And so 2018 has been and gone, meaning an end to my Photo 52 for the year. When I look back at it in it's entirety, I'm quite proud of the work I've accomplished.
Photography isn't my job: it is my hobby, and so it is primarily something which I do in spare time (what little I have). The purpose of the Photo 52 project is to ensure that I pick up my camera at least once a week - a difficulty considering a busy family life. This maintains my ability to tweak-settings, and keep my muscle memory and general composition up to speed.
More often than not, a photo for the week occur within the local vicinity. Only six out of the fifty-two weeks feature shots from places outside of the greater Brighton area, mainly trips to London (though also my first airshow in years).
I really value and appreciate the opportunities to travel for photography, not least because it gives me some fresh subjects to shoot but also because I more-often-than-not do so with a friend of mine who is also well into his photography. It was thanks to him that both portrait sessions I took part in last year occurred.
Some stats for Photo 52 2018 (ah, the joy of LR metadata!):
Over 70% of the shots posted to the album were primes, with the majority of those coming from my erstwhile favourite the Voigtlander. And I only relied on my phone for one week! Not bad.
I did try to get more use out of my zooms though. The 14-140mm offers such a useful focal length, particularly if you're walking around a National Trust property and don't want to be swapping lenses all the time. And it is sharp, much sharper than any 10x zoom of this type should be.
I even managed to grab some shots using my ancient 100-300mm telephoto, possibly the softest native lens I now own. It is quite soft unless stopped-down, has a sticky-focus ring, and also tends to zoom itself when the lens is pointing down... But there's nothing else in my arsenal that offers the focal-length (the 100-400mm was a rental for the weekend).
I was also surprised at how often I reached for the tiny-yet-capable 12-32mm pancake zoom. This lens is minuscule - you can chuck it in the camera bag without any regard for room or weight - plus it performs so well. I've started using it in place of my UWA zoom, the Olympus 9-18mm, which isn't quite performing as well as I remember it having done in the past.
What did I learn from 2018's Photo 52? Three important things:
What is the plan for 2019 then? Well, more of the same really.
I want to do another airshow, possibly Flying Legends. And I already have a light-show planned up in London towards the end of January. I'm hoping for some more portraiture, as that was completely new for me last year and I hope to use some of my learnings and extra confidence from the shoots to improve.
So happy new year! And let's get on with a new Photo 52 (yes, I've already started)!
More often than not, a photo for the week occur within the local vicinity. Only six out of the fifty-two weeks feature shots from places outside of the greater Brighton area, mainly trips to London (though also my first airshow in years).
I really value and appreciate the opportunities to travel for photography, not least because it gives me some fresh subjects to shoot but also because I more-often-than-not do so with a friend of mine who is also well into his photography. It was thanks to him that both portrait sessions I took part in last year occurred.
Some stats for Photo 52 2018 (ah, the joy of LR metadata!):
| Camera used | Shots taken |
| Panasonic Lumix GH4 | 12 |
| Panasonic Lumix G9 | 39 |
| Apple iPhone 7 | 1 |
| Lens used | Shots taken |
| Samyang f/3.5 7.5mm fisheye | 1 |
| Voigtlander f/0.95 17.5mm | 19 |
| Panasonic Leica DG Summilux f/1.4 25mm | 4 |
| Panasonic Lumix G f/1.7 42.5mm | 12 |
| Olympus 9-18mm | 1 |
| Panasonic Lumix 12-32mm | 5 |
| Panasonic Lumix 14-140mm Mk2 | 4 |
| Panasonic Lumix 100-300mm | 4 |
| Panasonic Leica 100-400mm | 1 |
| Apple iPhone 7 | 1 |
Over 70% of the shots posted to the album were primes, with the majority of those coming from my erstwhile favourite the Voigtlander. And I only relied on my phone for one week! Not bad.
I did try to get more use out of my zooms though. The 14-140mm offers such a useful focal length, particularly if you're walking around a National Trust property and don't want to be swapping lenses all the time. And it is sharp, much sharper than any 10x zoom of this type should be.
I even managed to grab some shots using my ancient 100-300mm telephoto, possibly the softest native lens I now own. It is quite soft unless stopped-down, has a sticky-focus ring, and also tends to zoom itself when the lens is pointing down... But there's nothing else in my arsenal that offers the focal-length (the 100-400mm was a rental for the weekend).
I was also surprised at how often I reached for the tiny-yet-capable 12-32mm pancake zoom. This lens is minuscule - you can chuck it in the camera bag without any regard for room or weight - plus it performs so well. I've started using it in place of my UWA zoom, the Olympus 9-18mm, which isn't quite performing as well as I remember it having done in the past.
What did I learn from 2018's Photo 52? Three important things:
- My Voigtlander isn't sharp across the frame
I need to do some testing to ascertain exactly what is happening, but sharpness on the left-hand side of the frame drops dramatically from f/2 to f/4. This may depend on aperture and distance, as it is more noticeable in some images than others. - The minimum shutter-speed setting on the G9 is both a blessing and a curse
How many times have I gone to take photo, only to wonder why the shutter-speed is completely inappropriate for the focal length I'm using? I need to learn to check this setting when swapping lenses! - Zooms are fun and usable
And provide a lot of versatility in good light. Heck, with my newer zooms, I can even rely on the DualIS2 to shoot in bad light! I'll definitely be using them more in 2019.
What is the plan for 2019 then? Well, more of the same really.
I want to do another airshow, possibly Flying Legends. And I already have a light-show planned up in London towards the end of January. I'm hoping for some more portraiture, as that was completely new for me last year and I hope to use some of my learnings and extra confidence from the shoots to improve.
So happy new year! And let's get on with a new Photo 52 (yes, I've already started)!
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