Amateur Photographer – 13 July 2019

10 13 July 2019 I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk I subscribe 0330 333 1113

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED IN THIS COLUMN ARE NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHER MAGA ZINE OR TI MEDIA LIMITED

Mirrorless cameras should come with

a gaming mode. No, seriously, it could

make you a better photographer

View point

Jon Bentley

T

he relationship between video

gaming and photography has

been smouldering away for

years. Many games include

photo modes where you can capture

what’s happening on screen, adjusting the

framing and exposure of your snapshots.

Some games encourage you to play the

role of photographer. Back in 1999 the

classic Pokémon Snap involved taking

pictures of elusive creatures that were

rated according to their pose and size in

the frame. Afrika, dating from 2008, is

another notable example. You’re hired

to shoot pictures of wild animals and

can choose from a variety of Sony

cameras and lenses, and select exposure

settings while the PlayStation controller

measures shake, rewarding you for a

steady hand. In the forthcoming Snap

Hunt, inspired by the Bigfoot conspiracy

culture, four players compete, using

1970s fi lm SLRs, to get photos of a

dangerous mythological creature in a

North American national park.

There are many more fi rst-person

point-and-shoots but the whole

experience is far removed from actual

photography and unlikely to hone your

real-world skills. Driving games are very

different. They’re so realistic that Formula

One drivers use them as a vital part of

their practice regime. Part of their success

is down to the steering wheels, pedals and

wraparound monitors that take the place

of the standard game controllers, and

make the experience so realistic.

For video games to be more like actual

photography, game controllers need to

be more like real cameras. Nintendo is

leading the way with its super-popular

Switch. One of Labo’s so-called

customisation kits you can now buy for it

includes a camera-shaped cardboard box

(see below). Pop your Switch handheld

console inside and you can zoom in and

out and fi re the shutter. But it’s really just

a toy with very basic games. Which

begs the question: why use a cardboard

camera when you could control a more

sophisticated game with a real one?

Imagine hooking your mirrorless

camera up to your computer, through a

cradle of some sort, which incorporated

motion sensors and controls you’d use to

navigate around a virtual world. The game

would replicate various photographic

challenges – from street and sports

photography to landscapes and even

portraiture. When you see something you

want to photograph you bring the camera

up to your eye, or switch to the camera’s

screen, and shoot your pictures using the

camera’s normal controls. The camera’s

software would be linked to the game

so that the EVF would have an accurate

representation of the game’s virtual

world rather than the optical image

coming through the lens. AI could

possibly be used to judge the quality of

your shots. Add a compelling narrative

and you’d be able to enjoy hours

of entertainment perfecting

photographic skills you could transfer

to the real world; a photo contest

where everyone’s a winner.

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Jon Bentley is a TV producer and presenter best known

for Top Gear and Channel 5’s The Gadget Show

© COURTESY OF NASA

© OLLIE TAYLOR

CONTENT FOR NEXT WEEK’S ISSUE MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE

John Wade takes a look at

the fascinating evolution of

cameras for space missions

First

camera

on the

moon

In next week’s issue

On sale Tuesday 16 July

A still from the upcoming game Snap Hunt

The Labo camera

customisation kit

Celebrating 50 years of

the moon landing

Shoot the moon

Don’t be afraid to include the moon in

landscapes. Ollie Taylor shows you how

One small step for cameras

From Apollo 11 to today, we fi nd out

photography’s role in documenting space

Earthrise by William Anders

Tracy Calder looks at the most famous

photograph brought back by Apollo 8