a few weeks in the back of my mind, and all the
while it’s being bathed in all kinds of associations –
conscious and unconscious. So I guess you could
say that two very different kinds of development are
going on during this rich, fertile, waiting period, and
both play a role in my final intuitive editing process.
17
Inspiration
Rebecca Norris Webb, “Blackbirds,” from My Dakota (Radius Books, May 2012).
Do you tend to see images straight away when
you’re out photographing?
AW: I often smell the possibility of a photograph.
Sometimes I photograph immediately, sometimes
I hang out and wait. I try to respond to the rhythm,
the flow of each individual situation.
RNW: When working in the landscape, sometimes I
see an image several times before everything falls
into place. The more powerful the image, the more
it haunts me, invades my dreams. For instance, I
remember dreaming about one particularly elusive
image that I’d tried to photograph that first fall in
South Dakota after my brother died. On a deserted
country road just east of the Missouri River one
overcast November day, I was startled by a flock
of some thousand blackbirds. I was mesmerized by
how they flew through the stormy, unsettled western
sky as if they were one huge, dark, undulating,
ravenous creature, picking clean the remains of the
corn and sunflower fields in the last days of autumn.
For days, when I’d least expect it, I’d see the
blackbirds descend upon a field. It didn’t seem to
matter how quickly I stopped the car and raised
the camera to my eye. Inevitably, the dark flock
vanished as quickly as it had appeared.
For that entire week, I kept dreaming about those
blackbirds. Finally, one afternoon near the small
town of Gray Goose, South Dakota, I saw the flock
hovering over a field of sunflowers. This time, I
was somewhat more prepared – I had my camera
around my neck, and, thanks to the dirt road’s
wide shoulder, I could quickly pull over and rush
toward the field – crouching as low as I could so I
wouldn’t scare off the skittish birds. I remember
wondering what I’d say to the farmer if he caught
me trespassing on his land. Suddenly, worried that
the blackbirds would disappear again, I stopped and
clicked a few frames.
Then something happened that I wasn’t expecting –
the flock lingered in the field. Were there more seeds
than usual to feed on? Were the towering sunflowers
hiding me from the skittish birds? Slowly and quietly,
I inched closer until I was standing directly behind
one of the tallest sunflowers in the field. Beneath the
sunflower’s large bowed head, I clicked the shutter
again and again until the dark flock vanished once
more into the cold, grey, blustery November sky.
working in the landscape,
“ When
sometimes I see an image several
times before everything falls into place
18
“
Inspiration
Alex Webb, Bombay, India, 1981.
Rebecca Norris Webb, “Review Mirror,” from My Dakota (Radius Books, May 2012).
19
Inspiration
Alex Webb, Sancti Spiritus, Cuba, 1993.
Rebecca Norris Webb, “Wing, Havana, 2007,” from the book, Violet Isle (with Alex Webb), 2009.
20
Inspiration
Rebecca Norris Webb, “Pigeon and Egg, Havana, 2007,” from the book, Violet Isle (with Alex Webb), 2009.
Do you use a wide variety of gear, or do you
tend to keep it simple?
AW: I work very simply. Though I typically carry
two cameras, I usually just use one camera and
one focal length lens. Photography for me is about
seeing, not solving technical problems.
RNW: I like to keep it simple – two cameras with
two different kinds of film, one for interiors, one for
landscapes. I don’t want the equipment to hinder
my responding spontaneously and intuitively to
whatever image I come across that intrigues me.
Have you ever noticed any emotional or
general state-of-mind preconditions that seem
to lead to images you like?
RNW: I photograph very intuitively. Looking at some
of these disorienting photographs now from My
Dakota – where it’s sometimes difficult to distinguish
the background from the foreground, for instance – I
realize that kind of confusion and feeling lost was
very much a part of my grief, especially when I was
most grief-struck.
During that time, I not only felt confused while
photographing in South Dakota, but I also felt
confused when I returned to Brooklyn to edit the
film and to try to make sense of what I’d been doing.
I remember showing the work to my friend, Gene
Richards, who at that time was travelling back and
forth from Brooklyn to the Great Plains to work on
his book, The Blue Room. When he asked me how
things were coming along with My Dakota, I told him
I wasn’t sure what I was doing. He said to me in his
soft, gentle voice, ‘Becky, sometimes confusion is
good.’
for me is about seeing,
“ Photography
not solving technical problems “
21
Inspiration
Alex Webb, Bombardopolis, Haiti, 1986.
Many of your images seem to be ‘dense’
(colours, layers, details). Do you typically
perceive all those intricacies when you
compose the shot?
AW: I am certainly aware of the layers upon layers in
my work as I photograph. It’s part of what I respond
to in the world. However, I certainly am not aware
in the moment of photographing exactly how all
elements will come together in the final images. I
seem to get little glimpses of the possibilities as
I photograph – little bursts of excitement – but
ultimately discovering what images really work
comes about in the process of looking at the work
22
later, well after I have photographed. I am often
disappointed when I am editing the work, but I am
also occasionally positively surprised.
Questions for Rebecca
Have you ever imagined (or, indeed, created)
a poem purely in photographic images?
I’m more interested in the relationship between
text and images and how the two can illuminate
each other in a book. That said, I guess I would say
that my new book, My Dakota, is based loosely on
the villanelle form, a traditional poetic form that
centers on two refrains that are repeated four times
each. I didn’t consciously try to recreate this form
visually. It’s just that as I began to work deeper
and deeper into the project, I found myself drawn
again and again to certain images – apples, deer,
brown coat, prairie. This villanelle-like repetition
of images seemed like the right structure for My
Dakota because it echoed the circuitous journey
of my own grief as I travelled through the South
Dakota landscape in my old Saab. The villanelle-like
structure felt right because it echoed my grieving
mind and heart trying – over and over and over
again – to inhabit the contradiction, as the poet Rilke
would say, of my brother’s death and my family’s
very much alive love for him.
Inspiration
Rebecca Norris Webb, “Homestead House Blizzard,” from My Dakota (Radius Books, May 2012).
happened instead is that I started
“ What
to fall in love with photography
“
23
Inspiration
Alex Webb, San Ysidro, California, USA, 1979.
How would you describe the relationship
between your poetic impulse to express
something in words and your equivalent
impulse to express something as an image?
Thinking about it now, I probably have always seen in
images. Initially that took the form of writing poetry.
An image would get under my skin and I’d try to write
about it.
24
After college, for some reason my poetry deserted
me. Looking back, I realize that perhaps the kind of
lyric poetry I was writing during college had become
too restrictive, too limiting. It didn’t contain enough
of the world, and my curiosity about it. To break
through the writer’s block, I decided to travel for a
year, buying a camera in order to take ‘visual notes’
for perhaps a future project. What happened instead
is that I started to fall in love with photography. It
was only after taking a year of photography classes,
however, that I had an epiphany: I realized that the
eye that took the photographs was the very same
eye that saw the images in my poetry.
The Nebraskan photographer and writer, Wright
Morris, I think said it best: ‘I don’t give up the
camera eye when I write, merely the camera.’

Inspiration
Lose yourself in the beauty of old Paris,
with over 200 rare and original prints from
the founder of documentary photography
UNT I L 4 N OV
Alex’s and Rebecca’s website: www.webbnorriswebb.com/
Principal sponsor
Alex’s and Rebecca’s “Two Looks” blog: webbnorriswebb.wordpress.com/
Streets of Havana Workshop: bit.ly/M4xghb
Photo Project Workshop 2012 @ the Caption Gallery, Brooklyn, NY:
http://bit.ly/O5xRAb
ART
Co-organised by
GALLERY
ART
GALLERY
N SW
Robert Klein Gallery, Boston (Alex and Rebecca).
Rebecca will have a ‘My Dakota’ show in October with the gallery:
www.robertkleingallery.com/
Photo Review AUSTRALIA ISSUE N SW
Eugène Atget)V\SL]HYKKL:[YHZIV\YN HSI\TLUWOV[VNYHWO
.LVYNL,HZ[THU/V\ZL0U[LYUH[PVUHS4\ZL\TVM7OV[VNYHWO`HUK-PST9VJOLZ[LY

25
Inspiration
Almost immediately I found my niche,
and I’ve pretty much focused on the
mining/resources area since then.
A curious lizard sits on a rock in a dry creek bed, Karijini National park, Pilbara, WA.
26
Inspiration
From the
ground up
IT’S DIRTY, DUSTY WORK BEING A COMMERCIAL
PHOTOGRAPHER FOR MINING COMPANIES, BUT
IT DOESN’T SHOW IN THE CLEAN PERFECTIONISM
OF CHRISTIAN SPROGOE’S IMAGES.
Interview by Steve Packer
27
Inspiration
I’m always trying to make something better
than what I’m seeing, better than what’s
actually there, better than I did last time.
A mine worker loads explosives in a drill hole, Pilbara, WA.
How did you get started in photography
and come to have mining photography as a
specialty?
I was raised in Perth and trained in heavy earthmoving
machinery repair after leaving school. I worked in the
mining industry, in open pit and also underground, for
many years and got to the level of shift supervisor in
large workshops.
In 1994 I travelled overseas and found myself living
in Denmark, where I really became interested in
photography. I went to see a lot of exhibitions while
28
in Europe. It had always been an interest, but I
had never considered it a career until I returned to
Australia in 1996.
I enrolled at Mt Lawley College of TAFE to study fulltime for a Diploma in Applied Science of Photography
and did pretty well. During those three years I also
assisted Perth-based commercial photographers
Richard Gale, Craig Kinder and Jason Hilson, at Gale
Force Photography, and later assisted Allan at Allan
Myles Photography.
These were both high-profile advertising studios and
I learnt a great deal about that genre. From 2000 I
started to build my own profile and quickly combined
the photography with my mining experience. Almost
immediately I found my niche, and I’ve pretty much
focused on the mining/resources area since then. It
has gone from strength to strength to the point where
I’m always very busy. I’m now closely knit with several
large multinational mining companies.
How much time do you spend on location?
I probably fly to the Pilbara region twice a week these
days. Yesterday I was there for a day trip, I’m back
Inspiration
Iron ore being stockpiled ready for shipping overseas, Pilbara, WA.
in my Perth office today, and I’ll be back up there the
day after tomorrow. Last week was four days on site
and then a weekend single day trip. At the moment
it’s mostly for the iron ore industry, but there are
different projects and minerals I’m involved with.
I have a trip to Mongolia in 10 days for a two-week
mining shoot. In the last 12 months I’ve been all
around Australia doing things in coal in Queensland,
bauxite in the Northern Territory and north
Queensland, and oil and gas work. I’ve also had work
in underground nickel mines and some very large
industrial construction projects.
The travel might seem a lot to some people, but I
enjoy it and it’s very normal in this industry. Most of
my flights leave Perth at around 5.15am to get a full
day of photography, so I’m regularly up at 3.45am.
That makes for a very long day by the time I get there
and I am shooting until sunset. But that’s the nature
of the beast.
Starting your working life in heavy machinery
must have given you a valuable understanding
of what goes on in mining and related
industries.
I’d agree. And there’s another element to it. It’s very
often long days of hot, dusty, dirty work which I’ve
always been comfortable with, and I’ve taken on
assistants who, it turned out, weren’t able to deal
with that.
Perhaps due to my background, I feel I have a
realistic understanding of what I’m asking my
subjects to do in my images. Another aspect is the
ability to be able to make something happen in very
challenging circumstances. I often go to a site where
I’m restricted in terms of access and stringent safety
requirements that dictate my day, but I still have to
29
Inspiration
Mine worker from the open pit blast crew, Oyu Tolgoi, Copper mine, Mongolia.
come home with something valuable for the client – a
client in an office who might not understand what a
photographer requires in order to get a job done well.
Because I’ve been involved in this area for a
considerable time, I’ve undertaken a lot of training
procedures and courses which always create
opportunities for better access while on a site. For
example, working at heights from elevated work
platforms, and specialist driver and helicopter safety
training.
How defined or specific are your briefs from
30
clients?
I rarely have a comprehensive brief to follow. They
are usually extremely loose. That’s probably a benefit
of gaining the trust of my clients and having a long
working relationship. Often I’ll get a set of flight
details and a rough outline, maybe a sentence about
what they’re after. Then it’s a matter of discussing the
job as I see it with a site-based person once I arrive.
On your website you have the statement: ‘It
is a rare and real pleasure to be given the
opportunity to create art from circumstances
and in places where art does not rank as a
priority.’ What’s your approach to combining
the creative with the commercial aspect of the
photos you take for clients?
That statement is very true for me. I don’t see myself as
a photojournalist, although sometimes I’ll be asked for a
photojournalist’s slant on what the company is doing.
I don’t use models. I use real people who are on
site. But I often feel I have to dress the people and...
what’s the word...‘style’ the shot, or set something
Inspiration
Mine worker from the geology crew, Oyu Tolgoi, Copper mine, Mongolia.
up, to meet requirements so my photos can be used
in publications to represent the company I’m working
for. It’s up to me to ensure my subjects are depicted
in a realistic, proficient and safe manner, and that
they are wearing the correct safety equipment for the
task and situation they are depicted in. The correct
glasses, hardhat, gloves and safety equipment is
always critical.
I’m always thinking about the end use of the
photograph and how the company or person is going
to be portrayed later on. A still photograph can so
easily be taken out of context, and I’m always aware
of maximising its use for a wide variety of purposes.
Although I don’t work with art directors and stylists
like I experienced in advertising, I draw on that
experience almost daily.
What are the clients usually trying to get across
in the pictures?
Most of my clients have a similar set of expectations.
I think they are trying to say that they are achieving
great things, they have safe workplaces, they are
environmentally conscious and they have a happy,
well-trained, multicultural workforce.
In terms of visual impact, what do you look for
creatively in your work? What’s your creative
style?
I’m a bit of a perfectionist in all the things I do, so I’m
always trying to make something better than what I’m
seeing, better than what’s actually there, better than
I did last time. My mother is an artist and my father
was a very technically precise person, so perhaps I’m
somewhere in between.
31
Inspiration
Iron ore stockpiles in the Pilbara, WA at dawn.
There is an extensive back end to each shoot so the client
receives a far superior, ‘polished’ version of the original image.
My style... I’m thinking of an image depicting
differences in scale. Perhaps a large structure
dominating a small human element or something like
that.
The sheer scale is a feature of many of your
photos – the landscape, the hole in the ground,
the machinery. Your challenge often seems to
be to create a composition that captures that
sense of scale.
Yes, it is. It’s particularly inspiring working in the
Pilbara because it’s such an amazing, vast and
magical place. I feel very privileged to be there, and
even more privileged for the amount of access I have.
I’m regularly flying in helicopters or being taken to
remote locations where it’s very pristine. It really is
a huge place. Even a large mine can be no more than
a dot on the landscape when seen from a couple of
thousand feet. Huge trains, huge trucks, huge mines,
huge open spaces.
Some highly professional photographers rarely
take photos for themselves, but you seem to
keep your eye open for those. I’m thinking in
32
particular of your wonderful lizard-on-a-rock
shot.
That’s a favourite of mine also. I was on a two-week
shoot for Rio Tinto called ‘Working in the Pilbara’, to
capture all aspects of what it’s like for the people who
live and work there. It was at the end of a long day’s
work, on a very hot afternoon in Karijini National Park.
I was with a film crew and we stopped for a swim in
a gorge. On the way there I nearly tripped over that
lizard sitting in a dried creek bed. I lay down on the
scorching rocks with a 16mm lens, only centimetres
from him. He seemed as interested in me as I was in
him. Nice memory.
What kind of gear do you use? What’s in your kit
when you go on location?
I use Canon EOS cameras. I’ve been using 1D Mk IIIs
and I’m now waiting for the new 1DXs. I have a couple
on order.
I always travel with 16-35mm, 24-70mm and 70200mm lenses, plus a 15mm fisheye and a 24mm tilt
shift lens. As a backup I take a 100mm macro and
a 300mm 2.8. I always have two Speedlight flashes
that I use with Profoto wireless remotes and a Mac
laptop. That’s all in my hand luggage.
On top of that, I always have two bags that are
checked in on flights. One contains a tripod, light
stands, softboxes and cables. The other has a
Profoto AcuteB battery-powered light source, which
I use every day and couldn’t do without. I’m always
fighting with contrast and shadows, so it’s my
light repair tool half the time and used for creative
purposes the other half.
When you get back to the office, do you alter
the photos much on the computer?
I spend a lot of time on my computers after a job.
However, I wouldn’t call it altering. I’d call it file
preparation. I use a few different programs and
techniques for that. I don’t think I’ve ever used an
image straight out of a camera in my life. There is
an extensive back end to each shoot so the client
receives a far superior, ‘polished’ version of the
original image.

To see more of Christian Sprogoe’s work, visit
www.csfoto.com.au
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Wildlife (Awards); Portrait (Laham); 2003
Walkley Awards
How to: Optimise dynamic range;
Improve scenic shots
Ô ISSUE 16
Photography: Digital Art (Everton);
Photojournalism (Garwood); Skate
(Gourlay/Mapstone)
How to: Print digital photos; Resize for
print & email; Digicam vs DSLR
Sony SLT-A35
Nikon D5100
Pentax K-5
4 Lenses
Pentax K-01
Fujifilm X PRO-1
Canon 5D Mark III
The
e Rolling
ng
gS
Stton
tone
to
ne
Years
ars
r

ISSUE 49
7YPU[LKVUYLJ`JSLKWHWLY
HOW TO:
REVIEWS
Sony A77 & A65
Panasonic Lumix G3 & GF3
Olympus PEN E-P3 & E-PL3
Panasonic Lumix FZ150
Fujifilm Finepix F550 EXR
Plus 4 lenses
Issue 49
Handle
ndle
ndl
dle eth
e hiics & editin
ed
edit
editing
ditttin
dit
iin
ng
ng
Shoot
oott refl
refle
ecttio
ec
ons
Tr
Travel
vel ge
gea
ear guid
ide
REVIEWS
ISSUE 50
I S S N 1445-9078
Issue 50
Ô ISSUE 17
Photography: Portrait (Weight);
3D (Richardson)
How to: Prepare for publication/fine arts;
Archive; Colour correct
Ô ISSUE 19
Photography: Water (Respondek); Travel
(I’anson); Rock’n’roll (Jennings)
How to: Shoot underwater; Photo books;
Scene settings
Ô ISSUE 20
Photography: Landscape (Elliston); Sport
(Carr); Travel (Prior)
How to: Remove blemishes; Visual
appeal; Colour to mono; Colour fringing
Ô ISSUE 21
Photography: Photojournalism (Clarke);
Architecture (Boardman)
How to: Remove blemishes; Visual
appeal; Colour to mono; Colour fringing
Ô ISSUE 22
Photography: Wilderness (Mead);
Documentary (Parke); Portraiture
(Avedon) How to: Visual intrigue; Filters;
Self-publishing
Ô ISSUE 23
Photography: Still Life (Caponigro);
Yachting (Bennett)
How To: Effects filters; Radical colour
conversion; Exhibition-quality B&W
prints
Ô ISSUE 24
Photography: Oculi; Daylesford Foto
Biennale; Phonecam (Reichold)
How to: Shooting; Batch RAW;
High-quality printers
Ô ISSUE 25
Photography: Sports (Kennedy);
Australian Photographers Gallery
How to: Fine Art Papers; Zone System;
Exhibition-quality B&W
Ô ISSUE 26
Photography: Wildlife (Brandt); Surfing
(Wilson)
TECHNIQUE
Lands before Time
Printing photo books
Shoot with long lenses
When to replace equipment
Copyright and watermarking
Manage images as you travel
DAVID LAZAR
Tony Hewitt: A Photographic Journey
Deb Bonney: Staying in the Moment
HOW TO:
Canon EOS-1D X vs Nikon D4
Canon G1X, Panasonic GX1
Pentax Q, Nikon 1 V1
Olympus PEN Mini E-PM1
PLUS 7 Lenses
Shoot superb coastal scenes
Get great results from a compact
Print big for a quality finish
Add artistic filter effects
ISSUE 51
I S S N 1839-5899
CAITLIN WORTHINGTON | Natural fashion
PAUL GUMMER | Drawing the viewer in
JEFF MOORFOOT | The accidental photographer
Issue 51
How to: Shoot the tropics; Choose DSLR
lenses; Slide shows; Print settings
Ô ISSUE 27
Photography: Lee Friedlander;
Documentary (Brown)
How to: Aperture-priority; Ambient
lighting; Raw file conversion; Scrapbooks
Ô ISSUE 28
Photography: Sport (Clayton);
Ambrotypes (Berkman).
How to: Printer jargon; Embed copyright
data; Cold conditions.
Ô ISSUE 29
Photography: Commercial (Blue);
Photojournalism (Magee)
How to: Dust on DSLR sensors; Sell
photos; Clean up noise;
High-contrast shooting
Ô ISSUE 30
Photography: Commercial (Bredberg,
Pearce, Walker)
How to: Overcast shooting; Mono
printing; Monitors
Ô ISSUE 31
Photography: Landscape (Eastway);
Documentary/Portrait (Morley, Ramsay)
How to: Megapixel myth; Stabilisation;
21st Century albums
Ô ISSUE 32
Photography: Holga (Hixson); Pinhole
(Browell); Entertainment (Christie)
How to: Exposures without a meter;
Printer choice; CS3 Raw file conversion
ISSUE 52
I S S N 1839-5899
Issue 52
Ô ISSUE 35
Photography: Art (Dawe); Landscape
(Gueho); Construction (Higgins)
How to: Street photography; Efficient
printing; Lomography
Ô ISSUE 36
Photography: Documentary (Bell, Joren);
Portrait (Lawrence)
How to: File formats; Panoramas; DSLR kits
Ô ISSUE 37
Photography: Aerial (Woldendorp); Surf
(Tan); Portrait (Boenig-McGrade)
How to: Spot metering; Uneven
exposures; Memory cards
Ô ISSUE 38
Photography: Environment (Hill);
Landscape (Kah Kit Yoong); Documentary
(Hayward)
How to: Cameras for kids; Micro Four
Thirds System; Infrared effects; Copyright
protection
Ô ISSUE 39
Photography: Subcultural (Siewert); Rock
Music (Hibberd); Landscape (Norris)
How to: Lens adaptors; Geographic tools;
High dynamic range; Storage
Ô ISSUE 40
Photography: Paul Pichugin (Seascape);
Geoffrey Simpson (Cinematogapher); Gary
Steer, Robert Billington, MAP group (BIFB)
How to: Autofocus; Sharpening; Inkjet
papers; Ink use.
Ô ISSUE 33
Photography: Documentary (Hoppe); Art
(Mann); Daylesford Foto Biennale
How to: Capture clouds; Image
preservation; Folio hard copy options
Ô ISSUE 41
Photography: Peter Solness (Landscape);
Ross Eason (Commercial); Thomas
Roessler, Drex Brooks, Mindaugas
Kavaliauskas (BIFB)
How to: Firmware updates; Turn photos into
oil paintings; Camera bags and cases
Ô ISSUE 34
Photography: Documentary (Lloyd, Kerr);
Commercial (Urban Angles)
How to: CF cards; Storage; Optical
brighteners; Compact cameras
Ô ISSUE 42
Photography: Marcus Bell (Wedding);
Peter Strain (Macro)
How to: Image merging; Greeting cards;
Colour balance
Ô ISSUE 43
Photography: Glenn Campbell; Ray Galea;
Foto Freo
How to: Simple composition; Home grown
photo books; Custom borders
Ô ISSUE 44
Photography: Montalbetti + Campbell;
Flavia Schuster; Alfred Stieglitz
How to: Landscape shooting; Selective
colour tool; ILC buying guide
Ô ISSUE 45
Photography: Jane Burton Taylor;
Cearns;
Ô Alex
ISSUE
43Alan Small.
How
to: Low-light
Inkjet
Photography:
Glennphotography;
Campbell; Ray
Galea;
printer
maintenance; High dynamic
Foto Freo
range
images
How to: Simple composition; Home grown
photo books;
Ô ISSUE
46Custom borders
Photography: Wayne Quilliam, Renata
Ô ISSUE
Buziak 44
Photography:
Montalbetti
+ Campbell;
How to: MTF Graphs;
Close-ups;
Edit out;
Flavia
Schuster; Alfred Stieglitz
3D Photography
How to: Landscape shooting; Selective
Ô ISSUE
47ILC buying guide
colour tool;
Photography: Louise Hawson; Andrew
Meares; BIFB
Ô ISSUE
45 2011
How to: Protective
Photography:
Jane underexposure;
Burton Taylor;
Photographing
clouds;
Lighting guide
Alex
Cearns; Alan
Small.
How to: Low-light photography; Inkjet
Ô printer
ISSUE
48
maintenance; High dynamic
Photography:
range
images Zorica Purlija; Peter
Kovacsy; BIFB 2011
How to: Sunsets
Ô ISSUE
46 and sunrises; Basic layer
adjustments; Big
prints;
Prime lenses
Photography:
Wayne
Quilliam,
Renata
Ô Buziak
ISSUE 49
How
to: MTF Luke
Graphs;
Close-ups;
Edit out;
Photography:
Hardy;
Hans Schmidt;
3D
Photography
Sean
Davey
How to: DSLR video; Holiday snaps;
Ô ISSUE
47 with blending modes
Special effects
Photography: Louise Hawson; Andrew
Meares;
BIFB
Ô ISSUE 50 2011
How
to: Protective
underexposure;
Photography:
Richard
Barry; Guy Finlay;
Photographing
guide
Baron Wolman;clouds;
10 yearLighting
retrospective
How to: Ethics & editing; Shooting
Ô ISSUE
48
reflections;
Travel gear guide
Photography: Zorica Purlija; Peter
Ô Kovacsy;
ISSUE BIFB
51 2011
How
to: Sunsets
andLazar;
sunrises;
Basic layer
Photography:
David
Tony Hewitt;
adjustments;
Deb Bonney Big prints; Prime lenses
How to: Coastal scenes; Compact
shooting; Printing big; Filter effects
Ô ISSUE 52
Photography: Paul Gummer; Caitlin
Worthington; Jeff Moorfoot
How to: When to replace equipment;
Shooting with long lenses; Copyright and
watermarking; Photo books; Managing
Images as you travel.
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insider
Unscrambling Sensor Formats
FULL FRAME/FX, APS-C/DX, 4/3, CX, DIGICAM; HOW TO DECIDE WHICH
CAMERA TO USE FOR DIFFERENT TASKS.
By Margaret Brown
R
ecent developments in the market have presented
camera buyers with some complex choices
centering on the size of the camera’s sensor.
Smartphones are replacing cameras at the bottom
end of the digicam market, forcing manufacturers to
provide larger sensors and longer lenses. ‘Mirrorless’
interchangeable-lens compact (ILC) cameras are trying
to bridge the gap between digicams and DSLRs.
Meanwhile, just about everyone owns at least one
imaging device, even if it’s only a smartphone. Photo
enthusiasts often own several cameras with different
sensor sizes. To help you decide on the size of the
sensor in your next camera, this feature looks at
issues related to image sensor size.
Looking ahead, it seems likely the sensors in highend digicams (the only potentially profitable sector
of this category) will increase in size, although these
cameras will struggle to compete against ILCs. Canon
leads here with the G1X, which has a sensor measuring
18.7 x 14.0mm and a 4:3 aspect ratio. Whether other
models with interchangeable lenses will follow is yet to
be seen.
In the interchangeable-lens category, Olympus and
Panasonic will stick with M4/3. Canon, Nikon, Pentax,
Samsung and Sony will continue supporting APS-C, using
them in ILC models as well as entry-level DSLRs. Nikon
seems set to stick with CX for its ILCs. FX (full frame)
will trickle down into the enthusiast DSLR category as
economies of scale bring sensor prices down.
THE CURRENT MARKET
Canon, Nikon and Sony currently offer two
sensor sizes within the same system, which can
greatly complicate lens buying decisions. Pentax has
interchangeable-lens cameras with radically different
sensor sizes and lens mounts. Samsung has adopted
APS-C for its interchangeable-lens cameras, while
Ricoh has interchangeable sensor+lens modules.
Panasonic and Olympus have stuck with the 4/3
format but changed the design of their cameras to
introduce a new suite of M4/3 lenses that can only be
used on 4/3 cameras via adaptors. And, increasingly,
third-party manufacturers are producing adaptors that
enable lenses designed for one camera system to be
used on another, further muddying the waters.
LARGE VS SMALL SENSOR?
All else being equal, larger sensors will deliver better
image quality than small ones. Unfortunately, larger
sensors not only increase the size and overall weight of
the equipment but also push up its cost – sometimes
substantially. Choose a camera with a large sensor if
you want:
1. Higher maximum resolution with current sensor
technology.
2. Greater control over depth of field, using wideaperture lenses.
manufacturers have introduced their own variants, so
sensor sizes in this category range from 20.7 x 13.8
mm to 28.7 x 19.1mm.
Each variant results in slightly different angles of
view from lenses of the same focal length. Lenses
cover a much narrower angle of view compared
to 35mm film or full-frame cameras, indicated by
their crop factor. Nikon, Pentax, Samsung and Sony
interchangeable-lens cameras have a crop factor of
1.5x (as do some of the Ricoh GXR modules), while
Canon’s crop factor is 1.6x. Aside from their influence
on lens mounts, these differences are negligible.
3. Lower noise at the base ISO value.
4. Brighter viewfinder images for easier manual
focusing at equivalent depth of field.
In contrast, small sensors provide the following
advantages:
1. Lower cost sensors and, therefore, cheaper
cameras and lenses.
2. Shorter and lighter lenses.
Buyers of interchangeable-lens cameras can
currently choose from five sensor sizes, the main
features of which are outlined below.
FX OR FULL FRAME
Measuring approximately 36 x 24mm, these sensors
are the same size as a 35mm film frame, which means
your lenses will cover the same focal lengths as they
did back in the days of film (and as listed in their
specifications). Roughly twice the area of the next
size down, they can support larger photosites for the
specified resolution. Larger photosites collect more
light, which means a higher signal-to-noise ratio and
better image quality.
On the downside, you need a bigger camera body
to support the larger sensor – and large lenses as
well. Both cost more to make and, therefore, are more
expensive to buy.
FOUR THIRDS (4/3) AND MICRO FOUR
THIRDS (M4/3)
Introduced by Olympus and Kodak a decade ago,
Four Thirds has been designed from the ground up to
be entirely digital and open, permitting the interchange
of lenses and bodies from different manufacturers. Its
sensors have an imaging area of 17.3 x 13.0mm and a
4:3 aspect ratio, and a 2x crop factor.
Today, this format is dominated by Olympus and
Panasonic and both companies favour the ‘mirrorless’
Micro Four Thirds (M4/3) design that enables even
smaller camera bodies and lenses to be produced.
Removing the reflex viewing system means users have
to rely on a live preview shown on either the camera’s
LCD monitor or via an electronic viewfinder. Autofocus
is via contrast-detection using the image sensor, as in
digicams.
CX (NIKON 1)
Announced in September 2011, the Nikon 1 system
steps down in sensor size to 13.2 x 8.8mm, this time
with a 3:2 aspect ratio and a 2.7x crop factor. Despite
the smaller sensor, the two Nikon 1 bodies and four
lenses released so far are much the same size as their
M4/3 equivalents.
APS-C OR DX
DIGICAMS
This sensor size derives from a now-obsolete
film format that measured 25.1 x 16.7mm and had
the same 3:2 aspect ratio as 35mm film. Different
Sensor sizes in compact digicams have increased
recently but they’re still much smaller than even the CX
sensors, enabling smaller cameras to be made. Chip
sizes range from 8.8 x 6.6mm, to 5.76 x 4.29mm,
with only the Pentax Q and some Ricoh GXR modules
offering interchangeability. Image noise affects such
small sensors, even with the most sophisticated
processing chips.
This diagram compares the relative sizes
of digital camera sensors.
36
insider
DEPTH OF FIELD ISSUES
Depth of field becomes shallower as the sensor size
increases. With some subjects, such as portraits, a
shallow depth of field facilitates background blurring.
With others, like landscapes, you want as much of the
image as possible to be sharp.
The influence of the sensor size explains why shots
taken with small-sensor digicams are usually sharp all
over, while large format cameras struggle to achieve
adequate depth of field in landscapes. Depth of field
control can be further constrained in smaller cameras
because it is difficult to design lenses with wide
maximum aperture settings throughout the zoom range.
THE ‘EQUIVALENCE’ FACTOR
What happens when you want to capture the same
angle of view with the same depth of field in a different
sensor format? Actually, the smaller the camera’s
sensor, the more difficult this becomes, regardless of
whether we’re after a shallow or wide depth of field. You
either run out of aperture settings or focal length options
– or both.
Here’s how the different formats pan out when we’re
after a relatively shallow depth-of-field:
1
- The FX/Full Frame photographer will use a
300mm lens at f/8;
1
2
3
- The APS-C/DX photographer will use a
200mm lens at f/5.6;
3
2
This photograph, taken with Canon PowerShot G10, which has a 7.44 x 5.58mm sensor and crop factor
of 4.84x, shows how difficult it can be to blur backgrounds, even with long focal length and wide
aperture settings. (30mm focal length - equivalent to 254mm in 35mm format - at f/4.5.)
The same subject photographed with a Canon PowerShot G1X, which has a 18.7 x 14.0mm, with a 1.9x
crop factor. This shot illustrates how much easier it is to blur backgrounds when a shallow depth of
field is desired. (60mm focal length - equivalent to 115mm in 35mm format - at the maximum
available aperture of f/5.8.)
The same subject photographed with the Canon EOS 5D Mark II, which has a ‘full frame’ 36 x 24mm
sensor using a focal length of 105mm and aperture of f/4 to produce a high degree of background
blurring, thanks to the larger sensor and wider maximum aperture.
Cropping a 3:2 aspect shot taken with a 105mm lens
on a Full Frame/FX body.
- The M4/3 photographer will use a 150mm lens at f/4;
- The CX photographer will use a 110mm lens at f/2.8;
- The digicam photographer will be at around
60mm at f/1.8 (or smaller).
A couple of problems spring to light. The Canon G1X is
restricted to 60.4mm and we don’t know of any digicams
with f/1.8 maximum apertures, particularly at 60mm.
Suppose we want to shoot landscapes with a wide
depth-of-field at equivalent apertures:
- The FX/Full Frame photographer will use a
28mm lens at f/11;
USING CROP FACTORS
Crop factors are so named because they enable
you to calculate the field of view any sensor/lens
combination covers with respect to the standard
35mm field of view. DSLR photographers find them
handy with bodies and lenses that can be exchanged.
For example, if you have a 100mm lens designed for
a Full Frame/FX body and put it on an APS-C body,
it crops out the centre of the lens’s field of view,
thereby extending the effective focal length by the
crop factor. The angle of view becomes the same as
a 150mm lens, as shown in the illustrations on this
page.
- The Canon G1X photographer will use a
162mm lens at f/4.3;
- The APS-C/DX photographer will use an
18mm lens at f/8;
- The Canon G1X photographer will use a
15mm lens at f/5.9;
- The M4/3 photographer will use a 14mm lens at f/5.6;
- The CX photographer will use a 10mm lens at f/4;
- The digicam photographer will be at around
6mm at f/2.8 (or smaller).
The same shot, cropped to show the coverage if
the same lens had been used on a camera with an
APS-C sensor.
You might think that using a heavier and more
expensive lens with a smaller sensor has few
benefits. However, this isn’t the case; with most
lenses, resolution falls off towards the edges of the
frame. Consequently, the cropped sensor doesn’t
use the lowest resolution areas in the lens. Instead,
you use the sharpest parts and end up with better
image quality overall.
Narrowing the angle of view of the lens also has
benefits for sports and wildlife photographers
because it enlarges the subject in the frame,
enabling them to shoot close-ups without intruding
on their subjects.
One reason the latest full frame DSLRs have become
so popular with professional video shooters is that their
larger sensors provide greater control over depth of
field than other video cameras. Smaller sensor formats
can’t match this and, so, are relegated to amateur video
productions.
When it comes to shooting stills, it’s a case of
selecting the right tool for the job. Some jobs can be
done just as well with a decent M4/3 camera – or even a
camera with a smaller sensor. For others, a big sensor is
the only option.
We’re left balancing several competing factors: size,
weight, cost, imaging performance and equivalency with
35mm format being the most significant. If you need
a compact and lightweight system, the smaller sensor
formats can deliver excellent image quality, although you
may be restricted when it comes to wide-angle coverage
and defocusing control with tele lenses. These systems
should also be cheaper than a FX system, although by
how much is open to change in the future.

37
tips: shooting
shooting tips:
Producing
Group Portraits
HOW TO SHOOT AND EDIT PORTRAITS OF LARGE GROUPS OF PEOPLE.
By Margaret Brown
Sooner or later, every photographer is sure to be asked to take a group
photo, either at a family get-together or a reunion of friends and/or
classmates or colleagues. It’s a daunting prospect and the larger the
group you have to photograph – and the more diverse their ages – the
more intimidating it can become.
Essentially, there are two problems to deal with. First, you must arrange
the group so that each person’s face will be visible in the shot. Second,
everyone has to look reasonable. We’ll deal with them in order.
Taking a sequence of shots in quick succession provides you with enough options to
compile a group portrait that should satisfy most, if not all, of the subjects.
38
tips: shooting
‘HERDING CATS’
Arranging groups of people for a group photo is a
lot like herding cats; different people have different
wants, needs and attitudes and you are expected
to accommodate them. Some are happy to sit in
the front row, while others want to hide; one person
may want to be next to a particular individual,
while another may prefer to be as far away from
somebody in the group as possible.
Being well prepared before you bring the subjects
to the shooting site will help you to minimise
potential chaos. Start by establishing where the
shot will be taken. Open shade is usually good for
portraiture, although a well-lit interior can also work
well.
Check the lighting and make sure the entire area is
evenly lit. A patch of sunlight straying into the scene
can produce blown-out highlights if the brightness
range in the scene exceeds the camera’s recording
range.
Indoors, mixing fluorescent lighting with
incandescent, halogen and/or daylight will almost
certainly result in inaccurate colour reproduction.
Even the most sophisticated white balance systems
won’t be able to handle these combinations. Flash
fill is probably the only effective solution.
You may not be able to avoid all these problems
so be prepared to do the best you can with the
situation that confronts you. Set up your camera
on a tripod – or if you plan to take the shot with the
camera hand-held, mark out your shooting position.
Make sure you have enough working room to enable
you to cover the group with a single shot, using a
moderate wide-angle lens. Lenses wider than about
28mm can introduce unwanted distortions and
should be avoided.
Next arrange sufficient seating to allow at least one
third of the subjects to sit down. Placing a row of
chairs in front of a veranda will allow you to arrange
the group in three tiers: on the chairs, behind them
and lined up along the edge of the veranda. When
there are children in the group, they’re usually
happy to sit on the floor in front of the seated
adults.
Once your subjects arrive, act quickly and
decisively. Organise them into groups and tell
them where you’d like them to sit or stand. Clear
directions, politely but firmly expressed can help
you to cut through dithering and obstruction. The
quicker you have everyone in place, the easier the
next step of your task will be.
TAKING THE SHOTS
Once everybody is positioned, act quickly. If
you dither, your subjects will become bored and
restless. They’ll begin talking and stop paying
attention to you and your chances of getting a shot
in which everyone is looking at the camera will be
reduced.
When dealing with your subjects it’s important to
act in a friendly way, without being either bossy or
patronising. Speak loudly enough to be heard but
keep your voice low enough to make your subjects
pay attention to you. Be specific when giving
commands or asking anything of your subjects.
There are plenty of ways to get people to look as if
they are smiling, including the time-honoured ‘say
cheese’. But, since they often produce unnatural
expressions, it’s better to just say something that
will make your subjects laugh (or smile).
Take a sequence of shots in rapid succession – at
least four; preferably six. Then, if you would like
to change your shooting position, move quickly,
repeat the exercise and take another sequence of
shots. (Don’t use the camera’s burst mode as it will
probably be too fast to ensure sufficient differences
between shots.)
PROCESSING AND EDITING
We’re now at the most challenging step in the
production process: combining the best parts of
several images. Start by identifying the image with
the fewest problem areas and note which ones can
be fixed by replacing them with selections from the
other images you’ve shot.
Now scan through the other images you’ve taken,
looking for ones in which the problem areas are not
so difficult. These images will be used to source
replacements for the areas you have identified.
Open the replacement image and enlarge both
images, setting your editor to display them side-byside.
> The Problem
The problem areas in this image are circled.
They include people looking away, faces partly
hidden and unattractive expressions, all typical
issues you could expect to encounter.
39
tips: shooting
> STEP 1. Replacement
> STEP 2. Paste
> STEP 3. Erase
The two images displayed ready to take the
replacement area from the right hand image and
use it to cover the problem area on the left.
Using the lasso tool in the toolbar, carefully select
the area from the right side image. Copy this
selection.
Now paste it onto the original image and move
it to cover the problem area. This gives you two
layers, the upper one being the replacement.
You’ll probably find a few areas that don’t
coincide perfectly (such as those outlined in the
illustration). Don’t worry; they can be dealt with in
several ways.
One way is to erase part of the overlapping image
to reveal the image beneath it. This only works
when subjects haven’t moved and backgrounds
haven’t changed. Use a relatively small brush
and set the hardness to zero when you use this
strategy. When the replacement area has been
blended in to your satisfaction, click on Layer >
Merge Down to apply it to the image below.
> STEP 4. Transform
> STEP 5. Transform 2
> STEP 6. Adjustment
The next problem is the subject looking away from
the camera. There’s a better shot of the person
in front of her so we’ll copy and paste an area
containing both from another shot.
Once the replacement area is positioned, you
can see a slight difference in the positions of the
subjects in the lower half of the replacement
area. This can be adjusted by Transforming the
replacement area. Click on Edit > Transform > Warp.
When you see a grid overlay on the replacement
area, adjust its shape by pulling on or nudging
the intersection points in the overlaid grid. This
strategy can be combined with erasing areas
where you can’t get a good match. Merge down
when you’re happy with the end result.
For the next replacement, it’s easier to replace
four faces than one because there’s a lot of
overlapping. Positioning the replacement area is
tricky, but tweaking the opacity slider in the Layers
dialog box to the left allows you to see how it fits
over the base layer. This can help you to adjust the
replacement for the best fit.
> STEP 7. Copy and Paste
> Final
The last replacement involves a straightforward
copy-and-paste with just a little warping to adjust
for slight movements in the subjects covered by
the replacement area. The final image is shown on
this page.
The end result after replacement of the problem areas with areas from other shots taken at the same time.
40
manfrotto.com
tips: outputting
On the Road to Gundagai, NSW
Ken Duncan’s
Image Presentation Tips
PANORAMA SPECIALIST KEN DUNCAN TALKS TO
PHOTO REVIEW ABOUT GALLERIES, PRINTERS, INKS,
PRINT SURFACES, FRAMING, AND THE MOST APPEALING
WAYS TO PRESENT IMAGES.
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Standing Ovation, Terrigal, NSW
What types of images generate the most
interest in your gallery – and online?
People mainly buy images in our Galleries or online
due to an emotional response to – or connection
with – a specific image (or set of images). People
generally like images that bring a sense of peace
into their home or work space, or images that
inspire a sense of awe.
When it comes to landscape images, good
seascapes are very popular. And when it comes to
animal photography, certain animals are favoured
over others. For example, not many people want
to buy photos of hyenas or crocodiles, but most
people love good photos of the big cats and
elephants, giraffe, zebra, etc.
Is there a preference for certain types of
landscapes – or horizontal orientation rather
than vertical?
I don’t believe it is the format that makes a
photograph saleable – it really comes down to
how strong the photo is. Often photographers are
too close to their own work and they don’t accept
enough input from other people who have what
I consider a good commercial eye – people who
don’t have any personal involvement in taking the
image, but are able to judge it fairly to see if it
creates some emotional connection for them.
The fact that the photograph was technically hard
to achieve doesn’t mean a great deal to a buyer
if the shot doesn’t touch them. I recommend that
photographers invite a selection team to give their
opinion on what the photographer thinks are his
or her best images. That team should include a
majority of women as they are the principal buyers
of art for homes or office spaces.
Just because a photo wins a photographic award
does not necessarily mean it is an image that will
sell to the general public. For me, the greatest
award you will ever receive as a photographer is
when someone is willing to part with their hard
earned money to have one of your works on
display in their home or business.
I think more photography awards should be judged
by art buyers rather than by fellow photographers.
Matching the paper surface to image type:
does this change for different types of
subjects?
It has taken me 30 years to get to the point where
I now have what I consider the best presentation
form for photography. I have personally done
extensive research and testing as I have heard
many claims made by manufacturers, but when
you ask them to put those claims in writing as a
guarantee, they will not do it.
This is an area of great concern to me as I believe
a photograph should be printed to the highest
possible archival standards if it is to be considered
collectible art. Because I’ve been doing this for
over 30 years, I now know what lasts and what
doesn’t.
The trouble with many photographers is that they
will make all sorts of claims about how long their
work will last, but those claims are not based on
real display conditions for photographic art.
43
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One of terms most bandied about is
‘archival permanence’ but the very word
archiving means to keep something in a
controlled environment for posterity. It has
nothing to do with exposing photographic
art to variations in light, humidity and
temperature when an artwork is hung on
a wall. Therefore I don’t believe it should
be a case of selecting a medium for a
particular image, but rather using the best
medium for long term display in real-life
conditions.
I now consider the best combination
for photographic artworks is to print on
Hahnemuhle paper (or equivalent fine art
paper) using an Epson inkjet printer with
Ultrachrome inks. All inkjet prints should
be sprayed to protect the surface of the
artworks.
Even though prints may be framed behind
glass or acrylic, over time air-borne
contaminants will be deposited on the
print and if the surface is not protected,
there will be no way of removing those
contaminants without damage to the
image.
In framing, the finest quality acid-free
mats should be used (preferably 100%
cotton rag). I use museum-grade acrylic in
preference to glass, because it transports
more safely – especially for large pieces
– and offers far greater UV protection for
the artwork. Acrylic is also less affected
by temperature changes than glass,
which means that it doesn’t heat and
cool so readily, and therefore creates
less convection currents to deposit
contaminants on the print surface.
Emerald Waters, WA
44
Midnight Oil, Silverton, NSW
Is there a general preference for
glossy papers over matte papers?
I now believe it’s better to use a fine art
paper, which has a matte finish. I want
the image to be as sharp as possible,
but we don’t give our clients a choice of
mediums. We use what we believe is the
best material available at the time and that
is now fine art paper, which has a matte
finish. Another reason I like the fine art
paper is that it gives far less reflection
problems than a gloss surface when faced
with museum grade acrylic.
Any comments on ‘metallic’ papers?
Are there subject types they work well
for? Subjects where they should be
avoided?
I will not use metallic papers as they do not
give the archival permanence of fine art
papers.
Many people make all sorts of claims in
this area, but through our own testing, I
have found those claims to be untrue.
How popular are prints on canvas? Is
this popularity growing or declining?
As a collector, I would never buy a photo
printed on canvas – I believe canvas prints
are consumable decor only. I guess for
some applications canvas can look good,
but it will always be consumable decor.
And unless canvas is specially treated it is
unlikely to last.
I think a photograph should not pretend to
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be a painting - let paintings be paintings
and photographs be photographs.
Another area I think people should be
wary of is face mounting (fusing prints
to the reverse side of a sheet of acrylic).
Although it can look hip and happening, it
is definitely something that photographers
should avoid.
From our own testing, we have discovered
that the vast majority of face mounted
images will de-laminate over time. Also,
if the prints have not been well washed,
any chemical residue on the print may
ultimately create major colour shifts.
As photographers, we can sometimes get
very excited by new technologies and will
expound all the so-called archival figures
given to us on a particular medium. But
nothing takes the place of real-life testing
and this is the only way we can assess
whether new technologies are going to be
viable in the long term.
How important is it to present prints in
frames? Do you have any guidelines on
how to match frames to pictures?
I used to believe in keeping the frame
simple so as not to take attention away
from the artwork, but I am now of the
belief that a beautiful frame can make a
huge difference to the appearance and
saleability of an artwork.
We have recently introduced Bellini handcrafted Italian mouldings into our Galleries
and the response from clients has been
wonderful. When you see a beautiful image
printed to the highest standards, then
finished in a magnificent Bellini frame, it
takes photographic art to the highest level
possible.
Are there situations or subject
types when images look better if not
framed? (Canvas prints, for example?)
There are many decor applications
for photography and a multitude of
presentation options available. But when it
comes to collectible artworks, I only want
a piece that is printed and framed to the
highest standards.
The role of the frame should be to protect
and enhance the image, and a print that
is not framed correctly will not be well
protected in the long term.
Do you prefer to present your
images singly or as collections? If
as collections, can you comment on
the value of presenting a collection
as – small prints within a large frame,
large prints bound into a book, or
large prints in a folder or portfolio
box?
When it comes to presentation of images
for sale as artworks, it is imperative
that photographers present their work
as professionally as possible. I believe a
portfolio of prints in a beautiful case is
one of the greatest sales tools a fine art
photographer can have.
Of course, the ultimate method of display
is to have an exhibition to really showcase
the work to prospective clients. It doesn’t
Inner Sanctum, WA
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Round Up, Glenworth Valley, NSW
Kakadu Dreaming, NT
matter whether you’re presenting a series of prints
on one subject, or a variety of images on different
subjects, so long as each image is strong.
And it’s important not to overwhelm prospective
buyers by showing them too many images. After
seeing 30 or 40 images, some clients are unable
to decide which one/s to buy.
If exhibiting in a gallery situation is not possible,
then I believe the next best option is a beautiful
portfolio case as it allows people to touch the
images – to connect with them – and to perhaps
put some up against their wall and get a feel for
how it would look in their home.
I believe photographers do themselves a huge
disservice by showing their work only in digital
46
format – worst-case scenario would be a
smartphone or tablet – as many people have a
perception that digital imagery should be either
cheap or even free. For an example of a really
professional portfolio case go to our website
– http://www.kenduncan.com/index.php/
product?code=PORTFOLIO.
How useful is it to produce a photo book
containing related images? Do you feel
photo books are a good way to present an
enthusiast’s image collection?
For photo enthusiasts, creating a book or album
of their images from a special trip or significant
occasion is a great idea. These make wonderful
memories and also force us to make a selection of
images, rather than expecting our audience to sit
through hundreds – or even thousands – of photos
from our last overseas holiday.
Presenting images in this way also gives the
photographer good feedback on which images

really touch people.
See more of Ken’s images at
www.kenduncan.com
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Choosing Printing
Papers for Portfolios
WE INVESTIGATE THE BEST AND MOST COST-EFFECTIVE
MEDIA FOR PRESENTING IMAGES.
By Margaret Brown
Y
our choice of paper can make a huge difference
to the way people will react to your image
portfolio. A paper that may enhance the appearance
of some images could detract from it with others.
The attributes most likely to influence viewers’
responses are the surface of the paper, its base
colour and its thickness. In this feature we’ll examine
how these characteristics relate to printing your
portfolio and provide advice on how to narrow
your options, instead of having to sort through a
multitude of papers from many suppliers.
The best way to present your portfolio is in a folder
or Solander box that opens fully to allow easy access
to the prints.
You should also aim to match the paper’s surface
to the type of photograph you plan to print. Some
images – for example, portraits – look best on soft,
textured papers with a slightly warm tone. Others,
like landscapes, buildings and product photographs,
can look better on bright white, glossy media.
Choose textured surfaces when they will
complement the image. Be wary of surfaces that
suppress contrast and saturation. While heavilytextured papers may feel more luxurious in a
potential buyer’s hands, if the impact of the image is
reduced by the texture, the sale could be lost.
Look for ways to present the collection as an
entity, rather than a casual group of prints made at
different times on different papers. Keep all prints
the same size and on the same paper, especially
when the image collection covers a common theme.
When presenting an overview of the different types
of pictures you produce, consider grouping them in
themes presented in individual folders.
SURFACE CHARACTERISTICS
Different paper surfaces tend to be associated
with a particular paper type, and each has specific
printing and handling characteristics. Glossy photo
paper is smooth to the touch and gives prints a
rich appearance with sharp definition and vivid
colours. High-gloss (or super-gloss) is even shinier
to emphasise these characteristics.
Unfortunately, prints on glossy media are
vulnerable to fingermarking. They may also produce
specular reflections (glare) under directional lighting
and, consequently, require shadowless lighting when
they are viewed.
Semi-gloss (also known as ‘silk’, ‘velvet’, ‘satin’,
‘pearl’ or ‘soft gloss’) papers are much less shiny
than glossy media and more robust when handled.
Some have a slightly textured surface; others
are relatively smooth. Because texturing tends to
scatter light reflected off the paper’s surface, these
papers are less affected by specular reflections,
but contrast and colour saturation are slightly lower
than in prints on glossy papers.
Matte papers tend to be slightly porous. Their
surfaces are smooth and flat and immune to
fingermarking and specular reflections. Some matte
papers have slightly textured surfaces, while others
are ultra-smooth.
Prints on matte papers may not appear as rich
and vibrant as those on glossy media, particularly
when they’re made with dye inks (pigment inks
usually appear richer on matte papers). However,
subtle tones are often shown to advantage.
Although usually considered as a special class
of papers, ‘Fine Art’ papers usually have matte
surfaces, rather than glossy. Most are thicker than
regular papers and some are quite heavily textured.
Papers made from cotton rag are usually acidand lignin-free and provide greater longevity than
ordinary papers. Because they are made to higher
standards than normal printing papers and more
fibre is involved in their manufacture, most have
higher price tags.
Fine art papers are more dimensionally stable than
standard papers so they don’t warp or bulge when
bound together or framed. Some have baryta surface
coatings to replicate the look and feel of traditional
photo papers. These papers are ideal for prints
that will be displayed in book format or as boxed
collections, and also for prints that will be framed.
SURFACE PROTECTION
Because pigment inks lie on the surface of the
paper, instead of being absorbed into the top
layer like dye inks, prints made with them must
be handled with care, particularly when the paper
surface is textured. Flakes of pigment can rub off
with a light brush of the hand in some cases.
Coatings are available to seal the surface of
the print, protecting it from abrasion and against
environmental pollutants. They often provide UV
protection as well. Some can also add a gentle
surface sheen.
Most coating products are made from acrylic
polymers, which means they are water-soluble
but dry to a water-resistant surface that allows
moisture to pass through to prevent the print
from buckling. Coatings are available in aerosol
sprays (small quantities) as well as bottles or
cans, where large volumes are required.
Once the coating is applied, the print must
be allowed to air dry for several hours. For
portfolios, where prints must withstand repeated
handling, several coats could be required to
provide adequate protection.
Popular brands sold in Australia include
Hahnemuhle, Liquitex, Permajet and Premier Art.
They are available from stockists of professional
imaging products and also from some artists’
supply stores.
Note: Spraying a print with a UV-blocking
coating will negate the effect of the optical
brighteners that make some papers white. For
prints on these papers, choose a coating without
UV protection.
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BASE COLOUR
The colour of the paper itself can influence the
way the colours and tones in printed images appear.
Images on bright white paper usually have more
vibrant colours and deeper, richer blacks. However,
light hues can ‘wash-out’ on the whitest papers.
If colour and contrast are key features in your
images, a bright, white paper enables the maximum
colour gamut and black density of the image to be
reproduced. Images with subtle tones and reduced
contrast often look better on papers with warmer,
natural base colours.
There appears to be no standard for quantifying
paper brightness, although it is often rated on a
scale of 1 to 100 with 100 being the brightest.
Photo papers are normally in the mid to high 90s.
Some manufacturers use terms like ‘Bright White’
and ‘UltraBright’ instead of numbers and many
papers aren’t labelled with brightness ratings.
Because the natural colour of the material from
which paper is made is generally creamy beige, the
easiest way to make papers that look white is for
manufacturers to add optical brighteners. These
chemicals work by reflecting shorter wavelengths
of light more than longer ones, using fluorescence.
This makes the paper look bright white.
However, they degrade over time, reducing the
ability of the brighteners to fluoresce. Eventually, the
paper will revert to its normal creamy hue and the
advantage of the brighteners is lost forever.
Brighteners decay faster when prints are exposed
to light than when they are kept in boxes or folders.
So if you like the look of bright white papers and
don’t display your prints under fluorescent lighting or
in direct daylight, there’s no reason not to use them.
All leading paper manufacturers produce papers
with and without brighteners. You can also find
papers that look white but have very low brightener
levels. These papers are less likely to change their
base colour over time.
PAPER CERTIFICATION
To cater for photographers who produce
limited edition prints of their images for
collectors and public galleries, Hahnemuhle
has introduced a Certificate of Authenticity
and Hologram System. This system has three
components: a certificate and a serialised
number hologram, plus an online registration
service.
Authenticity is identified through the
certificate (shown here), which is supplied with
the print and carries a Hahnemuhle watermark
THICKNESS
Thickness is specified in two ways: in grams/
square metre (gsm) and mils (thousandths of
an inch). Some paper manufacturers print both
specifications on their packaging; others provide
neither, leaving the purchaser to assess thickness
by handling the paper. A minimum weight of 260
gsm should provide enough stiffness for portfolio
prints, although 300 gsm and heavier papers will
create an impression of higher quality.
Thick papers give the impression of higher
quality, which makes them ideal for portfolio prints.
Flimsy media feel cheap and they may not be totally
opaque. They can also cause paper jams in some
printers.
Check your printer’s specifications to find the
maximum paper weight it can handle. The paper
feed mechanisms in many consumer-level printers
aren’t robust enough to handle thick media. Some
printers require heavier papers to be fed in through
a special chute or slot and most can only accept one
sheet of heavy paper at a time.
48
and fluorescent security fibres. The certificates
are manufactured to the strict standards and
regulations of Europay and Clearstream, world
leaders in forgery resistant printing. Each
certificate has a serialised number hologram.
A second, identically numbered hologram
can then be applied directly to the reverse side
of the artwork. Photographers can also register
each print on an international website (http://
www.myartregistry).
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SAMPLE PACKS
Some paper manufacturers and/or distributors
offer sample packs containing several paper types
and surfaces. The following sample packs were
available in Australia when we went to press:
- Hahnemuhle offers sample packs priced at $19
each, containing between 12 and 14 sheets that
cover its Textured Matte, Smooth Matte and Glossy
inkjet papers with two A4 sheets per paper type.
- Innova also produces a 12-sheet pack for $15,
featuring Innova and Chromajet ‘archival’ papers.
- The Canson Infinity Discovery Pack ($27)
includes 11 A4 sheets, one for each paper type,
including canvas.
- Image Science has also put together sample
packs for the following papers: Harman by
Hahnemuhle, Ilford Galerie and Museo (formerly
Crane Museo).
Epson produces sample packs but doesn’t offer
them in Australia. HP and Canon produce sample
packs but only for bundling with certain printers. If
samples aren’t available for a paper that interests
you, it’s often possible to buy a 20- to 25-sheet
pack in A4 size for less than $50.

SOME PAPERS TO CONSIDER
GLOSSY
TEXTURED MATTE
SMOOTH MATTE
Canon Photo Paper Pro Platinum PT-101
300 gsm is a bright white glossy paper with
resin coating. Dye inks take full advantage of
its expanded colour gamut and produce rich
and deep blacks with high durability. ($51 per
10-sheet box of A3+.)
Epson Cold Press is a textured matte paper
that is optimised for Epson UltraChrome inks.
Available with Bright or Natural base colours,
it is made from 100% cotton rag with a base
weight of 340 gsm. ($121 per 25-sheet box
of A3+.)
Epson Hot Press is a smooth matte paper
that is optimised for Epson UltraChrome inks.
Available with Bright or Natural base colours,
it is made from 100% cotton rag with a base
weight of 330 gsm. ($121 per 25-sheet box
of A3+.)
Canson Infinity Platine Fibre Rag 310
gsm is a premium 100% cotton rag paper
with a glossy surface, pure white base and
microporous coating that is compatible with
pigment and dye inks. It contains no optical
brighteners. ($132 per 25-sheet box of A3+.)
Epson Traditional Photo Paper 330 gsm
is designed exclusively for use with Epson’s
UltraChrome pigment ink and provides the
look and feel of traditional silver gelatin prints.
Ideal for B&W printing, it can also be used for
colour prints. ($102.10 per 25-sheet box of
A3+.)
Harman by Hahnemuhle Gloss Art Fibre
Warmtone 300 gsm is a fibre-based paper that
combines a warm white base with a fine gloss,
microporous surface to impart a distinctive
look. ($163 per 30-sheet box of A3+.)
Epson’s Hot Press Bright papers enhance
images with subtle tones and abundant detail.
SEMI-GLOSS AND LUSTRE
Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Pearl 320 gsm is
100% cotton, fibre-based paper that contains
no optical brighteners but delivers deep
blacks and a wide colour gamut. ($162.90 per
25-sheet box of A3+.)
Ilford Galerie Gold Fibre Silk 310 gsm is
a coated fibre paper with a lustre surface that
is only recommended for pigment ink printers.
It has a similar look and feel to traditional
fibre photographic papers. ($51 per 10-sheet
box of A3+; reduces to ~ $2.80 per sheet in
50-sheet boxes.)
Innova Fibaprint Satin 300 gsm has a
bright white base and microporous coating
and is compatible with pigment and dye inks.
($63 for a 25-sheet box of A3.)
Epson’s Cold Press Natural papers are well suited
to artistic images that contain plenty of detail.
Hahnemuhle German Etching 310 gsm
is a ‘mould-made’, natural white paper with
100% pulp content and a fine surface texture.
($129.30 per 25-sheet box of A3+.)
Harman by Hahnemuhle Matte Cotton
Textured 300 gsm is a matte paper with a
fine watercolour surface structure and 100%
cotton rag base suitable for dye and pigment
inks. ($163 per 30-sheet box of A3+.)
Innova Roughtex 315 gsm has a natural
white finish with a coarse structured
surface like a traditional watercolour paper.
Compatible with dye and pigment inks. ($65
for a 25-sheet box of A3+.)
Hahnemuhle Photo Rag 308 gsm is a
photo art paper with a very smooth surface
texture that is usable with dye and pigment
inks. It provides excellent image sharpness,
optimum colour graduation and a very high
level of water resistance. ($141 per 25-sheet
box of A3+.)
Museo Portfolio Rag 300 gsm is a very
smooth archival matte paper made from
100% cotton rag with no optical brighteners.
Optimised for pigment inks, it reproduces a
wide tonal range. ($113 per 25-sheet box of
A3+.)
49
image by: Steve Norris - Katoomba Camera House
TRUE
TO LIFE
IMAGES
EVERYTIME
I AM l PHOTOS THAT COME ALIVE
My Motion Snapshot combines slow motion
video and still image together when you
press the shutter button to create a ‘living
image’ to keep the story of a moment alive.
I AM l YOUR IDEAL SHOT
My Photo Smart Selector always captures
the best shot by recording 20 full-resolution
images and then recommending the
best 5 shots based on facial expression,
composition and focus.
I AM l THE WORLD’S FASTEST AUTO FOCUS
Shoot without delay and switch instantly
between Phase-Detection AF for shiny or
moving subjects, and Contrast Detect AF if
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J1
Get creative with the new compact system camera from
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www.camerahouse.com.au
I AM l FILM & PHOTO AT ONCE
Not only can Nikon 1 record full HD movies in
extreme slow motion and in stereo sound, it
can take a full-resolution photo while you’re
filming without interrupting recording.
I AM l EXTREME PRECISION
The bright, 1440k-dot electronic viewfinder
delivers a steady view and 100% frame
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buyers guide
DSLR PRO
Nikon D800
Replacing the D700 at the entry
level for Nikon’s FX camera line-up,
the 36-megapixel D800 will appeal to landscape,
industrial, architectural and fashion photographers
who need high resolution for large prints. A more
expensive version, the D800E, produces maximum
image sharpness by disabling the aliasing and moiré
pattern reduction of the optical low-pass filter. (It
doesn’t mean this camera has no filter; just that it’s a
different one, without anti-aliasing.)
Both D800s’ bodies are made from magnesium
alloy and environmentally sealed. While superficially
similar to the D700, the grip is different and the
control layout has been revised.
On the front panel, the focus mode selector has
been changed and now includes a button within
the AF/MF toggle for changing AF modes. The rear
command dial selects between single-servo and
continuous AF. Unfortunately, the D800 doesn’t lock
the shutter when the image isn’t focused, making it
possible to take out-of-focus pictures.
The rear panel sports a larger 3.2-inch monitor,
while a dedicated still/video lever and Live View on/
off button replaces the D700’s AF mode selector. The
Live View mode now displays the image as the sensor
‘sees’ it, so you see the effect of changes to aperture
and white balance settings. The zoom in and zoom
out buttons left of the monitor screen have been
swapped. The top panel gains a Bracketing button
and Movie start/stop button.
The D800 has slots for CompactFlash Type I and
SD/SDHC/SDXC cards. Eye-Fi wireless SDHC cards
are officially supported. A USB 3.0 port, headphone
jack and connector for an external microphone are
located in the interface bay – but there’s no AV-out
port.
Four image area settings (sensor crops) are
provided: FX (35.9 x 24.0mm), 5:4 (30.0 x 24.0mm),
1.2x (30.0 x 19.9mm), and DX (23.4 x 15.6mm). All
are visually masked in the viewfinder.
The shutter mechanism is rated to 200,000 cycles
and the shutter release can be set to start and
stop video recording. The AF system is upgraded
to support f/5.6 and faster AF Nikkor lenses. Full
AF capability is available with long telephoto lenses
at open aperture values up to f/8. A 91,000-pixel
metering sensor works with the camera’s Advanced
Scene Recognition System to assists the face
detection AF/AE capability.
The front Fn and Depth of Field Preview buttons
can be set to control the power aperture in movie
mode. The HDR mode (‘borrowed’ from the D5100)
combines two exposures into a single image with an
extended dynamic range.
The D800 produces large image files, with TIFFs
averaging 108MB and uncompressed NEF.RAW files
almost 75MB. You’ll need high-capacity memory
cards, more space for storing images and a faster
computer to handle all the data. The maximum frame
rate for FX or 5:4 images is four frames/
second, rising to six fps with the 1.2x
crop.
The D800’s video capabilities are
almost the same as the D4’s. Movies
can only be recorded in live view mode,
which only supports FX and DX (1.5x
crop) image areas. Most features required
by professional shooters are provided. Full
manual control is available for shutter speed,
aperture and ISO settings. Contrast detect AF is
used.
Like the D4, the D800 can deliver ‘broadcast
quality’ uncompressed (8-bit, 4:2:2 colour sampling)
video recordings – but only via its HDMI port, and it
can’t be recorded on the standard memory cards;
only on an external recorder.
PERFORMANCE
The review camera’s AF system was fast and
accurate when the viewfinder was used for shot
composition. Live View mode slowed autofocusing
noticeably and also increased capture lag.
Our Imatest analysis of both JPEG and NEF.RAW
images showed excellent colour accuracy. Saturation
was very modest and the dynamic range in images
was noticeably wider than average up to about ISO
3200.
At ISO 6400 noise was noticeable, although images
were still usable and printable to A4 size. In the
extended ISO settings, shots became softer, blotchier
and flatter. Applying noise reduction processing
produced colour shifts and reduced edge definition.
Resolution met expectations for the camera’s
36MP sensor with the 85mm f/1.4G prime lens
producing superior results to the 24-70mm zoom.
Auto white balance performance was similar to other
high-end Nikon cameras.
Video clips were comparable with the results we
obtained from the EOS 5D Mark III. Movies recorded
in mixed lighting and poorly-lit environments appeared
quite impressive.
The camera powered-up ready for shooting almost
immediately. Live View shooting became accessible
within roughly 0.51 seconds. Capture lag was
negligible with the viewfinder but extended to roughly
1.5 seconds in Live View mode, mainly because of AF
lag.
Shot-to-shot times averaged 0.25 seconds
without flash, extending to 2.4 seconds with. It
took 1.9 seconds to process a single JPEG file and
2.1 seconds for a raw file and 2.6 seconds for a
RAW+JPEG pair. Processing a TIFF file took 3.8
seconds on average.
In the high-speed continuous shooting mode with
the CF card, the camera recorded 12 Large/Fine
JPEGs in 2.2 seconds. It took 7.9 seconds to process
this burst. For bursts of RAW+JPEG pairs, the camera
recorded 10 shots in 2.2 seconds, which was close to
four frames/second. It took
17.8 seconds to process this
burst.
With the SDHC card, we recorded bursts
of 10 Large/Fine JPEGs and RAW+JPEG pairs in 2.2
seconds. It took 8.5 seconds to process the JPEGs
but 19.5 seconds to process the RAW+JPEG burst.
IN SUMMARY
Nikon’s 36-megapixel FX format DSLR provides
benefits for many stills photographers plus very
impressive video recording capabilities.
QUALITY RATING (OUT OF 10)

Build:
9.3

Ease of use:
8.5

Autofocusing:

Still image quality:

Video quality:
9.5

Overall:
9.0
RRP: $3465
9.0
JPEG - 9.3; RAW - 9.5
(body only)
DISTRIBUTOR: Nikon Australia; 1300 366 499;
www.nikon.com.au
SPECIFICATIONS
IMAGE SENSOR
35.9 x 24.0mm CMOS sensor with 36.8 million
photosites (36.3 megapixels effective)
IMAGE FORMATS
Stills – NEF.RAW, TIFF, JPEG (Exif 2.3), RAW+JPEG;
Movies – H.264/MPEG-4 Advanced Video Coding
IMAGE SIZES
Stills – FX format (36 x 24): 7360 x 4912 (L), 5520
x 3680 (M), 3680 x 2456 (S); 1.2x (30 x 20): 6144
x 4080 (L), 4608 x 3056 (M), 3072 x 2040 (S); DX
format (24 x 16): 4800 x 3200 (L), 3600 x 2400 (M),
2400 x 1600 (S); 5:4 (30 x 24): 6144 x 4912 (L), 4608
x 3680 (M), 3072 x 2456 (S); Movies: 1920 x 1080 at
30p, 25p, 24p; 1280 x 720 at 60p, 50p, 30p, 25p;
SHUTTER SPEED RANGE
1/8,000 to 30 seconds in steps of 1/3, 1/2 or 1 EV,
bulb, X-synch at 1/250 second
SHUTTER RELEASE MODES
S (single frame), CL (continuous low speed),
CH (continuous high speed), Q (quiet), self-timer,
mirror up
POWER SUPPLY
EN-EL15 rechargeable lithium-ion battery; CIPA
rated for approx. 900 shots
DIMENSIONS (WXHXD)
Approx. 146 x 123 x 81.5mm (body only)
WEIGHT
Approx. 900 grams (body only)
51
buyers guide
DSLR ENTRY LEVEL
Sony SLT-A57
Sony’s new SLT-A57 replaces the
popular SLT-A55 model, offering
some worthwhile new features without changing
sensor resolution. As in previous models, the
Translucent Mirror Technology design allows full-time
continuous AF during both still and video shooting as
well as fast burst capture speeds, and the new camera
has a generous buffer capacity to take advantage of
this capability.
The body of the A57 is made from polycarbonate
resin and is identical in size to the A65, although seven
grams lighter. Its control layout is also similar. But
where the A65 has a 24.3-megapixel sensor, the A57
sports a 16.1 megapixel chip, which accounts for the
$400 price difference.
Sony offers the A57 in two kits: with the DT
18-55mm zoom lens; and the DT 18-55 and DT
55-200mm lenses. Our testing was carried out with
the Sony DT 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 SAM lens, which is
reviewed on page 61 and isn’t offered with the camera
on Sony’s website.
The A57 introduces several new features to help
novice users. A new Auto Portrait Framing function
uses face detection technology and rule-of-thirds
composition to create well-balanced portraits. Face
detection establishes where the subject’s eyes are in
the frame, then cropping positions them one third of
the way down the frame.
A preview of the framing is displayed on the
LCD monitor. The cropped image is up-scaled by
interpolation to the specified resolution and saved as
a new file.
The Clear Image Zoom function from Sony’s Cybershots improves on the normal digital zoom function
with Sony’s ‘By Pixel Super Resolution Technology’,
which doubles the image size by interpolation.
The normal digital zoom function provides higher
magnification for both still shots and movies and can
be combined with Clear Image Zoom.
The Superior Auto setting uses scene recognition
to identify different types of subjects. The built-in
program can recognise 12 different scene types:
Portrait, Backlit Portrait, Night Portrait, Landscape,
Hand-held Twilight, Night Scene, Tripod Night Scene,
Backlight, Macro, Spotlight, Low Brightness and Baby.
A new Tele-zoom Continuous Advance Priority
AE mode enables the camera to record at up to 12
frames/second (fps), cropping to provide a 1.4x
magnification boost. The image size can be set to M or
S in this mode.
The SLT-A57 can record Full HD movies with frame
rates of both 50p (progressive) for smooth, blur-free
action and 25p for a cinematic look. The availability of
the camera’s P/A/S/M shooting modes give users full
control over movie making.
Other professional features include Shot Result
Preview and shading and aberration compensation
to reduce chromatic aberrations and lens distortion.
Users can choose from a selection of information
52
displays (including a digital level gauge and
framing grid) for the Tru-Finder EVF and
adjustable 3-inch Xtra Fine LCD.
The SLT-A57 also supports sensitivities
from ISO 100 to ISO 16,000. SteadyShot INSIDE
stabilisation gives a shutter speed advantage of 2.5 to
4.5 f-stops, depending on the lens used.
PERFORMANCE
Pictures taken with the review camera and 18135mm lens were sharp and colourful and both the AF
system and exposure system handled a wide range of
shooting conditions effectively. Imatest showed colour
accuracy to be generally good with JPEG files, and
saturation was only slightly boosted.
The review camera’s resolution came close to
expectations with JPEG files and slightly exceeded
them when ARW.RAW files were converted with the
latest version of Adobe Camera Raw. Resolution held
up well across most of the camera’s ISO range.
Long exposures at night contained plenty of detail
up to ISO 3200. Noise became obvious by ISO 12,800
and slight softening was evident at ISO 16,000. Flash
exposures were evenly exposed across the ISO range.
Slight softening was found at ISO 12,800 and ISO
16,000.
Shots taken under incandescent lighting with the
auto white balance retained a noticeable orange cast
but the camera delivered close-to-neutral colours with
fluorescent light. Both pre-sets over-corrected colours
slightly but plenty of in-camera adjustments are
provided for tweaking images as you shoot.
Autofocusing was fast and accurate and the review
camera was able to track moving subjects during
both high-speed bursts of shots and video recording.
Low-light autofocusing slowed when subjects had very
low contrast.
The Sweep Panorama modes worked well in normal
daylight. However, slight flaws in the combination of
images could be seen in shots taken in dim indoor
lighting, particularly with the Wide setting.
Video quality was similar to the A65’s and
impressive, even in drizzling rain, regardless of which
resolution/compression setting was used. Soundtrack
recordings were clear and vibrant and the wind cut
filter proved quite effective.
The review camera powered-up in less than one
second. Capture lag remained consistently under 0.1
second. Pre-focusing totally eliminated it. Shot-toshot times averaged 0.5 seconds without flash and 3.6
seconds with.
In the Hi-speed burst mode, we recorded a burst of
10 Large/Fine JPEG frames in 1.2 seconds, which is
only marginally slower than specifications. It took 6.1
seconds to process this burst.
The same capture times applied to bursts of ARW.
RAW files and RAW+JPEG pairs. It took 11.9 seconds
to process a burst of 10 raw files and 13.6 seconds
for a burst of 10 RAW+JPEG pairs.
Regardless of the resolution/quality setting, the Lospeed burst mode recorded 10 frames in 2.8 seconds.
Bursts for high-resolution JPEGs were processed in
5.8 seconds, while ARW.RAW files took 11.1 seconds.
RAW+JPEG pairs took 12.9 seconds to process.

IN SUMMARY
Sony adds Full HD progressive and interlaced
recording plus new shooting modes to its latest
16-megapixel DSLR.

Build:

Ease of use:
8.5

Autofocusing:
8.8

Video quality:

Overall:
8.5
JPEG - 8.8; RAW - 9.0
AVCHD - 8.8; MPEG4 - 8.8
8.8
RRP: $799
(body only)
$949 with SAL1855 lens
DISTRIBUTOR: Sony Australia; 1300 720 071;
www.sony.com.au
SPECIFICATIONS
IMAGE SENSOR
23.5 x 15.6mm Exmor APS HD CMOS sensor with
16.7 million photosites (16.1 megapixels effective)
IMAGE FORMATS
Stills –ARW.RAW, JPEG (Exif 2.3), RAW+JPEG, MPO
(3D);
Movies – AVCHD / MP4 AVC (H.264)
IMAGE SIZES
Stills – 3:2 aspect: 4912 x 3264, 3568 x 2368, 2448
x 1624; 16:9 aspect: 4912 x 2760, 3568 x 2000, 2448
x 1370; Sweep Panorama Standard: Horizontal(15M):
8192 x 1856; Vertical(8.4M): 2160 x 3872; Sweep
Panorama Wide: Horizontal(23M): 12,416 x 1856;
Vertical(12M): 2160 x 5536; 3D Sweep Panorama
Wide: 7152 x 1080; 3D Sweep Panorama Standard:
4912 x 1080, 1920 x 1080;
Movies: AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 (50p, 28M/PS),1920 x
1080 (50i, 24M/FX),1920 x 1080 (50i, 17M/FH),1920 x
1080 (25p, 24M/FX),1920 x 1080 (25p, 17M/FH); MP4 1440 x 1080 (25fps), VGA(640 x 480, 25fps)
SHUTTER SPEED RANGE
30 to 1/4000 second plus Bulb; flash synch at 1/160
second
POWER SUPPLY
NP-FM500H rechargeable
lithium-ion battery; CIPA rated for approx. 550 shots
(Viewfinder) or approx. 590 shots (LCD monitor)
DIMENSIONS (WXHXD)
Approx. 132.1 x 97.5 x 80.7 mm (body only)
WEIGHT
Approx. 539 grams (body only, without battery and
card)
buyers guide
DSLR ENTRY LEVEL
Canon EOS 650D
The EOS 650D replaces the EOS
550D at the top of Canon’s entrylevel DSLR line-up, sitting just above the EOS 600D.
Built to match its market position, it features an
adjustable monitor with a capacitative touch screen
that supplements standard controls in Live View
mode and supports familiar gestures like ‘pinch-tozoom’ and ‘swiping’ to scroll between pictures.
Touch functions include AF point selection,
face selection, shutter speed, aperture value and
exposure compensation adjustments. A touch
shutter focuses on the touch point and fires the
camera’s shutter. These settings are supported in
movie mode, with the exception of the touch shutter.
Several new shooting modes are added to the
mode dial. The Auto mode has become ‘Intelligent’
and now includes scene detection, based on faces,
colours, brightness, movement and contrast. New
multi-shot Handheld Night Scene and HDR Backlight
Control modes capture between three and four
frames in rapid succession and combine them to
produce a single image with a natural-looking tonal
balance.
The movie setting on the on/off slider switch
provides a quick switch into movie mode. Movies
are recorded in MPEG-4 format, using AVC.H.264
compression and a variable bit rate. Program AE
and manual shooting modes are supported and
soundtracks are recorded in stereo. Photographers
can monitor audio recordings while shooting movies
and external microphones can be fitted. Remote
control is supported and the camera is compatible
with the new UHS-1 and Eye-Fi cards.
Utilising cross-type sensors for the nine-point AF
array puts the EOS 650D ahead of the pack. Phase
detection sensors embedded in the surface of the
CMOS chip provide a new Hybrid CMOS AF system
for Live View shooting. Contrast-detection is used for
fine-tuning and when large adjustments are required,
and Movie Servo AF optimises tracking AF in movie
mode when touch AF is used.
Photographers who like in-camera effects will
welcome two new Creative Filters: Art Bold and
Water Painting. Creative Filters can be applied to
both JPEG and CR2.RAW files to produce different
effects from a single image. Adjusted images are
saved as JPEGs.
The sensor in the EOS 650D has the same
18-megapixel resolution as the EOS 550D and EOS
600D but boasts a fast, 4-channel read-out. It’s
partnered with Canon’s DIGIC 5 image processor.
Continuous shooting speeds are unchanged at five
frames per second (fps) but the maximum sensitivity
has been boosted to ISO 25,600 in H mode via C. Fn
I, 2.
When shooting with the viewfinder, multiple aspect
ratio settings aren’t supported. The Live View mode
allows users to crop the frame to produce 4:3, 1:1
and 16:9 aspect ratios.
PERFORMANCE
Improvements to autofocusing were
most noticeable with the viewfinder. In
Live View mode, it could take a second
or so for focus to establish. Using the
touch shutter reduced hunting and AF lag
times to around 0.3 seconds. Lags of up
to 0.5 seconds were common in movie
clips during panning and zooming.
Aside from the improvements to
autofocusing, the most noticeable
improvement over the previous 18-megapixel EOS
cameras was in colour reproduction with CR2.RAW
files, which was excellent. JPEG files showed elevated
saturation, mainly in the warmer hues.
Resolution fell slightly below expectations with both
JPEG and CR2.RAW files. High ISO resolution was
similar to results from Imatest tests on the EOS 600D.
Test shots were almost noise-free up to ISO 6400,
after which both noise and softening became visible
in long exposures. By ISO 12,800, both noise and
softening were obvious but images would be usable
for printing when reproduced at small sizes.
Flash exposures were almost noise-free throughout
the camera’s sensitivity range. Exposure levels varied
slightly, with shots taken at ISO 100 being slightly
under-exposed, while shots at ISO 12,800 were
slightly over-exposed.
Auto white balance performance was similar to
other Canon DSLRs. Plenty of in-camera adjustments
are provided for tweaking images as you shoot, and
white balance bracketing of +/- three levels in onestep increments is available.
Video quality was slightly better than the clips we
shot with the EOS 600D, particularly in low light.
Differences between the HD 1080p and 720p video
clips were largely related to the frame resolution.
Clips shot at VGA resolution were very good for their
frame sizes.
We didn’t detect any pick-up of operational noises
when zooming and re-focusing while shooting movie
clips.
Our timing tests were conducted with a 32GB
SanDisk Extreme Pro SDHC UHS-1 card, the fastest
card in our collection. The review camera powered up
ready for shooting in approximately one second. We
measured an average capture lag of 0.25 seconds
when the viewfinder was used for shot composition,
and 0.9 seconds in Live View mode.
This lag was eliminated when shots were prefocused for viewfinder shooting and reduced to
0.2 seconds in Live View mode. Shot-to-shot times
averaged 0.4 seconds.
High-resolution JPEGs took an average of 0.9
seconds to process, while CR2.RAW files were
processed in 2.1 seconds and RAW+JPEG pairs in 2.2
seconds.
In the continuous shooting mode the review
camera recorded 10 Large/Fine JPEGs in 1.8
seconds, which is close
to specifications. It took 3.8
seconds to process this burst.
With CR2.RAW files, the camera recorded six
frames in one second and took 7.2 seconds to
process them. For RAW+JPEG pairs, capture rates
slowed after three frames, which were recorded in 6.4
seconds. It took 5.6 seconds to process this burst.
IN SUMMARY
A new flagship model in Canon’s entry-level DSLR
line-up offers improved autofocusing plus new
functions that make it easier to obtain good photos
and movies.

Build:

Ease of use:
9.0

Autofocusing:
8.8

Video quality:
8.8

Overall:
8.8
8.5
JPEG - 8.5; RAW - 8.5
RRP: $900
body only, $1050 with 18-55mm
lens; $1350 with 18-135mm STM Lens
DISTRIBUTOR: Canon Australia; 1800 021 167;
www.canon.com.au
SPECIFICATIONS
IMAGE SENSOR
22.3 x 14.9mm CMOS sensor with approximately 19
million photosites (18 megapixels effective )
IMAGE FORMATS
Stills – CR2.RAW, JPEG (Exif 2.3), RAW+JPEG;
Movies – MPEG-4 AVC/H.264
IMAGE SIZES
Stills – 5184 x 3456, 3456 x 2304, 2592 x 1728, 1920
x 1080, 720 x 480; Movies: 1920 x 1080 (Full HD) at
30p/25p/24p, 1280 x 720 (HD) at 60p/50p, 640 x
480 (SD) at 30p/25p
SHUTTER SPEED RANGE
30 to 1/4000 second plus Bulb; X-synch at 1/200 sec.
POWER SUPPLY
LP-E8 rechargeable lithium-ion battery; CIPA rated
for approx. 440 shots/charge with viewfinder (180
shots with Live View)
DIMENSIONS (WXHXD)
Approx. 133.1 x 99.8 x 78.8mm
WEIGHT
53
buyers guide
ADVANCED COMPACT ILC - FIRST LOOK
Canon EOS M
Promoted as providing EOS quality in a
pocketable, easy-to-use body, Canon’s longawaited EOS M is superficially reminiscent of the
PowerShot SX100 IS. Despite its stripped-down
appearance, it provides most of the features of
the EOS 650D, including the 18-megapixel APS-C
sensor with on-chip phase detection AF and DIGIC
5 processor.
The EOS M will be launched with two new lenses
featuring the smaller ‘EF-M’ mount. The EF-M 1855mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM is a standard zoom lens
that includes Canon’s latest image stabilisation
system, which claims four stops of compensation.
The EF-M 22 f/2 STM for EOS M is ideal
for everyday photography, being fast with a
moderately wide field of view. Both lenses feature
the latest STM drive to ensure smooth and quiet
autofocusing while shooting movies.
A new lens mount adapter (bundled with the
camera body) enables users to fit existing EF and
EF-S lenses to the EOS M body with full support
for all lens functions. With a magnesium front and
stainless steel back plate, the EOS M is strong
enough to support the largest EF lenses.
The front panel is dominated by the lens mount
and sports a textured grip ridge, lens release
button and AF-Assist LED. The top panel has
an inset on/off button plus a shutter button
surrounded by a basic shooting mode dial that has
three positions: Auto, Stills and Movies. A fullyfunctional hot-shoe is provided, along with two
microphones for recording movie soundtracks.
The rear panel has a thumb pad and Movie
start/stop button in the top right hand corner. The
1.04 million-dot 3-inch Clear View II monitor has a
capacitive touch panel that allows users to control
various functions by touch, drag and multi-touch
operations.
Below the thumb pad are the Menu and
Playback buttons, which are similar to the EOS
650D’s. There’s a standard Canon arrow pad
with surrounding scroll wheel and central SET
button (which displays a Quick Control menu).
Directional controls access the drive, exposure
compensation, delete and AF/FE lock functions.
An Info button is located below the arrow pad.
The battery and card compartment is located in
the base plate. The EOS M uses a different battery
from the 650D and, being reliant on the LCD
monitor, it’s not surprising to find its capacity is
less than the 650D’s (230 vs 440 shots/charge).
A tripod socket sits on the lens axis. Connectors
for AV Out/Digital, HDMI and Mic-in plugs are on
the left hand side panel.
Continuous shooting is supported at up to 4.3
frames/second (fps), which is marginally slower
than the 650D. The buffer memory is also smaller,
with space for up to 17 Large/Fine JPEGs if an
8GB UHS-1 compatible card is used, or 15 shots
54
with slower cards.
Eight JPEG sizes and two compression
levels are provided but only one raw file option
(recording at 5184 x 3456 pixels). Large/Fine
is the only JPEG size available for RAW+JPEG
capture. Users can choose from four aspect
ratios: the standard 3:2 plus 4:3, 1:1 and 16:9
aspect ratios, achieved by cropping.
The EOS M’s menus are based on Canon’s
DSLR menus but, without a viewfinder, icons are
used to indicate certain settings on the live view
display. Display icons vary with different shooting
modes, with the greatest use of icons being in
the automated modes. The camera shows brief
explanations of shooting modes as they are
selected.
Movie options are the same as in the EOS 650D
and the hybrid AF system works in much the
same way in movie mode as it does for shooting
stills. Touch AF is also supported for both stills
and movies. A special Video Servo AF mode
keeps servo AF active at all times, even when the
shutter button is not pressed.
certain a body with dial controls
like the G-series PowerShots would
find plenty of buyers. Few would fret if Canon
left out the auto-everything shooting modes
and effects settings provided on its entry-level
cameras and concentrated on improving access
to the manual adjustments photographers require.
An optional EVF would be a smart addition to
the EOS M accessories range – and soon.
By the time this review is published, the EOS
M and its lenses will be close to actual release
and pricing will be finalised. We hope to review
the EOS M and its lenses as soon as they are
available.

IN SUMMARY
A new compact system camera with an ultracompact body that is easy to use plus an adaptor
for Canon’s EF and EF-S lenses.
RRP: TBA
www.canon.com.au
SUMMING UP
Canon has made some smart moves when
developing the EOS M, notably through using an
existing DSLR sensor and image processor, and
supplying an adaptor that enables existing EF
and EF-S lenses to be used with the EOS M body.
The first should result in economies of scale at
manufacturing level and keep the selling price at
a realistic level (we estimate between $800 and
$850.) Removing the mirror box should also make
the EOS M quieter to operate than a DSLR, which
may be a deal-breaker for some photographers.
We’ve been assured by Canon representatives
that the EOS M is the first in a continuing series
that will be ‘fleshed out’ with new bodies, lenses
and accessories in the future. It’s certainly a
great start, although it looks too much like a
point-and-shoot camera to satisfy serious photo
enthusiasts. We’d like to see the design focus
change from ‘easy to use’ to ‘exciting to take
pictures with’.
Given the success of the PowerShot G1X, we’re
SPECIFICATIONS
IMAGE SENSOR
22.3 x 14.9 mm CMOS sensor with approximately
19 million photosites (18 megapixels effective )
IMAGE FORMATS
Stills – CR2.RAW, JPEG (Exif 2.3), RAW+JPEG;
Movies – MPEG-4 AVC/H.264
IMAGE SIZES
Stills – 5184 x 3456, 3456 x 2304, 2592 x 1728, 1920
x 1080, 720 x 480; Movies: 1920 x 1080 (Full HD) at
30p/25p/24p, 1280 x 720 (HD) at 60p/50p, 640 x
480 (SD) at 30p/25p
SHUTTER SPEED RANGE
30 to 1/4000 second plus Bulb; X-synch at 1/200 sec.
POWER SUPPLY
LP-E12 rechargeable lithium-ion battery;
CIPA rated for approx. 230 shots/charge
DIMENSIONS (WXHXD)
Approx. 108.6 x 66.5 x 32.3mm
WEIGHT
*
CAPTURE $100 OFF
AT OUR TRADE IN & SAVE SALE!
*Up to $100 trade in offer is for selected models.
TRADE
IN ANY
CAMERA
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Ted’s Price $1399.95
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EOS 650D DSLR
Super Kit
$1299
with EFS 18-135mm IS STM
Zoom & Bonus Canon
backpack
you pay
The Canon EOS 650D is a camera
you can grow into. Featuring an
18 Megapixel APS-C sensor and
a DIGIC 5 Processor, it gives you
plenty of power to make brilliant
images. The flip out screen is
very handy for shooting video
V
$1 alu
00 e
or crowd shots, and the touch
screen is easy to use and makes
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buyers guide
ADVANCED COMPACT ILC
Sony NEX-F3
The NEX-F3 is the seventh model in Sony’s E-mount
family. The ‘F’ stands for ‘family’, indicating this
camera is designed for snapshooters of all ages.
It replaces the entry-level NEX-C3 and comes with
Sony’s second-generation 16-megapixel CMOS
sensor.
Overall, the NEX-F3 represents a relatively minor
upgrade to its predecessor. Its sensor is the same
23.5 x 15.6mm EXMOR CMOS chip as used in the
NEX-5N. Image and video sizes are also the same;
burst rates are unchanged and the usual suite of 2D
and 3D Sweep Panorama modes is supported.
The 25-point contrast AF system carries over from
the previous models, and the metering system has
the same 1200-zone sensor as the NEX-5N. The F3
also provides the standard P, A, S and M shooting
modes plus the usual range of Scene presets and
Picture Effect filters. New features include a built-in
flash and functions to help novice photographers.
For snapshooters who want to shoot self-portraits,
the NEX-F3’s 3-inch LCD monitor can be tilted back
and then up through 180 degrees to face forwards.
The scene is automatically orientated so it appears
right way up – and right way around – to the viewer.
The Setup menu provides a self portrait selftimer mode with a 3-second delay when the LCD
monitor is tilted up. This is handy when taking group
portraits with the camera on a tripod as it allows the
photographer to get into the shot.
Controls on the NEX-F3 have barely changed since
the NEX-3 and rely heavily on the menu system.
A new built-in flash is inset into the top panel with
its centre in line with the optical axis of the lens.
Its Guide Number is 6 (metres at ISO 100), which
isn’t very powerful, but output is adjustable and the
camera’s accessory port accepts more powerful
external flashguns. Positioning the shutter button
on the hand grip has improved the camera’s handling
characteristics. A dedicated Movie button is provided,
with a rim around it to deter accidental pressing.
The monitor screen is the same size and has the
same resolution as the NEX-C3’s. There’s no built-in
viewfinder but an optional EVF plugs into the Smart
Accessory Terminal.
Digital zooming is controlled by pressing the zoom
button and turning the control wheel. It crops the
image, after which the camera interpolates the image
up to 16 megapixels. The process goes through three
stages: Smart Zoom reduces image sizes to M and
then S; Clear Image Zoom interpolates the image to
16MP using appropriate scaling; and the final stage
simply involves straight interpolation.
Clear Image Zoom is also used in the new Auto
Portrait Framing function, which is available for JPEGs
only. It identifies the subject and crops to create
well-composed portrait photos. A Smile Shutter mode
will trigger the shutter when a smile is detected. Both
functions require face detection to be enabled.
The NEX-F3 is supplied with the SEL1855 18-
56
55mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS lens,
which is a reasonably good
performer that is best in the
middle of its focal length
range and at apertures
between f/5 and f/8. It’s prone
to edge softening and suffers from
some rectilinear distortions, but we found
little evidence of coloured fringing in test shots.
PERFORMANCE
Pictures taken with the review camera were
colourful and bright. JPEG images were relatively
contrasty and saturation was elevated to the degree
commonly seen in small-sensor digicams. Imatest
showed performance at high ISO settings was
marginally better than the NEX 5N’s.
Low light performance was very good, particularly
for long exposures at night. Noise became visible at
ISO 6400 but shots were usable in small output sizes
at ISO 16,000. The built-in flash delivered evenly-lit
shots between ISO 200 and ISO 3200. Beyond that
point, exposures became progressively over-exposed
and unusable at any output size by ISO 12,800.
Digital zoom shots were sharp and punchy. Closeups are limited by the focusing range of the lens.
Backlit subjects were generally handled well.
Auto white balance performance was slightly better
than the NEX-5N’s but, as before, the pre-sets overcorrected. Manual measurement provided neutral
colour rendition.
Saturation and contrast appeared to be boosted in
movie mode, producing vibrant images. Otherwise,
video quality was reasonably good in both AVCHD
and MP4 clips. Autofocusing and zooming were
similar to the NEX-5N’s, and transitions between near
and far were often jumpy, despite the benefits of
the wide zoom ring on the lens and effective image
stabilisation.
Soundtracks were patchy and affected by camera
movements (zooming, panning and slight camera
shake), all of which produced noise in recordings. The
wind cut filter subdued, but couldn’t eliminate, wind
noise in gusty conditions.
The review camera powered-up ready for shooting
within half a second. Shot-to-shot times averaged 0.7
seconds. An average capture lag of 0.2 seconds was
almost eliminated by pre-focusing. High-resolution
JPEGs took an average of 2.2 seconds to process,
while ARW.RAW files were processed in 2.6 seconds
and RAW+JPEG pairs in 2.7 seconds.
Continuous shooting speeds were close to
specifications, with burst lengths and processing
of files dependent on file sizes. The capture rate
slowed after 10 frames in ARW.RAW format or eight
frames with RAW+JPEG pairs. In the Speed Priority
Continuous mode the review camera was able to
match the specified capture rate of 10 frames/
second with Large/Fine JPEGs. It took 4.5 seconds
to process a burst of 10 shots.

IN SUMMARY
Sony’s new entry-level interchangeable-lens compact
camera with a new self-portrait function, designed
for family photographers.

Build:
8.2

Ease of use:
8.2

Autofocusing:

8.5
JPEG - 8.5; RAW - 8.5

Video quality:
8.3

Overall:
8.5
RRP:
$699 (as reviewed, with 18-55mm lens)
DISTRIBUTOR: Sony Australia; 1300 720 071;
www.sony.com.au.
SPECIFICATIONS
IMAGE SENSOR
23.5 x 15.6mm ‘Exmor’ APS HD CMOS sensor with
approx. 16.5 million photosites (16.1 megapixels effective)
IMAGE FORMATS
Stills – ARW.RAW, JPEG (Exif 2.3), RAW+JPEG;
Movies – AVCHD & MP4 with stereo audio
IMAGE SIZES
Stills – 3:2 aspect: 4912 x 3264, 3568 x 2368, 2448 x
1624; 16:9 aspect: 4912 x 2760, 3568 x 2000, 2448 x
1376;
Movies: AVCHD format: 1920 x 1080 (50p/28Mbps/
PS, 50i/24Mbps/FX, 50i/17Mbps/FH, 25p/24Mbps/
FX, 25p/17Mbps/FH); MP4 format: 1440 x 1080
(25fps/12Mbps), 640 x 480 (25fps/3Mbps)
SHUTTER SPEED RANGE
1/4000 to 30 seconds plus Bulb; flash synch to 1/160
second
POWER SUPPLY
NP-FW50 rechargeable lithium-ion battery; CIPA rated
for approx. 470 shots/charge
DIMENSIONS (WXHXD)
117.3 x 66.6 x 41.3mm (without protrusions)
WEIGHT
buyers guide
Pentax K-01
The Pentax K-01 is noteworthy because it’s the
first ILC camera to be directly usable with a preexisting (and comprehensive) suite of SLR lenses.
This enables it to be carried as an adjunct to a
Pentax DSLR without significantly increasing the
photographer’s load. It also provides an affordable
back-up body option.
While Marc Newson’s body design stands out
for its simple lines, it’s a bit of a ‘curate’s egg’
(excellent in parts). The durable aluminium chassis
has a stylish polycarbonate and rubber cladding
that comes in black, white or yellow. Alas, it’s not
weather-sealed.
The rubber cover over the card slot and interface
ports is also easy to dislodge while you’re using the
camera. A hard plastic cover over the card slot may
provide some protection against dust and moisture
but makes the slot less accessible.
A critical feature missing from the K-01 is a
viewfinder – and there’s none in the accessories
list. You’re forced to compose shots on the monitor
which, although usable indoors, often entails pointand-guess shooting in bright outdoor lighting.
Like Pentax DSLRs, the K-01’s controls are
customisable. However, those with multiple
functions can be complex to use. The green and red
buttons can be programmed to several settings –
but only one at a time.
The 23.7 x 15.7mm APS-C sized CMOS sensor
is the same as the K-5’s, but is coupled to a new
PRIME M image processor chip. However, the K-01
provides many of the K5’s adjustable controls and
useful functions, including abundant in-camera filter
effects.
Image formats are almost the same as in the K-5,
although Pentax has dropped the proprietary PEF in
favour of the ‘open’ DNG raw file format. DNG.RAW
files are only recorded with a 3:2 aspect ratio
at 4928 x 3264 pixels. Typical files are around
26.32MB. For JPEGs, there are four aspect ratios,
each with three compression ratios.
Video clips are recorded in MPEG-4 format using
the efficient AVC/H.264 compression. Full HD (1920
x 1080 pixels) clips can be captured at 30, 25 or
24 frames/second, while 720p HD can be recorded
at 60, 50, 30, 25 or 24 frames/second, providing
scope for slow-motion video recordings.
Only two shooting modes are for movies:
Program AE and Aperture-priority AE. In both,
the lens aperture and shutter speed settings are
fixed at the start of each clip. Users can access
the following digital filters: Cross Processing, Toy
Camera, High Contrast, Extract Colour and Colour.
The camera can record video continuously for up
to 25 minutes with a clip length limit of 4GB. Audio
is recorded monaurally via a built-in microphone,
although users can connect a stereo microphone to
the 3.5mm diameter terminal on the camera if they
want stereo soundtracks.
PERFORMANCE
Our main issue with
the review camera was its
autofocusing performance, which
was generally quite slow. In the field,
hunting was very common, regardless of which
AF mode we used. Manual focusing was required
in low light levels.
Pictures from the review camera were similar to
those from the K5, with natural-looking colours and
a wide dynamic range. The JPEG-only HDR (high
dynamic range) setting didn’t provide a significant
advantage over raw file capture and takes a second
or so to record the three shots. You can’t adjust
many camera parameters when it’s engaged.
Imatest showed JPEG resolution to be slightly
above expectations for a 16-megapixel camera,
while DNG.RAW files converted into 16-bit TIFF
format with Adobe Camera Raw with no additional
processing were significantly higher overall. JPEG
resolution declined steadily from ISO 400 but raw
files maintained a high resolution up to ISO 3200
before a gradual decline.
We found little noise in JPEG files in long
exposures at night, with noise only becoming visible
at around ISO 3200. Between ISO 3200 and ISO
12,800 granular noise increased gradually. Shots
taken at ISO 25,600 were printable up to A5 size.
Flash exposures were evenly balanced across
most of the camera’s sensitivity range. Slight
over-exposure occurred at ISO 25,600 because
the camera’s maximum synch speed is 1/100
second and aperture settings aren’t adjusted to
compensate.
Auto white balance adjustment was above
average. Shots taken under fluorescent lighting
were free from colour casts, while the slight
orange cast from incandescent lighting was easily
correctable. Both pre-sets came close to neutral
colour rendition and there’s plenty of scope for incamera tweaking.
Video quality was as good as we found with the
K-5, with no instances of the ‘rolling shutter’ effect.
Soundtracks were clear but lacked some stereo
‘presence’ and wind noise was picked up in outdoor
recordings. Camera noises could also be recorded.
There’s no in-camera wind filter but you can attach
a stereo microphone to improve audio quality and
overcome some of these deficiencies.
Our timing tests were carried out with an 8GB
SanDisk Extreme Pro SDHC UHS-1 card, although
the review camera couldn’t capitalise on its speed.
It took just over a second for the camera to power
up. Shot-to shot times averaged 1.5 seconds
without flash and 2.4 seconds with. Capture lag
averaged 0.6 seconds, reducing to around 0.2
seconds with pre-focusing.
While the K-01 merits an Editor’s Choice
nomination for its imaging performance, the
sluggish AF system in the review camera prevents
us from recommending it wholeheartedly.
wholeheartedly. We hope this flaw – and the body
design faults – will be corrected in future versions
of this camera, which we are sure will eventuate.
IN SUMMARY
A sophisticated mirrorless camera with an APS-C
sized sensor and the ability to use Pentax K-mount
lenses.

Build:
8.2

Ease of use:
8.5

Autofocusing:

Video quality:
8.5

Overall:
8.8
7.5
JPEG - 9.0; RAW - 9.0
RRP: $799
(body only); as reviewed with 1855mm lens - $849
DISTRIBUTOR: C.R. Kennedy & Company;
(03) 9823 1555; www.crkennedy.com.au.
SPECIFICATIONS
IMAGE SENSOR
23.7 x 15.7mm CMOS sensor with 16.49 million
IMAGE FORMATS
Stills – DNG.RAW, JPEG (Exif 2.3), RAW+JPEG;
Movies – MP4 (AVC h.264), AVI/MJPG for Interval
Movie
IMAGE SIZES
Stills – 3:2 aspect: 4928 x 3264, 4224 x 2816, 3456 x
2304, 2688 x 1792; 4:3 aspect: 4352 x 3264, 3840 x
2880, 3072 x 2304, 2304 x 1728; 16:9 aspect: 4928
x 2776, 4224 x 2376, 3456 x 1944, 2688x1512; 1:1
aspect: 3264 x 3264, 2880 x 2880, 2304 x 2304,
1728 x 1728; Movies: 1920 x 1080p at 30/25/24 fps,
1280 x 720p at 60/50/30/25/24 fps, 640 x 480p at
30/25/24 fps
SHUTTER SPEED RANGE
1/4000 to 30 sec (1/3 or 1/2 steps) plus Bulb
POWER SUPPLY
D-LI90 rechargeable lithium-ion battery;
CIPA rated for approx. 540 shots
DIMENSIONS (WXHXD)
122 x 79 x 58mm
WEIGHT
480 grams (body only);
560 grams with battery and card
57
buyers guide
Olympus OM-D E-M5
The Olympus E-M5 is the first in
a series of cameras featuring the
classic design of the OM system of film cameras,
which started with the M-1 back in 1972. The new
camera will be offered in black and silver and has
the same Micro Four Thirds (M4/3) sensor and lens
mount as the PEN models but features an integrated
eye-level viewfinder and dust- and moisture-resistant
magnesium-alloy body, like the E-5.
Olympus has crammed a heck of a lot into this
little camera; in our opinion, a bit more than most
photographers (including enthusiasts) are likely to
use. The E-M5’s 16.1MP High-Speed Live MOS sensor
is made by Sony and is coupled to the new TruePic
VI dual-core processor that underpins many of the
E-M5’s capabilities.
The E-M5 supports both JPEG and ORF.RAW file
capture, offering five aspect ratio settings. Raw files
are always recorded with maximum resolution at the
4:3 aspect ratio, which is native to the sensor, but
users can choose from 15 JPEG sizes and aspects.
Although the E-M5’s body design suggests a reflex
camera with a pentaprism viewfinder, neither is
present. Instead, it has a built-in 1,440,000-dot EVF
plus an angle-adjustable 3-inch OLED Touch Screen.
The camera body is noticeably smaller and lighter
than the OM-4Ti and also the current ‘professional’
E-5. Users with large hands may find its controls a
little cramped.
The much-touted new features (AF system, EVF,
Live Guide and touch screen monitor) in the E-M5
are essentially improvements to existing equivalents
in PEN cameras. The touch screen isn’t as well
implemented as in Panasonic’s cameras (which also
have better menu systems).
Improvements to the image stabilisation system
are genuinely new and provide up to 5 EV of
compensation. The Art Filters, Picture Modes and
Scene pre-sets are the same as in the PEN E-P3.
The E-M5 also supports multiple exposures and
bracketing is available for exposure, white balance,
focal length, ISO and Art Filters.
A Digital Tele-converter roughly doubles the focal
length of the lens by cropping the centre of the
frame. Image quality remains relatively high, due to
the inherent high resolution of the sensor.
Olympus has forsaken the AVCHD video formats in
favour of MPEG-4AVC/H.264, which is easier to edit
and compatible with a wider range of editing software
and playback devices. It also offers AVI/Motion JPEG
format to provide backwards compatibility with older
applications and equipment.
Users can select any of the P/A/S/M shooting
modes for recording video clips. Shutter speeds
are adjustable from 1/30 to 1/4000 second and
sensitivity can be set anywhere between ISO 200
and ISO 3200. Exposure compensation is not
supported and there are restrictions on using some
Art Filters, although most are available.
58
The camera’s AF system works
normally in movie mode but as it
takes time to re-focus on moving
subjects, the continuous and
tracking AF modes introduce
some blurring as the focus
changes. Some digital stabilisation
is included when movies are
recorded, enlarging the image slightly. Frames
are also cropped to match the recording mode
setting.
PERFORMANCE
Despite its convoluted user interface,
performance-wise, this camera has a lot going for it.
Image files straight from the camera appeared sharp,
with a wide dynamic range in JPEGs and plenty of
detail accessible in raw files. Exposure metering was
spot-on and autofocusing was fast and accurate with
all three lenses provided.
Contrast and saturation were relatively modest.
Imatest showed colour accuracy to be generally
good. JPEG files came very close to expectations
for a 16MP camera in our Imatest evaluations, while
raw files exceeded expectations across much of the
camera’s sensitivity range.
Low-light performance was generally good with
long exposures using ISO settings up to 3200, where
image noise was visible. Noise became progressively
more obvious, and colour changes appeared at ISO
12,800. Shots taken at ISO 25,600 were soft and
blotchy.
Flash shots were slightly under-exposed up to ISO
1600, confirming the GN 10 rating is optimistic. Little
noise was evident up to ISO 6400, while shots taken
at the two highest sensitivity settings were slightly
softened but not otherwise noise-affected.
White balance performance was slightly better
than the E-P3’s. Both pre-sets over-corrected slightly
but the camera provides plenty of adjustments to
overcome biases and the manual measurement tools
delivered cast-free shots.
Video quality has been improved since the PEN
E-P3. Full HD clips shot at top resolution with both the
zoom lenses were sharp and smooth with good audio
presence. The wind cut filter reduced, but didn’t
totally eliminate, wind noise.
As in the E-P3, the AF system couldn’t keep up with
changes in focal length and pans, even when they
were relatively slow. However, it was less affected by
objects moving across the foreground.
Our timing tests were carried out with a 32GB
SanDisk Extreme Pro SDHC U1 memory card. The
review camera took just over a second to power-up.
Shot-to-shot times averaged 0.5 seconds and capture
lag was negligible, provided the Art Filters weren’t
used. File processing times were around a second.
Capture speeds in the high-speed sequential
shooting mode
matched the camera’s
specifications for JPEGs, ORF.
RAW files and also RAW+JPEG pairs. It took just
under 4.5 seconds to process the burst of 10 Large/
Super Fine JPEGs, 6.8 seconds for the raw files and
11.2 seconds for the RAW+JPEG pairs. The buffer
memory has plenty of capacity.

IN SUMMARY
It’s ‘back to the future’ with this fully digital version of
the Olympus classic OM series of ﬁlm cameras.

Build:
9.0

Ease of use:
8.2

Autofocusing:

9.0
JPEG - 8.8; RAW - 9.0

Video quality:
9.0

Overall:
9.0
RRP: $1199
(body only)
DISTRIBUTOR: Olympus Imaging Australia;
1300 659 678, www.olympus.com.au
SPECIFICATIONS
IMAGE SENSOR
17.3 x 13.0 mm LiveMOS sensor with 16.9 million
IMAGE FORMATS
Stills – ORF.RAW, JPEG, RAW+JPEG, MPO (3D still);
Movies – MOV (MPEG-4AVC/H.264), AVI (Motion JPEG)
IMAGE SIZES
Stills – 4:3 aspect: 4608 x 3456, 2560 x1920, 1280 x
960; 3:2 aspect: 4608 x 3072, 2544 x 1696, 1296 x
864;16:9 aspect: 4608 x 2592, 2560 x 1440, 1280 x 720;
1:1 aspect: 3456 x 3456, 1920 x 1920, 960 x 960; 3:4
aspect: 2592 x 3456, 1440 x 1920, 3216 x 2144, 2400 x
2400, 1824 x 2432, 2560 x 1440, 2544 x 1696, 1920 x
1920, 1440 x 1920, 720 x 960; Movies: 1920 x 1080, 60i
at 20Mbps; HD: 1280 x 720 at 60p, 30fps, 640 x 480 at
30 fps
SHUTTER SPEED RANGE
60 to 1/4000 seconds (selectable in 1/3, 1/2, or 1EV
steps); flash synch at 1/250 sec or less
POWER SUPPLY
BLN-1 rechargeable lithium-ion battery; CIPA rated for
approx. 330 shots/charge
DIMENSIONS (WXHXD)
121 x 89.6 x 41.9mm (body only)
WEIGHT
373 grams (body only); 425 grams with BLN-1 battery
and memory card
buyers guide
M4/3 LENS
M4/3 LENS
Olympus M.Zuiko
Digital ED 12-50mm
Olympus M-Zuiko
DigitalED 75-300mm
f/3.5-6.3 EZ Lens
f/4.8-6.7 Lens
The M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-50mm
f/3.5-6.3 EZ lens is one of several
options bundled with the OM-D E-M5. Featuring a
motorised zoom and the Olympus MSC (Movie & Still
Compatible) AF drive mechanism, it’s a useful generalpurpose lens.
The lens barrel is fully sealed against dust and moisture.
It’s solidly built, with a durable metal mounting plate.
The front element accepts 52mm filters and an optional
lens hood. It doesn’t rotate during focusing or zooming.
The multi-position zoom ring can be set in three
positions: M-ZOOM, which allows normal zooming;
E-ZOOM, where the zoom speed is controlled by twisting
the zoom ring and MACRO, which is accessed by
pushing forward and pressing the MACRO button.
On the E-M5, the review lens proved capable of
matching the performance of the camera’s sensor.
Resolution tailed off from f/9 due to diffraction. Lateral
chromatic aberration was mainly within the ‘low’ band.
Vignetting was only just visible at the widest aperture
settings. Slight barrel distortion was visible at 24mm
but nothing significant thereafter.
Even without a lens hood, the review lens handled
backlit subjects well. Image contrast remained relatively
high and with little evidence of flare artefacts. Bokeh
was more attractive than expected for the maximum
aperture range and the size of the camera’s sensor.
The M-Zuiko Digital ED 75-300mm f/4.8-6.7 lens was
developed for Olympus’s PEN cameras but is equally
at home on the new OM-D E-M5 used for our tests. The
lightest in its class, it features the proprietary MSC
(Movie & Still Compatible) focus drive technology for
fast and near-silent autofocusing.
This lens lacks the dust- and moisture-resistance of
the 12-50mm f3.5-6.3 EZ lens reviewed on this page.
But it’s light and well built for its type, though lacking
stabilisation, a distance scale and a focus limiter.
Imatest showed the imaging performance came
close to expectations for the E-M5’s sensor. Highest
resolution occurred at apertures between f/5.6 and
about f/9. Diffraction kicked in at f/11, dramatically
reducing image sharpness.
Lateral chromatic aberration was negligible at 75mm
and low at 100mm and 132mm. No coloured fringing
was observed in any test shots. Vignetting was only just
visible at the widest aperture settings. Distortion was
also very low.
Without the optional lens hood, flare was evident in
backlit situations, particularly at wider angles of view.
Bokeh was acceptable for the rather small maximum
apertures available.
Autofocusing was reasonably fast for stills but
noticeably slower in movie mode, particularly while
shooting moving subjects. No operational noises from
the camera were picked up in movie soundtracks.

IN SUMMARY
A versatile general-purpose lens for Micro Four
Thirds cameras, which features motorised zoom
control for smooth movie shooting.
IN SUMMARY
A lightweight telephoto zoom lens for
Micro Four Thirds system cameras.

Build:
9.0

Build:
8.5
Handling:
8.5

Handling:
8.5

Image quality:
9.0

Image quality:
8.5

Versatility:
9.0

Versatility:
8.5

Overall:
9.0

Overall:
8.5
RRP: $999
SPECIFICATIONS
SPECIFICATIONS
LENS CONSTRUCTION
LENS CONSTRUCTION
10 elements in 9 groups (Dual Super Aspherical,
Aspherical x2, HR and ED Lenses
18 elements in 13 groups; includes one Super ED, two
ED, and three HR elements
LENS MOUNTS
LENS MOUNTS
Micro Four Thirds System
Micro Four Thirds system
MINIMUM FOCUS
MINIMUM FOCUS
35cm
90cm
DIMENSIONS (DIAMETER X L)
57 x 83mm
70 x 116mm
WEIGHT
WEIGHT
211 grams
430 grams
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59
buyers guide
FX LENS
FX LENS
Tamron SP 24-70mm
AF-S Nikkor 85mm
f/2.8 Di VC USD Lens
f/1.4G Lens
The SP 24-70mm f/2.8 Di VC USD
is built to professional standards
and is Tamron’s first lens with moisture-resistant
construction. Designed primarily for cameras with 36 x
24mm sensors but also usable with APS-C bodies, it’s
the only one in its class with built-in stabilisation.
A zoom lock is provided, although the review lens
showed no evidence of zoom creep. The supplied petalshaped lens hood is tough and easy to fit and makes the
lens relatively immune to flare and ghosting.
Our shooting tests were carried out with the Canon EOS
5D Mark III body, which was well balanced with the lens
attached. Autofocusing was fast, quiet and accurate,
and the f/2.8 maximum aperture provided full scope
for the high sensitivity of the camera’s AF point array.
Imatest showed the lens to be capable of matching the
camera’s sensor, with the highest resolutions recorded
at f/5.6. The 35mm focal length yielded the best
performance.
Lateral chromatic aberration was mostly negligible.
Vignetting was quite obvious at the widest aperture
settings but vanished by around f/4. Barrel distortion
was quite obvious at 24mm, with slight pincushion
distortion evident at 70mm.
The close focusing limit of 38cm makes this lens
only suitable for larger subjects. Bokeh was generally

smooth and attractive.
Announced in August, 2010, the
AF-S Nikkor 85mm f/1.4G offers a
classic focal length for portraiture. Designed primarily
for cameras with FX (‘full frame’) sensors, it can also be
used on DX cameras, where it provides a focal length
equivalent to 127.5mm in 35mm format.
The optical construction consists of nine elements in
eight groups, interestingly with no exotic elements.
Build quality is high but there’s no weatherproof sealing;
a rubber ring around the lens mount is all you get.
There’s no built-in stabilisation, which is a pity given
the price of this lens. It is best matched with with more
sophisticated bodies like the D800’s. With no aperture
ring, it won’t work on older Nikon SLR cameras.
Overall this lens is a winner for portrait photographers,
particularly on the D800. Imatest showed it matched
expectations for the D800’s sensor at aperture settings
between f/4 and f/7.1, after which diffraction kicked in,
causing resolution to deteriorate.
Lateral chromatic aberration was negligible at all
aperture settings. Vignetting was only noticeable
between f/1.4 and f/2.8. Slight barrel distortion was
detected.
Thanks to the large lens hood, backlit subjects were
handled with ease. The nine-bladed iris diaphragm
produced circular highlights at all aperture settings.
Some outlining and coloured fringing could be seen

around highlights.
IN SUMMARY
60
Tamron adds Vibration Compensation
stabilisation to a premium 24-70mm lens with
a fast f/2.8 aperture across its zoom range.
IN SUMMARY
Fast portraiture prime lens for photographers
who want to shoot at f/1.4.

Build:
9.0

Handling:
8.8

Image quality:
9.0

Image quality:
9.3

Versatility:
8.5

Versatility:
8.0

Overall:
9.0

Overall:
8.5
RRP: $1399
RRP: $2000
DISTRIBUTOR: Maxwell
International Australia;
1300 882 517; www.maxwell.com.au
DISTRIBUTOR: Nikon Australia;
1300 366 499; www.nikon.com.au
SPECIFICATIONS
SPECIFICATIONS
LENS CONSTRUCTION
LENS CONSTRUCTION
17 elements in 12 groups; includes four aspherical
elements, three LD elements and two XR elements
9 elements in 8 groups
LENS MOUNTS
Canon, Nikon, Sony (without VC stabilisation)
Nikon bayonet mount,
usable with FX and DX cameras
MINIMUM FOCUS
MINIMUM FOCUS
38cm
85cm
88.2 x 108.5mm
Approx. 86.5mm x 84mm
WEIGHT
WEIGHT
825 grams
Approx. 595 grams
LENS MOUNTS
buyers guide
NEW
DX LENS
LENSES
Sony DT 18-135mm
Canon EF-S
f/3.5-5.6 SAM Lens
18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM Lens
Sony’s new DT 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 SAM lens is
designed for cameras with APS-C sized sensors and
provides field-of-view coverage equivalent to 27270mm in 35mm format. Build quality is a cut above
Sony’s normal kit lenses and at 398 grams and just
73mm long, it is an excellent ‘travelling’ lens for
Sony’s lighter SLT-A cameras.
The Smooth Autofocus Motor (SAM) provides
reasonably fast autofocusing and is quieter than
other entry-level lenses. Direct Manual Focus (DMF)
allows users to switch between AF and MF without
removing their eyes from the viewfinder.
In our Imatest tests, JPEG files using the A57 body
came close to meeting expectations for the sensor
resolution and edge and corner softening were
relatively low across the focal length and aperture
ranges supported. Highest resolution was between
one and three f-stops down from maximum aperture.
Lateral chromatic aberration was mostly negligible
with in-camera correction switched off.
Barrel distortion was noticeable between 18mm and
35mm but not beyond. Vignetting was slight enough
to be negligible.
Backlighting was handled extremely well and it was
difficult to force the lens to flare with the lens hood
in place. Close-ups were also successful when the
135mm focal length was used at the close-focusing
limit of 45cm. Bokeh was smooth and attractive.
Canon’s new EF-S 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS STM lens has
been developed for the EOS 650D and is only usable
on Canon’s DLSR cameras with ‘APS-C sized’ sensors.
A new STM (stepping-motor) AF system provides fast,
smooth and quiet autofocusing and minimises pick-up
of camera operating sounds while shooting movie
clips.
The 18-135mm zoom range (28.8-216mm in 35mm
format) is ideal for family and travel photography.
Continuous AF is supported during live view shooting.
Focusing was generally fast and accurate, both with
the viewfinder and in live view mode. Touch AF made
focusing easy with the EOS 650D’s touch screen. The
optical stabiliser provides up to four steps of shutter
speed compensation. Build quality is similar to the
previous lens and the new lens feels just as solid and
looks smart.
Imatest showed resolution to be similar to the
previous lens and it failed to reach the resolutions
we expected from the 650D’s 17-megapixel sensor.
Lateral chromatic aberration was mostly low.
Barrel distortion was obvious at 18mm but became
relatively insignificant at 24mm. Slight pincushioning
became visible at 50mm but we found no noticeable
distortion at 135mm. Vignetting could be seen in
open-aperture shots at all focal lengths.
Backlit subjects were handled very well. Bokeh was
acceptable in close-up shots.

IN SUMMARY
IN SUMMARY
A compact, well-built multi-purpose zoom lens for
Sony Alpha and SLT cameras.
An updated standard zoom lens with a new stepping
motor drive for quiet auto focusing while shooting
movies.

Build:
8.5

Handling:
8.5

Build:
8.5

Image quality:
8.5

Handling:
8.5

Versatility:
9.0

Image quality:
8.3
8.8

Versatility:
9.0

Overall:
8.5

Overall:
RRP: $649
DISTRIBUTOR: Sony
Australia; 1300 720 071;
RRP: $749
www.sony.com.au
www.canon.com.au
SPECIFICATIONS
SPECIFICATIONS
LENS CONSTRUCTION
LENS CONSTRUCTION
14 elements in 11 groups, including 2 aspheric
and 1 ED glass elements
16 elements in 12 groups (includes one UD element
and a PMo aspheric element)
LENS MOUNTS
LENS MOUNTS
Sony A-Mount (Minolta AF)
Canon EF-S
MINIMUM FOCUS
MINIMUM FOCUS
45cm
39 cm across the entire zoom range
85.5 x 73mm
76.6 x 96 mm
WEIGHT
WEIGHT
398 grams
480 grams
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61
buyers guide
ADVANCED COMPACT FIXED LENS
Sony DSC-RX100
Sony’s RX100 combines a small body with a
relatively large, 20.2-megapixel sensor and fast
(f/1.8-f/4.9), optically stabilised Carl Zeiss VarioSonnar T* lens that covers a focal length range
equivalent to 28-100mm in 35mm format. The first
Sony fixed lens camera since the R1 to support raw
file capture, it provides a similar control suite to Sony’s
interchangeable-lens cameras.
The RX100’s compact aluminium body is made in
Japan, which is in line with its premium market position
and pricing. The lens retracts partially into the camera
body behind a split internal shield when power is
switched off, making the camera pocketable.
A mode dial in the top panel provides direct access
to Superior Auto, iAuto, Program Auto, Aperture
Priority, Shutter Priority, Manual, Memory Recall,
Movie, Panorama and Scene Selection modes. Most
other camera functions have to be set by pressing the
Menu or Fn button and turning the knurled ring around
the lens mounting. The Fn button can be programmed
with up to seven functions from a selection of 17
options.
The rear panel monitor has a resolution of
1,228,800 dots and a 4:3 aspect ratio. There’s no
viewfinder and this screen is more reflective than
most LCDs, which makes it difficult to read outdoors.
The RX100’s menu is similar to Sony’s DSLRs. A Help
button provides illustrated tips for novice users. It’s
also used to delete images in playback mode.
The battery and memory card share a compartment
in the base of the camera. The batteries are charged
in-camera using either a USB connection to your
computer or the supplied AC charger (which is faster).
The printed, multi-lingual ‘Instruction Manual’ supplied
with the RX100 is next to useless.
The sensor in the RX100 is the same size as the
chips in the Nikon 1 cameras, although its resolution
is somewhat higher. It’s considerably smaller than the
chips in rival fixed-lens advanced digicams from Canon
and Fujifilm, although larger than models from Olympus
and Ricoh.
The RX100’s top sensitivity is ISO 25,600. Above
ISO 6400, multi-frame noise-reduction kicks in,
reducing noise by averaging its patterns across four or
more frames and delivering a single image.
Four aspect ratios are available, along with the
standard Sweep Panorama options (2D only). Both
JPEG and ARW.RAW formats are supported, as is
RAW+JPEG capture. Raw files can only be recorded at
maximum resolution.
Full HD Movie shooting is supported at 50i
(interlaced) and 50p (progressive) frame rates using
the AVCHD format; 720p video isn’t supported. MP4
AVC recording is offered at 1440 x 1080 or 640 x 480
pixel resolution, both at 25fps.
The P/A/S/M exposure modes can be used while
shooting video, along with the two auto-everything
modes. You can capture still shots while recording
movies in four sizes: L (17M) or S (4.2M) for movie
62
sizes greater than VGA or 13M
and 3.2M.
PERFORMANCE
Being small and inconspicuous,
the RX100 is great for street
photography and grabbing candid snapshots. Its
superior high ISO performance is beneficial in dim
lighting.
Pictures from the review camera appeared bright
and colourful with slightly elevated saturation. The AF
and metering systems performed better than average
for a compact camera.
The Dynamic Range Optimiser (DRO) is effective
for moderating highlights and shadows in contrasty
scenes, provided you choose the optimum level of
adjustment. The HDR mode was fairly aggressive and
often produced unnatural-looking results.
Our Imatest testing showed resolution to be below
expectations for the sensor’s resolution. This was
true for both JPEGs and ARW.RAW files. Fortunately,
resolution held up well across the lower end of the
camera’s ISO range, tailing off from about ISO 800.
Long exposures at night maintained plenty of detail
up to ISO 25,600 and colours were natural-looking,
although shadow noise was evident.
Although the pop-up flash was under-powered and
took several seconds to recharge, flash exposures
were generally good. Portrait shots showed few (if any)
signs of red-eye effect.
The Carl Zeiss lens performed best a stop or two
down from maximum aperture and at shorter focal
lengths. Flaws like chromatic aberration, vignetting
and distortion are corrected automatically in the
camera (although not if you shoot raw files).
The auto white balance setting failed to produce
neutral colours with incandescent lighting in our
standard tests but came very close with fluorescent
lights. We found some slight colour biases in the AWB
mode caused by dominating subject hues, but they
were easily removed during editing.
Close-ups were generally good, particularly at the
37.1mm focal length, where the maximum aperture
setting (f/4.9) produced attractive bokeh. Video quality
was similar to the NEX-F3 and it’s easy to zoom in and
out smoothly. Image quality dropped quickly with the
digital zoom.
Autofocusing was fairly sluggish when following
a zoom but the tracking AF could follow moving
subjects. Soundtracks weren’t as patchy as the NEXF3’s but the wind filter was equally unable to suppress
noise in outdoor situations.
We measured an average capture lag of 0.3
seconds which was reduced to 0.1 seconds when
shots were pre-focused. Shot-to-shot times averaged
0.75 seconds. Image files took roughly 2.5 seconds to
process.
The review camera recorded 10 Large/Fine JPEGs
in 4.1
seconds in the normal burst
mode. It took 4.8 seconds to process this burst. In the
Speed Priority Continuous mode the review camera
matched the specified 10 frames/second burst rate. It
took 4.8 seconds to process 10 Large/Fine JPEGs.
IN SUMMARY
A premium pocketable camera with a 13.2 x 8.8mm
high-resolution sensor and 3.6x zoom lens, which
offers raw file capture and Full HD video recording.

Build:
9.0

Ease of use:
8.3

Autofocusing:

8.5
JPEG - 8.5; RAW - 8.3

Video quality:
8.5

Overall:
8.5
RRP:
$799
DISTRIBUTOR: Sony
Australia; 1300 720 071;
www.sony.com.au
SPECIFICATIONS
IMAGE SENSOR
1.0 type (13.2 x 8.8mm) Exmor CMOS sensor,
aspect ratio 3:2 with 20.9 million photosites
(Effective resolution Approx. 20.2 megapixels)
LENS
Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T*10.4-37.1mm f/1.8 - 4.9
zoom lens with; 28-100mm equiv. in 35mm formatÐ
ZOOM
3.6x optical, Clear Image Zoom up to 7.2x digital
IMAGE FORMATS
Stills –ARW.RAW, JPEG (Exif 2.3), RAW+JPEG;
Movies – AVCHD and MPEG4
IMAGE SIZES
Stills – 5472 x 3648, 5472 x 3080, 4864 x 3648,
3888 x 2592, 3648 x 3648, 3648 x 2736, 2736 x
1824, 2592 x 1944, 2592 x 1944;
Movies: AVCHD format: 1920 x 1080 MP4 format:
1440 x 1080, 640 x 480
SHUTTER SPEED RANGE
iAuto (4 secs - 1/2000) / Program Auto
(1 sec - 1/2000); Manual to 30 secs
INTERFACE TERMINALS
USO 2.0, HDMI (Type C Mini), Micro USB
POWER SUPPLY
NP-BX1 rechargeable lithium-ion battery; CIPA rated
for approx. 330 shots/charge
DIMENSIONS (WXHXD)
101.6 x 58.1 x 35.9mm
WEIGHT
Approx. 213 grams (with battery and card)
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PhotoReview
net effect
ONCE AGAIN OUR EDITOR HAS BEEN METAPHORICALLY SLASHING HIS WAY THROUGH THE INTERNET JUNGLE
UNDERGROWTH IN SEARCH OF RARE AND PRECIOUS GEMS OF A PHOTOGRAPHIC HUE.
Monitor your monitor
Chasing Chase
Landscape love affair
bit.ly/pr53ne1
bit.ly/pr53ne3
bit.ly/pr53ne5
Lagom’s LCD monitor test pages offer a quick way to
check the key performance parameters of your LCD
monitor. The tests are set out in a speciﬁc order to
encourage a methodical assessment. Users start with
the contrast setting and then proceed through the
display settings, clock and phase, sharpness, gamma
calibration, black level and so on until, a dozen steps
later, the display has been adjusted. While this is not
the same as calibration (which requires specialised
hardware and software), it should at the very least
leave you with a clearer idea of your monitor’s
capabilities.
By now many photographers are on to their second or
third website. If you’re facing the prospect of updating
your web presence, you could do worse than to take a
look at how the uber-hip Chase Jarvis presents himself
these days. Look beyond the design and note how
he negotiates the delicate balance between providing
useful content and promoting his business.
If landscape photography is your thing, then you really
must pay luminous-landscape.com a visit. True, the
design appears unchanged since about 1998, but
you’d never hold that against a site that delivers such
solid, useful and inspiring landscape photography
content as this. According to the front page blurb,
there are now over 4500 pages of articles, tutorials
and landscape photography for you to enjoy.
Sports mad
Atget et al
Colour Geek heaven
bit.ly/pr53ne2
Exploring the Lagom LCD monitor test pages led your
correspondent in turn to the geeky delights of the
ColorForum. Although it is an offshoot of a US colour
management business called ChroMix Inc, the topics
extend into more general, non-product-speciﬁc areas
of colour management. Well worth a browse if you’re
keen on the intricacies of colour management.
9
CLUB
LOGO
CLUB
LOGO
YER
PLA
NAM
bit.ly/pr53ne6
bit.ly/pr53ne4
As website design goes, Atget Photography is around
a decade out of date. Despite the name, the site isn’t
devoted exclusively to the great French photographer
(although there are many Atget images and links). It
aspires also to be a curated directory of eminent black
and white photographic practitioners. Spend half an
hour working your way through the brief biographies
linked in the left column and you’ll come away with a
pretty reasonable overview of the greats.
sportzcardz
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Sportsshooter.com is another site full of great content
but hobbled to some extent by out-of-date web design.
Still, if you’re serious about sports photography, you’ll
push past the creaky look to uncover the gems of
wisdom from a large community of sports-shooting
pros and advanced enthusiasts. Yes, it’s an American
site (not too many references to cricket or AFL) but
the photographic challenges of sports shooting are
generic enough for such considerations not to matter
much, if at all. Look and learn.
P L AY
You action shots are captured on collectable cards including player details and personalised statistics
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NA M E
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Picture a World
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worldofeos.com.au