LensCulture street photography awards

I wrote about the awards season and missed this one. Thanks to The Guardian I was alerted to these rather excellent images. I don’t know anything about the organisers LensCulture except this street photography award. I think you only have to look at these images to wonder why you don’t pick up your camera and head to the streets.

From intimate personal narratives to teeming markets and the world from a dog’s perspective, the LensCulture street photography awards celebrate the explosion in popularity of the form over the past decade

Grace and elegance emerge from chaos in this shot of an old man feeding pigeons Photograph: Alexandre Grand

Taken on the afternoon of 23 July 2016 at the Tongi railway station in Gazipur, Bangladesh. ‘I arrived to shoot in the early morning and waited. It was raining heavily. As a train from Dhaka reached the platform, I suddenly noticed a pair of curious eyes looking at me through the window, while on the left, someone had opened a black umbrella. The mist on the glass and that piercing gaze created a dreamy environment filled with questions’ Photograph: moin/Moin Ahmed

 

Diamond Days is an exploration of the commonplace with a playful touch, a sense of joy and slight unease Photograph: Manuel Armenis

An exploration of the world of pet parents, from a dog’s-eye view Photograph: Dougie Wallace

‘One morning in 2016, on a tube journey into central London, I looked up to see a lady dressed in a velvet hood, seated in a classical, timeless pose. Immediately, a 16th-century Flemish painting came to mind. I looked around and suddenly found I couldn’t see anything else but people held in their own Renaissance-like, personal moments’ Photograph: Matt Crabtree

For Hakan Simsek street photography is in an instinctive practice. ‘My chosen photographs are flashes about myself and my death’ Photograph: Hakan Simsek

there are more to see in The Guardian here

and for more information and further images go to the LensCulture site here

 

 

The 10 best mirrorless cameras in 2017

For people who want the control of a DSLR but not the size or the weight there are mirrorless or compact system cameras CSC. These have interchangeable lenses and the same sorts of control that a DSLR will have but not the optical viewing system. If there is a viewfinder it will be a EVF type (electronic viewfinder) so this is like a small monitor that you look at through the viewfinder. Some don’t have this at all and you are required to use the monitor on that back to compose your images as you might on a compact camera. I would generally avoid these. This type of camera tends to be more expensive than traditional DSLR and the lenses are expensive too.

I see many of these cameras in class and find I am constantly irritated by the necessity to hide all the controls you want at your fingertips in menus that you have to access on screen. The tradeoff of in size and weight for a decent photographic experience is not one I would choose but I understand why people do

Tech Radar has a very useful review of the CSC cameras available and has ranked these as the best of 2017

Best CSC Cameras 2017

Once upon a time, keen photographers bought a DSLR – it was the established order of things. But the mirror mechanism of a DSLR is complex and noisy and adds to the weight of the camera, and that’s where the mirrorless camera, or compact system camera comes in. They keep the big sensors and interchangeable lenses of DSLR cameras but ditch the mirror to produce a smaller, lighter and simpler camera.

In fact, there are still pros and cons to both designs. If you want to find out more, read this: Mirrorless vs DSLR cameras: 10 key differences.  Some mirrorless cameras have a compact, rectangular body, some are styled like DSLRs with a ‘pentaprism’ on the top – though this houses an electronic viewfinder rather than the optical viewfinder you get with a DSLR.

Be aware, too, that cheaper mirrorless cameras don’t come with viewfinders at all – instead, you compose the photo on the rear screen, just as you do with a compact camera or a smartphone. (If you’re still not sure what kind of camera you need, read our easy to follow guide: What camera should I buy?)

No two photographers are exactly the same – we’re all looking for slightly different things, so we’ve ranked the 10 best compact system cameras you can buy right now based not just on specs, handling and performance, but size, simplicity and value for money too.

The 10 best mid-range DSLRs in 2017

You have been into your photography for some time. You know the way you can control your images, you understand aperture and shutter and ISO, you you don’t save your money and go to our post on entry level cameras for 2017 and take a course. But if you are ready to take a step up then a new camera might be the lift you need away from your first entry level dslr. A mid range DSLR will be heavier, it will feel more solid and will put up with more use and punishment, It will have more sophisticated controls and offer you less help in taking pictures as the assumption is you don’t need the help as you are more advanced as a photographer.

Tech Radar is an excellent site that reviews equipment and here you will find their recommendations for 2017

Best Mid range or enthusiasts DSLR cameras 2017

Mid-range enthusiast DSLRs offer more power, robustness and control than typical entry-level DSLR models. They’re great for shooting tricky subjects like sports or wildlife, thanks to having faster continuous shooting rates and more often than not, superior autofocus systems that features advanced tracking modes. Many also add weatherproofing for extra robustness and peace of mind.

Although enthusiast DSLRs don’t tend to offer more megapixels than their entry-level siblings, you’ll often get an increased ISO sensitivity range to help with low light shooting. While most enthusiast DSLRs are based around APS-C sized sensors, some models sport larger full-frame chips that are normally the preserve of pro-spec models. If you’re not quite sure what advantages shooting with a full-frame sensor brings, you can check out our guide to sensor sizes. 

But just because these DSLRs are intended for enthusiast photographers, that doesn’t make them intimidating to shoot with. The additional controls positioned on the camera body can actually improve their ease of use, allowing you to access key settings quickly, without the need to dive into a menu regularly. Don’t worry though, most still include an automatic mode that’ll take care of everything for you if you want to learn as you shoot.

Canon 7D

Best Entry Level DSLR Camera 2017

If you don’t know what sort of camera you should buy this post will help you 

An entry-level camera is one that is surprisingly good and better than most of it’s owners at making great pictures. I often say to people that if they don’t like their pictures it is unlikely to be the cameras fault. I sometimes have people say they have bought a better camera than they need so that it will last. A DSLR is digital so it will not last, it will be superseded every year, just like your phone or your laptop so buying something better now and hoping it will still please you in 10 years is a mistake. If you are looking for a decent camera to get started with one of these would be more than suitable.

Spend less money on your camera and buy a course from us and you will be set up as a photographer

Tech Radar is always a good place to start your investigations into what camera you need to buy

Entry Level DSLR Cameras

If you’ve outgrown your point-and-shoot camera or are no longer satisfied with the snaps you get from your smartphone, and feel like you’re ready to take your photography to the next level, then an entry-level DSLR is the most obvious choice. 

Entry-level DSLRs deliver a big step up in image quality from a compact camera or smartphone, offering far more manual control and the ability to change lenses to tackle a huge variety of projects. Don’t worry though – there are also a host of auto modes to help you out until you’re comfortable with the more creative controls.

• The best Cyber Monday deals 2017

THE BEST ENTRY-LEVEL DSLRS

1. Nikon D3400
2. Canon EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D
3. Nikon D5600
4. Nikon D3300
5. Canon EOS Rebel T6i / EOS 750D

Obviously, the more features you want, the more you’ll pay, but do you actually need them? Our top camera is one of the cheapest on the market, but still offers impressive performance and image quality, plus enough features to handle most assignments, especially if you’re still learning.

Photography Awards and Competitions

It is said this is the season to be merry, I know, whoever said that was mistaken, but it seems to me this is the season to be inundated with the outcome of photography competitions and awards. In the past I have produced separate posts on each but I have decided to roll them into one this time as it does all get a bit boring otherwise.

Landscape photographer of the Year

Travel Photographer of the Year

Sony World Photography Awards

Nature Photographer of the Year National Geographic

Wildlife Photographer of the Year

Magnum Photography Awards

International Garden Photographer of the Year

Photographer of The Year Panoawards

Taylor Wessing Portrait Photography Award

Urban Photography Awards

This one is always a winner

Henri Cartier Bresson – Sunday on the banks of the River Marne 1938

 

 

 

Taylor Wessing photographic portrait prize

It is that time of year again when the various organisations hand out prizes for ‘best ofs’. I am rather conflicted by the whole process of photographic, or in fact any creative activity, held up to competition. I am never sure what wins is worthy nor that the winners are understood as the photographer intended. Many of these photography competitions stretch the idea of photography such that images grabbed from Google Streetview have been awarded prizes in the past. However, I can also accept that competition can push some photographers to achieve much better and that is to be lauded

The Taylor Wessing Portrait Prize is one that always provides much room for debate about the value of the winning entries. Once all you needed was a redheaded subject holding an animal, this year the portrait that one third prize is of an android.

This is the overall winner and many would argue that it is deserved.

Amadou Sumaila photographed by César Dezfuli, 20 nautical miles off the Libyan coast – this year’s winning portrait. Photograph: César Dezfuli/NPG

Sean O’Hagan in The Guardian, always a reliable critic says:

A handful of politicians, several refugees, various awkward adolescents, two skinheads, the inevitable young girl holding a furry animal and, breaking with tradition, an android – it’s the Taylor Wessing time of year again

This year’s photographic portrait prize, the first to allow digital submissions as well as prints, draws 59 images from 5,717 entries. As a show, it hangs together pretty well, not always the case in the past. The overall standard seems higher, there are fewer celebrities – always a good thing – and most of the portraits of refugees and asylum-seekers tend towards the intimate rather than the concerned.

The exhibition he mentions is at the NPG

16 November 2017 to 8 February 2018

The Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize is the leading international photographic portrait competition, celebrating and promoting the very best in contemporary portrait photography. 

The Prize has established a reputation for creativity and excellence, with works submitted by a range of photographers, from leading professionals to talented amateurs and the most exciting emerging artists.

The selected images, many of which will be on display for the first time, explore both traditional and contemporary approaches to the photographic portrait whilst capturing a range of characters, moods and locations. The exhibition of fifty-nine works features all of the prestigious prize winners including the winner of the £15,000 first prize.

Second Prize Winner

Intimately powerful … Fleeing Mosul from the series Women in War: Life After Isis by Abbie Trayler-Smith. Photograph: Abbie Trayler-Smith/NPG

Third Prize Winner

Maija Tammi’s portrait of the android Erica. Photograph: Maija Tammi/NPG

All the major papers and photographic sources have reviews on this, take your pick

The Telegraph

The Guardian

Metro

The Arts Desk

BBC

Independent

 

AN A-Z GUIDE FOR MAKING FANTASTIC WATER DROPLETS SPLASH PHOTOS

I like DIY Photography as a site, it covers a range of topic areas, some techniques, some equipment some more esoteric, it is a place I regularly return to.

This article reminded me of one of the photographers on my Intermediate Photography Course a year or so ago. Darren Bickell, if you are still out there I hope you are photographing and making great images still.

©Darren Bickell

If you want to learn how to make images like Darren go here

©Darren Bickell

©Darren Bickell

©Darren Bickell

©Darren Bickell

from DIY Photography:

There’s something special about photos of water droplets. I personally like the element of surprise, because you can’t predict the exact shape you’re going to get. You can create fantastic photos using only water and some color, and photographer Adam Karnacz shares an in-depth tutorial for making them. He’ll guide you through all the steps, from setup to printing your final work. So, watch his video to learn what you’ll need and how to approach this interesting area of photography

 

 

Communication Through Photography

There is a subject area I have been talking about, well moaning about for a number of years. It has mostly become an itch to me since the digital revolution and the omnipresence of photography and images in general. My concerns lie in the area that we are all constantly being asked to understand a situation or event through images.

This is a picture I took in Damascus in 2009 just before the wars started. Is it a political rally, some sort of militia? Go to the end of this article to find out

How often do we see at the end of an article on a news site “Are you There? send us your pictures” I see two problems with this, the first that most people have never been schooled in understanding images, how to read them and, secondly,  more importantly how they may be presented to us from a biased point of view. When we read an article in a newspaper we understand that the newspaper has it’s own bias, political, social or environmental, we understand through the language used that we are being led in a certain direction. Read the same story in The Guardian and The Mail and you instantly recognise what I am saying. See this advert from The Guardian from 2007 and understand what I mean. But with images it is a different matter. Most people do not have the skills to dissect the image and so take what is shown at face value, but that is not always the correct interpretation. I think we should be taught how to read images as much as we are taught how to read words if we are going to be expected to navigate our worlds only by images.

This article by Federico Alegria  is very interesting and covers this and much more, it looks at this understanding of images from the perspective of a photographer who wants to do more than merely record. It is, of course, the basis of my Composition In Photography Course and the more advanced Intermediate Photography Course

Federico Alegria  writes: Jim Casper said, “The language of photography continues to get more interesting and more complex as it becomes the most universal medium of communication worldwide.” This may be the most compelling statement about photography I’ve read this year.

Etymologically, photography means not so much “drawing with light”, but “writing with light”. Casper’s insight then shouldn’t surprise you. We are constantly writing, every day, from emails, SMS and messages through social media, to papers and other documents that might be more complex in terms of their language, style, and audience.

So ask yourself, when you are presented with an image and expected to understand what it is trying to say are you sufficiently skilled to do so, and if not are you being led by a biased presenter?

The parade was an Easter parade in Damascus, in a city where different religions co-existed before 2010. Here are some more images from the same joyful event

Easter Parade, Damascus 2009

 

Damascus Easter Parade 2009