Technology Explained, Practice
Daniela Bowker
Resolution and pixels and image quality! Oh my! ...

When you hear the term 'high-res' thrown about with such abandon when it comes to images for web use, have you ever stopped to think just how big or how high quality and image meant for the web needs to be?

Resolution and pixels and image quality! Oh my! Saving images for the web
Feature Articles, Photography Theory
Haje Jan Kamps
Low-contrast photographs don't have to be boring

There's an assumption that high-contrast images are more dynamic, more compelling, more inviting. Have a go at some low-contrast photography. You might surprise yourself with the results.

Low-contrast photographs don't have to be boring
Feature Articles, Theory
Daniela Bowker
Seeking balance in your photos

Balance doesn't mean symmetry; it means an internal consistency and tension within your photos. And it's a vital element of composition. 

Seeking balance in your photos
Feature Articles, Photography Theory
Haje Jan Kamps
Training your photographic luck

Great photos might be down to a little bit of luck, but most of that 'luck' you make yourself. Don't believe us? Read on...

Training your photographic luck
Feature Articles, Practice
Daniela Bowker
The ups and downs and ins and outs of ...

Photographing buildings doesn't have to mean wide-angle lenses and fretting about correcting for the keystone effect. Any lens, and angle. Don't believe us? Let us show you!

The ups and downs and ins and outs of photographing buildings

encounter

Bouncing around with the BeetleCam


Will Burrard-Lucas (left) and Matt Burrard-Lucas (right) with two BeetleCams. Masai Mara, Kenya.

Back in 2009, The Brothers Burrard-Lucas - Will and Matt, an ingenious duo of wildlife photographers - set off to Tanzania to test out their home-made camera buggy, the BeetleCam. The idea was that a camera mounted on a small remote-controlled vehicle would allow them to capture close-up shots of animals in the wild that they wouldn't be able to achive with their cameras firmly in their hands or mounted on tripods. And it worked. Up to a point. Unfortunately they lost a camera in the process, and BeetleCam came off far worse in its single encounter with a lion.

However, the photos that the original BeetleCam had managed to help capture convinced Will and Matt that they really were onto something; the BeetleCam would allow them to take ground-breaking photos of wildlife. So undeterred, Will proceeded to rebuild and modify BeetleCam in 2011. He came up with two new versions: one with more advanced capabilities and the other with an amoured shell that should be able to withstand the inquisitive approaches of big cats.

With their modified BeetleCams, they set off to the Masai Mara to test them out again. And this time, they returned whole - if battered - and with a host of super-impressive photos. Take a look for yourself up there, or head to the BeetleCam site to see even more.

Flush with success, they've decided not to keep BeetleCam all to themselves, either. If you'd like your own one, they start at £1,250 for the basic unit and then increase with all the exciting optional extras that you can build in to them. Interested? Get in touch with them and they'll see what they can do.

Then it'll be your turn!

,

Fisheye: speciality or everyday lens?

,

DSC_4555_small

Every photographer has a favourite lens. Maybe it’s an 18-200mm zoom or a 50mm prime. Maybe it’s a wide angle zoom. Heck, maybe it’s your kit lens. But it’s a lens that you count on day in and day out. It’s an everyday lens that you take with you every time you pack your camera bag and walk out the door. It’s a lens that you know you can rely on in most situations you’ll encounter. And in most cases, it’s a standard type of lens. Nothing too crazy.

So why, then, is my Nikon 10.5mm fisheye lens one of the three that I carry in my bag every day?

When I first got into photography, I spent countless hours debating about what lenses I would spend my money on. Of course, I needed a standard zoom to cover the basics, but what else? I perused countless portfolios and tried to guess what lenses were used on my favorite photographs. I always caught myself stopping at photos taken with a fisheye lens. There was just something so powerful about those fisheye photos. The 180 degree angle, the distortion, the amount of information within a scene that was shown. It was love at first sight. Soon enough, I dropped the cash and picked up my first and only fisheye lens.

At first, it was just… fun. I took the cliché fisheye pictures of my friends and their dogs’ noses. But once I started figuring out what kinds of photography I enjoyed shooting the most, I found myself using the lens more and more. A calm and surreal view of the ocean in Florida. Fisheye. A long exposure of an Atlanta skyline at night. Fisheye. A motion-blurred black and white shot of a subway train as it passed through the station. Fisheye.

I became obsessed with this lens and it eventually got itself promoted from a box on a shelf to my camera bag. It’s now one of my two favorite lenses (the other being my 50mm f/1.4) and my portfolio wouldn’t be the same without it.

Unfortunately, the fisheye lens has gained a reputation for being a gimmicky, kooky, just-for-fun lens. I think it deserves more credit than that. I can’t count how many photos I’ve been able to take with that lens that I could have taken otherwise. And they aren’t just-for-fun photographs either. They can distort architecture to give an amazing perspective; they can give landscapes some feeling of other-worldliness.

Granted, you may not want all of your photos to be taken with a fisheye lens, but I highly recommend adding one to your repertoire. If you do any sort of landscape, cityscape, or architectural photography at all, I’m confident that you’ll enjoy seeing things differently through a fish’s eye. And if you need a touch of inspiration to get you started, why not take a look here?