Fab
feedback
I am a long-standing subscriber, and love
the magazine. However, I have a number of minor gripes and suggestions.
The first is that I use Aperture for the
vast majority of my photography storage and editing, but you never refer to
this program in your articles and tutorials. This is despite you recommending
it a year or two back!
Do
other readers find the benchmark graphs in our reviews hard to decipher? If so,
let us know!
Next, in your camera tests the graphs you
include are difficult to interpret. You should directly label the lines with
the camera model, give the camera you are testing a thicker line to make
comparisons easier, and finally directly label on the graph the 'good' and
'bad' areas.
I would welcome more advice on workflow
too. You cover taking and manipulating photos in detail, but rarely the tasks
in between.
And finally, for your Buyers' Guide at the
back, what do you think about suggesting good 'combinations' of cameras, lenses
and kit for a range of skill levels, and including services, such as prints,
frames, photobooks etc?
Thanks for these great suggestions, Mark -
you've given us a lot to think about. Aperture is a great tool, but space is
limited, so we have to stick to more mainstream programs.
Above
Digital Camera reader Colin's
done a great job of recreating the look of 40s Agfacolour film in this image
Rising
to the challenge
After reading the Star Letter about
Agfacolour film in issue 130 of Digital Camera (October 2012), I thought
I would give Harold’s ‘challenge’ a go using this photo I shot of Just Jane,
the Lancaster at East Kirkby Air Museum in Lincolnshire. I’ll let you be the
judge of whether this is the effect he was after.
Nice one, Colin. Do other readers fancy
having a go at recreating the look of 1940s Agfacolour film?
Software
choices
After buying a new Apple Mac, I can’t
decide what software to get. I’m currently using Photoshop Elements 6 and don’t
know if I should stick with Elements and get the new version (11), try
Photoshop Lightroom, or even treat myself to Photoshop CS. But I wonder whether
Lightroom would be better than Elements?
I own a Canon EOS 60D, so I already have
Canon’s editing software.
The choice boils down to what you use the
software for. If you're already comfortable with Elements, then version 11 is a
good option. If you mainly shoot in raw and process a lot of images, then
Lightroom is an equally good choice. Obviously CS combines the benefits of both
programs and offers much more besides, but it costs a lot more.
Finally, don't forget that Digital Photo
Professional, the software that comes with your Canon, is a powerful raw editor
in its own right. If you shoot a lot of raw images, this and Lightroom or
Elements may be all you need.
Cat-Astrophic
end
I’m wondering if you can help me get hold
of a copy of the February 2011 issue, as 1 had it but my cat ruined it (you
don’t want to know how, trust me!). I’m trying to keep my collection complete —
Digital Camera is my favourite magazine, and I hate that I had to throw
that issue away!
Is there any way I could re-buy it in
print? I bought it from a site called zinio.com, but I didn’t realise that it
was going to be just a digital version, and not in print. Any help would be
appreciated.
We're hoping your cat ate it, but we fear a
messier fate! Sadly, that issue has completely sold out, but if any other
readers have finished with their copy please let us know and we'll pass it on
to Melanie.
Ad
Defence
Re: the letter last issue about too many
adverts. I find the adverts really useful for comparing different retailers,
because I don’t always have internet access. Also, regarding your £1,000 camera
test, could it be possible that you had a faulty D7000, because all the reviews
I looked into that compared it to the D300s gave the D7000 the higher score,
which is why I bought one.
Thanks for that Paul. Our camera tester,
Matthew Richards, has reviewed the D7000 on several occasions, and it's highly
unlikely he received dodgy samples.
iPad
enquiry
I’m tempted by your iPad edition, but do
iPad users get all of the free gifts and disc content that buyers of the print
mag get?
Yes, where possible we always include
digital versions of the gifts (eg, the fold-out guide) in our iPad edition, and
include all the technique and Photoshop videos found on the disc.
Flummoxed
by flash
One section in Digital Camera that I
always enjoy is 10 Things to Try Right Now. In issue 110, number three was all
about using high-speed flash. I know nothing about flash and did not understand
the complicated terminology at all. Please can we have a really basic guide to
flash followed by an explanation that we can all understand.
Sorry about that - flash does involve a lot
of jargon, and when it goes wrong, it can go really wrong! By happy coincidence,
we are doing a basic guide to flash next issue, on sale 7 December. It's an
early Christmas present!
The
new version of Elements is a great all-rounder, but heavy-duty raw shooters may
be better off with Lightroom or Photoshop CS.
What worked for you? Or not...
This shot of a grass snake was taken in the
New Forest National Park Reptile Centre. They're non-venomous, but they do
strike as a warning, then omit a foul smell, then play dead [how is my ex? Ed].
This
shot of a grass snake was taken in the New Forest National Park Reptile Centre.
I took this photo with a Canon EOS 5D Mark
II and Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5- 5.6L IS USM at 1/500 sec, f/5.6 and IS0160.
I like the photo because it shows the snake
in its natural habitat, without any movement.
Good work, Jason. Just one pointer: next
time, try to get the snake looking directly at the camera, safety permitting!
