Gift ideas for photographers

Shooting sunrise at Bamburgh Beach with the Sony FE 20mm f/1.8

Find the perfect gift for your photographer friend or relative with this list of incredibly useful photography accessories. Whatever your budget, and whether you’re buying a gift for a birthday, Christmas or any another special occasion, find the ideal gifts for photographers here…

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How to shoot studio silhouette portraits

How to shoot studio silhouette portraits

Learn how to shoot graphic silhouette portraits in a photographic studio or at home using this incredibly easy technique. Silhouettes generally focus purely on shape, whereas this approach aims to capture a small amount of detail in the model’s face for a much more interesting result.

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Amateur Photographer magazine cover 27 June 2020

Amateur Photographer magazine cover 27 June 2020

I was delighted to discover that one of my images of sunrise at Cobbolds Point in Felixstowe was going to be used on the cover of the 27 June 2020 issue of Amateur Photographer magazine. The image was supplied as an option to illustrate the practical article I wrote for the issue covering the importance of lens calibration for obtaining perfect focus and maximum sharpness. Take a look below for examples of the cover and article.

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The exploitation of photographers on Instagram

The exploitation of photographers on Instagram

When a company contacts you and offers to ‘gift’ you something in return for producing an advertising post and stories on Instagram, they’re not gifting anything, they’re trying to exploit you. By taking part, YOU are helping to devalue the photography industry – the industry you’re either working in already or wish to break into.

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Sony FE 20mm f/1.8 example landscape images

Shooting sunrise at Bamburgh Beach with the Sony FE 20mm f/1.8

For the week preceding the announcement of the Sony FE 20mm f/1.8 I was out shooting with the lens in Suffolk and Northumberland to capture images to accompany my review of the lens on Tech Radar. Scroll down to check out some of the images I took and to read about some of the features of the lens.

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PhotoPlus magazine cover December 2019

PhotoPlus magazine cover December 2019

It’s always a pleasure to see one of your images gracing the cover of a magazine, and I’m delighted to say that my winter sunrise shot of Southwold Pier was used on the cover of the December 2019 issue of PhotoPlus magazine. The full image is actually landscape format, and can be seen in full below, but it works well in the portrait crop used for the cover.

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Creative ways to shoot water in landscapes

Long exposure at Old Hunstanton Beach during blue hour

Capturing movement in the landscape is a simple and highly effective way of adding a sense of dynamism to your landscape photography. And while the mechanical nature of photography can, if left unchecked, render scenes looking like little more than a snapshot, with the right compositional approach and shutter speed you can transform scenes in creative ways that transcend the capabilities of human vision.

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Landscape photography – timing is everything

Behind the scenes Sony Alpa A7RIII and Vanguard Alta Pro 2+ 263 CT

Timing is everything when it comes to landscape photography, so to capture landscapes in the best light possible you ideally need to be on location and ready to shoot before, during and after golden hour. Bur while sunrise and sunset are considered the best times to shoot landscapes, they’re far from the only options. Throw the weather into the mix and you may even find that conditions are actually better well after sunrise has taken place. And on a moody and cloudy day, you may even be able to get great results throughout the day.

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Capturing autumn colour

Llanrwst Bridge in Snowdonia in autumn

Autumn is a great time for landscape photographers; not least for the explosion of colour that takes place up and down the country, but also because sunrise and sunset times become much more ‘civilised’ now the long days of summer are behind us. But it’s not just landscape photographers who are out in force, autumn is also a popular season for macro and nature photographers, and this autumn I’ve been out as much as possible shooting both landscapes and macro photography.

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Kinder Scout & Edale time-lapse

Kinder Scout & Edale Valley time-lapse photography

Shooting time-lapse photography is something I often use my second camera for while shooting landscape photography at sunrise and sunset. This time-lapse shows cloud coming over Kinder Scout in the Peak District before dispersing with the Edale Valley in the foreground. To watch the time-lapse take a look at the video below.

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