Category Archives: Things to try

Things that photographers can try out and enjoy.

Background check – simple is best, then check it

Posted on October 10, 2013 by Damon (Editor) | Comments Off

• Creating Perfect Backgrounds •
Bryan Peterson looks at one of the simplest lessons in outdoor photography – but one that gets effective results.
[Image taken from the video]

Perfect backgrounds…

It’s easy to spoil a great subject by picking the wrong background or using one with distractions. Taking the time to look around is worthwhile – then do a background check. Here are some pointers to help.

Great images include great backgrounds

A wonderful subject is not the only thing that makes a successful image. It is the whole image that the eye sees. With a great subject but a distracting background you will lose the viewers eye to the background. Equally if the background is too cluttered it will draw attention away from the subject. Strong contrasts, clashing colours, peculiar events or something ugly in the background all take their toll.

Simplify, simplify, simplify…

Try to find interesting textures, colours and scenes for the background. Keep the contrasts to a minimum. Make sure no one is going to walk into the shot or create another type of distraction. In other words make it as easy as possible for your viewer to concentrate on the subject. It is all about showing off the best – and that is what you want the subject to be.

What to look for at the back of your shot

A certain amount of uniformity helps. If what lies in the back of the shot is too diverse the eye looks to see what the background is all about. Therefore, it becomes a distraction. Then the subject is lost to the eye.

If it is too consistent the same is true. You risk losing the viewer because there is no background interest to off-set your subject. So there is a balanced artistic decision required. But with practice your eye will begin to see when something draws the eye once you become alerted to the impact of the background.

The background check

No, it’s not about identity papers. The background check is all about looking around your viewfinder to see what you think of the back of the scene. When you frame up the shot it is easy to think of the composition and placing the subject in an interesting position. But forgetting to check the quality of the background is fatal. Parked cars, flying balls, litter blowing in the wind – a whole range of distractions – can all suddenly appear. Worse, they can be there all along and you have just not seen them.

The background check is simple. Look around the edge of the frame. Make sure no odd items are sticking into the shot. Look for an interesting texture and colour range. Make the colours complementary and well defined, but not too contrasting. Check to see there are no very bright or dark zones. Brightness drags the eye off the subject. Darkness tones down the interest in the shot.

Clean, tidy and well composed…

When you have checked everything, the back of the shot should be clean, tidy, well composed and not distracting. Then you can do one last quick check on your subject. If all is well press the Definition: Shutter Button. Presto – a great shot.

Creating the Perfect Background with Bryan Peterson

By way of example Bryan talks us through a situation in a park where he makes the best of the back of the shot – checking for problems and emphasising his subject.
Adorama Photography TV

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Related articles/links:
Photokonnexion Photographic Glossary – Definitions and articles.
Examine Shots Before Shooting Again – “Chimping”

More advanced check you can make

The fifteen second landscape appraisal
An old sailors trick to improve your photography

Shutter speeds – An easy guide

Posted on October 9, 2013 by Damon (Editor) | Comments Off

• Shutter Speeds Cheat Sheet •
Click on image to download full .pdf cheat-sheet.

Shutter speed is easier with a start point.

One of the difficulties with shutter speeds is knowing what sort of setting to use with various speeds of an event in the real world.

Here is a short guide to get you started :: A guide to shutter speeds.

There are no rules about shutter speed

The actual speeds of real world events vary a great deal. In a race one car may move at 90 miles per hour (mph) and another at only 70mph. You should vary the shutter speeds depending on the objects speed, light intensity and the aperture you are using. Remember, the download cheat sheet is a guide not a set of rules. It’ll get you started, then it’s down to good old experimentation.

There is no substitute for experience

I do a lot of panning with race vehicles. I have learned to assess the speed and light then make quick guesses to set my camera up for a few test shots.

Once I took an experienced bird watcher to a drag race event. He was used to panning fast moving birds in flight. It took him time to adjust his eye for working with cars at up to 250mph. The best way to get good at doing shutter speed settings is to practice with a wide variety of moving objects so that you can get a general feel for the shutter speeds at each speed of your object.

Experience is the best master. So practice different settings a lot to get the settings and speeds for your interest properly fixed in your mind. This gives you a head start when setting up for a new subject.

Test shots

If you are going on a shoot where shutter speed is important, practice at the likely shutter speed for a few days before going. Try out different light conditions too. This will get your eye into the subject and help you know what variations you can use to get the best shots on the day. This post might help too… How to overcome frozen movement in panning.

The difference between freeze and blur

If you freeze the action you show some amazing stuff the eye does not normally see. Facial expressions and body movements as well as other details can be stunning. It can also look a little artificial. It is strange to see, for example, water droplets fixed in mid-air or a fast car with its wheels not blurry.

You can lower the shutter speed off the peak-action speed for freezing until you get some very slight blur in critical areas. Wheels on moving vehicles or propellers on aircraft are typical examples. They look artificial as frozen features, but give life and movement to an otherwise sharp rendering of high speed action.

Work your blur in naturally and show it as you would see it. Be especially careful where you have a lot of blur. Ensure there are still sharp elements in the picture. If everything is blurred it looks like a bad case of hand-shake.

The key

The key to controlling blur or freezing and other shutter speed effects is… practice! Lots of it. So, just get out there and have a go. Gradually you’ll forget the cheat sheet, you will have it in your head from practice.

By Damon Guy (author and Photokonnexion editor)

Damon Guy (Netkonnexion)

Damon is a writer-photog and editor of this site. He has run some major websites, a computing department and a digital image library. He started out as a trained teacher and now runs training for digital photographers.
See also: Editors ‘Bio’.

#1854#

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Posted in Camera control, Composition, How to..., Photography, Shooting specific subjects, Things to try

Tagged Aperture, Birds, Birds of prey, Blur, Camera, Composition, Creativity, Depth of Field, exposure, How to Shoot, ISO, Linear blur, Manual Control, Shutter Speed, soft light, Speed, Speed blur, Tripod

Umbrellas and softboxes

Posted on October 3, 2013 by Damon (Editor) | Comments Off

• Softbox Vs. Umbrella •
Umbrellas and softboxes seem to have similar characteristics… or do they?

What IS the difference?

Photographers learning to use lights find it difficult to understand the difference between a softbox and umbrella set-up. It is important to understand if you want to have control of light.

The nature of soft and hard light

Hard light is not some mutated form of ordinary light. It is a type of light that is focussed and which shows a hard transition from bright to dark. The shadow line is a sharp contrast. On the other hand, soft light wraps itself around curves and has a soft transition from light to dark.

The definitions of hard and soft light tell us much about the characteristics of the light but not how the light is formed. Well, it turns out that the light source, its shape, size and focus or diffusion as well as distance from the subject all have an impact on the characteristics of light.

Photographic umbrellas and softboxes

In the video Mark Cleghorn examines the characteristics of photographic umbrellas and softboxes. He does some great shots with both. Pay attention to the way he uses the lights and what characteristics he points out. Distance and size of the sources play an essential role in the formation of the softness and hardness of the light. His experiments are interesting and show you how the nearness of a large light source can create softness. It seems counter intuitive, but it is correct.

The first half of this video is very useful and you will learn a lot about Umbrellas and softboxes as light sources. The second half showcases advanced features of Photoshop. This is a less useful section if you are only interested in the practical issues for umbrellas and softboxes. You can safely skip it.

Lastolite Umbrella Versus Softbox from Lastolite on Vimeo .

Types of lights

There are many types of light source that can generate light for umbrellas and softboxes. For most situations it is best to use off-camera flash units. The more expensive studio flash units are more for professional use. If you are just starting out they will be more powerful than required for most general purpose needs. Off camera flash helps give you flexible use. It is also easily controlled. You can work with both umbrellas and softboxes with an off camera flash.

Fortunately, most umbrellas and softboxes units designed for off-camera flash will mount most types of flash units. When looking to purchase lights think about what you want to achieve. Then buy the flash unit needed to meet your need.

Below is an example of a photographic umbrella set…

DynaSun W968S Professional Kit with Holder, Umbrella, Stand and Bag for Cold Shoe Mount Flash Gun Flashgun

This is a high quality but affordable photographic umbrella unit. The complete package includes everything you need except the off-camera flash unit. The inclusion of the small carrying bag makes the whole thing neat and well presented.

When it comes to the purchase of a soft box these too have the universal fittings for off camera flash units (although studio units are also available). Here is an example softbox…

24″ 60cm x 60cm EZ-Fold Studio Softbox Kit with 2 x Diffusers and Ballhead Bracket for Portable Flash and Speedlite

This is a high quality, well produced softbox with easily adjustable fittings and a variety of ways to set up light diffusion within the unit.

Of course both these units are among many others in the field. You can see the various types of each on these search pages…
Photographic umbrella – Search page on Amazon

Softboxes – search page on Amazon

These various examples include studio light units, always on bulb mountings and fittings for off-camera flash. Check for what you want before you buy. The most flexible is for off-camera flash when you are starting out.

No removable flash? Read this: Off-camera flash. It’s a great introduction and recommends an affordable flash unit.

Amazon.co.uk Widgets

Damon Guy (Netkonnexion)

Damon is a writer-photographer and editor of this site. He has run some major websites, a computing department and a digital image library. He started out as a trained teacher and now runs training for digital photogs.
See also: Editors ‘Bio’.
By Damon Guy see his profile on Google+.

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Posted in Background Info., Equipment, Insights, Light and Lighting, Photography, Things to try, Tips Tutorials & Techniques, Video included

Tagged Buying equipment, Creativity, Define hard light in photography, Definition: Hard Light, Definition: Photographic Umbrella, Definition: Soft Light, Definition: Softbox, Facts about light and shadows, Flash, Hard light definition photography, Hard light in photography, Light, light and lighting, Light in photography definition, Light modifier definition, Light stand, Off Camera Flash, Photographic umbrella, Properties of light, Shadows facts, Softbox, Softbox definition, Tripod, Video, Vocabulary

A quick and simple method to make brilliant water droplet images

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Damon (Editor) | Comments Off

• Water Splashes •
The most beautiful scenes in the world include water. Here you can make your own water droplet.
(Image taken from the video)

The close-up world of the water droplet – endlessly fascinating

The captivating thing about water is that it is ever changing and creates a sense of magic in every scene. When you get in close some simple techniques make wonderful images.

How to photograph water droplet impacts

Ever enthusiastic Gavin Hoey takes us through the simple process of creating wonderful water droplet photos. Colour, light/shade and magic water droplet sculptures are the result.

The best bit about this is that you can make these wonderful photos yourself. It is very easy and great fun. When I first did this I spent hours of time on it and got lost in a world of wonderful colours and effects. There are three things to remember that will help you make this a personal and effective shoot…

The more shots you take the more great effects you will see.
Background colour should be varied. I’ve used wrapping paper to brighten colours.
The angle of the camera can affect your shot (not mentioned in the video).
Try different camera heights with respect to the water.

After yesterdays blog, the way you see it is about your style. Don’t look for “new”, look for you!

This is a short video (six minutes 50secs), but one that will give you hours of fun and excellent images.
Gavin Hoey

No removable flash? Read this: Off-camera flash. It’s a great introduction and recommends an affordable flash unit.

Amazon.co.uk Widgets

Related articles/links:
Photokonnexion Photographic Glossary – Definitions and articles.
Don’t look for the new, look for you!
Gavin Hoey

A quick shoot using water? Tips to get you started…
Does Pop-Up Flash Ruin Your Shots?
Off-camera flash

By Damon Guy (author and Photokonnexion editor)

Damon Guy (Netkonnexion)

#1854#

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Posted in Camera control, Composition, Equipment, Light and Lighting, Photography, Shooting specific subjects, Things to try, Tips Tutorials & Techniques, Video included

Tagged Colour, Composition, Depth of Field, exposure, How it works, How to Shoot, Light, Manual Control, Off Camera Flash, Planning, Tripod, Video, Water splash

Reflecting on ways to work with the best light

Posted on September 27, 2013 by Damon (Editor) | Comments Off

• Reflectors •
A session with reflectors is a way to control the sun
and get the lighting you want on your subject.
[Image taken from the video]

The control of light is not always obvious.

Reflectors and other shapers of light make a big difference to the scene. Often photographers go to great lengths to work with reflectors. Here are a few simple tips to bear in mind when you want to shape light – particularly outside.

When you need a reflector

You can use reflectors in any type of environment. They are best used where you need to even out the light on your subject. Remember that if you are using a reflector the source light is the main or key light. The reflection from your reflective surface is in proportion to the power of the key light. This proportionality is important. Often, more than one light is difficult to balance. Using only one light source you can create a natural balance with the reflectors. It is difficult to get reflected light out of proportion. There is always some loss in the reflection. This ensures that the light on your subject will be less intense than the key light but related to it by its proportion. The result looks more natural.

Shade is as important as light

When you are working in the fullness of light it is common to be confronted with strong reflections from the subject itself. Specular highlights, reflections off of curved surfaces and shiny areas are the most difficult to control. However, bright reflections on larger areas like flat areas of glass or even areas of flesh like bare arms can also be really difficult to control.

If you have these sorts of reflections you can reduce the worst of them using a polarising filter. Of course the only sure way is to reduce the intensity of light overall. This means creating shade. Again, the most important issue here is to reduce the light in proportion to the ambient light around you. This helps the light to remain looking natural because it is derived from the main light once again.

Don’t spend a fortune

For most of us expensive reflectors and shade creators are out of reach. As with most things however, the amateur can create the same effects as the professional without the expenditure.

Reflectors can be created from white sheets, curtains, even large pieces of card. These things can be purchased inexpensively and propped up easily to create the effect you want. What is more important than the material that creates the reflection is the way you use the reflections themselves. It is important in very bright light that the reflections are used to infill darker areas of shadow to even out the contrasts. Then your camera can cope and you will see a more controlled light on your subject.

Shade too can be created easily. Use solid card sheets or even blankets on poles. I do quite a lot of car photography. Often specular highlights can be eliminated by hanging a thin white sheet on two poles in the line of the light. The main light – normally the sun – will penetrate a thin sheet so that a proportion of the light will continue to illuminate the subject. Again, the proportionality is important. Things always look more natural if the light is proportional to the surrounding ambient light.

Using Reflectors – Photography & Video Tutorial

In the video J.P. Morgan, a successful photographer, uses lots of resources and equipment to manipulate light in all sorts of ways. First, he looks at how the light is best exposed to the subject. He uses the light to create a rim light. This helps to reduce large, strong areas of reflection and helps to define the body shape.

When he has the light direction right and well controlled he uses a gold reflector to give the light a pleasant colour – an evening sunlight yellow. This lifts the colour of the faces in the shot.

The other thing that J.P. Morgan does is use the shade and reflectors to create fill. The sun provides the main light but the levels of light off the reflectors allows a lower level light intensity creating a natural light. This does not look like it has been deliberately projected at the subjects. It is a soft light that beautifully wraps around the children. It evens out the contrast between the brighter light and the darker areas.

Look at the way the equipment is used in the video. But spend your time afterwards thinking about how you can substitute affordable reflector materials and ways to create shade. Making your own kit can be fun and just as effective brand equipment.

The video is just over six minutes.

The Slanted Lens DSLR Lighting Tutorials

If you want to buy an affordable reflector set, here is the one I use. These reflectors work very well and are flexible in the way they can be used. The whole set also folds away into a great compact bag. The pack contains five effects (silver, gold, white reflector/diffuser, grey and black)…

42″ Photographic light reflector set (5 in 1)
Ex-Pro 5 -in- 1 Photographic Light Reflector – 42″ (110cm) Silver, Gold, Black, White & Translucent, Collapsible.
This is an excellent reflector set, robust and effective as well as easy to store. I highly recommend this as a standard piece of equipment.

Related articles/links:
Photokonnexion Photographic Glossary – Definitions and articles.
Light and Lighting – Resource pages on Photokonnexion
Composition resources on Photokonnexion
Definition: Key Light
Definition: Specular highlight
Definition: Backlighting (also kicker or rim lighting)
Natural light; Sunlight (A ‘Glossary’ entry)

By Damon Guy (author and Photokonnexion editor)

Damon Guy (Netkonnexion)

#1854#

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Posted in Composition, Equipment, How to..., Insights, Light and Lighting, Photography, Things to try, Tips Tutorials & Techniques, Video included

Tagged Bokeh, Children, Depth of Field, Diffuser, Fun, hard light, light and lighting, Light modifier, Lighting, Lighting. Creativity, Portraits, Portraiture, soft light, Tripod, Video

Seeing the subject… refining your vision

Posted on September 24, 2013 by Damon (Editor) | 1 comment

• Beat it up! •
Click image to view large
Beat it up! By Netkonnexion on Flickr
To really look at a subject you have to see it as you have never seen it before.

Cultivating the photographers eye…

What the “eye” really means is difficult to define. One thing’s sure. As “photographers eye” develops you see things differently. Refining your vision to see differently is how you develop your version of the ‘eye’.

Looking at the scene

In Working the scene I described how to walk through the scene, understand the angles and ideas that relate to the scene and ways to find “the” shot. At first it is not a simple process. You are developing a habit. Doing things that you would not do naturally.

Standing up and using the camera from your normal eye position makes your subject look like you always see it. Surprisingly, it is also the same way most others see it too. Where is the novelty, interest and insight in that? Photographers eye, Seeing the subject in a different way requires refining your vision.

Well, you can change it all by studying your subject from new angles, new light and with new perspectives.

What if the scene is a close up subject?

A wonderful thing about photography is the ability to isolate a subject, get in close to it and examine it in a way we normally do not try to do with our eyes.

The challenge is to do things differently so we can see things differently. In this blog I often urge people to get in close – fill the frame. That is one way to see a subject anew. There are others. Below, there are some ideas to get you to see your subject differently.

Photographers eye – Getting in close:

Really close means a macro lens. If you don’t have one then you can get some macro extension tubes. These are an inexpensive way to do macro photography. However, the way to see things differently is to try and see the subject in ways that are different to the everyday perspective. Using a macro lens, tubes, or even very close with an ordinary lens you need to be versatile. Get around your subject, see it from at least ten different positions. Try to make every shot different. Take every shot as if you are seeing the subject as a new object. Don’t just look at the whole subject, get right into the tiny detail, all of the tiny details. (See Amazon search results for macro extension tubes ).

Photographers eye – Getting the Angles

Developing your vision is not just about details, even if there are lots of them. Try taking each detail from a whole range of angles, under, over and from the back too. Angles on a subject help to start you looking at the aesthetics of an object. Look for curves, pleasing intersections, great lines, diagonals… Anything that helps you to see the beauty in a subject and shows it in a new way.

Photographers eye – Using different lenses

If you have them, explore the subject using a range of lenses. Get wide. Go long. Try fish-eye. Work with a prime. Go with whatever lenses you’ve got. The idea is to show the subject in a variety of different ways. Every lens has its peculiar characteristics and distortions. Training your eye to see a subject in different ways by using different lenses is one way to become sensitive to photographic perspectives. You will begin to see how a camera sees. If you only ever use one lens you will begin to see everything in a plain way. If you can see things in a variety of different ways you will begin to start looking at things differently.

Photographers eye – seeing different light, different exposures

Light is the essence of everything we do in photography. While you are working with small subjects (like in my picture above) you can make changes to the light. You can use ambient light, window light, natural light, reflected light and domestic lights. Then there are coloured lights, soft light, hard light, and even laser light. Then, you also have dozens of different ways to use artificial photographic lights too. Added to these different illuminations you can also develop a whole range of exposures. You can explore your subject as under-exposed, over-exposed, dark or bright. You can use shadows, different light angles, different light heights. There are literally thousands of ways to light and expose any one subject. Explore as many of them as possible.

Other variables:

Try different backgrounds, different colours and different textures on your subject. Vary through monochrome, colour, colour intensity… try it against black or against white. Use different depths of field, more bokeh, less bokeh. Blur, movement… Try everything. Just make it you mission to look for the different way of doing it.

Refining your vision – developing photographers eye

Developing your vision as a photographer is about understanding the way you can shoot things differently to other people. You are trying to deliver to your viewer a different view of the world. To find what you are good at, what your unique perspective is, you must explore a universe of different approaches. Work with new angles, light variations, colours… well everything discussed above and more.

When you see a new subject get into it, explore it, by trying everything you can to see it anew and in a new light (literally). After a while, with practice, you will develop the photographers eye. To do that you must learn to see new ways that you can take a shot without actually needing to take it. Then you will be envisioning the shot in advance. You will also be developing your eye – your unique eye. You will have learned to see differently and to have put your particular style into your shots.

Related articles/links:
Photokonnexion Photographic Glossary – Definitions and articles.
Composition resources on Photokonnexion
Light and Lighting – Resource pages on Photokonnexion
Working the scene
Ambient Light (A Glossary entry)
Soft light (A Glossary entry)
Natural light; Sunlight (A ‘Glossary’ entry)
Hard light (A Glossary entry)
Depth of Field (A Glossary entry)
Bokeh (A Glossary entry)
Macro extension tubes… Amazon search results

By Damon Guy (author and Photokonnexion editor)

Damon Guy (Netkonnexion)

#1854#

1 Comment

Posted in Composition, How to..., Insights, Light and Lighting, Photography, Shooting specific subjects, Things to try, Tips Tutorials & Techniques

Tagged Angles, Aperture, Close-up, Depth of Field, Ideas for photographs, light and lighting, Lighting, Macro, Macro lens, Macro tubes, Perspective, Style

Getting close with your camera

Posted on September 21, 2013 by Damon (Editor) | Comments Off

• Get Closer •
Images from the video.

There are few better ways to show your subject…

If getting close to your subject was easy then more photography learners would do it! Strangely very few do get close in to the shot. It is a great way to invigorate your shots and you can find some amazing subjects in the most obscure environments.

Get Closer! Exploring Photography with Mark Wallace

In this simple, explanatory, video Mark Wallace shows us how to get up close and personal with some seemingly bland subjects. When you get down to small-size photography you quickly find a new world that is both unexpected and exciting. Some really ugly subjects come out with some surprisingly beautiful shots. You just need to cultivate the right way of seeing. That is what getting close and thinking about your composition is all about.
Adorama Photography TV

Related articles/links:
Photokonnexion Photographic Glossary – Definitions and articles.
Composition resources on Photokonnexion

By Damon Guy (author and Photokonnexion editor)

Damon Guy (Netkonnexion)

#1854#

Comments Off on Getting close with your camera

Posted in How to..., Insights, Photography, Things to try, Tips Tutorials & Techniques, Video included

Tagged Close up photography, Close-up, Composition, How to Shoot, light and lighting, Video

Category Archives: Things to try

Background check – simple is best, then check it

Perfect backgrounds…

Great images include great backgrounds

Simplify, simplify, simplify…

What to look for at the back of your shot

The background check

Clean, tidy and well composed…

Creating the Perfect Background with Bryan Peterson

More advanced check you can make

Other links

Shutter speeds – An easy guide

Shutter speed is easier with a start point.

There are no rules about shutter speed

There is no substitute for experience

Test shots

The difference between freeze and blur

The key

By Damon Guy (author and Photokonnexion editor)

Umbrellas and softboxes

What IS the difference?

The nature of soft and hard light

Photographic umbrellas and softboxes

Types of lights

A quick and simple method to make brilliant water droplet images

The close-up world of the water droplet – endlessly fascinating

How to photograph water droplet impacts

By Damon Guy (author and Photokonnexion editor)

Reflecting on ways to work with the best light

The control of light is not always obvious.

When you need a reflector

Shade is as important as light

Don’t spend a fortune

Using Reflectors – Photography & Video Tutorial

By Damon Guy (author and Photokonnexion editor)

Seeing the subject… refining your vision

Cultivating the photographers eye…

Looking at the scene

What if the scene is a close up subject?

Photographers eye – Getting in close:

Photographers eye – Getting the Angles

Photographers eye – Using different lenses

Photographers eye – seeing different light, different exposures

Other variables:

Refining your vision – developing photographers eye

By Damon Guy (author and Photokonnexion editor)

Getting close with your camera

There are few better ways to show your subject…

Get Closer! Exploring Photography with Mark Wallace

By Damon Guy (author and Photokonnexion editor)

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