PHOTOGRAPHY.

Auckland Star, Volume XLI, Issue 16, 16 July 1910, Page 14

PHOTOGRAPHY.

The Auckland Camera Club is so excellent and throughly live an institution that its membership is rapidly increasing, and certainly deserves to do so. The usual monthly meeting was held at Holland's rooms this week, when there was a large gathering. Members, as is customary, brought specimens of their work for exhibition and criticism, and an agreeable half hour was spent in looking over these and comparing notes and hearing remarks thereon. A subject is usually suggested some time ahead, and on this occasion it was "Winter." On the voices the most meritorious picture shown was by Mr Doree, who was asked if ho would allow it to be added to the club'e permanent collection whieh*adorns the walls. The best picture shown each month is thus acquir&S, providing tho owner is, as in this case, agreeaible, and a very fine set of pictures will in time become available to members interested in the best things producible by fellow Icraftsmen. A locturette —interspersed with questions and criticisms—on "Dark Room Dodges," was given by Mr B- B. Walrond, and a good many useful "tips" wore picked up in the course thereof. The olub are acquiring a combined enlarging and exhibition lantern, and when it arrives some extremely interesting evonings should eventuate. The club meets once a month, and fills a really useful .place, now that bo -many amateurs are interesting -themselves in photography —and. anxious to .become something better " ' i i"' "■ ■ ' .ana a comparison of methods and results cannot but be advantageous to all. DiEPTH OP FIELJ} SCAXE. The portable form of camera which has now taken such a hold among photographers, and which lias the direct object of minimising not only the size and weight of the apparatus, but also the ■manipulation when in use, has brought irito prominence the use of a scale "attached to the camera, showing the depth of field obtainable by the use of any one of the series of apertures, or stops, of the lens. One or two makers of high-clase cameras have provided these scales for years past, although it has generally b«en looked upon as an almost unnecessary luxury, but at the present time I know of one particular pocket camera to which the depth of field scale is a standard fitting, and I would advise my readers when choosing their camera to well consider this feature.

Now, as to the practical value of the depth of field scale, which we can consider -without go-ing into the theoretical aspect, if we examine the image of a view, given by a lens at full aperture, say f 0, on the focussing screen, we shall find -that if the foreground is in focus the distance is ont, or vice versa. Now we know that if we reduce the lena aperture sufficiently we shall get both the foreground and distance in focus, ox, in other words, we shall have a. depth of field ranging from, say, four yards, or, perhaps, less, to infinity. This depth of field is always directly proportional to the focal length of the lens and the etop used, so that it is quite obvious that an accurate scale can be made to show the depth given under various conditions. Now the value of this should be easily realised. Suppose, for instance, fchjit it is desired to take a enapshot of a street scene where there are figures in the near foreground. If the lens is used at full aperture, cay f C, either the foreground or dis-tance must be out of focus, but by referring to the depth of field scale we shall find that at, say f 10, everything from infinity down to about live yards will be sharp, so, therefore, all wo have to do is to set our Jens at f IC, and give the necessary exposure for that stop. By this example it can bo seen that incorrect focussing, which i.-?, perhaps, the most frequent fault in hand-camera work, can be entirely obviated, and given that an accurate viewfinder is fitted to the camera, the use of the focusing screen can almost be dispensed with.

PHOTOGRAPHS FOR POSTERITY. The National Photographic Record Association, founded some twelve years ago by Sir J. Benjamin Stone to establish a national collection of photographs, has of late found its functions superseded by local associations. Accordingly at the annual meeting in the St. Pancras Hotel, London, recently, it was decided to bring the Association to an end, provision being made for the retention, of the offices for receiving contributions which might be offered to the British Museum.

Sir J. B. Stone said that in the Victoria and Albert Museum, South Kensington, we had got some 50,000 pictures. He examined them recently and he found that they are absolutely decaying.

A motion that the officers retain office to receivo contributions for the British Museum was carried unanimously.