Asian Photography 201210

Vol. 24 - No.10

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CAMERA REVIEW

TIPS & TECHS

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TRAVEL FEATURE

Nikon D600

Product photography

Creating photo-text

How to use a light meter

PHOTOKINA 2012: A GLANCE

JORDAN Every bit exotic

Will smartphones outshine cameras?

Photokina 2012

w w w. a s i a n p h o t o g r a p h y i n d i a . c o m

Published by TRILOK DESAI on behalf of Special Audience Publications Pvt. Ltd., 509 & 511, Dilkap Chambers, Fun Republic Street, Off Veera Desai Road, Andheri (W), Mumbai - 400 053. InDIA Printed by TRILOK DESAI on behalf of Special Audience Publications Pvt. Ltd., 509 & 511, Dilkap Chambers, Fun Republic Street, Off Veera Desai Road, Andheri (W), Mumbai - 400 053. InDIA Printed at Rajhans Enterprises, H.O. no. 134, 4th Main Road, Industrial Town, Rajajinagar, Bangalore -44, Published at 509 & 511, Dilkap Chambers, Fun Republic Street, Off Veera Desai Road, Andheri (W), Mumbai - 400 053. InDIA Editor - TRILOK DESAI.

All material covered by copyright; no part of the contents of this journal may be published or reproduced or transmitted in any form without prior written permission of the publisher. The views and opinons expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher or the editorial staff.Special Audience Publications Pvt. Ltd. and ASIAN PHOTOGRAPHY AND IMAGING is not responsible and liable for any comments and articles published by its contributors and will not be liable for any damages. All disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of competent courts and forums in Mumbai, India.

Once every two years, all eyes in the imaging world turn to Cologne, Germany for the world’s premier imaging exhibition, Photokina. Although there was much speculation about the turn out of the consumers as well as the manufacturers this year due to the global financial crisis (GFC), it’s safe to say that there was in fact, a plenty of action for the consumers and industry to talk about. Since Asian Photography published one of the only two dailies at the show, we got a closer look at all the action. Read our special round-up on what impressed us at Photokina in this month’s issue.

The start of October brings with it the start of festivities, as also the wedding season, and this year is expected to be no different. We are particularly excited about the following issues since they will feature some of our important shootouts. Apart from that we are also awaiting Photofair 2013 and the all-important Asian Photography Awards.

In this month’s issue we have featured the newly launched Nikon D600 in the review section. The section also includes our first flash review. With the advent of technology the world seems to be moving fast and innovation finally seems to have caught up with the accessory industry. Sekonic launched the world’s first touchscreen light meters at Photokina and we have featured the older version in an article for how to use a light meter.

Things are sure to build up in the coming months and I hope that you will enjoy reading the content we bring you.

So Until Next Time…Happy Reading!!!

EDITOR / PublIshER Trilok Desai

GROuP hEADBhavya Desai

NEw DElhI buREAuAmitabh Joshi

sENIOR CORREsPONDENTsMithila JariwalaFred ShippieLester Ledesma

EDITORIAl TEAMRojita Padhy Ajay SinghGeorge KurienTapshi DhandaSteve D’SouzaHimanshu SharmaYashnashree sPECIAl CORREsPONDENT Lopamudra Ganguly (Delhi)

DIRECTOR MARkETINGAruna Desai ([email protected])

DEsIGNGoraksh Kokate Rajendra Gaikwad

MANAGER ADvERTIsINGLaila Rupawalla

Dy. MANAGER ADvERTIsINGKora Ganguly

MARkETING ExECuTIvERagini DesaiWayne OliverSudeshna ChakravartyNivedita HegdeVatsala Dimri (Delhi)Naveen Tanwar (Delhi)

COPy DEskSameer Gadkari

PRODuCTION MANAGERManoj Surve

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EDITORIAL

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follow us on Twitter@Asian_Photo @Bhavya _Desai

10 News• BenQannounceslaunchofGH600andGH700• FujifilmlaunchesX-E1• OlympusImagingIndiaappointsnewManagingDirector• 2013SonyWorldPhotographyAwardsjuryannounced• EpsondevelopsUltimicronpanelforEVFs• LightandsmallFX-formatNikonD600• KingstonreleasesSDXCClass10card• Sekonicgoesthetouchway

ContentsoCtober 2012

28 Pro- Profile•ToddAnthonyTyler

24 Photokina 2012: a glance

36 Shoot My city•Ahmedabad

82 caMera reviewNikonD600

74 travel feature•Jordan

54

66

68

44 tiPS and techS44Howtousealightmeter

48Fromtheeyeoftheearthworm

54Usingaflatbedscannerasacamera

57DIYflashbouncecard

60Creatingphoto-text

66Dodgeandburn

68Productphotography

AsiAn PhotogrAPhy And imAging[6]OctOber 2012

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I have been a follower of Asian Photography magazine for quite sometime. Photography is my passion. My main passion lies in travel, documentary and street photography. I want to share my photographs with the magazine. Please have a look at my website and kindly let me know whether I can contribute my photographs as a reader or not.My website: http://saumalyaghosh.zenfolio.comFlickr url: http://www.flickr.com/photos/saumalyaghoshSaumalya Ghosh, Kolkata

Dear Saumalya,Its good to know that you have been following the magazine for a long time and photography is your passion. I have seen the links that you have sent and the images look ok. I think you can work on your techniques more, and at any point of time you can contribute the images to the reader sections of the magazine.

I am a regular reader of Better Photography and I recently purchased AP for the first time. I realised that they are repeating the articles and am not impressed. I like your magazine, but I would like to express that the article published in August 2012 titled CREATIVE STRIPS on Photoshop tutorial was very puzzling. I felt that the steps were not

clear and very short, as I am a Photoshop artist. If I didn’t understand the steps I feel a new learner will find it more difficult to understand them. Next time kindly write tutorials in detail. I appreciate the space provided for the article.Sandip mangaonkar,Thane

Dear Sandip,Thanks for your mail and suggestion. It is some valuable piece of information that you have provided since it is very interesting for us to know what readers feel about the content that we publish. We will look into the same and will ensure that the it is not repeated.

I’m a big fan of your magazine and I wanted to thank you for inspiring many young amateur photographers like me. I want to pursue a career as a wildlife photographer, but I don’t know how to go about it. Please advise on how I can pursue my desired career?.Zain .M. Banatwala, Mumbai, Maharashtra

Dear Zain,Well pursuing a career as a wildlife photographer is not easy, much like wildlife photography. Ideally if I were you then I would immediately assist a known wildlife photographer and try and learn as much as possible. Next step would be to build your own portfolio and start approaching magazines to do content for free. The idea would be to generate a readership for your pictures. Post that you should get decent recognition in the fraternity, by which time your wildlife career should’ve launched.


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Recently I’ve gone through your magazine and I really enjoyed it. But, I have a query. Is there any section in your magazine where photo enthusiast like me can send their photographs for publishing? Amit Vakil, Chamba (H.P)

Dear Amit,I am sure if you have gone through the magazine you must’ve seen the Photoscape and Photo Montage section. These are reader sections and you, along with thousands of other readers can send across pictures to them.

I bought the September, 2012 issue of the magazine for the first time. I found it very simple to read through,especially for the beginners. I read the article named ‘The Endless Landscapes’ written by you. I loved all the photos included in the article. But I could not agree to the fact “a photographer is as

good as his equipment”. I have seen many awesome photographers taking breath-taking snaps just by using a simple point and shoot camera and prosumers. A person carrying the most costly and efficient camera doesn’t make him the best photographer. What matters is the eye, which is the most valuable traits any photographer can possess. More efficient the eye, better the photographer. Ayan Mukherjee

Dear Ayan,Its good to know that you read the magazine for the first time and liked it. Thanks a lot for the compliment on the article and the images. As for my comment on “a photographer is as good as his equipment”. Well that was in context with the gear that one needs to carry as a photographer, which means that if you don’t pack the right gear for a trip, you might miss a shot that could turn out to be extra ordinary. That was really what I had meant. I completely endorse your point that a photographers eye and talent is more important than his equipment, but the right equipment in the hands of a right photographer can completely changes the way an image is portrayed.

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News

BenQ announces launch of GH600 and GH700BenQ, a provider of digital lifestyle

innovations has announced the launch of its first high zoom bridge type digital camera series – the GH600 and GH700.

The cameras feature a 21x optical zoom with 16-megapixel and 25mm wide-angle view, combining O.I.s. support, 1cm super Macro Mode and a 3 inch 460k LCD screen.

The GH600 shoots HD 720p videos at 30 frames per second with zoom for fluid movement in fast-action scenes. The aspherical lens adopted to enhance the lens’ focus is made of high-transmission, low-dispersion material and a nano-

scale, anti-reflection coating.The GH700 camera features an

optical zoom lens, BsI CMOs sensor and adigital signal processor (DsP). The GH series digital camera include shooting modes such as Color Filter modes that include LOMO Mode, Color Accent which allows a selected colour in the photo to stay whilst having the rest converted into black and white, 1cm super Macro mode and Panorama mode

The BenQ GH600 is available in black and white colours at a price point of `10999 & GH700 is available in black at a price point of `15999.

Fujifilm launches X-E1Following the X-Pro1, Fujifilm recently

unveiled X-e1, its second interchangeable lens camera. with its portable size and fast autofocus speed, the X-e1 promises to be an exciting addition to the X series range. X-e1 offers 16 megapixel APs-C X-Trans CMOs sensor with OLeD electronic viewfinder, a smaller body with built-in flash and the X mount for the Fujinon XF lens range.

In addition, Fujifilm expanded the lens line-up for its interchangeable cameras from three single focal length lenses in the first series to five with an addition of two lenses, a F2.8 super wide 14mm (21mm in 35mm equivalent) single focal length lens and a F2.8-4 zoom lens that covers the shooting range of 18mm to 55mm (27-83mm in 35mm equivalent). Another line of five lenses will be added to the XF lens series in early 2013, making the total to 10 lenses.

Unlike the X-Pro1 with its hybrid multi viewfinder, the X-e1 camera boasts an OLeD electronic viewfinder (eVF) with a resolution of 2.36 million dots.

“The response we received for X-Pro 1 is overwhelming and it was the true inspiration behind X-e1. The X-e1 features the fast,

high-precision “eXR Processor Pro” for quick responses whatever you’re shooting,” said Kenichi Tanaka, Managing Director, Fujifilm India.

X-e1 is available in silver and black. The camera has “Film simulation Modes” like Velvia, Astia and Provia to simulate the textures of conventional photo film, as well as two additional settings based on professional colour

negative films. It also offers full HD movie recording at 24fps.

For X-Pro1 users, a new firmware (embedded software for digital camera) has been launched, which enables them to use the newly introduced XF lenses in their camera. The firmware can be downloaded from “support” on the Fujifilm Global website.


News

Olympus Imaging India appoints new Managing Director

Olympus Imaging India announced the appointment of Kenichiro Mori

as its new Managing Director, overseeing Olympus Imaging Corporation’s operations in the region with effect from september 1st, 2012. Mori san is now responsible for

2013 Sony World Photography Awards jury announcedThe world Photography Organisation recently announced the judging panels for the

2013 sony world Photography Awards.The honorary jury will judge the professional competition for all photographers

submitting a body of work. Made up of photography professionals from the world Photographic Academy, the honorary jury each year includes photo editors, photographers, agency directors, critics, curators and publishers. each judge is selected to uncover new work to award from amongst the 15 professional categories and ultimately grant one photographer the L’Iris d’Or, the sony world Photography Awards Professional Photographer of the Year, and $25,000 (UsD).

Catherine Chermayeff, Director, i2i photo agency (UsA) who will chair the judges, comments, “we are living in such a transitional and dramatically evolving moment in visual culture. The opportunity to recognise new and emerging talent in photography is more important than ever.”

Astrid Merget, Creative Director of the world Photography Organisation, adds, “selecting the honorary jury each year is a central task to our organisation and one that must be carefully approached. The jury must be well balanced to represent a wide range of expertise within technical, aesthetic, subject and cultural trends.”The 2013 Honorary Jury includes:Architecture / Conceptual / Portraiture / Still Life• Juana de Aizpuru - Gallery Director, Galeria Juana de Aizpuru (Spain)• Olga Sviblova - Director, Multimedia Art Museum Moscow (Russia)Lifestyle / Fashion & Beauty / Campaign / Sport• Catherine Chermayeff (Chair) - Director, i2i photo agency (USA)• Tim Paton - Managing Director, Balcony Jump (UK)Current Affairs / Contemporary Issues / People / Arts & Culture• Fiona Shields - Picture Editor, The Guardian (UK)• Francesca Sears - Director, Panos Profile at Panos Pictures (UK)• Chien-Chi Chang - Magnum Photographer (Taiwan)Travel / Landscape / Nature & Wildlife• Caroline Metcalfe - Director of Photography, Conde Nast Traveller (UK)• Monica Suder - Photographic Consultant and Coach (Germany)• Macduff Everton - Photographer (USA)Entry to the competition is free and the deadline for all competitions is 4 January 2013 except the professional competition which closes on 9 January 2013.

Kenichiro Mori, MD, Olympus Imaging India

leading the overall growth and profitability of the company within the region.

Mori-san, aged 37, has over 14 years of diversified experience in Olympus from the sales of Microscopes and its accessories, to the sales, marketing and communication of the various product categories within the imaging business. He has been at the position of Regional Manager in Germany and later Division Manager, Consumer Division in Russia. During his tenure, Mori-san honed his expertise across various markets including europe, Asia and Middle eastern countries.

expressing delight on his appointment Mori-san said, “India is a key growth market for Olympus and very significant one as well. Thus I’m greatly honoured to have been provided with this responsibility and would certainly like to ensure that we are able to recreate the success that Olympus as a brand is witnessing in some of the other established markets with our mirrorless technology.”

Epson develops Ultimicron panel for EVFsSeiko epson Corporation

has developed a new high-temperature polysilicon (HTPs) TFT colour panel for electronic viewfinders used in mid- to high-end digital interchangeable lens system cameras.

epson’s latest Ultimicron panel offers resolution and fidelity. In addition, the use of a colour filter

prevents the colour break-up. Measuring 0.48 of an inch

diagonally, the new panel offers XGA (1024 x 768) resolution in red, green and blue for 2.36 megapixels. It is the latest addition to epson’s Ultimicron series, which already includes a 0.47-inch SVGA panel and a 0.52-inch QHD panel.

Because the Best Moments Won’t come to you

Keeping up with the traditional excellence of Fujifilm X Series cameras, the New XE-1 capturesimages with exceptional resolution, smooth tonality and minimal noise. It takes you anotherstep closer to capturing the ultimate moment. Because the best moments won’t come to you,you have to go to them.

= 16.3 Megapixels= 2.3M-dot OLED Viewfinder= X-Trans CMOS Sensor

= Built in Flash= X-Mount lens= High speed continuous

shooting(6Frames/Sec)

For More InformationLog on to www.fujifilm-x.com/x-e1

www.fujifilmcameras.in Fujifilm Customer Care: 18002000608 (Toll Free) E-mail: [email protected] Facebook/fujifilmindia


News

Light and small FX-format Nikon D600Nikon India recently announced the

launch of the much awaited FX-format digital-sLR camera D600. The smallest and lightest Nikon FX-format DsLR, the Nikon D600 boasts a CMOs image sensor with 24.3-million pixels and an eXPeeD 3 image-processing engine.

The D600 is the latest and most compact model in the Nikon FX-format digital sLR lineup. The D600 flaunts a number of advanced features, a 3.2 inch LCD monitor with wide angle viewing and dust and water-resistance. It also incorporates full-HD movie

recording (1920×1080/30p) capabilities. speaking on the announcement, Hiroshi

Takashina, Managing Director, Nikon India said, “The D600 will help strengthen Nikon’s position as the market leader in the DsLR segment with over 55% market share.”

The D600 body measures approximately 141.0×113.0×82.0 mm (w×H×D) and weighs approximately 760 grams. The camera supports IsO 100 to IsO 6400. The range of sensitivities can also be expanded to the equivalent of IsO 50 (Lo 1) or up to IsO 25600 equivalents (Hi 2). The Multi-

CAM4800 autofocus sensor tracks the intended subject with 39 focus points.

The Nikon D600 is available in black colour at an MRP of `135,950 body only and `163,950 with 24-85mm VR lens kit.

Kingston releases SDXC Class 10 card

Kingston recently announced a new

sDXC Class 10 memory card that it claims is ideal for price-conscious consumers. The card captures full HD videos and high-resolution photos at an affordable price.

Compliant with the latest sD Association specification, Kingston’s secure Digital extended Capacity (sDXC) Class 10 card operates on the exFAT file system, which is designed to handle files bigger than 4GB. Tha cards are available in 64GB and 128GB. The sDXC cards offer a speed “class” rating known as Class 10 that delivers a 10MB/s minimum sustained transfer rate.

“It is important to note that although sDXC cards are identical in size to standard sD cards, they have a different design and are only recognised by sDXC host devices,” said Nathan su, Flash Memory sales Director, APAC Region, Kingston.

Kingston’s sDXC memory cards are built of non-volatile memory components and have no moving parts that could wear out or break. All cards are 100% tested and are backed by a lifetime warranty as well as free live technical support.

Sekonic goes the touch waySekonic has recently launched

Litemaster Pro L-478D and Litemaster Pro L-478DR, which touchscreen operated photo and cine meters.

The sekonic Litemaster Pro’s colour LCD (2.7”) displays ambient, flash, cine and other information in a clear way. settings are made by simply touching or sliding a finger over the screen.

The L-478D/DR can be calibrated to your camera using sekonic’s Data Transfer software and either sekonic or X-Rite Brand targets or by manually inputting data to the DTs programme or on the meter itself.

The L-478DR incorporates Pocket wizard wireless technology for in-meter power control of select studio flashes connected to Pocketwizard ControlTL receivers as well as standard triggering with the entire Pocketwizard wireless family.

The MRP of L-478D is `30,000 and L-478DR is `35,000 (inclusive of all taxes).

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The ‘Ask Your Expert’ column where your SanDisk expert will answer all your queries on photography

I am a Canon EOS 550D user. While shooting HD videos my camera automatically stops recording within 2-3 minutes. Is there a serious HD recording problem or is it due to my class 4 SD card? Could you also suggest me a SanDisk card which can help me out?- Rohan M.Mumbai

Your video recording is being interrupted because your memory card is simply not fast enough to record the huge amount of data generated by full HD video recording in real time – thus causing the camera buffer to overflow. For optimum performance in HD video recording you should use at least a Class 6 card, and ideally a Class 10 card.

For your Canon 550D – which is compatible with SD, SDHC and SDXC memory cards – at a minimum, use the SanDisk Ultra Class 10 SDHC/ SDXC UHS-I Card (class 10, read/write speeds upto 30MB/s, capacities of 32GB and 64GB) or the SanDisk Extreme SDHC Cards, capacities from 4GB to 32GB.

However, for optimum performance of both high

speed image capture in RAW format, and video recording, try the SanDisk Extreme SDXC UHS-I card, available in 64GB and 128GB, which provide read/write speeds upto 45MB/s.

The professional choice for all-round speed and performance are the SanDisk Extreme Pro SDHC/SDXC UHS-I memory cards, capacities of 16GB to 64GB. While these cards exceed the requirements of your camera, they are a good way to future-proof your investment in memory cards – keeping in mind the data recording demands created by the trend towards ever higher resolution DSLRs.

I am an amateur photographer and I use a Canon EOS 1000D. I want to start shooting new born babies. Which, according to you, would be the perfect lens for indoor shoots? Also I am planning to buy a Tamron macro lens, would that be good for use with my Canon camera body?- Shwet Doshi,Mumbai

The perfect lens would depend on your style of photography. For general indoor portraits (where light levels are likely to be low) in addition to your kit lens, you may want a high-speed short telephoto prime lens which helps in isolating the subject in sharp focus against a progressively soft focused background. Good choices for such a lens would be the Canon 50mm f1.8 or even the 85mm f1.8. You are unlikely to need a longer focal length lens.

Regarding macro lens choices – Canon offers the economical EF 50mm f/2.5 Compact Macro, in addition to the popular 60mm f2.8. Canon also has

OctOber 2012 AsiAn PhOtOgrAPhy And imAging[16]

Answered by Manisha Sood

Country Manager, India & SAARC, SanDisk

Send in your Questions [email protected]

other specialist macro lenses for magnifications greater than 1:1.

There should not be a problem in using compatible third-party macro lenses from the reputable manufacturers – just make sure that the specific lens is fully compatible with your camera, especially with regard to metering and automation features.

I’m planning to buy a telephoto zoom lens for Nikon D3100. I’m a bit confused between Nikon 70-300 f4.5-5.6 and 55-300 since both the lenses have same aperture but there is a difference in the price. Also, should I consider third party lenses? I already have an 18-55 (kit lens) and 50mm f/1.8. Also is Tamron 70-200 f2.8 worth the extra money considering the fact that it lacks VR/OS? -Prateek Bhatia,New Delhi

The AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR, at about Rs 21,500/- is a good choice in telephoto zoom lens, for your Nikon D3100. It combines decent optical performance while retaining compact size and weight. You might consider the AF-S DX Zoom-NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6 G ED, at Rs 11,500/- as the most cost effective choice.

The AF-S VR Zoom-NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED, at Rs 32,500 is primarily designed for full frame sensor cameras – and is therefore a much bigger and heavier lens. Only you can decide, after doing a comparison test, whether the difference in optical quality is worth the price and weight penalty. You may prefer this lens if you are considering an upgrade in the near future to a full frame sensor (FX format) camera body.

The Tamron 70-200 f2.8 lens (and similar offerings from Nikon and others) are aimed more at the professional user. These lenses are even bigger,

heavier, and have optically complex designs to provide a fast constant aperture across the zoom range.

I have two questions.1. In photography, how many

visual elements are there? How do we use each for different photos?

2. Is it alright if I edit my images on Photoshop or any other image editing software and then send it to a photography competition?

E. PremkumarChennai

Very briefly – photographs are a visual communication, and photographers use various elements, the elements of composition, to design or create the image, to effectively convey the message.

Classically, the visual elements were framing (defining the content and boundaries of the image), angle of view (determines the perspective and emphasis of the main subject), lighting (to convey mood and reveal detail), contrast and colour (to enhance aspects of the subject), depth of field (using focus to reveal or allude to secondary objects in the frame), and timing, the decisive moment (to freeze the most defining moment in a sequence of events).

A complete description of these elements would require a book length feature, but do explore these conceptual fundamentals of visual communications for improving the message of your own images.

Your second question, regarding image editing for submissions in photo-contests – please read the rules of each competition you enter. Some are very strict, while some are liberal regarding the extent of image editing they permit.

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Trade Talk


“Saying that smart phones are not going to create any impact on the camera industry may not be right.”

With the festivities already having commenced with Onam, like every year, most manufacturers have bet big money in anticipation of lucrative business. Bhavya Desai spoke to Alok Bharadwaj, Sr Vice President, Canon India about the company’s plans this season and more.

Undoubtedly the festival season is one of the most awaited periods for the

consumer electronic and digital imaging industry. essentially there are two periods when the camera industry is at its peak in terms of sales; during summer vacations (april-May) and during the festivals (October-February). “It is indeed one of the critical phases of the camera industry for registering business and expansion. rollout of festivals typically begins with Onam in kerala, followed by Ganpati in Maharashtra and the durga Pooja in kolkata,” said alok Bharadwaj, Sr Vice President, Canon India.

The digital compact camera segment, however, seems to be experiencing some depression in the consumer sentiments these days. and there are two reasons for the same. First, the overall macro economic situation and second, that photo-taking is slowly getting impacted by alien factors. “No doubt that a lot of consumers are using smartphones over what they were doing earlier. and saying that smartphones are not going to create any impact on camera industry may not be right. I feel that smartphones are definitely changing the way people use camera phones.”

Bharadwaj feels that capturing moments and preserving moments are two very clear, distinct purposes that are coming out in image capturing area. Consumers are using devices other than digital cameras to capture moments. and only in case of preserving moments are digital cameras being used. “The fact that smartphones are reinventing the way images are captured, and also, the macro level economic situation involving repressed consumer sentiments, have both resulted in single digit growth of compact camera industry this year,” he explained.

So does this mean that it becomes a challenge for the industry to provide compelling reasons for the customers to start looking at the camera again? Bharadwaj doesn’t feel that smartphones are eating into the camera market or are even substitutes for it but that they are definitely a good device for the simple purpose of instantly capturing a moment and sharing it.

India has a low penetration of cameras currently with only 5% of Indian households owning cameras. “Therefore I don’t foresee in mid- to long-term, phones replacing cameras.” In fact the growth for good quality cameras is more than 100% and the growth rate of dSlrs is not slowing down at all. “Only the entry-level cameras will be under this so called “impact on account of the camera phone,” stated

Bharadwaj.For the past one year Canon

has focused their campaigns more on the features of the camera and on talking about giving various “moments” that one could enjoy, much like few other manufacturers too. This has helped Canon grow fast, with an increase in the overall camera business in terms of revenue being about 60%. Canon is targeting to reach an annual turnover of `2100 crores this year, which would allow them to register a 35% growth over last year. Currently the camera business is contributing around `1000 crore to their overall business.

For now Bharadwaj feels that Canon is on track to achieve this target, although the rupee devaluation continues to cause distortions. an impact of this was evident on the bottom line. “We are pretty confident that we should be able to achieve this objective. We have a wide portfolio of businesses and camera is only 50% of our business,” he said confidently.

When asked why, when the rupee is devaluating, manufacturers in the imaging industry do not hike the prices of their products, Bharadwaj responded that the actions of each player are dependent on their global and local priorities. What matters are the global forces working for each individual player. In some cases the company may be making a loss globally and therefore cannot

allow a subsidiary to make a loss. In others the company maybe highly profitable globally and they may allow their subsidiary to make a loss.

It is important to keep in mind that India shares only 1% of the global share for most of the subsidiaries. So the impact on the global situation from India is very little. Sometimes if priority is to make India a strong market for a particular brand or player then they may have a different strategy. “Players cannot have common decisions whether to increase the price or not to increase the price. It depends on the market leader. If the market leaders can afford to keep the price same then nobody increases the price,” Bharadwaj concluded.

Alok Bharadwaj,Sr Vice President, Canon India

Canon’s market share across segmentsThe company’s market share in the last quarter recorded 25% for digital compact cameras and 48% for digital SLRs. They are at 25% on digital copier which makes them number one in the market. And at 33% on laser printers, they are number two. They are at about 25% in laser multi-function and 20% in inkjet printers.

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HP at Photokina 2012

With all the eyes in the imaging world, like always, set on Photokina 2012 this year, the show

lived upto its reputation. Although most of the news circulated around the mirrorless and the mobile imaging category, there was ample for the visitors to see in the other categories as well. HP, who had a formidable presence at the event once again focused on their indigo and inkjet Solutions at the show.

HP announced new solutions for professional portrait and consumer photo prints, using HP indigo digital Press technology as a replacement for traditional silver halide (AgX). the new solutions offer photo labs a high-quality, economical alternative to the AgX technology for low to high volume photo prints. Also on display were HP’s digital

printing technologies for the photo market and a full range of photo applications, including sample output from the HP indigo 10000 digital Press.

today, 70% of all photo specialty products, including photo books, calendars and photo cards are using HP indigo technology, stated Martin, Francois Martin, Worldwide Marketing director, HP Graphics Solutions Business.

in addition to new solutions for photo lab environments, HP also announced new photo creation software alongwith ‘same-day creative output’ products that will help retailers capitalise on the growing photo merchandise market. the HP booth displayed the HP indigo 7600 digital Press, HP designjet l26500 Printer, HP designjet Z6200 Photo Printer and HP designjet Z3200 Photo Printer.

HP also featured applications demonstrating the latest techniques available using HP inks, substrates and technologies, including sample output from the HP indigo 10000 digital Press. the B2 size format press (740 x 530 millimeters [mm] / 29.5 x 20.9 inches) enables oversize photo applications such as photobooks, book covers, calendars, and posters, and also production of standard-size photo products. As an example, visitors can see the world’s largest lay-flat photo book, which measures nearly one meter (39.37 inches) when opened. the hardcover, leather-bound book, which was designed by MediaClip, was printed on the HP indigo 10000 and finished by loxley Colour.


With india being an important market for most manufacturers on the imaging front, HP’s indigo business in india has registered an unprecedented growth in the past few years. Appadurai, Country Manager, indigo and inkjet Solutions says, “As far as HP indigo’s photo-business is concerned in india, this year has been probably the best year for the business. We measure our growth not in terms of the units that are sold every year, but on the basis of the prints that turn out of an indigo press.” durai says the message for the indian consumer is clear, “the question is not if it should be an indigo, but when should it be an indigo.”

in the last two years HP has installed around 35 indigo machines in india with volumes registering an average growth on a year to year basis. there has been a phenomenal rise in the impressions from indigo presses, which increased from 18 million until december last year to 47 million prints in the January-March quarter. durai attributes the increase in the acceptance level for the product to the consumersl, the reason being the increase in the price of silver halide and the innovation of technologies at HP, and expects the number to finish around 65 million at the end of the financial year.

last year witnessed close to 300% increase in the volumes of prints from indigo press, durai expects a growth rate of 100% this year. He expects the growth rate to practically settle at an average of 35% in the next few years. the business is not only growing in terms of volumes for prints but also in terms of revenue, about 50% for the last two years.

“it has been a great growth story for us in india and we expect it to stay like this for atleast two to three years,” states durai. While the manufacturer was continuing to adopt the conventional approach in the market, it was a change in the strategy to connect with the photographers and end users itself that changed the dynamics, believes durai. the biggest change has been in the perception of the customers towards

indigo Press in india, from a product that was sold on price factor to a product that is currently sold on value.

At the recently concluded drupa show in Germany, HP announced some new innovations to the indigo technology, which according to durai makes it stand apart from the other options. this includes the new version of the indigo Press named 10000, which will be delivered to the customers by March 2013 and is capable of printing 20x29” size prints as compared to the earlier 12x18”.

other innovations include the increase in the colour gamut of inks which makes it possible to print a wider and finer range of colours and the innovation of Clear ink which allows the customers to print transparent ink on a printed page.

At Photokina, HP india has brought a group of customers from india to give them the experience of company visits to established photobook businesses, like Fovea in oslo and Cewe in Germany. “the objective is to provide the indian customers with a platform to learn from industry leaders on how to improve their business infrastructure to achieve even greater heights,” concluded durai.

. - BHAvyA deSAi

HP’s Indigo business in India registers

three times growth in printing


“It has been a great growth story for us in India and we expect it to stay like this for atleast 2-3 years”

Appadurai, Country Manager, Indigo and Inkjet Solutions

Photokina Round-uP


Once every 2 years the imaging industry’s eyes focus on Photokina, the world’s leading imaging and photography

exhibition in Germany. the 32nd Photokina witnessed approximately185,000 visitors from 166 countries, marking an increase in visitors from the prior event in 2010. about 48.8% of the visitors were trade visitors, 42.5% of whom came from abroad, showing a significant increase compared to figures from two years back. in particular, Photokina recorded a substantial increase in the number of specialist dealers and imaging professionals from asia (16%), north america (26%), and Eastern Europe (40%).

the newly introduced trend segments of mobile imaging, connectivity, and digital camera filming were extremely popular among exhibitors and visitors alike. Being media partners for the expo, asian Photography was engaged in publishing the

Show Daily at Photokina. having been in the thick of the action we bring you some of the highlights of Photokina 2012.

CompaCt Cameras

Sony DSC-RX1Sony’s showcase at Photokina had

quite a few interesting products, but none as talked about as the new compact RX1, quite possibly the world’s smallest full-frame camera, comparable in size to most other digital compact cameras in the market. the RX1 features a 24.3 effective megapixel EXMoR CMoS sensor and a fixed focal length 35mm F/2.0 Carl Zeiss lens. the 24.3 megapixel EXMoR CMoS sensor is teamed with their BionZ image processing engine, which is also found in the recently announced alpha 99 dSLR.

Photokina 2012: a glance


Samsung Galaxy CameraSamsung presented their new Galaxy

Camera, which combines photography with the latest android oS Jelly Bean besides unveiling new additions to their nX ecosystem. the camera was also equipped with 3G/4G connectivity. . Samsung, famous for their Galaxy mobile phones, featuring Google’s android oS has brought the convenience of the mobile user interface to digital cameras.

Fujifilm XF1Fujifilm launched the new compact XF1, a

12 MP enthusiast, compact camera featuring classic styling, a 25-100mm equivalent F1.8-4.9 image stabilised lens and an adequately large 2/3” CMoS sensor. the XF1 is the latest in Fujifilm’s premium X-series stable, and shares much of its capabilities with the X-S1 superzoom and the fast-lensed X10 compact camera.

DsLrs

Nikon D600the nikon d600, announced at

amsterdam a week prior to Photokina, is a full-frame 24.3 megapixel FX format dSLR, bringing the possibilities of FX format models to a broader range of photographers. Quite possibly nikon’s smallest and lightest full-frame dSLR, the d600 is equipped with the EXPEEd 3 image processing engine, also present in nikon’s flagship d4.

Canon EOS 6DCanon surprised visitors by introducing

the new smart full-frame lightweight camera, the EoS 6d. the lightest among its full-frame offerings, the EoS 6d features a 20.2 megapixel full-frame CMoS sensor. aimed at the advanced amateur or professional looking for a full-frame quality sensor at a relatively lower price as compared to the company’s other full-frame offerings, the 6d gains Canon’s silent shutter mode that we saw on the 5d Mark iii. the 6d’s more prominent additions include integrated GPS and Wi-Fi- their first appearance on a Canon dSLR. Something that we had predicted a few months back.

mirrorLess Cameras

Canon EOS Mthe wait for the Canon EoS M was

finally over when the manufacturer launched it at the show. the manufacturer showcased the much anticipated camera with an aPS-C sized 18MP sensor, the exact same as that found in the EoS 650d dSLR. Canon’s engineered the EoS M with the intention of providing the users with the same image quality as its dLSRs, but in a compact size. the EoS M comes equipped with a touchscreen interface. the EoS M fits into the existing Canon EoS family smoothly, and all Canon EF and EF-S lenses available for the EoS dSLRs are perfectly compatible with the camera with the use of a mount adapter.

Panasonic Lumix GH3Panasonic launched their versatile digital

Single Lens Mirrorless interchangeable lens camera, the Lumix Gh3 at Photokina this year. the camera is equipped with a new 16.05 megapixel Live MoS sensor, the Venus Engine image processor, and high sensitivity image recording even at iSo 12800 or iSo 25600 in extended mode. the Lumix Gh3 also offers 1080 50p Full hd recording in a range of video formats. it has a lightweight body with a magnesium alloy frame, and is splashproof and dustproof. it also boasts of a 614k pixel 3.0 inch free-angle oLEd screen and a 1744k oLEd viewfinder.

OctOber 2012 AsiAn PhotogrAPhy And imAging[26]

Nikon 1 J2alongside their full product line-up and

the newly announced d600 was the new nikon 1 J2, the successor to the nikon 1 J1. the nikon 1 J2 features an advanced hybrid autofocus system that switches between phase detection aF for shiny or moving subjects and Contrast detect aF for stationary or poorly lit subjects. two new lenses were also added to their CX format lens line-up – the 1 nikkor 11-27.5mm f/3.5-5.6, and the 1 nikkor 18.5mm f/1.8 prime lens.

Olympus E-PM2 and E-PL5olympus had on display two new PEn

series cameras featuring oM-d technology at the show. Both cameras are equipped with oM-d features in an attempt to woo consumers with premium technology. the PEn Lite (or E-PL5) and the PEn mini (E-PM2) both feature the same Live MoS sensor from the oM-d including the truePic Vi image processor and autofocus. these enhancements make the new PEn series duo comparable to the oM-d E-M5.

Fujifilm X-E1Based on the popularity and appeal of

the X 100 and the X-Pro 1, Fujifilm unveiled the X-E1 at the show this year. the X-E1 seems like a slimmed down X-Pro 1, with the complex and expensive hybrid viewfinder replaced by a purely electronic viewfinder. the X-E1 gets a few new features relative to the X-Pro 1, like a built-in pop-up flash, a 2.5mm stereo microphone socket for movie recording, and the ability to use an electronic shutter release cable in addition to the standard threaded shutter release button.

printers

EpsonEpson launched the Expression Photo

XP-850 and XP-750 Wi-Fi enabled a4 photo printers. Both the new models use Epson’s new six-colour Claria Photo hd ink Set (black, cyan, magenta, yellow, light cyan, and light magenta). along with the new Expression

home series, Epson also launched a number of compact printer models under its new Epson Small-in-one series which includes the multi-function Expression 40x XP home, XP-30x, 20x XP, and XP-102, which are capable of printing, copying and scanning.

CanonCanon announced the launch of three

new premium PiXMa printers that produce photo-lab quality prints at home, and boast advanced design features, the PiXMa iP7250, PiXMa MG5450, and PiXMa MG6350. the new PiXMa iP7250 is a a document and photo printer which has replaced the iP4950 with faster print speeds and Wi-Fi connectivity. the iP7250 also supports tablet and smartphone printing.

MimakiMimaki Engineering unveiled the

uJF-6042 a2 format uV flatbed printer with LEd curing and multiple ink options at Photokina. in addition to its larger format size, this printer incorporates many of the innovative improvements Mimaki had introduced in the uJF-3042 series, including a 6-colour process, white ink and clear ink, to be used as spot varnish, and the ability to print on substrates up to 150mm thick.


teChnoLogy anD trenDs

at Photokina 2012, two of the trending themes were making movies with digital still cameras and photography with mobile telephones or smartphones. a great deal of exhibition space was dedicated to both of these technological trends considering their impact on the imaging sector.

Most digital still cameras sold today are capable of taking hd quality movie sequences, especially so for SLR cameras and system cameras (mirrorless cameras). a host of programmes consisting of discussions, lectures and workshops were conducted to address issues in order to highlight the growing importance of filming with dSLR and system cameras. accessories to assist videographers with filming, such as filters, continuous light sources specially designed for dSLRs and system cameras were on display too.

Photography with mobile telephones and smartphones was another trending subject at the

exhibition this year which brought the age-old debate of cameraphones versus digital cameras back. Companies like di support, involved actively in developing a variety of software solutions for processing digital photos, building photobooks online, and to allow users to archive holiday videos in a printed photobook in order to keep them in a place to play whenever required were at Photokina, explaining their technologies to interested visitors.

Epson revealed their new ultimicron panel at Photokina this year. the new Epson ultimicron viewfinder completes the existing range of Epson htPS tFt viewfinder Camera with an electronic viewfinder of ultimicron. ultimicron electronic viewfinder technology is equipped as standard in the olympus oM-d Micro Four thirds camera. the panel is a high-temperature polysilicon (htPS) tFt colour panel for electronic

viewfinders used in mid- to high-end digital interchangeable lens system cameras.

as you might remember we had made some interesting predictions in our “July 2012 trends” issue, many of which were introduced in products at the Photokina show. Some of these include the merging of mobile interface with digital cameras, wifi capability and touchscreen features in dSLRs among others. With technology leapfrogging through time one can only imagine what to expect in the future.

pro-profile

Let fashion take over

A keen photography hobbyist from a young age, it still took him more than one detour to finally realise that photography, in fact, was his calling. 10 years into the profession; he is travelling to the top fashion capitals of the world to shoot in, is working with leading fashion magazines and has recently been selected as a judge and Resident Photographer for Asia’s Next Top Model, an adaptation of the original hit TV series America’s Next Top Model, a fashion-themed reality television show. In conversation with Todd Anthony Tyler as he tells us about his style of photography and what sets him apart in his field.

OCTOBER 2012 AsiAn PhOTOgRAPhy And imAging[30]

business, his equipment and books that he says he dutifully woke up every day and studied. His background in modelling helped him grasp the intricacies of fashion photography when he started out, and over the 10 years that he has been in the profession, he has translated that knowledge into his images.

KeePINg IT RAwHis style of fashion photography tends to be a bit raw. An advocate of minimal re-touching, he prefers his shots done in camera as much as possible and as natural as possible, yet appealing to international industry standards. Tyler’s personal work, more than any other,

Todd Anthony Tyler

His interest in photography goes way back to his school days, but then it was too early to worry about

choosing a career. He studied biology and anthropology and then drastically switched lines when he was discovered as a model in his final year of university in Milan, italy. He worked 10 years as a professional model. it was only when looking to move on from modelling and doing some “intense soul searching” that the revelation occurred. He says recalling the moment, “The reality was that the only thing i truly and unquestionably wanted to do and dedicate myself to, was photography.”

He did not take formal training in photography, or even spent any time as an assistant. instead, when he decided to go pro, he put all his money into his photography


weAPoNs of choIcei often shoot with a Canon, primarily because when i shifted from film to digital, Canon was the only camera line at the time with a full frame sensor and now i have all the lenses. When i am not shooting with Canon, i shoot with Hasselblad and either a Hasselblad back or more commonly a phase back. Before digital, i was shooting with Mamiya and Contax.

exhibits the raw quality; dark and moody images that are sexually charged or stimulating, and often involving movement in them. “i like my shots to vibrate - for images to have a sense of energy and life,” he affirms.

When working professionally he finds a way to adhere to the advertising briefs and magazine or brand philosophies while still retaining his signature rawness in the images. The balance, Tyler attributes to his extensive knowledge of various photographic styles.

BAcKgRouNd jusT As IMPoRTANT As suBjecTThe background is an intricate part of the

OCTOBER 2012 AsiAn PhotogrAPhy And imAging[32]

all his shoots fearless of making mistakes and willing to risk and experiment when appropriate. This, he says, leads him to his basic overall rule - know all the techniques and technical information extremely well and then go about breaking all the rules in the creation of something new – which he follows every time he holds a camera in his hands. But in particular for fashion photography, he considers another practice important: “Build a strong team which includes not only quality assistants, but also make up, hair and clothing stylists,” he says. “i would also include a graphic designer in there,” he adds.

oTheR ThAN fAshIoN Tyler’s busy schedule gives him little time to shoot anything but what is assigned to him as the job. But that is not to say he does not indulge in other genres of the art. He finds landscape photography relaxing and likes to

overall composition and storytelling, which Tyler feels is often overlooked. “There really needs to be a synergy between the main model subject, styling and the backdrop, whether complimentary or contrasting,” he explains. When selecting the appropriate background for a shot, it is not only important to know which elements to include in the background but also to know which to exclude, and Tyler gives considerable thought to that. He believes that there should be several layers to an image and in his photographs, the background is one of the most definite. “A number of times, the whole starting point for me in setting up a shot and storytelling comes from a background setting,” he says asserting its importance in his images.

Rule #1: hAVe No feAR“My first rule of thumb is to have no fear in my photography,” he states. Tyler approaches

You need to have undying passion and be insanely committed to being a full time professional photographer to succeed


judge ANd ResIdeNT PhoTogRAPheRTyler has been chosen as the resident photographer and one of the three judges on the grand show of Asia’s Next Top Model (AsiaNTM). His work has made him travel to some of the fashion capitals of the world like Milan, paris, New York and london, and contribute to renowned fashion and lifestyle magazines like Vogue, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, Madame Figaro, Prestige and DestinAsian. His first hand knowledge of the fashion industry as a model previously and for the last 10 years as a fashion photographer is what makes him just right for the role of resident photographer at the show. Tyler explains in his interview video with AsiaNTM, “i know what it is like to be on the other side of the camera; i know what it is like to take directions or what’s keeping them (the models) from really opening up and giving something more to the camera.” His experience and expertise makes him a valuable mentor at the show which begins, tentatively, in the first week of october, this year.

Asia’s Next Top Modelshoot both urban and natural landscapes. He is also interested in architectural photography, and enjoys shooting portraits, in particular, quirky or creative ones.

IN leIsuRe TIMeWhen not completely consumed in running his own business and being a freelance photographer, you will find Tyler either running, or hitting the gym to do a weight training session or to practice boxing or yoga. He also finds pleasure in the finer things in life, like travelling, reading, wine tasting and collecting old cameras.

Another quaint hobby of his is to work on fixing up his house in Canada. “i find it relaxing to work with my hands and do something manual. i also enjoy renovating and interior designing,” he confirms.


fAshIoN PhoTogRAPhY AMATeuRs, lIsTeN uP!if you walk up to Tyler seeking advice, be prepared to have him first deeply question your desire and commitment to becoming a fashion photographer. And if you really only have a passing interest in it, he’d suggest you keep photography as a hobby and do something else. “You need to have undying passion and be insanely committed to being a full time professional photographer to succeed,” he says, and then counts off the few simple rules to follow; build a strong team, put your money into lenses, learn proper technique, fine tune your skills, shoot the best models you can test or book and realise the power of social media in marketing yourself

today, all the while not losing sight of the fact that nothing can replace producing quality work that resonates with people and ultimately speaks for itself.

PlANs foR The fuTuReTyler’s immediate plans are to continue down the path that AsiaNTM has begun to blaze for him. He is certain he will continue to work and live in Asia along with his regular work trips to New York, london and paris. “i am particularly interested in india and would like to travel and shoot in india much more,” acknowledges Tyler who is excited about the future and its endless possibilities.

TexT: TApsHi DHANDA

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Shoot My City



Ahmedabad

This month’s Shoot My City took us to the historic city of Ahmedabad, also called, Amdavad, in Gujarat. Named after Sultan Ahmad Shah who

founded it in 1411 AD, this city has developed into a leading industrial centre. Since it was my first ever visit to the state of Gujarat, i really did not know what to expect. All i knew was that it’s a dry state and that the local cuisine was likely to up my sugar levels.


My journey to the cityof Ahmedabad started with an eight hour long train ride from Mumbai. one of the first things i noticed once i reached the city, were the smooth roads in Ahmedabad. A comfortable auto-rickshaw ride got me to the hotel and soon after freshening up i headed out onto the streets to get a flavour of the place. My first stop was the Law Garden. it is named after the law college that is situated adjacent to it. if you are looking for value for your money, this is the place to visit. you will find a vivid and colorful range of cuisines from around the world with a Gujarati twist. the place comes alive after sunset. there is an entire street with make-shift shops selling handcrafted bed sheets, cushion covers, traditional clothing with a lot of bling, jewelry and, of course, the street food. there is in fact an entire street where vendors sell food from the back of their modified rickshaws, vans and trucks. Aloo tikki, dabeli, vada pav, kulfis and South indian food are just a few delights they offer. Law Garden has something for everybody. As the day came to an end, i retired to the comfort of my bed looking forward to what the city had in store for me the next day.

Next morning i headed out to the indian institute of Management as i was curious to see what the fuss was all about. Unfortunately i wasn’t allowed to shoot in their campus but i managed to have a look of the beautiful architecture and lush greenery within the campus. Next on my list was Sabarmati Ashram. on the way to the ashram, my rickshaw driver, Bharatbhai, point out an old dilapidated bridge, called Dandi Pul. Dandi Pul is the bridge that Mahatma Gandhi walked across to start his famous Dandi March in 1930. Currently the bridge is closed to the public as a fire in 2005 severely damaged its wooden foundation and walking on it is not entirely safe.

Along the banks of the Sabarmati River is the ashram which Gandhi established in 1915 and it was from here that the fight for freedom started with Dandi March, opposing the salt tax then. Currently, the ashram has a museum called Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalay where the quotations, relics and letters of Gandhi are on display. there is also a life-size painting gallery and a library that consists almost 35,000 books related to the life of Gandhi.

on my way out i couldn’t help notice a few children practicing hand-stands which

looked more to me like b-boying moves. these children live in the adjoining ashram for children. intrigued, i went to visit the ashram, and saw children making paper bags and other handicrafts. the proceeds from the sale of these items are used for their education. i walked around and met some of the volunteers teaching the children there. on my way out, a girl gave me a handicraft medallion as a gesture of appreciation for my visit to the ashram.

touched, i proceeded to my next stop, the hatheesing Jain temple which is built of white marble with intricate carvings, and is quite a sight. i spent about half an hour there. you are not allowed to shoot inside the premises but i managed to sneak a frame. Next on my itinerary was the Sidi Saiyyed Mosque. it is one of the most famous mosques of Ahmedabad and is around 400 years old. the mosque is famous for beautifully carved stone latticework windows (jalis) on the side and rear arches. in fact, it is known that the jali in the centre of the mosque was so beautiful and intricately carved that the British took it with them.

After a long day, Bharatbhai suggested a trip to Kankaria Lake, the biggest lake in Ahmedabad. the lighting and special effects throughout the walkway and sumptuous food at any of the restaurants in the central garden make a visit to the lake worthwhile. A train named ‘Atal Express’ - named after


former Prime Minister of india Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his birthday 25 December 2008 - was imported from London and it circles the lake on a 4.5 km track. the lake also has a dirt track adjoining it where visitors can ride/drive all terrain go-kart vehicles. Also there is a tethered balloon ride setup there where you can go up as high as 450 meters in the air.

My third day in the city i head to Adalaj Ni Vav, a stepwell which is a popular tourist attraction. the well was built in 1499 AD by Queen Rudabai. the stepwell or vav, as it is called in Gujarati, is intricately carved and is several stories in depth. the designs on its walls and pillars include leaves, flowers, birds, fish and other ornamental designs. the vav is fascinating to say the least.

i had saved the old part of the city for my last evening in Ahmedabad. And it was a good decision. Bharatbhai

told me that in 1400s, Mahmud Begada, the grandson of Ahmed Shah, fortified the city with a 10km long outer wall consisting of 12 gates, 189 bastions and over 6,000 battlements. the city walls were broken in time as new rulers came into power but the 12 stone gates still stand tall.

At night i was advised to try out the famous Gujarati thali so i decided to eat at a restaurant that only serves thalis, knowing there was little chance they would go wrong with it. Besides, after a day of touring i thought i had built quite an appetite for it. the thali had an assortment of vegetables, lentils, rotis and desserts. if you love to eat, a Gujarati thali will more than fill your stomach. And no, i’m not just talking about the number of things in your plate, but the constant refilling of the same by the staff of the restaurant. After the delicious, satisfying dinner, i called it a day.

the cosmopolitan city enriched with history and tangled in a restored old city with stunning museums, wonderful people and colourful night markets; Ahmedabad for me was a wonderful experience.

tExt AND iMAGES: StEVE D’SoUzA

Tips & Techs

How to use a

light meter


The cameras today are capable of multiple functions. With all the latest sensors, image processing

software, multi level metering and flash exposure modes, it is important to have a grip on the exposure of your photographs. Getting to know your meter is vital; the more you understand it, the better the images are likely to turn out.

MeteringThere are two types of metering

modes, namely reflective metering and incident metering. Reflective metering reads the intensity of light reflecting off the subject, which the camera’s built-in meter reads, whereas incident metering reads the intensity of light falling on the subject, which a handheld light meter reads.

You might wonder why you should invest so much in a handheld light meter when you have one built in the camera.


Ambient mode

Corded flash mode

Cordless flash mode

The meter in your camera may be part of the most advanced metering system available, yet it is not accurate every time. This is not because of a technical shortfall, but because of a simple principle: the camera’s meter is designed to meter reflected light, which varies according to the surface colour or tone. Quite obviously, black surfaces will reflect less than white surfaces. coloured surfaces also reflect light according to their tone. For this reason, TTL camera meters are designed to meter at 18% grey, i.e. they assume everything in the frame is a mid grey. however, there are few instances where the colours, the highlights and shadows blend perfectly into 18% grey.

the light MeterFor the convenience of explanation, we have used

the sekonic DiGiTALMAsTeR L -758cine as it is one of the most widely used light meters in the industry. it can measure both incident and reflected light. The digital light meter we used is equipped with a lumisphere which can be used for incident light measurement. extended lumisphere can be used to measure three dimensional subjects with the lumisphere aimed at the position of the subject. Retracted lumisphere can be used to measure manuscripts, paintings or other flat copies. A light meter can also be used for measuring illumination levels or brightness differences in a multiple light setup. The reflected spot meter, on the body of the light meter, can be used along with the eyepiece.

Using the light MeterAll light meters in the market are based on the same

idea. A handheld meter gives you precision; it lets you measure the exposure at the exact illuminated spot. With a light meter, you enter the isO value followed by either the shutter speed or the aperture value, depending on the type of photograph you intend to click. For a photograph with shallow depth of field, enter the isO and the desired aperture value and the light meter will meter the light and give you the correct shutter speed value and vice versa.

There are various modes in a light meter1. Ambient mode: The daylight or ambient mode is used

to meter a continuous source of lighting. it can be used to meter in daylight, tungsten or cFL lights or even continuous studio lights.

2. corded flash mode: This mode enables a still photographer to meter a studio strobe or a flash unit. You need to connect a sync cable from the strobe/flash unit to the Flash synchro terminal of the light meter, press the metering button on the light meter which then fires the flash, and the light meter will meter the light accordingly.

3. cordless flash mode: in this mode, you push the metering button and the bracket around the flash logo starts to blink on the LcD of the light meter. in effect, when you flash the strobe/flash unit, the light meter detects the flash and gives you the correct reading for the light.

To explain this, we have shot two sample images using ambient and cordless flash mode.


Note• Whenmeteringstudiostrobes,youwouldalwayshavetoentertheISOandshutterspeedvaluestogettheresultantaperturevalue.

• Whenyouaretakinganincidentreadingfromthesubject’sposition,themetershouldbeheldinawaythatthewhitedome(lumisphere)facesthecameralens,notthelightsource.Thisensuresthatthelightstrikesthedomeexactlyasitisfallinguponthesubject.

• Whenusingmultiplelights,thewhitedomeofthelightmetermustbepointedateachlightseparatelytosetratiosofindividuallights.

There are many exposure controls in image editing software like Adobe camera Raw and Lightroom – exposure, highlights, shadows, fill light, recovery etc. Adjusting a larger percentage of your pictures with these controls takes a great deal of time, it’s better to get the exposure right while taking the photo instead, and that’s why a handheld meter is so important. it is precise down to 1/10th of an f-stop, and is consistently accurate. if you want to have complete control over your medium and at the same time save an enormous amount of time sitting in front of the computer working on post processing, then using a handheld light meter is the way to go.

TexT AnD iMAGes: sTeve D’sOuzA

Using on camera reflected metering

Metered using cordless mode

Metered using handheld incident light meter

Used a diffused strobe light

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Tips & Techs

Photo: Steve D’Souza


From the eye oF the earthworm

A vantage point, simply put, is a place or a location that allows one to have an overall view or perspective of a place/subject/scene. it means the same in photography as well and involves angles; high angle, low angle and straight angle. As you might have read the article

‘Get high’ in our last month’s issue which is about shooting from a high vantage point, this month, we go low.

Low angle photography is fun to experiment with, especially to give a clear view of the subject from ground level, it usually depicts the subject as gigantic and mighty. To successfully pull off a low angle shot you will have to position the camera on the ground or shoot the subject with the camera facing up, at an appropriate angle. At times it might be a bit stressful because the lower the angle, the harder it gets to frame a shot. But in this article we provide you with a few tips that will help you try this technique better and with ease.


This technique maybe used to represent scenes of confrontation to illustrate which character holds the higher position of power, and is a common element in the aesthetic texture of certain genres, such as film noir. Low angle photography breaks away from the traditional straight angle (eye-level) shots and offers more room for creativity. For example, if you have a nice surface with tiny objects on it, say a beach shore with pebbles, you can

use it to add texture to your image.Low angle shots allow you to see things

from a different perspective. But before you attempt a low angle shot you must visualise it. imagine the scene from a low perspective before taking the shot. To keep your photo interesting to the eye, you will have to include objects that bring that interesting quality to the particular low angle shot. Keep in mind that with the angle and perspective nearby

objects get exaggerated in size. it may not always be easy to look through

the viewfinder when taking a low angle shot since a lot of those require the camera to be placed or held in such a way that you might have to bury yourself to use the viewfinder, unless of course, you have a camera with a swivel screen, in which case you will find it way easier to shoot low angle shots.

These shots are best captured using


a wide angle lens. That is not to say a telephoto would not work at all, but with a wide angle, the operation is more flexible. The latter gives a better chance to crop the images in post-processing as well. if you are using a wide-zoom (telephoto) then it might allow for a lot of room to play around and experiment. Low angle photographs offer a fascinating perspective and you can make them even more interesting by using different lenses for your shoots.

in images shot from a high vantage point, one does not have to worry about depth of field, but with low angles you will have

to keep an appropriate aperture setting. The beauty of this technique is to keep the foreground in focus and for this to happen you must understand the aperture values of the lens and your camera. The choice of lens will matter here because some lenses may blur the objects in the background; something you might not always want. hence it’s best for you to play around with the aperture settings. if you’re looking at achieving greater depth of field, you will have to keep in mind the shutter settings too. The best time to shoot is when you have enough light to enhance the desired aperture setting.

Lighting is a major factor you must consider. here’s a simple example, in low angle photography if you are shooting outdoors, you might sometimes capture the bright skies in your image too, and you wouldn’t want them to come burnt out. if you focus on the sky, the foreground would become dark, hence, to avoid this you will have to choose the right time of the day to shoot. if you are looking to have the sky as a nice background for your subject then you will have to underexpose a little so you can work a dodge on the subject in post-processing.

Additional equipments such as ground


pods, an angled viewfinder to avoid straining your neck and knee pads to avoid causing trouble for your knees can come in handy while getting low level shots.

Low angle photography requires patience as you will need to spend some time to get the composition right. But it will help make you a better photographer in terms of composition. Once you have learnt the right way, low angle shots will come easy and you will walk away with the best results. so plan your shots well and you will reap your rewards in print.

TexT And imAGes: AjAy sinGh

Using a flatbed scanner as a camera

Tips & Techs


Flatbed scanners, normally used to scan documents, photos or film, can also be used to capture stunning still

life “photographs”. On a day when you’re probably feeling a little bored with your camera and feel like taking a break from it, you could use your flatbed scanner to make some interesting pictures. Bringing the scanner to your subject might not always be feasible, but instead you could bring your subject to the scanner. Using it to capture day-to-day scenes outdoors is a lot more challenging, on account of the many variables. it is a kind of slow camera that takes shots of single rows and then assembles them together as a photograph. Whether or not it can be called photography has been debated for quite some time but despite the many restrictions it poses, it can at the very least be called a form of photography, since it does enable you to capture images of your subjects.

reqUirementsA computer with an installed flatbed

scanner is all that you really require. That, and of course, subjects to photograph/scan. A backdrop (a piece of cloth, or even paper) will help avoid light from leaking into your frame. A black backdrop typically goes well with most subjects. A transparent plastic sheet to cover up your scanner’s surface will help you avoid scratching the scanner’s surface, and comes in handy especially when scanning hard objects. Alternatively, you could use some cleaning material to clean the scanner before and after scanning.

scanners typically come bundled with their own software, and this should do just fine for your experiments, at least to begin with. scanners these days are capable of scanning up to 3200 dpi even, thereby allowing you to enlarge your scans about 10 times when you print at 300 dpi. A high resolution scanner is recommended since it will allow you to enlarge your scans easily, but it isn’t a necessity. We used the samsung scX-4521FY. What’s more important is to find interesting subjects to scan.

in terms of choosing subjects there are certain limitations, the most obvious of which is the size of the scanner you plan to use. Your subject must fit on the glass of the scanner, typically the size of an A4 sheet of paper. Flat subjects aren’t a requirement. so it isn’t just leaves that you can scan; three



dimensional objects can also be used. Depending upon the flatbed scanner you use, the limitation of depth of field and available light, scanners on an average will allow up to half an inch above the scanner glass to be captured. Not only will your subject progressively lose focus in areas away from the glass of the scanner, the light emitted from the lamp of the scanner will be too weak to bring out detail in those areas of the subject.

A commonly used subject is food stuff, since most food items are colourful and bring texture into the scans. Flowers, stones, seashells, all make for interesting subjects. A little thought into the arrangement of your subjects will bring composition and structure into your images.

scanning at the highest resolution and saving your images as TiFF files will yield best results, and allow you to further edit your images using an image editing software of your choice. The soft diffused light that the flatbed scanner bathes your subjects in is truly delightful and can’t quite be obtained by other methods. You could keep rearranging your subjects till you get the kind of desired result you’re looking for.

TeXT AND imAges: geOrge KUrieN

100 % crop


tips & techs

DIY flash bounce cardWhile shooting, more often than

not, you can take a more pleasing photograph by bouncing the light

off a white surface than using a direct flash. in absence of an appropriate surface, an external bounce flash card can come in handy, as the small in-built one in the flash unit will hardly make a difference. We give you a step-by-step process of how to make your own external bounce flash card.

With all the new diffusion and bounce products available to photographers these days, an external bounce flash card is an important accessory. An in-built flash bounce card is a white card which can be pulled up from the side of the flash head to bounce light. the bounce card is only as wide as the flash head and thus bounces only a fraction of light forward while most of it goes off into the sky. in such a case the best alternative is to have

a bounce card which is bigger than the flash head to direct all the light towards subject to create a soft lit image.

in this article you will find a template which you could use directly, or download the A4 size one from our website (www.asianphotographyindia.com/DiYflashbounce.pdf). You can directly print the template on an A4 sheet of paper which you can later trace on a plastic sheet.

Direct flash With bounce head


Here’s the list of thing you will need to make an external bounce flash card

• White plastic sheet (around 0.5mm)

• pencil and eraser

• Measuring scale

• A pair of scissors

• thick rubber band

Step 1

Step 2

Fold along the dotted lines and cut along the red lines.

place the cut template on the sheet of plastic and trace its borders.

Flash Diffuser TemplateUse a 0.5mm thick A4 white plastic or a white cardboard

Fold along dotted line.

Cut along RED lineUsing a hole puncher, cre-ate small holes along the red circles to pre-vent wear and tear

1.75 in 1.75 in

2.0

in 2.0 in

4.50 in

2.50 in

2.50 in

1.75

in

1.75 in

2.0 in

2.0

in


Step 5Attach the bounce card on the flash head and fasten it using a rubber band as shown in the adjoining image. point the flash head upwards in such a way that the open part of the card faces the subject. You will notice an improvement in the quality of light in the image shot using this technique as compared to one shot with direct flash.

text AnD iMAges: steve D’souzA

Step 3 Step 4Fold the plastic sheet where the lines are marked. After cutting and folding the card, you may round off the sharp edges so that you don’t cut yourself.

Tips & Techs

Photoshop is a powerful software to enhance your images,k and this month we use it to work with both image and text to produce a striking photo-text result. play around with fonts on

images and improve your typo art skills. The steps ahead will help you create such an effect and you will find that the task is easier to achieve with the use of the clipping mask in photoshop than any other tool.


ORIGINAL ImAGe

photo-text Creating

Step 1

Find the right image for such an effect; not all images are suitable for the photo-text effect. The photo we chose to use is an image depicting the rush hour in Mumbai, which is exactly the text and message we decided to put across by the use of this technique.

in this step you will just see one layer called ‘Background’. simply duplicate that layer and name it ‘Layer 1’. You can do it the easy way by using the keyboard shortcut ‘ctrl+J’ on windows and command+J on Mac.

Once you have two layers of the background in your layers palette, add a new blank layer between the Background layer and Layer 1. photoshop places the new layer directly above whichever layer is currently selected, which means that it will place the layer above ‘Layer 1’. so all you have to do is bring the new layer in between the two layers. You can name it as ‘Layer 2’.


Step 1

Step 3

Step 2


in this step Layer 2 is completely blank. Fill it with white colour by choosing edit > Fill. A photoshop Fill dialogue box will appear on the screen. select white for the contents option at the top of the dialogue box and click OK.

select Layer 1 after ensuring the foreground colour is set to white in the colours palette in the tool bar, select the text tool, and start typing. photoshop will create a new type layer for you.

Be creative in choosing your font for the image, because it plays an important part in delivering the desired photo-text effect. in the adjoining image you can see that there are two different words ‘rush’ and ‘hour’ in two separate text layers.

Step 4

Step 6

Step 5


Now to have your text the way you want it, bring both the text layers ‘rush’ and ‘hour’ below Layer 1.

Over here you are working with two words, so you will have to add another layer of the background layer ‘Layer 1 copy’. Under Layer 1 place ‘rush’ and under Layer 1 copy place ‘hour’.

Right click on ‘Layer 1’ and ‘Layer 1 copy’ and click on create clipping Mask.

Step 7

Step 9

Step 8


TexT ANd iMAges: AJAY siNgh

After creating the clipping mask you will be able to see the photo inside the text. You are free to make adjustments to it if you like at this point.

We realised the white fill layer we had opted for was not complementing the photo we selected. hence we changed the colour of the fill layer ‘Layer 2’ to black.

in this step we add a stroke to the text. This highlights the edges which gives the text as well as the image a defined look.

Step 10

Step 11

Step 12

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tips & techs

Dodge and burnDodging and burning are procedures

employed in post-processing still images to retrieve maximum

exposure information from them. these procedures were first employed with black and white film in order to bring out the most from the pictures taken. With the digital medium, these processes work similarly, but with the added benefit of being able to preview your results real time on your screens. While digital dodging and burning will never replicate

traditional techniques entirely, the principle of adjusting the brightness of local detail is intact, and there are more than a few ways to achieve it using photoshop and similar image editing software.

traditionally, dodging was performed in a darkroom by holding back the exposure from the enlarger lamp, usually using a small piece of black card or metal affixed at the end of a thin rod. By moving it constantly during the exposure, the edges of the area being held

back were softened and the shadow of the rod was unnoticeable. Burning was the exact opposite, adding extra time to pre-selected areas after the initial overall exposure, usually using a shaped hole either cut into a large piece of black card or even by cupping the hands.

there are numerous ways to control the tonal range in an image using digital post-processing tools and dodge and burn are probably best as final touch-up tools that can

Exposing to the left

Exposing to the right

Using quick mask tool

Final dodged and burned image using layers in photoshop

be used in the smaller areas of your image. Larger areas could be adjusted with the shadow/highlight command. the risk of overdoing the dodge and burn tools exists just as in the traditional method, causing the treated area in your image to appear as a patch that stands out against the surrounding tonal range. Very commonly, the dark tones in a dodge appear weak and the lightest in a burn seem covered in a veil of grey.

An alternative is to simply make a selection by brushing over the required area in Quick Mask mode, allowing you to make the area soft and shaped just as you like it. the tones could then be altered using curves. Another alternative available is to shoot using RAW, which allows you to create two exposures, one with the desired shadow detail, and the other with the desired highlight detail in your image. placing the two images on top of each other using Layers in

Final


Screenshot of selection using quick mask tool

Final dodged image using the quick mask tool

After

Before

photoshop allows you to then gently erase areas of the layer on top for the other layer to show through.

Getting into the debate surrounding what entails a “correct” digital exposure isn’t entirely pointless at this juncture, but informative, and will help you gauge what works better for your images. the disagreement in question is between those photographers who recommend “exposing to the right” since it piles up the histogram to the right, and those who recommend the exact opposite, namely

underexposing and creating a histogram that is left-leaning in order to be able to extract maximum exposure information while editing images, without allowing the loss of a lot of highlight or shadow detail, and without the introduction of noise in your images.

progressively darker tones have higher image noise. progressively brighter tones are not recordable beyond certain intensity, causing individual colour channels to saturate, and textures to turn into solid white (clipped highlights). Both techniques have their

advantages and disadvantages. For example, while “exposing to the right” might help maximise the number of recorded tones and minimise image noise, there is the risk of clipped highlights in your image, especially in the individual colour channels of your image. Also overexposing your image requires more light than normal and a potentially higher isO which could result in the introduction of noise in your image. “exposing to the left” might safeguard your image from blown out highlights and clipped colour channels, but there will be an increase in image noise because darker (and therefore noisier) tones get brightened after exposure compensation is applied. the key is to know how to control your exposure to take advantage of these unique characteristics displayed by digital cameras.

While it isn’t advisable to fully rely on image editing software to rescue your bad images, if you’ve got a good image to begin with, you can take it that bit further and sometimes it makes all the difference, adding to the impact of your images!

text And iMAGes: GeORGe KuRien

tips & techs

Sample Image


ProductProduct PhotograPhy

If you notice, we are surrounded by advertisements of one product or the other in newspapers, magazines and on the internet. some of the images of products even succeed in making you want those

products. Any kind of photography that deals with still photographs of inanimate objects for their promotion and marketing is referred to as product photography. this can range from sophisticated photographs of perfumes in glossy international magazines to the product the catalogues that turn up in your mail box.

in its current commercial form, still life photography falls into two categories; large and small. small is called table top photography which is restricted by the size of the table the product is shot on. the product could be anything from a watch, to a tV, to a sumptuous banquet. Large

Sample Image

Softbox

Reflector

Camera: Canon EOS 650DAperture: f/11Shutter speed: 1/125sec.ISO: 100Focal length: 122mm


includes everything else from room sets to cars to aircraft. When compared to photographing a living being, shooting a product is very different, since there is no element of spontaneity and everything is under the photographer’s control. the photographer has to himself create or obtain everything appearing in the frame camera. product photography is highly pre-produced and pre-visualised. here, photographers do not capture images, they construct images.

the workflow involved in product photography is similar to that of other genres entailing planning, shooting and post-processing. if the shoot is for a commercial purpose, then a brief from the client so as to understand what they intend the imagery to convey will be the first step, followed by a detailed plan of the shoot, keeping in mind the aesthetics and technicalities. Once the shoot is planned, shooting begins finally ending with post-processing. if it is a composite image, where the product and the background are shot in different environments then post-processing is a must. Given below are the essentials to execute a basic product shoot.

EquipmEntthe product which you shoot will mostly define your gear but a DsLR is a must, along with a good lens and a tripod. A fast lens with a higher aperture opening is helpful if you intend to play around with depth of field, a macro lens to get close to your product to show the smallest of details on it and a zoom lens in the focal range of 35 mm to 100 mm to avoid distortion and to compress the frame.

Sample Image

Background light



BackgroundAs important as the product itself, the background is something you cannot ignore in product photography. since the focus of the image should be on the product, the background should be selected such that it does not overpower the product. shooting the product against a white or black background takes away any distractions leading the viewer’s eyes straight to the product. shooting against these backgrounds also means the product would be easier to cut out in photoshop. At other times you can also experiment with backgrounds of different colours and textures to get the most out of your product photos.

Lightsthe idea in product photography, most of the time, is to get the product fairly evenly lit, avoiding harsh shadows. to achieve this, set up in a room with bright lights,

Sample Image

Top light

Coloured gelsSpeedlightsCamera: Canon EOS 650D

Aperture: f/9Shutter speed: 1/100sec.ISO: 100Focal length: 50mm


or one which has bright ambient light. in an artificial environment, studio strobes or flash units could help in lighting the product. since the lighting units would be placed at a distance from the camera, a sync cable or a remote flash trigger could be handy. Light diffusers like softboxes, shoot-through umbrellas and scrims help in modifying the quality of light.

compositionsimple compositions tend to work better with products. shooting on the same level as the product and zooming in to get adequate amount of detail helps to balance the frame. Avoid shooting from odd angles. elements like depth and perspective can be used to optimise the image and make the product stand out.

Sample Image

Fluorescent lamp

Camera: Canon EOS 650DAperture: f/5.6Shutter speed: 1sec.ISO: 100Focal length: 146mm


shootingOnce you have set up your shot, experiment with a few variations in lighting, composition, perspective and depth to give you a good selection to choose your final image from.

post procEssingprocessing your photos can be as important as taking them. Most times you would have to process details; tweak the light balance, fix tonal changes or simply crop, sometimes you may need to do a major rescue job, for example if the light wasn’t quite right when you shot the image, then it can be fixed to a certain extent during post processing. post-processing becomes essential when you need to work on composite images.

iMAGes: AJAY siNGh AND steVe D’sOuzAtext: steVe D’sOuzA

Sample Image

Window light



Travel FeaTure


JORDAN JORDAN Every bit exoticWith a rich historical heritage and its

importance etched in the history of mankind, Jordan seems to send

mixed signals to travellers upon arrival. For instance the Queen alia International airport doesn’t exactly stand as a statue of romantic notion that its name seems to suggest. Nor is it impressive enough, it feels more like the Indira Gandhi International airport of yore, its pre-T3 avatar. But one can easily notice a lot of construction in progress, which gives a clear indication of what is to follow. Picking up our

luggage we head for Jarash, our first stop in Jordan, which rightfully deserves to be called an exotic kingdom.

Jarash is grand, to say the least. acknowledged as the largest and best-preserved roman city outside of the erstwhile roman empire, it is a fascinating archeological site, less than an hours drive north of amman, Jordan’s capital. Its ruins are a testament to the architectural height and geographical expanse reached by the romans.


As you enter the ruins, the first glimpse from the visitors centre is that of the three-arched South Gate. Visitors and Romans in the Ancient era entered the city through this gate, informs the guide, Mahfouz. An elongated building to the left is converted into a museum housing excavated rocks chiseled with designs of flowers, animals, tools and other artifacts of the Roman times. Further on is the vast open space of the Oval Plaza with the Temple of Zeus overlooking the plaza to the west.

To the west of the Zues temple is the South Theatre, presumably a place for entertainment and to stage events. Post restoration its acoustics are as refined as originally meant to be. Test it out by standing at the centre, marked by a low curve in a stone, and hear your voice carry through to all corners of the theatre which can still seat upto 3000 people. It is amazing to note that even in those days seating was arranged by

seat numbers, which can be noticed on the steps in Greek letters.

With a combined past of the Nabateans, Romans, Byzantines and later the Muslims, Jarash is a historian’s paradise. Visiting these ruins is like taking a stroll through time. Two thousand years of history, spectacular size of its columns and vast spread of the city play on your mind long after you have left the place.

Back in Amman by late afternoon, we have enough time to catch up on the Citadel. While you are there it might be worth paying a visit to the Archeological Museum to get a glimpse of the excavation done here. It is small but worth your time. The Temple of Hercules, a Byzantine church and an Omayyad Palace are all within walking distance. To me, the Citadel also presents a romantic getaway amidst history, with beautiful views of the city and great sunsets. The Roman theatre is visible in the distance and appears fairly similar to the one in Jarash.

Next stop on the list is Bethany, on the banks of River Jordan, the place where Jesus Christ was baptised by John, the Baptist. It is mesmerizing to stand here knowing Jesus Christ the Lord, stood at the very same place. Even an atheist like me was humbled and murmured a few prayers. On the Israel side of the river, a priest was preparing to baptise a Christian family as they took dips in the holy waters of the river. The atmosphere is tranquil and soothing with an extremely charming church and very few visitors around.

From the plains of Jordan valley, we move up to Mount Nebo, believed to be the site of death of Moses (remember the movie ‘Ten Commandments’?). He led his people from Egypt to the Jordan valley in search of the promised land. The church has great mosaics from early periods, depicting fish, birds, animals, trees and weapons, that constituted important elements in people’s lives. The platform behind the church


provides expansive views of the valley stretching into Israel. Also famous here is the Serpentine Cross. Another short drive takes us to Madaba, famed for its vast, wonderful mosaic known as Madaba map, located in the Church of St Johns. Possessing a horde of biblical sites, its a conundrum that Jordan converted to Islam.

If one wishes to indulge luxury and rejuvenation then the Dead Sea Spa could be the perfect place, a massive property right on the banks of the Dead Sea. “The lowest point on earth”, “saltiest water on earth”,

“the largest natural spa”, various sobriquets adorn the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea is to be ‘experienced’ rather than admired for its beaches. Knowing that you can’t sink in it is different from actually floating in it and realising you aren’t sinking at all. Apply a generous dollop of its black mud over your body and feel your skin turn smoother and healthier. Beware of the water getting into your eyes though, it burns like fire. And resist the urge to taste the water; your stomach will churn with gross sensations. As a photographer the location can present some interesting

opporutinities to click sunsets behind the hills of Palestine.

Don’t be overwhelmed if every road in Jordan leads to Petra. Ever since it broke into the tourist scene a couple of decades ago, people have made a beeline to visit this exotic place that is a wondrous mix of natural and man-made marvel, culminating in it being included in the new Seven wonders of the World.

Originally carved by the Nabateans over two millennia ago, Petra earned the name of Lost City as it went into oblivion after the 14th


century. The year 2012 is being celebrated as the 200th year of the re-discovery of Petra after Swiss traveller Johann Ludwig Burckhardt stumbled upon it in 1812.

Essentially it is said that one must visit Petra first during the day and then revisit it in the night to see its beauty. I got me a ticket for the night visit on the day we arrived in Petra. I walked down the Siq on that moonless night with bright stars in the clear sky. The mile long path is lit with candles covered by paper bags, glowing like fireflies in a distance, guiding visitors right up to Al Khazneh, popularly

known as the Treasury. And the first sight of the Treasury, with hundreds of candles placed in front, is a moment to cherish.

My enthusiasm wasn’t any less next morning. I was keen to see this magnificence in broad daylight. The journey into this mystical world starts immediately after the Visitor’s centre. As you enter the Siq, the air feels magical, and you can’t help but wonder if such a thing as this is for real. The Siq is a finely sliced natural walkway through narrow crevices in gigantic rocks, not very unlike being at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

Flanked on both sides by soaring cliffs that dwarf anything inside it, the slice gets wider on one bend and suddenly narrows down at the next, flowing smoothly like a river romancing its sailors, at times giving an expansive view of its beauty when it spreads out into a courtyard, and then covering itself in a veil, making them curious what lies next. It is hypnotic walking down the Siq with the cool breeze whistling ever so softly as it first catches up and then leaves you behind.

And the Siq is just the preview before the Al Khazneh. The guides at Petra have learnt


to heighten the reaction from visitors by making them look at a fictitious bird or rock high above and then have then turn around to face the Treasury. The reactions vary from uncontrolled gasps to gentle I-know-it-is-so-beautiful smiles. Water channels that run the entire length of the Siq, are cut out on either side of the cliffs, one ferrying drinking water and another carrying water for agriculture. The story goes that a Nabatean princess announced that she would marry the person who can get her drinking water in the midst of this desolate rocky land. It must have set a lot of young men scurrying around for solutions.

Al Khazneh is the most visible face of Petra, but there is a lot more to the city. In fact, it can take more than a month to explore the whole of Petra. Tombs, temples, water storage tanks and houses and are scattered over miles like how they should be in a modern city. And hold your breath

as you learn this. This whole ancient site of the Nabateans has been carved only by two people. And how do you know this, I question the guide. He highlights the pattern of chisel marks on the walls as he explains. Only two distinct patterns have emerged at all these sites, which point to two people responsible for it. I was totally flabbergasted by the enormity of this. Indeed this is the epitome of craftsmanship.

As you run your fingers on the pillars of the Treasury, you cant help but wonder how the city was altogether abandoned in the 8th century and subsequently into oblivion in the 14th century. And you are glad it was rediscovered.

With azure skies, incredible landscapes, gentle and peaceful people, innumerable pilgrim sites, historical places of interest and even a sea port thrown in, Jordan is an all-year-round destination for everyone.

TExT AND IMAGES: BHAVEN JANI

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camera review

Price` 1,63,950 with

aF-S 24-85mm vr

kit lens

In our July ‘Trends’ special issue, we had discussed how DSLr trends would shape in the future. we found most of our predictions to have come true when we got introduced to the

Nikon D600, which is claimed to have almost the same features as the D800, as it is a full-frame DSLr but with a lighter body. we got a closer look at the D600 at the Nikon stall at Photokina 2012 in cologne, Germany. as soon as itwas announced, photographers who were about to go in for the D800, held their ground to see what the new Nikon D600 had to offer.

Look, body and feeLThe very first look impressed us. The Nikon D600 is designed to carry a full-frame sensor in a compact and lightweight body. it feels light in the hand as compared to the other full-frame DSLrs. it weighs 750 g without the battery and the lens, which is much lighter compared to its big brothers the D800 and D4. The camera body is also weatherproof.

The buttons and dials on the camera are well placed for easy access during shoots and are easy to operate. The grip on the camera is deep making it comfortable to hold. The top panel of the camera

The new lightweight full-frame Nikon D600


Sample image

Sample image

Image sensor CMOS sensor 35.9 x 24.0 mm (Nikon FX format)

Effective pixels 24.3 million

Shutter Electronically-controlled vertical-travel focal-plane shutter 1/4000 - 30 s

Image size (pixels) FX (36 x 24) image area : 6,016 x 4,016 (L) 4,512 x 3,008 (M) 3,008 x 2,008 (S)

ISO sensitivity ISO 100 - 6400 in steps of 1/3 or 1/2 EV. Can also be set to approx. 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, or 1 EV (ISO 50 equivalent) below ISO 100 or to approx. 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 1, or 2 EV (ISO 25600 equivalent)

Movie Full HD - 1,920 x 1,080p , MOV

Metering TTL exposure metering using 2,016-pixel RGB sensor

Viewfinder Eye-level pentaprism single-lens reflex viewfinder FX (36 x 24): Approx. 100% horizontal and 100% vertical DX (24 x 16): Approx. 97% horizontal and 97% vertical

Active D-Lighting Auto, Extra high, High, Normal, Low, Off

AF-area mode Single-point AF; 9-, 21-, or 39-point dynamic-area AF, 3D-tracking, auto-area AF

HDMI output Type C mini-pin HDMI connector

Battery One rechargeable Li-ion EN-EL15 battery

Specifications

houses two dials on the left. One is for camera modes and the other for shutter release settings. Both the dials have a push button that enables the user to rotate the them. On the top right panel you will find Nikon’s trademark shutter button which is surrounded by a swivel power switch plus the switch to illuminate the setting display. Just behind the shutter button you will find the movie, ev and metering buttons. Jumping from the right to the left you come across the Hot-shoe and the in-built flash.

The back panel of the camera is dominated with a 3.2 inch 921k-dot LcD monitor. The rear button layout is similar to the D800. On top of the the left of the LcD display you have, the playback and delete buttons, along with the standard line up of buttons on most of the Nikon DSLrs. There is a new switch to the right of the screen that enables you to toggle between still and video live view. above the live view switch is a smooth four way navigation button with a single press


button in the middle. On the left side of the camera you will find the flash sync terminal, USB 2.0 port and headphone, microphone and HDmi slots. On the other side you will find the SD card compartment that supports two SD cards. The bottom of the camera houses the camera battery in a small hatchet.

featureswith today’s expectations in camera technology, manufactures are innovating new ways to deliver quality products, with high grade features. The Nikon D600 is packed with exciting features even though the body is a bit smaller than the D800 and the D4. The features are almost similar to the Nikon D800, except for a few. The D600 has a full frame 24.3 megapixel FX-format sensor, as compared to the D800’s whopping 36.3 megapixels. But the 24.3 megapixel is also well capable of delivering stunning images, as most of the photographers are comfortable with the D600’s pixel rate. The image-processing engine is eXPeeD 3 and offers a 16 bit image processing unit that helps the camera to offer a standard iSO range of 100-6400, which can be extended to 50-25,600 iSO. The glass prism optical viewfinder provides 100% frame coverage and 0.7x magnification.

The beauty of the D600 with a smaller body is that no compriomises have been made on the LcD display. The camera features a 921k-dot 3.2 inch LcD monitor that has the ability to automatically adjust brightness levels. The D600 sports Full-HD movie

that can be used to capture moving subjects at 60p, 50p, 30p, 25p and 24p frames per second. The metering is of TTL exposure metering using 2,016-pixel rGB sensor.

PerformanceThe Nikon D600 is a next generation performance camera system. we did not find much difference in the D600’s performance over the D800 and D4. Of course the advantage is that you really don’t feel you are carrying a full-frame DSLr, because of its lightweight body. Nikon has successfully maintained the balance between resolution and noise. The colour performance on the camera strikes a realistic colour depth full with details. even with high pixel count the dynamic range does not take any beating. The images and videos have a good range of tones even if its taken straight from the camera.

The D600 has a similar shutter to the D7000, but much quieter than the D700 and the D800. The shutter rate is limited to 1/4000 sec instead of 1/8000 sec. The camera shows the actual shooting exposure on live view, which means that you can easily manual focus in ambient light rather than having to change exposure or switch between aperture priority and manual to be able to see your image.

The shortcoming we noticed after we uploaded our images to the computer. we found a bit of a difference in the brightness levels showed on the D600’s LcD display and the computer’s monitor. The camera has a 39-point multicam 4800FX autofocus system, and the

Sample image


ISO 100 ISO 400

ISO 1600 ISO 3200

ISO 6400 ISO 25600

ISO Performance


LeNS review

autofocus on the D600 is fast and accurate even if you are on the move. in low light areas we did find it a task to lock focus though. The metering on the D600 performs well, helping to create a set exposure for the subject. The auto balance is accurate and can safely be used in most situations. in low light conditions we felt comfortable bumping up the D600’s light sensitivity settings. after iSO 1600 the noise starts to creep into the image. at iSO 4000 you can make out the colour detail diminishing a bit, but it only gets really worse at 12800 iSO. You can still shoot low light images below 6400, but for quality shots you might want to skip the high iSO numbers.

concLusionD600 is tagged to be a smart performer among the full-frame DSLrs in the market. This is one camera for photographers who love to shoot and move around every day, for e.g. photojournalists and travel photographers. The advantage of a full-frame in a lightweight body is always an advantage, and in fact, the one characteristic that sets the camera apart. That is the reason D600 has an edge over its big brothers, the D800 and D4; it packs the same features but in a more compact body. it’s a win-win in both ways.

Lightweight, user-friendly functions

Look, Body & Feel Rating

Excellent sensor, detail in colour

Performance Rating

Smart performer

Overall Rating

TeXT aND imaGeS: aJaY SiNGH

Sample image

Flash review


nissindi866 mark ii

Nissin’s latest Di866 Mark ii is a replacement to the earlier Di866 flash unit. The third part flash unit is a less expensive option for Canon, Nikon and sony

Dslr users. The flash unit is bundled with a colour lCD display, a subflash unit, wireless master and slave capabilities, and a UsB port for firmware updates, to name a few features.

Look, Body and FeeLThe Nissin Di866 Mark ii has a smooth composite plastic

body. For the guide number it packs, it is quite compact and light. The Di866 Mark ii has a separate battery magazine where the aa batteries can be loaded with the polarities in the same direction, which makes it slightly more quick and convenient for the user while changing batteries. The front panel has an extra small flash (GN12) below the main one. This small flash provides a fill-in light while bouncing the main flash. The power ratio of sub-Flash can be set from 1/1 to 1/128. Below that is a translucent red panel which houses the aF- assist light and the wireless sensor. To its right is a small opening which has the external auto exposure sensor.

The back of the unit houses an auto rotating colour lCD display which rotates according to the camera’s angle, whether landscape or portrait orientation. it has a four direction multifunction button, with a set button to the centre. a pilot lamp doubles as a test flash button. The integrated power button also doubles as the lock button to


avoid any accidental change of settings. The flash head is the same size as the Nikon sB-900 and the Canon 600eX-rT flash heads. it also has bounce and swivel capability, where the flash head tilts up to 90 degrees, horizontally rotates 90 degrees to the right, and 180 degrees to the left. although the flash head is sturdy, it would have been an added advantage if it had a lock similar to that of Nikon sB-900.

The left side of the flash unit has an integrated panel which houses a PC sync port, UsB port and an external power pack socket. as compared to its predecessor, the Di 866 Mark ii has a metal hot shoe mount instead of a plastic one which makes it sturdier.

Featuresautomatic mode: The flash meters the light reflected back from the subject to determine the correct exposure.ttL mode:e-TTl, e-TTl ii (for Canon), i-TTl/i-TTl-Bl (for Nikon), aDi/P-TTl (for sony), ev compensation adjustment on camera, manual zoom and sub-flash allowed.Manual mode:Full-1/128, 1/3ev steps, [advanced] Manual zoom, sub-flash allowed.

Wireless mode:slave Digital slave/Film slave, [advanced] sub-Flash allowed

wireless TTl Master/remote, Four Channels, Three Groups (a, B, C) [rMT, rMT2 for sony], Modes: Off/ TTl/ Manual, TTl Flash ratio adjustableauto aperture Flash: F1.4-F16 (isO100), 1/3 ev steps, [advanced] Manual zoom, sub-flash allowedMulti mode:Multi-flash frequency 1-90hz, 1-90 times, Power 1/8-1/128

PerForManceThe Nissin Di866 Mark ii provides a powerful guide

number of 60 and a sub-flash number of 12 (isO100, 105mm). we tested the flash in the auto, TTl and auto aperture modes and it worked quite well, resulting in a well exposed image. Flash dispersion is decent even at wide focal lengths. The sub-flash is a good idea; it was quite handy while bouncing the light off the ceiling providing a fill light as well as a catch light. The option of controlling the sub-flash power definitely gives the user more control.

Nissin is marketing the Di866 Mark ii on its ability

IN the Box Flash Unit Soft pouch Flash stand Manual CD - ROM Manual

Front panel

Metal foot base external ports


to operate quietly. Nissin states that a “new transmission motor significantly reduces the operating noise”, referring to the zoom motor noise which is not exactly silent but was much quieter than the Nikon sB-900. Unlike other flashes, the Nissin flash makes a “whining” noise when it’s recharging after a pop, which is something many photographers are used to. Once the charging is done and the green pilot lamp lights up indicating the flash unit is ready for use, the Di866 Mark ii starts producing a distinct crackling noise.

another upgrade in the Di866 Mark ii is an improved wireless sensor. we tested the wireless feature of the Di 866 Mark ii against Nikon’s creative lighting system. The flash unit worked fine and fired every time it was triggered in slave mode.

another added advantage is the external UsB port for firmware updates available for the Di866 Mark ii, which provides the flash with a service terminal to upload the latest software. This ensures compatibility of relatively new cameras with the Di866 Mark ii.

ParaMeter testrecycle timeThe definition of recycling time used here is the time

span between the release of a flash and the moment when the ready-light comes back on. For this test we used a fresh set of rechargeable Ni-Mh batteries, and continuously test fired the unit in a span of 60 seconds. Then we divided the time duration, i.e., 60 seconds by the actual flashes fired which gave us the average recycle time. The Di866 Mark ii produced a recycle time of 6.5 seconds at full power (1/1) in manual mode, which is much higher than other flash units that take approximately 1.5 seconds recycle time.

concLusionFor a cost price of `18,200, which is significantly

less than its Canon and Nikon counterparts, the Nissin Di866 Mark ii is a decent performer. The auto, TTl and wireless modes worked well though the recycle time is an alarming factor. with most features which are packed in Canon and Nikon flash units, along with an option of upgrading the firmware, the Nissin Di866 Mark ii is a flash unit which surely does not deserve to be overlooked. Overall, if you are someone looking for an easy to use, affordable flash unit which at the same time offers a fine set of features, Nissin Di866 Mark ii is a good option.

TeXT aND iMaGes: sTeve D’sOUza

detachable battery magazine Back panel

AsiAn PhotogrAPhy And imAging[90]OCTOBER 2012

Picture by: Snigdha NagCamera: Canon EOS 600D Shutter Speed: 1/1600 secF-Number: f/5.6Focal Length: 210 mmISO: 800

Send in your entries to photoscape at [email protected]


Û

Picture by: Arijit SahaCamera: Nikon D90 Shutter Speed: 1/8 secF-Number: f/8Focal Length: 58 mmISO: 160

Û

Picture by: Brahma PrasadCamera: Canon EOS 450D Shutter Speed: 1/350 secF-Number: f/11Focal Length: 18 mmISO: 200

Picture by: Bimalendu Samanta Camera: Nikon D7000

Shutter Speed: 1/50 secF-Number: f/13

Focal Length: 21 mmISO: 320


Û

Picture by: Dev AroraCamera: Canon EOS 5D Mark III Shutter Speed: 1/5000 secF-Number: f/4Focal Length: 45 mmISO: 640

Û

Picture by: Joy AcharyyaCamera: Nikon D90Shutter Speed: 1/200 secF-Number: f/8Focal Length: 32 mmISO: 160

Picture by: Dr.Anupam Sen ChoudhuryCamera: Canon EOS 7D

Shutter Speed: 1/800 secF-Number: f/4

Focal Length: 31 mmISO: 800


The Winner

Of the Monthly

PhOTOScaPeSection will

receive a gift from

Uniross

Û

Picture by: Subhadip DanCamera: Canon EOS 7D Shutter Speed: 1/60 secF-Number: f/5 Focal Length: 40 mmISO: 320

Û

Picture by: Tejas JainCamera: Canon EOS 1000D Shutter Speed: 1/400 secF-Number: f/10 Focal Length: 70 mmISO: 200

Picture by: Ayan Kumar MitraCamera: Nikon D90 Shutter Speed: 1/125 secF-Number: f/14Focal Length: 18 mmISO: 200

AsiAn PhotogrAPhy And imAging[94]october 2012

Sir,I’m a reader of your magazine. Here are some pictures that I clicked of “Bohurupi”, as they are called in Bengali. These guys are disguisers and they are found in the villages of West Bengal (especially in Hooghly). They dress and act like various Gods, animals, characters in different pujas and parties to entertain us.This is their profession, though they earn little amount of money through it. Nowadays they are becoming rare due to little earnings and thus their art, which is one of the oldest in Bengal, is becoming a lost art.

Thanking You,Hirak Ghosh

Send in your portfolio at: [email protected]

october 2012

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portfolio in the

PHOTOMONTAGE

section will receive a

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