popular photography 2006 03 (pdf document) download at fliiby.com

"CONTENTS MARCH 2006 VOLUME 70, NO. 3 How to Talk to Strangers Too shy? Get over it! If you want great shots of people, and the all-important signed release, all you have to d do is ask. Debbie Grossman 76 80 + FEATURES go toe-to-toe. The contenders: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, Konica Minolta Maxxum 5D, Nikon D50, Olympus Evolt E-500, and Pentax *ist DS2. And the winner is… Dan Richards & Michael J. McNamara P PLUS 8 ............................................Letters 23 ......................... Your Best Shot 45 .........................................The Fix 112 ........................ Time Exposure 128 ......................... Tech Support 143 ..................What’s Up With… 64 Hotshot Shoot-Out Five top DSLRs COVER IMAGE BY GREG NEUMAIER/GLASSHOUSE IMAGES So, You Want to Be a Travel Photographer? Exotic locales, glamorous hotels, lavish lifestyles—all expenses paid. Here’s what it takes to break into the exciting world of high-end travel magazines. Teresa Ha CONTENTS MARCH 2006 VOLUME 70, NO. 3 Web Exclusives Only on www.POPPHOTO.com The McNamara Report Every workday, Executive Technology Editor Michael J. McNamara tackles the issues and technologies that affect photographers, with tell-it-likeit-is attitude and tell-it-like-no-oneelse-can authority. Talk Back Don’t let Mike get the last word! Respond to the McNamara Report and fellow readers on our Forums. Hey, College Shooters! Enter your favorite pics in our College Photo Contest, and you could win a Sony Cyber-shot digital camera. We’re giving away one a week until May 24 to the student whose shot gets the most votes. E-mail as many as you want to PhotoContest@POPPHOTO.com. @ Digital Wizards HOW-TO x Change 34 Digital Toolboxwith Adobe your perspective Photoshop CS2’s Lens Correction Filter Debbie Grossman ﬁlters more 38 Effects aDiffusionface give youKolonia Peter than just pretty You Can Do Buckle up! Drive-by 41 shooting makesIt!commutingPeter Kolonia fun portrait backgrounds Peter Kolonia 48 The Grid Use architectural details as 50 Tips & Tricks their secrets Readers share Sheet 90 Cheatcamera Clean the gunk off your digital Jason Schneider Photographer of the Year Do you take dazzling product shots? Bring out the beauty in a model? Grab the moment of maximum impact? All of the above? You could win the chance to come to New York and compete against two other greats for the title of Photographer of the Year. Send us your best product, people, action, and wild-card photo (one in each category). Deadline: March 31. The youngsters 13 EditorialKid, Too” project in the “I’m a turn adversity into moving photos John Owens R toast ﬁlm from one who’s to enjoy 32 SLR AlearnedtoHerbertdigital Keppler Snapshots Cleaner Sweden, Sony T9 graded, and tons of fast and useful tips *ist Absolutely Free TESTS/REVIEWS DEPARTMENTS 15 Kodak EasyShare P880 Full test of 52nder camera an electronic viewﬁ built for speed Dan Richards Aperture Apple’s image organizing software Michael J. McNamara Out Storage cool tools heroes, 16 Justnds for actionon the go, and other ﬁ Enter as often as once a day, from February 16 through March 15, to win this month’s super prize: the Pentax *ist DS2 camera body. Lightweight and compact, it has a 2.5-inch LCD and packs 6.1 megapixels. Worth $750 (street), it could be yours for free! 54 18 Contact Sheet Lauren Greenﬁeld on plastic surgery Showcase Richard Avedon’s book, Woman in the Mirror Cover Details Greg Neumaier lit our ﬁve cover models with Bowens QuadX strobe packs and shot them using a Hasselblad 555 ELD with a 60mm wide-angle and Phase One H 20 digital back. 58 Mitsubishi CP-9550DWRyan Dye-sub printer Philip 20 144 Back Story Play Group, by Julie Blackmon PREVIOUS PAGE: PHOTOS BY (CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT) RICO POON, GREG NEUMAIER/GLASSHOUSE IMAGES, BRYAN F. PETERSON, LISA LIMER. THIS PAGE: PHOTOS BY (CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT) TIM FITZHARRIS, RICO POON, LAUREN GREENFIELD/VII PHOTO AGENCY. Nature Get up close and personal with a bevy of easyto-use accessories Tim Fitzharris 26 59 60 ColorVision Spyder2PRO Color calibration system Philip Ryan Digital-only 62 Pentax 14mm f/2.8 AF Peter Kolonia ultrawide lens Tamron 63 Telephoto 55–200mm f/4–5.6 AF macro zoom lens Peter Kolonia COLUMNS Microtek MS4 Digital projector Philip Ryan If you can’t wait to turn a gloomy day into a sunny one or put a monkey head on your cat, you’re perfect for our 2006 Digital Wizard Contest. We’ve posted 12 images; use elements from at least four to create a whole new one. Enter by March 31 to win the $1,000 grand prize. CIRCLE #9 ON READER SERVICE CARD SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT / EDITOR IN CHIEF John Owens MANAGING EDITOR Miriam Leuchter ART DIRECTOR Jason Beckstead EXECUTIVE TECHNOLOGY EDITOR Michael J. McNamara SENIOR EDITOR Dan Richards SENIOR EDITOR Peter Kolonia TECHNOLOGY MANAGER Julia Silber ASSOCIATE EDITOR Debbie Grossman EDITOR, WWW.POPPHOTO.COM Philip Ryan PRODUCTION EDITOR Lori Fredrickson EDITORIAL ADMINISTRATOR Ceil Rosenthal CONTRIBUTING EDITORS James Bailey, Tim Fitzharris, Russell Hart, Peter Krause, Bob Lazaroff, Arthur Morris, Tony Nagatomo, Bryan F. Peterson VICE PRESIDENT/PUBLISHER VICE PRESIDENT/SENIOR COUNSELOR ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Jeffrey Roberts Herbert Keppler Anthony M. Ruotolo (212) 767-6397 Sherburne F. Naulty (212) 767-6386 Lori Reale (858) 483-0389 Sara Schiano (212) 767-4723 Phil Mistry (212) 767-6140 Zita Doktor (800) 445-6066 EAST COAST AD DIRECTOR WEST COAST AD DIRECTOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER CLASSIFIED AD SALES EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT/GROUP PUBLISHING DIRECTOR, MEN’S ENTHUSIAST NETWORK (M.E.N.) Nicholas J. Matarazzo Dawn Erickson, Global Sales Director Lawrence Weinstein Harold O. Martin Alvida McGlashan Aelin Hu Irene Reyes Coles Mirjam Evers (212) 767-6021 Michelle M. Cast (212) 767-6086; (888) 326-5433 Fax: (212) 489-4562 DIGITAL DAYS WORKSHOP COORDINATOR Hector Martinez (888) 243-6464; hmartinez@hfmus.com Merci Celestial ASSISTANT TO THE PUBLISHER Nicole Tourtelot SALES ASSISTANT PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Silvia Coppola PRODUCTION MANAGER Vicki Feinmel Steve Romeo DIRECTOR OF PRE-PRESS OPERATIONS Marjorie Johnson PRODUCTION ASSISTANT WEB PRODUCER Karen Chan GENERAL MANAGER Julio Pacheco Mirta Soto SENIOR DIRECTOR/SUBSCRIPTION PROMOTION NEWSSTAND SALES DIRECTOR Margaret J. Hamilton SENIOR DIRECTOR OF CIRCULATION SERVICES Rocco P. Chiappetta INTERNATIONAL SALES EXECUTIVE ADVERTISING CONSULTANT CHECKRATED STORE PROGRAM MANAGER PROMOTIONS DESIGNER PROMOTIONS DESIGNER ADVERTISING COORDINATOR SPECIAL EVENTS MANAGER SPECIAL EVENTS COORDINATOR For subscription inquiries: (850) 682-7654; Fax: (641) 842-6101; e-mail: popphoto@neodata.com, include mailing address SALES OFFICES HEADQUARTERS 1633 Broadway, 43rd Floor, New York, NY 10019; (212) 767-6397 Lori Reale WEST COAST 1045 Turquoise Street, Unit A, San Diego, CA 92109; (858) 483-0389; Fax: (858) 483-0723 DETROIT Melissa Homant 100 West Big Beaver Road, Suite 655, Troy, MI 48084; (248) 729-2122; Fax: (248) 729-2130 Shigeru Kobayashi JAPAN Japan Advertising Communications, Inc., Three Star Bldg., 3-10-3 Kanda-Jimbocho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101, Japan; (011) 81-3-3261-4591; Fax: (011) 81-3-3261-6126 POPULAR PHOTOGRAPHY & IMAGING IS PUBLISHED BY HACHETTE FILIPACCHI MEDIA U.S. Gérald de Roquemaurel, Chairman; Jack Kliger, President & CEO; Philippe Guelton, Executive VP & COO; John T. O’Connor, Executive VP, CFO & Treasurer; Catherine R. Flickinger, Executive VP & General Counsel; Carol A. Smith, Senior VP, ELLE Group Publishing Director; Stephen J. McEvoy, Senior VP, Corporate Sales and Marketing; Jane Chestnutt, Senior VP, Group Editorial Director; Peter Herbst, Senior VP, Group Editorial Director; David W. Leckey, Senior VP, Consumer Marketing; Anthony R. Romano, Senior VP, Manufacturing & Distribution; John Bobay, Senior VP/Chief Information Ofﬁcer, Information Systems; Michele Daly, VP, Human Resources; Anne Lattimore Janas, VP, Corporate Communications COPYRIGHT © 2006, HACHETTE FILIPACCHI MEDIA U.S., INC. PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES. Popular Photography & Imaging, Popular Photography, and Modern Photography are registered trademarks of Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S., Inc. A WHOLLY OWNED SUBSIDIARY OF HACHETTE FILIPACCHI MÉDIAS, S.A. Correspondence: Advertising: (212) 767-6397; Fax: (212) 489-4217. We cannot answer reader inquiries by phone, only by mail. Reader inquiries: Questions or comments on editorial content should be addressed to Popular Photography & Imaging, 1633 Broadway, New York, NY 10019; e-mail: popeditor@hfmus.com. By submitting comments, you agree that they may be edited at our discretion and published in the magazine. We can’t guarantee that we will answer all letters. Editorial contributions (texts preferably on disk) must be accompanied by return postage and will be handled with reasonable care; however, publisher assumes no responsibility for return or safety of artwork, photographs, disks, or manuscripts. Advertising and editorial correspondence: Popular Photography & Imaging, 1633 Broadway, New York, NY 10019. Submissions to “Your Best Shot” and the “Annual International Picture Contest” can be addressed to Your Best Shot or Annual Picture Contest (respectively), Popular Photography & Imaging, 1633 Broadway, New York, NY 10019. Send prints only; do not send electronic ﬁles. Subscription correspondence: Popular Photography & Imaging, P.O. Box 54915, Boulder, CO 80322-4915; Allow at least eight weeks for a change of address to become effective. Include old and new address, enclosing an address label from a recent issue. Subscription prices (U.S.): 1 year (12 issues), $19.94; Canada, $34.00; other foreign, $27.94. We accept Visa, Master Card, and American Express. Subscription inquiries: Call (850) 682-7654, fax (303) 604-7644, or e-mail popphoto@neodata.com. BACK ISSUES: For issues dated within the past two years, please send a check or money order for $8.95 ($10.95 from Canada; $15.95 from other countries—add $1.00 for Digital Imaging Guides and specials) per copy to: Popular Photography & Imaging, Back Issues, P.O. Box 50191, Boulder, CO 80322-0191 or call: (800) 333-8546. Occasionally we share our information with other reputable companies whose products and services might interest you. If you prefer not to participate in this opportunity, please call the following number and indicate so to the operator: (850) 682-7654. > S H A R E YO U R T I P S , E X P E R I E N C E S , Q U E S T I O N S , A N D C O M M E N T S W I T H O U R E D I T O R S LETTERS Too Good to Be Real Let’s compare apples to apples! Bob Kim’s Grand Prize winner in the 12th Annual International Picture Contest (January 2006) was fantastic! But that’s the problem. A composite of 30 pictures that was given “extensive” work in Photoshop, is, in my book, digital art. The end result is spectacular, but Bob Kim should have won in a category called “The Best Use of Photoshop Technology.” At this rate, most of us aren’t going to stand a chance of winning “photo” competitions. We need to put digital art—anything that’s been manipulated over a certain measurable amount—into another category. Sue Golden Dallas, TX To me, those images by Bob Kim are very pretty, well-engineered art that are nice to look at. But they aren’t photos. John Israel Via e-mail That’s what a copyright is for. Go to www.copyright.gov for all the details. You don’t even have to submit a hard copy to the U.S. Copyright Ofﬁce—a CD-ROM of images is sufﬁcient. Back to the 50s The Canon EOS 5D on the cover of the December 2005 issue had a 50mm f/1.4 lens on it. Long live the “normal” lens! Zooms were invented for people who don’t know how to properly use a 50mm. Ron Sindric Waterloo, IA Heat ’n’ serve Big gulp In the January 2006 issue’s “Letters,” I came across a strange myth from Bill Marley. “The difference between digital and ﬁlm: The people who use a digital camera are picture-takers; the people who use ﬁlm are photographers.” Say what? Has someone been drinking the chemicals again? The medium used doesn’t determine whether or not you’re a photographer. It’s the love of capturing a moment Stu McDonald in time. Glendale, AZ The 4:3-ratio sensors in most compact digital cameras and all Olympus DSLRs can be traced to the ﬁrst CCD sensors in video cameras, designed to work with the 4:3-ratio display of a standard TV. (Only recently have TVs gone to the wide-screen 16:9 format.) While some DSLRs came to use CCDs with a 2:3 aspect ratio, most chip-makers found it more efﬁcient to stay with the familiar 4:3 design. Recently, I saw on the Internet a method to repair the separation in old lenses that used Canada balsam. The method involved heating the lens at 150 degrees Centigrade for two hours in an oven, and letting it cool slowly overnight. But now I can’t ﬁnd that site. Can the rear lens element on my 3.5 Tessar be baked in this way? The thermal coefﬁcient of glass may be less than that of metal, but I am not sure. Any suggestions? Padmakar Srivastava, Ph.D., P.E. Via e-mail Hold on, Padmakar! You’re the one with the Ph.D. Get in touch! Write us at Letters to the Editor, POPULAR PHOTOGRAPHY & IMAGING, 1633 Broadway, New York, NY 10019; or send an e-mail to PopEditor@hfmus.com. p POP PHOTO/MARCH 2006 Copyright vs. wrongs Since there’s no hard-copy proof of a digital image (as there is with ﬁlm), how do photographers prove ownership and avoid image theft when submitting their work to editors for possible publication or for contests? Fred Galloway Los Angeles, CA WWW.POPPHOTO.COM Ratio daze Considering the number of 4x6 prints (aspect ratio 2:3) that are made, why do so many digital cameras have an aspect ratio of 4:3? Paul Kem Yorktown, IN 8 PHOTO BY BOB KIM EDITORIAL BY JOHN OWENS Save Your Tears THAT CHILDREN CAN CAPture great photographs has been proven time and again. But that children facing some of the most painful realities can produce, well, profound work, is a testament not only to them, but also to the power and creative magic of photography. Last year’s Academy Awardwinning documentary and accompanying book of photographs, Born Into Brothels, by Zana Briski and Ross Kauffman, underscored that point. The latest evidence comes from 12 young people, aged 4 to 22, in Lexington, Kentucky. The bare facts of their life stories are enough to break your heart. A diagnosis of spina biﬁda put Tim in a wheelchair for all of his 21 years. Twenty-two-year-old Kristina was born with no bone structure in her face, and has, so far, spent most of her life in pain, undergoing 27 operations on her face alone. All 12 are adopted children who were put into foster care as infants, where many were expected to soon die, or as the social workers say, be “rocked to heaven.” Enter Jennifer Swanberg, associate professor of social work at the University of Kentucky, and amateur photographer. This past summer, Dr. Swanberg put together a program that gave each kid a 4MP Fujiﬁlm FinePix digital compact and assigned a Lexington-area professional photographer to act as a mentor. These kids aren’t looking g for pity—just pictures the house,” said Dr. Swanberg. “You see a car outside, and you can see her babysitter leaving.” Or the photo Tim shot while sitting in his wheelchair. You see his feet in their supports, and beneath him, the green concrete of a city playground with a chalk drawing of a bicycle. This may be the closest he ever gets to riding a bike. “I believe that the power of the unconscious can take over when we take pictures,” said Dr. Swanberg, citing this photo as an example. “It’s something that children show us with remarkable clarity.” Those of us who fumble with bags and belts full of gear and whine about the price of prints and the hassles of Photoshop can learn a lot from these young shooters. “It made me re-evaluate my own way of thinking,” said Van Kempen. First, stop whining and just get out and shoot. Second, follow their cheerful, no-boundaries approach, and let your creativity take over. It can do wonders, not only for your photos, but also your soul. “This program has been an amazing opportunity for the kids to heal themselves,” said Dr. Swanberg. “Kristina, who has all the problems with her face? She blossomed. She has shown her work. She has sold her work. People were able to see her as a talented photographer. And she has been able to see herself in a whole new way.” P They met up once a week, downloaded the ﬁles, looked at each other’s images, and talked photography. Between sessions, the kids shot and shot and shot. Mostly, it was just their everyday world. Depressing? Far from it. “What I saw in these images was extreme joy,” says Dr. Swanberg. “Regardless of their medical issues, these kids are first and foremost kids. They love to explore. They don’t have preconceived ideas of what a picture should look like. They just take the camera and go!” That meant going down the slide and shooting; hugging the dog and shooting; chasing a butterﬂy and shooting; and participating in life as much as possible. It was what they could do—not what they couldn’t—that drove these children and inspired their photographs. “They are so brave and amazing and strong,” said Catherine Van Kempen, a photography student at the university who served as project manager. “But they don’t see themselves that way. To them, they are just kids.” Or as Justin, who died from cystic ﬁbrosis after being tethered to an oxygen tank for all of his 16 years, told Dr. Swanberg, “I’m a kid, too.” His words are now the name of the program: “I’m a Kid, Too.” Of course, amid the joy are searing realities. “One girl shot an image out through the window blinds of Justin, 16 POP PHOTO/MARCH 2006 Kendall, 12 WWW.POPPHOTO.COM Tim, 21 13 TO SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM THE “I’M A KID, TOO” PROGRAM, GO TO WWW.POPPHOTO.COM/KIDS. > CLE ANE R SWE DE N . . . MINICAM MINIREVIEW. . . FIVE FRE SH IDE AS NEWS DISCOVERIES & COOL STUFF FROM THE WORLD OF PHOTOGRAPHY Tips of p the Month Glowing photos ò Prefer a warmer look? Yellower and golder tones can make a picture feel cozier and make your subjects look healthier. For a quick switch to warmth outdoors, set your camera’s white balance to the cloudy setting. Polarize with sunglasses ò Can’t ﬁt a polarizing ﬁlter on your point-and-shoot? Pop a lens out of an inexpensive pair of polarized sunglasses and hold it over the camera’s lens. The softbox in the sky Dramatic sunlight can be nice for landscapes, but an overcast day is great for portraits. The diffuse light is ﬂattering—and you won’t have to worry about dramatic changes in light requiring you to switch your camera settings. ò CAMERA REVIEW Turn Your Lamp Down Low Sony loves its T-series cameras. Over the last year, it released four new models. The latest, the Cyber-shot DSC-T9 ($450, estimated street), is the ﬁrst camera to feature Sony’s new Super Steady Shot optical image stabilization. That, along with the camera’s top ISO of 640, makes the T9 the ultimate Sony low-light party cam. Plus, Sony keeps noise from getting out of hand, even at ISO 640. Low-light shooting aside, the T9 sports all the slim cam essentials, including a 6MP sensor, 38–114mm (equivalent) f/3.5–4.3 Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar 3X zoom lens, an 2.5-inch LCD screen. Images are recorded onto Memory Stick Du or PRO Duo cards only, so memory costs a little more than on mo cams. Then again, do you expect this kind of style for nothing? F more, see the full review at www.POPPHOTO.com. Track a shrub Spring is coming, so how about a series? Find a forsythia, magnolia, or any other tree that buds, and shoot it every day from bare to blossom. Use your image-editing software to prin..."

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