Indholdsfortegnelse for January 2022 i Australian Photography

It’s only a tad ironic that the same month we run a story on making it as a professional photographer (See Drew Hopper’s piece on page 44), we also lead with the news that the Australian Institute of Professional Photography (AIPP) is to shut its doors for good (see page eight), bringing an end to more than 75 years of representing and advocating for professional photographers in this country. It’s hard not to feel sad about the demise of the AIPP. The institute was a proving ground for many of our finest photographers and, for most of its life at least, was a powerful force for good in the photographic community – advocating for things like copyright and the value of hiring a professional to do a professional job. But…

THE 2021 Head On Photo Awards have been announced, with the annual photography competition celebrating photographic excellence across three categories: Portrait, Landscape and Student. In the Portrait category, British photographer Gideon Mendel won first place for their entry Jenni Bruce at her burnt home in Upper Brogo, New South Wales, January 2020. The sobering photograph documents the devastating impact go the 2019/2020 summer bushfires, captured at the destroyed home of sculptor Jenni Bruce. Speaking on her loss at the time, Bruce shared, “It was all gone. I had a great workshop with tools that I had spent a lifetime gathering…I wish the people in power would listen; I wish they would stop using industries that are so bad for our environment.” The 2021 Landscape prize went to Australian photographer Aletheia…

OM Digital Solutions Australia, formerly OIympus Imaging, has rebranded and launched a new website, with the company now officially known as OM Systems, with the tagline ‘Break Free’. Since Olympus divested its camera business in late 2020, the Japanese company has remained relatively quiet on the gear front, only announcing a small number of new lenses and just one camera, the PEN E-P7, which never made it to Australia. According to a new OM Systems brand story on the website, the company sees itself as ‘a dark horse’, focused on ‘creating cameras that do not yet exist, so photographers can do things previously impossible.’ In a statement, the company also confirmed it is working on a new Micro Four Thirds interchangeable lens camera that will ‘embody the OM SYSTEM concept’.…

PANASONIC has launched the Lumix S 35mm F1.8 lens, rounding out its set of four f/1.8 prime lenses for the full-frame L-mount system. The new 35mm shares a similar size and weight to its siblings, the wider 24mm f/1.8 lens that debuted back in August, as well as the earlier 50mm f/1.8 and 85mm f/1.8 lenses. All the lenses in the series have a common positioning of controls for ease of use, a similar size that makes it swifter to switch between lenses, and a common barrel diameter (67mm) that allow filters to be shared across the lenses. The Lumix 35mm F1.8 S lens weighs in at 295g, with a 73.6mm diameter and a length of 82mm. It’s comprised of 11 elements in nine groups, including three aspherical elements and…

With overseas travel seriously curtailed by the arrival of COVID-19, The Outback has never been more popular with Australian photographers. And while you can cover tens of thousands of kilometres exploring the Outback, you never have to travel too far to discover a kaleidoscope of colours, textures and light, spectacular vistas, unique wildlife and flora, and wonderfully photogenic local characters. 1 PLANNING YOUR TRIP While it’s important to plan your trip around the destinations and events you want to visit, make sure you allow plenty of time for unexpected photo opportunities. If you find yourself passing a cattle muster, an approaching storm or a particularly photogenic abandoned farmhouse – your itinerary should provide enough flexibility to stop and shoot. Or return the following day. Make sure the roads are open,…

The first thing to mention is the GH5 II is not technically the ‘real’ successor to the GH5. That would be the GH6, which Panasonic has confirmed is in development and will be here early in 2022. The company hasn’t fully announced the GH6’s specs, but it is expected to offer higher-resolution recording, 5.7K 60, and when it’s out, both the GH5 II and GH6 will coexist in the Panasonic line-up. For now, you can think of the GH5 II as an update to the GH5. Panasonic have stuck with the same 20MP Micro Four Thirds image sensor, 4K60 recording at 16:9, and 6K30 when using anamorphic lenses, but improved the camera’s processing power by adding the Venus Engine 10 that’s found in the Panasonic Lumix S1H. THE BODY The…

Every photographer suffers from comparison disorder at some stage throughout their photographic life - it’s human nature. We are always looking at, and for, things to compare ourselves to. Comparison disorder can manifest in many ways, and it is important to remember that when it comes to photography, it is a personal journey, and everyone looks at images in different ways. No two photos are ever the same. I believe as photographers we need to sometimes step back, step away and ask ourselves why we take photos. Why are we sometimes disappointed with our images? During Covid and with the lockdowns many of us have faced these thoughts and it has become more evident because we have all been at home, unable to get out and find new inspiration and…

CRAIG ANDREW MADSEN Craig has been a photographer for over 30 years in New Zealand and abroad. His focus is on long term documentary projects. See more @craigandrewmadsen. STEVE AND ANN TOON Contributors to Australian Photography for more than a decade, Steve and Ann Toon live and breathe wildlife photography. See more of their work at toonphoto.com. PAULA HEELAN Photojournalist and author Paula Heelan lives on a small farm in southeast Queensland where she focusses on life in rural and remote Australia. See more at paulaheelan.com. DREW HOPPER Drew Hopper is an Australian freelance documentary photographer exploring ecological themes, landscape and place. See more of his work at drewhopper.com.…

THE Australian Institute of Professional Photography (AIPP) has announced it will cease operations effective immediately, drawing to an end 75 years of representing professional photographers in Australia. In a statement, the Institute placed the blame on financial losses due to Covid-19, but also stated it had been ‘in a slow decline for more than a decade.’ The AIPP could trace its roots back to 1944, when photographers from various state professional photography associations gathered to form an Australian association to provide a united voice on behalf of photographers. Over three quarters of a century, the Institute contributed to copyright and privacy laws in Australia, as well as input into tertiary education for photographic training. It also contributed to the professional development of thousands of Australian photographers over this time. In…

I think it’s fair to say that most photographers have a history of being frustrated with their print results, whether that comes from a professional print service or their printer at home. So, let’s see if we can fix that and demystify printing. KEEPING IT SIMPLE Recently I bought a new Epson SC-P906 printer. It prints up to A2 (420mm X 594mm), and I really love it! I can open the box, set up the printer, download the printer drivers, and have an exhibition quality print within an hour. For me, that is how modern technology should be – fast and simple to set up with few technical complexities. Does simplicity equal good results? Well, I think it can equal beautiful results! I always try to keep my printing workflow…

For many people thinking of becoming a professional photographer, the unconventional nature of the work is probably one of the biggest turnoffs they face in making it a career. After all, we’re told constantly that photography is undervalued, overly competitive, a glorified hobby and perhaps (often unfairly) nothing more than a vanity project. The idea of becoming a photographer can cause tremendous anxiety and disapproval from loved ones and those on the outside, and yet every year thousands of people find ways to make shooting for a living work. Surely if they can do it, you can too. I’ve been a professional photographer since 2016, and interestingly, photography was never a career path I had ever considered growing up. To be honest, I was completely unaware that it was even…

Sony’s E mount is pretty well covered for longer telephoto lenses in 2021. Sigma offers its 150-600mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM lens in E Mount ($1,979), and Sony sells two telephotos – the Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS, ($3,369), and the FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS ($2,899). Unlike Sigma, Tamron makes its 150-500mm exclusively for the Sony mirrorless system, and, compared to the other lenses mentioned above, it’s the most affordable super-telephoto option for E-mount – not that you’d know it to look at it, though. BUILD At 209.6mm long and 1,725g without the tripod mount, the 150-500mm is a hefty lens, although it’s almost as compact as Sony’s FE 100-400mm, but the Tamron offers 25% more reach. When compared to the Sony FE 200-600mm, the Tamron is noticeably…

I am a photographer based in the Ruapehu region of New Zealand, and I am currently six years into a journey to photograph and document the essence and magic of this beautiful area. For 2021, my project turned towards the jewel of the region, Mt Ruapehu himself. (I say “him” as in local Maori culture, Mt Ruapehu is known and referred to as Koro, meaning grandfather). However, to do the Maunga (Mountain) justice, I decided I wanted to photograph Mt Ruapehu every morning at early dawn or first light for an entire calendar year. I decided that all the images would be photographed from the same spot, using the same 50mm fixed lens. Arguably, one of the best locations to photograph Mt Ruapehu is from an exposed elevated hilltop located…

NIKON has officially announced the Z 9, the company’s newest full-frame pro sports mirrorless camera. The Z 9 is Nikon’s first full-frame mirrorless camera built without a mechanical shutter, which Nikon says allows it to shoot with the world’s least rolling shutter distortion. Combine this with its fast-readout, stacked 45.7MP CMOS sensor, 30fps shooting and 8K/30p capture, and the Z 9 looks to be a real statement of intent from the Japanese company, and quite possibly the ‘halo’ product many Nikon shooters have been waiting for. Likely familiar to many sports shooters, the Z 9 keeps with the large format and slightly angular style borrowed from the Z-cameras. Unlike these though, it features a newly-designed ‘multi-directional’ 3.2-inch rear-LCD that uses a cradle-type system to allow it to move both horizontally…

DJI has released two new Mavic drones, the Mavic 3 and Mavic 3 Cine, with both equipped with dual lens setups. The two models share a number of improved features over the Mavic 2, with the standout features Apple ProRes 422 HQ footage at 5.1K up to 50fps on the Mavic 3 Cine, and 4K up to 120 frames per second on the Mavic 3. In addition to ‘standard’ 28mm lenses, both drones are equipped with 28x hybrid zoom lenses. Both models also feature an extended battery life that DJI claims can support up to 46 minutes of flight time on one charge, which is a marked improvement on the Mavic 2, Mavic Air 2s & 2S, which could all only fly for just over 30 minutes after a single…

INSECTS Insects are a great subject for photography as they can be found just about anywhere, and yet they really challenge a photographer’s technical and creative skills. This month we were looking for images that told us something a little more than ‘just’ the subject itself – a bug’s life, if you will! MICHELLE BOWEN Just Hanging Around EDITOR’S COMMENT Michelle Bowen says this little fellow was tucked away in the fronds of her Grass Tree just happily watching time go by. This is a great image because of that dynamic background – it gives a sense of movement while the main subject remains perfectly still. We’ve tried to work out how it’s happened, as you would expect the relatively fast shutter speed of 1/400s would have frozen any movement…

Display and defence, camouflage, and courtship; for mimicry and to mesmerise; colour is crucial for survival when it comes to the world of wildlife. When it comes to wildlife photography, on the other hand, it just might be the thing that’s holding you back. Crazy as that sounds you’d have to agree that without the familiarity of colour a viewer is certainly forced to look twice at a black and white wildlife shot; even of a common or much-photographed subject. And while generally something to celebrate in nature pictures, colour isn’t always the wildlife photographer’s best friend; often posing an unwelcome distraction in the constant battle to isolate subjects from clashing and over-fussy backgrounds in the field. But these are not the main reasons we’d urge you to consider giving…

Born in South Australia in 1888, Sir George Hubert Wilkins’ list of achievements is simply mind-boggling. A pioneer pilot of early air exploration, Wilkins was also the first to travel under polar ice in a submarine. He would spend two years travelling across the top end of Australia collecting samples of fauna and flora for the British Museum, travel with Sir Ernest Shackleton on his final voyage to Antarctica in 1921, and record the battles and lives of Australians on the Western Front of the Great War under the leadership of Charles Bean. As one reviewer wrote, no other man rode in the front seat, advanced in the front lines, or was otherwise caught up as witness to such an extraordinary array of world events as Sir George Hubert Wilkins.…

I started my journey in photography after marrying into a photography obsessed family. My first camera arrived on Christmas that same year, and with my trusty Pentax MZ-5 at my side, I’ve never looked back. Of course, it did help that I lived in South Africa for many years and there is never a shortage of subject matter, whether it be sport, fantastic scenery and best of all, wild animals and birds. I was lucky enough to visit most of the national parks and wetlands, and spent many hours searching and photographing the natural world around us. Of all the subjects to photograph, birds are my favourite. They teach us so much – how to stop for a while and listen to the sound of the wind blowing through the…

BW BEAUTY Bushwalking in the Gardens of Stone National Park, New South Wales, Robert. A. Baillie came across this dead tree. "Tentacle like branches radiating out from its base and bleached from the elements. I wondered about how it met its demise, lightning, drought or rot, anything was possible in this harsh environment. The scene had potential but the light was very flat due to cloud cover so I continued on my way. Sometime later the sun did break through the clouds and revealed the dramatic moody scene that I had hoped for so I frantically backtracked. The light was again about to disappear so no time for tripods, lens changes or setting tweaks. A quick check of shutter speed, camera hand held and raised above my head for composition…

Thanks to our great sponsors WD and SanDisk, Robert. A. Baillie has won a WD 8TB My Cloud Home Hard Drive valued at $479 and a SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable SSD Black valued at $254. This WD My Cloud Home Hard Drive makes it easy to create your own cloud based storage space using your existing WiFi network. It’s easy to setup by simply connecting the My Cloud Home straight into your WiFi router, then you’re ready to copy your files across, setup automatic backups of your Mac or PC, and access it all remotely via the free app. The Sandisk Extreme Portable SSD is an ideal storage solution that you can take with you on the go, whether you’re transferring files at school, or storing photos you take on…