“Knowing where, when and how the light will shine gives you the edge over other photographers”

© Harry Wheeler-Brand 5 ISSUES FOR £5/$5 Subscribe

SONY CLOSES DOOR ON A-MOUNT

The days of the SLT have predictably come to an end making Sony a mirrorless-only company

Canon to launch world’s first AF shift lenses?

It may be about to release some revolutionary optics into its range

Sony Xperia PRO is more than a phone

New smartphone is a swiss army knife of features and connectivity tools

Leica launches cheaper zoom lens

It’s still not the cheapest, but has an “excellent price-performance ratio”

In other news

More snippets of photography news from around the world

STORY BEHIND THE STILL

Photographer’s name: Mohit Khetrapal Website: m.facebook.com/ mohitkhetrapalsphotography, IG:

HOT STUFF

Pro photographer Mike Mezeul II is on a journey to photograph some of the world’s most spectacular volcano activity

The Gallery

Pink Lady® Food Photographer of the Year Awards 2021

SHOT OF THE MONTH

Photographer: Joshua Boisvert Location: Great Sand Dunes, Colorado, USA

THE BEST OF SPRING COLOUR

The winners of our latest contest with Photocrowd have been revealed

The dawn thing

We meet Harrybehindthelens in the East of England. Find out how he captures traditional landscape shots with minimal editing

PHOTO GIFTS

Use supermarket photo services to create a range of niche products

MULTICULTURAL AND MULTI-FAITH WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY

Claire Gillo speaks to the pros in the business about shooting weddings with more than one faith or culture and shares their top tips and experiences

Career advice

Claire Gillo shares her top tips, answering your questions and giving her recommendations on where to sell your artwork online

Selling photography artwork online

Photographer Jo Stephen shares her experiences of selling her photography artwork online at Fine Art America (FAA)

WHY SHOTS WORK

© Rory Lewis NAME: James Purefoy, London DATE:

ALL THE GEAR, SOME IDEA?

Mike Harris on why you can take pro shots with any camera equipment 

10 ways to use summer light

Make the most of the brilliant summer sun and step into the great outdoors to add a whole raft of cleverly-lit images to your portfolio

Artistic macro

Plan, shoot and edit close-up and macro images with creative lighting, colour and background interest

Kit breakdown

Which equipment is truly essential for macro and what items are best for creative results?

Macro lens types

Pick the right lens for your creative macro requirements

Play with focus

Experiment with differential focusing methods to make the most of abstract colour and light

Shoot through colour

Add depth and creative colour washes for interest

Practical special effects

Use household objects to create abstract macro looks

Work with backgrounds

Control detail and colour behind your subject, as this can make or break your macro shots

Create a macro landscape

Macro expert Stewart Wood ( www.stewartwood.com ) demonstrates

Control your lighting

Learn to work with tight lighting angles and complex environments for beautiful illumination of miniature scenes

Process your shots

Improve the creative edge of your macro shots by adjusting light and colour

Essential editing tools

The key software features for creating macro masterpieces

Bokeh bank

Keep a file of background textures

Top editing steps

Explore some of the most common processing techniques for close-up flower images

Top tips for artistic macro shots

Use these key techniques to bring your macro photography to more creative heights today

Shoot a Renaissance Still Life

Light, shoot and edit a still life scene for a stunning oil painting type effect

Shoot blossom avenues

Capture the colour and depth in lines of blossom trees as they reach maximum bloom

How to shoot handheld nightscapes

Move freely through the city shooting handheld to capture wide and intimate city scenes that are pin-sharp and perfectly exposed

Sharpening your images

Get pin-sharp shots using layers and blending modes

Use colour range masks for dramatic skies

Darken the sky to draw focus into an image

70-200MM ZOOMS

Can the latest 70-200mm f/2.8 telephoto zooms for mirrorless cameras beat popular predecessors for performance and value? Let’s find out…

Fujifilm X-E 4

Fujifilm’s X-E4 is attractively compact and unobtrusive, but what is the company’s latest 26.1MP camera like to use? Angela Nicholson investigates

Blackmagic Design Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro

A lot of filmmakers are excited about Blackmagic Design’s latest Pocket Cinema Camera. Angela Nicholson takes a look at what the fuss is about

Canon RF 600mm f/11 IS STM

We take a closer look at a lens which offers surprises aplenty

Nikkor Z 20mm f/1.8 S

Is this wide aperture prime a further string in Nikon’s mirrorless bow?

ACCESSORIES

A collection of ten fun-yet-functional products out there for photographers