CAPTURE NEW HORIZONS

  Regular readers of my ramblings will know that the Fujinon XF10-24mm f4 has been a workhorse for my style of photography since I purchased the lens back in May 2014.  In May I wrote a feature on my first six years with this lens using it for landscape, sport and wildlife. Recently Fujifilm announced a Mark 2 version of this lens, with a marked aperture ring and, most importantly for my work, weather resistance.  As an X Photographer I contacted Fujifilm UK and they sent me a test lens to try out in Bahrain where I was working on the final round of the 2019/20 FIA World Endurance Championship. What's The Difference? Size wise the lens are very similar, as can be seen in the image above where the new lens is on the left and the older version on the right. The newer lens is slightly less 'chunky' but the overall height is unchanged. On the side of the MK2 the two switches that control OIS and Auto/Manual aperture have gone and the aperture ring is now marked with F4 to F2...

Hello, sorry it has been a while!  I have refrained from posting updates on the MacLean Photographic blog since the end of April as I have been mulling over which direction I wanted to go with the features I post.   For the past five years I have tried to update these pages regularly with interesting articles and reviews but have recently felt this mix has been too eclectic.  So I have decided to concentrate on regular weekly updates on the projects I am working on. Future Direction for MacLean Photographic In November I obtained a DJI Mavic Pro drone to evaluate the possibility of using a drone to produce some promo videos to promote the MacLean Photographic workshops.  This has been very successful and given the promo videos an extra edge.  In May I have upgraded the Mavic Pro to a larger DJI Phantom 4 Pro and I have booked a CAA approved Permission for Commercial Operations (PfCO) course which will allow me to sell my services as a drone pilot...

On the 15 February 2018 Fujifilm launched the new X-H1 compact system camera.  As an X Photographer I was asked to be part of the test team for the new camera and Fujifilm sent a film crew to Bahrain to film an interview with myself and fellow X Photographers John Rourke and Andrew Hall. Over the past few weeks Fujifilm have been posting a series of videos entitled 'Proud of... celebrating their X Photographers and the video featuring me has been published today (4 March 2018).   Here is that interview - My Fujifilm X Series journey began with the X100 in November 2012, with the X-Pro1 and four prime lenses traveling in my camera bag in 2013 alongside my Nikon gear.  In April 2014 I bought the X-T1 and my Nikon gear was sold the following July.   After following my journey online, Fujifilm invited me to become a Fujifilm X Photographer in May 2015 and since then I have been involved in the launches of the X-Pro2, X-T2 and now the X-H1 as well as the...

The pre race grid walk ahead of the 6 Hours of The Circuit of The Americas was a good opportunity to put the Fujinon XF16mm f1.4 through its paces for a few portraits.  The shallow depth of field on the 24mm equivalent field of view makes the subject jump of the screen. I fitted a polariser filter to the 16mm to give the colours a little more punch and to take a couple of stops off the exposure to allow me to shoot wide open in the bright and sunny conditions. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY VISITING THE ADVERTISERS ON THIS PAGE By clicking on the adverts you are helping support this blog - thank you. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ALL IMAGES (UNLESS INDICATED) ARE THE PROPERTY OF MACLEAN PHOTOGRAPHIC AND C...

Richard Lietz - no91 Porsche 911 RSR  Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 (zoom 400mm) - 1/2000s @ f5.6 ISO200 Today is race day here at the Circuit of The Americas in Texas, which is hosting round 6 of the FIA World Endurance Championship.  The race will begin at 12h00 local time, which is 18h00 in the UK. The most iconic landmark on the circuit is the observation tower, which stands 251 feet / 77 metres above the track and gives a panoramic view of the circuit and the Texas countryside.  At Turn 10 on the track the cars crest a small rise in the track and by moving down the fenceline you can place the top of the tower in the shot behind the car.   The image at the top of the page was taken during Free Practice 3 at 10h30 on Friday morning, while the shot below was taken at the same point but at 17h15 on Thursday afternoon during Free Practice 2.   no51 AF Corse Ferrari 488 GTE - Alessandro Pier Guidi / no36 Signatech Alpin...

Welcome to the first day of the FIA World Endurance Championship in Texas. The colourful run off areas are painted in the national colours of the United States and Texas. Today is the first of three days of track activity with the WEC cars on track for two 90-minute Free Practice sessions starting at 12:00 CT / 18:00 BST. This shot was taken during my track inspection yesterday morning on the Fujifilm X-T2 and the XF16-55mm f2.8 lens ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY VISITING THE ADVERTISERS ON THIS PAGE By clicking on the adverts you are helping support this blog - thank you. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ALL IMAGES (UNLESS INDICATED) ARE THE PROPERTY OF MACLEAN PHOTOGRAPHIC AND CANNOT BE USED FOR ANY PURPOSE...

Stefan Mucke - no66 Ford GT As part of the build up to any weekend on the FIA World Endurance Championship calendar six drivers are invited to the pre event press conference. The drivers could be invited because they are from the host country or they are leading the championship or had a good race in the previous round.  For the 6 Hours of Nurburgring three German drivers were there - Timo Bernhard (Porsche), Stefan Mucke (Ford) and Marvin Dienst (Dempsey Proton Racing).  The other drivers were Anthony Davidson (GBR) from Toyota, Vitaly Petrov (RUS) from CEFC Manor TRS Racing and David Cheng from Jackie Chan DC Racing. As usual I record the press conference on the Fujifilm X-T2 fitted with a 10-24mm f4 lens due to the fact the press conference room is an awkward shape and the camera tripod has to be sited near to the drivers.   The press conference video is streamed on the FIA website via the world governing bodies YouTube channel. I also use the second X...