The BEST Photographic magazine on the Planet..BAR NONE.

Posted on September 22, 2011 by Clive Watson

For a great many years now I have been purchasing photographic magzines and books, to satiate my interest in this burgeoning new technology of digital photography. Although I subbed to a few American issues like Popular Photography and Shutterbug, I was always drawn to Photo mags from the UK. My favorites being Digital Photographer, and Amateur Photographer, and the more eclectic ones like B&W and Digital photo Pro.

C't Digital Photography Magazine

For the most part I was happy with those, and they helped me to develop my knowledge and skills as we went along on our ride together. And then came C’t Digital Photography Magazine, published by Heise and renowned photography book publisher Rocky Nook Inc, responsible for books like Alan Briot’s “Marketing Fine art Photography” and Stephen Laskevitch’s “Photoshop CS5 and Lightroom 3 A Photographer’s Handbook” as well as many other indispensible photography guides.

To say I was impacted by this magazine, is a tremendous understatement. I found it on the shelf of my local Barnes & Noble, and spent a hour reading issue 4 (the current issue at that time) in the Cafe’. $14.95 is a lot to pay for a magazine normally, but this one was such a breath of fresh air, that I didnt take long to convince my self it was worth it (keep in mind I am Scottish, and spending money is anathema to me).

Not only did I decide to purchase the mag at the store, I logged on to my laptop and ordered all the back issues available, which excluded issue 2 as they were out of stock on that. So to get the missing issue, i went to Ebay, and ordered it from a seller there…all before leaving the Store with my initial magazine.

So what makes this magazine worth all that effort? One, its a European magazine, and because of the differences in paper stock there, the magazine is physically bigger (and everything bigger is better in the USA). So whats the content like? Well most of the other mags I had been used to covered that same ground, ie photographic techniques, Hardware reviews, etc but I was always left feeling unfulfilled, and had to go to the web to complete the knowledge I was being fed in these mags, It was a little like the soundbites you get on American News stations…just enough to hook your interest..then on to the next item..not so with C’t Digital Photography. The articles are indepth, technically complete and entertaining.

Detailed Test Results from Article

The use of charts, Tables and photographs help to illustrate the information being offered, but more to the point the articles are PAGES long. Issue one has a Manual Lens Article looking at manual v’s autofocus lenses and the practice of using lens ring adapters on older, high quality manufacturers such as Leica, Ziess and even Canon..for use with modern digital cameras. The article is 22 pages long, and includes lens tests, detailed info on the hardware used and samples to illustrate the differences between focal lengths, aperture settings, image sharpness across the whole image…Incredible. This is a textbook quality article in a Magazine. Each magazine starts with a portfolio, a snapshot of the work and philosophy of an inovator in the world of photography, and how he or she became an inspiration to others. Issue one is an interview with Enno Kapitza, renowned Japanese photographer, To Maak Roberts abstract photographer in issue 5.

There are Software tutorials, and guides..issue one covers Photoshop CS5 and Elements 8 while Issue 2 has a GIMP Master class, a series of workshops covering techniques useful for the beginner to advanced user, of this wonderful Free and incredibly powerful software package. There are articles that cover technique like getting breat Bokeh (blur) on your images, to using DSL for Video. Issue 5 has a huge article on 3D Photography, its development, and current techniques for taking your own 3D images. Theres an article that looks at the various photo Apps available for iPhone and Android, with tests and comparisons.

Example turorial for Adobe Lightroom 3

Issue 4 covers Macro photography in detail and Issue 3 takes us into the world of GPS tagging and travel photography. Attached to each issue is a DVD full of useful software, plugins, video guides and tutorials..with links to downloads and discounts from many major software producers.

Perhaps the reason the articles and tests are so indepth and detailed is this magazine is a quarterly issue. I think because they are not rushing to meet weekly or monthly deadlines, the editorial staff and contributors can take some pride in producing a magazine unlike any other availabile in quality and content, in todays over populated photographic media circus.

I say Congratulations and THANK YOU C’t for fulfilling my expectations every issue. If you never buy another photo magazine in your life, SUBSCRIBE to this one…you will not regret it.

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So where’s the inspiration?..

Posted on July 3, 2011 by Clive Watson

Photography for me wasn’t one of those blinding “I want to do that when I grow up moments”. I wasn’t inspired by the photo moguls of the day as I grew up like Lord Lichfield, David Bailey,  and the Seminal Phillip Townsend. Although whilst growing up their work was all around me in magazines, and posters left right and center. Those were the days of the fashion and art photographers.

The Rolling Stones - Copyright David Bailey

Landscape photography really wasnt so pervasive in those days. So the average person growing up in Scotland wasnt exposed to it in any detail.  I did of course read National Geographic, and watched the nature programmes on TV, but the images displayed were very much displaced from where I was growing up, and it was difficult to relate to them with a view to developing a career in that field. I just didnt see those places on a daily basis. In my adventures visiting the local museums and art galleries and traveling to the photogenic places in Scotland did pique my curiosity and thought processes.

At this time I  became acquainted with a photographer named Robert M Adam ( not the famous Scottish Architect of the same name from my home town Kirkcaldy). Adam was a widely published photographer. He was often published in a small a5 size publication in Scotland called “The Scots Magazine“,  which I would read whenever I could. Known primarily as an Illustrator  of flora and fauna whilst working at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Edinburgh, it was his landscape Photography for which he became best known, due to his exposure in The Scots Magazine.  It was a wonderful magazine (still published), with features and articles covering all aspects of Scottish life and folklore. Images were printed in black and white and often covered a half page. Later in life I would visit some of those places, and remember seeing the pictures, particularly Inverness and Skye.

Cellardyke harbour and shore from east.  – R M Adam 1947       St Andrews Univercity Collection

I was particularly struck by how his images were so similar to paintings in composition and structure. The depth and just the artistic quality of his pictures have stayed with me all these years. Its is easy looking at this image by Adam to imagine yourself sitting on the bench to the left, and immersing yourself in what it was like to be there. I have spent many a fine Sottish day standing right here over the past 30 odd years. I have a particular love for the group of villages along the east coast of Fife between Edinburgh and Dundee, called the East Neuk of Fife.

Inspiration is so much easier to garner these days with the proliferation of the Internet and the plethora of photographic magazines and publications now available to us, but the old images still sum up what its all about. That may be why I do love working with black and white images. There seems to be more control over emotion and the story telling aspect of the picture. It blows my mind looking at old black and white pictures the innovation and genius of the pioneers of our craft, and how they expressed it in the final print. Would that I could come close to that in my progression from where I am today.

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Why no People?

Posted on June 25, 2011 by Clive Watson

A lot of people have Icons that they focus on when looking for inspiration. Many many photographers, go down the road of people photography. Portraits, weddings, editorial for example and some very skilled and lucky individuals get to photograph royalty and Hollywood (American Royalty). For me though i am more comfortable with landscapes, flora and fauna. Growing up by the sea and not far from some of the most spectacular scenery in the world I think  it was an obvious route to want to take. There are so many iconic landmarks around Scotland, where else was there to go?

Forth Rail Bridge, Queensferry. Scotland

One of the most photographed bridges in the world spans the Firth of Forth river in Scotland. It carries all the rail traffic from the north east of Scotland to Edinburgh. Looking at the image of the bridge its easy to see why it is so photographed.

So what is it that makes people want to photograph the great outside? What makes me want to avoid shooting people and focusing on the generally inanimate medium of landscapes, seascapes, plants and macro images? I guess when we get down to the nitty gritty of the why, it comes down to a measure of control. I don’t have to rush around trying to organise people to pose the way I want, when I want them often in locations i don’t have complete control over. When photographing landscapes I can take the time to plan the image, even if I am visiting an area I haven’t been to before. I have the time to compose the image, and adjust exposure and depth of field at my leisure, even if the weather is less than agreeable (sometimes enhancing the final shot). I can also take the time to experiment with color using techniques like the new buzzword HDR.

HDR Image of Longfellow Grist Mill, Sudbury. MA

These type of images are constructed from multiple images of the same picture exposed at different exposures, usually one under exposed, one correctly exposed and the last over exposed. These images when merged give a huge dynamic range (not visible to the eye normally on a computer screen). this means that the image must be tone mapped and that’s when the fun begins.  the flexibility of mapping the colors and exposure of these images makes for some Dramatic photographs.

There are so many innovative techniques and equipment in photography that lend  themselves to making this type of imaging both fun and extremely challenging. just take a few minutes to run through photography websites like flickr to see what I mean. There really is no end to the creativeness that photographers use to make that journey into their worlds spectacular.

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The Eye.

Posted on June 24, 2011 by Clive Watson

Growing up, I didn’t just have that “Light bulb” moment where I said “I’m going to be a famous photographer”. No it kind of crept up on me. I spent a great deal of time visiting the Art Galleries in Kirkcaldy where I grew up and at the National Art Galley in Edinburgh where I went almost every weekend because of easy inexpensive access to the train.

Ground Floor, Main Galleries - National Gallery for Scotland, Edinburgh.

These were fascinating places, and my main interest lay in the “Photographic” quality of the old masters like Rembrandt, Titian (whose “Diana and Acteon”, Titian, 1473-1576 is in the center of this image), and Michelangelo a lofty group indeed. The whole point of this is to explain that spending time immersing my self in works by these great artists helped me to develop my eye, without being aware of it. I was ingesting the rules relating to color, composition, depth and perspective. It is only now when i look back and think about it I realize that’s what was happening, because as a 12 year old boy in Edinburgh that wasn’t the plan.

Adam and Eve Entertaining the Angel Raphael (© Kirkcaldy Museum and Art Gallery). John Martin (1789 - 1854)

Perhaps the image that had the most impact on me surprisingly is “Adam and Eve entertaining the Angel Raphael” by John Martin. to give you an idea of why this picture is so vivid in my memory is its sheer size. The painting is 6.1 feet wide x 4.25 feet high, I could lie down inside that image and I guess that’s what made it for me. I spent hours day dreaming that I was actually there. The detail and colors are so subtle its just overwhelming. However looking with a photographers eye today you can see how the composition makes the biggest impact on the viewer. Following the rule of thirds, Martin has placed the focus of his painting on the intersection of the bottom right of the image making the group of people more impactful. Depth of field on this “Landscape” is also fabulous with details being sharp front to back, you can clearly see the horses standing next to the lake and definition in the clouds.  Exposure is perfect with balance on highlights in the sky to shadows in the foreground, giving a lifelike appearance to this picture. You really do feel like you could be there, and thats the effect I am seeking when I take a photograph. I want you to have that “I was there” feeling. That’s what makes photography a journey. It isn’t just a skill that’s taught in school or college (although there are schools for that). Its a skill that’s learned and developed from life. Everything you interact with around you impacts your eye and teaches you the fundamentals of photography. You just need to slow down and look.

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Why this Blog?

Posted on June 23, 2011 by Clive Watson

For many, many years I have had a fascination for photography. My first Camera was a Russian Zorki 4K 35mm rangefinder camera. This camera was made between 1972 and 1980, and was pretty basic with no on board metering. It was able to use Leica Screw thread lenses though. I had that camera for many years before moving to a Pentax K1000 another all manual 35mm camera, this time SLR (Single Lens Reflex) which allowed you to see the image as it would appear in the final image. It did have basic metering via a needle on the viewfinder, and a large selection of K-mount bayonet lenses, much easier to change. Growing up in Scotland, I spent a lot of time in the city and by the sea, since there wasnt much distance between them. I shot mainly in black and white, many of my friends were interested in photography too.

The Photographer. Edinburgh 1987 Canon T50 Camera

At that time there was a great deal of unemployment in Scotland, but the government tried to compensate by offering retraining programmes in our area run by the local Parish church. They offered lots of different skill training courses including, media studies and photography, woodworking, stained glass, and furniture refinishing as well as computer skills. Some of the time I spent there helped me to gain a working knowledge of cameras and their function. Over the years this interest has developed into a wonder for “how and why”  a particular image was taken. With the advent and subsequent development of digital photography, we have a never ending opportunity to experience the vision of fellow photographers like never before. Sites like Picasa and Flickr, and even social networking sites like Facebook and groups like Meetup.com where members physically get together for photo shoots and social gatherings have expanded our horizons in ways we could only dream of in the past. So please join me in this voyage of development and discovery, as we journey through visions of emotion and creation.

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