Best of Nature: Winners and Honorable Mentions Revealed in the 2023 Nature Conservancy Photography Competition – Videos from The Weather Channel

Nov 8, 2023 By Admin in Photography

Nine-year ‘duck’ hunt ends as photographer snaps elusive orchid

Nov 8, 2023 By Admin in Photography

Amateur photographer Ockert Le Roux has been on a nine-year duck hunt — of a different kind.

Since moving to South Australia’s South East from Melbourne in 2014, Mr Le Roux had been searching locally for the flying duck orchid (Caleana major) covering “extensive distances” across the region and even taking trips across the border into Western Victoria to find it.

But it was a tip from a friend last Sunday that led him to a location only about 30 minutes’ drive out of town.

“I was working at that moment in time when the text came through,” he said.

“I didn’t want to miss that opportunity … I’ve been looking for it for the past nine years. I’m not going to give that opportunity away.

“I left work, rushed home, and grabbed my camera and my wife and I travelled to this area where the plant was pointed out to me.

“After nine years of diligent searching … it was quite a moment.”

A photographer looks into his camera ready to take a photo — Amateur photographer Ockert Le Roux is a forester by trade.(Supplied: Ockert Le Roux)

Orchid’s local scarcity

Mr Le Roux said while the species was more abundant in other parts of Australia, recorded in every state or territory except the Northern Territory, he had not heard of any recent sightings in the South East.

“There were recordings back in the 80s, but very rarely have I come across anyone who could point out any of these orchids (sighted) since that time,” he said.

“The land use in the South East of South Australia has changed significantly over time.

“There are a lot of forestry areas and a lot of agriculture introduced over the past 140 to 150 years in this region.

“The natural habitat of the orchid was taken up by other land use.”

When he reached the location, which he has chosen to keep secret, Mr Le Roux found two plants, with the larger orchid flower only about 15mm tall.

“You would think that the burgundy or purplish-red colour and the yellow beak would give it away, but it was truly well camouflaged,” Mr Le Roux said.

“I had to look very carefully. I nearly stepped on it.

“I think that’s another reason why they are scarce, or seldom seen.

“It’s just wonderful to see this remarkable creature that mimics a duck in almost all of its anatomy.”

A close-up photograph of a burgundy-coloured flying duck orchid — Ockert Le Roux snapped this flying duck orchid, rarely seen in SA’s South East, after a nine-year search.(Supplied: Ockert Le Roux)

Next search already underway

A forester by trade with an educational background in botany, Mr Le Roux said nature photography was a “natural match” for him.

With one long search over, Mr Le Roux said his focus was now shifting to another rare sight in the region: bioluminescent algae at the Glenelg River in Victoria’s South West.

He has already been trying to photograph the phenomenon for the past four years.

“It’s not as easy as a daytime visit to all these conservation and forest reserves,” he said.

“If there’s kinetic energy in the water, it transforms into a very translucent violet colour of light inside the water.

“The light is very strong; it’s almost like switching on a neon light.

“That’s my next challenge.”

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Sony A9M3 Revolutionizes Photography With High-Speed And 1st Global Shutter Technology

Nov 8, 2023 By Admin in Photography

Sony A9M3 Revolutionizes Photography

Sony has just unveiled its newest gem in the world of professional photography, the Sony Alpha 9 Mark 3 (model name: ILCE-9M3). This flagship full-frame mirrorless camera marks a groundbreaking leap in imaging technology, set to revolutionize the industry with its innovative features and performance capabilities.

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Sony Alpha 9 III Introduction

At the heart of the Sony Alpha 9 III lies a pioneering full-frame global shutter image sensor, a world’s first for cameras. This remarkable sensor empowers the Sony A9M3 to achieve an astounding rate of about 120 frames per second in high-speed continuous shooting, all while eliminating the notorious “jelly effect” and the nuisance of black screens.

Equipped with an approximately 24.6-megapixel Exmor RS CMOS sensor, complemented by the new BIONZ XR image processor and built-in cache, this camera delivers continuous shooting without interruptions, ensuring professional photographers can capture those split-second, decisive moments with ease.

Boasting 759 phase detection autofocus points covering an impressive 95.6% of the framing range, the Sony A9M3 employs an AI-powered chip for real-time recognition and tracking during both video and photo shooting. Notably, it supports uncropped 4K 120p high-frame-rate video recording and high-resolution 4K 60p videos with 6K oversampling.

Further enhancing its prowess, the Sony A9M3 offers enhanced data transfer speeds, doubling that of its predecessor, the A9M2. It utilizes 5GHz communication, ensuring rapid and stable transfers for news, sports photographers, and studios needing instant FTP transfers. Moreover, it features dual card slots supporting CFexpress Type A and UHS-II high-speed SD memory cards, providing professionals with versatility in storage options.

Sony’s Alpha 9 Mark 3 is designed meticulously, from its sensor innovation to its exterior, button layout, and menu functions, all tailored to meet the demands of professional photographers. The camera’s high-speed global shutter functionality, incredible autofocus, and video capabilities, combined with its seamless connectivity options, make it a game-changer in the realm of professional imaging.

The Alpha 9 Mark 3 camera is now open for pre-orders starting November 8, 2023, across a range of authorized Sony dealers. It is available for a suggested retail price of 5,999.99 USD, 8,299.99 CAN, and 44,999 RMB. In addition, the Sony A9 Mark 3 can fully utilize the newly launched 300mm F2.8 G Master OSS lens.

In summary, the Sony A9M3 is a testament to Sony’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of innovation in photography, designed to empower professionals to seize every breathtaking moment with unparalleled speed and precision.

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Rare Edward Weston Photographs highlight Moran’s 20th Century Photography: The Emergence of Modernism sale!

Nov 8, 2023 By Admin in Photography

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — John Moran Auctioneers is pleased to present 20^th Century Photography: The Emergence of Modernism on Wednesday, December 6^th, 2023, at 10:00am PDT. The impressive collection will feature works by Edward Weston, Imogen Cunningham, Ansel Adams, and more! The selection will include eight previously unlocated images from Edward Weston’s 1920’s repertoire.

Edward Weston (1886-1958) “Cuernavaca,” 1925. Palladium print on paper hinged to a thin board mount. Signed, titled, and dated in pencil on the mount, at right: Edward Weston; signed, titled, and dated again in pencil, verso: Nov. 1925. Image/Sheet: 9.625″ H x 7.25″ W; Mount: 18.625″ H x 14.125″ W est. $100,000 – $200,000

Highlighting the sale is a rare collection of Edward Weston photographs that have been part of the Frederick W. Davis Collection for the last one hundred years. Known as, “one of the masters of 20^th century photography,” Edward Weston was an American photographer who contributed to the development of photography to the point it has been regarded as an essential element of modern art. Fred Davis was an early collector and dealer in Mexican folk art who had a shop in Mexico City.

Based on Weston’s journal entries, his first encounter with Davis took place in late August 1924, while he and his son, Chandler and female companion, Tina Modotti were visiting the city of Cuernavaca. Davis owned a residence there and invited them to tour his garden where Weston photographed a statuesque palm tree. After Weston’s second solo exhibition in Mexico City, Fred Davis acquired the photograph of the palm tree that Weston took in his garden. The friendship continued and eventually, Weston was trading photographs with Davis for upscale clothing from his shop.

Although Weston and Davis crossed paths only briefly, both men proved to be extraordinary in their vision and determination to excel. About five years after Davis’s death, much of what remained in his estate (including the eight photographs he had acquired from Weston and two Imogen Cunningham images) was put into storage boxes. Family members, two generations removed from Davis, and fifty years later, rediscovered the boxes and have selected Moran’s to bring these historical images to market.

Preview for this sale will take place Friday, December 1^st – Tuesday, December 5^th from 12:00-4:00pm PDT at our showroom: 145 E. Walnut Ave, Monrovia, CA 91016. Printed catalogues are available for purchase that include new essays. For inquiries, email [email protected] and to order a catalogue or view & bid, go to www.johnmoran.com.

Contact:
Brenda Smith
[email protected]

SOURCE John Moran Auctioneers

Sony Just Revolutionized Professional Photography

Nov 7, 2023 By Admin in Photography

Sony’s new a9 III camera is set to revolutionize professional photography. With the world’s first full frame global shutter sensor, this remarkable technology eliminates historic limitations to unlock astounding new creative possibilities.

I thought twice about using the word “revolutionized” in the title, but in the end, I decided it was the right word. The recent introduction of Sony’s groundbreaking a9 III camera has ushered in a new era for professional image capture. At its heart is the world’s first global shutter in a full frame sensor, a long-awaited (like, really long) advancement that will fundamentally transform many areas of professional photography.

By eliminating the limitations of previous sensor design, the global shutter unlocks game-changing improvements in capture speed, flash sync, and more. The implications for professional photographers are enormous. Let’s examine this revolutionary technology and how it will redefine the boundaries of what is possible in professional photography.

Faster Capture

Electronic rolling shutters top out around 1/32,000 s in most high-level cameras, an improvement of two stops over mechanical shutters. This has limited the ability to freeze extremely fast motion, often necessitating resorting to using flash. The a9 III’s global shutter blasts past these limits to a mind-bending 1/80,000s. For professionals capturing hyper-fast action, this is a dream come true.

A 1/80,000 s shutter speed enables freezing of the fastest subjects in virtually any situation. Crack-of-the-bat baseball swings, hummingbird wings, or bullet impacts can now be captured crisply frozen in time. This will transform the work of sports, wildlife, and action photographers.

Distortion Obliterated

This is the big one. Rolling shutter cameras suffer from distortion of fast movement or panning, particularly with longer lenses. This has long plagued professional photographers who require crisp, clean results. The global shutter eliminates these undesirable artifacts, thanks to simultaneous exposure of the entire frame, allowing the use of an electronic shutter for any sort of action without worry.

Without distortion, professionals can pan freely with long glass or photograph fast cars or propeller blades without warping. Having this clean image capture capability opens new creative options for capturing motion. The combination of ultra-high speed and distortion-free output enables types of images impossible with previous cameras. For example, I frequently photograph classical music concerts, which necessitates me using an electronic shutter due to the need to remain quiet. The trade-off is that violin, viola, cello, and bass bows often looked curved due to rolling shutter. That would not be an issue with a global shutter, allowing me to shoot in silence while still capturing an accurate rendering.

Unchained Flash Photography

Normal sensor designs impose a flash sync ceiling around 1/250s, heavily restricting creative lighting options. The unprecedented speed range of Sony’s new global shutter obliterates this barrier with flash sync up to 1/80,000s.

This enormous headroom offers game-changing tools for creative professionals. Shooting wide open in daylight while retaining flash control is now possible without the need for ND filters or high-speed sync, which results in power loss and banding. This exceptional flash control will be a revelation for portraiture, commercial, and wedding photographers.

No More Flicker Photos

Anyone who has shot under fluorescent lights that cycle know how infuriating it can be to get an image with banded lighting or two different exposures across the frame. Modern cameras often have a flicker-free functions that slightly alters the timing of the shutter to reduce this issues, but it slows down the burst rate and doesn’t totally fix image quality. Since a global shutter exposes the entire frame simultaneously, you will not have two different exposures in the same frame, ever. You may still see differences between successive frames, but this is much more easily fixed, and Sony also included an Anti-Flicker function to address this if desired.

Limitless Video

Rolling shutters introduce ugly distortions when panning or with fast motion. The global shutter enables pristine video. This capability empowers new realms of video capture. Clean recording during fast panned movements or tracking of fast action takes videos to the next level. Videographers will find exciting new creative opportunities.

Next Generation Autofocus

120 fps is great, but it doesn’t mean much if autofocus can’t keep pace. To fully exploit the capabilities, the camera needs an AF system to match. Sony’s latest algorithms and AI processing enable improved speed, tenacity, and precision. While we have yet to see full results, it’s reasonable to assume the system is improved over the a9 II, which already offered impressive performance. Sony’s acclaimed Eye AF has also reached new levels of performance, with increased tracking tenacity over previous models. This translates to more in-focus shots of athletes, animals, children, and other unpredictable subjects.

Blackout-Free 120 FPS Bursts

One of the most important capabilities unlocked by the global shutter is blackout-free continuous shooting at up to 120 frames per second. This astonishing burst performance enables unprecedented (in a full frame camera) ability to capture fleeting moments in time continuously.

Being able to view the active scene without blackout allows photographers to precisely track the peak action and recompose seamlessly. This is invaluable for disciplines like sports, wildlife, and news photography, where crucial moments are ephemeral. Never losing sight of the subject ensures capturing more moments.

Achieving up to 120 fps also provides flexibility to either shoot faster than ever before or to distribute the burst over a longer duration. Having the leeway to spread the burst over three-plus seconds thanks to the large buffer makes it easier to capture an entire passage of activity. Sony was smart not to limit that fast burst rate with a small buffer. The combination of extraordinary speed, uninterrupted live view, and rapid focus tracking gives an edge for capturing decisive moments. In addition, Sony has added pre-capture technology popularized by OM System, settable from .005 seconds to 1 second, making it easier to capture the right moment.

A New Generation of Imaging

Sony’s remarkable engineering achievement lays the foundation for a new generation of imaging technology. The unprecedented speed, flash control, and distortion-free output made possible by the electronic global shutter are a watershed moment for photography. Unexplored creative possibilities lie ahead as professionals exploit these new capabilities. Sony has overcome a major barrier, one that has been the holy grail of photography for at least a decade now.

Dynamic Range Limitations

There is one limitation worth mentioning: dynamic range. Global shutters generally have reduced dynamic range, and that is the case here, with the camera’s minimum ISO being an unusual 250, topping out at 25,600. Given the sensor’s 24.6-megapixel resolution, I don’t expect noise to be a major issue, but it’s worth noting, especially since those fastest shutter speed might necessitate higher ISOs in many situations. That being said, now that we have a working consumer-level full frame global shutter, I’d expect dynamic range to improve in subsequent generations.

Sony also incorporated what they’re calling “Composite Raw Shooting,” which combines, 4, 8, 16, or 32 raw images to reduce noise. While this might not be an option for fast action, given the camera’s insane burst rate, it might be usable for more situations than one might think. Sony even says the mode “makes it possible to shoot wildlife at high shutter speeds or portraits in low light, achieving exceptionally high image quality with low noise, even at higher ISO settings.”

Reasonable Price

Sure, you might be thinking that I’m insane for calling a $6,000 camera reasonable, but look at the competition. The Nikon Z9 costs $5,499 and does offer about double the resolution, should you need it. The Canon EOS R3‘s advantage is that it’s about $1,000 cheaper. You know what both of those cameras don’t have, though? A global shutter. That’s arguably worth $1,000.

Summary

In summary, this revolutionary electronic global shutter represents a momentous leap for the industry, and it puts major pressure on Canon and Nikon. Given the Canon EOS R1 is likely already in the hands of select photographers for testing, its sensor is probably already set in stone, so it will be quite interesting to see if we see a global shutter in the camera. Either way, this is a major day in history for camera technology.

The Sony a9 III will be available for preorder tomorrow, November 8.

Sam Youkilis: The Instagram sensation changing how we see the world

Nov 7, 2023 By Admin in Photography

For the past six years, the filmmaker has captured the essence of our unique world in all its beauty and bizarreness.

Somewhere in Venice, a bustling restaurant is completely booked, even though it’s submerged in a flood. Somewhere in Hanoi, a mother cautiously pushes a stroller into a swarm of honking cars, mopeds and bicycles who instinctively veer around her. And somewhere in Havana, a former nursery school teacher who has always dreamed of leaving Cuba to sing on a stage slips on a dress, heads to Obispo Street, and belts out an angelic call for anyone and everyone to come buy the peanuts she’s selling.

For the past six years, photographer and filmmaker Sam Youkilis has been wandering the globe with an iPhone, finding the poetic in the mundane, and documenting it on his Instagram page for his more-than half a million followers. In an age when so much travel photography blurs together on social media, Youkilis has seemingly pioneered a new form of narrative storytelling.

Instead of Photoshopped landscapes and perfectly plated meals, Youkilis’ short, vertical videos – which highlight everything from mochi-making in Nara to the harvesting of olive oil in Umbria to a montage of stray cats of Greece – celebrate the time-honoured customs and gentle rites that make the world so wondrously diverse while capturing the essence of a place.

“Beautiful things are happening around us all of the time, and my work is often the result of trying to pay attention to these things or waiting for them to happen,” Youkilis said.

To do that, Youkilis says he will often walk up to 15 miles a day, observing people, noticing details that interest him and generally absorbing a place as a flaner. Then, once things happen within frames that catch his eye, he’ll start recording. The result is a study of humanity that blurs the line between travel photography, voyeurism and anthropology, with each video revealing a fleeting glimpse of a place and time.

Now, much of Youkilis’ digital work from 2017 to 2023 is being compiled into his first book of stills called – rather appropriately – Somewhere. The 528-page monograph loosely traces the arc of a day across the planet, opening as dawn breaks across the canals of Xochimilco in Mexico City and ending with the last gasps of light in Essaouira, Morocco.

WATCH: Click the play button above to watch a selection of Sam Youkilis’ Instagram videos (Credit: Sam Youkilis 2023 courtesy Loose Joints)

“I try to travel without expectations, but I also travel to be surprised,” Youkilis said. “A response to the unfamiliar is how a lot of my work is generated.”

Youkilis was raised in Lower Manhattan and now mainly splits his time between Italy and Mexico, but the peripatetic photographer didn’t initially set out to shoot the world. “I started taking pictures as a teenager growing up in New York City. I was gifted a camera and carried it with me everywhere I went,” he said. After years of shooting things like subway graffiti with his friends, Youkilis studied photography in college and bartended to save up enough money to rent a car so he could drive as far as possible off campus with his camera to find inspiration.

Around the same time Youkilis graduated in 2016, Instagram added its Stories feature and the photographer realised he could use the new feature to add narrative depth to his storytelling – be it when showcasing the step-by-step production of unique cultural practice or a collection of thematic videos set in a specific place.

“In my work, narrative is often built through repetition and sequencing,” Youkilis said. “Often the carousel or slides helps me present a linear story of the process behind how something is made, or the beginning to end of a trip – each slide can show a step in the process. It also has become a vehicle to share my more serial work where there are themes, actions or ideas that I photograph continuously.”

Youkilis saved the money he had earned waiting tables back in Manhattan to move to Mexico in 2017. He then got a grant to travel through South America by bus from Colombia to Argentina, and the rest is history.

I recently caught up with Youkilis to ask him a bit more about some of his favourite images in Somewhere and how they came together.