What sort of camera should I ask Santa for? (By Cheshire Photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

If you are thinking of asking for a camera for Christmas from Santa (aka a generous loved one), you may well be a bit confused about what exactly to ask for. I'm going to try and simplify it a little for you, based on my experience of buying cameras. I currently own 2 compact cameras, a bridge camera and 3 DSLRs, quite a few lenses and a mountain of camera bags (I seem to have an inexplicable weakness for these and can always justify buying a new one!). Running workshops has also given me insight into what people are typically concerned about and confused by.

Your choice of camera depends on what you want it for - nothing like stating the obvious - and it's very difficult to recommend one option. It may be your first camera, or an extra to be used alongside existing cameras or you could be considering trading up to a more sophisticated camera. Hopefully this summary of the options available will help you decide. I've recommended a few models based on my personal experience but always read independent reviews before you buy.

Compact camera or camera phone

Image borrowed from http://www.all-things-photography.com/digital-compact.html

Both these formats offer convenience and ease and use. We can carry them with us all the time and quickly take photographs on a variety of AUTO settings. Images can be quickly edited and enhanced - often in camera / phone - and quickly shared with friends and family. Beginners and professionals alike use them on a day to day basis but they do have their limitations - here are some:

• Delay after pressing the shutter.
• Poor performance in low light.
• Poor in camera flash.
• Can be difficult to get soft focus backgrounds.
• Despite their positioning as "point and shoot" cameras they can have incredibly complex and hard to navigate menus.

Briefly this is how I get the best results from my compact camera or camera phone:

• Shoot in good natural daylight.
• Avoid photographing subjects in bright sunlight - too much contrast with harsh light and dark shadows.
• Shoot without flash whenever possible - even at night. If you increase the ISO value you can get a faster shutter speed. 
• Think about composition as this is one element you can control.
• Use apps such as Instagram and Retro Camera to take funky, creative shots.

Taken with Instagram or Retro Camera on Android Phone

Why buy a compact camera when you can use the camera on your phone?

It's a great question with the latest camera phones giving good images. The main disadvantage of the camera on phones is that most don't offer optical zoom, so any images taken with zoom are poor quality as they use digital zoom (just magnifies the pixels). You'll notice I say most as at the time of writing several manufacturers now offer a zoom lens built into a camera phone. With this recent development some are predicting the death of the standard compact camera as all its functionality is captured within the camera phone, or soon will be. I certainly wouldn't be considering buying a new compact camera at present, but I will be reading with great interest reviews of new phone cameras with optical zooms.

Image borrowed from http://www.photographyblog.com/category/Camera%20Phones

 Enthusiast Compact Cameras

I didn't make this category up, it does officially exist and describes more sophisticated and more expensive compact cameras. I own a Fujifilm X10 that falls into this category and I absolutely love it. The image quality is superior to any compact cameras I've owned, it does superb close up shots, I can get great soft focus backgrounds and it performs well in a wide variety of light conditions, including low light. It's only downfall is lack of significant zoom - only 4X, but I accept that and take it into account when I use it. If I'm going to the zoo and want to photograph animals in enclosures I don't take the X10!

Taken with Fujifilm X10

This camera and others like it are ideal as a second camera (to their DSLR) for the enthusiast or professional who demands a bit more from their compact camera and isn't frightened of exploring all its settings and capabilities.

Image courtesy of http://www.kenrockwell.com/fuji/x10.htm

Bridge Camera, Compact System Camera or DSLR?

Typically if you are considering upgrading from a compact you will be faced with deciding between a bridge camera or a camera with interchangeable lenses (compact system camera or DSLR).

Let's look at bridge cameras first. These are so called because they bridge the gap between compact cameras and cameras with interchangeable lenses. A bridge camera offers more sophisticated performance than your average compact and usually has a very powerful zoom lens. It's ideal for people who don't want the inconvenience of carrying and changing lenses, not to mention the expense.

There are some excellent bridge cameras available, with image stabilised lenses and lots of the features and controls of SLR cameras. I always recommend Panasonic if asked as I've never had a bad experience but there are lots of options and as ever I suggest you read the reviews. Here are some of the limitations versus DSLRs (I'll come to Compact System Cameras in a moment).

• Still a slight delay after pressing the shutter.
• Such a long zoom range (sometimes up to 60X) cannot possibly produce the image quality of most DSLR lenses. Having said that they will be perfectly good enough for the amateur photographer.
• Poor performance in low light vs DSLRs as the camera sensor is smaller.

Compact System Cameras

Image borrowed from http://www.photographyblog.com/category/compact_system_camera/P20

These are a similar size to compact cameras but with interchangeable lenses and similar performance to entry level DSLRs. If you want the convenience of a small camera but the creativity and flexibility offered by having different lenses then this could be the ideal option. I've never used one and can't really justify getting one but It looks like they could have their place based on size alone . As they are a relative newcomer the range of lenses may be limited in the short term. I have also read that their autofocus system is not as  sophisticated as that of DSLRs, meaning that they may struggle to focus on rapidly moving subjects.

Digital Single Lens Reflex (SLR) cameras

Image borrowed from http://www.slrhut.co.uk

In my opinion and experience the performance of a DSLR cannot be equaled or beaten by any other camera type and if you are serious about photography - a keen amateur or considering going professional - then it's a no brainer. Yes, you have to spend money on lenses (the kit lens that comes with your DSLR body will have a disappointing zoom) and you will have to be prepared to carry lenses around and change them "in the field". But this comes at a small price when you consider the advantages of a DSLR:

• No delay on pressing the shutter.
• Better performance in low light than compact or bridge cameras.
• More sophisticated auto focus and metering systems
• Wide variety of lenses and accessories, offering unparalleled image quality and creativity.

DSLRs aren't for everyone, they are less convenient to carry around and it can prove expensive investing in lenses and accessories. But for some the barrier to trading up from a compact or bridge camera is because they think they'll be difficult to use, when in actual fact entry level DSLRs offer several fully automatic modes similar to those on compact cameras, as well as the more manual options.

To reiterate what I said at the beginning it's a very personal choice and you have to go with what feels right for you. Where possible borrow cameras from friends and try them out before you buy. If you're buying online make sure you've had chance to check the camera out in a shop first and held it.

I hope Santa is good to you - I'm not expecting too much this year as I had a very large lens from him last year and he's already warned me to only submit a small list with a price ceiling this year! :-(

I hope this was useful. If you have any questions please let me know. If you live in or near Cheshire why not book onto one of my courses and learn lots more!

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!

How I got this shot (by Cheshire Photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

Click on image to enlarge

I got some lovely comments about this pic that I took and posted on Facebook yesterday. Just thought I'd share with you that I took it with a  compact camera on an automatic setting. Often it's about keeping an eye out for a nice shot where there's something interesting going on with the light and having your camera handy.

I was careful to ensure that the light was just peeking between the leaves and I could see on the LCD that it was creating a nice sunburst effect as opposed to lens flare (lines or circles of light across your shot when too much light shines directly into the light).

I also used that very handy and simple to remember composition tip The Rule Of Thirds (where you divide your shot into thirds horizontally and vertically). I made sure that the burst of light was roughly on the intersection of two of the imaginary lines.

Heres the techie stuff from the camera too in case you're interested.

• Fujifil X10 - brilliant little compact camera (doesn't zoom very far but otherwise very good).
• Shot in Program Mode (Auto but gives you a bit more control over certain settings and stops your flash firing automatically).
• The camera automatically set the shutter speed at 1/320 (my subject was nice and bright) and an aperture of f/3.6, which is why the background is soft focus.
• Flash off - flash would have killed this shot.
• ISO 250 - we'd been walking through woods and I'd increased the ISO a little bit to make sure my shutter speed stayed at 1/60 at least, to ensure a steady shot.
• The only editing I did was to crop it square as it looked much stronger that way, so I chopped of a bit of the bottom and the top. Normally I mess about a bit in Photoshop but this really didn't need it.

I hope this was useful. If you have any questions please let me know. If you live in or near Cheshire why not book onto one of my courses and learn lots more!

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!

All the gear and no idea! Photography courses by Cheshire Photographer Jane Burkinshaw

All the gear and no idea!

This made me laugh out loud when Julie and Gill announced it as they turned up for their photography lesson! They are not alone in having made the step up from compact camera to SLR and only feeling confident enough to use it on the AUTO modes. Camera manuals don’t help as they are full of jargon and are unnecessarily complicated.

Your new SLR camera will take reasonable photos on the automatic settings and you’ll still be pleased that you upgraded, no doubt glad that there’s no delay when you press the shutter and it feels like a “proper camera”. However, a SLR is capable of so much more if you take charge rather than letting it be in control.

During yesterday’s two-hour lesson with Julie and Gill I walked them through some key information, settings and techniques that will make a significant difference to their photography and how they feel about their SLR cameras.

Lenses – they had both realized that although the kit lens that came with their camera gives them nice clear pictures it doesn’t zoom very far and they needed to buy a telephoto lens. After a quick explanation of the numbers on their lens (18-55mm) and talking about some of the lenses available, they both felt confident enough to start shopping around for a telephoto lens. They also wanted to know if they needed a macro lens to photograph things close up. I think they were pleasantly surprised to discover how close they could get with their existing kit lens.

A kit lens can get this close

Auto vs P – Gill was using her camera on the green AUTO mode, whereas Julie was using the P (program) mode and I explained why P is a better automatic alternative. I’m a firm believer that there’s no shame in using the automatic modes as long you know what to do if they don't give you the picture you wanted. It should be a choice to use them rather than the only option.

Soft focus backgrounds – wanting to know how to get that lovely blurred effect behind your subject is one of the main reasons people book photography lessons with me. They have often been baffled by talk of depth of field, apertures and f numbers. By the end of the two hour lesson Julie and Gill knew how to use their cameras on the Av setting to blur the background, whilst keeping an eye on the shutter speed and how the ISO setting can help when the light isn’t very good. Our mosaic frog was an obliging model!

Soft focus background using the Av setting

Composition – it’s amazing what a big difference a few simple composition tips can make to your photographs and I shared these with Gill and Julie. They were quick to pick up the technique of Focus Lock that allows you to put the subject of your photo anywhere in the frame and not always in the centre.

Using focus lock to put your subject off centre

With all that covered in just two hours there wasn't time to cover editing photographs – that’s a separate session – but I did point them in the direction of Picasa, a free programme from Google that allows you to perform basic edits and create some really good stuff.

From their enthusiastic comments I think Gill and Julie left brimming with confidence and keen to try out all the tips and methods we’d covered. I’m looking forward to seeing their photographs on a Facebook Group that all my “students” are invited to join. I hope they’ve ditched the phrase “All the gear and no idea” now!

If you feel that you have all the gear and no idea, take a look at the course programme for 2013/14 and if you can’t make any of the dates then why not book a bespoke session – share the cost between up to four people if you prefer. 

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50/50 project #37/50 In the round (by Cheshire photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

Day 37. In the round.

50 days with a 50mm lens

Ok, confessions first. This project was originally about taking a photo every day with a 50mm lens for 50 consecutive days... major fail! This is probably day 75 so I've really fallen behind. But having got so far I don't want to abandon it so will carry on, on the premise that I will have taken 50 photos with a 50mm lens when I finish.

So, after a considerable gap here is photo number 37. This is a silver coloured globe in our pond and I love the reflections of our house (the white building at the top), the rather dominating gable end of our neighbour's house, our slightly trendy green sail, the umbrella, fountain and pond grasses. Oh, and me of course, hidden safely behind the camera.

Quite a tricky photo exposure wise, with dark areas of the pond and the very bright sky. The only way to capture the clouds and jet trails in the sky would have been to combine multiple exposures in Photoshop. You can see the image where I exposed for the sky below.

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50/50 project. #30/50 Making Waves (by Cheshire photographer Picture It Big)

Day 30. Making waves

50 days with a 50mm lens

Suddenly it feels like Autumn with a nip in the air and a cold breeze which was whipping up waves on the surface of the lake.

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The RHS Tatton Flower Show - by Cheshire Photographer, Jane Burkinshaw

Take one look at my garden planted haphazardly with plants that are probably ill-suited to the soil type, aspect or location and you’ll know I’m not a skilled gardener. Those flowers that thrive do so in spite of my efforts. I don’t even particularly like gardening, limiting myself to bunging in some bedding plants, pulling up a few weeds and doing a bit of dead heading, whilst sipping a glass of wine on a summer’s evening. I do, however, love sitting out in the garden, admiring my efforts and am often found swinging gently in the hammock, enjoying a latte or aforementioned glass of wine, depending on how low the sun is in the sky!

Whilst gardening isn't a great passion of mine, photography is, particularly close ups of plants and flowers. I’ve visited many of Cheshire’s beautiful gardens and lost myself for several hours, engrossed in my favourite activity.

One of the many glorious show gardens - I love the quirky ones!

Going to the RHS Tatton Flower Show is an un-missable opportunity for me to indulge in my love for flower photography, enjoyment of other people’s hard work in creating beautiful outside spaces and, of course, some retail therapy. And did I mention drinking Pimms in the sunshine and nattering with Debbie, my sister-in-law? A day at Tatton isn’t always this idyllic – we’ve stood like drowned rats in the entrance to the floral marquee and fought vicious battles with pensioners over free tables and chairs in the sheltered eating areas.

But this year’s visit on Friday 26^th July was absolutely perfect, with wall-to-wall sunshine guaranteed. The newly invented Ladies’ Day inspired us to switch jeans and crocs for sandals and frocks (neither of us do posh hats, we haven’t got the right kind of heads) and we set off on our grand day out in the Cheshire countryside.

Propping each other up!

Ladies day for young and old

One of the things I really love about our annual visit, aside from the awe inspiring gardens and floral displays, is that it is a wonderful place for endulging in people watching. I have a hypothesis that you can break down the visitors to Tatton into four main types (forgive me, these are a bit tongue in cheek):

The stalwart RHS members who take their gardening extremely seriously, as evidenced by their sensible walking shoes, rucksacks, picnic lunches, thermos flasks and those walking sticks that become little stools.

The Cheshire Set – posh summer frocks and big handbags, 3 course luncheon reservations in the formal dining room and jugs of Pimms in the afternoon. Ladies Day gave them the excuse for even posher frocks and big hats this year.

Weekend gardeners – that’s us! We’re there to enjoy a day out admiring the show gardens, pick up a few plants that are unlikely to see another season and buy some totally useless garden gadget. I’ve been known to arrive home with a rake that no one could use and a very expensive blender that is only ever employed to make smoothies these days.

And finally the photographers (me in spirit) who are focused (!) solely on capturing shots of the abundance of beautiful plants and gardens. Almost every visitor to Tatton has a camera in some guise but I’m talking about the true enthusiast or pro with cameras and bags hanging off both shoulders.

I would love to visit the flower show twice each year, once as a browser, shopper and sipper of Pimms and then again a second time armed only with my camera and a zoom lens. I’ve managed to combine both needs each year on one visit but I have to strike a compromise to ensure that Debbie wants to come along with me the following year!

This year I stood near the exit just before the show closed - in the lovely low slanting sunlight of early evening – and enjoyed watching people leave, dragging behind them trollies full of bobbing flowers, carrying long pieces of twisted metal trellis, occasionally smart designer carrier bags (the posh ones with string handles) and some just with a single plastic bag containing a few much sought after plant specimens. I think everyone leaves at the end of the day with a smile on their face (aching, possibly soggy feet aside), for there’s something very uplifting about being surrounded for a day by nature’s bounty. With bees buzzing around flower heads wherever you turn and butterflies flitting from one bloom to another it feels like a little bit of paradise, pure escapism for a day.

But not everyone loves Tatton!

This blog was  originally published on the Cheshire Life website. I've included more pics here.

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50/50 project #18/50 Simple fun (by Cheshire portrait photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

Day 18. Simple fun

50 days with a 50mm lens

This little girl was playing in the shallows with a boat she had built using a piece of polystyrene and a stick, pulling it along on a piece of string. I watched her play for a while and then wandered back to the pub where my two would no doubt be fighting over who could play Doodle Jump next. I passed a family of four playing pooh sticks off the bridge and was tempted to advise them to make the most of it, as such simple fun wouldn't keep them occupied in years to come.

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50/50 project #17/50 Surfing (by Cheshire childrens photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

Day 17. Surfing

50 days with a 50mm lens

The kids are old enough to play in the surf on their own now but I still feel the need to check on them periodically (at the end of a chapter in my Asa Larsson Swedish crime thriller). It's a challenge to pick out your own children out of all the silhouetted, wet suit clad kids throwing themselves fearlessly onto each wave. I cheered a boy in a black and red wetsuit as he caught a wave and rode towards me. As I gave him an exaggerated thumbs up I realised with some embarrassment that it wasn't Sam.

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50/50 project #16/50 ...and relax! (By Cheshire photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

Day16. ...and relax



50 days with a 50mm lens
After a marathon 6 and a half hour drive down to Pembrokeshire dragging our shed (caravan) behind us, we finally got all set up and felt as if we were on holiday. The caravan site is beautiful, just one mile from the beach and we are looking forward to exploring after a good night's sleep. That might be interesting as there are about a hundred very noisy crows flying from tree to tree on the edge of the site and they are making an almighty racket! Still nice to listen to as the sun sets and I sip a cold beer.

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50/50 #15/50 Keep calm it's onesie time (by Cheshire children's photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

Day 15. Keep calm it's onesie time

50 days with a 50mm lens

Abbie and I found this onesie today (bargain at £7.99!) and fell in love with it - pity they didn't do my size - or maybe a blessing? Still really want my own onesie before they've gone out of fashion!

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50/50 Project #14/50 Distressed denim (by Cheshire Photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

Day 14. Distressed denim

:50 days with a 50mm lens

Technical stuff: Canon 350D, 1/800, f/2.5, ISO 100 Aperture Priority

After Sam's mud bath yesterday I rinsed his jeans off with the hose and left them to drip dry on the line. They are now as stiff as cardboard!

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