Meet Jim Kasson

Home base: United States

Jim Kasson, a long-time member of DPReview’s moderator team, has been taking and processing photographs since he was given a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye in the early 1950s. His work has since ranged from documentary and photojournalism to fine-art series, and his current kit includes the Nikon Z8, Hasselblad X2D II and Fujifilm GFX 100 II.

In this spotlight, Jim shares the practically boundless diversity of cameras and lenses he uses today, the lessons learned through years of darkroom and digital work and why he believes a photographer’s own images will show them how to improve.

“In 1951 or 1952, when I was eight or nine, my parents bought me a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye camera. It took a dozen 2 1/4-square pictures on a roll of 620 film, was made of Bakelite, and had a not-very-precise waist-level finder and a shutter release you pressed with your thumb. I loaded it with Super-XX film and started making a pest of myself behind the camera ever since.”

Our ‘What’s in your bag?’ community spotlight series features readers sharing their favorite gear and photography, including from past DPReview collaborators. See below for what today’s guest has to share.

What’s in Jim’s bag

Jim Kasson

Favorite cameras(s):

• Nikon Z8 with the 105mm macro or Plena lens
• Hasselblad H2D II with a 35-100mm lens
• GFX 100 II with a 110mm F2 or Rodenstock 105mm F5.6 HR Digaron macro lens

Favorite lens(s):

• Nikkor AF-S 105mm F1.4 ED
• Zeiss Otus 55mm and 85mm
• Leica 280mm F4 Apo-Telyt-R
• Cosina-Voigtländer 125mm F2.5
• Jenoptik 60mm F4 IR-VIS-UV

“In the past, I’ve used a Graflex Speed Graphic 4×5, Minolta Autocord, Mamiya 330, Hasselblad 501 and 503, Linhof Technika, Plaubel Makina, Nikon F, F3, F4, F5, D1, D2, D3, D4, D5, Leica M8, M9, M10, Sony Alpha 7 and 9. As you can see, I’ve used a lot of cameras.”

Favorite gear: “My favorite piece of gear is the one that best enables me to realize my current vision for a series. So that changes from series to series. Currently, I’m using the Fujifilm GFX 100 II and the Rodenstock 105mm F5.6 HR Digaron Macro, and liking the results.”

How did you get started in photography?

Jim Kasson

“Early on, I did what a lot of photographers did: I worked for the school newspaper and yearbook, entered student contests, etc. Then I was photo editor of the Stanford Chaparral. After that, I took photos of auto racing for Competition Press and AutoWeek.

After getting the Kodak Brownie Hawkeye camera, it soon became obvious that drugstore processing was too expensive. So, my father purchased a rudimentary darkroom kit: a plastic Kodak developing tank with an apron that took a day to dry, a Kodak Tri-Chem pack (developer, stop, and fixer in tiny foil packets), a 15 W light bulb that’d been dipped in red dye, three plastic five-by-seven trays, and a small contact printing frame. I’d load the film into the developing tank in a closet and develop and print in the bathroom, washing the film and prints in the sink. This didn’t exactly endear me to my mother, but I loved it.

In the spring of 1957, I was a freshman at Choate. During spring break, I got the idea of taking pictures for the school newspaper. I talked my father into loaning me a Weston Master II light meter and his folding Zeiss Ikon camera: 16 pictures on a roll of 120mm film, in a format we’d today call 6×4.5. It had no rangefinder, and the film traveled from side to side so that the normal orientation of the picture was portrait.

What was developing film at the school like?

Jim Kasson

“Back in school, I presented myself to the newspaper staff, and they decided to give me a trial assignment.

“Do you know how to develop film?” they asked. “Sure,” I answered, thinking of all the rolls that I’d put through the Kodak tank. I went off to make the picture. It was a boring shot: all the seniors elected to cum laude that year lined up in two rows. It was 7:30 am when I was done, and paste-up was supposed to start at 10:30 am.

I headed for the school darkroom. I found the chemicals, but the developing tank was like nothing I’d ever seen before. It said “Nikor” on it. Totally unrelated to Nikkor lenses. The tank itself, the lid, and the cap seemed to be easy enough to figure out, but the stainless-steel spiral befuddled me. If I’d had any sense, I would’ve used an unexposed roll of film to teach myself how to load the reel, but I just turned out the lights and struggled for 10 minutes.

After the film was fixed, I opened the tank to see how bad off I was. It was bad; the film was stuck to itself in lots of places, and those places weren’t fixed. I finally found an intact frame. While the film was drying (I turned the drier thermostat up so high I’m lucky the film didn’t reticulate), I turned to the enlarger. I’d never seen one before. After the prints were washed, I even figured out the print drier.

I got the prints in on time, and my career as a photojournalist had truly begun.”

How has your photography changed since you started?

Jim Kasson

“In my high school and college years, my photography was mostly documentary. I was a photographer for my high school newspaper and yearbook. Most of that was headshots, candids, sports and event coverage. I was photo editor for the Stanford Chaparral, and that was mixed editorial work and ads. The Chappie told the advertisers that if they didn’t have photos, they’d provide them, and that task fell to me, including recruiting models.

For many years, I just did family photos, but in 1980 I built myself a proper darkroom, bought a Hasselblad, then a Linhof Master Technika, and tried to make art in earnest.

Doing the work was the biggest factor in my improvement, but I took a lot of workshops, which helped immensely, by the way. I’ve had the pleasure of taking workshops with Ansel Adams, George Tice, Eugene Richards, Chris Newbert and many others. All of them have helped me be a better photographer.”

Tell us a little bit about the places you like to shoot

Jim Kasson

“For five years I made images of people working in the fields in the Salinas Valley and around Yuma, Arizona. I produced a body of work of which I am proud. Much of this work was exhibited in 2003 at the Hartnell College Gallery, which Eric Bosler curated. It was titled Pastures of Plenty. Keeping to the Woody Guthrie theme, I call the whole series This Green Growing Land. The series was also exhibited at Hartnell about 15 years later.

I get bored easily, and I work in series. I go where the series I create takes me. For Alone in a Crowd, that was train stations in New York, Zurich, London and other cities around Europe. For Nighthawks and Staccato, it was Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco and Las Vegas. For underwater work, I mostly worked in the Caribbean, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea and various other locations.

What suggestions do you have for others on improving their photography?

Jim Kasson

“Usually, it takes me two to five years to work through a set of ideas, and then I move on. I don’t really have a default style, though I naturally develop one for a series that is strong by the end. I believe that if you pay attention, your work will tell you what you need to do to improve it.

Strategies and techniques evolve over time in response to results. When I start out on a series, I don’t know what will work and what won’t, so there’s quite a bit of flailing and missteps. After I get on top of things, I know what I need to do.

A big factor in my improvement as a photographer was letting go of trying to copy other people’s styles and, even worse, their subject matter. I learned to follow my work where it takes me, try to ignore what others are doing in the moment while learning from them about broad approaches that resonate with me. My mantra is, “Your work will tell you what you need to do to make it better, if you are willing to listen to it.”

Jim really enjoyed participating in this spotlight article and would love to hear what you think of his photography and to answer any of your questions in the comments below.

You can check out Jim’s other work and photography discussions right here on DPReview in the community forums, or visit his blog.

Editor’s note: This article continues a series, ‘What’s in your bag?’, highlighting DPReview community members, their photography and the gear they depend on. Would you like your photography to be featured in a future installment? Tell us a bit about yourself by filling out this form.

Last week’s Question of the week asked: what one camera feature that doesn’t yet exist would you like to have? More than 100 DPReview readers responded with ideas ranging from practical improvements to hilarious and ambitious reimaginings of what a camera could do.

Built-in GPS, a true raw histogram and smartphone-style computational photography came up repeatedly. So did requests for more durable travel cameras, universal flash triggering, sensor-based tilt control and a return to smart depth-of-field modes. Below, we’ve gathered 10 of the most interesting suggestions – and a few wonderfully unconventional ones.

#1 – Built-in GPS, and why it’s harder than it sounds

GPS and geotagging were the most requested new camera features, with several posters adding location tracking and anti-theft locking to this bucket type. This makes sense. Who doesn’t want to know where they and their gear are at all times… right?

mach21photo asked for “a way to remotely brick your stolen camera.”

thielges explained why in-camera GPS has been unpopular: “it can take minutes to re-lock, and keeping it on drains the battery”. His suggested fix is to tether the camera to a phone over Bluetooth and stamp the phone’s location into the EXIF data. A winning solution.

#2 – Computational photography, but on the photographer’s terms

Several of you want smartphone-style processing in “real” cameras. Cameras and phones seem to be ever growing closer together, so you may actually get this wish someday.

jande9 wants a camera that constantly takes pictures in the background, so that pressing the shutter produces an image that averages each pixel to reduce noise, and that sends the result straight to the phone, much as a phone does today.

Mario F. described a very specific use case: an in-camera “window pull” HDR mode for real estate and interior photographers, who currently spend hours blending brackets for every property.

jesbe took that idea even further and asked for in-camera raw processing that runs while the camera is on standby or charging, using full Lightroom-level profiles, plus a compact with a real zoom, real flash and larger sensor but phone-level processing tricks.

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#3 – A true raw histogram

If computational photography isn’t of interest, how about a real raw histogram, raw-based zebras and a waveform display tech?

The community drilled down on a technical level as to why JPEG-based histograms mislead, with nobru1958 explaining the in-camera processing behind it and mcantsin noting that digital cinema cameras already offer raw exposure tools.

#4 – Cameras you can open up, lock down and trust

Franck Mee had three “simple” requests: standard Bluetooth audio support, file encryption (“a matter of life and death for reporters”) and open-source firmware, so that poor operating behavior can be fixed and security updates can be applied.

Others added their support, including patrol_taking_9j, who put it in two words: “Open firmware.”

A very practical set of considerations.

#5 – Designed for how people really shoot

IEBA1 wants more ruggedness in compact travel zooms. After, unfortunately, two of his had died, including one dropped while being pulled from a pocket (whoops), IEBA1 would happily accept a slightly larger body with a magnesium frame and a grip.

Chris Cookson wants a waterproof camera small enough for a rock pool or shallow creek, with at least a Micro Four Thirds sensor and strong macro capability, asking: “More of the earth is under water than in air, so why is it impossible to find a more capable go anywhere camera?” Great point, Chris!

#6 – Built-in wireless TTL flash triggering

Wireless flash control was a recurring wish, often accompanied by complaints about proprietary systems. psartman kept it short: “Built-in wireless TTL flash triggering.” When a reply pointed to a Nikon body that does this through its pop-up flash, psartman answered that many advanced and professional bodies don’t have a built-in flash.

Phill L wants to end the problem at the hot shoe, literally: “The end of proprietary hot shoes. Get with the game and have all brands’ flashes work on all cameras, with at least most of the functionality. Just add a digital communication bus so each brand can add their own special features and communicate through it. Sort of like USB but for flashes.”

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#7 – In-camera back tilt movements capability

Several of you want the camera to do what a tilt lens does, using the sensor stabilization system. dan pv had a good take on the idea:

“In-camera back tilt movement capabilities. The sensor could be tilted for a close-to-far sharpness at any f-stop in landscape or product photography. It could be done by the camera IBIS, extended a bit. One could choose on the LCD screen 2-3 points of sharpness, and the processor could compute and automatically apply the needed sensor tilt.”

L Lenson agreed and suggested where it could start: “At least medium format backs should have this capability. They are already expensive as it is, so adding the extra cost would perhaps not matter so much.” L Lenson also noted that the closest thing available today is a lens with a defect in which one side focuses closer than the other.

#8 – Borrowing tricks from astronomy

Perhaps the most ‘out there’ answer came from geekyrocketguy, who wants cameras to read the sensor non-destructively during an exposure:

“My background is astronomy, and this is a standard technique for the detectors there. It’s called ‘read up the ramp’ or ‘sample up the ramp.’ Basically, the sensor gets read out many times during an exposure and is only reset at the start. This offers the potential to greatly reduce read noise.”

This is actually a big deal. If a bright object saturates after three of ten reads, its brightness can be extrapolated from those three reads, which greatly extends dynamic range. For night and landscape work, geekyrocketguy calls it “game-changing.”

#9 – Bringing back DEP/A DEP

Not every idea was for something new. Several of you asked for the return of a feature that older Canon film and digital cameras already had: depth-of-field modes that work out the aperture for you, based on the nearest and farthest points you want sharp.

The idea came up in more than one post, and the most developed version, which drew some of the most reactions in the thread, came from Tony Hall, who would also like it updated for modern subject detection.

“Bring back DEP (or A-DEP) in which the camera calculates depth of field for you, either automatically or by defining a start and end point for your depth of field. Today, it would probably be called “smart aperture”. It could have various modes you could toggle by assigning a button to flip through them:

• Portrait: Both eyes in focus, eyes and ears or entire head in focus
• All detected faces in focus
• Only registered faces in focus
• Touch screen: touch near limit, touch far limit
• Similar settings for animals and other detected objects

While they’re at it, throw in some zone focusing modes you can assign to a button.”

rawdinal described how the original worked on the Canon EOS 5: “Focus on the closest point, focus on the farthest point. Then shoot.” He added a mysterious bit about the mode: “Nobody knows why this wonderful Mode was ripped off.”

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#10 – Old ideas that deserve a revival

Anyone remember the Contax AX, which focused by moving the film plane rather than the lens? It imagined a smaller modern take that could autofocus vintage primes.

ismith talked about it and said that he wanted “cool cameras” back, such as a new take on Sony’s DSC-R1.

A few bonus ideas for fun

When writing this article, I knew we would come across some wild ideas, but this one is extra unique. “A rope-pull starter for an internal combustion camera”, from focal yokel. It was noticed by our own reviews editor, Mitchell Clark, who said it would only work “if it takes, like, 5 times to get it running like most of the lawnmowers I’ve used.”

hieronymusevers asked for “the absence of 95% of all features a modern camera has,” which drew plenty of agreement from fans of simpler cameras. We can all relate to this sentiment at times, I bet.

Thanks to our inventive community for coming up with some truly unique and interesting new features that help us get the most out of our gear. I’ll take two of those internal combustion cameras, please.

Do you have a new feature to suggest? Join the discussion in the forums and tell us (and by extension, your favorite camera company) the feature you’d most like to see.

Meet Florent Chouffot

Home base: Belfort, France

Florent Chouffot, known in the community as Adynatoon, is fascinated by the relationship between various insects and plants. From delicate flowers to elaborate traps, Florent reveals the unexpected beauty of carnivorous plants. He shares how a Panasonic S1R and vintage lenses help him balance scientific detail with imaginative close-ups.

“I’m a French amateur photographer who’s been into the hobby since the early 2000s. I’ve always been fascinated by weather phenomena, especially thunderstorms. What frustrated me most was how fleeting these moments are, sometimes lasting only minutes… or just milliseconds in the case of a lightning strike. Photography felt like the obvious way to hold onto them.

Around the same time, I started growing carnivorous plants. I think they are the perfect expression of nature’s extreme adaptations, with extraordinary shapes and colors, and so many fine details you can barely see with the naked eye that deserve to be showcased. So from the very beginning, I’ve had these two interests: skyscapes and plant close-ups.”

Our ‘What’s in your bag?’ community spotlight series features readers sharing their favorite gear and photography, including from past DPReview collaborators. See below for what Lester has to share.

What’s in Florent’s bag

Florent Chouffot

Favorite cameras(s): Panasonic DC-S1R

“I’m currently using a Panasonic DC-S1R. It offers the best balance of features for the way I work, and when I bought it, it was a great bargain for what it delivers. I don’t need advanced autofocus – or much autofocus at all – and I don’t need speed. What I value is low ISO noise and very high detail. I also appreciate how many different lenses I can mount on it.”

Favorite lens(s): Pentax K SMC 55mm F4 macro

“For plant macro photography, I use a Pentax K SMC 50mm F4 macro – a lens from 1975! 50mm is an easy focal length to work with, perfectly suited to plants, and the lens, stopped down to F8, is fantastic from center to corner, with near-zero aberrations, no distortion and a punchy rendering. It’s also a real pleasure to use, with its beautifully dampened focusing ring.

I also use a Samyang 135mm F2 for more distant subjects, a very affordable lens that delivers excellent image quality. Unlike the Pentax, I almost always shoot it wide open for that dreamy look while keeping the important parts sharp wherever they sit in the frame. For wide-angle work, I have an old Pentax K SMC 28mm F3.5, though I might actually use it more for macro than for landscapes.”

Favorite bag: “My bag is a Manfrotto Gear Backpack M that I bought in 2014. I’ve changed cameras and lenses far more often than I’ve changed bags…”

Any unusual accessories you carry?

Florent Chouffot

Must-have accessories: “When going out in the field, I usually bring a small Godox flash with a diffuser, a remote controller, a Canon close-up lens and a reverse ring. Of course, a tripod for lightning and any night shooting session.”

“The most unusual camera I’ve used was an Imacon Ixpress 528C medium-format digital back with an integrated fan, mounted on a Mamiya 645DF. It came with a humongous battery-powered dedicated hard drive just to save the photos, so I had to attach it to my trouser belt while shooting. Believe me, I never complained about the size of Compact Flash cards after that. The setup was heavy and clumsy, but I really liked the unique image rendition and later regretted selling it.

The reverse ring has to be one of my favorites, because it turns a wide-angle lens into a high-magnification macro tool for just a few bucks. I use one with the old Pentax 28mm F3.5 lens. There are compromises (image quality isn’t even across the frame, unlike with most dedicated macro lenses), but it’s great fun, and it still amazes my hiking companions a bit like a magic trick.”

What makes carnivorous or insectivorous plants the perfect photo opportunity for you?

Florent Chouffot

“I shoot outdoors for obvious reasons when it comes to weather, and indoors with my plants when the sky isn’t particularly interesting. I have a terrarium filled with carnivorous plants that grow year-round under a horticultural LED panel, so I always have subjects available, even if the best angles can sometimes be tricky to get.

The only carnivorous plant I’ve photographed in its natural habitat so far is the oblong-leaved sundew (Drosera intermedia) in a nearby swamp. I sometimes go out looking for small critters as well, though they tend to be a much bigger source of frustration than plants, for a reason I probably don’t need to explain.”

“Leaves often look more interesting when backlit, because the light reveals the internal structure rather than just the surface. For carnivorous plants, backlighting can also show what’s inside the traps, creating unique, eerie images. When I photograph my own plants, I have all the time I need to find the best angle, the best light, and the exact moment when the plant looks most interesting.

Fully developed traps are an obvious subject, but many plant parts are actually just as interesting at various stages of their development, both from a botanical and an artistic point of view. I also like to show carnivorous plants both as people expect them to look – animal-like, almost aggressive – and in their much less familiar aspects: delicate, subtle or simply through their flowers.”

What’s changed since the beginning?

Florent Chouffot

“Learning is a permanent process. New techniques, but also a lot of trial and error with gear. I’ve experimented with everything from reverse rings and lens stacking to early digital medium-format equipment, just to explore different looks and understand what various systems are capable of.

What improved my photography most was simply practicing a lot, learning how both my gear and my subjects interact with light, and looking carefully at other people’s work on photography sites and forums like DPReview.”

What unusual environments are there around Belfort?

Florent Chouffot

“The most unusual environment I’ve worked in was a completely dark bunker where I photographed a cave-dwelling spider, Meta menardi, that had not yet been recorded around Belfort. There was no ambient light at all, so I worked entirely with flash.

Another memorable place is the swamp where I found the Drosera. It’s a fragile ecosystem that requires real care just to move around without damaging anything. The visit felt special because I had to move very slowly, almost the way you do when photographing animals, but for reasons of fragility rather than flightiness.

Simply finding the plants in that specific habitat was already rewarding, as they’re very small.”

While you said plants are easier than insects, what strategies still help to capture a great shot?

Florent Chouffot

“Practice as much as you can and don’t hold yourself back. Cameras and lenses are far more versatile than you often read online. People tend to present their own style and preferred gear as a universal truth – “X is better than Y”. For instance, I’m not a film photographer, and I don’t like the usually grainy results, but I think it’s wonderful that the option still exists for those who love the look or want to delve into it.

See what your preferred subjects are and discover how and with what you enjoy shooting them. The results matter, but so does the actual process. With my old Pentax lens, turning the super-smooth focusing ring to find focus is genuinely satisfying and makes me feel more connected to my photography. With so many cameras and lenses available, any of them can serve someone’s creativity if approached with an open mind.

When I photograph carnivorous plants, I always try to balance the scientific and the poetic. I’m interested in both the morphological features and the atmosphere the scene creates as a whole. It’s about celebrating the beauty and uniqueness of these plants, explaining why they look and function the way they do, while also trying to spark the viewer’s imagination.”

Florent really enjoyed participating in this spotlight article and would love to hear what you think of his photography and to answer any of your questions in the comments below.

You can check out Florent’s other work on Instagram.

Editor’s note: This article continues a series, ‘What’s in your bag?’, highlighting DPReview community members, their photography and the gear they depend on. Would you like your photography to be featured in a future installment? Tell us a bit about yourself by filling out this form.

You can never have enough of a good thing, right? So, for this week’s Question of the week, don’t worry about your GAS problem and instead lean into it. Demand from camera manufacturers that their cameras all lack that one key feature you wish were included. A feature so effective or powerful, you’d sell all your other gear to get it.

As the lead image in this article indicates, I’m a huge steampunk fan. If I were a camera engineer, the one feature I would want is a steampunk skin for my favorite camera. I could easily see this on some of the more retro-looking cameras, such as the Fujifilm X-M1.

So, with that said…

What one camera feature that doesn’t yet exist would you like to have?

Let’s put everything on the table, from the mundane, simple tweaks to the outrageous additions that would break the industry and even spacetime itself.

Drop a reply in the comments section below, and if you’ve got a photo to include of one of your cameras that looks like it might have been overengineered, it may be selected for next week’s article on this topic!

Last month, we announced a special mini-challenge event that invited the community to submit a themed photo, with the theme rotating every 48 hours. This meant 15 distinct themes with 15 opportunities to submit a photo throughout September.

Below is a selection of the challenge participants in no particular order. Read on to see what wild and diverse photos, and the story behind them, came about from this event.

Something that moves

GulfCoastFL

GulfCoastFL: What are the odds I would catch this hummingbird just as it passes our Blue Angels bluebird house while being pursued by a lizard? I see these lizards every day trying to ambush the hummers on our feeders. Quick as the hummers are, I think they are safe.

Photograph of a framed photograph

jaberg

jaberg: This photo of my father, walking in a local park, hangs in the corner where his chair once sat. The rest of the “decor” is a work in progress. My partner and I are still figuring out where things should go – most of this is waiting for an assignment.

I still see dad daily at his assisted living, but I miss having him here, in his corner.

An everyday object with an interesting story

Myles Baker

GWKilgore: I’ve owned a fair few watches over the years, from my first Timex more than half a century ago to my latest smart watch bought a few months ago. It’s rare that I do not have one on my wrist.

I wear them for much the same reason that I use cameras, there is something tactile & real about both that you don’t get with the ubiquitous smartphone.

This particular watch is the oldest one that I currently own & was a gift from my wife on our first wedding anniversary, 32 years ago. Constant wear over the years shows on the case & strap, but it still keeps on keeping on.

Oddest thing around your neighborhood

Ansel Spear

Ansel Spear: The inappropriately scaled and situated Ben Ainslie building was built in 2014 in Old Portsmouth, the historic quarter. It was designed to give Ainslie’s racing team a local foothold during the 2015 / 2016 America’s Cup Series, held in the Solent, off Portsmouth, using AC45F foiling catamarans.

After getting through sponsors Land Rover and INEOS at an injudicious rate of knots, Ainslie’s lot up-sticks and leaves, leaving us with a colossal blot on the landscape. To call it an eyesore would be an understatement.

Most photogenic scene in your neighborhood

Joachim Wulfers

Joachim Wulfers: One of the exhibits at a hot road show.

Something old that you still use

jaberg

jaberg: My Grandfather’s coffee mug. My father had an identical cup. It’s an object that has always been in my life – I literally can’t remember a time when it wasn’t present, and it might predate my birth. My nephew has that mug now. I don’t drink from Grandpa’s mug anymore. It sits on my dresser, organizing my “carry” pens, pencils, etc., and serves as a location for (non-e) tickets to upcoming events. A twice-daily reminder of my grandfather, my father, and from where I come.

Something outside that makes you happy

cbf_si

cbf_si: Cultural heritage cannot be replaced, but it must be preserved. The photograph shows shepherds’ attire on the nearby mountain of Velika Planina, where cows are still grazed and cheese is made by hand. Photo taken at the 53rd National Costume and Clothing Heritage Days held in Kamnik, Slovenia.

Something you couldn’t replace

beorn76

beorn76: A Moka Bialetti that has seen so many coffees over the years, never a flinch, always ready to please its many admirers eagerly and patiently waiting.

Something growing or changing

Spid

Spid: Chilies ripening in the glasshouse, awaiting their turn to be turned into something hot and tasty.

What’s on your dinner plate?

david kohn

david kohn: When in Roma, the pigeon doesn’t get your pizza.

There are more 48-hour themes to check out in the event’s album, along with many interesting stories about the photos from our community. We would love for you to join in on the discussion!

Meet Jean-Pierre Zanotti

Home base: Toulon, France

Jean-Pierre Zanotti, known as JP Zanotti in the forums, is a Toulon-based photographer who explores the remains of abandoned buildings across France and Italy. Working primarily with Fujifilm X-series cameras and ultra-wide lenses, he captures the light, objects and human traces left behind in these forgotten spaces.

“I’ve been doing this since my teenage years, so a long time now. I got into photography through astronomy, which I practiced with a club. The ever-present clouds of my native Lorraine home quickly pushed me toward something else: the decaying industrial sites that dotted the region. I later took a long exposure (pun intended) to raise my children, then picked this dusty road back up – digitally this time.”

Our ‘What’s in your bag?’ community spotlight series features readers sharing their favorite gear and photography, including from past DPReview collaborators. See below for what Lester has to share.

What’s in Jean-Pierre’s bag

Jean-Pierre Zanotti

Favorite cameras(s): Fujifilm X-T2, Fujifilm X-T3 and Fujifilm X-T5

Favorite lens(s):

• Fujinon 8mm F3.5, 16mm F1.4, and 56mm F1.2
• Viltrox 9mm F2.8 Air and 13mm F1.4

“I gradually converged on Fujifilm back in 2014, after going through Canon, Nikon, Olympus and Sony along the way. For what I shoot, it simply delivers the best overall image quality. For years, the Fujinon XF 10-24mm F4 was my main companion – most of the images here were shot with it – before I moved on to fixed focal lengths that suited me better: the Viltrox 9mm F2.8 Air and 13mm F1.4.”

Must-have accessories: “An ultra-light rain jacket, folded down small, since some spots are one hour or more on foot – there’s no turning back to the car if the weather turns. And obviously, food and water.

If I had to pick one favorite thing, it’s the X-E5 paired with the Viltrox 9mm – that combination handles the tight, cluttered interiors I shoot in better than almost anything else in my bag.”

Any more unusual accessories you carry?

Jean-Pierre Zanotti

“Does a folding Silky saw for clearing branches count? It’s amazing how quickly vegetation reclaims the abandoned areas I photograph, sometimes literally blocking the way in.

I also carry an inflatable LED light stick and a small 3.5×3.5-inch LED panel for pitch-black spaces. That said, I rarely actually shoot with them: artificial light tends to look wrong in this kind of photography, so they’re mostly there as a distant fill when nothing else will do, or just so I can see where I’m walking. I still bring a Nodal Ninja panoramic head occasionally, but modern ultra-wide lenses have improved so much that I rarely need it anymore.

For abandoned buildings, bring a sturdy 5-meter cord to haul camera bags up high places. And bring with you a hard hat, Petzl headlamp, tough clothing, high boots, clear safety glasses to keep debris out of your eyes, a dust mask and flexible yet sturdy gloves for handling broken glass.

All of it goes into a Lowepro Flipside Trek BP 350 AW, and I love it: lightweight, genuinely tough and with enough real capacity to fit all the gear I just listed.”

What about abandoned buildings is so interesting to photograph?

Jean-Pierre Zanotti

“What draws me in is anything that still holds real photographic potential – and that potential rarely depends on the place being spectacular. Sometimes the most striking shot comes out of the plainest room: a bare corridor, an empty doorway, where the light and the composition just happen to align. I live in the south of France, with Italy just two hours away, so a lot of what I shoot comes from there.

The most memorable trip I took was an entire day, alone, in a former psychiatric hospital in Italy. It’s one of those rare places that has everything at once – strong photographic potential in nearly every room, an unusual density of objects and traces left behind, a history that’s genuinely unsettling once you start reading into it, and an atmosphere that’s hard to describe to someone who hasn’t experienced it.

Spending a full day there, completely alone, gave me the strongest sense of time travel I’ve ever had on one of these expeditions. It’s still the single most impactful place I’ve visited.”

What’s changed since the beginning?

Jean-Pierre Zanotti

“I’ve practiced street photography for years, as I’ve seen others in the DPReview community do. I think it’s shaped how I see these places, even though the two couldn’t be more different on the surface – one is pure instinct, the other pure patience. What connects them, I think, is an interest in people, whether they’re right in front of the camera or long gone.

There’s nothing mystical about it: a room still holds the shape of the lives that were lived in it – how furniture was arranged, what was left on a shelf, which door got used most. Reading that is, in its own way, still photographing people, just at one remove.

Really, it’s less about the type of place than what happens once I’m inside. Silence is the first thing that hits – a total absence of noise that’s genuinely rare to experience today. The light is almost always diffuse, filtered through vegetation that’s reclaimed the space or through windows boarded up to keep intruders out. Whatever the building was – a factory, church, hospital, home – it all triggers the same immediate shift into another time.”

Taking a moment to plan a shot is a common theme among veterans. What does this mean for your photography?

Jean-Pierre Zanotti

“Some of these sites are so overwhelming that I get a kind of shooting frenzy – the urge to photograph everything at once – and that’s exactly when concentration goes out the window. These places are abandoned, but that doesn’t mean private or safe, so there’s no coffee break to fall back on; you just have to force yourself to slow down.

Then it’s a checklist: setting to the lowest native ISO, tripod fully deployed and stable – no exceptions, ever – bracketing almost as a systematic precaution, manual focus with focus peaking, and a thorough blower cleaning, since dust becomes a real problem on wide-angle shots against the light. I step back from the tripod to avoid transmitting any vibration through the floor during long exposures. Then, a careful check of sharpness before moving on. All told, a single shot can easily take five to ten minutes to set up.

If you’re tempted to try this kind of adventure, take real precautions and don’t be reckless. Accidents always happen exactly where you least expect them – never where the danger looks obvious.

Jean-Pierre Zanotti

And on gear: don’t let it become an excuse. I’ve made large prints I’m genuinely proud of with a Canon PowerShot A70 (bought new for $449) and a secondhand $50 Panosaurus head, and shot excellent large-format results with an old Olympus bridge camera and a wide-angle converter. The gear in this article helps, but it was never the reason any of these photos worked.”

Jean-Pierre really enjoyed participating in this spotlight article and would love to hear what you think of his photography and to answer any of your questions in the comments below.

You can check out Jean-Pierre’s other work at jpzanotti.com.

Editor’s note: This article continues a series, ‘What’s in your bag?’, highlighting DPReview community members, their photography and the gear they depend on. Would you like your photography to be featured in a future installment? Tell us a bit about yourself by filling out this form.

Every photographer has a first moment when they realize their time behind the camera is something they truly care about. For some, the spark comes from a chance encounter with a unique camera in a shop window or from the skills of a beloved relative who’s also into photography. For others, it stems from a childhood TV hero, or perhaps an interest to document family life.

Last week, we asked our community what set their photography journey in motion, and the replies were as varied as the photographers themselves. Read on to see what sparked the DPReview community into photo-taking action.

lumigraphics: I was in the Navy when Queen Elizabeth made an official state visit to my ship (USS Ranger in San Diego, 1983). I only had a little 110 camera and wanted better results, so I bought a Canon AE-1 Program from the ship’s store, and the rest is history. 43 years later, I’m a working pro. Might be the only person around who is a photographer because of the Queen.

Dimpsey: Early morning trips to buy bread rolls for breakfast. The bakery often wasn’t open, but the chemists across the road had cameras in their window. One was all shiny silver knobs and a gleaming top plate. It was utterly irresistible, and I wanted it. That was over 60 years ago, and I’m still taking the camera(s) out today!

SGA

SGA: As a kid, I wanted to be Jimmy Olsen, Cub Reporter. I loved watching him on the original Superman TV show, running around Metropolis with his old folding camera. But all my parents got me was a Kodak Brownie, which used 127 film.

NorCalPhotonFoundry: My grandfather was a lifelong photography enthusiast, and when I was 6 or 7 years old, he gave me a cheap little plastic point-and-shoot camera for Christmas. For me, the “spark” was the magic of being able to capture, keep and share a moment or perspective; something which still brings me joy to this day. I still have and use my childhood QL17, and am grateful to my grandpa for giving me that first plastic point-and-shoot.

Alun Thomas: My interest was kindled by my cycle touring interest. I would go on forums to read others’ trip reports and wonder why my photos were so rubbish compared to theirs. So I bought a Sony A5100, then soon started buying different lenses. I eventually switched to full-frame, and now the hobby is more prominent for me than cycling.

GWKilgore: I grew up hunting. I was in my 30s when I went out to Oregon in 1975 to hunt mule deer. Right after sunrise, I bagged a nice buck. I was worn out and told my hunting companions this was too much work. I said that I would trade my rifle for a camera.

GatoAmarillo

Gato Amarillo: I think it might have started here (see photo above). That’s me in about 1952 with my father and sister at the Tri-State Fair in Amarillo. The photographer was from one of the local newspapers, and I still vaguely remember being fascinated by the big camera. It was another 20 years or so before I started serious photography myself, but I suspect that experience was the spark.

Edgar_in_Indy: When we started having kids in the early 2000’s, my wife and I would go to one of the franchised photography studios at the mall. It would kill us to see the screen fill up with dozens of great pictures of our child, but only be able to pick a handful due to the cost of each picture.

I ended up buying an early DSLR and a couple of old studio strobes and never had to visit those mall studios again. I’m not sure we actually saved any money in the long run, given my camera collection, but we have so many great family photos from over the years.

GeoInSD: When I was a child, my family used cheapie cameras, like Kodak Brownies and Instamatics. I remember seeing my granduncle having an SLR system that I thought was pretty cool. My interest in photography started when I took a photography class in high school. I was stunned by the vastly superior image quality of a 35mm SLR compared to Kodak Brownies and Instamatics.

I was not an early adopter of digital. I held off until shutter lag was comparable to film AND the DSLR body was under $1000 US. The Nikon D70 was the first DSLR that met those criteria in my book.

There are many other stories from our community. We would love for you to join in on the discussion!

Meet Peter Swan

Home base: Durham, England

Peter Swan, known as TheDispossessed in the forums, is a Durham-based nature photographer who has found a hidden world of subjects in the small things many people overlook. His compact Micro Four Thirds kit is built around an Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II and a 60mm macro lens. The selectively chosen diffused flash helps him reveal the color, texture and character of insects and other smaller creatures – from garden regulars to rare British butterflies.

“I first got into photography properly when I purchased my first digital camera, a Canon PowerShot S60, back in 2004. Back then, my main subjects to photograph were landscapes and cityscapes. I got my first DSLR a couple of years later (a Canon 350D) in 2006. This led me to become interested in photographing subjects that required specialized lenses – for example, those capable of 1:1 macro. Since then, I’ve steadily built up a collection of photographic gear but have gravitated towards the micro four-thirds format for its overall convenience.”

Our ‘What’s in your bag?’ community spotlight series features readers sharing their favorite gear and photography, including from past DPReview collaborators. See below for what Lester has to share.

What’s in Peter’s bag

Peter Swan

Favorite cameras(s): Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II

Favorite lens(s):

• Olympus 60mm F2.8 macro (“my favorite lens”)
• Olympus 100-400mm F5-6.3
• Olympus 25mm F1.2
• Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6
• Panasonic 35-100mm F4-5.6

“All five lenses and the camera can easily fit in my backpack with space for food, waterproofs, etc. If need be, I can even squeeze in my Panasonic GX9, which semi-permanently has the 7-14mm F4 lens attached – such are the benefits of the micro four thirds system!”

Must-have accessories: “A Nissin i40 flash that is held together with duct tape, Marumi DHG Achromat 200 close-up lens and a Cygnustech diffuser – all alongside a couple of polarising filters.

I usually bring food, water, waterproof clothing, and most importantly, a tick remover. When you’re out searching for minibeasts in the undergrowth, it is only a matter of time before you pick up a tick, so it’s best to get them out quickly and safely to minimize the risk of picking up a tick-borne disease.

All of it is put into a Tarion rolltop camera bag. It has plenty of space for my lenses and camera(s), a laptop if needed, and the rest.”

What about insects is so attractive to photograph?

Peter Swan

“I have a passion for photographing insects and other invertebrates, which emerged shortly after getting my first macro lens in 2015. I love being out in nature, but I didn’t have the patience to sit for hours in a bird hide.

With minibeast photography, you can go out to any park, nature reserve, or even into your garden, and you’ll find something to photograph – even in the middle of winter. Even in a nature-depleted, highly populated country with a cool maritime climate (the UK), you’ll be surprised at just what you can find when you go out looking for it.

Along with butterflies and dragonflies, some of the most interesting species, such as springtails, are only a few millimeters long and are typically overlooked by most people, yet can be brilliantly colorful.”

What’s changed since the beginning?

Peter Swan

“When I first started with macro photography, I was photographing subjects using natural light with a non-stabilized macro lens. To get sharp enough photos, I wasn’t stopping down enough to achieve adequate depth of field, and I was frequently shooting at very high ISO, so the detail wasn’t there.

Upgrading to a stabilized lens helped somewhat, but what really made a difference was when I started to use diffused flash. This is not harmful to the insects while allowing the use of a low ISO and a deeper depth of field to get more of the subject in focus. I initially made my own simple flash diffuser using a transparent folder with white paper glued to it before buying a custom-made one (Cygnustech) after seeing the results other people were getting with theirs.

The next steps for me would be to become more proficient in focus stacking; however, this requires a lot of time and patience (some stacks require 50+ shots) and, ideally, your subject to remain still for a few seconds. My photo of a very accommodating cellar spider in my house involved 15 images stacked using Zerene.”

What places have helped you to better understand photography?

Peter Swan

“While macro photography can be done anywhere, the best places for biodiversity are dedicated nature reserves. However, if you look closely, you can find minibeasts everywhere. For example, now that I know what to look for, I often see ruby-tailed wasps (some of Britain’s prettiest insects) slowly patrolling the walls outside my house and workplace.

I have had a few memorable experiences when photographing some of Britain’s rarer butterfly species – for example, visiting Arnside Knott in Cumbria to photograph Brown Hairstreaks (Thecla betulae), Hickling Broad in Norfolk to photograph old world swallowtails (Papilio machaon), and Fineshades Wood in Northamptonshire to photograph Purple Emperors (Apatura iris).

Sometimes you go somewhere and spot an interesting species immediately, while at other times this happens at the end of the day when you’re just about to pack up and go back home.”

What would help other photographers zoom in on nature’s tiniest of creatures?

Peter Swan

“Generally, the early morning is the best time for photographing insects before they get a chance to fully warm up. If photographing creatures later in the day, be very patient when sneaking up on them, as many species can be extremely skittish!

One of the most important things is to have a clean background. Sometimes I might gently encourage the subject to walk onto an isolated leaf or stem, helping it stand out nicely. Other useful techniques include the use of diagonals. Having lines (e.g., stems) parallel to the edges of the photo is not ideal, aesthetically.

Find something you enjoy photographing, and get out there with your camera to capture it. Or find something that you don’t usually photograph and give that a try, if not just to help move you outside your comfort zone – you never know, you might prefer that particular genre of photography!”

Peter really enjoyed participating in this spotlight article and would love to hear what you think of his photography and to answer any of your questions in the comments below.

You can check out Peter’s other work at flickr.com.

Editor’s note: This article continues a series, ‘What’s in your bag?’, highlighting DPReview community members, their photography and the gear they depend on. Would you like your photography to be featured in a future installment? Tell us a bit about yourself by filling out this form.

We’ve been running this Question of the week series for over a year now, and yet have not covered the most fundamental, and perhaps most important, question yet… what sparked your interest in getting involved in photography?

Compared to many of our veteran community members, I’m still deep into grasping the finer points of taking great shots with a standalone camera, and I’m still intimidated by what I see as more advanced cameras like the Sony a1 II or Canon’s EOS R1.

For today’s question and related to my journey, I feel that joining the DPReview community was the true spark that led me to take my photography seriously. I couldn’t have gotten this far this fast without your insight. Because of our community’s support for each other, I hope new photographers find their spark here, too.

So, with that said…

What sparked your interest in getting involved in photography?

Drop a reply in the comments section below, and if you’ve got a photo to include from your mentioned forum sections, it may be selected for next week’s showcase article on this topic!

Meet Stefan Pfeffer

Home base: Manila, the Philippines

I’m always drawn to photographers who treat their camera as a way to explore a scene from a humanistic perspective.

Known in the wider community as stipphoto, Stefan Pfeffer photographs the energy and small human interactions of everyday life, particularly across the Philippines and elsewhere in Asia. Working with a preference for wide-angle lenses and direct, unplanned encounters, Stefan embraces the reactions his presence can bring. In this edition of What’s in your bag?, he discusses his compact Sony a7CR kit while exploring his favorite stops in Europe, Hong Kong and the Philippines.

“I have always been curious about my surroundings and have photographed almost everything I encounter. During the days of film photography, I was somewhat restrained by the limited number of exposures; with digital photography, that restraint has largely disappeared.

My photographs are neither carefully planned nor intended to have particular artistic value. They are simply snapshots of moments in time.”

Our ‘What’s in your bag?’ community spotlight series features readers sharing their favorite gear and photography, including from past DPReview collaborators. See below for what Stefan has to share.

How do you get a good angle from others?

Stefan Pfeffer

“I’m drawn to documentary-style photography, with a particular focus on people and everyday life. Asia, with its crowded markets, densely developed residential areas, and vibrant street life, offers an endlessly rewarding environment for photography.

Whenever possible, I try to insert the camera into a scene rather than simply record what is in front of me. This is why I prefer wide-angle lenses: the wider the lens, the more immersed I feel in the environment.

My choice of focal length also depends on how approachable people are in different places. In Europe, they tend to use a 50mm lens; in Hong Kong, a 35mm lens; and in the Philippines, a 24mm lens. This approach makes it difficult to photograph people discreetly or unnoticed, but I see that as a positive thing. It often provokes a reaction and creates a kind of dialogue between the people I photograph and me. They may reject the photograph, which is perfectly fine, or, as is sometimes the case, give me the dreaded V-sign and pose for the camera.

I never stage my photographs or instruct people on how to pose. I prefer to capture people and situations as they naturally unfold, allowing the interaction between the photographer, the subject, and the environment to shape the image.”

What’s in Stefan’s bag

Stefan Pfeffer

“Gear does matter. A sharp lens and a snappy camera, such as the fantastic but ultimately disposable Sony a7CR, make the difference between capturing a moment and missing it.

Fast autofocus was the liberation from Leica rangefinder focusing, as digital imaging was the liberation from film. However, as objects, a Nikon F3 is infinitely more desirable than a Nikon ZF. Instagram and YouTube reviews of equipment confuse the correlation between gear and achieving a photograph.”

Favorite cameras(s): Hasselblad X1D II and Sony A7CR

“I’ve been through a lot of camera gear over the years. The perfect camera does exist, for me at least. It’s the Contax G2, paired with its wonderful lenses. Today, however, my preferred camera is the Sony a7CR.”

Favorite lens(s):

• Sony Zeiss 55mm F1.8 in Europe
• Sigma I-Series 35mm F2 in Hong Kong
• Sony 24mm F1.4 GM in the Philippines

“My three-lens kit consists of the 24mm GM, Sony 50mm F2.5 G, and Sigma 90mm F2.8, a compact combination that gives me the flexibility to photograph at different distances while keeping the kit relatively light. My choice of lens depends largely on where I’m photographing and how close I can get to my subjects.”

Do accessories matter, or do you just bring the camera?

Stefan Pfeffer

“Accessories absolutely matter. For starters, I like the Crumpler 6 Million Dollar bag. It’s simple and functional. However, for a photo walk, I much prefer inconspicuous shoulder bags that I sourced from flea markets. My latest find is a Converse bag. Equipped with a cheap camera bag insert, these are perfect for a three-lens setup.

Otherwise, a plastic bag for my camera is always part of my kit. My main criticism of Sony cameras is their sensitivity to humidity and rain. The Multi-Interface Shoe is my main source of frustration. The design may make sense on a computer, but on a camera that is used outdoors, it’s infuriating. Sooner or later, all my Sony cameras have displayed the dreaded message: “This accessory is not supported by the device and cannot be used.” Infuriating.

An air blower and a spare battery are also essential. Fortunately, Sony’s battery life is fantastic, so I rarely have to worry about running out of power. If I need anything else, the beauty of roaming any Asian city is that there is always a convenience store or Sari Sari for a refreshment.”

How has your photography changed over the years?

Stefan Pfeffer

“Although I have always loved black-and-white photography, my digital photographs are almost exclusively in color. For me, this is simply because reality is in color. Since my photographs are essentially snapshots of the world as I encounter it, I prefer to preserve that sense of reality rather than reinterpret it.

Digital photography has also greatly improved both the number and quality of images I’m able to capture. Modern autofocus is remarkably capable, allowing me to shoot wide open at short shutter speeds.

What has perhaps changed – or, more accurately, developed over time – is my ability to overcome the hesitation to approach people and ask to photograph them. After doing this for a number of years, I’ve learned that the worst that can happen is being rejected.”

Why is Asia so special for your photography?

Stefan Pfeffer

“I like to wander and discover whatever happens to be around me. In many parts of Asia, the boundaries between public and private space are less clearly defined, making places that might otherwise feel inaccessible surprisingly open. People are generally quick to let me know when I trespass – somewhere, sooner or later.

Twenty-five years ago, what was meant to be a one-month trip turned into a year-and-a-half journey through Asia, with China in particular. It was a very different time to travel. The lack of internet and smartphones created a sense of freedom and spontaneity that is difficult to experience today.

In China in particular, the relative lack of surveillance at the time made it possible to travel extensively with a sense of anonymity. Walking around with a camera was generally met with curiosity rather than suspicion. People would ask where I was from or what I was photographing, but there was usually an openness toward a foreigner simply wandering around with a camera.

That freedom and unpredictability became an important part of how I experienced and photographed Asia.”

How do you plan out capturing a great photo?

Stefan Pfeffer

“My photographs are rarely planned. They are more often a matter of seeing what happens and responding to it.

The Sony a7CR’s excellent autofocus, combined with its high megapixel count, allows me to shoot short bursts of three or four frames at a moderate drive speed. The quality of lenses such as the Sony 24mm GM and Sigma I-Series 35mm also gives me enough resolution to crop heavily and refine the composition later in Capture One.

In a way, going out to photograph has become about collecting the raw material for an image. The final framing and interpretation happen later on the computer. It’s close to the analog process: going out and exposing the negative, then returning home to make the photograph.”

Stefan really enjoyed participating in this spotlight article and would love to hear what you think of his photography and to answer any of your questions in the comments below.

You can check out Stefan’s other work at stefanpfeffer.com.

Editor’s note: This article continues a series, ‘What’s in your bag?’, highlighting DPReview community members, their photography and the gear they depend on. Would you like your photography to be featured in a future installment? Tell us a bit about yourself by filling out this form.

We all have that moment where we pick up a camera, go out to shoot something, and… nothing. You look around, recognize all the places you’ve already taken great photos of and don’t have the energy to drive across town to find something fresh. Instead, you decide to walk back into the house to work on some other non-photography project.

During these times, you miss that spark of creativity and inspiration that keeps you energized to take great photos. You know what it feels like when it’s around. Those are the times when it’s clear as day what to do with your camera. You end up shooting countless fantastic scenes with little effort.

So, how do you rekindle that spark of inspiration? Read on to discover how the DPReview community finds fresh inspiration and gets their creative instincts flowing again.

Dave in Wales: What you don’t do is sell all your gear.

Spid: This is what the nifty fifty was designed for. Strip back to basics. Shoot less, one focal length. Get the mojo back.

TOTodd: Nothing sparks inspiration more than a client beating on your door asking if it’s done yet.

zak99: Stop chasing technical perfection, dig out some old cameras, digital or film, limit my options and carry only one lens. I’m currently using an Olympus 7070 from my digital childhood. It’s challenging, it’s satisfying and it’s cool.

Simple-joy

Maoby: By taking self-portraits (in response to Mathew’s self-portrait lead photo :)).

Jaberg: As a practical solution, take part in the currently running month-long challenge. It’s not important that each (or any) entry be a gem. The important thing is to make a picture – any picture – for each topic. To pick up the camera and engage the photography muscles. You never know when creative inspiration will strike.

AshleyMC: I always have a camera on me and create photographs daily. My “default” subject is flowers, which are not hard to find: in my garden, in the neighborhood church’s garden, or in the city’s botanical gardens and greenhouses. Other than flowers, I usually see “something” in any scene.

Gato Amarillo: If I waited for inspiration, I’d hardly get anything done – in photography or in any other part of life. It’s been said many ways by many people: “Amateurs wait for inspiration; real artists just get to work.”

AshleyMC

Zeee: I do what works best. I let GAS get the better of me.

milo006: I have been doing this since I was 12 years old, now I am 81. I think every day can be inspirational, as far as life is concerned. When I was a young man, my inspiration came from my work, military service and other experiences. After I married and had children, they became the inspiration.

I do admit that I have had long periods when I was not active as a photographer, due to other hobbies that took up a lot of my time. However, now that I am older, retired and have the time, I find it easy to be inspired on a daily basis.

KPM2: Photography is often a matter of being in the right place at the right time. When you’ve been doing it for a long time, you’ve naturally found yourself in that sweet spot often enough – and you might just lose a bit of your enthusiasm as a result, and more so, when the weather is not optimal.

What always works for me in those moments is experimenting with flash, outside or inside at home, because it breaks the rule of being in the right place at the right time. Because the time doesn’t matter.

There are many other stories from our community. They all deserve praise and to be shared, so be sure to visit the forum discussion and share your own if you like. Thanks to everyone who took the time to share unique ways you get out of an inspiration rut.

Meet James Fawcette

Home base: Los Altos Hills, CA USA

For this spotlight series, we sometimes get a variety of photos from an individual to share with you, and then there are also specialist photographers like James Fawcette, known as JimLosAltos in the forums. James has spent decades since junior high school covering sports games. He started with the NBA (basketball) using a Kodak Tri-X, and is now aiming a Nikon Z9 at professional tennis events.

“When camera companies use the term ‘prosumer’, I suppose that’s what I am. I’m an amateur photographer who extends my enjoyment of tennis by capturing photos of pro tennis players. And I’ve been able to sell enough of these to more than pay for generations of my camera equipment.”

Our ‘What’s in your bag?’ community spotlight series features readers sharing their favorite gear and photography, including from past DPReview collaborators. See below for what James has to share.

What got you into photographing sports?

James Fawcette

“Since the 1960s, as a junior high school student, I sold my first photos of the Boston Celtics and Killington, Vermont ski resort to the local newspaper, the Rutland Daily Herald. I first worked in the Herald’s darkroom, where I learned to develop negatives “by observation.” I had to learn how to “push” the Tri-X from 400 to – who knows. There were no numbers to guide us, so we had to do it by eye. We had pushed the boundaries of that era’s film to its limits.

I managed to get more time behind the camera after the Herald published an on-court shot I took of Wilt Chamberlain. Then I got assignments, first to shoot Killington when it was sub-zero and the NYC tourists were getting frostbite, when my lens literally froze. I couldn’t turn the focus ring. Then I turned an assignment on a new shopping mall into something publishable by getting a private plane ride. I asked the pilot to help me “shoot straight down”. So, he did a wingover, and I was looking literally straight down. Nearly threw up right then and there.”

What’s in James’s bag

James Fawcette

Favorite cameras(s): Nikon Z9 & Nikon Z7

Favorite lens(s):

• Nikkor Z 14-24mm F2.8 S
• Nikkor 24-140mm F4 S
• Nikkor 105mm F1.4 F1.4E ED
• Nikkor Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S II
• Nikkor Z 400mm F4.5 VR S
• Viltrox AF 85mm F2.0 Evo

“When I first started, I used what I’m pretty sure were Herald’s Honeywell Pentax reflex cameras that had a long lens of 100m or 135mm, I think. When I had more time for photography years later, I started using lower-end Nikon film equipment, then progressed from the D810 to the D850, and finally to the Z7 and Z9.

Most of my pro tennis shots have been taken by rentals from the likes of old Borrow Lenses to Lensrental, because I do events sporadically, and the physical location varies so widely. My go-to lens for many of my most successful shots after moving to the Z-mount was still an F-mount lens: the 500mm PF on an FTZ converter with a Nikon Z7, then my Z9. It’s remarkably sharp, compact enough to fit in a transparent NFL bag and quick focusing.”

What’s your favorite bag and accessories?

Must-have accessories: “Tile trackers (for theft prevention and tracking) and rubber lens hoods from Kurvd. And of course, the more expected items like backup storage, batteries and a MagSafe Tripod for the phone.”

Favorite bag(s): “I’m totally not satisfied here. This is an endless quest. Frankly, I have a Peak bag I ‘bought’ from that company’s first Kickstarter program. Loved it at first, then the knife-edge shoulder strap, combined with having to spend so much time reconfiguring it every time I changed lenses, turned me off.

Being plenty frustrated with specific camera bags, I now use a regular Tumi or Oakley, which is just a bag with no dividers. I place foam dividers around whatever combination of equipment I put in there.

What’s probably my most unique setup? That’s tough to decide, but freezing on a Killington chairlift in sub-zero temperatures or on my nose looking down from an airplane, I think, qualifies.”

What do you like to shoot?

James Fawcette

“My main focus is professional tennis. I’ve captured images of players from Roger Federer to Jannik Sinner and from Serena Williams to Coco Gauff, which have appeared in all sorts of media. Since I like tennis, my focus is more on playing tennis than on reaction shots, which bore me (sorry). I attempt to capture the energy, the technique, the athleticism of these great players. That passion evolved into photo-illustration.

Sometimes I have media credentials and shoot from the edge of the court. Other times, I shoot as a ticket-buying fan (something that is becoming near impossible, as another subject of your spotlight series stated in his article. I find that very sad and short-sighted.)”

How do you photograph constantly moving objects, such as sports players?

James Fawcette

“It’s kind of impossible to keep up with the quick movements of professional athletes, so knowing the sport well enough to anticipate action helps. Also, I’ve learned a few tennis-specific tricks, but I imagine they have parallels in other sports.

One such example is trying to time the ball’s impact with the racket’s strings. Pros are so precise, and their skills make them so consistent, you can often watch for the ball to get in the right position with confidence that’s where they’ll make contact. I suppose another example would be that of a high cross in soccer (a pass kicked through the air from one side of the field to the other), which will lead to a header (when a player uses their head to play the ball).”

What would you say to other photographers about building a lasting career?

James Fawcette

“As photography gets commoditized, being able to add value to the photo has helped me. The photo-illustrations differentiate my work. In some cases, I’ve created cover images for a set of photos using typography on the names or headlines that graphically overlap the image. But if I’m trying to get an image published, rather than simply for fun, the illustration or abstraction has to serve a purpose.

For example, a photo-illustration I called “Sinner Hydra” was inspired by a tennis analyst, the excellent Brad Gilbert, saying “He gives you nowhere to go. Everywhere you look, Sinner has a weapon”. So, I created an image of Sinner with four arms holding a racket. Point made.

Another tactic that has worked for me is to understand the publication’s or site’s mission and create packages that fit that. A more pragmatic example is a set of images where I overlaid pop-up windows showing close-ups of how tennis players grip their rackets for a website that caters to teaching tennis pros. That’s added value. Differentiating your product is key.”

James really enjoyed participating in this spotlight article and would love to hear what you think of his photography and to answer any of your questions in the comments below.

You can check out James’s other work at jfawcette.myportfolio.com/work.

Editor’s note: This article continues a series, ‘What’s in your bag?’, highlighting DPReview community members, their photography and the gear they depend on. Would you like your photography to be featured in a future installment? Tell us a bit about yourself by filling out this form.

Last month, we asked who your biggest photography inspirations were. From family and friends to distant colleagues, you expressed a wide array of people you follow to build the courage and excitement for taking that next great photo. Related, our Features Editor, Abby Ferguson, wrote about her strategies for overcoming a creative drought through innovative photo projects.

When I’m in an inspiration void, as cliché as it may sound, the first thing I grab is an extra-sized cup of coffee. If that doesn’t do it and the opportunity presents itself, I’ll take a good long walk outside during a thunderstorm or blizzard (it’s like a cold shower that snaps you out of your morning stupor – just more adventurous and unpredictable).

I think one of the problems we run into when we look for inspiration is that it can feel forced. We want it to go so well that we end up overplanning and causing a creative drought where there may not have been one at all. The importance of planning the next shot to make it great has even been called into question by several community members in our What’s in your bag? spotlight series.

So, with that said…

What do you do when your photography inspiration runs dry?

Drop a reply in the comments section below, and if you’ve got a photo to include from your mentioned forum sections, it may be selected for next week’s showcase article on this topic!

One evening, as sunset approached, I was on my normal walk around nearby streets. I cover pretty much the entire neighborhood on a daily basis, so everyone knows my schedule, and some even come out to say hello. I mainly walk to exercise and enjoy the outdoors, so I’m not always at the ready with a camera. Sometimes I’ll even forget to bring my phone, to my partner’s annoyance.

After several minutes of wandering around, I turned the street corner to head toward the lake. Shining back at me was the most beautiful of sunsets gracing the sky. It was gorgeous with swirling deep yellows, oranges and intense tomato reds that seemed to glow and bounce from cloud to cloud. As I approached the lake, the sunset’s reflection on the water was just as intense. We get a lot of great sunsets around here, sometimes nearly every day, but never before like this one.

And all I had was my iPhone 12 Pro.

Mathew Anderson

“All I had”… I felt ashamed as I held the phone in my hand to take a few opportunistic photos. “I work at DPReview with a community of photographers that have proper equipment they carry with them wherever they go, and here I am whipping out my phone as if I were too lazy to bother bringing along anything else, convenience be damned”, I thought to myself.

The main struggle is that I sometimes struggle to find a moment when my standalone camera is with me, unless I’ve planned the trip in advance. I’ve been thinking a lot recently about when it makes sense to grab a standalone camera. Should I always have a camera with multiple lenses ready, or is sometimes “just my phone” ok, and why do I feel like the phone is somehow deficient (even if it’s all I have at that moment)?

Camera technology in phones these days is truly impressive. Sure, they have the limitations one would expect of such a compact device, but some of the photos I’ve taken are, in my opinion, as pleasant to my eyes as if I were seeing them directly (more or less). At some point, we have to ask ourselves when the technology is important enough to keep it at the ready, or when the moment, combined with our skills as photographers, outweighs the equipment.

These thoughts have been preoccupying me during my outdoor walking sessions, so I want to talk with you about them.

Mathew Anderson

Should phones be revered as much as a full-on standalone camera with multiple lenses, but in their own useful way? Or should they be relegated to those convenient moments when one doesn’t have their normal gear setup on hand? And aside from their obvious convenience, in what situations does having a phone on hand match or even outperform a more complex setup?

I also asked these questions to my team, and here are a few interesting quotes from what they had to say.

What others at DPReview have to say

“I love dedicated photography gear, but one lesson I’ve learned over the years is that, in many cases, being discreet is more important than using the best camera or lens. In some places, carrying a camera gets you noticed. Lifting it to take a photo gets you noticed even more. People react to it, and it changes their behavior. At that point, you’re no longer capturing a candid moment because, in effect, you’ve become part of the scene. You’ve changed it.

On the other hand, smartphones are so common that you can lift one up and take a photo, and almost nobody will notice. You’re just part of the landscape. That makes phones a great tool for activities like travel photography.” – Dale Baskin

“As one of our reviewers, I’m always fighting for enough time to shoot all the cameras, lenses and, yes, smartphones I have to test, so it’s rare for me to leave the house without some work-related gear. And yet there are still times when I’ll pull out my personal phone to document moments that may not make for a great picture, but that I want to remember.

With a camera, I know I’ll spend more time making sure the composition and lighting are as good as they can be, or that things or people are posed in a way that makes the moment worthy of a capital-P Photograph. And sure, I’ll sometimes take a second or two to make sure whatever picture I’m taking with my phone looks nice – I’m still a photographer, no matter how small or plastic a lens I’m behind – but I don’t feel the same sense of obligation. I know that photo will just be for me, my friends and my family.

This was essentially the same way I treated the divide between my phone and my X-T3 before I worked here; if I thought I’d run into something interesting worth photographing, I’d take my camera. Otherwise, my phone was good enough, the way a compact would’ve been back in the day.” Mitchell Clark

“A part of the decision for me is the fact that photography is what I do for work. While I love the medium, sometimes I want to give myself a little separation and not think about photography for a bit, so I purposefully leave the camera behind (though it inevitably seeps into my brain anyway).” – Abby Ferguson

Meet Afzal Khan

Home base: Kathmandu, Nepal

I’m always interested in the way photographers describe their relationship with their camera, and Afzal Khan’s story is a particularly thoughtful example. What began with film rolls and childhood self-portraits evolved into a nearly 16-year photographic journey, influenced by a search for calm amid a demanding advertising career.

From Kathmandu, Nepal, Afzal now uses photography to take it slower and notice the people around him, finding deep stories in their solemn faces, old homes and the majestic landscapes of Nepal. In this edition of ‘What’s in your bag?’, he also talks about his move from a Sony A7R IV to the Hasselblad X1D II.

“Photography has been close to me since childhood. During the film era, I used to buy film rolls and take photographs of myself, usually with the help of friends. It was just something I enjoyed, without really thinking that photography would become such an important part of my life. What started as something I enjoyed as a child has now been with me for nearly 16 years, and I am still continuing the journey.”

Our ‘What’s in your bag?’ community spotlight series features readers sharing their favorite gear and photography, including from past DPReview collaborators. See below for what Lester has to share.

How did you get started as a photographer?

Afzal Khan

“When I started working in advertising in 2004 as a creative, I slowly found myself getting involved with photography from the other side of the camera. As a creative director, I worked with many reputed photographers in Nepal and spent a lot of time observing how they worked and how they saw things through the lens.

Around 2009, I carried a friend’s camera on a trekking trip, and that was probably when I started to feel I might have an eye for photography. Then, around 2010–11, I bought my first camera, a Sony A230, and started taking photography more seriously.

At that time, my advertising career was at its peak, and the work was quite hectic. I needed a break, some peace and a little calmness in my life. Photography gave me exactly that. It became almost like a medicine for me. I could step away from the pressure of work, go somewhere, observe things and just spend time with the camera.”

What’s in Afzal’s bag

Afzal Khan

Favorite cameras(s): Hasselblad X1D II and Sony A7R IV

Favorite lens(s): Sony Zeiss 55mm FE ZA, Sony Zeiss 135mm F1.8 and a Lensbaby Sol 45.

“Just a few months ago, I switched brands. I am currently shooting with a Hasselblad X1D II and Hasselblad XCD 65mm lens. It is a new chapter for me, and I am enjoying the change.”

Must-have accessories: “One accessory I really like is the Peak Design Capture Clip, especially the limited edition made with Carryology. I also like the Peak Design backpack from the Coyote series. Apart from that, I prefer not to carry too many things. For me, the simpler the setup, the easier it is to concentrate on what I am seeing and photographing.

I love writing and reading, too, so my camera bag usually has one or two books in it. I also carry a wired earphone, a pen and a small box of natural solid perfume. They are not really photography essentials, but they are things I like having. My camera bag is not just a camera bag; it carries a few things that are part of my everyday life, too.

I am also looking forward to getting the Chinotech waist-level viewfinder, which is currently on my wishlist.”

What do you like to shoot?

Afzal Khan

“I never really believed in dividing photography into genres. A camera doesn’t say, “I only capture landscapes” or “I only capture wildlife.” For me, a camera is simply a tool that allows me to capture what I love to see. I am usually more attracted to things that people tend to ignore, forgotten places, ordinary people and small moments of life that may look insignificant but actually have many stories hidden inside them. There are so many moments happening around us that we hardly notice, and I think I am always looking for those moments.

If I had to describe myself as a photographer, I would probably say I am a storyteller. I am always hunting for a story, whether it is in a person’s face, a place, a small detail or a particular moment. I enjoy many kinds of photography, but if I had to pick my favorites, portraits, macro, and more artistic and experimental work are what attract me most. They give me the freedom to look at things a little differently and tell a story in my own way.”

What’s changed since the beginning?

Afzal Khan

“I have gone deeper into searching for stories and understanding life and nature. I think most of my improvement came from regular practice. I never really made photography my profession, and I was never behind followers or trying to become popular. I simply kept doing it because I love photography.

That regular practice not only refined my skills of capturing things, but also improved my observation. I became more curious and more of an observer. I started noticing things, moments and stories that I might have ignored before. I think photography has not only made me a better photographer, but it has also made me a better observer and, in some ways, a better human being.”

What places have helped you to better understand your photography?

Afzal Khan

“I believe I can find stories in almost every corner, though I am not really a crowded-place or festival-kind-of photographer. I need some breathing space to observe things, understand the surroundings and create or capture some stories. I usually feel more connected to quieter places, where I can slow down and look around.

In recent years, two places that really stayed with me are Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha, and the Forbidden Kingdom of Mustang. Both places helped me understand my subjects in a different way.

In Mustang, I started to feel stories even in the landscapes. The sand, land and mountains create a kind of magic that makes you look at the landscape differently. Lumbini gave me something completely different. Its spirituality and calm made me look at human life in a quieter way, and that was reflected in the pictures I took there. Both places were not just trips for me; they changed the way I saw and photographed the subjects around me.”

What would you say to other photographers about their work mattering?

Afzal Khan

“I feel many photographers today are trying to capture photographs with their brain, thinking they can make everything later on a computer or through an app. But for me, the photograph is actually created at the time of the shoot. So I would say, shoot with your heart, not just with your brain. Cameras already have enough brains these days.

What we need is the heart to understand and feel the subject, to observe before pressing the shutter, to feel the moment, and to hunt for your own kind of light. Getting good light and capturing a photograph is not enough. Look for ‘your’ kind of light, the light that is pleasant to your eye and makes the subject feel more like yours. That, for me, is where photography becomes personal.

It may sound a little weird, but I actually talk to my camera sometimes. I might say, “It’s good, let’s capture,” or after taking a photograph, “That’s great, well done.” I think this little friendship between my camera and me actually makes a difference.

Afzal really enjoyed participating in this spotlight article and would love to hear what you think of his photography and to answer any of your questions in the comments below.

You can check out Afzal’s other work at behance.net/afzalkhanvisuals.

Editor’s note: This article continues a series, ‘What’s in your bag?’, highlighting DPReview community members, their photography and the gear they depend on. Would you like your photography to be featured in a future installment? Tell us a bit about yourself by filling out this form.

Want to stay up to date on the latest product news and releases? Add DPReview as a preferred source to ensure our independent journalism makes it to the top of your Google search results.

Close-up wildlife encounters are one of those things you tend not to forget, especially if you’re a photographer and always have your camera at the ready. From massive bison to tiny birds, our community certainly impressed us this week with the encounters they shared for our Question of the Week series.

See below for some of those photos and stories. Even our own team got in on the fun! Click a member’s photo to see more.

Vladimir Nogin

David Lal

“I live in a rural English village which is in a national park. We get a lot of animal visitors to the garden. I care for them: feeding in the winter or offering water in our current drought. One winter morning, I was putting out the rubbish bin for collection. On turning round to walk back up the drive to the house, I noticed a young vixen on the drive staring at me. She was cold and wet – and hungry. I spoke gently to her and told her to follow me to the kitchen door. Blimey me, she did!

I keep a camera always ready. I threw her some dog biscuits, then offered her one with my left hand while my right held a Nikon D300 with an 18-35mm lens.”

Krusty79

Krusty79

“My friend and I were driving around some hills on the rural roads around Hollister, CA. We had spotted a golden eagle and had photographed it from a distance. Another golden eagle started following the first one. It must not have noticed us, because it came over a small hill right towards us! It got so close that my camera couldn’t focus on it. If I didn’t have my camera, I might have been close enough to touch a wingtip.”

dgbinpc

dgbinpc

“My first trip to Yellowstone National Park in winter was amazing. Snow everywhere. Bison covered in snow. Pillows of white piled along the rivers. It was a trip that exceeded all my expectations. We were told we might see wolves, and we did – miles away, through a spotting scope. It was exciting, but hardly intimate.

A few years later, I returned to Yellowstone in winter. As our snowcoach took us into the park from West Yellowstone, our driver pointed out wolf tracks that left the roadway and climbed the hillside beside us. He suggested we drive a little farther down the road. Maybe, if we were lucky, we would see them.

And see them we did. The wolves emerged from the trees several hundred yards behind us and dropped onto the groomed road. Apparently, the road was a pretty good travel route for them, too.”

RichDitch

RichDitch

“I had been in Arizona a bit over one year when there was a surprising report of an Eared Trogon seen about 2 hours north of Phoenix along Christopher Creek. Elegant Trogons are sparse nesters in southern AZ; Eared Trogons are very rare vagrants near the border with Mexico.

I had to go to Christopher Creek, hoping to see the reported bird. I waited around with a few other birders for over an hour after they had given up when I heard an unfamiliar call. I looked up in the tree I was standing under, and there it was! This is my best shot of the bird, on Fuji slide film with an N90 (probably) and my manual focus Nikkor 400 F5.6.

The species is now known as the Eared Quetzal. This shot was used as the Cover of the Western Birds Journal.”

CaseyD

FujiRon

“When my girlfriend and I moved from a small town in California to an even smaller town in rural Oregon, we were amazed by the amount of wildlife that came out of the forest and wetlands behind our home. We’ve had Black Bear, Bobcat, Black-tailed Deer, Coyote, Raccoons, too many species of birds to account for, frogs, snakes, newts, and who knows what else goes through at night.

As a cat owner, I particularly enjoyed my backyard encounter with a young Bobcat that stopped to pose for pictures, eventually got bored, and walked back into the forest.”

elliottnewcomb

elliottnewcomb

“I stepped out of my front door, exactly when the cicadas came out of the ground, emerged from their shells, and were drying their wings, so I could get within inches of them. I used a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 M1 – close focus and no macro setting or macro lens.”

fuji_phile_e

fuji_phile_e

“Being an inner-city dweller, we don’t see much other than gulls, sparrows, blackbirds and jackdaws on a regular basis, though I sometimes see various tits, occasional dunnock and robins, and once a dinky Eurasian wren.

I’m sharing some juvenile jackdaw images here. It was waiting for its mam, by the looks of it. I kept out of sight to avoid stressing it, using a window angled obliquely to obscure me, my XF100-400mm on my X-T3 poking under the window.

This first pic is what I call the Marilyn Monroe shot.”

Nigelpitt13

Nigelpitt13

“While on an early morning walking safari in Southern Africa, I came across four young cheetahs in my path approximately thirty yards from me. I was standing in long grass because there had been heavy rain the previous week. I stopped, raised my camera lens and focused on the Cheetah closest to me. The Cheetah stopped in the open and stood and looked straight at me while I took a few shots. I then focused on the others as they made their way down to the open riverbed and crossed into Botswana.

A beautiful moment in close contact. Luckily, there were no lions, leopards, or hyenas nearby (The cheetah would’ve known). In a matter of minutes, all four cheetahs had moved off. Two things one never does when encountering wild animals: never show fear (they can sense it); two, never ever run (they’ll see you as prey).”

FuhTeng

FuhTeng

“My family and I (wife and two pre-teen boys) had a wonderful road trip to Grand Teton National Park (and then Yellowstone and then Badlands) this summer. We kept hearing from everyone about how they’d seen bears, but we hadn’t seen one yet. We were in the Colter Bay visitor center area and went for a hike, knowing there was a grizzly who’d been around the area. We hoped to see him from a nice, safe distance.

I was grumpy from not seeing a bear, and tired and warm from the hike, so I just wanted to get back to the car. At that moment, I came to a land bridge between the near-island we’d hiked around and the mainland. It’s only a few yards wide, maybe 8 or 9, when THIS appears. I didn’t believe it at first. I remember pausing and going, “That’s not real.” Then instincts took over, and I dropped to my knee and got my long lens up for a couple of shots.

Then I realized – THERE’S NO WHERE TO GO. He’s coming right at us…”

BenGauthier

BenGauthier

“I spent the summer in a coastal small town of Britanny, Trébeurden. I like to fish nearly every day. For a couple of years, I have been admiring seals that live on rocks around the location, 1 mile from the coast. It seems that they became used to my small boat. On the first encounter, they were difficult to see from less than 150 feet away. This year, they stay on their rocks even though I can see them from 50 feet away.

Here is a picture taken with a 100 mm equivalent (Sony RX100). One of the seals came close to the boat. These animals are beautiful and sometimes noisy, and their song sounds like a wolf’s.”

There are many other photos that we unfortunately couldn’t fit into this article. They all deserve praise and to be seen, so be sure to visit the forum discussion. Thanks to everyone who took the time to step outside and capture the unique wildlife encounters of your region.

We’re celebrating Save Your Photos Month in September with a new type of photo-taking mini-challenge. We’d love for you to participate to show off your photography.

Save Your Photos Month is all about treasuring life’s moments and experiences captured in your photography, whether they are mundane, magical or melancholic. Expect this mini-challenge to support this idea throughout the month as we reveal daily challenge updates.

Here’s how it will work

Every 48-hours this September, we’ll announce a new photo theme. Your challenge: shoot and upload a matching photo to our community album before the period ends. At the end of the month, we’ll feature our favorite photos in a front-page DPReview spotlight.

The photo album we create at the start of the mini-challenge will be the same one you use for submitting each period’s themed photo. As soon as we announce the update for the new period, submissions will no longer be possible. Think of it as an advent calendar of sorts, where we reveal the next period’s theme every 48-hours.

We will reveal the next theme at 8pm PDT / 3 am UTC, 48-hours after the prior one (see schedule below).

Steps to share your photos

• Stand by for the 48-hour’s announcement here on this post (see the schedule below).
• Take a photo that supports the theme. It must be taken during that period.
• Upload that photo to the shared album with at least a one-sentence caption. Feel free to write more if you have a story to tell.
• Feel free to announce your photo upload and discuss the mini-challenge below (but please only share the actual photo in the album).

Notice: If you are a new forum member, you need TWO normal posts before you can upload photos to the album.

That’s it!

To share your photos outside of the forums and on social media, be sure to use the hashtag #SaveYourPhotosMonth. DPReview has an Instagram channel you can mention as well (thank you).

Daily theme reveals

Watch here daily at 7 pm PDT / 3 am UTC to see the next 48-hour’s theme announced.

We’ve already revealed the opening theme, so you can prepare to upload once the album opens on that morning:

• September 1: What’s on your dinner plate
• 3: Something interesting on or around the outside of your home
• 5: When the light hits just right (indoor photo of an amazing lighting and shadow scene)
• To continue…

We’re excited to see your photos, so get ready for Tuesday’s mini-challenge kick-off. Have fun!

Meet Lester Lefkowitz

Home base: New York State, USA

Community member Lester Lefkowitz is a frequent contributor to two notable DPReview forums: Fujifilm X System Talk and Macro & Still Life Photography. Once we told him that his photography and story would be featured, he also provided a really great look at his gear, which you can check out below. His gear bag has one of the most unique spreads of accessories we’ve seen yet in this series.

“A moderator of the Fujifilm X System Talk forum asked me to create a special post about the automatic focus bracketing feature of Fuji cameras, so I was happy to oblige. I enjoy discussing photography and showing my work in the community.”

Our ‘What’s in your bag?’ community spotlight series features readers sharing their favorite gear and photography, including from past DPReview collaborators. See below for what Lester has to share.

How did you get started as a photographer?

Lester Lefkowitz

“I taught myself photography while working on my college yearbook. After graduate school, I ran a technical and scientific photography service at a university with occasional needs for macro photography.

Eventually, I transitioned to teaching at the college level, then became the Director of Education at The International Center of Photography, and eventually went into commercial photography (30 years), specializing in industrial, scientific and medical fields (again with an occasional need for macro work).

Along the way, I was recommended to write a major textbook on macro photography (the bestseller in the Popular Photography Book Club, back in the day). Recently, I decided to make a total rewrite of the macro book, resulting in the recently published two-volume set The Manual of Close-Up and Macro Photography, Volumes I & II, which has become the definitive work in the field.”

What’s in Lester’s bag

Lester Lefkowitz

Favorite cameras(s): Fujifilm X-T4

Favorite lens(s): Fujifilm 80mm macro, 18-55mm, 70-300mm,
Fujifilm 1.4X and 2X teleconverters and a Laowa 65mm 2X macro

Must-have accessories: “I laid out in the photo all of the main accessories I will consider taking with me on a photography trip. There’s quite a bit of stuff, so here’s the list for your perusal:

• Raynox DCR-150 and DCR-250 achromat close-up filters and adapter rings
• Godox V350 flash with a X2T wireless remote and spare batteries
• Swebo focusing slide
• Vello mini-softbox for flash
• Gitzo carbon fiber tripod
• Benro geared head
• SmallRig cage
• Wired remote shutter release
• Bracket with a magic arm for off-camera flash
• And a bunch of plant ties, garden snips, a homemade adjustable ground-level pod and a rocket blower.

Not shown in the photo above: ThinkTank backpack (at least 25 years old) and even more miscellaneous items: paper towels, lens wipes, sweatband, sun hat, water bottle and insect repellent.”

Do you recognize these accessories and have them in your gear bag?

What do you like to shoot?

Lester Lefkowitz

“I spent many years with film, and then digital changed everything (I was a very early adopter), especially the ability for immediate feedback. As digital technology progressed, high ISO has become a godsend, as has modern noise reduction and sharpening. Though focus stacking is really the greatest thing to happen to macro photography since the invention of color film.

Macro photography requires patience – lots of it. Another strategy for getting a good photo is to experiment with the same subject, studying it from different angles and magnifications. DPReview folks: if you’re interested, I would be happy to provide examples!”

What draws you to Costa Rica?

Lester Lefkowitz

“Anything small is of interest. As you can see in the photographs I am sharing with you today, I enjoy taking close-up photos of insects and flowers, as well as seashells, minerals and fungi. Nature is amazing and infinitely interesting. But there are lots of things around the house that look pretty cool too when photographed close-up, like food.

There are interesting and unexpected things to photograph all over the world. Some worry that inclement weather will get in the way of their experience, but even then, there are many great subjects I can photograph indoors. When the weather is good, I go to Costa Rica. The variety of flora and fauna is extraordinary there – just be careful exploring around, as there are critters out to get you.”

Take a moment to visualize the scene

Lester Lefkowitz

“As I said before, macro photography requires patience – it cannot be done well casually. There is no such thing as a poor macro lens, and old macro lenses are often a bargain. Just start with an inexpensive set of close-up filters to see if you like the endeavor.”

Lester really enjoyed participating in this spotlight article and would love to hear what you think of his photography and to answer any of your questions in the comments below.

You can check out Lester’s other work at macrophotographer.net.

Editor’s note: This article continues a series, ‘What’s in your bag?’, highlighting DPReview community members, their photography and the gear they depend on. Would you like your photography to be featured in a future installment? Tell us a bit about yourself by filling out this form.

For several years, I lived in the western part of Austin, TX. A beautiful area covered with forested rolling hills and a couple of big lakes. It’s close enough to the edge of town that local wildlife sometimes walks right up to your front door.

A beautiful wildlife encounter happened to me a few years ago during a once-in-a-century snowfall across the area. Intending to shovel the walkway to the road, I opened the front door, and right there was an adult doe (a female deer) and two of her fawns, sheltering from the weather. Unfortunately, they bolted as soon as they saw me, so I never had a chance to take a photo.

Yesterday, we published an article about the National History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year sneak peek of the 100 winning images of this year’s contest. To celebrate the amazing talent in the wildlife photography community, as expressed in places like the history museum mentioned above, we want to see your unique and artistic captures of local fauna.

So, with that said…

What interesting, and perhaps even unexpected, wildlife have you encountered?

Special thanks to community member swimmy for allowing us to use one of his Yellowstone National Park photos as the lead article image. It’s a majestic depiction of a bison, one of the park’s flagship wildlife encounters.

Drop a reply in the comments section below, and if you’ve got a photo to include from your mentioned forum sections, it may be selected for next week’s showcase article on this topic!

Meet Johan O E

Home base: Sweden

Community member Johan O E, known as Ocoloy in the forums, has a passion for minimalist black-and-white photography. Many of his photos are portraits of ordinary people going about their daily lives, each with a unique angle that tells a particular part of their story.

“Since as long as I can remember, I´ve been in love with photography. From the album covers I saw as a child in the 80s to the surf and music magazines in the 90s. I´ve been photographing for nearly 30 years, but the last 15 years have been more intense. My dad is a photographer as well, but he has never influenced me in any form when it comes to photography. I was never allowed to use his cameras.”

Our ‘What’s in your bag?’ community spotlight series features readers sharing their favorite gear and photography, including from past DPReview collaborators. See below for what Johan has to share.

What draws you to a minimalist view?

Johan O E

“I shoot whatever inspires me. Preferably, there needs to be a person in the shot, but some of my best shots are free from people. I tend to go more for a minimalistic black-and-white vibe when I’m out and about. Been photographing all over the world. New Zealand has been my favorite by far. I also love portraits and candid moments.

I am in my third year with one camera, one lens, and a one-year project, OCOLOY. This time it is the Nikon ZF and the Voigtlander 40mm F1.2, and I only shoot in black and white. Accepts 36 images in color. I made a list of 36 things I love, which I will later print in color A4 and save.”

I like rough, wild and different environments. From stormy seas to deep jungles or the backstreets of towns in Europe.”

What’s in Johan’s bag

Johan O E

Favorite cameras(s): Nikon Zf

Preferred camera bag: “I carry with me the simplest Caselogic bag available on the market. It has just enough space for the camera and barely anything more. I have two different camera bag setups, depending on my mood. My main bag is just my camera, an extra battery, a CPL and a mist filter. If I am out working, I also bring my tablet for editing and an Instax printer for special moments to give away prints.”

Must-have accessories: “I always bring music. I make playlists for different moods and photowalks. In fact, I am recording a song about photography at the moment in my recording studio. I got a crystal from a chandelier and sometimes put it in front of my lens to create different images. I try to carry as little as possible when I am out and about.”

Why is New Zealand on your visit list?

Johan O E

“I have been on the road for the past 26 years, spending many years in New Zealand, Spain and Sweden. I’ve seen remote places in Asia, done a total of 12 months of van trips throughout Europe, spent 5 months in Sri Lanka, and taken surf trips to Hawaii and the Lofoten Islands. My most memorable photography trip was probably the COVID year, when I was 6 months into my time in New Zealand. I made a bucket list and got most of the shots, which later on boosted my photography career.”

Any strategies you’d pass along to your fellow photographers?

Johan O E

“It builds confidence to capture something unique and what I have not seen before. I use my eyes rather than predefined or scripted techniques. I almost always shoot in M mode, mostly with manual lenses, to create exactly what I want. I want a photograph to create emotions and make people look again.”

Photograph what you love and do not photograph purely for likes. Also, a good professional photography lesson will give you way more than any new camera or lens.”

Do you peer into Johan’s photos and see another person’s unique life looking back at you? He enjoyed participating in this spotlight article and would love to hear what you think of his photography in the comments below.

You can check out Johan’s other work at www.stayuntilforever.com,

Editor’s note: This article continues a series, ‘What’s in your bag?’, highlighting DPReview community members, their photography and the gear they depend on. Would you like your photography to be featured in a future installment? Tell us a bit about yourself by filling out this form.