Amateur Photographer - UK (2019-10-18)

subscribe 0330 333 (^1113) Iwww.amateurphotographer.co.ukI12 October 2019 67
FujifilmX-T3 2018
Thisbringsusbangup-to-date,beingtypical
of camerasusedbyenthusiastphotographers
today.Despitebeingcarefullydesignedto
looklikea 1970sfilmSLR,in manywaysit’s
thearchetypalmodernelectroniccamera.
EventheAPS-Csensorsize,measuring
23.5x15.6mm,is a uniquelydigitalformat
thatwasneveremployedbyfilmcameras.
Themirrorlessdesignenablesa compact
bodywiththekindof specsheetwe’dhave
foundunimaginablea decadeago:26.1MP
resolution, 425 autofocuspoints, 20 frames
persecondshooting,anda topsensitivityof
ISO51,200.Alongwiththelarge,high-
resolutionelectronicviewfinder,imagescan
becomposedusingthereartouchscreenthat
tiltsin threedirections.Fujifilm’slargelens
rangecoversfocallengthsfrom8mmto
400mm– equivalentto12mmultra-
wideangleto600mmsuper-telephoto.It
seemsa fairbetthatthoseamateursusing
Sandersonplatecamerasa centuryago
would be jealous of where we are today.
Rollei 351966
Whileseriousphotographershavealwayshada needforlarge,
capablecameraswithinterchangeablelenses,they’vealsoalways
cravedhigh-qualitysmallcamerastousealongside.Thisresultedin a
widerangeof sub-miniatureformats,rangingfromthe8x11mm
negativesproducedbyMinoxspycameras,throughto18x24mmhalf-
frame35mmasemployedbytheoriginalOlympusPen.Butthen,just
asnow,smallerformatsalwaysmeantcompromisingimagequality.In
1966 Rolleiovercamethisproblemwiththisremarkablelittlecamera,
stilloneof thesmallest35mmcamerasevermade.
DesignerHeinzWaaskeemployeda numberof innovationstomake
thebodysocompact.TheretractableCarlZeissTessar40mmf/3.5
lenswashousedwithina slidingtube,anda patentedshutterdesign
separatedthebladesin thelensfromtheclockworkthatsetthe
speeds,whichwashousedin thecamerabody.Boththeshutter
speedsandaperturewerecontrolledviadialsonthefrontof thebody,
withcorrectexposureindicatedusinga match-needlemeteronthe
top-plate.ThisRollei 35 T is identicaltotheoriginalmodel,but
renamed to distinguish it from later variants with different lenses.
AppleiPhone 2007
Thismaylookoutof placeona listof iconic
cameras,butjustastheKodakBrowniewas
instrumentalin thedemocratisationof
photographyin theearly20thcentury,sothe
iPhonedroveitsown,entirelydigital
revolution.Indeedit’sarguablythemost
importantcameraof thiscenturysofar.
WheretheBrownieallowedanyonetotake
photographs,theiPhoneopenedupthe
processtoa hithertounimagineddegree.
Freedfromtheneedtoprint,it enabled
userstosharephotographsinstantlywith
anyoneelsein theworld,thankstosocial
mediaappssuchasFacebookandInstagram.
Butthiscouldbeachievedusinga small,slim
devicethatslippedeasilyintoa shirtpocket
orhandbag.It decimatedthepoint-and-
shootcameramarketin a matter of years.
EarlyiPhoneshad
prettypoorcameras,
andit’sdebatable
whichmodel
representsthe
tippingpointwhere
theydeliveredtruly
acceptableimage
quality.The 2011
iPhone4Sshown
hereis a strong
candidate,thanksto
its8MPsensor,f/2.4
lensandFullHD
videorecording
capability.
Panasonic
LumixG1 2008
Itmaybea mostunremarkable-looking
camera,butin termsof technologytheG1is
justasimportantasanyof theothersin this
article.It wastheworld’sfirstmirrorless
interchangeable-lenscamera– in other
words,thefirsttousethemainimagesensor
forautofocus,meteringandfull-time
electronicviewing.Thisentirelydigital
architectureallowedPanasonictodispense
withthereflexmirrorandmakea
considerablysmaller,slimmerbody
comparedtoa DSLR.
TheG1wasn’tparticularlyacclaimed
duringitslifetime,in partduetoits12MP
FourThirdssensorofferingunconvincing
imagequalitycomparedtoitsAPS-CDSLR
peers.Butit establisheda designtemplate
that’ssincebecomea standardforhigh-end
mirrorlesscameras.Withitscentralelectronic
viewfinder,fullyarticulatedscreenand
extensiveexternalcontrols,it builtonthe
establishedSLRlayoutbut also added a
distinctly digital twist.
NikonF 1959
Nolistingof importantandiconiccameraswouldbecompletewithout
mentionof theNikonF. Thisrugged,modularSLRbecamethe
centrepieceof theworld’smostcomprehensiveprofessional35mm
system,anddebutedtheF mountthat’sstillin usebythefirm’sDSLRs.
It alsoheraldeda shiftfromGermantoJapanesedominationof the
cameramarketthatcontinuestothisday.
Whilethecamerahada ratherbasicmechanicalbody,Nikon
releasednumerousaccessoriesthroughoutitslonglifetomeetthe
changingneedsof professionalphotographers,includingTTLmetering
headsandmotordrives.Itsabilitytosurvivepunishmentwas
legendary;storiesaboundof theF survivingfiresandmonsoons,and
evenstoppingbulletsin Vietnam.Thequalityof Nikon’sopticswas
equallycrucialin drivingitsacceptance by the most demanding
photographers on the planet.