Photography Roundup - 3/20

Weekly-ish News and Photography Updates

By K David in Columns on Mar 20, 2015

Image Inspired by the Video for Blown Minded | Hattifnatt

As the saying goes, if March comes in like a lion it goes out like a lamb; or if it comes in like a lamb it goes out like a lion. Well, wherever you are, we hope that your March started out like a lion and that calm weather and nicer days are ahead of you. Here in California we're having our own problems: it's finally warm enough to use our outdoor swimming pools, but the days are too short still so there's not enough evening light to swim by. We absolutely feel your pain, Boston and basically the rest of the world.

Featured Reviews

Don't miss our latest in-depth reviews!

• HD Pentax-DA 16-85mm F3.5-5.6
• Sigma USB Dock
• Pentax-DA 35mm F2.4

Featured Deals

March's deals sure have come in like a lamb. That can only mean that March's deals will go out like a lion. Did you know that B&H and Adorama have some of the best film availability on the Internet? Neither have any special deals right now, but Adorama has some very good every day prices on film that are beating Amazon Warehouse lately.

• Topaz B&W Effects is still $20 off until the end of March.
• B&H Film Stock
• Adorama Film Stock
• Sigma 10-20mm & 17-50mm Rebates

Photo Contest Roundup

Below are the major photo contests and events currently live on the forum.

Monthly Contest #102 Update

Vote now for the winner of the Moonscapes contest! The poll will close in just a few days, at which point we'll announce our winners.

Monthly Contest #103 Mirror Image

After you vote for the best moonscape, take a moment to enter our Mirror Image contest.

Post-processing Challenge #140, the Sac-town Smack Down

Post-processing Challenge #140 features a photo of the CalSRTS building in Sacramento. This photo was taken with the Pentax K-S1 specifically for the Pentax Forums review of the camera. This has been a particularly fun challenge because the image has a lot of room for improvement. There are still a few days left in the challenge, so hurry over, grab the raw file, and see what you can do!

Gear News

Rollei for Auction

As you may have heard this week, there will be no more Rollei cameras. Rollei's equipment, camera parts, and partially completed bodies will go up for auction in August. For those of us who have derived great joy using our Rollei cameras, this is a very sad day. As an owner of one of the oldest Rolleiflexes still in existence, it's sad to see a company that has made such high-quality camera equipment could not survive the digital transition.

Leica Survives the Digital Transition

Thanks to a niche market, retro digital bodies, Leica is still around. Whethere your view of Leica is that they are for people with more money than sense or that they make highly precise photographic machines suitable for only the best photographers, their ability to survive in the digital age where so many other camera makers have not is admirable.

Related: our in-depth review of the Leica D-Lux Typ 109

Photography News: corpoReality

Before clicking on the links in this story, know that there are images on the pages which are not safe for work or other polite environments. No images are obscene or pornographic, but some do contain powerful and honest nudity.

Until April 11, 2015, The Invisible Dog in New York is hosting a show by photographer Sophie Klafter. Klafter's project, corpoReality, focuses on portraits of people living with disabilities. Her work portrays them, including herself, in a compassionate, honest manner that humanizes a class of people we often find it easy to ignore. Klaftner's work, through its honesty and artistic value, forges a connection with the viewer that, like all great photos, remains with the viewer long after seeing the exhibition. For more information on this exhibit, visit Refinery29.

Featured Online Photography Resource 

Here's a photo resource you already know about: YouTube. But are you aware of the quality and diversity of information on YouTube? YouTube is more than Jarrod Polin, Ted Forbes, Matt Grainger, and DigitalRevTV. YouTube, as a photography resource, thrives on small channels like mine, The Angry Photographer (under the channel name Theoria Apophasis), Chuck Jines, Shawnee Union, and others. If you want a YouTube channel that can help inspire you through the host's own creative output, channels like Berman Yaniv and Josh Harmon share video imagery where every frame feels like a well thought-out and designed still.

Small channels are, in my view, the lifeblood of YouTube. While big channels provide the most revenue, certainly, small channels make YouTube a viable creative resource where creators can provide insight into their methods and approaches, interface directly with viewers, and provide videos exempt from the branding and constantly on-message nature of the large, sponsored channels.

Featured Photography Journal

My favorite in-print photography magazine for a number of years has been Photo Life. A Canadian publication, Photo Life ships worldwide and goes to press six times each year. It's easy to think that Photo Life is like Outdoor Photographer without all the ads and (potentially) sponsored editorials and gear guides. But that's only part of it. Photo Life focuses on photographers who have made photography their life's passion. Many are professionals, but not all. Photo Life features articles on technique, locations, and how to live a life rich in creating quality imagery. The best part is that their content is unbiased and not influenced by their sponsors. If I had to keep only one magazine subscription, it would be Photo Life. I strongly recommend subscribing as this is the best publication available today for improving your photographic quality and enjoyment.

Specializes in: Articles about how to live a life rich in photography and develop high-quality, emotion-generating results, regardless of image genre (most articles are about nature photography, however.)

Publication Frequency: Every other month

Submission Fee: Not applicable