Crane Family Stroll, Sunrise, Bosque del Apache. Generally, keeping silhouettes from merging makes a photograph easier to "read".
If you like this article, you can now get the book! Joe has expanded the “Tuesday Composition” series into an inspiring new ebook on composition, especially for nature photography. Check it out: The Tuesday Composition.
For the past week and a half, I’ve been shooting in New Mexico; and for the last few days I’ve been doing a lot of work at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Reserve. Sunrises and sunsets are magical there, and often end up involving silhouettes, which got me thinking again about composing with silhouettes. I’ve touched on the subject of shadows and silhouettes before. But today I’ll go into more depth on the subject.
Silhouettes abstract objects into a two-dimensional shape, eliminating their color and texture. That’s a powerful tool for those moments where the shape of an object can communicate your intent effectively. But with that power comes a danger of accidentally removing some information you really need for the image to make sense. (more…)
Peter Burian reviews this workflow software with a vast range of advanced tools for enhancing RAW photos
Better known for its medium format cameras and digital backs, Phase One -based in Copenhagen, Denmark with offices in New York – is also a software developer. The company’s powerful Capture One program has been available for several years, and was recently upgraded to version 5 with additional tools for even greater versatility. Capture One is described as a workflow package since it offers a full suite of options: control over a tethered camera, image importing, editing and final output. Because it would be impossible to review all aspects in less than 5000 words, I decided to test my own favorite feature of Capture One Pro 5: its RAW file enhancing and conversion capabilities.
Primary Features
Do note that there are two versions of the Phase One 5, Standard and Pro. (For full specifics about the differences, see http://www.phaseone.com/comparison .) Since 5 Pro offers far more editing tools – including some that are unique – I decided to try this more impressive program. Although I worked only on RAW files produced by an EOS 7D and Nikon D700, Capture One supports the RAW formats of all brands of cameras. Also, some of the software’s editing tools can be applied to JPEG and TIFF files if desired, for making non-destructive adjustments. (In the latter respect, Capture One is similar to software such as Lightroom and Aperture.) (more…)
One of the things that makes Wedding Photography such a challenge is that you have to be able to wear so many hats. When I shoot a portrait session I have to be able to light and shoot a portrait session with a model (following directions) and retouch the images.
When I shoot a wedding, I have to be able to do the same thing as a portrait shoot … as well as shoot in low-light in the church and at the reception, shoot action in low-light, shoot as a photojournalist and capture events that tell a story, shoot products, retouch everything and design an album that showcases the day. It’s a lot of hats.
What’s funny to me is how much of a kick I get out of “product” shots at a wedding. Don’t get me wrong, I love every element and get giddy as a schoolgirl when I pull off an amazing shot, but I never thought I would enjoy the “product” shots as much as I do. “Product” shots are what I call the static shots of rings, flowers, tables, rooms, cakes, etc. that you have to take in order to capture everything about the day … the little details that people will be glad they have a picture of in years to come.
I can say with all sincerity that I would never want to be a catalog photographer. It would bore me to tears, I think. But I also think that I might understand the fellow photogs who do that work after seeing how excited I can get over a picture of a cake.
The trick is to approach the shot like it’s the most important one of the day. That way you really get a kick out of nailing it.
This particular cake was in a hall that was completely white. White ceiling, white walls, white, white, white. However, there was one spot in the whole place with color and it happened to be right behind the cake. There were also some fake trees back there.
I shot this handheld with on-camera flash pointed off to my left. It really didn’t take much work at all but I just love it. I moved the trees a few times to see how I liked it but eventually ended up using the very first shot. Cake shots are probably the easiest of the “product” shots at a wedding.
What software is necessary for editing movies made with a Digital SLR camera? I own a Nikon D5000 and have shot over a dozen videos. Many of the movies look great but others need some work. I hope you can tell me which editing software I should buy. R.H.
Answer
Digital SLRs (including the D5000) with a Movie mode, record videos in Motion JPEG format and store it in a QuickTime MOV or an AVI file. This is a very common format that can be viewed on any computer with familiar software (some free) such as QuickTime, Windows Media player or Flash Player. A Motion JPEG file can also be uploaded to websites such as YouTube and Vimeo.com. No software is required to view the videos on an HD TV with HDMI connection, using an optional HDMI cable.
Early Light, Bodie. Purple and yellow form an effective color contrast here, incresing our sense of saturation in both colors. (Having them set against black also helps pump up the apparent saturation.)
If you like this article, you can now get the book! Joe has expanded the “Tuesday Composition” series into an inspiring new ebook on composition, especially for nature photography. Check it out: The Tuesday Composition.
Even though we’re twenty or so columns into this series, nearly everything I’ve said so far about composition applies equally to monochromatic and color images. Today I’m going to focus a on how color and color combinations play into compositions. We’ll revisit a few old topics, such as contrast, edges and balance, and we’ll talk about how color figures into them. I’ll also talk a little bit about color theory, without giving a full introduction to it.
Contrast is the first subject I’ll revisit. Just as tonal contrast can be created with lots of sharp transitions from dark to light, color contrast can be created with lots of sharp transitions from a color to the complement (opposite) of that color. I was taught color complements in grade school by looking at a color wheel: Yellow is opposite purple; red is opposite green; blue is opposite orange. But don’t think you need to use those precise combinations to get great color contrast, nearly-complementary color combinations, such as yellow and blue, often create very effective color contrasts as well (as in Aspens, Walker Creek, below). (more…)
Peter Burian tests this rugged, well-sealed 14.5MP camera with pro caliber versatility and extras such as Movie mode and in-camera HDR
The flagship of the Pentax DLSR series, the K-7 is an unusually rugged semi-professional 14.5 MP camera that’s built like a tank: with a splash-proof magnesium alloy body over a stainless steel chassis. While the 14.5 megapixel K20D is less pricey, the K-7 is even more desirable. This newer model retains all of the K20D’s best features but provides significant benefits: faster (5.2 fps) drive speed, larger 3″ LCD with 920,000 dot resolution, a viewfinder with 100% coverage, plus upgrades for the sensor, processor, autofocus system, built-in image stabilizer and evaluative metering (now with 77 zones). More importantly, the K-7 offers some entirely new functions, including HD Movie mode. (more…)
I have started macro nature photography using a new Nikon 85 mm f/3.5G VR Macro lens on my Nikon D90 camera. What is best in terms of lighting? Should I use a shoe-mounted flash unit with a downward tilt, or a ring flash, or a bracket with two arms, each holding a separate flash unit? H. H.
Answer
In my experience, on-camera flash is not suitable for extreme close-up photography. The flash may not be able to light the bottom part of the subject in extreme close-focus image making. That’s because it does not allow for an adequate downward tilt and the lens barrel may block some of the light. If you do want to use a conventional flash unit, move it off-camera using a TTL extension cable or Wireless Off Camera Flash (if your camera supports the latter.) For softer lighting add a large diffuser accessory such as the Lumiquest Softbox III. (See this item at B&H ; See this item at Amazon Lumiquest The Softbox III – Lumiquest LQ-119)
The latest macro ring lights – such as the Metz 15 MS-1 that I recently tested – are very versatile and easy to use. They typically consist of a circular mechanism that’s mounted on the front of a macro lens with an adapter ring. The “ring” – with two individual flash tubes – can be rotated so you can place the two light sources at the desired position. The Metz kit (and some others) also includes a diffuser accessory that’s useful in extremely close focus work. (See the Metz unit at B&H; see this item at Amazon Metz MZ 15110 Digital Macro Slave (Black)) (more…)
Trying to balance your flash with bright sunlight for an outdoor portrait scares the pants off people. It’s one of those things that seems so hard to do, especially if you are using off-camera flash without TTL. In that case, it’s all math and numbers and my head starts to hurt just thinking about it. Fortunately, it’s not really that difficult to do once you learn a few tricks.
Surf, Garrapata Beach. Still images can't capture motion in water, but they can communicate the idea.
If you like this article, you can now get the book! Joe has expanded the “Tuesday Composition” series into an inspiring new ebook on composition, especially for nature photography. Check it out: The Tuesday Composition.
Like mist and fog, water is a subject that deserves it’s own consideration compositionally. With the exception of very still lakes and ponds, one of the things that makes water “look like water” to us is the way that it moves. We can’t present this movement in a still image to a viewer directly. Instead, we have to translate it into a still image by making an exposure; and we use a variety of controls such as shutter speed and composition to help communicate a sense of that motion.
When we want to capture a sense of movement in water there are several things to keep in mind. Shutter speed has a significant effect-a waterfall, cascade or even surf against a coastline will have a very soft, gentle feel if we use a long exposure. Faster exposures will stop individual droplets in air, creating a greater sense of energy. Shutter speed isn’t the only thing to keep an eye on, though. The way we compose the path of water through a scene can also affect how viewers experience water moving through a scene. Where possible, try and make it easy for the viewer’s eye to trace along the lines of the water’s path. Your images will (all other things being equal) be more effective if the visual flow of the water isn’t interrupted by things that block the view of the water. Diagonals and S-curves can also create an additional sense of motion. (more…)
Is there really a difference in performance and innovation between the new Sigma 10-20 mm f/3.5 and the original 10-20mm f/4 lens. The latter is much more affordable. Is the difference of several hundred dollars justified? R. P.
Answer
Yes, the newer model is more expensive (though only by $170), but do note that the maximum aperture is a constant f/3.5 at all focal lengths. The other Sigma 10-20mm zoom does not have a constant maximum aperture; it’s an f/4-5.6 lens. In other words, the widest aperture is quite similar at very short focal lengths, but with the older lens, it diminishes to a smaller f/5.6 as you zoom toward the 20mm end.
That is the primary benefit of the 10-20mm f/3.5 lens and it would be important for photographers who often shoot in low light, without flash or a tripod. Granted, even f/3.5 is not an extremely wide aperture and we often shoot at f/11 to f/16 with an ultra wide angle lens (for extensive depth of field). On the other hand, the wider aperture at longer zoom settings can make the difference between the need to use ISO 800 (at f/3.5) versus ISO 1600 (at f/5.6) in a very dark location. And as you know, every camera produces superior image quality at a lower sensitivity setting.
If you don’t often shoot in very low light, the good news is that the original Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM lens is excellent; you should be perfectly happy with that model. It’s also smaller and 8 ounces lighter (because of the smaller maximum apertures) and accepts smaller/more affordable 77mm vs. 82mm filters.
Granted the more expensive f/3.5 lens has some other benefits. (more…)
