Hello from Udo Kieslich, founder and owner of the College of Digital Photography in Johannesburg | www.codp.co.za. Below is a short snippet on how to go about photographing the Milky Way using Manual exposure mode, a Nikon D850 and a Sigma 14mm f1.8 Art lens. Shoot in RAW and use a Daylight White Balance setting. I hope it will inspire you to hunt the stars! To photograph the Milky Way, find a place with little light pollution on a moonless night and try the following settings: Manual Mode | f2.8… read more →
SIGMA Winning Products at TIPA World Awards 2020 The SIGMA Corporation is pleased to announce that ―The world’s smallest and lightest full-frame mirrorless digital camera “SIGMA fp”, the definitive wide-aperture ultra-wide-angle zoom lens “SIGMA 14-24mm F2.8 DG DN | Art” and the definitive large-diameter zoom lens “SIGMA 24-70mm F2.8 DG DN | Art” for mirrorless cameras―have won TIPA World Awards 2020. 1. SIGMA fp Name of Award : BEST FULL FRAME CAMERA EXPERT The SIGMA fp is the world’s smallest and lightest “pocketable” mirrorless full-frame cameras, one that offers ease-of-use and… read more →
Macro photography is seen as 1:1 (life size) or bigger. Some would include 0.5:1 (half-life size) also as macro, but it is generally not accepted as such. Anything less than 1:1 must be viewed as close-up photography. No zoom lens I know of will provide true macro magnification used on its own irrespective of what is printed on the lens barrel. The difference between true macro and close-up photography is demonstrated by the dragonfly images, close-up on the complete insect, then full macro on the head only. He was just… read more →
In the beginning of most of our photographic journey’s we strive for the best light from over our shoulders that illuminates our subjects in late afternoon golden loveliness. Which it must be said is truly wonderful and makes great images of course. But…the moment I spun that first & last 10 minutes of glorious light on it’s head and had it over my subject shoulder, my photographic journey changed forever! What is not to love about deep rich reds and oranges dancing across a dusty scene creating moody and wonderful… read more →
Introduction The very popular range of 150-600mm zoom lenses, taking over from the 150-500mm models, has received yet another boost with the Sigma 150-600 f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Contemporary entering into this market segment, catering for those who are on a tighter budget and cannot justify the expense for a 500mm or 600mm f4 prime lens, or even the Sigma 150-600 f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sport version of this lens. Offering slower maximum apertures typically at f6.3, these lenses give the enthusiast the perfect alternative to expensive fast prime or… read more →
The lockdown is upon on us, and we must make the most of a very uncomfortable situation. But all is not doom and gloom; there are ways in which you can make the experience of isolation less painful. The good news is that now “shooting in isolation” does not mean you have to keep looking over your shoulder all the time, as we are used to do when out all alone in a more rural area with expensive camera equipment. This time it means you are on your own, or… read more →
With South Africa going into a national lock-down situation, photographers all over the country are forced into confinement at their places of residence, waiting out this Covid-19 pandemic taking control of our lives. I read a light-hearted comment on Facebook very recently that all photographers will now become expert portrait and pet photographers. This is a hard hitting, reality awakening statement. It is however not only portraits and pets, but now also your extreme creativity can be tested – walking around in your home or apartment and seeking those other… read more →
Hi, I hope you’re all locked down and ready for the upcoming weeks in isolation! My name is Andrew Morgan, I’m an ambassador for Sigma South Africa and have been a full time professional photographer for about ten years. Although I now live in Cape Town, I spent the larger part of my photographic career living on the island of Zanzibar in the Indian Ocean, a tropical paradise for holiday makers, but full of a wide range of difficulties as a photographer. One of the worst things to plague me… read more →
Firstly, this lens shooting Portraits has unbelievable sharpness across the entire frame and the AF communicates so well with my Sony A7RIV. Even though this is one of the heaviest prime lenses I found it well balanced on my e-mount system. The 40mm focal length allowed me to move around in Studio that already was rather compressed, so work space was tight as you can see in the BTS Image. Needless to say, I have found a new love and hope my 105 f1.4 DG HSM Art is prepared to… read more →
