Having set up the printer from the box and installed ink cartridges, the next step is to make some prints. However there are some significant steps to make before we hit the ‘Print’ button in Photoshop. The major parts of this are monitor calibration and colour management.
Read MoreA Time to Print
Every print that I've sold since leaving a wet darkroom environment has been produced by a specialist printer. Some years ago by the inestimable Paul Grundy and for most of the last ten years by Loxley of Glasgow. I've never needed to print beyond admin stuff and whether by luck or skill, Loxley precisely match the images I see on my screen.
However I have become increasingly dissatisfied that I'm not fully au fait with what's going on under the hood.
Read MoreIn praise of a sabbatical
I'm halfway through my annual summer sabbatical from landscape photography. Every year I take six weeks off during which the big camera, tripod and all the other paraphernalia stays packed away and I spend time just being with my family.
Read MoreNikon Z8 - My next camera?
The photo world has been full of the new Nikon Z8 over the past few weeks. I’ve noticed a few landscape photographers moving over and last week I was asked twice if I’d be buying one. Will I be handing over my money? Read on to find out.
Read MoreKingjoy C83S Tripod Review
Last year I reviewed the outstanding Kingjoy C85 Tripod and found that it not only performed as well as my Gitzo Systematic 3 Series but that by the end of the review period I was choosing it in preference on a regular basis. My interest was especially raised therefore when Kinjoy invited me to try out another of their tripods. This time the C83S.
Read MoreTo crop or not to crop - a perfect bridge too far?
Is a cropped image of less value or less ‘pure’ than one in which the entire captured frame is used? There has been some debate on the subject recently and I felt the need to nail my own colours to the mast.
Read MoreSunway GH Pro II + Geared Tripod Head review - UPDATED CONCLUSION
The advantages of a geared head are that it allows for very precise adjustments in composition to be made in exactly one plane. With a ball head, while adjusting to raise the camera slightly, you may also very slightly move to the side or slightly incline. With a geared head, only the adjustment you desire is accomplished. There is an oft quoted parallel benefit of slowing the photographic process down.
Read MoreAnother little bit of perfection
It's the little things that often make a disproportionate difference and for those of us given to obsessing about small details, some such small details can be all but life changing.
Read MoreA certain lack of focus
I like the look of a minimal depth of field image. I think it instantly creates a sense of depth by virtue of the layers of focused and unfocused elements. This will give at least two layers and if there is some foreground then three distinct layers resolve giving yet more depth.
Read More26 Hours in Coigach and Inverpolly
A dramatically curtailed trip to the far NW of Scotland. Fabulous locations, enjoyable photography but an unexpectedly short visit cut short by Covid.
Read MoreKingjoy C85 Tripod Review
Over the past few weeks I've had the opportunity to try a new tripod, the Kingjoy C85 - in this instance with a Ball Head, the T30x. KingJoy may sound a new name to many but they seem to have been around for quite a while, quietly making tripods for other brand names so while the name may be new the experience is clearly there.
Read MoreNikon Z 24-200mm f4-6.3 Review
This review has been difficult to write, I feel as though I've been swimming against the tide throughout. I've had to force 'head over heart' and analysis over instinct. I've had to forget decades of experience and accept the new.
Read MoreShimoda Action X Photo Backpack size comparison
Many photographers I meet assume that three sizes is to allow varying amounts of camera equipment to be carried. Not so in my case at least. For me, its all about what else goes in the bag. How much other stuff needs to be carried.
Read MoreKase Armour Magnetic Filter System Review
I’ve been fortunate to be able to try out a brand new Kase Armour Filter system over the past couple of weeks and it’s been an immensely positive experience.
Read MoreWatergate - A case of photo snobbery
The question of photo snobbery emerged this week and as it’s the second time it’s happened, perhaps it’s worth exploring.
Read MoreScottish Landscape Photographer of the Year - New Rules 2021
Competitions aren't for everyone and if you choose to enter, you also choose to accept the rules. ‘You pays your money and you takes your choice.’
Read MoreRationale for changing to Kase Filters
Inertia and familiarity are powerful forces that act against all change. When one adds in the substantial investment we make in photographic equipment, changing brands is not something I undertake lightly. I’ve used the same brand of camera, Nikon, for the last 40 years. The same brand of tripod and the same square filter system for the last 10.
Read MoreMystical by Neil Burnell
Mystical - Neill Burnell
I’ve had this book for a few weeks, dipping in on a regular basis for some photographic joy. I think it's a book to savour slowly rather than rushing through. I, like so many others, have visited Wistman’s Wood. It is a truly wonderful place. I went on a sunny clear day (with a 100% forecast of dense fog…). I took a few photos and resolved to return at some point in better conditions to try to create the images I had in my head.
I’m not going to go back and make photographs there now. I may well visit as it is such a beautiful place but any attempt I might make to create images, even in perfect conditions would only be a poor pastiche of what Neil has produced here.
This is the most perfect, breathtakingly beautiful set of images. I don’t think there is a better collection of pictures from a single wood anywhere by anyone.
The collection is filled with magic, mystery and beauty underpinned by the joy of seeing a master craftsman at work.
I defy anyone not to be enchanted by this book. I’d head straight over and buy a copy.
Light on the Landscape by WS Neill - Review
This delightful book arrived a couple of weeks ago courtesy of the inestimable @blackwellbooks. I've been waiting for the release since I first heard about the possibility. It is a brand new book but not brand new content. Rather it is a carefully curated collection of Neill's essays for Outdoor Photographer, the American magazine.
Read MoreAcronymns for Photographers #3
The third in this lexicon of photographers' paranoia is FOAD. This is not the FOAD of the urban slang dictionary but rather an acronym for a particular form of paranoia:
Fear Of A Dud
Read More