Digital Photographer

As modern photographers, we’re less confined than ever to being masters of one genre. Great news then – as we’ve got a myriad of photo content for you to get stuck into this issue. Our practical techniques section starts with a macro masterclass on p

Peter is Digital Photographer’s expert across a myriad of photo genres. This issue, he’s been focusing on all things small and wonderful with a macro masterclass (p32), a shooting tutorial on landscape-focusing techniques (p72), a self-portrait proje

Image title: The Lofotens in Cloud What camera, lens and settings did you use to capture this stunning shot? Canon EOS 5DS R, 12mm, 1/160sec, f/8, ISO 200. How did you decide on the composition for this shot? I can’t imagine a more picturesqu

Every issue our runner-up gallery contributor wins a Samsung 32GB EVO Plus memory card with SD adaptor (worth £14.99). With read/write speeds of 95MB/s and 20MB/s respectively, this card is ideal for use with today’s high-resolution DSLRs and mirrorl

Our next competition, Environmental Portraits, is open from 21 August to 14 September. For this round we want to see more than just a face. We’re looking for images with context and a story to tell, with people in engaging settings. Submit your entri

For our latest competition in association with Photocrowd, we challenged you to submit your best shots of summer landscapes. After working through all the brilliant entries, the winners have been selected. Both crowd-voted and expert winners will win

The Nikon Z5 has been announced and released. As rumoured, it is a 24.3MP full-frame camera that sits between the Z50 and Z6, and includes dual memory card slots and a new kit lens. While the Nikon Z5 features a sensor with a similar pixel count to t

The Luminar Bug Photography Awards 2020 has been launched in association with Buglife – with an impressive £23,000 prize fund and £2.5k for the overall winner. The annual competition will raise funds for invertebrate conservation and honour the skill

It’s the food photography and film competition that we look forward to drooling over each year: Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year is back, and 2021 marks its 10th anniversary. Since its inception in 2011, the competition has attracted over 70,0

Onyi Moss is a self-taught photographer based in Manchester, UK. Originally from Nigeria, she moved to the UK to advance her career as a chartered accountant. She later discovered her passion for photography, and this led to the creation of her blog,

Macro photography has to be one of the most engaging genres of photography. While landscapes have the power to be awe-inspiring, and portraits stir up core emotions, macro brings about surprise, intrigue and wonder. High-magnification images take us

You’d think it would be easy to capture attractive images of plants and flowers. When compared to the other subjects a photographer may encounter throughout their career, the assumption is that a stationary flower poses little difficulty. However, th

Capture multiple frames of the subject in burst mode to increase your sharpness ‘hit rate’. Monitor wind direction, and place a screen to reduce subject movement. Shoot perpendicular to wind direction, as side-to-side subject motion will affect the f

By combining a longer focal length with an aperture of f/2.8 to f/5.6, natural environmental details are reduced to colourful bokeh, for subtle contrasts. For a studio-shot look, place a sheet of black, white or coloured card behind the subject. Alwa

One the biggest mistakes photographers make when shooting images of plants and flowers is in their choice of angle, predominantly controlled by camera height. Pointing the lens directly down onto the subject will rarely create the most inspiring imag

Use manual mode to adjust your focus instantly based on the subject’s size/ orientation. Shoot between f/4 and f/8 to ensure coverage of the entire subject. When anticipating that a subject will appear, focus on a predetermined spot to be ready to sh

Shooting plants and flowers is challenging enough, but while they may be prone to movement through wind motion, they are, in most circumstances, fairly stationary. Insects, spiders and other arthropods, as well as small mammals like shrews, are an en

Many photographers new to the macro genre wrongly assume that the key to the best images is to select the highest powered lens available and get as close as possible to the subject, for frame-filling shots. While this approach can sometimes yield imp

Just as crop factor affects the composition in sport and wildlife photography, it also plays a major role in macro imaging. When shooting with a camera with an APS-C sized sensor (image 1) there is a higher magnification than a full-frame model (imag

In macro imaging, lighting can quickly become the most challenging characteristic to address the closer to the subject you move the camera. Since you will often be working at incredibly short distances between the subject and the end of the lens, the

Specialist macro lights are designed to provide soft, balanced light by arranging the flash head in a ring around the lens. This illuminates the subject evenly from both sides of the frame. These lights are less flexible than off-camera flash but are

1 Adjust local brightness Even with off-camera flash achieving uniform lighting or coverage where you need it most, it can be a challenge at close working distances. Use your RAW editor’s Adjustment brush to lift shadows and draw back highlights on a

1 Fill the frame Don’t be afraid to use high magnifications, but ensure that detail is sufficient to hold viewer interest. 2 Use a tripod There is nothing wrong with handholding where possible, but tripod support will improve the sharpness of your i

Through macro photography, we can explore an amazing world full of beautiful plants and epic mini beasts. For me, bugs are the coolest subjects, but their small size and unpredictable behaviour presents challenges. It’s always best to capture insects

1 Prepare your kit Set up your equipment first and take some test shots, with exposure and focus set to manual. Usually, I set my flash to around 1/20th power and shutter speeds vary between 1/50sec and 1/250sec, with an aperture of f/5.6. ISO is usu

My flash bracket is from the 1960s, and I added a mini ball head for flexibility with lighting options, plus a weatherproof sync cable to fire my flash. This is my portable mini studio that allows me to shoot handheld on the go. An inexpensive 30cm s

The macro world is amazing. Looking for bugs and small subjects is a huge part of macro photography, and for me it’s actually the most fun aspect. The benefits of being immersed in nature can’t be understated. Head to your local woods, fields, or eve

1 Import to Lightroom Start by loading the images into Lightroom. Then, make basic adjustments to just one of the pictures. This edit will then be applied to the rest of the images in the sequence. 2 Synchronise the settings Select all of the images

Cities represent some of the most energetic, exciting, dynamic and varied environments for photography. When captured well, cityscapes have a unique ability to hold our attention and spark an insatiable wanderlust. Whether it is brightly coloured bui

Professional-level cityscape photography is about more than simply choosing a city in which to take pictures; it requires extensive planning and research to find the best possible image opportunities. In such a busy environment there are a few potent

As city environments are inherently busy, it can be tricky to compose images well. Firstly, it is a challenge to find subjects within the cacophony of activity on a city street and intelligently apply the photographic techniques that you have practis

Timing is everything in outdoor-based photographicshoots. We are at the mercy of the elements for favourable lighting and weather conditions, and it is extremely important to be able to adapt to any conditions that can change quickly and unexpectedly

1 Work on a tripod It is important that you use a tripod for cityscape photography. If you are on a tripod it doesn’t matter what shutter speed you use – you can go for several minutes of exposure if your scene requires it, and your photo will still

While cityscapes contain endless potential subject matter, it might be easy to assume that the contrast, colour and layered compositions mean you don’t need any advanced editing work at the computer. However, it is busy scenes that create the need fo

Serge Ramelli takes us step-by-step through his editing process 1 Perform basic Lightroom retouch Go into the Basic panel, open up the Shadows to +100, crash Blacks considerably to -61, and blow up Highlights to +100 as we want to leave no details i

Many of the difficulties of cityscape photography are because of its variability. From one street to the next, or even from one frame to another, there can be significant shifts in exposure, colour balance and detail frequency. In older cities in par

Always shoot in RAW format as this will give you the greatest flexibility to extract tonal and colour information from difficult scenes. Take a white balance reading using a neutral target if you’d like to capture accurate colour in-camera. It is he

Difficulty level: Advanced Time taken: 3 hours Portraiture takes many forms, but for many people the first images that come to mind are shots on a seamless white background taken in a studio, or high-end location shoots with a model posed against a

Landscape scenes with carpets of flowers or brightly coloured plants are a popular subject for outdoor photographers. While the lower portion of woodland scenes often need to be managed with care, or on occasion excluded entirely due to numerous dist

Photographers often think of themselves as solitary workers, operating out of their own studio or even from their own home. However, networking has just as much importance in the photography industry as any other, and attracting other experts in a si

When it comes to selling your images, one of the main challenges is how very subjective photography is. What makes a good picture? Apart from technical aspects like resolution, sharpness and signal-to-noise ratio, which are numerical characteristics,

If you think about the key attributes of high-quality lenses, sharpness is probably one of the first things that springs to mind. But for portrait and still-life images, bokeh can be even more important. This is a term for the pictorial quality of de

PRICE: 1,849 / $1,999 Designed as the definitive lens for portrait and fashion photography, the original version of this lens was updated in 2006. The Mark II retains the oversized front elements of the original, seeking to enhance the quality of bok

PRICE: £2,599 / $2,699 While Canon’s new R-series mirrorless full-frame cameras are remarkably slim and lightweight, the companion RFmount lenses are mostly big and heavy. This 85mm f/1.2 is a prime example. Compared with the older EF counterpart for

PRICE: £1,799 / $2,067 The increase of 20mm in focal length, compared with the 85mm lenses on test, gives this Nikon lens and the competing Sigma a little more telephoto reach. There’s not a great deal in it, but the effect is noticeable, and the 105

PRICE: £1,249 / $1,599 Available in a wide range of mount options, including Canon EF, Nikon F, Sony FE and Leica L, as well as Sigma’s proprietary mount, this lens matches the Nikon on test with its upsized 105mm focal length and fast f/1.4 aperture

www.canon.co.uk Manufacturer Canon Model EF 85mm f/1.2L USM II Street price £1,849/$1,999 Mount options Canon EF Elements/ Groups 8/7 Diaphragm 8 blades Focus type Ultrasonic (ring) Minimum focus distance 0.95m Maximum magnification factor

Price: £4,199 / $3,899 The Canon EOS R5 is finally here after months of waiting and masterful teases by the canny manufacturer. The Canon EOS R5 is a powerhouse performer in every possible respect: its 8K video outclasses many of the best cinema cam

The AF system is programmed using deep-learning AI to recognise bodies, faces and eyes. The system also tracks dogs, cats and birds – even in flight. Designed to withstand pro shooting conditions, the camera features a magnesium-alloy body and protec

One of the hottest features of the EOS R5 is its ability to record 12-bit RAW video internally at 8K, but what actually is 8K, and do you need it in a stills camera? Technically speaking, 8K video is four times higher in resolution than 4K, and 16 ti

Price: £679 / $698 (12-32mm lens kit) There’s an inherent risk of dumbing things down when creating a camera for social media creatives, but Panasonic has avoided that pitfall with the LUMIX G100. It may be targeting vloggers with a bevy of video-ce

Website:www.profoto.com Price: £949 / $1,095 Hailed as “the world’s smallest studio light,” the A1X has a round head that gives a soft fall-off and natural-looking light. It’s powered via its own rechargeable battery rather than AA batteries, and