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Staff Writer

Nando Harmsen

Helmond, NL
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Articles from Nando Harmsen

Working With a Reverse Ring For Macro Photography With High Magnification

Macro photography is a fun thing to do. With a normal macro lens, you can reach up to a 1:1 magnification. With a couple of extension tubes, it is possible to boost the magnification a bit, but not much. If you are interested in higher magnifications, you could try a reverse ring first. 

Photographing Landscapes at Lofoten With the Fujifilm GFX100

For my annual trip to Lofoten, I had the opportunity to shoot with the Fujifilm GFX 100. Prior to the trip, I had just a few weeks to get acquainted with the camera. Here are my thoughts on this 102-megapixel camera for landscape photography. 

How You Can Use Focal Length in a Different, More Creative Way

If your subject is far away, you can use a longer focal length to bring it closer. When the subject is very large, a shorter focal length can capture it al at once. But did you know the focal length can also be used in another way?

 

6 Types of Lenses You Probably Won’t Need Anytime Soon

There are amazing lenses available. It is tempting to buy a special lens, because it can open doors to a whole different kind of images. But there are lenses which you probably won’t need anytime soon. Here are six of them. 

A Review of the New Haida M10 Filter System and Red Diamond Filters

During the last photo trip I hosted at Lofoten, I used the new Haida M10 filter system together with their new filters. Although I was somewhat skeptical at first, I found it to be a really nice system that worked very well under cold conditions. This is my review. 

Mirrorless and DSLR Cameras Can Live Next To Each Other

The DSLR has been called a dinosaur on the brink of extinction. It has been called old-fashioned, or even outdated technology. It is all because of the mirrorless cameras that hit the market a few years ago now. Let’s have a look at the differences between the two and find out if both systems can live next to each other.

How Much Resolution Do You Really Need?

The resolution of camera sensors is still increasing. Over the last decade it has grown from 3 megapixels to 50 megapixels and more. At first the increase in resolution was a significant one, but not anymore. Do we really need more resolution than the cameras that hit the market today?

How Useful Is Sky Replacement in Luminar 4 and Should You Use It?

With the release of Luminar 4, it has become amazingly easy to replace a boring sky with something more appealing. You only need to pick the sky of your choice, and the artificial intelligence part of the program does an amazing job in masking out the sky and changing it into something else. But should you use it? 

Fstoppers Reviews the GoPro MAX 360° Camera

When I needed a 360-degree camera for my real estate photography, I was looking for the Ricoh Theta Z1. I got the new GoPro MAX 360 instead, because the Ricoh was not available at that time. Now, I want to share my thoughts on this 360-degree action camera. 

A Review: Shooting With the Nikon Coolpix P1000

Back in 2018 Nikon released the Coolpix P1000, a super zoom bridge camera with an optical zoom of 125 times. No other camera has this optical zoom range. It could be an alternative for all those part time wildlife shooters. Or perhaps not?

Review of the Profoto C1 Plus Flash Light

Today there are a lot of photo enthusiasts that only use a smartphone. It is easy for a lot of people, placing content directly online. Wouldn’t it be great of there was a way to have a flash light that would work seamless with a smartphone? Profoto has the C1 and C1 Plus flash for that.

Which Sensor Size Suits Your Type of Photography the Best?

There are different sensor sizes in existence. This is common knowledge for most photo enthusiasts, and often it is said a full frame sensor is the professional choice. Let’s see if size makes a difference for your type of photography.

About JPEG Images and Their Quality Degradation

You lose information when an image is saved in JPEG format. This is acceptable, unless you save the same image more than once. Let’s have a look at how much information you really lose.

13 Tips for an Improved Lightroom Experience

Lightroom is probably the most used photo database program available, with an integrated raw file editor, and many options for post processing. These thirteen tips can improve your Lightroom experience.

Have You Already Customized Your Camera to Your Own Needs?

Did you know a lot of people use their camera without setting it up for their needs? If you have done this already, you may find nothing new in this article. If you don’t know what I am talking about, perhaps you should read it.

What Does Your Perfect Camera Look Like?

With every new camera, new options and enhanced features are introduced, sometimes small and perhaps even insignificant, sometimes groundbreaking. The end result is never perfect, but what if you could design one yourself? 

How to Use the Ansel Adams Zone System in the Digital World

Our histogram shows 256 shades of gray. Besides pure black and pure white Ansel Adams used only nine shades to manipulate the contrast in his famous landscape photos. His zone-system can still be used for our modern digital photography.

 

Advice for Shooting Black and White Photos

We look at the world in color, even when we want to shoot black and white photos. Color can be very distracting in that case. Thanks to digital photography it is possible to change the world into black and white before you take the picture.

Tips on Shooting the Polar Light

Autumn and winter are upon us, and in the north the polar light has appeared in the night skies. Time to go out and photograph the elusive Northern Lights. Here are a few tips on how to capture it.

The L-Bracket; A Piece of Metal That Will Always Be a Part of My Camera Body

Once I bought a Manfrotto pistol-grip-upside-down ball head, with the typical Manfrotto camera plate. After a while I wanted something more robust, and I choose for an Arca-Swiss compatible ball head from Kirk Enterprises, and a matching L-bracket. The latter was one of the best choices I made.

Don't Just Shoot, Do Something With Your Photos

Digital photography has changed the way we take pictures.  We care able to shoot, and shoot, and never run out of storage space. But at the other hand, it did not change the way we treat all those photos. So I wonder: what are you doing with all the photos you took over the last year? It used to be so simple.

Would You Consider a Smartphone for Your Photography

If you believe the advertisements of smartphone manufacturers, the cameras of those devices are amazing and suitable for professional use. Sometimes (often?) these advertisements turn out to be fake, shot with professional DSLR cameras. But how good are those smartphone cameras really?

A Gitzo Traveler Tripod: Is It Worth the Money?

I have a large and relatively heavy Gitzo tripod that can carry as much as a small elephant. But I also bought an expensive Gitzo traveler tripod because sometimes I want to travel light. The question is, was it worth the money?

Always Be Patient With Landscapes: Wait for the Right Moment

Everyone who is photographing landscapes knows how important light is. With the right light situations, a boring landscape can transform into something magical. It is not only choosing the golden hour, but also waiting for the right moment. You need to be patient.