Amateur Photographer - 6 February 2024 UK
Amateur Photographer - 6 February 2024 UK
Amateur Photographer - 6 February 2024 UK
OM SystemirdO M-1 II
s flagship
Updated Micro Four Th
atures
FIRST LOOK brings some world-first fe
TESTED
OnePlus Open
Premium folding phone with
Hasselblad triple camera
Feel
Denoise
How Lightroom’s new
noise-killer compares
with Photoshop
Canon
Call of the wild EOS 5D III
We interview top Nat Geo Why there’s still life in this
£4.25
Upgrade,
completed.
OM-1 Mark II
The world’s first in-camera
live graduated ND filter is
on board.
High-res
multi-shot
Joshua Waller looks at a new Micro Four This feature now supports
Thirds flagship, with a number of updates 14-bit raw recording.
OM System has updated its previous with the new Mark II. has doubled in size, allowing for up to 213
flagship camera, the OM-1, with a new New features include the World’s first Live raw shots at 120fps, and up to 256 raw
OM-1 Mark II version. It only seems like Graduated ND filter, which is built into the shots when shooting at 50fps with
yesterday that the OM-1 was first announced, camera. The existing LiveND filter option has continuous AF. The AF system has also been
but it’s actually been nearly two years! been improved with an additional stop (to improved with better tracking as well as
If you’re au fait with the OM-1 already, then 7 stops total). The high-resolution multi-shot better AF during video. Subject detection was
much of this will be familiar to you, so let’s mode now supports 14-bit raw shooting. already quite impressive, with cars, planes,
start with some of the changes introduced For fans of continuous shooting, the buffer trains, birds, and dogs and cats fully catered
From the back, the camera looks identical to the existing OM-1 Front and rear control dials now have a rubberised texture
4 www.amateurphotographer.com
The new 150-600mm becomes the longest MFT lens
New 150-600mm
We got our hands
on the OM-1 II and ultra-telephoto zoom
150-600mm lens
OM System has also revealed a new M.Zuiko
150-600mm F5.0-6.3 Digital ED IS lens, which
for, but now human detection has been JPEGs when shooting at 120fps (albeit gives an impressive 300mm to 1200mm equivalent
added (on top of face detection). with AF). If you want to match the OM-1 range, along with 0.7x magnification (at 1200mm). It’s
There are a number of other Mark II’s resolution, you’ll need to look surprising that this is the first time we’ve seen a
improvements, including in-body image at the £6,500 Sony Alpha A9 III, which 150-600mm on the Micro Four Thirds system. However,
stabilisation (IBIS) which now can offers 120fps with continuous AF. this is a big lens, weighing roughly 2kg, and it’s
compensate for up to 8.5 steps. The The new Live Grad ND filter gives you noticeably larger than most other Micro Four Thirds
command dials have been improved, a number of options including GND2/ optics.
with a rubber coating to aid grip, and GND4/GND8 (1,2,3EV), as well as soft, This lens can be used with the Olympus MC14 1.4x
the blackout-free shooting has been medium and hard filter-type settings. teleconverter, giving 450-1800mm equivalent at f/7-9.
improved as well. Once switched on, you can move the Even the Olympus MC-20 2.0x teleconverter can be
The core specifications of the camera position of the graduation, as well as used, giving 600-2400mm equivalent at f/10-f/13.
remain the same, including the adjust the angle, with the display This is up there with the ultra-zoom bridge cameras we
ultra-high-speed 20MP Four Thirds updating in real time so you can used to see.
sensor, which uses a BSI Stacked preview the results. The lens has optical image stabilisation (IS) that has
CMOS architecture. This allows for You can also set the delete button to been designed to work in conjunction with the camera’s
full-resolution shots at 120fps with be a second Menu button, to give in-body image stabilisation, giving up to 7 stops with
fixed AF, or 50fps with continuous AF. quicker access to the menus. This can Sync IS at the wide end, and up to 6 stops with Sync IS
This still means it’s among the fastest be useful when holding the camera with at the telephoto end. The barrel is IPX1 dust- and
cameras in the world: in comparison, one hand, without having to reach over splash-proof and there’s a flourine coating on the front
the Nikon Z 8 and Z 9 switch to 11MP to the top left of the camera. element. The OM System 150-600mm will be available
from late February, priced at £2,399.
First impressions Revamped compact ultra-wide zoom
An updated re-release of the original Olympus 9-18mm
Gone is the Olympus branding, and introduced is a range of useful new features. lens, the new OM System M.Zuiko 9-18mm F4.0-5.6 II
Whilst not especially revolutionary changes, the camera still has one of the gives an 18-36mm equivalent range, but with a new
fastest sensors available. Just a small handful of competitors offer such external design. This compact ultra-wideangle zoom
high-speed continuous shooting, and they’re all notably more expensive. It’s also lens will come with a petal-shaped lens hood in the
introduced further impressive photographic features that really do help make it an box. Whilst not featuring weather-sealing, or the PRO
extremely compact, and yet highly capable, camera system. designation of other OM System lenses, it should be
Playing to the strengths of Micro Four Thirds, there’s a relatively compact an appealing option for those that are more concerned
camera body, IP53 weather-sealed rating, and a fine range of compact lenses. with size and
You can even leave your grad ND filters and holders at home, and simply use convenience than
the built-in feature. ultimate image
With the same sensor and processing as the original OM-1, we can expect to quality. The lens
see the same level of image quality from the Mark II. We know from our testing weighs just 154g
that this will give pleasing colours, detail, and dynamic range. and has a flourine
Obviously, this isn’t a full-frame camera, but if you’re expecting OM System to coating on the
release a full-frame camera, then you’ll be waiting some time. There are benefits front element. It
to smaller sensors, including size, speed, and price. If you do want 120fps raw will be available
from a full-frame camera, you’re going to need to spend three times as much for a from March,
Sony A9 III. priced at £599.
The question is, will these new features be tempting enough for existing
Olympus/OM users to upgrade? If you already own the OM-1, then there might not OM’s updated
be enough here, and you can rest assured knowing you already have an extremely 9-18mm zoom has a
capable camera. Users of older E-M1 models may well be tempted, though. new cosmetic design
www.amateurphotographer.com 5
Remembering
Brian Griffin
We are sad to report the death of portraits of musicians – he shot now-iconic
Brian Griffin, a top commercial, portrait album covers for Depeche Mode and other
and documentary photographer who was top acts – he also undertook a diverse array
named Photographer of the Decade by The of portrait and documentary projects. These Brian Griffin, 1948-2024
Guardian in 1989. ranged from promoting the 2012 London
While Griffin was chiefly famed for his Olympics to Himmelstrasse, about the railway lines leading to Nazi concentration camps.
His acknowledged influences included film
noir, surrealism and the Renaissance
masters. Griffin was also an accomplished
filmmaker and directed a number of music
videos and TV commercials from 1991 to
2002 (his advertising clients included
British Airways and Sony). A proud Brummie,
Griffin gave a lot back to the city, and received
an honorary PhD from Birmingham City
University in 2014.
A diverse career
Born in 1948, Griffin started his working
life in the steel industry, and after joining
a local camera club, began to see the
camera as a way out of a humdrum job. ‘I
put some pictures in a Boots photo album
and tried to get a place at an art college,’ he
told AP in 2017. ‘I got into Manchester
Polytechnic. I was 21 and, to be honest,
I wasn’t that interested in photography. It was
a form of escape.’ Going to college was
fortuitous, as his peers included Martin Parr
and Daniel Meadows.
After building a strong reputation as a
creative corporate photographer for numerous
business publications, he moved into music
photography, where he made his name
internationally.
Griffin’s work is on permanent display at the
National Portrait Gallery, and he received a
string of accolades during his lifetime,
including a Centenary Medal from the Royal
Photographic Society and induction into the
The cover of A Broken Frame by Depeche Mode exemplifies Griffin’s creative, beautifully lit Album Cover Hall of Fame.
approach to album photography See more on www.briangriffin.co.uk
6 www.amateurphotographer.com
The ultimate in photography websites
Creative Cyanotype:
Techniques and Inspiration
By Angela Chalmers, Crowood Press, £14.99,
128 pages, softback, ISBN 9780719842672
As easy as it might be nowadays to
recreate the appearance of a
Small World
cyanotype digitally, there remains a
charm and authenticity about a
traditionally made print, with its
By Martin Parr
characteristic white-on-blue, that cannot be replicated
in pixels. Artist and photographer Angela Chalmers
became fascinated by the process of laying down
objects on paper coated with iron salts while at art
£36, Dewi Lewis, hardback, 112 pages, ISBN: 978-1-916915-00-8 school. Since then, she has gone on to master the
process and is now sharing her expertise in this
David Clark finds that this book. Covering everything from how to get started to
paper choices, toning and creative techniques, it’s an
revised edition of one of Martin inspiring read, and is packed with Angela’s signature
ethereal images. There’s even a section on how she
Parr’s books is still relevant today created and printed onto a stunning muslin dress,
using 8m of fabric.
Small World was first published in 1996 the irony that we travel to exotic and With step-by-step instructions, gorgeous
and remains one of Martin Parr’s most historic locations to escape our normal illustrations and an approachable writing style, this is
enduringly popular books. Here, global lives, but we take our normal lives with a must-have for anyone interested in experimenting
tourism is the target for his acerbic eye us and spoil the places we visit. In our with this creative and deceptively simple process.
and he homes in on the contradiction search for something different, we make
between the idealised myth of travel and everywhere look the same.
the messy, more complicated reality. Small World has been in print for Zwischen den Jahren
Parr’s images highlight all the almost 30 years and this ‘revised and By Valentin Goppel, GOST Books, £40, 80
unwelcome evidence of modern life that extended’ edition includes over 80 pages, hardback, ISBN 9781915423177
most tourists try desperately to exclude photographs. Some are classic images
from their photos. Crowds of tourists from previous editions, such as the shot On 31 December 2020, Valentin
queue grimly to board a gondola in of groups of tourists posing for photos in Goppel picked up his camera and
Venice; sightseers try to ignore insistent front of the Acropolis, but many are new started to photograph his friends.
street vendors in Bethlehem; to the book and have been shot as The Covid-19 pandemic had
Shakespeare’s birthplace is upstaged by recently as 2023. These new pictures created a uniquely disorientating
a passing street cleaner and a parent ensure that the book remains relevant to nine months, and Goppel felt the need to record it.
with a pushchair. They perfectly capture today’s tourist landscape and show that The title, Zwischen den Jahren, is used to describe
Parr still retains his ability to find and the period between Christmas and New Year, but
FROM ‘SMALL WORLD’ © MARTIN PARR / MAGNUM PHOTOS
8 www.amateurphotographer.com
Introducing
CyanBird
Compact, lightweight,
sturdy and striking – the
Benro CyanBird is a
travel-friendly tripod kit
that will be the perfect
companion for your
photographic
adventures!
10 www.amateurphotographer.com
MICHAEL KENNA
the
Having recently celebrated his 70th birthday, Michael Kenna is keen to
revisit old friends and send parcels of beauty and mystery back for us to
enjoy. His latest book, Photographs & Stories, is one way of sharing what
he’s learnt, says Tracy Calder
I
n a recent webinar hosted by happens in all disciplines. Having
his friend Peter Fetterman, said that, any artist worth their salt
Michael Kenna declared, would, and should, search for their
‘If I was to create a school own unique path, vision and voice.’
of photography it would be the
Michael Kenna Sticks in Water The desire to suggest
School.’ If such a school existed, In the early days, Kenna was inspired
there’s no doubt it would be well by Bill Brandt, Eugène Atget, Josef
attended – art lovers, gallerists and Koudelka, Mario Giacomelli and
photographers have long been Alfred Stieglitz, among others.
attracted to Kenna’s exquisite ‘Much of my career was spent
black & white observations of learning and chasing other
humanmade structures set against photographers to see how they
moving water, clouds and other looked, what they photographed,
natural phenomena. In fact, the where they photographed and how
photographer’s work is so instantly they photographed,’ he reveals.
recognisable that ‘it reminds me But, looking back, he also counts
of a Kenna’ is a comment often the seven years he spent at St
overheard at camera clubs. Joseph’s College, Upholland (a
After his more than 50 years spent Catholic seminary boarding school)
honing his craft and bringing back as hugely influential. ‘There were
carefully composed ‘visual haikus’ aspects of my religious upbringing
from around the world, I’m curious that I believe strongly influenced my
to know if this copycat behaviour photographic work, including
ever bothers him. ‘It would be discipline, silence, meditation and a
hypocritical of me to be annoyed sense that something can be unseen,
at others for doing precisely what yet still present,’ he notes in his new
I did in my early career,’ he admits. book, Michael Kenna: Photographs &
‘Studying, emulating, even copying Stories. This desire to suggest, rather
the works of masters is a means to than describe, is central to his
an end, a form of education. It work – we see it in his pictures Schoolyard, Heptonstall, Yorkshire, England, 1983
www.amateurphotographer.com 11
of torii gates, scribbled vines and once returned to a favourite Above: Chariot of misconceptions. ‘Not that I know
and graphic, ink-like smudges specimen seven years in a row). He Apollo, Study 1, of,’ he laughs. ‘Although I rarely read
of fenceposts in the snow. also uses his mastery of negative Versailles, France, what’s written about me!’ I, on the
space to encourage viewers to ‘read’ 1988 other hand, have read countless
It’s all about respect a picture in their own way. ‘I like Below: Swings, articles about Kenna and there are
Kenna is well versed in the power of to invite viewers into an image, so Catskill two things that have always
negative space (often referred to as I leave a lot of space for them to Mountains, New intrigued me. Firstly, he often
Ma in Japan) and he uses it to invite create their own dialogue with what York, USA, 1977 describes himself as a postman – but
viewers into his work. For him, the is happening,’ he explains. why? ‘I guess what I mean is that I
relationship between artist, subject So much has been written about Right: Plank Walk, interact with what I see, pick up by
and viewer is enlivening and fluid. Kenna and his photographs that I’m Lancashire, way of photographing and then
England, 1992
‘When I photograph, a conversation keen to know if he ever comes across eventually disseminate my visual
takes place between me, the
photographer, and what’s being
photographed,’ he suggests. ‘I take
my role as a medium or messenger
very seriously, and I feel that I have
a responsibility to pass on the
conversation and have it continued
with others. Photographer, subject
and viewer make a triangle of
communication, always unique
and changing.’
The conversation begins when
Kenna asks his subject for permission
to shoot, be that a nuclear power
station, a garden or a tree. For him,
it’s about respect and connection. By
way of an example, he considers
many trees as friends (he has more
than 600 tree studies in his archive
‘I take my role as a
medium or messenger
very seriously and I feel
a responsibility’
12
MICHAEL KENNA
Sources of inspiration
Creative minds often draw from
a well of mixed sources, and Kenna
is a case in point. In the past he’s
enjoyed long-distance running,
playing the guitar, practising yoga
and belting out Japanese love songs.
While they might seem unrelated,
I’m curious to find out if there’s any
cross-pollination between these
leisure pursuits and his photography.
‘Yes,’ he says. ‘There are many
examples, but the most obvious
is long-distance running.’
(Unfortunately, Kenna had to give
this up after two unsuccessful
partial knee replacements).
‘Running helped me solve the
world’s problems without thinking
– an active body encourages a
constant stream of consciousness. It
gave me peace of mind. I found
many locations to photograph
Covered Urn, Study 1, Versailles, France, 1987 On the Hermitage, Study 7, St Petersburg, Russia, 2000
13
MICHAEL KENNA
while I was out running, too!’ life,’ he says. ‘Much as I want to photography is important to Kenna,
He may have been forced to discover new locations, I’m also as his list of previous books and
hang up his trainers, but this perfectly happy to revisit good old exhibitions testifies, but he is quick
70-year-old polymath shows friends. Old associations are built to point out that what we share is
absolutely no signs of slowing on, new ones are made, and life never ours to own. ‘When it comes
down. His passion for photography continues to evolve. I can’t say what to creativity, we shouldn’t attempt
(and his beloved Everton Football the future holds; it will be what it is.’ to own anything,’ he argues. ‘Life
Club) remains unshakable. In recent months he has been and beauty should be shared. We
given many opportunities to revisit are but stewards of the light which
The importance of sharing old friends while working with comes into our cameras, and
Having said that, Kenna now finds Chris Pichler, founder and publisher whatever is given to us should
himself more interested in revisiting of Nazraeli Press, to create Michael Michael Kenna: ultimately be given back.’
old friends (human and non- Kenna: Photographs & Stories. Photographs & Stories And, with that, Kenna heads off
human) than making new ones. Together, the pair selected one is published by Nazraeli to make a coffee. It’s 5.37am in
‘I have been very fortunate to photograph for each year of Press. For more Seattle and he is very much
photograph in many locations over Kenna’s career. Sharing the beauty information visit awake and ready for whatever
the five decades of my professional and mystery of the world via www.nazraeli.com the day may bring.
14 www.amateurphotographer.com
Nikon Wanted for Cash
Sell us or trade in your equipment:
Nikon 35mm SLR cameras & Nikon manual focus lenses
40 Churton Street, London SW1V 2LP, England Tel: 020-7828 4925 [email protected] www.graysofwestminster.co.uk
Grays of Westminster Grays of Westminster @nikonatgrays @nikonatgrays Grays of Westminster
2
1 Sophie Unwin and 2 Pale Pink Tulip by
Jenny Holl Winning Kirsten Bax Delicate,
by Frank Roscoe This muted colours and a
image captures the balanced composition
delight and surprise on combine to make an
1 the cycling duo’s faces effective still-life image
5 Looming by David
5 Moyes A moody, 6
atmospheric, mainly
monochrome
architectural study that
effectively incorporates
splashes of colour
Join
When was the club founded? the end of August to the end of April at
1947. We celebrated 70 years in 2017 with a Gracefield Arts Centre, Dumfries. The
very successful and popular exhibition in evenings are from 7.15pm to about 9.30pm
Gracefield Arts Centre, Dumfries, featuring with a tea break in the middle. The meetings
1,000 pictures of people in Dumfries and usually include a guest speaker or
Club
the Galloway taken by club members. contributions from club members, plus league
competitions. Sessions this season include
What does your club offer new members? talks from members on Falkland Island
The Dumfries Camera Club gives a warm wildlife, kingfishers, local churches,
welcome to all levels of photographer. Visitors photographers who have influenced us, studio
can come along and hear guest speakers for portraiture, and photo books.
a small fee. Becoming a member also gives
you access to the Members’ Area of the club Do you invite guest speakers?
website where you can view ‘members only’ We have a wide range of guest speakers,
Dumfries CC offers varied pages, make comments, upload images to hailing from Scotland and the North of
your gallery and enter league competitions. England. So far this season we have had
activities and has had talks from Dylan Nardini, a successful
PAGB contest success Describe a typical club meeting Scottish landscape photographer, and from
The club meets on a Wednesday evening from Michele Campbell who does fine art
16 www.amateurphotographer.com
YOUR PICTURES IN PRINT
portraiture, specialising in children. Last season we had a couple of talks What are the club’s goals for the future?
followed by practical sessions. We had one We aim to be a place where our members
Do members compete in regional or on ICM (intentional camera movement) with a can meet, have fun and develop their
national competitions? trip to the coast. We have also had a session photography skills. Like probably every other
The Dumfries Camera Club is one of the most on sports photography followed by a shoot at camera club, we would like more members
successful amateur photographic clubs in hockey training in the dark and at a local and younger members, and to continue
Scotland and is consistently in the top rank of rugby match. Club members have got enjoying our varied photography.
clubs in the UK. We are one of only two clubs together for trips to Edinburgh Festival and
who have qualified to compete at every PAGB Appleby Horse Fair.
Print championships and we have won it three Club essentials
times. We have more members with Awards Do you have any funny stories about
for Photographic Merit distinctions than any the club?
other UK club. We also have six members One of our annual prizes is The Parrot on a Dumfries Camera Club
with FRPS distinctions. Stick, which is awarded to someone who has Gracefield Arts Centre, Dumfries
done something funny. Last year it was Meets: Wednesday evenings (end August to end April)
How many members do you have? awarded to a member (who shall be
Membership: £72
Currently around 40. nameless) who was due to give a
presentation and left his memory stick at Contact: [email protected]
Are any trips or outings planned? home and had to go back for it. Website: www.dumfriescameraclub.co.uk
www.amateurphotographer.com 17
ALL PICTURES © © LE STUDIO PHOTO DE LA RUE, FATOUMATA DIABATÉ
Photo Stories
A studio
of her sitters, but more important to her is
the spontaneity of their reaction and her own
response to the moment, which she
describes as ‘a singular dialogue between the
model and the photographer’. She continues:
T
A sketch of her mobile studio reveals a
he idea of a photographer using a As with her parents’ experience with three-sided space of nine square metres with
large-format view camera and Seydou Keïta, many of Fatoumata’s early an open top. For a backdrop, Fatoumata uses
mobile studio to randomly sitters remembered their own parents’ street black & white patterned carpet and shoots
photograph strangers on the streets studio portraits and took great delight at with a large-format view camera, although she
might seem anachronistic in this age of attempting to recreate the experience. ‘They also creates digital files with a Canon EOS 5D
mobile phone imagery and TikTok. But for the get to feel both pride and fun at the same Mark III to produce 13x18cm prints for her
Malian photographer Fatoumata Diabaté, her time,’ she says. ‘Everyone smiles or even sitters to take away as a keepsake.
mobile photography studio project, Le Studio bursts out laughing looking at his or her own
Photo de la Rue (The street photo studio) parents from the 1950s and 1960s.’ Common values
continues a tradition popularised in Africa by Like Keita and his contemporaries, She believes the reason behind the popularity
the street studio photographers of the 1950s Fatoumata shoots in black & white. This of her mobile studio is the opportunity it
and 60s, notably Seydou Keïta, Malick Sidibé, approach might seem like a missed provides people to have photos made of
Samuel Fosso, Oumar Ly, Mama Casset and opportunity given the colourful attire of many them in a style they’d normally see only
Youssouf Sogodogo.
The project was conceived in 2013 soon
after Fatoumata completed a residency at the
Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac in
Paris. Although inspired by the spontaneity of
street photography, she wanted to pay
homage to these pioneers by adopting many
of the techniques they deployed. ‘My parents
were both immortalised in a portrait by
Seydou Keïta, who was our neighbour when
I was growing up in Mali,’ she says. ‘So,
I created Le Studio Photo de la Rue as a
tribute to the great masters of African studio
photography and to keep this tradition alive.’
Left: These boys
Another time and culture walked up from the
In the past ten years, Fatoumata has taken beach in their sandy
feet and goggles to
her mobile studio beyond her home countries pose in the outdoor
of Mali and France, photographing more than studio. Soumbédioun,
2,000 people on streets as far apart as Senegal
Colombia and China, Brazil and Ethiopia. Her
first portraits were made while living in Right: Fatoumata
Senegal. The public response was provides many of the
reassuringly positive. ‘My first efforts props used for her
portraits, such as the
exceeded my expectations. People who plastic flowers held
came to the studio were pleased and by this cyclist.
surprised to discover the technique of Soumbédioun,
another time and culture.’ Senegal
www.amateurphotographer.com 19
Fatoumata
Diabaté
Born in Bamako, Mali, in
1980, Fatoumata’s
photography was first
recognised at
Rencontres de Bamako
2005, where she won
ALL PICTURES © LE STUDIO PHOTO DE LA RUE, FATOUMATA DIABATÉ
To find out more about Fatoumata and see more of her images, visit her website: www.fatoumatadiabate.com
20 www.amateurphotographer.com
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W
hen Canon unveiled the EOS 5D Mark III in 2012, it
received a lot of interest from enthusiasts and
working pros. Its 22.3MP resolution wasn’t a big
increase over its predecessor, but it promised
improved dynamic range and low-light performance. Its sensitivity
range of ISO 100-25,600 (expandable to ISO 50-102,400) and
61-point AF system with 41 cross-type AF points were identical to
the then-flagship EOS-1D X. Other features include 6fps shooting, a
reliable 63-zone metering system, fixed 3.2in 1.04k-dot screen and
an optical viewfinder with 0.71x magnification and 100% coverage. As well as a durable shutter
Full HD video (30p) and dual card slots (CF & SD) are supported too. that’s rated to 150,000 cycles, it
accepts Canon’s LP-E6 battery
What we said What to pay that’s good for 950 shots before
a recharge is required
l ‘The viewfinder is bright, clear The EOS 5D Mark II cost
and offers 100% coverage’ £2,999 when we reviewed it in
l ‘Those more interested in 2012. Today you can pick one
video may be left wanting a up in ‘good’ used condition with
little more’ a shutter count of under
l ‘The 5D Mark III focuses 20,000 between £460 and
faster than its predecessor and £510. Examples with a shutter
has all the advanced settings count in excess of 100,000
one would expect’ frames in ‘well used’ condition
l ‘There are signs of noise at sell for around £380, while
ISO 800, but it is only when ISO the very best examples in
6400 is reached that luminance excellent condition typically sell
noise really becomes visible’ closer to £600.
The body is built to survive the rough and tumble of heavy use.
How it fares today New alternatives This includes a very good level of weather-sealing
www.amateurphotographer.com 23
Testbench USED CAMERAS
owners
Canon EOS 5D Mark III, 16-35mm f/2.8L II at 16mm,
30 seconds at f/16, ISO 100
think
Three Canon EOS 5D
Mark III users give
their verdict
Dani Lefrancois
I preordered the Canon EOS 5D
Mark III in 2012 and I still
actively use it as a second body
for my long lens in 2023. It really
dictated how I shot and used the
camera, which has been
something I’ve had to unlearn
with my new gear. When I was
using it as my main body, I would
shoot in manual focus 100% of
the time with my ultra-wide lens.
I shot in Av mode and would after going for a swim in an icy easily at night because I could
set my lens to MF and put the lake. Additionally, still to this day see stars and I could see the
focus to infinity and would I have not figured out which northern lights. This was unheard
use the large rectangle box on setting I switched in the menu, of back in 2012. For and against
the live view to choose the light but in low light conditions my More of Dani’s images can be + Extremely durable
in my image. live view would get noisy and viewed on Instagram @danibanff + Great in low light
The weather-sealing is push the light. + Faithful colour
amazing, because it still works It allowed me to compose really – No flip-out screen
Michael Topham
Having given the EOS 5D Mark II
a miss, the Mark III felt like the
natural upgrade from the original
EOS 5D. I immediately warmed
to it, with the increase in
resolution from 12.8MP to
22.3MP offering much improved
scope when cropping and the
1.04m-dot screen presenting a
far superior reviewing experience.
As I began to take on more
weddings, I bought another as my
second body, very reasonably
priced at £1,500 brand new in
2016. Both served me
exceptionally well.
As they were dependable and
robust, I put all my faith in them
to capture people’s weddings for
more than eight years with my Michael shot weddings with the
L-series lenses. It was the colour EOS 5D Mark III for eight years
Canon EOS 5D Mark III, 70-200mm f/2.8L II at 200mm,
science I loved more than
1/1600sec at f/2.8, ISO 400
anything though, particularly the
way the camera rendered natural
skin tones so faithfully. was too good to be true, that super-sharp prime lenses.
In the end, it was the made me trade in my entire More of Michael’s work can For and against
combination of carrying two heavy Canon system for a pair of Nikon be found on Instagram + Rendition of skin tones
DSLRs all day, and a deal that Z 6II cameras and a selection of @michaeltophamphotography - Size and weight
www.amateurphotographer.com 25
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Panasonic Lumix S
100mm F2.8 Macro
Panasonic has made a startlingly small and lightweight measuring 36 x 24mm. Its
100mm short-telephoto focal
full-frame macro lens, but are there any compromises? length means it can also double
up as a handy portrait lens.
Andy Westlake digs into the finest details Unsurprisingly, the Lumix lens
P
is more expensive than the
anasonic has been Now the firm has launched regarded f/1.8 primes, and very Sigma, at £1,000 compared to
making full-frame another eye-catching product similar in weight. In contrast, its £699. But that’s not dissimilar to
mirrorless for just as – the implausibly compact Lumix closest L-mount competitor, the other camera makers’ equivalent
long as Canon and S 100mm F2.8 Macro. Sigma 105mm F2.8 DG DN optics; for example, the Nikon
Nikon, having been a founding Designed for shooting close- Macro, measures 13.4cm and Nikkor Z MC 105mm f/2.8 VR S
member of the L-Mount Alliance ups, this is, by a considerable 715g, which is pretty typical for is £1,049. Everything points to
in 2018. While it initially margin, the smallest and lightest its class. you getting a fully fledged macro
struggled for market traction, its lens of its type. It’s just 8.2cm Despite its tiny size, the Lumix lens, but in a package that’s less
Lumix S5II and S5IIX cameras long and weighs less than 300g, 100mm is still capable of life-size than half the usual weight and
have provided considerable which means it’s exactly the magnification – in other words, two-thirds of the size.
impetus to the system. same size as Panasonic’s highly filling the frame with a subject So what is the catch?
www.amateurphotographer.com 27
Images are packed full of
detail from corner to corner
Panasonic Lumix S5IIX, 1/3sec at f/11, ISO 100
Features of delivering attractive bokeh. or to disturb twitchy subjects. operates in a non-linear fashion,
Panasonic has employed an Autofocus is handled by a new A deep cylindrical hood meaning that the quicker you turn
optical design with 13 elements ‘dual phase linear motor’, which provides protection for the front the focus ring, the more rapidly
in 11 groups, including three Panasonic says is a key factor in element against both stray light the distance changes. With some
aspherical elements, two made its compact design. At 1:1 and physical impact. Like many cameras you can switch to a
from extra-low dispersion (ED) magnification, the minimum focus other Panasonic Lumix S lenses, linear focusing response, which
glass, and one from ultra-low distance is just 20.4cm, which is the filter thread is 67mm. personally I prefer.
dispersion (ED) glass. Together, shorter than comparable lenses. The only other controls are two
these are designed to maintain This results in an unusually close Build and handling switches on the side. One selects
sharpness from corner to corner working distance between the Thanks to its petite size and light between autofocus and manual,
while suppressing colour fringing. front of the lens and the subject weight, the Lumix S 100mm F2.8 while the other can be used to
The aperture diaphragm is of about 10cm. That’s not Macro handles somewhat limit the focus distance range,
formed of nine curved blades necessarily a good thing; differently from other lenses in its either within the macro range
which maintain a rounded shape it means you’re that bit more class. It’s just that bit better (50cm – 20.4cm), or for subjects
at larger openings, with the aim likely to get in your own light, balanced on the camera; other further than 50cm. This can be
short-telephoto macros tend to useful to reduce hunting.
The lens is capable of feel slightly front-heavy.
life-size magnification One of the ways Panasonic has Autofocus
Panasonic Lumix S5IIX, 1/13sec at f/8, ISO 100 kept the weight down is to use a One area where the Lumix S
plastic skin for the barrel. But 100mm F2.8 Macro excels is
this doesn’t mean the lens feels with regards to autofocus.
cheap. Instead, it’s similar in Traditionally, this has been a
terms of styling and finish to the weak point of macro lenses.
firm’s other L-mount optics. But that’s not the case here, with
Despite its light weight, the lens the lens instead focusing quickly
still boasts dust- and splash- and accurately.
resistant construction, and is Unlike most older macro
designed to be freezeproof to lenses, this one also acquits
-10°C. This is good news, as it’s itself well when shooting moving
likely to be used outdoors often. subjects. You might still be better
At the front of the barrel, you’ll off with the likes of a 70-200mm
find a large manual focus ring, f/2.8 zoom for fast, unpredictable
which is electronically coupled action. But the 100mm should be
and rotates smoothly with no fine for less-demanding subjects
hard end stops. By default, it such as portrait photography.
28 www.amateurphotographer.com
LENS TEST Testbench
Verdict
I’M A big fan
of short-
telephoto
macro lenses,
and the
Panasonic
Lumix S
100mm F2.8
Macro is an
excellent example.
I really appreciated its small size
and light weight; getting 1:1
magnification from such a
portable lens on full-frame is a
revelation. Other compact macro
lenses have shorter focal
lengths, which usually equates to
awkwardly tight working distances
100mm is also a useful and less attractive perspective.
focal length for portraits
Crucially, I was also delighted by
Panasonic S5IIX, 1/100sec at f/2.8, ISO 2000
the image quality it delivered.
As for compromises, there’s
Photographers often think it’s from the Lumix 100mm f/2.8. aberration, or in out-of-focus barely anything to worry about.
necessary to use manual focus Image files are packed full of regions at large apertures due to The working distance is a little
for macro work, but that’s no detail, with no troublesome the longitudinal variety. There’s a close compared to its peers,
longer necessarily true. If you aberrations. Out-of-focus areas little in the way of vignetting at which means the Sigma 105mm
engage the Pinpoint Focus are handled nicely, too. f/2.8, but often this will help F2.8 might be a better choice for
setting on a Panasonic camera, Tested on the 24MP S5IIX, the frame your subject. It goes away L-mount users photographing
you can position the focus area lens resolves impressive levels at f/4, too. skittish subjects such as insects.
pretty much exactly where you of detail from corner to corner, Examining uncorrected raw It’s also possible that some raw
want, and then autofocus even wide open at f/2.8. It gets files does, however, give a clue converters won’t deal properly
perfectly accurately. Alternatively, a little crisper on stopping down as to how Panasonic has with the required distortion
you can press the AF-ON button to f/4 or f/5.6, if you stare achieved the lens’s tiny size. correction. But for most users,
even when using manual focus closely at your image files It exhibits visible pincushion neither should be a big problem.
mode, and autofocus exactly at onscreen, but the difference isn’t distortion that needs to be Overall, this is a fantastic
your selected point. huge. Close the aperture past corrected in software. This lens from Panasonic that
Of course, you can still use f/8, and diffraction progressively wouldn’t have been acceptable completely redefines what a
manual focus if you prefer – blurs away pixel-level detail. But on a macro lens designed for short telephoto macro can look
it often works very well for slow, this doesn’t stop the lens from film, but the world has moved on like. It’s just so much easier to
considered macro shooting. being eminently usable at f/22 now, so it’s mainly of academic drop into your bag and carry
Again, the lens is very well when you need the depth of field. note. You’ll see a geometrically around with you than any
behaved, making it easy to With this kind of lens, we’re corrected image in the comparable
position sharpest focus exactly just as much concerned with the viewfinder, while out-of-camera optic. If I were
where you want. way it renders out-of-focus areas JPEGs are automatically an L-mount
Those who like to shoot video of the image, as those that are corrected, too. The requisite user, I’d buy
will be delighted to find that the sharp. In this respect, the Lumix correction parameters are also one in a
autofocus is extremely quiet, so 100mm f/2.8 acquits itself embedded into the raw files and heartbeat.
GOLD
it shouldn’t disturb your admirably for both close-up and applied automatically by Adobe
soundtrack. Likewise, focus portrait shooting. Backgrounds software. Most users won’t even
breathing is suppressed very are, in general, attractively be aware this is happening, let
effectively at longer subject rendered, while transitions alone care – they’ll just get Data file
distances down to about 1.5m. between sharp and blurred areas sharp, clean images with straight
Price £999 Minimum focus
Once you get into the macro are handled in a smooth and lines where they should be. 20.4cm
Filter diameter
range, though, the angle of view natural-looking fashion, too. The lens also deals very well 67mm Length 82.0mm
narrows considerably on If you’re primarily interested in with shooting into the light. I saw Lens elements 13 Diameter 73.6mm
focusing closer. photographing people, an 85mm no problematic loss of contrast Weight 298g
Groups 11
f/1.8 would still deliver a greater due to flare, and nothing to worry Lens mount
Diaphragm blades
Performance degree of blur, but the 100mm about with regards to ghosting 9 L mount
We expect macro lenses to be f/2.8 will also do a fine job. with bright light sources in the Aperture Included
impeccably behaved when it I saw barely any hint of colour frame. Overall, the optical f/2.8 – f/22 accessories
comes to optical quality, and fringing, either in the corners performance is pretty Caps, hood
that’s essentially what I saw due to lateral chromatic much exemplary.
www.amateurphotographer.com 29
SMARTPHONE TEST Testbench
£1,399 16GB/512GB
This folding phone offers a triple- l 48MP main camera, f/1.7,
24mm equivalent, OIS, PDAF
camera setup made in collaboration l 48MP ultra-wide, f/2.2,
14mm equivalent, PDAF
with Hasselblad. Joshua Waller l 64MP telephoto, f/2.6,
70mm equivalent, OIS, PDAF
takes a detailed look l 20MP f/2.2 (inner), 32MP f/2.4
(cover) selfie cameras
T
l 7.82in folding screen
he OnePlus Open is the can be a bit lacking compared to l 6.31in outer screen
firm’s only folding non-folding phones. Not with the l Android 13
phone. It’s a rather OnePlus Open, which has put a l 153.4x143.1x5.8mm open
impressive first attempt strong emphasis on the triple- 153.4x73.3x11.7mm closed
as well, with a priority being put camera system on the back. l 239g/245g (black/green)
on the Hasselblad cameras on The first camera to mention is
the back. But could this be one the main 48MP wideangle with an f/2.2 aperture. This also image stabilisation. The
of the best folding phones for camera, with an f/1.7 aperture, features PDAF, which can be used telephoto camera can be used for
photography? optical image stabilisation (OIS), for close-ups. Again, this gives close-ups, gives pixel-binned
and phase detection autofocus pixel-binned 12MP images, and 16MP images, and also uses a
Design and features (PDAF). This gives pixel-binned has a 1/2in sensor. 1/2in sensor.
Often because of space and 12MP images, and uses a There’s also a high-resolution One of the useful things about
design complications of the 1/1.43in sensor. It’s joined by a 64MP telephoto camera with an dual-screen smartphones is
folding system, the camera setup 48MP ultra-wideangle camera f/2.6 aperture, PDAF, and optical that you can use the main
www.amateurphotographer.com 31
24mm equivalent 2x digital zoom
cameras for selfies, the main cameras and therefore much more than the higher- obsessive about things like this.
portraits, and group photos. quality is likely to be lower. memory options available from It is, however, flatter than the
This means you don’t have to use The OnePlus Open looks like, Samsung and Apple. Google Pixel Fold.
the lower-quality selfie cameras. and feels like, a premium folding Other folding phones include Wireless charging is not
However, if you do want to use phone, with a quality of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 and available, which is a real shame.
the selfie cameras, then you’ve construction up there with the the Google Pixel Fold. Both This is a premium phone, and
got a 20MP f/2.2 inner camera best, yet the price is really rather currently cost more but there are wireless charging is now seen as
and a 32MP f/2.4 outer camera. competitive, at £1,399 currently. regularly offers of bundled a must-have feature for many.
However, it’s worth noting these This is still significantly more than freebies, or discounts available. Included in the box is a 67W
have much smaller sensors than many flagship phones, but not As mentioned, the OnePlus charger, USB cable, and a free
Open looks great. It’s got a thin two-part case.
body with premium metal-framed The screens look great, with a
construction. The thinness of the high level of brightness available,
phone is only broken by the larger on both the external and internal
circular camera bump on the rear. screens, and this can be really
There’s even a sliding switch on useful for viewing photos and
the side with three positions to websites, and anything else you
adjust the volume between on / use the phone for.
vibrate and silent, as found on
OnePlus phones of the past. Camera app
When opening the phone, you There is a wide range of shooting
can adjust the level of fold to suit modes available in the camera
your needs – for example, if you app, including full manual
wanted to watch a film or adjust controls in the Pro mode. Here
the camera angle. However, it’s you’re able to change settings on
worth noting that when all of the cameras, from the 0.6x
completely open it’s not entirely camera through to the 3x
Group portrait using flat, there is still a very slight telephoto camera, as well as the
the main camera bend. This isn’t really noticeable 2x and 6x digital zoom modes.
24mm equiv, 1/17sec at f/1.7, ISO 5000
day to day, unless you’re a bit The phone gives quick access
32 www.amateurphotographer.com
SMARTPHONE TEST Testbench
Using the telephoto camera
Verdict
gives good results, as long as
light is good, and you’re not too
close to the subject.
70mm equivalent, 1/50sec at f/2.6, ISO 500 THE ONEPLUS Open is a really
nice folding phone, and shows
that you don’t have to buy a
Samsung model to get a
premium experience. There’s an
impressive set of rear cameras
– with good results from the
ultra-wide camera, great results
from the main camera, and
really good results from the
telephoto camera.
In terms of downsides, the
ultra-wideangle camera is
perhaps one where I would have
liked to see sharper images, as
results can look soft at times. In
addition, the lack of wireless
charging is an odd omission on a
flagship phone at this price point.
The next generation of camera
phones are on their way, and
looking to take smartphone
photography to the next level.
Non-folding phones still look like
to Pro, Video, Photo, and Portrait
photo from the 3x telephoto cameras are fixed focus, but they will have an advantage over
shooting modes, with additional camera, and you can also see a give reasonable results. For the folding phones for now, but the
shooting modes found under 6x digital zoom shot, where most flattering portraits though, gap doesn’t seem to be as big
‘More’. These include night, image quality drops. you’d be better off using the as it once was.
hi-res, panoramic, film, slow-mo, The ultra-wideangle camera main cameras. It’s In terms of folding phones, the
long exposure, dual-view video, gives reasonable results; straightforward switching OnePlus Open is up there with
time-lapse, text scanner and however, images are a little bit screens to enable self-portraits the best, and has a much more
XPAN. Film is a video mode, with softer than I would have liked with the main camera. impressive build quality when
the option to record LOG video. to see. Colour reproduction is Similarly, you’re going to get compared to the Google Pixel
very good, without being overly better video results when Fold. If you’re looking for a folding
Performance saturated. vlogging if you use the main phone, then the OnePlus Open
Hasselblad has been working Telephoto close-ups can switch cameras. Then you can use the gives photographers some
with OnePlus since 2021. This to using the main camera with portrait mode to adjust the level high-quality results and a great
means that its imaging experts digital zoom if light levels drop of background blur. shooting
help tune the cameras to give too far, or when you get too close The phone offers 4K video experience.
improved colour output and to the subject. In comparison the recording at 60/30fps from the
performance. So we should Vivo iQOO 12 will keep using the main cameras, as well as 4K
expect to see some great results telephoto camera even in low 30fps from the selfie cameras. Recommended
from the OnePlus Open. light, and with the subject closer. Stabilisation is good, helping to
The main 48MP wideangle This is a shame, as the images keep video stable when
camera gives pixel-binned 12MP using digital zoom are of lower recording without a gimbal.
images. Dynamic range is quality, and it’s often difficult to
handled nicely, with automatic tell when the phone has Value for money
HDR (high dynamic range) switched to digital zoom. The OnePlus Open is currently
combining a number of shots for Thankfully, when the device priced competitively at £1,399
enhanced detail in both the continues to use the with 16GB/512GB – normally it
shadows and highlights. Taking 3x telephoto camera for macro costs £1,599. This makes it
the same shot at the same and close-up photos, rather than cheaper than either the
location and same time, but with switching to digital zoom, the Samsung Z Fold 5, which costs
2x (digital) zoom, shows a results are very good, with plenty £1,849 for 512GB, or the
degradation in image quality. of detail and good colour. Google Pixel Fold at £1,869
The 64MP telephoto camera Low-light performance from the (512GB). There are often special
gives a 3x view, which is a good main camera is very good, even offers available, though, so make
telephoto camera to have on a when shooting handheld. The sure you see what’s on offer
smartphone, rather than just 2x telephoto camera can also give before you choose which to buy.
for example. The output is some really nice results in Compared to non-folding phones,
actually a pixel-binned 16MP low-light conditions. though, the price is at the
image. Shown above left is the The inner and outer selfie upper end of the scale.
www.amateurphotographer.com 33
ADVERTISING FEATURE
W
hile Canon continues to market its
renowned EOS DSLR cameras and lenses,
the company’s energies have been
directed onto its EOS R system.
It’s been a fruitful period as in the past 18 months,
Canon has introduced no fewer than six new cameras
and 15 lenses into its already formidable mirrorless
range, and there’s more to come. There’s a wide range of
kit to suit various budgets.
users too standards with its price level makes the EOS R50 remarkable value.
AF tracking Mid-priced at £999 body only, the superbly
performance and
Canon EOS R cameras: under £1000 its eye-tracking specified EOS R10 is a strong contender as a leading
First-time EOS R system buyers have three entry-level and subject-detect value hybrid camera. It was one of the first two EOS
models to choose from. These sub-£1,000 APS-C format skills. This, R-mount APS-C format mirrorless cameras launched by
cameras can happily cater for experienced users too, coupled with the Canon (the other was the EOS R7) with an array of
especially now that there are four dedicated RF-S lenses. camera being able features aimed at new and experienced content creators.
The 24.1-megapixel EOS R100 is available with the produce full-size Slightly heavier and bigger than the two EOS Rs that
RF-S 18-45mm F4.5-6.3 IS STM standard zoom for just raws at 20fps with are featured in this sub-£1,000 category, the EOS R10’s
the electronic
£499.99, which makes this camera/lens combination a shutter, opens up feature set will suit those keen to take their next steps
compelling proposition. lots of exciting into content creation with market-leading photo and
Key features include 6.5fps burst shooting, Dual Pixel possibilities video skills. It can shoot at 15fps with the mechanical
CMOS autofocusing with face tracking and eye shutter and 23fps with the electronic shutter, both with
detection and an advanced exposure system to deliver focus tracking and, for even more shooting speed, a Raw
perfect results. Take the next step up the price ladder Burst mode that works at 30fps with a 75% crop.
and there’s the EOS R50, a 24.2-megapixel camera – For video, there’s the option of 4K/30p or 4K/60p for
available in black or white – priced at £789.99 body even smoother results, and for stills and movies the
only or £899.99 with the RF-S 18-45mm F4.5-6.3 IS deep-learning Dual Pixel CMOS AF II system
STM kit zoom lens. ensures tack-sharp results time after time.
The EOS R50 also has options when it comes to There’s also AI subject-detect too which is cascaded
shooting video footage including an articulating down from Canon’s flagship EOS R3 and gives the EOS
monitor that can face forwards, Movie Digital Image R10 the skills to deal with most situations.
Stabilisation for smoother handheld movie shooting All round, the EOS R10 offers a class-leading
and longer shooting time. performance in a nicely priced camera that’s generally
While the EOS R50 is designed to be simple to use, fun to use and you get a lot of really useful features for
there is headroom for its users to grow into, including its sub-£1k body price.
14 scene modes, focus bracketing and continuous
© WILL CHEUNG
© CANON
www.amateurphotographer.com
Canon EOS R cameras: £1000-£3000
This price segment of the camera market is highly
competitive and Canon is represented with three
class-leading cameras. It’s in this area that you’ll get the
emergence of full-frame models mixing it with top-of-
the-range APS-C format models.
The Canon EOS R7 is the flagship APS-C format
camera. It packs in a 32.5-megapixel sensor so there’s
plenty of capacity for big enlargements as well as the
leeway to crop into images. This ability plus the 1.6x
© CANON
crop factor of the APS-C format has made the EOS R7 a
sought-after machine amongst action and nature
photographers where long telephoto lenses are essential. Above: The EOS new standards with its AF tracking performance, and its
Factor in a capable high ISO performance, in-body R3 is handy for eye-tracking and subject-detect skills are second to none.
image stabilisation and the ability to shoot at 30fps with action. Here, it This, coupled with the ability to generate full-size raws at
its electronic shutter, and the EOS R7 has a wide appeal. was partnered 20fps with the electronic shutter, opens up lots of
with the new RF
It sells for a competitive £1,449.99 (body only). At this 200-800mm previously tricky opportunities. Aimed at pro action and
price level, there’s the opportunity to invest in a F6.3-9 IS USM sports photographers, everything about the EOS R3 is
full-frame mirrorless camera, the format of choice focused on speed without sacrificing reliability or
among expert and pro image creators. performance. Its stacked, backside-lit 24.1-megapixel
Vying for your attention in the price sector is the CMOS sensor can deliver a shooting rate of 30fps
very able Canon EOS R8 selling at £1,699.99 and the without any viewfinder blackout and its top native ISO
EOS R6 Mark II, at £2,779.99 body only. Both models peaks at 102,400 so even the most unpromising lighting
ideally suit hybrid content creators and share many can be handled. Add an incredible AF system which
similar features including the 24.2-megapixel sensor, up features subject tracking and Canon’s Eye Control AF,
to 40fps burst mode shooting with the electronic shutter which lets you choose which subject to focus track just
and the same AF features. by looking where you want to focus in the viewfinder,
The EOS R8 is the more compact camera, has only one and the R3 is one of the best cameras money can buy.
SD card slot, uses a lower-capacity battery and lacks
in-body image stabilisation (IBIS) so while it’s not as Lots of home printing options
well-endowed as the EOS R6 Mark II model, it is Canon’s extensive range of photo-quality printers starts
significantly more affordable and its feature set is with dye-sub mini printers to home-friendly units that
impressive for the money. can output exhibition-quality 13x19in (A3+) fine art
If you have the extra budget, opting for the EOS R6 prints. For making small prints on the go, there’s the
Mark II is worth a thought and having IBIS is a seriously Canon Selphy CP1500 from £134.99, a portable wireless
handy benefit when shooting in low light or using long dye-sub unit which is fun to use yet still very capable.
lenses and it offers raw 6K/60p external video recording For home-based printing, Canon has its PIXMA Photo
if advanced movie shooting is your ambition. It got five range. The PIXMA TS8350a is a multi-purpose unit that
stars in our review and the accolade of Testbench Gold. can scan, copy and produce A4 colour prints wirelessly
or via a built-in SD card slot with a six-colour individual
Canon EOS R cameras: £3000-£6000 tank inkset. For making A3+ size prints, the iP8750 is a
For those on a bigger budget, there are two state-of-the- great-value option. It costs £239.99 and can output up to
art full-frame cameras on offer – the EOS R5, selling at A3+ size pro-standard full colour and black & white
£3,999.99 body only, and Canon’s flagship, the EOS R3, enlargements using with its ChromaLife 100+ inks that
which retails at £5999.99. gives outstanding print life. The six colour inks can be
For those needing supreme image quality and high- replaced individually and there’s the option of XL inks
speed performance in a compact body, the EOS R5 is the for greater printing capacity at lower running costs.
camera of choice. It has proved itself incredibly popular Right: Canon’s The hybrid ink system is handy for document
among discerning still and video shooters and its 45- extensive range of printing, too.
megapixel sensor is capable of poster-size enlargements photo-quality
and 8K raw. As the image top left shows, the EOS R5 set printers goes from
dye-sub mini
printers to
© WILL CHEUNG
home-friendly
units that can
output exhibition-
quality, A3+ fine
art prints
Left: Shooting
full-frame at wide
lens apertures
helps achieve
narrow depth-of-
field images with
attractively If you’re thinking of upgrading your camera kit,
smooth then simply check out Canon’s latest offers by
backgrounds visiting www.canon.co.uk/offers/sale
www.amateurphotographer.com 35
Technique WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY
All creatures
great and
small
Graeme Green speaks to Swedish wildlife
photographer Mattias Klum, whose ‘gritty’
creative language and willingness to go to great
lengths for his images has kept him at the top of
his game for four decades
Mattias Klum
Born in Uppsala, Sweden, in 1968, Mattias Klum has been a
professional photographer for four decades. He has worked for
international publications, including National Geographic, Geo,
Audubon and The New York Times. He’s also produced several books,
including a collaboration with Jane Goodall, and directed documentary
films, including The Young Sea. www.mattiasklum.com,
Instagram @mattiasklumofficial @mattiasklumcollection
T
hirteen is an unlucky number explains. My parents talked about great
for many people. For Swedish artists like Picasso, Chagall or Salvador
photographer Mattias Klum, it Dali. I still get more inspiration from Miles
has a more positive meaning. ‘I’ve Davis or Bach than from an average
had exactly 13 National Geographic covers,’ photographic exhibition.’
he tells me, proudly. A professional photographer since the
Although his photographic work mid-1980s, Klum must have been a
ranges from landscapes to people, it’s prodigious talent. Playing drums in a band
wildlife and nature, usually with a strong as a teenager, the group’s older bass player
conservation focus, that’s at the heart of recognised something special in his photos
his work, whether working in the and suggested he try to get sponsored. ‘I
rainforests of Malaysian Borneo or the icy said, “That’s ridiculous,”’ he recalls. ‘But
wilderness of Antarctica. Pentax Scandinavia came back to me – I always find things I love.’
‘As a young boy, I was drawn to nature,’ was sponsored by Pentax from 1984. They
Klum says. ‘Even if I ventured into our sent me equipment, a camera and lenses, Creative language
backyard or the centre of Uppsala, the things I could never ever have afforded What does it take to get your photos on the
fourth biggest city in Sweden, where I grew myself. I didn’t have a salary – I was a child, cover of National Geographic? ‘You have to
up, I felt that I could find miracles. It was still at school.’ do something the editors like,’ he laughs,
like a treasure hunt. I started taking pictures Four decades on, his enthusiasm and as if the answer’s that simple.
with my father’s camera, a Pentax K1000, curiosity are undimmed. ‘I’ve treasured that As well as images that ‘communicate a
to bring those treasures back home. It was sensation of not becoming blasé or certain story or situation, a narrative that
contagious to show people what I’d seen, thinking that every subject needs to be can be engaging and inspirational,’ Klum
whether it was a pattern on a stone or a dangerous, far away, or never seen before. believes photographers should develop
spider’s web.’ I still treasure the mundane stuff because their own ‘creative language’. ‘A musician,
Growing up, Klum drew on influences, miracles, photographically, are just such as Miles Davis, had a particular style
not just copies of LIFE magazine and everywhere – it depends how you look at it. that’s very easily recognised,’ he explains.
National Geographic that his parents I taught myself that from the beginning. ‘The same thing happens ideally with
subscribed to, but also art and music. Even if I’m smack bang in the middle of photography. You strive to have your own
‘I grew up looking at things in awe,’ he the Amazon or Patagonia, or Uppsala, I language. It develops over time – it
36 www.amateurphotographer.com
I took this photo in Botswana’s Okavango Delta where
hippos change the land in and around this wetland,
flushed yearly by nearly 11 cubic kilometres of water.
Hippos are known to be a bit grumpy, but if you read their
behaviour and play your cards right it works really well.
Nikon D4, 400mm, 1/320sec at f/7.1, ISO 800
www.amateurphotographer.com
Technique WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY
Go the extra mile
Klum’s career has taken him to the
ends of the Earth, including wild, often
hard-to-reach locations, from China to
Panama to Botswana. Rather than the
charismatic giants – elephants, polar bears,
lions… – that many wildlife photographers
concentrate on, his assignments often
involve small, rare, and endangered species.
Locating and photographing such creatures
takes time and effort. ‘For wildlife
photography, and any type of
photography, it’s about getting into the
right flow,’ he says. ‘The more I’ve known
about a place, a species, or an ecosystem,
that’s really helped me to find the images
that I wouldn’t have found otherwise.’
For one National Geographic assignment,
Klum completed a 14-month expedition in
the Danum Valley in Malaysian Borneo,
building 12 tree blinds up to 210 feet high
in the forest canopy to photograph
orangutans, hornbills and other species.
‘There are parallel skillsets in becoming a
photographer. The knowledge part is
important. Patience is important. The
combination of knowledge and patience
means you understand that in order to get
certain kinds of pictures, you’ll have to
build a blind or have to be there for a long
time. Learning to “read” nature is a third
skillset. There are different skillsets, such as
technique, timing… You need multiple
skillsets that make the totality.’
38 www.amateurphotographer.com
trees were tremendously tall, I didn’t have
the right climbing gear or the right
knowledge. The light can be difficult.’
‘But I remember going to a lecture by
William Albert Allard, a fellow National
Geographic photographer, one of my “gods”
growing up. At the lecture, someone in the
audience asked him a question, and they
suggested a photographer has to go out
early morning and late in the afternoon to
get the good light, and there’s not much
use working around midday. Allard said
“That’s a sack of shit. There is never ‘bad
light’. You are just a shitty photographer if
you think that way. If there is high
contrast, use the high contrast. Just make
use of what you’re given.” I was, like,
“Wow, that’s so impressive. I will never
again blame anything but myself – I can’t
blame the gear, I can’t blame the light,
I can’t blame anybody. If I can’t do
something great, it’s my fault.”’
Above: The king
cobra – our world’s
longest, venomous Keep it real
snake – photographed Klum prefers to do almost all of his work
on assignment for in-camera. He avoids ‘shooting wide’ in
@natgeo in Malaysian order to crop images later – what he sees in
Borneo. They can the viewfinder is the image he wants. ‘I’m
grow nearly 6metres fostered in that tradition,’ he says. ‘I started
(19ft, 6in) and feed shooting analogue, where what you saw
almost exclusively on
other snakes was what you got. If you screwed up, you
Camera details unknown had to throw it away. You learned how to
compose and expose.’
Left: Orangutans Minimal post-production work is also
transported by part of his ‘creative language.’ While some
wheelbarrow to their wildlife photographers go to town, Klum
night quarters by likes his photos to be an authentic
BOS’s (Borneo
Orangutan Survival representation of what he saw. ‘With the
Foundation) baby documentarian work I’ve done for the New
sitters York Times or National Geographic or most of
Nikon D3, 24-70mm, 1/13sec at my books, I do very little editing. I have an
f/11, ISO 200 assistant and I just say, “No dust, and
maybe check the white balance is
okay…” Minimal stuff. I never remove
www.amateurphotographer.com 39
Technique WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY
WHAT’S IN A Geoffroy’s spider
MATTIAS’S KIT monkey in the rainforest
BAG of Osa Peninsula, Costa
Rica. This species is
Nikon 600mm listed as endangered due
f/4 lens to logging operations
across its range. It is
The largest lens I use is a estimated that the
600mm f/4 lens. I work with species has declined
Nikon’s Z series. The 600mm by as much as 50%
means I can work with over the course of the
anything from painted wolves past 45 years.
to birds. The benefit of a lens Nikon D4S, 500mm, 1/320sec
like this is getting close to at f/5, ISO 800
animals that are very shy of
humans, although you still
have to be closer than people
think. It’s super-sharp.
Nikon 14-24mm
f/2.8
I use this lens for anything
from shooting from a
helicopter or crawling up to
a snake. It’s sharp at the
edges and it’s a wonderful
lens for landscapes and
creatures where I want the
sense of place.
Tripod
I use a big Gitzo or Sirui tripod
with a Arca or Wimberley
head, especially when my
camera is fitted with a big
lens, like the 600mm. A tripod
is important for stability for
sharp images but also, when
using large lenses, to hold the
camera in place, as it can be
exhausting to hold for long
periods of time.
Waterproofs
In rainforests and other
places where there can be a
lot of water, I often have a
poncho over myself to stay
dry. There are also rain covers
that I put over the camera and
the lens. With small rain
covers, you get condensation,
which screws up the camera,
so I keep air between the
camera and the rain cover.
Cable release
I use a cable release a lot.
I play a lot with long
exposures. Long exposures
in wildlife photography are
great to get a sense of
movement, the blur of action
and activity, or to play around
with other interesting effects.
I like to have a cable release
always in my kit.
40 www.amateurphotographer.com
branches or take things out.’
www.amateurphotographer.com 41
Technique NOISE REDUCTION
Lightroom
Photoshop? James Abbott
puts the two approaches
head-to-head to find out
H
igh ISO noise has been BEFORE
a problem going back to
the days of film. Although
contemporary digital cameras
outperform their film counterparts in this
area, noise remains an issue when pushing
settings above the ISO 1600 mark with
most digital cameras; the exception is the
best professional cameras available that
perform well at higher settings.
To be fair, even entry-level cameras are
excellent performers these days, but even
so, there will inevitably be times when you
need to crank up the ISO to be able to
expose correctly when shooting handheld
in low light or to freeze subject movement
in certain situations. One thing to always
remember is that it’s better to have a noisy
photo that captures what you intended
than no photo at all.
Third-party noise-reduction software
options have long been the best way to
reduce high ISO noise, alongside a
technique called noise stacking which
works well for static subjects because it smoothing noise, is this the only Lightroom and the noise-stacking
involves shooting several images at a high noise-reduction feature you need? technique in Photoshop. If you already
frame rate. But with Lightroom now Rather than providing a comparison of subscribe to the Adobe Photography Plan,
providing a powerful Denoise feature that all the noise-reduction software available, they’re options that you already have at
maintains colour and detail when we’re going to focus on Denoise in your disposal.
42 www.amateurphotographer.com
AFTER
Top tip
1 Process and align 2 Crop and convert 3 Set the Stack Mode
Process the first of 3-5 shots taken in quick After aligning the Layers there’s likely to be Smart Object should be selected and active
succession in Lightroom, apply Manual Noise some space around the edges which needs by default. Go to Layer>Smart Objects>Stack
Reduction and use Sync settings. Select to be cropped out. Next, select the 3-5 Mode>Median. Changing the Stack Mode will
images, right-mouse click on the thumbnails, Layers, right-mouse click on them and select apply the noise-reduction effect through
go to Edit In>Open as Layers in Photoshop. Convert to Smart Object from the menu that blending because of how noise is irregular
When the images load, select the 3-5 Layers appears. This will group the Layers into a and the blending averages everything out for
and go to Edit>Auto-Align Layers to correct Smart Object which allows for the next step a smoother result. It works well for static
any movements between the exposures. where the blending is adjusted. subjects but not where movement is present.
www.amateurphotographer.com 43
Technique NOISE REDUCTION
Denoise
Lightroom’s
Denoise
feature is the
best option of the
two and provides
the added bonus
of working with
photos that
include a moving
subject. It also
has the
advantage of
working with
astrophotography
shot without a
star tracker
thanks to only
needing one
image rather than
several.
Noise stacking
Noise stacking has produced a clean result, but it’s
not quite as effective as Denoise. Also, the downside
of this approach is that it doesn’t work with moving
subjects and you have to take several shots with minimal
camera movement between each to minimise cropping.
44 www.amateurphotographer.com
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Photo-Science Consultant
still relatively lowly status
Professor Robert Newman LETTER OF THE WEEK as an ‘art form’ in the
broader cultural
Advertisement sales & production
Head of Investment: Photography landscape. An email I
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Wedded received recently from a
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Publishing Director Mark Winterton told me of the upcoming
Retail Director
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Print Production Manager Georgina Harris A few months ago warranted attention. But
Print Production Controller Hayley Brown
AP published my I doubt very much any of
Subscriptions
51 issues of Amateur Photographer are letter concerning them will be funny or
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Customer service email [email protected]
cameras including Full steam ahead
my Nikon D90. Having not used it D90 back in 2015 in favour of a Four I found your feature on
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Kelsey Media 2024 © all rights reserved. Kelsey Media Simon Elson
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So, funny transnational: everyone
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Ross Samson’s Viewpoint who sees it gains an
Where photographs are included, which are not the (AP 23 January) was immediate sense of mood
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www.kelsey.co.uk monochrome beach is flat. Martin Parr is the Simon’s shot of the locomotive memorial
46 www.amateurphotographer.com
Our favourite photos posted by readers
on our social media channels this week
AP picture
of the week
A Reedbed’s Gentle Secret
by Ashleigh Shreeve
Nikon Z 6II, Sigma 150-600mm Contemporary,
1/800sec at f/5.6, ISO 3200, 1.3EV
#appicoftheweek
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www.amateurphotographer.com 49
Manchester Cathedral Reflection
by Dominic McEvoy
Nikon Z 6II, Nikkor Z 24-120mm F/4,
1/250sec at f/5.6, ISO 6400
‘I shot this in Manchester Cathedral, UK, while on a short city
break. As a wedding photographer I’m always trying to be a
creative and one way for me is to find reflections. I pulled a glass
table into the centre of the aisle, I waited until there were no
members of the public walking past, and I took the shot. I’m
happy with the final result.’
Creative work: @travelphotographylife1
Wedding pages:
@photography_by_dee_ireland
www.photographybydee.com
www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100078054137984
We also
liked... Cormorants
Enjoying the Winter
View by Connor Hill
Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II,
Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 100-
400mm F5.0-6.3 IS, 1/800sec at
f/5.8, ISO 80
50 www.amateurphotographer.com
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IN ASSOCIATION WITH A round-up of the AP testing team’s favourite
and most highly rated kit, including both
cameras and all kinds of accessories, across
a wide range of price points
This is the latest in a long line of cameras This unique zoom compact offers excellent Fujifilm’s charismatic rangefinder-styled
that have become well established as the image quality by employing the same compact employs a fixed 23mm f/2 lens,
leaders of their class. It’s waterproof to 24.2MP APS-C sensor as several of Canon’s APS-C sensor, traditional analogue controls
15m, shockproof against a 2.1m drop, DSLRs and mirrorless cameras, along with and a unique hybrid optical / electronic
crushproof and freezeproof. The 25-100mm a 24-72mm equivalent lens. A central viewfinder. In this latest version the lens
equivalent lens is paired with a 12MP viewfinder, fully articulated touchscreen and has been redesigned for improved
sensor, with in-body stabilisation to combat comprehensive external controls round off a sharpness, and the back is now adorned
shake. Viewing is via a 3in LCD. This is also superb little camera for enthusiast with a tilting screen. It’s a truly gorgeous
one of the few rugged cameras that can photographers. little camera.
record raw files. ★★★★★ ★★★★★ Reviewed
Reviewed 25 Apr 2020
3 Feb 2018
A favourite of street photographers, the Sony has somehow crammed a 24-200mm This sets a new standard for superzoom
GR III combines a 24MP APS-C sensor and equivalent zoom, pop-up electronic cameras, with a 24-600mm equivalent lens,
a sharp 28mm equivalent f/2.8 lens in a viewfinder, tilting screen, 20 fps shooting 20MP 1in sensor, and 24 fps continuous
slim, pocketable body. It offers sensitivities and 4K video recording into a body that you shooting. Its SLR-shaped body hosts a large
up to ISO 102,400 and 4fps shooting, while can slip into a jacket pocket. With the firm’s electronic viewfinder and a decent set of
in-body image stabilisation helps keeps latest AF technology also on board, it’s physical controls. It’s the best all-in-one
image sharp. Viewing is via a fixed 3in rear without doubt the most accomplished camera for wildlife or
LCD or an optional optical viewfinder that pocket camera on the market. travel photography
slots onto the hot shoe. ★★★★ that you can buy
★★★★★ Reviewed right now.
Reviewed 5 Oct 2019 ★★★★★
3 Aug Reviewed
2019 2 Dec 2017
www.amateurphotographer.com 53
BEST BUYS REVISITING GREAT KIT FROM OUR TEST ARCHIVES
One of the smallest DSLRs around, the EOS This likeable little camera is simple and Styled like a mini DSLR, the X-S20 uses
250D strikes a great balance between approachable for novices, while offering electronic dials for changing exposure
portability and usability. It’s equipped with a plenty of manual control for enthusiasts. Its settings, as opposed to the X-T series’
novice-friendly Guided Mode, while Canon’s central electronic viewfinder is joined by a analogue controls. But you still get Fujifilm’s
Dual Pixel CMOS sensor provides excellent fully articulated touchscreen, autofocus is signature fine image quality, along with
autofocus in live view. Image fast and accurate, and it’s capable of in-body image stabilisation. It also boasts
quality is very good, producing consistently fine an array of advanced video
delivering vibrant images. The updated features, making
colours and Mark II version it a great choice
plenty of fine adds a few for vloggers and
detail. minor extra photographers
★★★★★ features. alike.
Reviewed ★★★★★ ★★★★★
7 Sep 2019 Reviewed Reviewed
22 May 2021 25 Jul 2023
With a charismatic retro design, fine l £899 with 15-45mm lens l www.fujifilm.eu/uk The finest Micro Four Thirds stills camera
handling, highly effective in-body This lovely little camera provides excellent Panasonic has ever produced, the G9 backs
stabilisation and attractive JPEG output, performance, while preserving the charm up its sturdy construction with a winning
Olympus has made a camera that’s more and charisma of the X-series. It’s a great combination of high-speed shooting, fast
pleasant to use than its entry-level all-rounder, and handles exceptionally well focusing and effective in-body stabilisation.
competitors. Its 20MP sensor delivers good thanks to an intuitive interface based Boasting a control layout as complete as
results up to ISO 3200 at least, and its around traditional analogue dials. Image most pro-level DSLRs, it’s an
tilting screen can be set to face forwards quality is superb in both raw and JPEG, extremely versatile
beneath the camera. aided by camera that’s
The 16MP Fujifilm’s capable of
Mark III is peerless Film dealing with
also still a Simulation any subject.
great buy. modes. ★★★★
★★★★ ★★★★★ Reviewed
Reviewed 26 Reviewed 27 Jan 2018
Sep 2020 8 Feb 2022
Fujifilm’s latest X-T model is a great choice Panasonic’s flagship Micro Four Thirds It may be nostalgically named after a
for serious enthusiast photographers. It camera is aimed at videographers, but classic 35mm SLR, but there’s nothing
boasts a 40MP APS-C sensor housed in a holds its own when capturing stills as old-fashioned about this high-speed
retro-styled body covered with traditional well. Its 25MP sensor delivers plenty of powerhouse. It’s capable of shooting at
analogue control dials. Subject-detection detail, while enabling 5.7K recording at 120fps with focus fixed, or 50fps with AF.
autofocus, in-body stabilisation and 60fps, or 4K at 120fps. Pro-spec video AI subject detection recognises vehicles,
Fujifilm’s lovely colour modes functionality and highly effective in-body animals and birds. It’s also rugged, with
round off an stabilisation round off IP53-rated weather-
extremely a fine package sealing, and
desirable for content includes
package. creators. class-leading
★★★★★ ★★★★ stabilisation.
Reviewed Reviewed ★★★★★
3 Jan 2023 26 Apr 2022 Reviewed
15 Mar 2022
54 www.amateurphotographer.com
IN ASSOCIATION WITH
This upgraded full-frame mirrorless Nikon has delivered a sensible update to its With its 61MP full-frame sensor, the A7R V
all-rounder boasts a 24.5MP sensor, flagship high-res model, with an additional provides class-leading image quality while
273-point autofocus and rapid 14fps burst SD card slot and slightly faster shooting. As adding a whole array of improvements over
shooting. It also gains an SD card slot, before, its 45.7MP sensor gives stunning its predecessor. These include subject-
alongside XQD/CFexpress. Its excellent image quality, backed up by 5-axis in-body detection AF, a larger, more detailed
viewfinder is complemented by a tilting image stabilisation and fast, accurate viewfinder, and a more flexible rear LCD
screen, and both image quality and handling autofocus. The viewfinder is superb, and design. For those whose needs are more
are superb. The older F-mount SLR lenses can be about image quality than speed,
Z 6 remains used via the it’s probably the best
a good buy FTZ adapter. full-frame camera
for £500 ★★★★ you can buy.
less. Reviewed ★★★★★
★★★★ 6 Feb 2021 Reviewed
Reviewed 17 Jan 2023
9 Jan 2021
Sony’s latest enthusiast-focused full-frame Without doubt Nikon’s finest camera yet, the Within its own specialist niche, this
mirrorless model sets a new standard in its Z 9 combines high resolution, breathtaking monochrome-only manual-focus
class. Its 33MP full-frame sensor delivers speed, subject-recognition autofocus and rangefinder is almost perfect. Its build
excellent image quality, and it can shoot at pro-level build. It’s capable of shooting quality is stunning, and the pared-back
up to 10fps. Its practically foolproof 45.7MP raw files at 20fps for 1,000 frames, design allows you to immerse yourself
subject-detection AF can now recognise and 11MP JPEGs at 120fps. It can also completely in the process of taking
birds as well as humans and record 8K video. With its pictures. Most importantly, the 60.1MP
animals. A large, superb viewfinder sensor produces fantastic results,
clear viewfinder and tilting rear reaching a new
and fully articulated screen, it’s pinnacle in
touchscreen round probably the black & white
off the package. most capable image quality.
★★★★★ camera around. ★★★★★
Reviewed ★★★★★ Reviewed
11 Dec 2021 Reviewed 16 May 2023
22 Mar 2022
Nikon D780
l £2,299 body only l www.nikon.co.uk Canon EOS R6 Mark II Fujifilm GFX100 II
l £2,779 body only l www.canon.co.uk l £6,999 body only l www.fujifilm.eu/uk
This highly accomplished 24MP full-frame
model shows that there’s life in the DSLR Based around a 24MP full-frame sensor, Fujifilm’s latest super-high resolution
yet. It’s superbly built with extensive this brilliant all-rounder will do almost medium-format camera places an updated
weather sealing, handles brilliantly, and anything you might ask it to. It combines 102MP sensor in a pro-spec modular body.
gives excellent results in any conditions. It’ll reliable subject-detection AF, rapid Subject-detection autofocus is on board for
provide top-level service to continuous shooting, and effective image animals, birds and vehicles, while in-body
photographers who want to stabilisation in a body that handles well and image stabilisation helps keep handheld
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www.amateurphotographer.com 55
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56 www.amateurphotographer.com
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www.amateurphotographer.com 57
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I
© MARY ELLEN MARK
’ve noticed a recent Knopf then in 2005 by Steidl,
predilection by with additional photos. The
individuals and latest 132-page, 76-image
publishers not to have edition also published by Steidl
a photograph on the cover (2023) has a revised sequence
of their photo book. A cover and printed from scans of the
photo can sell a book but is original 35mm Kodachromes.
also a difficult choice. Who can The photograph chosen as the
predict how the chosen image cover for each edition is a
will be received or how history topless photo of 13-year-old
will define it? Perhaps it’s safer prostitute Putla. There are
or braver to confine all images several other photos of Putla in
to inside a book. I’ve always the book, including this one.
insisted on a photograph on the
cover of my own photo-books Worship and fear
and so far, have no regrets. ‘Saroja is 26 years old but looks
In 1968, photographer Mary 40. Like all madams, she has
Ellen Mark visited the notorious complete control over her girls.
Falkland Road red light district The relationship is one of
of Mumbai (then Bombay). master and slave but also of
For ten years she tried to take mother and daughter. The girls
photographs and each time worship and fear their madam.
was met with hostility by the One night Putla, Saroja’s
prostitutes and their customers youngest girl, allowed a
– pinched, punched, drunken customer to have her
pickpocketed, insulted, doused for only three rupees. Saroja
with water and pelted with grabbed her by the hair and
garbage. Not forgetting her pounded her with her fists.
experiences and not wanting Putla didn’t utter a sound. The
to give up, she returned in other girls stood by and
1978 on assignment for Geo watched silently. Five minutes
magazine and slowly began to after her beating, Putla was
make friends and photographs, ready for work again, her face
finally embedding in the daily washed and her dress changed.
lives of the prostitutes. The Later that night I saw Putla
magazine felt the images were embracing Saroja and giving
too explicit for the US market. her a back massage,’ writes
The more tolerant Germans Mary in the book’s
published 13 pages in Geo’s introduction.
sister magazine, Stern. Putla, a 13-year-old prostitute
from a small village, was sold to
Revised edition the brothel when she was 12 by dangerous. I can get in trouble to what no 13-year-old girl
A book, Falkland Road: her mother, who pledged to with the law. It took me four should bear. It’s a devastatingly
Prostitutes of Bombay, was visit her every year. ‘I don’t like months to break in Putla,’ says powerful and emotional
initially published in 1981 by to take virgin girls. It is too the Madam. photograph. An intimate image
Putla may not have uttered of youth taken with
‘For ten years she tried to take photographs a sound while being pounded compassion. Perhaps it
but this photograph screams belongs on the cover.
and each time was met with hostility by the volumes. The dress may be
prostitutes and their customers – pinched, the one she wore after her Falkland Road: Prostitutes of Bombay by
beating. Her eyes are deep, Mary Ellen Mark is published by Steidl 2023,
punched, insulted, pelted with garbage’ defiant yet vulnerable, witness ISBN 978-3-96999-092-6, price £75
Peter Dench is a photographer, writer, curator and presenter based in London. He is one of the co-curators of Photo North and has been exhibited dozens of times. He has published a number
of books including The Dench Dozen: Great Britons of Photography Vol 1; Dench Does Dallas; The British Abroad; A&E: Alcohol & England and England Uncensored. Visit peterdench.com
66 www.amateurphotographer.com
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