I have put this film here so that I can share it and I can always find it myself. It was on Netflix but then dissapeared. Thanks to Stewart Wall on Twitter for finding it again.
Canon RF 35mm f1.8 IS Macro Review
Canon RF 35mm f1.8 IS Macro
The Canon RF 35mm f1.8 IS Macro is an important lens. It is the first non L lens for the Canon EOS R mirrorless line up. There was some derision when Canon introduced the initial lens line up for these cameras. They were big, bulky, heavy and very expensive. The RF 50mm f1.2, for example, weighs 950 g, does not have image stabilization and costs a whopping £2349. It is however by all accounts a brilliant lens.
That is why the RF 35mm is such an important lens. Small and light, with IS it costs £519. Hopefully, it is the start of a line of affordable lenses for these cameras. With the launch of the Canon EOS RP, a full frame mirrorless camera for just £1399 body only. Canon is signalling its intention of overlapping into the Fujifilm and Olympus space. To do this effectively it needs lenses that are fabulous and that cost hundreds not thousands.
Ken Rockwell Review
So how good is this Canon RF 35mm.
Ken Rockwell who to me is the ultimate reviewer said:
“This lens does many things and does them all well. It shows that Canon is really on the ball; this is a very innovative lens different from all the others.
It’s a little lens with big performance”.
That’s enough for me, this lens is good. Read his review here.
Real Life Review
So what is it like in real life? I headed to Castle Ashby Gardens in Northamptonshire to find out. These are all JPEGs straight from the camera.
Landscape
A 35mm lens is ideal for landscape….
Landscape
Street Photography
…and street photography. Well sort of.
Street Photography
Image Stabilization
Image stabilization is 5 stops. This image was taken at 1/13th second, hand held. Looks sharp enough to me. There were critics who complained that the EOS R did not have in body stabilization, but the lens stabilization here is pretty phenomenal.
Image Stabilization
Bokeh
The bokeh on this lens is soft and dreamy, and the image as sharp as a pencil.
Bokeh
Macro
With a maximum magnification of 0.5x, you can fill the frame with spring blossom, and wallow in the fine detail.
Macro
What is There not to Like
The lens is made of plastic, but it feels solid. A perfect partner with the Canon EOS R and RP
There is no lens hood. Buy one here at Amazon. I bought this one.
Conclusion
The new RF mount will enable new innovative lenses from Canon. The reduction in the flange distance between the sensor and the lens should mean that the new RF L lenses will be superb, and the non L lenses as proved by this lens will be great.
Could it be that in future a non L RF lens will be as good as a Canon EF L lens? I look forward to the technical comparisons.
Where I Buy
I buy my equipment from Wex because of their exceptional customer service. I once returned a camera after 30 days, and the next day they called to return my money to my account. Their prices are always competitive and they offer good prices on the trade in of your used gear
Peoples Vote March
Some pictures from the Peoples Vote March in London on the 23rd March 2019.
Peoples Vote March / John Gough / Sony a6300
Peoples Vote March / John Gough / Sony a6300
Peoples Vote March / John Gough / Sony a6300
Peoples Vote March / John Gough / Sony a6300
Peoples Vote March / John Gough / Sony a6300
Peoples Vote March / John Gough /Sony a6300
Peoples Vote March / John Gough / Sony a6300
Peoples Vote March / John Gough / Sony a6300
Peoples Vote March / Sony a6300
Peoples Vote March / John Gough / Sony a6300
An Evening with Martin Parr
Martin Parr
Last night I went along to the Martin Parr Foundation in Bristol, to hear Martin Parr talk about his life in photography.
These are just a few of the notes that I took away from the evening.
Obsession
His father was a fanatical bird watcher and every weekend Martin Parr would accompany him on birding trips. Parr admits that his photography is an obsession, a trait no doubt inherited from his father. However he is grateful, he believes that to be a successful photographer it has to be an obsession.
Projects
Projects I have always thought should have a beginning and an end date. Martin Parr does not always follow this rule. Although he has projects which have an end date, for example, he is currently working on a project which will be published as a book this year about people taking selfies. He also has recurring projects like the British seaside which he says he cannot resist, and keeps coming back to. This follows the success of his early book The Last Resort which was first published in 1986.
There are also longer term projects, for example, his love of photographing people dancing. This like his pertinacity to document the British class system, are continuing themes.
Colour or Black and White
Parr changed to colour in the early eighties. Even then colour was not a professional medium. Instead, it was more the domain of holiday snaps and hobbyists. I asked whether he had ever thought of returning to monochrome with the advent of digital. “I see in colour and photograph in colour” he replied, “I have no intention of going back”.
Gaining a Momentum and Eight Good Pictures a Year
Martin Parr admitted that when he arrived at a scene where he was going to take photographs, he would take lots of pictures. It is about getting into a momentum he said, so when that great opportunity happens, you are ready. He joked, that what we don’t see are the thousands of images he rejects. What was his hit rate he was asked? About one in ten thousand, or around eight really good shots a year.
Ordinary Things
In the early days, he would challenge himself to photograph things that were as boring as possible. He has always been interested in the mundane. The ordinary things later become extraordinary. He showed an example of a lady filling a car with petrol in the 80’s. Look he said the cars have changed, the pumps have changed and the fashions have changed.
Last Word
At one point during the evening, he said that it was his job to make fiction out of reality. That I think sums up his work.
Where to See His Work
He has a show Only Human at the National Portrait Gallery. There is also a book to accompany the event.
There is an exhibition of his photographs of in and around Manchester at the Manchester Art Gallery.
Martin Parr Manchester Art Gallery
Martin Parr Exhibition Manchester Art Gallery / John Gough / Sony a6300
Martin Parr went to college in Manchester and his early work is at an exhibition at the Manchester Art Gallery. During his career, he has visited Manchester frequently and explored northern life. The result is a large body of work centred in and around Manchester. The Manchester Art Gallery recently commissioned him to create, ‘a portrait of the city and its people in 2018’.
The joy of this exhibition is that all this work is displayed in one big space, where there is room to look at the photographs and see the development of his distinctive style.
Photography Show Birmingham
Photography Show Birmingham / John Gough / Sony a6300
Just visited the Photography Show in Birmingham, here are my highlights:
The Fujifilm stand was buzzing with interest in the new X-T3 which feels good in the hand. Solid, good grip well balanced.
The Sony stand had little new to show. Last year all attention was on the a7iii which is still a cracking camera.
The new camera that Sony did have to show was the a6400 which is a work of art if you want a small inconspicuous camera.
Canon had the new mirrorless range which has kicked off with the Canon EOS R and RP. The RP is a surprisingly small camera, it is a shame there are no lenses that feel balanced to go with it, but on the stand they insisted there were lots more lenses in the pipeline. They also rubbished the view that the sensor in the RP was less superior to the sensor in the EOS R. Price tells you that this may not be true.
Every time I go to the show I am drawn to the Wacom stand. Do I need a Wacom tablet? Is it better than using a mouse with Photoshop? After visiting the stand I was still none the wiser. Lots of research required.
Intrigued by Matterport which is a reality capture system. Whatever was captured could then be viewed in 3D and VR. Makes you wonder whether soon we might be able to do the same with a smartphone!
I thought this was a neat idea, photo boards for still life backgrounds. I should think particularly useful for food product shots. Especially pies.
I quite fancied an ONA leather camera bag. However, they are so pricy that you would need a Leica to put in it.
As it is I signed up for a year’s subscription to Digital Camera and took away a free Lowepro Slingshot 102 camera bag, which is going to be ideal for travel and street photography trips
This is great offer but if you cannot get to the NEC at Birmingham for the last day tomorrow (19th March) it is still available on Amazon.
Beginners Guide to Photography
I always thought I was a reasonable photographer. So a few years ago now I set off to the Lake District to take some magnificent landscapes. A few days alone with my camera would I thought nail some stunning images. It was a photographic pilgrimage which would turn into an epiphany.
I had a Canon EOS 450D with a kit lens and a map of the area. World beating shots would be easy. Perhaps I thought I could even win a competition.
The Result
The example above is the sort of thing I came back with.
I had been given a Landscape Photographer of the Year book which was my inspiration for this trip. However, my images did not bear any resemblance to the classy pictures in the book.
I had to make a decision. Should I ditch photography and take up bowls or gardening. Or should I immerse my self in photo geekery. Learn all I could and give it a go.
Beginners Guide to Photography
It was then I decided to change everything about my photography. To start again.
The list of what I needed to know was a long one. It would I know take me a long time. I set a goal to gain an LRPS from the Royal Photographic Society. This would be my benchmark.
It has been an iJourney ever since.
I was reminded of this tortuous period by corresponding with Joanna Thomas at Hobby Help. Her Ultimate Beginners Guide to Photography is just the sort of solid information I devoured in huge chunks during that time, and still do.
This book, How to Photograph Absolutely Everything: Successful Pictures from your Digital Camera was also very useful and a great start point. It is a bit dated now but no worse for that.
Where I Buy
I buy my equipment from Wex because of their exceptional customer service. I once returned a camera after 30 days, and the next day they called to return my money to my account. Their prices are always competitive and they offer good prices on the trade in of your used gear
Sony a6400 Review
Sony a6400
Were Sony pushed or did they jump? We were expecting the launch of the A7000 which Sony claim would be an APS-C version of their top of the range, full frame flagship the A9. Instead, they have given us the Sony a6400, which they describe as an entry level camera to replace the popular Sony a6300.
No doubt, Sony saw the launch of the excellent Fujifilm X-T3 and thought they just had to respond.
Specification
It is no wonder then, that the a6400 is a camera with an impressive specification. I must at this point declare an interest. I love the a6300. Most of the images on this site have been taken with it, but is the Sony a6400 a worthy replacement?
The Sony a6400 has a 24.0MP APS-C CMOS sensor coupled with the latest BIONZ X processor. The new processor is fast. Capable of shooting bursts at 11 fps with continuous AF. Furthermore, the camera’s buffer will now accommodate up to ninety nine JPEGs, and forty six RAW files in one go. Small buffers have for a long time, been the bugbear of small mirrorless cameras.
There is 4k video recording, but with no in body stabilization it could be a bumpy ride.
The autofocus system is all new. Featuring 425 phase detection points with ‘Real Time Tracking’ of moving subjects, and ‘Real Time Eye AF’, which will amazingly work with animals as well as humans. Does that mean all types of animal? Unfortunately, we will have to wait for a firmware upgrade later this year, before this feature is implemented and can be tested on tree frogs.
Most cameras these days claim the world’s fastest AF lock on. The a6400 is no exception. At 0.02 seconds, it is faster than the blink of an eye.
There is a neat new tilt screen which flips over the top of the camera so that vloggers and selfie fanatics can frame themselves. A touch of the screen moves the focus point.
Entry Level?
This is a £1000 camera, described as entry level by Sony. If so then Sony are redefining what an entry level camera is in two ways.
Firstly, there are a ton of advanced features on this camera, so it is not entry level as we know it. What in reality Sony are doing, is setting up this camera as the base level for their new series of APS-C cameras.
Secondly, £1000 is a lot of money for your first step up from selfies on your smart phone. However, we should expect that as the new range of APS-C cameras are introduced and existing a6xxx cameras are withdrawn, the price of this camera will likely fall, creating an entry point to their new range of cameras.
What I say is bring it on.
Where I Buy
I buy my equipment from Wex because of their exceptional customer service. I once returned a camera after 30 days, and the next day they called to return my money to my account. Their prices are always competitive and they offer good prices on the trade in of your used gear
Before Photography there was Watercolour
We are used to photography documenting our world. Where we are. What we do. How we do it. But what about before photography?
It was then that painters would use watercolour painting to document the world. These paintings, however, were often hidden away in archives, private collections, museums and art galleries. Now for the first time a UK based charity, Watercolour World has made it their mission to digitise watercolour painting and make it available to everyone.
We are creating a free online database of documentary watercolours painted before 1900. For the first time, you can explore these fascinating visual records on a world map, search for topics that are important to you, and compare watercolours from multiple collections in one place. We hope that this project will not simply preserve the watercolour record but revive it, sparking new conversations and revelations. By making history visible to more people, we can deepen our understanding of the world.
We may be used to watercolour landscape painting, but searching through the Watercolour World database it is revealing just how much social history is documented. Have a look, it is well worth a watercolour moment.
Don McCullin Retrospective
Don McCullin
A major retrospective of the work of the masterful photographer Don McCullin starts at Tate Britain today. There is also an insightful documentary on BBC iPlayer for the next 27 days called Don McCullin : Looking for England. This shows the legend at work, photographing people at various locations in England, and working creating black and white prints in his dark room. The clip below is charming because he is usually so very serious and professional.