2017 | Fixation

Jonny Helm Feature, Review July 17, 2017October 4, 2023

Zeiss Otus lenses | Reviewed by Ian Derry

We spoke to celebrity portrait and commercial sports photographer, Ian Derry about his experience with the new Zeiss Otus lenses.

Hi Ian, thanks so much for talking to us today. You’ve made a series of visits to our London Showroom recently and rumour has it the new Zeiss Otus lenses are involved. What’s the story?

I originally popped into Fixation to look at the 5DS R. I was after the epic image quality and clarity of Medium Format, without the associated expense, weight and limited portability.

I hired the camera from Fixation for a weekend and loved it, but I still didn’t feel like I was making the quantum leap in quality that I was hoping for when using it with the Canon 50mm ƒ/1.2 and the 85mm ƒ/1.2, despite the fact they are premier lenses. Someone then recommended the Zeiss lenses, so I popped back into Fixation and hired the Zeiss Otus 55mm ƒ/1.4. It was an immediate “WOW”. The clarity was amazing and I pretty much had medium format quality on a 35mm camera. I returned to Fixation soon after and purchased the Zeiss Otus 85mm for myself.

How quickly did you see the difference in the Zeiss Otus lens?

Pretty much immediately. We tested on the chart alongside the Canon primes and the Zeiss was just so incredibly sharp by comparison – it was head and shoulders above the rest. We were stunned by the quality and just had to have it. There wasn’t much of an argument against, but at £3,000 each they are costly and it was quite an investment, but once you see that clarity you can’t really go back. The colours are also truer and there’s great edge-to-edge definition too.

What other camera kit do you use?

I have been using the Canon 1Dx and in the near future would like to test the Mark II version. However, my main camera for the Zeiss Otus lenses is the Canon 5DS R, as this combination gives me fantastic results. I work in studios mostly, using low ISOs around 100 or 200. The biggest drawback of this camera is that it doesn’t like high ISOs, but because I’m working in a studio a lot it works really well. I think the combination of that camera and that lens is utterly brilliant.

How do Zeiss Otus lenses compare to others?

ID: There is certainly still a time and a place for Canon lenses. The Zeiss lenses are manual focus only, so if I’m working really quickly and need the use of autofocus I would switch back to Canon. I wouldn’t even attempt to use the Zeiss in unpredictable shoots like my sports or action work, only for those shoots in a controlled environment that I can predict. Ultimately, the most important factor about lenses is the focus. If it’s in focus – BAM! – you’ve got the winning shot. I get this with Canon, but the Zeiss also gives extra clarity. When you’re doing a portrait of somebody and they’re looking at you and you’re looking back into their eyes, the extra clarity the lens brings gives it a bit more depth.

Has the Zeiss Otus changed the way you work?

One drawback with the Zeiss lenses is how precise it has to be. It can look sharp through the camera, but when you review the image it might not be quite spot-on, so you have to be on your “A” game. I tend to listen hard for the focus-confirmation beep on the camera now, as it gives me the indication that it’s in focus. I shoot tethered, so we check focus on the monitor all the time, but even more so with Zeiss because at first glance it can look sharp without being quite pin. The whole photography shoot becomes a slower process as you need to focus, re-frame, refocus etc.

I photograph celebrities quite a lot and surprisingly this slower pace has turned out to be a positive experience for my clients. In a normal situation, someone comes in, sits down and click, click, click – we’re done! When you arrive with a Zeiss lens and slow the whole process down it becomes more of a shared experience. Sitters have been quite interested in the different equipment and it makes for a more interesting shoot for them as well. It’s almost like going back to the Polaroid period where you take a Polaroid, you stop, you chat, you wait for the Polaroid to develop before getting to the next stage. The whole portraiture process is slowed down, making it more intimate.

Do you think you can see this intimacy reflected in the images?

I think you do. Its only small, but when everyone shoots the same way and you come in with something slightly different, it just changes the pace and the interest shows. Quite a lot of people are interested in photography these days and so it becomes a talking point.

Do you also notice the difference when shooting video with these lenses?

Yes, it’s a massive difference here too. Again, it all comes down to the clarity that I keep referring to. I made a short film earlier this year and we used the 55mm Zeiss Otus on a Sony F55. I can’t tell you too much about it yet, but the film is 3 minutes long and is about a lady who free dives, she just holds her breath and dives, but she does it under ice. Keep an eye out, I’ll be posting updates on Twitter soon! You’ll really see the difference the lens makes.

All images displayed in this post were taken using a Zeiss Otus lens available to purchase or hire from Fixation.

Ian was talking to Kate Wilkinson.

Jonny Helm Behind The Scenes, Feature July 5, 2017October 6, 2023 0 Comments

Behind The Scenes | Wimbledon with Toby Melville

As celebrated as the traditional strawberries & cream, Wimbledon fortnight is well underway and both the permanent and temporary inhabitants of SW19 are undoubtedly praying for two weeks of dry weather.

Long-time Reuters staff photographer Toby Melville has been photographing at Wimbledon for the last 20 years (missing three occasions thanks to Glastonbury and the World Cup) and we caught up with him between assignments to find out a little more about what goes on behind the scenes at the UK’s most prestigious tennis tournament.

Toby Melville self-portrait on Court No. 1 | 5th July 2017 | © REUTERS/Toby Melville

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us Toby. I understand you’re currently standing outside No. 10 Downing Street!

Yes, it’s been so busy for the last few weeks. I’ve been covering the election, the attacks in London and the Grenfell Tower fire, so I’m quite looking forward to the relative peace and quiet of Wimbledon.

How much of your work is centred around Sports?

I would guess on an annual basis that around a third of what I shoot is sports oriented, with the rest made up of politics, breaking news and business. At this time of year though, with Ascot, Wimbledon and the World Athletic Championships coming up, that figure goes up to around 75% – providing breaking news doesn’t get in the way! A few years ago I was lucky enough to cover the Australian Open for two years on the trot, but generally speaking, for Tennis I just cover Wimbledon and the ATP Finals.

Can you describe a typical day at Wimbledon?

Even though play doesn’t start until 11.30am, for the first few days I’ll get to the grounds early to capture some feature shots – crowds, stadium shots – that sort of thing and it’s also a good time to get shots of the players warming up. For the first week there are 5 Reuters photographers and we’ll have a team meeting around 9.30am to decide which photographers are covering which games and then we’ll all head to our various courts. We never know what time the games are going to finish; for some matches it could be all over in under an hour in 2 sets, whereas the men’s matches could stretch to 5 sets and last 5 hours. I tend to keep updated through the Wimbledon app on my phone or through a messaging group with my colleagues to see what opportunities have presented themselves. The on-site editor will also be reviewing the images we’ve selected ourselves and wired through, and he’ll advise on where we should move to. The truth is we don’t always know where our colleagues are and sometimes have to move quickly, but by and large the system works very well. For the two show courts – Centre and No. 1 – we’ll have a photographer based there every day until the ‘business end’ of the competition where they’ll usually be two photographers per organisation.

How do you decide which courts a particular photographer covers?

It’s a fairly democratic system and we tend to rotate every day. As I mentioned before, there’ll be a photographer on Centre Court and No.1 Court, and the remaining three will try and cover as many of the other matches as they feasibly can, so it’s only sections of the match – hopefully the beginning and some good action during the match, and the reactions at the finish. The photographers based on the show courts will also help out on the outside courts if their games look like they’re going on for a while.

The view from Court No. 3 | 4th July 2017 | © REUTERS/Toby Melville

It sounds like you do a lot of running around, especially for the first few days of the tournament! How easy is it to get around the grounds?

It’s pretty straightforward to be honest, even though the grounds are a bit of a labyrinth. You soon learn where the crowded areas are and try and avoid them where possible, but there are some underground tunnels that we’re allowed to use which help getting from court to court quickly. After a couple of days you also learn where the light works best in your favour and makes the action shots a little more creative.

Do you use remote cameras on the courts?

Unfortunately not. The Wimbledon authorities have never been keen on allowing them, at least for editorial photographers, but there are a lot of good working positions courtside, so it’s not too much of a problem.

When I see images from Wimbledon, there’s often a certain ‘look’ that other Tennis tournaments don’t seem to have. Can you think why this might be?

As well as the traditional green, purple and white colours that we all associate with Wimbledon, the ground staff and organisers go to great lengths to ensure the place looks its best for spectators and the television cameras. There’s also a distinct lack of adverts around the courts which certainly makes our job a lot easier, not having to avoid large sections of advertising when framing a shot. Very similar to the Olympics in fact, where generally the only background imagery in the shots are the Olympic rings.

Shooting from a high spot on Court No. 1 | 5th July 2017 | © REUTERS/Toby Melville

Is there a good sense of camaraderie amongst the photographers?

Absolutely, yes. A few years ago I used to see specialist tennis photographers from overseas who would come to Wimbledon every year and it was a great opportunity for a catch-up, but that happens less and less these days. Regarding the UK based photographers, I pretty much know all my peers quite well, and we all look out for one another, despite the fact that we’re competing against each other most of the time! When you see that a rival photographer, through skill, judgement and a dose of luck, has got the picture of the day, from the match of the day, there’s always room for a pat on the back and congratulations. I’ve been working in London for 20 years and know most of these guys as friends as well as colleagues.

Roughly how many photographers are there at Wimbledon and what are the back-end facilities like?

In total there are around 240 photographers and editors from media organisations, and around 28 Wimbledon staff photographers, so it gets pretty busy in the wire room! In terms of working facilities, I have to say that Wimbledon is brilliant. Even in these days of Wi-Fi, we tend to still use ethernet on the courts, for speed and reliability. The media centre was totally modernised for the 2012 Olympics and the support the photographers get is second to none. At large events like this we tend to make quick selections on the back of the camera and let the the on-site editors take care of final choices. When you get to the semi-finals, the photographers will have their cameras set to auto send all frames at key moments in the match, and the editors have to make some very quick decisions as to which images to run with.

What’s in your kit bag?

I always carry 3 bodies and depending on the court I’m on and the position I’m in, I’ll have a 70-200 ƒ/2.8 on one, a 500mm ƒ/4 or a 200-400mm ƒ/4 on another, and a 16-35mm on the 3rd body in case something happens right in front of me and I need to go wide. I’ll always keep a 2x converter handy if I need to go tight for a particular shot too.

Not wishing to tempt fate, but one last question I have to ask. What do you do when play is rained off?

On Centre court it’s not really an issue these days as the roof means it’s always in operation, but otherwise I grab a few wet weather pictures and catch up on my work expenses!

Toby was talking to Tim Stavrinou.

To learn more about his work, see the feature on Reuters’ website here

Jonny Helm Feature July 3, 2017October 6, 2023 0 Comments

Be there first. Leave last. Never give up.

It’s official. Getty Images news photographer Jeff Mitchell is one of the best ‘capture the moment’ professionals on the planet.

This man just can’t stop winning major awards for his work – most recently the UK Picture Editors’ Guild Awards’ News Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Fixation. And he doesn’t even mind the now broadly used and somewhat pejorative term ‘snapper’. It doesn’t bother me a bit”, he smiles, “I rise above it. I may be a snapper but I think I am reasonably good at it.”

The 47-year old Scot who lives with his wife and two children, just a stone’s throw from Loch Lomond, lives out of a suitcase – and a camera bag that hosts his two go-to Nikon D5s, an assortment of Nikon lenses, including the 24-70mm ƒ/2.8, the 70-200mm ƒ/2.8 and the ‘must-have’ 500mm ƒ/4. The smaller Fujifilm X100T is another favourite backup and personal use camera. He says: “It sits in my pocket and I can hold it with one hand. When I use it in the street, I often get people apologising for getting in the way.”

He adds: “When I won at the UKPEG Awards I was given a Fixation voucher and the office bought me a Nikon 300mm ƒ/4. I also bought a 35mm ƒ/1.4 – a lens I have coveted but have never had in my portfolio before.”

Jeff globe-trots seamlessly from one assignment to the next. It could be photographing unrest in the Ukraine; USA election conventions; mass demonstrations in Paris; A World Cup in Brazil; The Commonwealth Games in Glasgow; capturing international political leaders on the hustings (and the obligatory pictures of them kissing babies of course) tracking the refugee exodus from the war-torn Middle East – and most recently the post Manchester Arena (Ariana Grande concert) carnage.

He confesses: “It’s often exhausting. What I do is physically draining. It’s a different type of tiredness. A guy digging ditches will go home and his body is aching all over. He is physically exhausted. But what I do is tiring mentally too. When I was driving back home after my stint in Manchester after the concert massacre I just had to pull off the road and sleep for a couple of hours in a layby. I had been out on the street from 7am until late night, constantly working.”

He added: “And of course there are occasions where I know I am putting myself in harm’s way too. I was on the front line for example in Ukraine. In these situations you have to be very careful because you can simply run out of luck, especially if you are covering a war zone over a protracted period.”

The flip side/antidote is his downtime photography: ‘I love taking pictures of nature and landscapes’ he adds. Reindeer herds and peat cutter and tweed makers in Scotland. It’s a great way to put the brakes on.”

News photography is in the Mitchell DNA. ‘Photography has always been in the family’ he notes. ‘My dad had a darkroom in the basement and I loved helping him out. I used to rock the developer tray and thought it was magic when a print came out.’

Jeff rose through the local newspaper ranks in Scotland and then joined Reuters agency. ‘I had a ball there for ten years but then I fancied a change. I was shooting a lot of sport and I wanted to do more news, so I left and joined Getty.’

He adds: ‘I started on January 1^st 2006 and they haven’t kicked me out yet. They seem happy with my pictures but they still have to suffer my bad captions and dyslexic writing. I remember one of the girls on the picture desk commenting: ‘Thank God you can take pictures Jeff because your captions are awful’.

Of course it’s a truism that you’re no news photographer unless you can click that shutter at the right moment – an art form in itself.

Says Jeff: “Cartier Bresson noted that ‘photography is the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event’. I know what he meant. I do get a strong feeling about a good picture. It’s more instant these days, thanks to digital technology…and I know when I’ve got a good one. I knew in Manchester that the shot I took from a high window vantage point of the silent crowd in the square that day was going to make the papers.’

He adds: ‘I know I’ve won a few awards but I still think to myself…if only I’d got the pictures I’ve missed! For example, in Paris during the May Day riots, another photographer a few yards away got a fantastic picture of a policeman engulfed by flames as he tried to kick away a Molotov cocktail. The other photographer was closer and so he got a better picture than I did.

It’s all about fractions of a second. That feeling of not getting the best shot stays with me for days.’

‘Our job as news photographers is to observe and record history. I am not recording these events for myself, I am doing it for the world to see….so I need to be the best I can be.

I think that this job is a bit like boxing…there is always going to be someone more capable than you. I don’t kid myself at all – and sometimes it’s amateurs that can capture great shots.’

The harder you work the luckier you get

Says Jeff: ‘I think I am a decent news photographer. I don’t know much but I know news. And these days the lightning speed of digital and the luxury of auto focus makes it easier to get good images.’

He admits that luck does come into the frame:

“I was covering the return of the Royal Highland fusiliers when two year old toddler Scott Boyle suddenly broke away from his mum to try and get to his soldier dad. That picture was pure luck….but you still have to be there in the right place to benefit from that luck. Someone said that the harder he worked the luckier he became. I agree. My mantra has always been: Be There First. Leave last. Never give up.’

Amongst a plethora of images captured across the world there are three key assignments that are still firmly resident in Jeff’s mind.

He recalls: “I won’t ever forget my time in the Ukraine, or the ongoing migrant crisis. And then there was the foot and mouth disease epidemic. My picture of a dead cow hanging out of a digger proved to be quite iconic and symbolic of that crisis. It actually made the front page of TIME Magazine.’

The truth, the whole truth and almost nothing but the truth

Jeff craves honesty in his work.

“I don’t like setting things up. I don’t want to have to talk to people and get them to do things for me. I want to remain as anonymous as I possibly can. And for me images have to be honest. I don’t mind a speck of dust being removed with Photoshop but I don’t think in news photography you should either add to or subtract from a picture. Don’t add in smoke to make the image more attractive – it’s simply dishonest.’

Jeff is employed by Getty Images so he doesn’t ever own his work.

He explains: ‘I don’t own the picture but I am its author. Copyright ownership is a big deal of course for many photographers, but it’s not for me. I am never going to make a fortune on a picture as perhaps I might as a freelance, but I know I wouldn’t have experienced half the things I have, or been to half the places I’ve visited if it wasn’t for the people I have worked for. It’s a trade-off that I have made my peace with. For me it’s not about earning sheds loads of money. I don’t have a boring life – and I would do it all again in a heartbeat.’

When it comes to mentors and iconic images shot over the decades Jeff notes McCullin,Capa and Nachtwey – and images such as the US soldiers raising the flag at Iwo Jima (although he acknowledges that some people think the image was too staged).

Then there are the news photography masterpieces: Nick Ut’s famous picture of the little girl fleeing the napalm bomb attack in Vietnam and the ‘Tank man’ shot by AP’s Jeff Widener in Tiananmen Square.

But he admits: ‘I can use all these guys and images as references but for me it’s more about the priceless process of learning from the people I worked with in the past and those I work with now. They probably have more influence than anybody.”

So this multi-award-winning snapper has built a majestic archive of great work for his employers over recent decades. But guess what? He never takes pictures of his own family.

“I know. I know. It’s a disgrace really’, he confesses. ‘I am afraid I am no different from the painter who never gets around to decorating his own house. There’s barely a photo of my own kids in the house. Not a wedding picture either. My wife takes all the holiday pix. If you want photographs of your kids, then don’t ever marry a professional photographer!’

At this point Jeff Mitchell had to put down the phone to go off and photograph Nicola Sturgeon and Scottish Tory Ruth Davidson (just before the election.)

He said he had no plans to quit the game and work in a supermarket any time soon.

Jonny Helm Tips & Tricks July 1, 2017October 6, 2023 0 Comments

Tips & Tricks | Keep your camera bag clean

When was the last time you cleaned your camera bag? A camera bag may seem unimportant, but it’s vital for protecting your valuable cameras and lenses. A good camera bag will be glued to a photographer’s hip on every trip, making their life easier and more manageable.

But what happens when the edges start to fray, the smell starts to build and the dust starts to accumulate? This is not only unpleasant, but also has the potential to damage your equipment. And that’s why you need to be cleaning your camera bag.

Ideally, you should do regular small cleans, and a deep clean every few months. In this blog we’ll quickly run through the best ways to do this.

We see a lot of bags as dusty as this one!

Regular small cleans

First, it’s important to note that anytime you spill something on your bag, you should make sure to give it a quick wipe with a chemical-free and fragrance-free wet wipe or cloth. This will only take a few seconds, and will save you a lot more hassle later on by preventing the stain from settling in.

It’s up to you how often you do a small clean. It depends how often you’re using your bag, where you’re taking it and what kind of surroundings it’s being left in. If you’re doing daily trips to a sandy beach then it will probably need to be cleaned more often than if you’re going to the studio once a week. But we would recommend once every couple of outings.

First, remove everything from your bag (including the partitions!) and place all the contents in a safe space. We wouldn’t want that camera or lenses to be damaged on their adventure out of the bag.

Grab the vacuum cleaner and give the bag a good hoover all over, getting right into those dark and dusty corners. A lot of dust may have gathered in different pockets, so remember to open up any zippers and compartments and hoover inside those too.

If you don’t have a suitable hoover, then you can use a dry cleaning brush to dislodge any dirt and tip it out into a bin.

Your bag is now looking suitable for its next outing!

The big clean

As mentioned earlier, it’s optimal to do the deep clean of a bag every few months – maybe more often if you make frequent trips. But how best to go about deep cleaning your camera bag?

You may have heard that dumping your camera bag in the washing machine may do the job. But be careful! This may have a detrimental effect on your bag, or simply take forever to dry. It depends on the material of your bag. If a bag takes too long to dry, it increases the possibility of mould starting to form. If that happens, you’ll definitely be shopping for a new bag!

Specifics of cleaning can depend on the material – a nylon or cotton bag will need to be cleaned differently from a leather bag, for instance. However, a universally safe option – one that isn’t too strong and won’t do any damage – is to use warm, soapy water.

Again, do your quick clean. Empty your bag and vacuum the inside, use a cloth to brush away the dirt on the outside.

Mix some soap and warm water. Using a small cleaning brush (alternatively, a clean toothbrush), slowly go around the inside and outside of your bag, coating it with the soapy water mixture. Make sure to give extra attention to any stains or blemishes, and don’t forget to give any zippers a good clean too.

The next step is to use some clean warm water to wash away the soap. So repeat the previous step but with clean water. Clean any straps, handles and partitions with the same method.

When this is done, leave your camera bag in a safe, open place to air dry. Leave it open to prevent mustiness or any mould building up inside. Once it’s fully dry you can place the partitions back inside. That’s your deep clean done!

Lastly, here are a few bonus tips. Make sure you keep on top of trimming any loose threads! Not only do these look untidy, but they can also caught in the zippers. Also, get a rain cover for your bag! This won’t help in just protecting it from the rain, but may also protect it slightly from becoming dirty.

Key points

Do

Regularly wipe the outside and vacuum the inside of your camera bag.
Brush away the dirt on the outside of your bag with a cloth.
Use soapy water and clean warm water to give your bag a deep clean.
Remember to clean the zippers and trim any loose threads to keep your bag in good condition.

Don’t

Put your bag in the washing machine!
Use any strong detergent.
Soak your bag.

Jonny Helm Tips & Tricks June 30, 2017October 6, 2023 1 Comment

Tips & Tricks | Take care with memory cards

We’ve all been in that situation – your memory card is full and you have to quickly change cards without thinking.

CompactFlash cards in particular have an awkward knack of almost fitting in the camera if inserted back to front, or even sideways, and the damage this can do is severe; the pins that interface with the card are easily bent, and once this happens, the CF reader unit needs to be replaced.

This D700 shows how easy it is to insert a card the wrong way.

We see cameras come in every week with bent pins and as well as the inconvenience of being without your camera for a few days while we replace the CF reader, the cost can be upwards of £150.

You only need to bend one pin to render your camera’s card reader unusable.

It’s also worth keeping a close eye on the card itself. If any of the holes on the card’s access port are blocked, this can also result in bent pins – even if the card is inserted carefully. And damage to the plastic sheath around the holes can also cause problems when the card is inserted.

If your cards look like this, it’s time to replace them!.

So next time you’re organising your kit for a shoot, take a minute to inspect your cards using a loupe and remember to double check before you insert them in the camera. It could save you a small fortune.

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Yearly Archives: 2017