Welcome

As noted in this month’s cover feature (page

Dog day afternoon

Alistair Campbell joins Anna-Marie Coster for a pet portraits session amongst the buttercups

Winging it

Samuel Hazell says capturing birds with a long lens can be a calming experience

Get set up for bird photography

1 Create some foreground To enhance my shots

A bug’s life

Explore the wonderful world of invertebrates with Jamie Thorpe

Perfect portraits

James Artaius uses digital gels on pro LED lights to paint portraits with colour

I like to move it move it

Alistair Campbell uses intentional camera movement to get creative with architecture

Military precision

Vince Preston explains how he captured the natural atmosphere and special moments on Armed Forces Day

Time-lapse plants

Use a stills camera with an intervalometer to capture nature photographs with a difference, says Adrian Davies

Full steam ahead

Get your photography skills on track with these helpful tips and tricks for shooting heritage and preserved railways

Make a sunprint

The sun has well and truly come! Here’s how to create some cool artworks

Vintage photo challenge

Send us your best image to win a £50 voucher towards Cewe Wall Art

COASTAL CAPTURES

10 techniques for shooting dramatic shoreline scenics, by Jon Adams and Andrew James

1 TRY A LONG EXPOSURE

Record a scene over a longer period to capture the blurred movement of waves lapping on the shore

2 GET HIGH FOR AN ABSTRACT ANGLE

Take your images to new heights with a drone and capture the perfect bird’s-eye view of coastal scenery from above

3 COMPOSE WITH BOATS

Make the most of these ubiquitous seaside subjects

4 SHOOT COASTAL LANDMARKS

Get dramatic wide-angle shots of iconic structures by using natural elements of the landscape as foreground interest

5 REPLACE DULL SKIES – FAST!

A great foreground is only half the story – if a bland sky lessens the impact of your shot, replace it digitally

6 DON’T FORGET THE DETAILS

When it comes to capturing the essence of a landscape, sometimes an intimate image outshines the wider scene

7 MAKE IT MINIMALIST

Forget trying to cram everything you see into the frame – search for a simpler composition instead

8 MONO MAGIC

Get classic, timeless shots that convey the mood of the scene

9 USE CAMERA MOVEMENT FOR INSTANT ART

Who says every shot needs to be sharp? Break the rules with intentional camera movement

10 CAPTURE THE POWER OF NATURE

The strength of storm-force winds are often hard to capture on camera but when big waves meet the land, the resulting images are always impressive

Don’t want it? Remove it!

This new Photoshop tool will revolutionise the way you retouch your photos

Make shallow focus edits in Lightroom

Get that creamy look in your portraits with the tone curve and masking features

Enhance your landscape shots

Improve almost any scene with these four non-destructive techniques in Photoshop

Improve your shots with our Actions and Presets

THIS MONTH’S BONUS SOFTWARE EXTRAS

Photo Answers

Mystified by megapixels? Vexed over vignetting? Send your technique and camera questions to digitalcamera@futurenet.com

The art of seeing

Benedict Brain gets bored at the airport hotel but soon finds creative inspiration

Hotshots

Our highlights from the Canarian Photo Awards 2023

Reader gallery

Digital Camera readers show how they’ve been getting creative, submitting images across a range of genres

Shot of the month

In her new work, Christy Lee Rogers challenges the uses of artificial intelligence

In Focus

The latest photography news from around the globe

Behind the lens

SEBASTIAN BRUNO  Documentary photographer whose new photo book The Dynamic is on sale now

Summer photo reads

Some of these titles will fit in your holiday luggage… but if not, they will certainly complete a photography lover’s coffee table

Scanning ahead…

Embracing new technologies can help you explore your creative vision,says Jon Devo

Kit Zone

New gear, buying tips and the world’s toughest tests

David Hurn

The Magnum Photos legend has just published a retrospective of his long and distinguished career. Niall Hampton asks him what can buyers expect to see

What the f-stop?

How much do you really know about photography? Test yourself to the max every issue with our tricky trivia quiz!

Canon EOS R100

£670/$600 (with RF-S 18-45mm F4.5-6.3 IS STM lens)

Fujifilm X-S20

£1,249/$1,299 (body only)

Sigma 23mm F1.4 DC DN Contemporary

£449/$549

Tamron 35-150mm F/2-2.8 Di III VXD

£1,799/$1,899

Adobe Lightroom 2023

From £10/$10 per month

Mylio Photos+

£10/$10 per month (subscription)

Mini reviews

The best kit to pass through our labs this month