Category Archives: Reviews

Lomo LC-A 120 medium format camera hands on review

When Lomography released the Lomo LC-A 120 last year I got really excited. It’s a compact medium format camera with a modified glass lomo LC-A lens with automatic exposure which is a huge step up from the light leaky plastic Holgas and Dianas I’d previously used. I’ve never really been a fan of plastic 120 roll film cameras as I’ve never seen the point of shooting expensive film on a camera with no light meter, a plastic lens, and something that you only use on a sunny day.

Shot Lomo LC-A 120 and Lomography 800asa colour film Dave and his fish eyes. Shot Lomo LC-A 120 and Lomography 800 asa colour film

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Nikon Coolpix S33 / S32 review: The Ultimate Camera For Children

This review has been written after my daughter has been using a Nikon S32 for nine months, but it’s relevant to the newer Nikon S33 as it’s only marginally different. In March 2015 my daughter turned five years old and I decided to get her camera. Quite often I would find myself being art directed and being told to take photos of various different mundane things by her; Matilda can be regular little Martin Parr. I decided it would be far easier to get her a camera of her own so she could take her own photos, and being a photographer I wanted to get her something decent. There are toy cameras on the market from the likes of VTech and Fisher Price but they tend to be overpriced for what they are. Usually their sensors are 0.3 to 2 mega pixels and the images they capture look like they’re shot on early camera phones. The kid cameras also tend to be bulky so they’re not the type of thing you’d take on a day trip along with all the other mountain of things you have with children in tow. On the other hand the Nikon S33 can slip into a child’s coat pocket quite easily.

matilda and her nikon coolpix s33 a32

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New Lomography Petzval 58mm lens announced: hands on review

Lomography has just launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the manufacturing of their new Petzval 58mm lens. The Petzval lens is based on a 170 year old design and it produces a super soft bokeh (blur) effect. The lens is … Continue reading

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Lomography Petzval DSLR Lens hands on review

The Lomography Petzval lens is a relatively new lens inspired by the past but designed to work with modern Nikon and Canon Digital SLRs. It’s totally manual and the images it produces have a dream like quality to them which is down to the super shallow depth of field and circular bokeh (blurring). Anything in the centre of frame will be highlighted by the circular bokeh and blurring patten. The lens is the equivalent of an 85mm on a full frame camera (like any Canon 5D) and its maximum aperture is f/2.2.

shot with the petzval on a 5d Mrk iii by kevin meredith

shot with the petzval on a 5d Mrk iii by kevin meredith

The roots of this new lens lies in the original Petzval lens designed by Joseph Petzval in 1840, and although Lomography’s Petzval is technically a little different from the original, they’ve definitely nailed the 1840’s aesthetic. In August 2013 Lomography ran a successful Kickstater campaign to fund the manufacturing of a new version of the Petzval, they smashed their $100,000 funding goal 13 times over. After the Kickstarter backers receive their lenses Lomography are selling them to anyone who wants one.

Lomograpic petzval on Canon eos 5d Mrk-iii

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Nick Hedges’ ‘Make Life Worth Living’ exhibition at the Science Museum’s Media Space

Nick Hedges was commissioned by the housing charity Shelter to document the harsh living conditions that people in poverty where forced to live in from 1968 – 1972. The work was used to help Shelter better campaign for those in poverty. To protect the anonymity of the people depicted the images have been used in a very limited way up and till now, this is the first public showing of the work since it was created over forty years ago.

make life worth living by nick hedges

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Hands on review of the Android powered Samsung Galaxy NX

Since November 2013 I’ve been using a Samsung Galaxy NX The first interchangeable lens camera to run the Android operating system. A common feature on new cameras is wireless connectivity that enables them to connect to phones or tablets to transfer photos so that images can then be posted online. Having a combination of Android and wireless connectivity cuts out the middle man, you can shoot pictures then use them in whatever Android app takes your fancy. You might think having full blown Android on a camera might get in the way of shooting, sure you could miss a photo op by playing angry birds, but no matter what app you’re using you can get into camera mode with one press of the shutter button. The build quality is really sturdy, it feels as small as it possibly could be while accommodating the large touch screen and large removable battery.

Samsung Galaxy NX back and front

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The Double Exposure App ‘Dubble’ for the iPhone is Becoming Social

Since Dubble’s launch in October 2013 they have not rested on there laurels. The Dubble development team have been updating their app and boasted that they’ve now Dubbled three quarters of a million images in their first six months.

double exposers images for Dubble app for iPhone / iOS app

In case you did not read my original review of Dubble it’s an iOS app that pairs your photos with another user’s photo randomly to create a double exposed image. When first released it was a very stable app that did it’s core function very well, namely doubling your images with other peoples. I found it a little frustrating that when you found an image or user you liked there was no way to fav it, this has now changed with the addition of likes and other social features.

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Nine Recently Acquired Photography Books / Publications

A little run down of the photo books I’ve acquired, most of which I got by attending photographer’s talks and book launches which means I get to pick up rare photography books and don’t have to pay postage. Some of the books are readily available on amazon while others will be a little harder to get hold of.

Photography books by J A Mortram, Stuart Griffiths, Giles Duley Leonard, Freed Iain, McKell Simon, Roberts Jason, Larkin Ewen, Spencer Martin, Parr Antonio and Zazueta Olmos

If this leaves you hungry for more check out my other photo book recommendations in these blog posts: Three recently acquired photographic publications by Jim Mortram, MiniClick and Tom Groves and Three recently acquired photo books by Maciej Dakowicz, Martin Parr and Sam Hiscox

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