Ok.. so I am slow! A friend just sent me to the Amazon digital design bookstore. Now I love design books and finding them all in the one place is just awesome. So, thanks Marilyn and here for anyone else who hasn’t found it yet is the link to all things wonderful: Amazon Digital Design Bookstore.
Labels: amazon, best books for photographers, book reveiews, design, graphic design, great books, Lightroom, Photography, Photoshop
Categories:Lightroom, photography, photoshop
You have probably seen images like the one above that feature impossibly smooth water.
You might have even asked yourself how it was done? Or perhaps you think it is something that can’t be done without expensive equipment and lots of know how.
Well that’s not true. I shot this image with no extra equipment and I’m going to tell you how.
The secret is to shoot really slow. This image took 10 seconds to shoot.
Now I can’t stand still for 2 secs, much less 10 and neither can you so start by finding somewhere to put the camera. I found a place for it at ground level and took a test shot to see it would work, which it did. I backed off the zoom and the composition was pretty good.
So, I had a sturdy place to shoot from. Now, how to easily slow everything down?
You see, slow shooting is what you need for this image. In this night shot the only thing that will be moving a lot is the water. If you can capture the image over a long enough time the movement of the water will blur deliciously and the buildings will remain sharp. That’s the secret to the shot – a long exposure that blurs the water but leaves everything else nicely exposed and sharp.
One option for a long exposure is to use Tv mode on the camera – fancy speak for controlling the speed of the camera. I opted not to do this as I really wanted to use a small aperture and I didn’t want to let the camera choose the aperture size – it would have chosen too large a size resulting in a smaller depth of field – I wanted a deep depth of field so everything would be in focus.
I could have used Manual mode but then I’d have had to make calculations for the shutter speed – too much time and effort to get this right.
So, I selected Av or Aperture Priority mode and set the aperture to f/11. That is a very small aperture so the shot is going to take some time to capture – especially after dark. So far so good. But I wanted it to be slower still and I didn’t want a lot of noise messing up the image.
The next setting was for ISO which is sensitivity. You use small values like 100 in the daylight and 6400 at night. I set it to 100 – totally the wrong setting for shooting at night because it makes for long shutter speeds but remember we want silky water so it works here. Also a small ISO like ISO100 means less noise than higher ISO values. Don’t get me wrong, I love noise in my images but in its place – I didn’t want it for this image.
So ISO100 both slows down the shot and reduces noise.
So, now the camera is set up, it is nearly time to shoot.
The final camera setting is to set it up for continuous shooting. Ideally you need to take a few shots at once so you want to press the shutter down and hold it and have the camera take a few shots in a row without you having to repeatedly press the shutter. The problem with pressing the shutter is that it moves the camera and movement = blur which is so not what you want.
Continuous capture means you sit with your finger on the shutter so you don’t move much except on the first and last shot – that’s why you take a few – the first and the last will probably have movement because of the shutter press and release – the shots in the middle should rock!
Now place the camera in the place you already determined it is secure and steady. Steady yourself – I sat down beside it – press the shutter and hold it.
Wait through at least 3 shots (remember the first and last in the sequence are probably ruined so you need at least 3 and preferably more).
When the sequence is complete, review the shots, correct any issues and try again. I took about 4 series of 4+ images to get a couple that were great.
Labels: better photos, long exposure, low noise, photography how to, silky water, simple photography techniques, smooth water
Categories:photography
In the previous post we looked at the basics of capturing reflections. Here we’ll look at some additional tips and tricks.
When capturing a reflection of a building in a lake, for example, you have two choices for framing the image. You can capture the reflection alone or you can capture the original object and its reflection. The choice is yours. If you’re shooting digital, capture both shots and see which you like best later on.
If you opt to capture both the original and the reflection, consider where the line where one ends and the other begins should be. You can shoot with the ‘line’ across the middle of the photo but this can be distracting as the eye doesn’t know exactly which image to focus on.
A better solution is to place the ‘line’ along the top one third or bottom third of the image – so the reflected area is double the size of the original or half its size. This will balance the image better and give a more restful image. Make sure the line between the reflection and what’s being reflected is very straight, if it is not, it will be very distracting.
Here the buildings are much more interesting as a reflection than they were right side up!
When you’re looking for reflections, don’t always look for perfection. There are interesting photos to be taken where the reflection is bent or rippled because of the characteristics of the reflective surface.
For example, try shooting a reflection captured in a car windscreen. The reflection will be bent and distorted because of this and all the more interesting.
Here the wake of the boat I was travelling on broke the reflection in a very visually rich way:
A sudden shower of rain will open up new adventures in capturing reflections as you will see the surrounds reflected in puddles of water on the ground. Even a storm-cloud laden sky will look more threatening if captured reflected in a puddle.
When you’re shooting a reflection, check your camera is focusing correctly. You want it to focus on the reflected surface and some cameras may not do this correctly and may, instead, focus on the objects behind the reflective surface.
If you’re using a digital SLR, you can switch to manual focus and focus the lens yourself so you can make sure that the area you’re most interested in is nice and sharp.
Once you start looking for reflective surfaces to shoot images from you will be surprised at just how many there are and what great effects you can get from them with not
much effort.
Labels: car, focus, how to, photo, photographer, Photography, polarizer, reflection, tip, trick, Tutorial, water
Categories:photography
Reflections occur all around us. When you’re driving, the road behind you is reflected in the car rear vision mirror and your car will be reflected in the chrome on the car next to yours at the stop light.
Other reflections are more obvious and often constructed to be so, for example, the Reflecting Pool at the War Memorial in Canberra reflects the surrounding buildings and beautiful houses are often constructed with lakes in front of them to reflect their beauty.
Capturing these objects and their reflections can lead to some wonderful photos so here I’ll show you want to look out for and how to capture a great shot.
The first thing to do when shooting reflections is to remove the polarizing filter from your camera. This filter is designed to reduce reflections which, most of the time is a good thing, but not when it’s the reflections themselves you’re interested in.
If you leave the filter on and photograph something reflected in a window, chances are you’ll capture an image of what’s behind the window instead of what is reflected in it.
While a beautiful building reflected in a lake makes for a great shot, there are reflections you’ll come across every day that will often be more interesting because they are not staged or expected.
For example, the lenses in sunglasses will reflect the scene around them. By positioning yourself so you can see something interesting reflected in the lens you can capture a mini scene within the glasses themselves.
Car rear vision and side mirrors are great for capturing interesting reflections.
Hold the camera at an angle to the mirror so you don’t capture the camera in the shot (unless you actually want to) and frame the shot in the mirror. You’ll need to frame it very accurately because anything outside what shows in the mirror won’t be captured.
If you live in a city there will be reflection opportunities in the buildings around you. For example, capture a busy streetscape in the glass front window of a shop. Look out for an interesting shop to use for this purpose such as a fruiterer or bakery or some shop where what is in the window is as much of interest as what is reflected in it.
When you’re shooting reflections in shop windows, there’s a good chance the final shot will be a mix of reflection and what shows through the glass.
Tall buildings with mirror glass will reflect the buildings around them and the sky too. Look for opportunities where the sun is right and the reflected image an ideal one to compose and capture.
Labels: capture, how to, interesting images, photo, photographer, Photography, polarizer, reflection, tip, trick, tutorials
Categories:photography
If you find that the skies in your summer photos look less vibrant than they should consider investing in a polarizing filter.
A polarizing filter cuts out reflected glare and the result is that colours look more saturated so your skies look bluer. The polarizing filter will also allow you to capture, for example, fish in a pond rather than capturing the glare from the sunlight bouncing off the pond.
When purchasing a polarizing filter, make sure to select the right polarizer for your camera – some won’t work on a camera that uses a through the lens metering system. The polarizer is a glass filter that simply screws onto the lens on the camera so its diameter needs to match the size of the thread on your lens.
If you are using a point and shoot camera then you may need a special attachment to be able to add a polarizer to the camera.
When you are using the polarizer, screw it onto the camera and then turn the ring on it to find the position that gives the best results before capturing the shot.
Labels: better photos, bluer skies, glare, how to photograph blue skies, Photography, polarizer, tips and tricks for better photography
Categories:photography
To add interest to your photos, find a new angle to shoot from.
Instead of always shooting face onto your subject, get down low or get up high to capture something more interesting.
If your point and shoot camera has an adjustable LCD screen you can even get underneath objects like flowers for an even better result.
Labels: angles, better photos, face on, find a new angle, photography how to, take better photos, tips and tricks for better photography
Categories:photography
Once you’ve downloaded and chosen the best shots – I use Lightroom because it is so simple to use, it’s time to fix the photos.
I will adjust the white balance – in the series of images I shot the white balance was a little too warm so I cooled the images down and adjusted the Exposure in the Develop module.
I will then fix any skin blemishes either in Lightroom or, if you’re using Photoshop Elements, for example, I’ll do that with the Spot Healing Brush – it is as simple as painting out the problem areas and uneven skin tones.
To lessen the effect of wrinkles a good fix is to make a duplicate of the image background layer and to blur this duplicate layer with a small radius Gaussian blur filter (Filter>Blur>Gaussian blur). Then selectively erase the top layer to reveal the sharper features underneath leaving the blur over the wrinkles. You will want to erase the blurry eyes and mouth and perhaps some of the blurred hair. Finally, reduce the Opacity of the top layer to blend the two layers together for a great result.
If your images are a colder blue color then use a warming filter to give the portrait a warm pink glow which is very flattering to skin tones. In Photoshop Elements, to do this, choose Filter > Adjustments > Photo Filter and choose a Warming Filter (85). You can set the density of the filter to control how strongly it is applied. In the Lightroom Develop module, you can drag the Temperature slider a little to the right.
I like to use the Photoshop Elements Lightening Brush to lighten a person’s teeth slightly and I’ll often use the Saturation Enhancing Brush to brighten their eyes. Err on the side of caution though, the edits you make should be subtle and gently enhance the photo – you’re not applying Halloween makeup!
If your mum gets just one photo that she loves of herself from those you’ve taken – you’ve given her a wonderful gift. Best of all, you can bet she’ll be happy to pose for you again next year.
Labels: day, fix, Lightroom, mom, mother, mum, photo, touch up
Categories:photography
For portraits and pet photos you can get more detail in your shot by getting closer to your subject.
Take a few steps forward to get in close to your subject or use the camera’s zoom if you can’t get physically closer. Fill the viewfinder with your subject and then shoot. Not only will your subject look great but you will remove excess background from the image which generally removes unnecessary and unwanted detail.
Labels: better photography, how to take photos, photographing pets, photography how to, portrait techniques
Categories:photography
Whenever I travel one of the tasks I have is to find good places for street art. It’s not like it makes the top 10 things to see in many, if any, cities in the world!
While I do a lot of research on the internet before I leave I also rely a lot on local information – trick is who to ask. Usually the well dressed, well heeled local or anyone who looks conservative it not my pick! Instead, on a recent trip to Baltimore it was the guys at the Utrecht art store. They were not only so nice in helping me find the supplies I wanted – a new batch of Prismacolor pencils – but also they helped me find graffiti and street art. They took the time to give me a mini hand drawn map of where to find Graffiti Alley – tucked between Howard and North and just the sort of place you need some insider knowledge or lots of dumb luck to find.
Nearby Graffiti Alley on Charles Street I found this piece of art, painted across the back of a parking lot. It was a really big project and basically untouched. There is a bit of art around it in the parking lot and most of it too is untouched. Not so Graffiti Alley where there are layers and layers of art, compelling in a very different way. Luckily a woman waiting in a parked car for her partner joined me for my walk up Graffiti Alley – if I wasn’t concerned about my safety (I was) she was! She insisted in walking with me to keep a lookout – I appreciated it, the alley does a dog leg and much of it is invisible from the road. I was glad of the company!
Labels: baltimore, graffiti, Photography, research, sticker art, street art, street art utopia, top 10 tings to photograph
Categories:photography
My mum hates being photographed! I’m not that fussed about photographs of myself either. As I age, my face doesn’t always refect the age I feel inside and many photos catch me looking less attractive than I’d like to look. I have every sympathy for my mum who is obviously years older again than I am.
However, chronicling the women in our lives, our mums, mums in law, grandmothers and aunts is an important part of recording our family history. This mother’s day or some time soon, grab the special woman in your life, sit them down and take a portrait that they’re happy to look at. It’s not difficult when you know these few tricks for capturing them at their best.
When something really strikes your subject as funny – be ready to capture a one off shot that will make you smile.
Most people look better looking up at the camera rather than looking down at it. Even someone with no double chin will get one when looking down! Looking down at the camera also accentuates a person’s nostrils which isn’t always flattering.
When taking a photo, position your mum so you can stand higher than she is – this usually means that she needs to be sitting down. Find a place indoors with good natural light and shoot inside or find a shady spot outside.
For our pictures of Anne here we hung some dark curtains from a front porch to shield the worst of the bright and uneven sunlight and shot outdoors.
Here the subject leans on a favourite book and the pose is nice and relaxed.
Using a tripod will ensure that the camera is still when you take the shot – if not, focus on keeping it steady – especially if you start clowning around and you need to laugh. Jokes are good – in fact anything that works to make mum relaxed will help lots. I usually take a friend who is a bit of a wag with me and she makes comments and asks questions of the person I’m shooting. By the time a few minutes have passed the person being photographed forgets I’m even there.
Having something for your mum to hold or to rest on works well as it gives her something to do with her hands. We used an empty picture frame, a chair turned backwards, a book and a sledge hammer (there was some discussion about eyelet setting that prompted Anne to pick it up) when shooting.
Holding a frame gives the subject something to do with her hands and the natural reaction is to ham it up a bit for the camera.
You can use anything from a flower to a stuffed toy – whatever helps to take mum’s attention off the fact that you’re photographing her. Ask mum to wear some light makeup – while you can remove obvious blemishes later on, the even skin tones you get from wearing makeup can save hours of fixing on the computer and really will improve the portrait a lot.
Having the subject lean on something – here a chair turned around gives them something to do with their hands.
When you’re shooting, take lots of photos. I take as many as I can with the promise that I’ll keep only the best and anything that the person absolutely hates will be deleted – no questions asked. After all, I want to do this again and building trust in me as a photographer is really important.
Keep shooting even when the subject is scratching their nose!
You will find that the best shots generally have the person looking direct at the camera – this isn’t to say you won’t get great shots when they’re looking elsewhere but you can improve your chances by having them look at the camera as much as possible. When shooting, fill the frame with the person’s face. The closer you get, the more detail you will capture and the more intimate the resulting portrait will be. Check the results from time to time to make sure they are well lit and check again every time you move position, because the light will change – particularly when you are out of doors.
Here we asked our subject to strike some funny poses and the result was captivating.
If time permits, have mum change clothes half way through the shoot to a different colour so you get a different feel to your photos. You might be surprised how some colours work better with certain skin tones. We liked Anne in the pink jumper best of all. If you have the space to work, move around to get a different perspective of your mum, but always take care that the background isn’t cluttered and that it remains unobtrusive.
Labels: day, indoors, mom, mother, mum, natural, photo, Picture, technique
Categories:photography
