The low cost lenses emerging from China are changing dramatically from the manual focus legacy designs of only a few years ago to modern, well made high quality optics. This delightful little lens is small, light, metal bodied and feels very well put together. The AF is quick and quiet
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Midgespecs Review
The answer to landscape photography in locations where midges make life unbearable. These Midgespecs are gamechangers and are worth a look by photographers, climbers, fisherman and many others.
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Summit Creative Tenzing 30 photo backpack review
I’ve spent the last couple of months with a Summit Creative Tenzing 30 Photo backpack and there are many positive aspects to reflect on from that time.
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A Time to Print #2
Having set up the printer from the box and installed ink cartridges, the next step is to make some prints. However there are some significant steps to make before we hit the ‘Print’ button in Photoshop. The major parts of this are monitor calibration and colour management.
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A Time to Print
Every print that I've sold since leaving a wet darkroom environment has been produced by a specialist printer. Some years ago by the inestimable Paul Grundy and for most of the last ten years by Loxley of Glasgow. I've never needed to print beyond admin stuff and whether by luck or skill, Loxley precisely match the images I see on my screen.
However I have become increasingly dissatisfied that I'm not fully au fait with what's going on under the hood.
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Nikon Z8 - My next camera?
The photo world has been full of the new Nikon Z8 over the past few weeks. I’ve noticed a few landscape photographers moving over and last week I was asked twice if I’d be buying one. Will I be handing over my money? Read on to find out.
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Blea Tarn
Kingjoy C83S Tripod Review
Last year I reviewed the outstanding Kingjoy C85 Tripod and found that it not only performed as well as my Gitzo Systematic 3 Series but that by the end of the review period I was choosing it in preference on a regular basis. My interest was especially raised therefore when Kinjoy invited me to try out another of their tripods. This time the C83S.
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Sunway GH Pro II + Geared Tripod Head review - UPDATED CONCLUSION
The advantages of a geared head are that it allows for very precise adjustments in composition to be made in exactly one plane. With a ball head, while adjusting to raise the camera slightly, you may also very slightly move to the side or slightly incline. With a geared head, only the adjustment you desire is accomplished. There is an oft quoted parallel benefit of slowing the photographic process down.
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Another little bit of perfection
It's the little things that often make a disproportionate difference and for those of us given to obsessing about small details, some such small details can be all but life changing.
Read MoreA certain lack of focus
I like the look of a minimal depth of field image. I think it instantly creates a sense of depth by virtue of the layers of focused and unfocused elements. This will give at least two layers and if there is some foreground then three distinct layers resolve giving yet more depth.
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Kingjoy C85 Tripod Review
Over the past few weeks I've had the opportunity to try a new tripod, the Kingjoy C85 - in this instance with a Ball Head, the T30x. KingJoy may sound a new name to many but they seem to have been around for quite a while, quietly making tripods for other brand names so while the name may be new the experience is clearly there.
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Nikon Z 24-200mm f4-6.3 Review
This review has been difficult to write, I feel as though I've been swimming against the tide throughout. I've had to force 'head over heart' and analysis over instinct. I've had to forget decades of experience and accept the new.
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Shimoda Action X Photo Backpack size comparison
Many photographers I meet assume that three sizes is to allow varying amounts of camera equipment to be carried. Not so in my case at least. For me, its all about what else goes in the bag. How much other stuff needs to be carried.
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Rationale for changing to Kase Filters
Inertia and familiarity are powerful forces that act against all change. When one adds in the substantial investment we make in photographic equipment, changing brands is not something I undertake lightly. I’ve used the same brand of camera, Nikon, for the last 40 years. The same brand of tripod and the same square filter system for the last 10.
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Acronymns for Photographers #3
The third in this lexicon of photographers' paranoia is FOAD. This is not the FOAD of the urban slang dictionary but rather an acronym for a particular form of paranoia:
Fear Of A Dud
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Aspira Smock
Some thoughts on waterproof clothing
If considering an item of waterproof ( or indeed any) clothing for use in wild country, a number of factors need to be balanced. First and foremost the purpose of your endeavours. In my case there is a need for complete compatibility between foul weather protection, landscape photography and comfort. Comfort? That's clearly very individual but while I'm prepared to endure ( and even relish) the extremes of UK weather, if they compromise what I'm doing I feel that I have failed.
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Cow parsley - Motorola G7 + Snapseed
Examples of photographers’ paranoia #1 - FOLK
This is not as you may have thought, a terror induced by Morris Dancers nor being locked in a room with The Spinners. In this lexicon of photography paranoia, FOLK is an acronym for ‘Fear Of Lesser Kit’
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Shimoda Action X30 Review
Some photographers are exceptionally fussy about camera bags, others don’t see it as a big deal. I’m fussy. I always have been and probably always will be.
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Nikon Z50 +16-50mm +50-250mm
Nikon Z50 Review
Before attempting to provide a perspective on this (or indeed) any camera it is helpful to be clear about what one hopes the camera will achieve. In my previous post, I sought to examine the reasoning behind buying this camera and the desired outcomes. This review in greater depth, seeks to evaluate how well those outcomes are met.
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Which is better - a Nikon Z50 or a D810?
Easy answer, 20 vs 36 MP, full frame vs APS, ease of use, output, robustness, control, configuration, flexibility - almost everything that can be judged makes the D810 the better camera. Only size and weight make the Z50 a winner and potentially access to a more future-proofed development stream.
So why did I sell my D810 to buy a Z50? Read on..
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