Thursday 16 May 2013

The Future of Photography


When looking at the history of photography on a timeline, it is clear that in comparison with other innovative discoveries, the practice of capturing images is still very new, and in recent years the growth has been exponential, not only in photographic technology, but technology in general. When considering the history of photography it is difficult to not think of the future and speculate on the possibilities surrounding the photoimaging profession.

Light Field Photography is a buzzword making the rounds at the moment, especially since ‘Lytro’ burst onto the scene. Light Field cameras dispense with the normal optics, instead placing micro-lenses over each pixel. Combining this with some clever software gives you a camera that does not need to be focussed, in fact you can set the focus point after the shot on your computer and change it to suit. This technology is in its infancy but it has the potential to replace current lens technology allowing not only post-production focusing but also depth of field changes and possibly focal length changes.

Cross-section of the Lytro
The 'Lytro' Camera



Although it is still just a concept, Seattle firm; Artefact Group has developed a 31 megapixel, full frame sensor camera phone. According to the group, the sensor is housed within the lens, which continues to function even when removed from the body, allowing the screen to be used as a remote viewer. This technology may still be a few years off but it gives a great insight into the equipment that could be available in the not too distant future.



'Camera Futura' Concept

There are numerous cameras available now with built in GPS. Virtually all cameras on the market have face recognition, automatic focus, and a database of scenes to determine exposure. Taking this forward a few years, industry professionals believe cameras will have a constant connection to the internet, not only to upload but to download information that can be collated with the GPS data to determine exactly what you are looking at, virtually anywhere in the world. By referencing all of this data, the camera could, quite possibly, tell you the best positions for shooting. Yes I know this will always be subjective, but what it does mean is that the average, non-photographer will not have to think about their composition in the same way that today they don’t need to think about exposure or focus.

There is, of course, much more that can and will happen, some of it obvious. The increase of megapixels and dynamic range, the increased connectivity, but there is probably also much more waiting in the minds of brilliant photographic engineers and scientists that we cannot even begin to comprehend yet. Part of what makes us human is the desire not only to look at the past, but to also contemplate the future and consider how we as a species will progress technologically.

Lens review: Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L II

Hello again readers! Today I will be briefly reviewing Canon's new 24-70mm f/2.8L II zoom lens. This is possibly the most popular lens among photographers, having its versatile focal length as well as a low aperture. There are some people that have built their careers on a full frame camera and this one lens.


With about a 10 year gap from its predecesor, sharper optics, more plastic (good plastic), and more money out of your wallet were added on to this new lens - but with no IS. On the other hand, it weighs reasonably on a camera body unlike the previous version, which was practically rip-your-arms-out-of-your-sockets heavy. Magically, while being shorter and fatter than the old version, this lens weighs 804.5g while the previous version of the 24-70mm weighs 950g. Even though about 1/8 of the weight is lost in this new lens, it really does feel like a big difference when taking it into action. For the same token, Canon decided to throw on a massive filter size of 82mm onto this lens as well.


70mm on f/2.8, Canon 7D (crop sensor)

70mm on f/2.8, Canon 6D (full frame)


Another difference between this lens and its previous version was the reverse zoom - at 24mm, the older version was fully extended while 70mm was retracted. This newer version on the other hand is a lot more conventional - retracted at 24mm and extended at 70mm. The lens hood also moves along with the new version's zoom while the hood stayed fixed as you zoomed in and out. 

The only trouble with this lens was the zoom which tends to be quite tough to move, and the fact that there is also a lens lock, in the situation where someone might keep it in their suitcase when travelling and it might experience a bit of bumping and moving. Other than that, I didn't really see the purpose of a lens lock with an already tough zoom.

For its crazy price tag, there is not one person I know of that has said anything badly about this overall lens - in fact, quite the opposite, meaning that the price you pay is sure worth it. 

Wednesday 15 May 2013

Photo Ethics in the Field


Everyone’s heard the saying ‘A picture is worth a thousand words.’ We wouldn't spend so much time capturing and sharing our images if we didn't believe in the power of images to communicate. The trouble with photography is, managing the effects we as photographers have on our subjects and their environments whether it be ancient historical sites, natural wonders, people or wildlife. Photographs don’t happen in a vacuum; photographers have to interact with their subject and their surroundings.
Although this topic is rather large, and filled with controversy, there are some common ethical problems that arise in travel photography which provide some perspective on how you may want to address them on your own adventures.
Ancient Historical Sites
Jeff Morgan, the owner of the Global Heritage Fund, was recently quoted, saying ‘No one should be allowed to walk on 1000 year old stones.’ Now, I doubt that he literally wants the great cathedrals of Europe to be closed to the public, but he has a good point. Many heavily trafficked areas of landmark temples like Angkor Wat have started to wear down to the point where they are actually losing their original shape and grandeur – authorities have started to protect them with walkways.
Obviously not just photographers, but the overall onslaught of tourists is responsible; unfortunately, it is us photographers that pay the price for the new ropes, railings and signage that are necessary to control the damage. If simple signs were adhered to, then it’s possible that photo opportunities could be left intact for us photographers. Obviously that’s just wishful thinking. The image below shows the classic view of the famous tree growing through Ta Prohm in the Angkor Temple complex. Unfortunately this shot isn't there anymore… The following image shows how the scene has been fenced off with a platform and railing due to the amount of tourists who used to stand on the tree roots and stones to have their photographs taken; this changes the scene entirely for landscape photographers. All too often we see photographers ignoring the efforts of most developing countries to protect their heritage sites; killing the opportunity for future photographers to capture original photographs of world famous landmarks.



Photographing Children
There are thousands if not millions of opportunities around the world to photograph people doing something unique or wearing interesting clothing or with amazing faces. There is nothing more entertaining than casual people or street photography. In saying this, plenty of harm can result as well. Firstly, we’ll start with kids. In developing countries especially, many photographers pay small children to take their photograph; more times than not, those kids should be in school or studying and instead they have been dressed up and sent out to beg. This can quickly become their way of life once they become a source of revenue for their families.
Something that is almost as bad as money, is giving them lollies/sweets. Most of the children who have not been pushed into begging love having their photos taken and would not like or ask for anything in return. Showing them the image you have taken for them on the back of your camera is more times than not, icing on the cake for them.
If you feel you should give the children anything for their photograph, lean more towards things such as pencils or other school supplies. Or an even better alternative is to look for controlled ways to get photo opportunities. Visit monasteries, nunneries or schools and donate money to the institution while also giving the students pencils or school books.

 

Paying adults to take their picture is more complicated than paying children. Obviously there isn’t anything wrong with earning a living by modelling but in cases where the money encourages customs which have outlived their usefulness to continue for sakes of tourism, the photographs no longer justify for social cost.


Wildlife
Everyone would be familiar with scenes of harassment of wildlife, with photographers flushing nesting birds to get photographs of chicks or pursuing animals and making it difficult for them to eat. These are no-brainer bad ideas but there are other less obvious examples of how photographing wild animals can cause them trouble.

Photographing Kills
If you hear stories from anyone who stayed right on top of a hunting animal, ask them whether they had thought through all the consequences down the road.
For some people, there is nothing more exciting than watching predators hunt, whether it be a pack of wild dogs, a pride of lions or a lone leopard; the way they stalk and isolate their prey and the wild chase that follows, is often the highlight of an African safari. These animals are not so dumb. Many have learned to look for tourists or trucks and assume predators are close by. The guides have been trained to back off once a hunting animal gets serious enough to stalk their prey. Obviously, once the prey has seen their predator, the game is afoot and there are photographers everywhere; but giving the animals some space at the right time, we help to avoid stressing them and have helped to ensure they won’t eventually avoid all trucks in the future.


Unintended Consequences
A rare treat for photographers is photographing Meerkats. Some type of habituation is a must for good photo opportunities as Meerkats, when first encountered, aren't very tolerant of people. Having a person near, them most of the time, scares the males that are out looking for nearby Meerkat families to breed with. The guides were smart enough to realise that the animals were getting scared, and learnt to back off when that family is looking for nearby Meerkats; even though this lead to a fall in their business short term.
These are just a few examples of times when a photographer will have to make some ethical decisions. There are new situations everyday as our environment continually changes and the number of tourists and travelling photographers continues to increase. 


Lens review: Canon EF 50mm f/1.2L

Hi readers! Today I'll be doing another lens review on my 50mm f/1.2L, otherwise known as a 'nifty fifty'.

The 50mm prime has always been a popular fixed focal length lens for photographers just starting out, or professional. For the beginners, their next step up from their kit lenses are normally the 50mm f/1.8.



I used a 50mm f/1.8 for 3 years and of course, it's definitely a LOT bigger than the 1.2L - it weighs nearly 600g instead of 130g which is a super huge jump in weight when I pick up my camera now. It also has a much bigger filter size of 72mm instead of 52mm.

I wanted to see what kind of results I'd get shooting completely wide open at f/1.2.

Captured on Canon 7D on f/1.2, ISO400 at 1/6400


f/1.2, ISO400, 1/8000

50mm at f/1.2 ISO200, Canon 7D (crop sensor)

50mm at f/1.2, ISO200, Canon 6D (full frame)

Going right in at f/1.2 has the most crazy falloff but of course, focused areas are still tact sharp.


f/1.2, ISO400, 1/1600

Though it is a nice aperture to be shooting at because of the bokeh, I wouldn't risk shooting something that requires lots of movement or something spontaneous. I mostly would use it for some types of portraiture and things that will keep still for a fair amount of time.

As for portraiture, the soft focus on f/1.2 is really elegant. The image below has some awesome bokeh and it was still awesome to get some bubbles tact sharp as well.

With a widest-currently-available f/1.2 aperture, this 50 allows extremely fine control over DOF - allowing the primary subject to pop. An 8-blade circular aperture delivers best-in-class out of focus blur, even when stopped down. This lens allows handholding and action-stopping shutter speeds at very low light conditions. This lens is sure to be a favourite of wedding and portrait photographers, as well as photojournalists. 



f/1.2, ISO400, 1/2500

In a nutshell, the f/1.2 aperture blur is fantastic as you'd expect, especially lower than f/2.8. It focuses on subjects super quickly. But in return, shooting wide open at f/1.2 will leave you with very little in focus, resulting in some shots being softer/more out of focus than expected.

Lens review: Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L


Today I will be reviewing my Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L macro lens! I'm very happy with this purchase because I've been needing a macro quite badly - another prime lens to add to my collection. 



Filter size: 67mm
Size: 77.7mm and 123.0mm (diameter) long
Weight: 623.3g (without hood), 706.9g (with hood)


Most of these were shot on f/3.2 and the bokeh is absolutely beautiful. I could get so much closer and still get so much more detail in things that I've been trying to do with my 50mm but just couldn't get! 


What bugged me about this lens was the long, narrow installed hood that made it very difficult for me to access the lens cap. Adjusting a circular polarizer inside the hood is almost impossible, as your hand completely blocks off the light. However, because of its shape, the lens hood is very protective and useful for this lens. Especially at short macros subject working distances - though the lens hood is easy to bump or scare the subject at these short distances.



100mm on f/2.8 ISO500, Canon 7D (APS-C crop sensor)

100mm on f/2.8 ISO100, Canon 6D (CMOS full frame sensor)




100mm on f/3.2, Canon 7D 



Macro's aren't limited to extreme close-ups -  it also can make a great portrait lens. 

Overall, this particular lens is amazing. The IS works as it's expected to, and the weight is a lot lighter than you'd expect.

Have a good day!

Tuesday 14 May 2013

The Creation of Digital Photography


Charge-Coupled Device (CCD)  
After film photography, of course, came the era of digital photography and although it seems like very new medium, digital imaging has actually been around for a few decades.

On October 17, 1969, George Smith and Willard Boyle invented the charge-coupled device (CCD) at Bell Labs. In 1970 the inventors built a CCD into the first solid-state video camera.


A digital image sensor like the CCD works similarly to film in that it records light that is exposed, however, instead of physically storing the resulting latent image, the sensor will transfer the recorded light into a digital reading.
Today, CCD technology is pervasive not only in photography but also in video applications that range from endoscopy to high-definition television. Facsimile machines, copying machines, image scanners, digital still cameras, and bar code readers also have employed CCDs to turn patterns of light into useful information.
Sony Mavica (1981)

However, it wasn’t until 1981 that Sony Corporation released the first prototype digital camera. The Sony Mavica (at this stage labeled the first electronic camera) used two CCD chips to record images onto a floppy disk that held a total of 25 images. While the Mavica wasn’t technically the digital camera that we know today, it did spark interest in digital image making.
Dycam Model 1 (1990)

The first commercially available digital camera was released in 1990, the Dycam Model 1. It used a CCD image sensor, stored pictures digitally, and connected directly to a computer for download. The Dycam Model 1 had a fixed focus f/4.5 lens, shot at a non-variable 200 ISO and produced only Black and White images. Although 20 years since it’s production, the Dycam seems like ancient technology, this camera put digital photography in the hands of the public and helped start the digital revolution.

Today it is almost impossible to be a professional photographer without having the capability to work with digital technology. Over 40 years after the invention of the CCD sensor, humanity has witnessed an astronomical leap in the way photographs are captured and stored, no body truly knows what the future holds for photography as a profession.