Amateur Photographer - UK (2019-08-23)

12 17 August 2019 I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk I subscribe 0330 333 1113

[email protected],AmateurPhotographer,

TI MediaLimited,Pinehurst2, PinehurstRoad,FarnboroughBusinessPark,Farnborough,HantsGU147BF

WhenI sawtheresultsfroma fellow

photographer’sCanonEOS6DMarkII

witha 24-70mmL lens,I fellin love

withbothbitsof kitandconvinced

myselfit wasexactlywhatI neededto

improvemyratherlacklustreimages.

CoincidingwiththiswasParkCameras’

discountopenday,soI wasofflikea

longdogtogeta greatdeal.I signed

upforthe6DMarkII and,fora tad

extra,theCanon24-105mmf/4LIS

II USMlens.

Therewerenonein stockbutit

wasplacedonorderwithallgiven

discountedoffersof theday.The

followingweekI waspreparingformy

cameraclubtalkonthesubject‘

CommonPhotographyMistakesAnd

HowToOvercomeThem’.Looking

throughmyimages,searchingfor

thegoodandthenotsogoodwitha

criticaleye,I begantorealisehowdull

manyof myimageshavebecome.I

couldseethatmyphotographyhas

becomemediocre;I hadslippedinto

thehabitof takinga snapshotbecause

I wasthere.Manylackedinteresting

composition,lightdirection,timing,etc.

I realisedthenthattherewasnothing

wrongwithmymuchlovedandtrusted

EOS70Dandthatit didnotneed

improvingorupgrading– it wasme,

thephotographer,whoneededthis

anda serioustalkingto,toboot!

Thepresentationwasa success,

drawingsomewell-observedcritiques

formylastimage,whereI askedthe

audiencetoseehowmanyof the

10 errorstheycouldspot.Asfor

mycamera,I placedit ona tripod

in myoffice/studio,setupa stilllife

andtestedallmylensesplusthe

in-camerasettings:lightingvariations,

speeds,whitebalancesAvandTv,etc.,

andwiththelensesat allfocallengths

usingmanualandautofocusing.All

I coulddowasshakemyheadin

amusedshametorealisejusthow

wellthecameraactuallydoes

perform,giventhechance.

I cancelledtheorderwithPark

Cameras.Sorry,guys.

DinahBeaton

Buyinga newcamerais almost

alwaysmoreaboutdesirethan

need.If it inspiresorbrings

pleasuretotheuserthenwhynot,

butmostofthegreatestphotosof

alltimeweretakenonsimplekit

• NigelAtherton editor

Inbox

Get thebest from what you’ve got

JohnDudertookthisportrait

usinga RotolightNEO 2

LETTER

OFTHE

WEEK

WNS

ASAMSUNG

EVO

PLUS

MCROSD

CARD

NOTE:

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ONLY

LETTER OF THE WEEK

Dinah’sclubmembersfoundalmostall 10

‘errors’thatwerein thisimage

Rotolights

I’m intrigued by what

James Paterson said about

Rotolights in his feature in

the 13 July issue of AP –

and I think there’s a ‘but’ to

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YOUR LETTERS

add. I’ve owned a Rotolight

NEO 2 for six months, and

have found it very useful

as a supplementary light

where natural levels are

low, and for some specifi c

lighting effects. Adjustable

colour temperature and

precisely variable output

are big pluses.

However, I can’t help feel

they are primarily intended

for video users. The

downsides are low output

(which James mentions)

and cost: a NEO 2 costs

£300, an AEOS around

£900. This is costly

lighting, considering that

you can get a two-light

Godox studio outfi t

complete with stands,

octoboxes and a trigger

system for under £300.

Certainly, the Rotolights

are versatile, clever,

and nicely produced and

presented, but I suspect

that for anyone looking for

an introduction to artifi cial

lighting, there are more

attractive initial options –

including a similarly

powerful portable,

rechargeable LED

workman’s lamp, which

most electrical wholesalers

have for under £30 (I also

have one of these, and

have used it as a very

effective and atmospheric

light source for pictures).

But in any case, a key to

successful use is to have a

modern camera. It’s fi ne

with my Alpha 7 bodies,

but I know I’d struggle with

an older camera that didn’t

give good quality at high

ISO. This shot below of

professional model Pippa

Doll had the NEO 2 about

6ft away, and required

3200 ISO to give 1/

at f/3.5.

John Duder

As you know, there’s a

whole host of features

that sets the NEO 2 apart

from a workman’s light,

including variable

temperature, strobe

fl ash, wireless sync, build

quality, etc. But you’re

right that power output

© DINAH BEATON

© JOHN DUDER