Preview: D-Photo Issue No. 78

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BODIES IN MOTION: AMBER GRIFFIN’S AWARD-WINNING SHOTS

n i s e i d o B Motion

AMBER GRIFFIN’S AWARD-WINNING SHOTS

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TERMS BEGINNERS SHOULD KNOW

BROADEN YOUR HORIZONS: GIVE INFRARED PHOTOGRAPHY A GO CURIOSITY AND PHOTOGRAPHY: JANET LILO WINS ANNUAL COMMISSION

CONTENTS ISSUE 78

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48 IN THE KNOW 6 COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVE See what D-Photo readers have been working on and where they’ve been

8 2017 SIGMA D-PHOTO AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR Get the latest news from the 2017 Sigma D-Photo Amateur Photographer of the Year competition, and check out some stunning entries

10 FOCUS Recognizing photographic achievement and bringing you the latest photography world news

16 WHAT’S ONLINE Find out what our top stories are over at dphoto.co.nz

BE INSPIRED 18 WORTH 1000 WORDS Discover the story behind three stunning photographs

22 ENCOURAGING CURIOSITY Janet Lilo

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30 FOLIO We talk to award-winning photographer Amber Griffin about her dance photography portfolio, her upcoming presentation at the NZIPP Infocus Wellington conference, and how she started her photography career

38 SUBSCRIBE AND WIN Subscribe to D-Photo this issue and be in to win a Nikon Keymission 170, worth $699

40 DISCIPLINED EYE, WILD MIND: CREATIVE PHOTOGRAPHY Adrian Hatwell talks to three award-winning creative photographers — Kevin Gilbert, Catherine Cattanach, and Janyne Fletcher — about mastering the art of creativity

48 WOMEN’S RIGHTS: AN ANALYSIS IN PHOTOS e caught up with Sharifa Karimi to talk W about her 2016 Hasti? Are you there? Hastam.

I am here exhibition, and where she is taking her photography now

52 BUYERS GUIDE: PACKING FOR THE OUTDOORS Explore our in-depth guide into the latest and greatest products that would be handy on your next outdoor photography adventure

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66 57 PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT Learn about the latest gear and accessories

58 INTRODUCING NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY SOCIETY OF NZ D-Photo spoke with two well-established members of Christchurch’s Nature Photography Society of NZ — Pam Cumming and Pol Syrett

62 A STUDENT-DIRECTED SHORT FILM ABOUT SHORT FILMS Learn about SAE Institute New Zealand film arts student Nic Brookland’s short documentary called The Small Short

66 TRUTHFUL REPRESENTATION areea Vegas speaks with photographer M Frances Carter about returning to New Zealand after spending time in New York

70 10 TERMS BEGINNER PHOTOGRAPHERS SHOULD KNOW We picked out 10 terms we think all beginner photographers should know

74 GEARDUCATED: Leon Rose sets out on a full-day shoot, testing Vanguard’s newest range of Alta Sky photography bags.

80 THE RISE OF THE PLATFORMS We take a look at how social media is evolving to create great platforms photographers can utilize to get their work noticed

84 BEYOND THE RAINBOW: INFRARED PHOTOGRAPHY, PART TWO In this second instalment, Hans Weichselbaum digs deeper into the phenomenon of infrared photography

90 EXPLAINED The D-Photo team talks through colour temperature — and how to ensure you’ve got it right, every time

92 D-PHOTO KIDS PHOTO COMP We present the top three images from this round of the D-Photo Kids Photo Comp.

WHAT’S COMING UP 94 CALENDAR Make sure you have all these important dates in your diary

96 PARTING SHOT Find out what we’ve planned for the next issue of D-Photo

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WORTH 1000 WORDS STORIES BEHIND THE PHOTOS

WORTH 1000 WORDS

Canon EOS 50D, 98mm, f/11, 1/1250s, ISO 400

There’s a phrase that we’ve all heard before — ‘a picture paints 1000 words’ — but those words may be different for each person. Sometimes, you might create your own meaning for a photograph you encounter; however, it can be nice to know the true story behind an image, and what was running through the photographer’s mind as they captured it.

Photographer: Robert Downie Location: Northern British Columbia, Canada D-Photo: What’s the name of this photo?

Robert Downie: Muriwai Gannet Colony

my camera and spent about an hour down there watching.

Can you describe where you were when you captured this image?

[I was at] Muriwai Gannet Colony, Muriwai Beach, North Island, New Zealand.

What is the message that you hope people take from seeing this image?

The message is simply for people to realize the diversity of life on our doorstep. It’s incredible that this colony is only an hour drive from the centre of a major city [Auckland].

What stood out to you that this would make a great shot? What inspired you to take this photograph?

A lot of my work attempts to use the natural compression distortion that comes with a telephoto focal length to create perspectives of nature and landscapes that are not immediately apparent to people. This particular shot was an attempt to play with the apparent depth perception between the three vertical layers of the flying gannet, the nested gannets, and the ocean below.

How much planning went into it?

Very little! I was visiting family who had moved to Muriwai Beach. I had never been to the colony before, so I simply headed down with 18

Can you outline the gear you used when taking this photograph?

It was taken handheld with a Canon EOS 50D and Sigma 70–200mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM lens.

What did you do to edit this image, and why did you make the adjustments that you did?

Minimal editing was undertaken to this image, other than minor adjustments to the brightness level of the highlights in the gannets and the white water below.

What interested you in pursuing photography?

As a keen traveller and adventurer, I have been fascinated by photography from an early age, and have 20 years of adventure travel photography experience across more than 30 countries. The ability of photography to inspire action in the viewer by shedding light on the more remote and fragile parts of the natural world has driven most of the major conservation efforts over the past century.

Equally important is its ability to highlight divergent cultures and philosophies, and help foster tolerance in an otherwise intolerant world.

If people want to see more of your work, where can they find you?

My portfolio can be viewed at robertdowniephotography.com, and I can be found on social media as @intrepidphotos on Instagram and 500px, and @robertdowniephotography on Facebook. I am also the founder of intrepid.photos, an adventure photography resource centred around personal interviews with world-class photographers.

PROFILE JANET LILO

ENCOURAGING CURIOSITY Janet Lilo is the 2017 recipient of the Auckland Festival of Photography’s Annual Commission by Baker+Douglas, and spoke with D-Photo about her award, her practice, and her plans for the future

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FOLIO AMBER GRIFFIN

Sony A380, 55mm, f/14, 1/160s, ISO 100

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BODIES IN MOTION

Whitireia Year 2 graduating class of 2014, commercial image to advertise the WPAC end of year show

We were lucky enough to talk to award-winning photographer Amber Griffin about her dance photography portfolio, her upcoming presentation at the NZIPP Infocus Wellington conference, and how she started her photography career

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STYLE CREATIVE PHOTOGRAPHY

Kelvin Gilbert

DISCIPLINED EYE, WILD MIND: CREATIVE PHOTOGRAPHY Adrian Hatwell talks to three award-winning creative photographers — Kelvin Gilbert, Catherine Cattanach, and Janyne Fletcher — about mastering the art of creativity

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ONE TO WATCH SHARIFA KARIMI

WOMEN’S RIGHTS: AN ANALYSIS IN PHOTOS In 2016, Sharifa Karimi (now 27 years of age), exhibited her series, Hasti? Are you there? Hastam. I am here, as part of the Auckland Festival of Photography. We caught up with Sharifa to talk about this exhibition, and where she is taking her photography now.

D-Photo: What initially sparked your interest in photography?

Sharifa Karimi: With photography, I felt like there was no limit to my expression. There is more flexibility with this medium compared to others. At the same time, I don’t really consider myself as just a photographer, because I put so many hours into staging my photographs. Only when I am satisfied with the depth, texture, composition, etc, will I take the photo.

Are you self-taught, or did you do a course?

I did my Bachelors of Visual Arts and Design, majoring in Photography at Unitec.

Can you tell us a bit about your 2016 Auckland Festival of Photography exhibition?

[In 2016] Lake House Arts [in Takapuna] had an opening for a graduate exhibition. After sending them my CV and portfolio, I got asked if I was interested in being part of the festival, and did a solo show.

Where did the concept come from, and how did the creation process flow?

Three pieces of my art were from the endof-year graduation show from the university (Obedience). In a way, I felt that project needed to continue — it felt unfinished.

Having the opportunity to do the solo show was a great opportunity for me to continue creating more work related to the same topic (female rights).

How would you describe the style of photography in this exhibition? Do you have a specific genre that you like to work in, or are you open to everything?

My work is based on debate, analysis, and discussion around women’s rights. The current circumstances of women who are struggling for their basic rights are created by culturalism and traditionalism. My work is focused on manifesting the core of this issue.

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TOP 10 PHOTOGRAPHY TERMS FOR BEGINNERS

10 TERMS BEGINNER PHOTOGRAPHERS SHOULD KNOW When you’re just starting out with any new hobby or interest, there’s always an abundance of information to digest and learn. Photography is no different, and learning your way around the camera is only the start — there’s plenty of technical jargon and terminology to be made aware of, so we picked out 10 terms we think all beginner photographers should know

1. Depth of field Think of depth of field as an area of focus.

Depending on what you’re shooting, within your image there will be a specific area that will appear sharp and in focus. Because this differs for each image, some images will be described as having a shallow depth of field or a deep depth of field. Shallow depths of field refer to images which have a small area of focus, and deep depths of field refer to photos with a large area of focus. There are

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ways to control the size of your depth of field, and that is by adjusting your aperture and adjusting your focusing distance.

Experiment with larger apertures and closer focusing distances to see how they affect your depth of field.

2. Aperture Aperture is most easily remembered when associated with an eye. The cornea of your eye lets in light and then passes it through

to your iris, which expands or shrinks, affecting the size of your pupil and therefore controlling the amount of light through to your eye. Your camera lens acts in a similar way — the lens collects light, and the hole in your lens can be made bigger or smaller in order to allow a certain amount of light into your camera — a large hole means a large aperture, and a small hole means a small aperture. Adjusting your aperture will affect the depth of field, so a larger aperture