2009 | Photocrati

Wedding Photography and the Zoom Lens

If you get a bunch of wedding photographers together in a room (like AA), talk will eventually come around to lenses. A bunch of photographers talking about lenses makes watching paint dry seem glamorous. Everyone has a favorite lens and everyone has a particular style and it can be tough to decide on what your style and lens choices will be. It’s really just trial and error. Eventually, you will find yourself reaching for the same lens again and again and suddenly, before you know it, you have a style!

So, let’s talk about the almighty zoom lens.

(more…)

Reflections on Weak Sunsets

Sunrise Reflections, Old Marina, Mono Lake — Sunrise Reflections. Old Marina, Mono Lake

The power and beauty of an exceptional sunrise or sunset is incredible. As nature photographers, it is understandable that we gravitate towards the most direct expressions of these incredible moments. Those sunrises and sunsets often offer not only incredible color in the skies, but also on the landscape itself–color that shows texture and contrast by raking across our subjects. Trying to pull in the whole picture, capturing all of this, is a wonderful goal.

Sadly, all too often, the skies don’t light up the way we expect. Or other factors get in the way of these hopes. In remaining attached to our vision of the grand scene, it is all too easy to give up and to forget what powerful alternatives can remain. Often, I find those alternatives include reflections. (more…)

Scams: The Seamy Underbelly of Photo Biz 101

I recently came across this article, on art scams, and while it’s worth reading in its own right, I have some additional experiences and tips to add to the bargain. While I haven’t yet been successfully scammed as a photographer, I’ve certainly had a number of attempts aimed at me. And in some cases, in hindsight they seem laughably bad, but not scams all are so obvious. (more…)

Straighten Your Photos in Photoshop

This video will teach you how to easily straighten up your photos in Photoshop. This is especially important for photos with horizon lines that are not quite right. For more…

Q and A: Can you make 59×37-inch prints from a 12 megapixel image?

Question

My wife gave me a Canon EOS Digital Rebel XSi camera recently and I wonder how large a print I can order. I always use the highest JPEG size and quality when taking photos. When I open them in Adobe Elements 7, and check the size, the information shows 59 x 37 inches. Is it really possible to get a print that large with JPEGs from this camera? J.R.

Answer

Well, J.R., the simple answer is no. A 12-megapixel image simply does not have enough pixels for such a massive print if you expect good quality. When checking the size data in Adobe Elements, you will also note that the software indicates Resolution: 72 dpi. (The term dpi means dots per inch; think of it as pixels per square inch of a print.) That’s a very low level of resolution suitable only for images viewed on a computer monitor. You need a resolution of at least 200 dpi — and preferably 240 dpi — for a true “photo-quality” print.

Try this. (more…)

The Car Blind

BigHorn Sheep, Bandlands — Big Horn Sheep, Badlands

Wildlife photography presents the nature photographer with many challenges. One of the foremost is getting close enough to the animal to create an effective image, while not disturbing the animal, affecting it’s behavior, or putting oneself in danger. Because wildlife is often most sensitive to the presence of things that look like humans or other large mammals, when possible many wildlife photographers will make use of a blind–a general term for any sort of structure, tent, or what have you, that renders the photographer less visible. Numerous styles of blinds exist, some are as simple as camouflaged tarps that disguise the form of the photographer, while some are elaborate structures. While dedicated blinds have their place, I’ve often had good success photographing using my car as a blind. (more…)

Alien Skin Software’s Photoshop Plug-ins

A wide range of add-ons to help you create sometimes startling, sometimes pretentious images.

Original. I made this f/4.5 exposure of these columbine blossoms with a Nikon D300 and Nikon 10-24mm lens (at 24mm), by available light. Breezy conditions dictated a fast shutter speed (1/500) and the shade mandated a high ISO (1600). Follow this image through its various iterations brought about though the use of Alien Skin Software's plug-ins. Photo ©2009 Jack Neubart. All rights reserved.

I’ve worked with Alien Skin Software plug-ins for years. As with other plug-ins, I at times became so enchanted by them that I lost sight of the original image or my purpose in using the plug-in. And once I realized that I was allowing myself to be swept up in this mania of adding effects just for the sake of doing so, without rhyme or reason, I pulled back and placed some restraints on myself– actually, it’s an ongoing process. (more…)

Q and A: Is it worth upgrading to digitally optimized lenses?

Question
I own three old Nikon AF lenses from the days when I was shooting film with a 35mm Nikon (N80) camera. Last week, I bought my first digital SLR, a D90. The old lenses work fine with it, but my dealer said that new Nikon DX digital lenses would provide better image quality. How much of a benefit would I really get with new digital lenses? R.H.

Answer
Before answering your question R.H., I’ll discuss some recent developments. The newer AF Nikkor lenses come in two distinct types. The DX series was designed exclusively for cameras with a small DX-size (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sensor, so they are quite compact. The multi-platform AF lenses — now called FX format — are larger, so they’re suitable for 35-mm SLRs, digital SLRs with the DX size sensor, and with the Nikon cameras that employs a much larger (36 x 23.9 mm) sensor. (Your old lenses can be defined as multi-platform as well). (more…)

Cairo Report: The Real Thing?

tes_zeqr_01

This is the second episode recounting my pursuit of authentic Zeqr, the Egyptian Sufi ceremony, after my first experience in a neighborhood of Old Cairo was somewhat diluted by a competing soccer match. This time, the Zeqr ceremony was supposed to be even more authentic because it was to take place on a Thursday night in a small rural village on the western banks of the Nile River called Matawat.

I am ready by the agreed-upon time of 10:30 pm, and wait for the hoarse honk of Abdel-Fattah’s (aka Kojak) rickety taxi. It sounds right on the dot; an extraordinary feat in Egypt where time-keeping is rarely part of the national DNA, and we are on our way, amidst gas fumes and an exhaust pipe ominously rattling against the Peugeot’s floorboards. My gear is primed and ready, and I am really excited at the prospect. I knew this was to be the real thing; especially since it was Badawi’s father who had arranged it for me to photograph and record the ceremony. (more…)

Four Tips for Working a Photo Exhibition

Working a Reception (Photo Courtesy Mary Smith)

My two-person show “Rhythms” opened last night in San Jose, and the reception was a blast. It can be a challenge to get the most out of a show of your photography, I’m often astounded by how many artists believe that their work will “sell itself”, but nothing could be farther from the truth. Here are a few tips for getting the most out of your photo exhibitions.

1. Make sure your pricing makes sense. Most venues will want about half of the gross of any sales of your work, which means that your half has to cover printing, matting, framing, labels, and oh, you wanted to make a profit, too, right? One of the biggest mistakes I see artists make is underpricing their work. If you don’t make it clear that to folks that your work is valuable, why should they believe otherwise? (more…)