The Phoblographer

Traditionally, the fashion industry reserves Catwalks for a particular type of look. But this photographer is part of a movement looking to break that toxic trend.

In the summer of 2019, UK Portrait Photographer Rodney Pedroza was hired to be the photographer for the London edition of The Real Catwalk. A former America’s Top Model contestant, Khrystyana Kazakova, started the event in New York back in 2017. Her vision was simple; create a catwalk space that was open to anyone and all body types. And with Rodney’s skills and creative concept, he was able to bring the best out of all the participants and document their journey to empowerment.

Approaching The Real Catwalk

Rodney did not want to photograph the participants walking down the catwalk, along with all the other photographers. Instead, he set up his portrait stand so he could shoot them individually as they completed their walk. “I was after their raw emotions,” explains Rodney. He continues, “[I wanted to photograph] the fear they had before walking in front of hundreds of strangers in their underwear – probably for the first time in their lives – to feeling empowered for doing so.”

KhrystyAna Kazakova: Founder of The Real Catwalk

Rodney’s experience in portraiture has taught him about the different insecurities people have. He understands the pressures society puts on people to look a certain way and how this impacts them when in front of a camera. “In truth, people are not scared of having their photo taken, but [they’re scared of] the outcome of the photograph,” he explains. “Breaking through those layers is one of the biggest challenges I face. But one which I am always excited to embrace with each subject who stands before my lens.”

It’s important to note that many of the participants were not already body-confident. This event was the first time many of them would be stepping out to celebrate who they are. This, of course, brings many challenges for a photographer. It was Rodney’s job to ensure no last-second self-doubt crept into the heads of his subjects. Rodney explains his process of making sure negative thought patterns did not overcome his subjects and prevent them from loosening up in front of him.

“I disrupted this pattern by not giving them time to think, but to act. This means telling them how to move every single part of their body and control their micro-expressions. They have no option, but to follow each command, and therefore getting them out of their own heads. They begin to trust you and surrender to the process. It works every single time.”

Giving His Subjects Confidence

Lucy Beall-Lott

His subjects at The Real Catwalk came in a variant of shapes, sizes, and with different body conditions. One young woman, Lucy Beall-Lott, has a rare skin condition called Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa. The condition causes heavy scars over her body. She bravely chose to step out in her underwear to help raise awareness and contribute to the body-positive movement. On the discussion of the relationship she has with her body, she opens up, “.it’s always changing! I wish I could wake up every single day and truly love my scars, but like my body, my feelings toward it are always changing.”

Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa is a terminal condition. And it was first thought that Lucy wouldn’t see past her eighteenth birthday. Now 21, she sees her survival as a reason to love her body. “I am so thankful for my body, seeing what it can do, and that in turn gives me confidence.” Being in front of Rodney’s camera is a contributing factor to her confidence. In her words, “[it makes me feel] excited – I am so thrilled to be able to portray myself how I want to”

And when she receives her final image, both her beauty and confidence on full display, she proudly says, “I love seeing full body shots that show all of my scars and my face. It’s nice to take a step back, and it’s a chance to praise my body.”

Overcoming Negative Thoughts

Rosie Smith

Also at t...

While instant cameras are great fun at parties, the Canon IVY CLIQ’s ZINK prints will leave you wanting more.

The popularity of instant cameras has seen a resurgence in recent years, and the IVY CLIQ is the Canon’s entry-level product targeted at this market. Fujifilm is currently dominating the instant camera market with their various Instax cameras and printers. Canon is hoping to compete by pricing the IVY CLIQ at just under US $100. Lacking some of the features of the more premium IVY CLIQ+, the IVY CLIQ is a no-thrills instant camera that creates photo prints using Polaroid’s ZINK Zero Ink Technology. The prints have a peel-apart back that turns them into stickers as well. The compact size of the IVY CLIQ allows it to fit into most pants and shirt pockets, making it easy to carry around. Is the Canon IVY CLIQ the right instant camera for you?

Table of Contents

Pros and Cons

Pros

Cons

Gear Used

Tech Specs

Ergonomics

Build Quality

Ease of Use

Autofocus

Image Quality

Additional Image Samples

Conclusion

Likes

Dislikes

Pros and Cons

Pros

Low profile, pocketable design

ZINK prints double as stickers

Cons

Selfie mirror is tiny and nearly useless

ZINK prints do not cover the entire image captured

Optical viewfinder’s grid lines aren’t accurate

Will not capture images when no ZINK paper is loaded, even if a microSD card is inserted

Short battery life

ZINK photo paper has disappointing image quality

Gear Used

We tested the Canon IVY CLIQ Instant Camera Printer with Canon ZINK Photo Paper.

Tech Specs

Tech specs for the Canon IVY CLIQ Instant Camera Printer taken from Adorama

Takes 5 MP photos

Small selfie mirror

Print instant 2×3″ photos

MicroSD card slot

Reprint button on camera

All photos have a peel & stick back

Ergonomics

The front of the Canon IVY CLIQ is minimalist. The camera’s front element is surrounded by a large black plastic ring, likely to emulate the look of much larger lenses. A tiny, fingernail-sized selfie mirror can be found adjacent to the camera’s front element. Also visible on the front of the IVY CLIQ are the small LED flash and the optical viewfinder.

The minimalist design continues on the rear of the IVY CLIQ. The rear of the camera is covered with tiny bumps that give the back of the camera some texture, making it easy to grip. Most of the space on the back of the camera is taken up by the ZINK paper compartment’s cover. Above the cover, you’ll find the optical viewfinder, the print aspect ratio button, and the reprint button. You can choose whether the IVY CLIQ will print rectangular 2″ x 3″ prints or square 2″ x 2″ prints using the print aspect ratio button. The reprint button will reprint the last image taken with the IVY CLIQ, handy for when you want to give copies of selfies to friends at a party.

Looking at the top of the IVY CLIQ, you’ll find a status light, the power button, and the shutter button.

Finally, we move to the bottom of the IVY CLIQ where we’ll find the micro USB charging port, microSD card slot, and the small reset hole.

Build Quality

The Canon IVY CLIQ is a lightweight instant camera that can fit into most pants and shirt pockets. While the plasticky exterior of the IVY CLIQ helps keep the camera’s weight low, it also gives it a toy-like feeling in hand. A rugged camera the IVY CLIQ is not, so you’ll want to handle it with care, but the back of the IVY CLIQ does feature tiny bumps that help give the camera extra grip. If you’re accident prone, the included wrist strap will help minimize the chances of dropping the camera. During our time with the IVY CLIQ, the ZINK paper compartment cover slid open unintentionally on more than one occasion. If you’re storing the IVY CLIQ in tight pockets or compartments in your bag, you’ll want to be careful not to open the compartment accidentally when pulling the camera out. Having ZINK paper fall out of the camera was quite annoying. A revised rear cover design would be welcomed should Canon revise the IVY CLIQ’s design in the future.

We’d also li...

All self-portraits and images by Mariangela Serrano. Used with permission.

“I started taking self-portraits and photographs from a place of pain instead of a place of joy.” Mariangela Serrano, a Venuzalen born photographer, found herself locked in an abusive relationship. A once optimistic, confident creator, soon became riddled with self-doubt and low self-esteem. But photography would become her savior. It would give her the message she needed to realize something was wrong. In other words, photography set her free. Not only that, photography acted as her anchor in life and was her way of medicating to heal emotional wounds. The future now looks bright for this talented photographer. She’s soon to be married, and photography remains a constant in her life. We spoke to her to learn more about her painful experiences, how life is for an immigrant in New York, and how she would like her life to look in the future.

Phoblographer: Hey, Mariangela! Can you tell us how you first became connected to the medium of photography?

MS: Hi there! Photography was something I was surrounded by as a little girl. My grandmother and I have a very strong bond. She used to dress me up and style me so I could have my photo taken either by her at home or at a photo studio. I think that’s what created in me a spark of curiosity for photography. When I was about five or six years old, I was asked to take a photo of the woman of my family while we were having lunch. I vividly remember what it felt like to hold the camera, while not exactly knowing what I was doing. But hearing the sound of the film advancing the camera, it all gave me a feeling of needing to learn more about photography. I think that’s when I first became connected to the craft.

“I feel incredibly thankful to be able to call this place my new home.”

Phoblographer: You originate from Venezuela, what made you want to come to New York?

MS: Growing up in Venezuela, I always dreamed of becoming a filmmaker, a reporter, or a journalist of some kind. Unfortunately, my country is facing a really difficult time with one of the most detrimental economic crises’. That, alongside political oppression, has made basic things like going to school, buying groceries, or enjoying an evening out with friends really difficult. I’ve witnessed first-hand acts of violence that planted seeds of fear and uncertainty in my day to day life. So in an attempt to develop myself in a different environment, I chose New York. Because in American movies and TV shows, you always see artists blooming here. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I always romanticized being part of this city. I feel incredibly thankful to be able to call this place my new home.

Phoblographer: What is like trying to find your way in the creative field while in a country that’s not your original home?

MS: I’m still trying to figure that out. I don’t think that’s an easy thing to do, even if you live in your original country. For a couple of years, I was trying really hard to create a presence online and publish my work via Tumblr or Instagram. But as these social networks grew more and more, I realized that wasn’t necessarily the way to go, at least not for me. Nonetheless, putting myself out there allowed me to meet a lot of really inspiring people and that lead me to create more work. For example, it allowed me to work on more projects and be part of gallery exhibits. For that, I am incredibly thankful.

“Self-portraiture, it’s such a special thing for me. It has created a bridge for me to be able to understand parts of me that I wasn’t aware of.”

These days I find myself caring very little about finding my personal spot in the creative field. Instead, I create more work, experiment with different mediums, and maybe in a couple of years after creating a strong portfolio, I can focus more on creating public relationships.

Phoblographer: Part of your work is self-portraiture. How do self-portraits impact the relationship you have with yourself...

All Images By Lovis Ostenrik. Used Under a Creative Commons License.

Lovis Ostrenik’s mother, like so many mothers out there, had a nickname for her son – Visto. Years later, when coming up for a name of his photo series – which he dedicated to his mother – he could think of no better name than that affectionate nickname she had called him all those years ago.

“My mum used to call me visto or sometimes even visto batisto. It was just her way of calling me, but some friends picked it up and started using it too. Calling this exhibition VISTO goes hand in hand with dedicating it to her.” He said of the project, which he developed to celebrate the beauty and vitality of the human body.

For his subjects, Ostenrik utilized dancers and specifically looked for those with bodies that would enhance the shadows he was looking to create. “I started looking for dynamic and vitality of radiant bodies rather than beautiful poses. I asked the dancers NOT to think, NOR to express anything. I was looking for the expression through the body only, with a relaxed empty face.” Ostenrik noted of the process, “reducing the expression of the subject was meant to enhance the ability of the viewer to project his/her own interpretations, feelings, or emotions.”

The work is quite fascinating, and you can find a selection of the images on display below. You can always check out the full gallery over on Ostenrik’s Behance profile, here.

All images by Mark De Paola. Used with permission.

“I think what makes good art is to engage people and not dictate to people what to feel,” says Mark De Paola. He’s a multi-disciplined creative, working across many industries, inclucing television, art, and photography. His photography series, 60 seconds, is a detailed look at what makes us human. He created the work over eight months, using long exposures as the core technique of the creation of the images. Through the series, De Paola breaks all the rules of traditional long-exposure photography. He holds the camera in his hands, rather than placing it on a tripod. And he doesn’t ensure his subjects are in focus. The result? A series of photographs that depict the natural flow of being human. It’s an extremely compelling project and we wanted to dive in deeper to understand it.

We caught up with De Paolo, who very kindly spoke to us about the project, revealing his creative process and the psychology behind it.

Phoblographer What was your early inspiration for the 60 seconds series?

MDP: The first image. I picked up my camera in the middle of the night when I saw the very faint scene before me and pushed the button. It flashed “60,” and I didn’t even know what that meant. I had two choices: put the camera down or hold my breath. I held my breath for 60 seconds. The following 60 seconds, the camera buffered for what seemed like forever, and finally, the image before me on the screen was the beginning of the series. Immediately, to me, it was art.

Mark De Paola

“Nudity is intimacy, ease, peace, and an element of voyeurism. It is natural, individually engaging, and beautiful.”

Phoblographer: What’s your relationship with your subject, and how did it impact the way you worked together on the aesthetic of the project?

MDP: Actually, there were several subjects as the project unfolded, all shot in the middle of the night with the ambiance from outside of my New York City studio. As I am a director and photographer working in the fashion/beauty/art sectors, I am fortunate to have many willing collaborators. We have a built-in professional friendship, and these relationships allow a project as intimate as this to come to fruition.

Phoblographer: When I look at the images, I see tenderness, isolation, fatigue, and tranquility; what do you see?

MDP: I see the same, as it, for me, is a depiction of humanity and its complexity. Yes, all of those things and more. It is such a personal series and I feel its success is that it allows the individual to participate in their own way and see and feel it through their own filter and their own lives.For me, I see a vulnerability, humanity, and layers of energy. There is a term in optics called geometric flux (not such a tender phrase), which describes in scientific terms the nature of light energy reflecting off of a subject. To me that is unique to this series.

Phoblographer: What role do you feel nudity plays in this series?

MDP: Nudity is intimacy, ease, peace, and an element of voyeurism. It is natural, individually engaging, and beautiful. The series is not about nudity; it is about evoking an individual emotion of comfort.

Mark De Paola

When you see just through a piece of glass, there is more humanity as it is the way I see. It doesn’t give me any additional information to influence my vision.

Phoblographer: How did you approach shooting? Did you go with the flow, or did you have a strong idea of how each frame would look?

MDP: No actually, I had no idea at all. As you know, each frame was exposed for 60 seconds (the maximum shutter speed for the Leica M240), wide open, with the Leica 50mm Noctilux F1.0. Under these conditions, the subject was barely visible at all. At that time, we do not employ our cone receptors responsible for seeing color. You see only in black and white using the rod receptors. Everything was shot handheld, without focusing, because I did not have enough information to focus. Probably 90% of the images were sh...

For more stories like this, subscribe to The Phoblographer.

“My queer family are the first people I ever photographed,” the Berlin-based artist Gøneja tells me. “And they’re the ones I continue to portray to this day.” He’s embarked on countless adventures with this chosen family, whether they’re dancing the night away at Berghain, the iconic (and famously hard-to-get-into) club in the heart of the city, or spending the day exploring a quiet village in the Polish countryside. Their faces appear time and again, in darkened interiors and sun-drenched landscapes, as you make your way through his newest book, Rituals.

Want to get your work featured? Here’s how to do it!

“The people you see through the pages of the book are somehow all seekers and believers,” Gøneja says. “It is this spiritual quest, or perhaps a search for something bigger, that somehow runs as a thread throughout this work and weaves all the subjects together.” In their pictures, you’ll find echoes of Norse mythology, Sufism, and other centuries-old spiritual systems, set against the backdrop of the modern world. The portraits themselves are interspersed with evocative, empty landscapes captured throughout Europe, including a Neolithic monument in Scotland and a land art installation in Sicily.

Rituals is one photographer’s ode to the people he knows, the places he’s visited, and the gleaming, mystical moments that too often go unnoticed in the hustle and bustle of contemporary urban life. One of the photographs in the book, a portrait of Lea Rose, was recently recognized as a runner-up in the All Out Photo Awards, an international celebration of resistance, support, and healing in the LGBTQ+ community. We asked Gøneja more about the project. You can grab your copy of Rituals here.

The Essential Gear of Gøneja

Zenza Bronica ERTSi 645

Canon EOS 5D Mark II

Bronica Zenzanon-PE 75mm f/2.8

Canon EF 50mm f/1.2 L USM

Gøneja tells us:

“I never owned more than two cameras. For this series, they were: the Zenza Bronica ERTSi 645, an analog and medium-format one, and a Canon EOS 5D Mark II, digital and 35mm. Using two different cameras’ techniques and formats allowed me to bring more variety to the subjects I could choose, although I had to ensure enough consistency throughout.

“Medium-format cameras have the great advantage of capturing details and textures more richly than a 35mm. I particularly enjoyed this higher resolution and very descriptive image when I started printing some of the photographs for the exhibition. In the print portraying Giacomo White Noise, for instance, you can see the skin texture and the tattoo pattern so vividly, it feels almost like real-life.

“Digital cameras, on the other hand, have their own sets of qualities. One that was useful to me is that they are better at capturing and freezing movement. When I photographed the dancer Rima Baransi, for instance, her body was in motion as she was performing for the camera, so digital was no doubt the best choice.

“We also wanted to use a location that somehow resembled Palestine, in line with Rima’s origins and her political militancy. We shot in a construction site with big long walls holding together huge dunes of sand, which are used in the production of concrete for a nearby tunnel. Having a lighter, hand-held camera meant, in this case, that I had better mobility and could try out different perspectives much quicker.

“In terms of lenses, I primarily used the Bronica Zenzanon-PE 75mm f/2.8 and Canon EF 50mm f/1.2 L USM, which offer an almost equal perspective across the different formats. I love this type of lens’ length because it’s the closest you can get to the perspective of the human eye. It makes it easier for me to compose the photograph looking straight at the subject in front of my eyes, without relying too much on the waist-level or viewfinder.”

Phoblographer: One of your portraits was recently named a runner-up in the All Out Photo Awards. In what way has the LBGTQ+ community helped s...

All images by Lester Cannon. Used with permission.

Lester Cannon is one of the more inspirational photographers I’ve ever had the pleasure of interviewing. You see, Lester is on our list of the most inspirational photographers of the year–and he’s all about shooting film when he can for his personal work, though he also works in digital. He also believes that digital cameras are creating impotent photographers–which I completely agree with. But above all, Lester understands that when it comes to creating portraits, it’s about your subject, not you.

That fact is very highly reinforced by the fact that the people he photographs have enough trust in him to pose nude. Lester creates tasteful and beautiful images that are a result of his excellent people skills–one of the best things that every portrait photographer needs. So we talked to Lester about how to move into doing nude portraiture.

Phoblographer: You’re a photographer that travels a lot because of your job. So how do you go about finding new people to collaborate with and photograph and then do nude work?

Lester: The process for finding nude models is no different from finding any other type of model. Present an impressive body of work, be friendly and professional, and people will want to work with you. There are many different sites to network on like Model Mayhem, Model kartei (Germany), Purple Port, etc. These sites are a good way to get started and build new working relationships with people in your area. Instagram is actually very helpful as well. I have shot with quite a few people who I followed or followed me. I also network a lot. Word of mouth is very powerful and it’s free.

Phoblographer: Your nudes are tasteful pieces. Where does your creative inspiration come from for these in particular?

Lester: I think my inspiration for photography in general comes from movies. I love cinema. When I got my first DSLR, I had the idea of making my own little movies. After seeing how much work it was and that it relied on many other people than just me, my dreams evaporated. I still like the cinematic look. I like when images have tension and drama. Choosing models with the ability to express emotion is key to getting this look.

Phoblographer: You shoot film and lots of your nudes are in black and white on your site but on your Instagram you feature more color work. Do you feel the Instagram audience appreciates color more than the people coming to your website? And with that said, do the people who come to your site usually to consider working with you?

Lester: My website is for customers to view my best work and decide if I can provide what they are looking for. There is a fine line between what people consider fine art and just pics of naked girls. You can have a portfolio with tons of killer portraits, landscape, and travel photos. But if you have a few nude photos in there that’s the only thing people see and you are pigeon-holed as “the guy who takes naked pictures”. With that being said I feel that when an image is in black-and-white it reduces the sexual energy that is there and helps the viewer focus more on the photography. Instagram is a little more spontaneous and random almost like a photo diary of my projects. I found that my site has been received well by customers. I try to keep it updated every 1-2 weeks with latest and best content.

Phoblographer: What’s the shooting process like and the conversations as well as the posing process?

Lester: I tried to keep things laid back but I stay very focused. Music is always good to have if possible. It lightens the mood and keeps things fun. I’m not a fan of awkward silences. I prefer to not have to give a lot of direction. I like to give a general idea of what I want through mood boards or other visual aids and then let the model do their thing. I just might here and there have them adjust their pose to enhance the composition.

Phoblographer: What films do you use and feel that work best with skin and the type of l...

Want to know what it’s like being a photographer in adult entertainment? Here you go.

“Now and then, you suddenly realize that there are naked people having sex right in front of you,” says Luke from the adult content site, Bright Desire. Alongside his wife, Ms. Naughty, Luke is shooting and photographing content that looks to break the status quo of the industry. In what they call “feminist porn,” their ethos is to make adult material inclusive of everyone that is a break from the view of the male gaze. But, aside from the polarizing topic of ethics in the adult industry, what is it like being on set? More so, what is it like photographing adult content? We discuss all that and more as we sit down to talk with Luke and Ms. Naughty.

Phoblographer: Please tell us what first inspired you to create adult content that went against the grain seen in the industry?

MN: I have been a fan of erotic content made for women since I bought my first copy of Australian Women’s Forum in 1994. It had male centerfolds and erotic fiction. I became a freelance journalist for that magazine in 1998. When I started making adult websites in 2000, it seemed a natural extension to make adult content that catered to women. I like adult entertainment, but I never liked the sexism of it or the way it always gave priority to the male viewer. My goal from the beginning was to offer a female perspective and make adult content for women like myself. That expanded into ForTheGirls.com in 2003 and then making films in 2009 followed by the launch of BrightDesire.com in 2012.

Phoblographer Your content includes real-life couples. How does the chemistry and authenticity between your subjects differ when you’re photographing/shooting two people who are romantically involved, rather than two actors?

MN: The answer to this is more complicated than it would seem. Real-life couples know what they want in bed, they’re already hot for each other, and you can often see the shared intimacy and connection that they have. They like each other and want to be there. That chemistry is what I’m after when I work with a real-life couple and I think I’ve done a good job of capturing it. We often focus on people’s faces because I want to see the interactions they have while having sex. That, to me, is far more interesting than any of the mechanics of sex (although we like to show that too, of course).

That said, we’ve worked with many real-life couples who were making adult content for the first time, and they’re often nervous about being in front of the camera. They also don’t really know what to expect, they aren’t used to lighting or other technical considerations. This can impact what we capture. We do our best to be unobtrusive and make people feel comfortable so they can relax and just do what they’d normally do, but sometimes that means it’s not perfect.

We’ve also shot with people who have never met before or professionals who have said they’d like to work with a particular person but they’ve never had sex with each other. Those scenes can have their own special chemistry and magic. The thrill of the first time can be wonderful to see. The scene we did with Jiz Lee and Bishop Black is absolutely adorable and they’d never had sex before, although they were previously acquainted. The scene went for hours because they were so into each other they wouldn’t stop. And professionals are often easier for us to shoot because they are more comfortable being filmed so they’re better able to just focus on having fun.

Miss. Naughty

“That’s what people want from Bright Desire – that human connection.”

There’s a lot of discussion in feminist adult entertainment circles about what’s “authentic” in adult content and how the term is used as a “genre” in some ways. If there’s a camera in the room when people are having sex, that fundamentally changes the dynamic. It’s always a performance, even if it’s a real life couple filming themselves with an iPhone. But it’s also real sex and people ...

With the Tamron 35-150mm f2.8-4 Di VC OSD, photographers are getting a great package zoom.

The Tamron 35-150mm f2.8-4 Di VC OSD is a lens that I needed some time getting used to. This happened before I even touched it. I mean, why these choices of focal lengths? I know lots of folks adore the 35mm focal length and I folks love the 150mm focal length for macro work. However, these choices in focal lengths are an odd package. But, despite my personal gripes, this is a fantastic lens, with great image quality, weather sealing, a small size, a lightweight, and a good feeling. I’ve only got one issue; something I discovered when using the Tamron 35-150mm f2.8-4 Di VC OSD in the field.

Pros and Cons

Pros

A bit of weather resistance

An interesting range that makes you think outside of the box

Small size for what it is

Really nice image quality

Cons

I wish this were native to Canon RF mount

Gear Used

We tested the Tamron 35-150mm f2.8-4 Di VC OSD with the:

Canon EOS R

Profoto B10

Tech Specs

Specs taken from the Adorama listing

Fast F/2.8 aperture at the wide-angle end while maintaining a bright F/4 at the telephoto end.

MOD (Minimum Object Distance) is 17.7 in across the entire zoom range.

LD (Low Dispersion) glass elements and aspherical lenses quash degrading optical aberrations.

incorporates the Dual MPU (Micro-Processing Unit) system which assures optimal AF performance

Lens Mount: Nikon

Zoom Focal Length: 35-150mm

Lens Format: Full Frame

Maximum Aperture: f/2.8-4

Lens Type: Wide Angle to Telephoto Zoom SLR Lens

Image Stabilization Type: Yes (VC)

Lens Series: Tamron Di Series

Special Features: Aspherical

Filter Size: 77mm Lens

Ergonomics

Taken from our first impressions

The Tamron 35-150mm f2.8-4 Di VC OSD is very lightweight and compact. You’ll find a manual focus ring up front, followed by a much larger zoom ring to adjust the focal length.

Both the manual focus ring and zoom ring are made of rubber and feature grippy ridges, with the zoom ring being lockable. You’ll also notice the signature silver ring found on many of Tamron’s latest lenses just before the mount and rubber gasket.

Notice the markings on the zoom ring for all of the popular portraiture focal lengths (35mm, 50mm, 85mm, 105mm, 135mm, and 150mm). You’ll also find the toggle switches for Vibration Compensation (what Tamron calls their Image Stabilization tech) and Autofocus/Manual Focus toward the side of the lens.

The lens almost doubles in length when zoomed out to 150mm, but due to its lightweight nature, I didn’t find it to become unbalanced when shooting with it paired to a Canon EOS 5D Mk IV.

Autofocus

In our testing, we found the focus acquisition to be pretty fast and accurate. This is the case throughout the various lighting conditions we encountered. Where we found the Tamron 35-150mm f2.8-4 Di VC OSD to fail a bit is when it came to tracking autofocus. To be fair, this is not new to many lenses that we use and adapt via Canon’s EOS R adapters. However, I think the hobbyist photographer getting this lens will not mind all that much. This is a lens photographers will use not really for serious work, but the image quality can surely hold its own in that regard. In terms of autofocus performance, it wasn’t optimal in real-world settings.

With Canon’s latest firmware updates to the EOS R, the autofocus has improved a lot, but I can’t quite say the speed matches Canon’s own.

Build Quality

The Tamron 35-150mm f2.8-4 Di VC OSD has a bit of weather resistance, though it isn’t as talked about as much as other lenses in their press releases. This lens is said to have a bit of moisture resistant construction. However, when you look at Tamron’s diagrams, it seems to have a ton of weather sealing. Given Tamron’s build quality streak, we’re positive you can take this into the rain with no issues.

Best of all, the Tamron 35-150mm f2.8-4 Di VC OSD is very lightweight. It feels great in the hand and, if anything, will remind photographers of holding a prime lens. We d...

All images by Peter Brian Schafer. Used with permission.

Photographer Peter Brian Schafer was born, raised, and went to college in northern California. After moving to Baltimore to go to graduate school in public health, he raised a daughter, took photography and filmmaking courses at MICA, NYU, and ICP, and dropped out of graduate school. Like everyone else, he currently lives in Brooklyn.

Peter is behind a project called “Diary of a Sex Tourist” where he travelled to the Dominican Republic to document the lifestyle and just how much the small town of Sosúa actually depends on it.

Phoblographer: Talk to us about how you got into photography.

Peter: My father had an old Yashica 35mm SLR and we would sit around and watch slide shows of family vacations and earlier photos he took in Japan before I was born. Typical stuff for a kid born in the 60s. He was quite a good photographer. When I went to college I took photography classes and learned to develop and print. In college I got very into movies, foreign movies and old Hollywood pictures. My approach to photography is largely inspired by movies, both in look and my interest in narratives.

Phoblographer: What made you want to do documentary work?

Peter: I guess it grew out of the practice I got doing street photography and then, imagining stories of the lives of people I shot. I was interested for a while in doing fashion work, but I learned that the old school fashion stuff I liked, with these implicit narrative threads suggested through the pictures and settings, weren’t really so common these days. But I’d make up stories with this one model I worked with, then I did a documentary project on her actual daily life as a single mom.

Phoblographer: So what made you want to even begin the project “Diary of a Sex Tourist?”

Peter: I was at this point in where I wanted to do an extended project. I first had this idea of driving and camping and photographing through the South since I’d never really been there. But by the time I got my life together to do it, it was November and I decided to find somewhere warmer. I thought of the Dominican Republic because I saw somewhere that flights were cheap, then I went online to learn more about it and saw these references to prostitution and sex tourism. That sounded like a project.

Phoblographer: Logistically speaking, how did you plan for this? What were your goals and how did they change while doing the project?

Peter: In preparing for the project, I read this book, “What’s Love Got to Do With It?,” an ethnography of sex workers in a small resort town, Sosúa, on the DR’s north coast written by Denise Brennan, who’s now the chair of the anthropology department at Georgetown. The stories Brennan tells of the women who move to Sosúa to pursue sex work paint a picture not of passive victims of circumstance but of women pragmatically carrying out plans to improve their lives and the lives of their children. It was interesting because the stories went against the prevalent view of prostitutes living these desperate degraded lives. They’re mostly internal migrants who go through these cycles of working and sending remittances back home to support their children, who are generally looked after by the sex workers’ parents, then living back home with their children. And they’re central to the economy in Sosúa. All the other businesses depend on them, so they have this surprising status.

Phoblographer: What gear did you use, and why did you feel that it would help you tell the story you needed to tell?

Peter: I used a Mamiya 6 rangefinder with its wide angle 50mm lens. It was a good camera for this project because I was mostly shooting interiors and the lens gave me the coverage I needed. I shot Portra 160 for outdoor and Portra 400 at 800 (but processed normally because it has a lot of latitude) and since the lens isn’t that fast and I hand hold, the Mamiya’s leaf shutter was important. It’s virtually vibration-free, so I could hand hold 1/4 and 1/...