Going hand in hand with the previous Travel Photography Subject: Food, is what goes on behind the scenes. Some will consider food and food preparation one and the same and photograph them as such. But I have often found the ceremony, skill, art and heart that goes into creating the meal deserves its own category.

While food photography on the road may be fairly easy (it’s placed right in front of your or you grab it from a cart, after all) shooting food preparation is going to take a little more tenacity.  You’re going to have to get behind the scenes and often through kitchen doors to get the low down on where your food comes from.  For the most part, previous techniques of smiling and asking politely are a great place to start. If it’s a food cart out in the street or a market where everything is in the open, it’s always appreciated if you sample the fare first.  I won’t discourage you from simply walking around and shooting, but I have found I get a better response when I’ve stopped and made a purchase, shared a smile and show genuine interest in what’s being cooked.

Restaurants can be a different nut to crack.  In more developed countries, with their strict rules and health concerns, getting into the kitchen can take some work.  A good first step is, after enjoying a wonderful meal, ask to meet the chef.  Nothing ventured, nothing gained. If the chef is busy, they are busy.  But sometimes they will come out to talk shop.  Everyone has an ego and many of us enjoy hearing compliments about our work, especially if we pour ourselves into it.  If you’re a good conversationalist, you may be allowed to sneak a peek in the kitchen.  In third world countries there will be less barrier between the kitchen and the eating area and it may only require simply asking your waitperson if a photo is ok.

Another great way to get a feel for food preparation is to go couchsurfing.  Couchsurfing is the act of staying in someone’s home, either on a couch or spare bed, while on your travels.  I had great luck with the site couchsurfing.org (there are others out there as well) on a recent trip to Morocco.  While I don’t have a lot of photographs inside the home, I was welcome in the kitchen to watch the mother of the house prepare a tremendous, delicious couscous dish.  This wasn’t some cookbook method, it was simply the way she made it for her family week after week and it was a pleasure to be involved.  Cooked on a two burner camping stove with multiple washings and steamings and other techniques I don’t use, it was a delight to behold and I do have a few quick snapshots of the mother in action.

Chances are, if you’re not out in the hot sun of an open-air market, things are going to be dim.  Resist the urge to use your flash.  In the end you may need to, but cooking is an active, lively event, so let a little blur into your pictures (blur of motion that is, not blur of everything).  Practice at home with higher ISOs to see what is tolerable for you.  I’ve found great luck at times with ISOs as high as 6400 and used the grain in the image to an effect.   Be careful of getting in the way of the food preparation if you’re in small spaces.  Before your step in, observe the flow and understand what’s really going on in the cooking space.  Watch out for all the hot stuff, obviously, and slow your shutter to around 1/15th of a second to experiment with capturing better looking flames from a burner or direct fire.  Focus on faces and the action.  When people are really focused on meal preparation their faces will reflect the concentration and add emotion to the shot.  Cover the mechanics, but don’t forget to bring some emotion (smiles, frowns, curses, sweat, etc…) into the frame.

I’d like to see what you’ve managed to shoot while on your travels.  Share a photo or five of Food Preparation in the comments section below.

—–

Previous articles in the Travel Photography Subjects series include Water, Old People, Young People, Religion, Sports, Socializing, Icons, Rich, Poor, Transportation, Economy and Food. These posts are not intent on telling you everything you need to do, step by step, to capture perfect, cookie-cutter pictures while traveling.  Instead, they are intent on pointing out some vital elements to capture when on the road and highlight thought provoking questions you may want to ask yourself.  My hope is they help guide you to find your own means to better expressing what your travels have meant to you and present that in the best light possible.  Be sure to subscribe to this site to receive the other nine subjects as they are posted!

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

Travel Photography Subjects: Food Preparation

It’s perhaps a little cliche – but we’ve all done it. A camera, a photographer in front of a mirror. Here’s 10 shots that caught our eye today with photographers, their cameras in front of mirrors (PS: this is the theme of the next weekly photography challenge – so get your thinking caps on and polish up those mirrros).

Image by G|o®g|O

Image by Chapendra

Image by Lawrence Whittemore

Image by andres.thor

Image by byfer

Image by Janine

Image by Eugenia

Image by Josh Liba

Image by (davide)

Image by cambiodefractal

Image by stephcarter

Image by striatic

Image by Arty Smokes

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

13 Fun Self Portrait Mirror Shots

Female nude photography has always intrigued me, particularly how a sense of trust is created between photographer and model.

What I find even more intriguing is how, as Australian photographer Peter Adams does in the majority of this book’s pictures, is how he convinces a model to pose outdoors in and on often forbidding — and uncomfortable natural landforms. Rocks, trees, seashore etc.

Adams pictures are never boring, never salacious and frequently with a touch of humour invested in them. His lighting is impeccable, compositions arresting.

However, The Digital Female Nude is not just a book nudes: Adams takes it further, into tutorial-land, telling you too how to shoot quality nude pictures.

His first message is for you to decide what sort of photographs you want to take, in colour or black and white, then he encourages you to take inspiration from other, successful photographers or the acknowledged old masters in art … da Vinci, Degas and the rest of the crowd.

More help: how to recruit models, choice of location; getting the legals right … release forms, the issue of copyright etc.

Then he gets down to the choice of camera gear. Whilst he admits it is possible to use a point-and-shoot, he stresses that using such a basic camera “can quickly become very frustrating.” His advice: jump in the deep end and acquire a DSLR.

There are a few vitally useful chapters on technicalities: exposure control; speed and lens aperture; ISO setting etc; lighting; useful accessories … and finally, 30 or so pages on the Digital Darkroom.

If you want to move into nude photography, this book would be hard to beat.

Author: P Adams.
Publisher: PIP.
Distributor: Capricorn Link.
Length: 176 pages.
ISBN: 978 1 86108 556 6.
Price: Get a price on the The Digital Female Nude at Amazon.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

The Digital Female Nude [Book Review]

Image by Romain Guy

As lovers of photography – we can all admit to dreaming of chucking in the day job and setting up shop as a professional photographer, but for many of us it can remain just that – a dream. But for those with the talent, support system and drive, becoming a freelance photographer can be realised! So what’s stopping you? To help you negotiate your way from using photography as a hobby to making a living from your work we have outlined a few helpful hints below. Obviously not everyone has the luxury of jacking in the job right away but with a little patience and preparation anything is possible!

Financing

Your first consideration has to be monetary. Can you afford to quit tomorrow? For most people this is probably unlikely. Most pros who give up a reliable stream of income to become self-employed suggest saving two to three months salary before even considering what they will write in their resignation.

Perhaps your spouse can afford to support you for a while or perhaps you already have some money invested in savings that can be used to pay the mortgage and bills before work starts to come in – everyone’s situation will be different. Whatever your own personal situation, it is worth sitting down and planning your income and expenditure for the first few months of being self-employed and work out how much you will need to sustain yourself and your family. It is also worth investigating whether you can secure a grant from your local authority, a charity, organisation or even the government.

Finally – there is of course the option of taking out a bank loan to get started, but this should be given a lot of thought before a commitment is made.

Location

Next decided where you want to ‘base’ yourself. Working from home has many obvious benefits but can become quite isolating if you live alone and depending on your strength of will – can also become quite distracting. Also if you are working from home, bear in mind that this may not be possible in some rented accommodation – so check with your landlord. What is more, regardless of whether you are a home owner or are renting – try to avoid dedicating one room solely to your business – for example a study or a home studio – if you do you could be asked to pay business rates.

Working in a collective studio with other photographers is a great way to bounce ideas of people, whilst making and maintaining friendships – however there will be another cost involved. Setting up a shop or your own studio is another option, but again if you start off with limited finance this may be something you can aspire to over time.

Equipment

Sure you have a camera but do you have all the other necessary bits and bobs that a professional could require such as: flash guns, reflectors, filters, shutter release, battery packs, a wealth of lens, tripod, memory cards etc? This will ultimately depend on what genre of photography you enter and so you may not need every accessory under the sun – just be prepared for what you will need. Furthermore just because you are turning pro – doesn’t mean you need ‘professional’ kit! It’s how you use it that counts.

Look online for second hand deals, visit camera exchange stores for bargains, and never forget January welcomes a month of sales!

In some countries, self-employed individuals can claim back certain ‘capital’ costs against their tax bill, so ensure you keep all receipts of new items. Also if you have remembered to keep the receipts of items you are ‘bringing into the business’ i.e. kit that you already own, you may also be able to claim back some of the value of these items back against your tax bill (more on this in part 2). Talk to your account or a tax advisor to discuss these matters further.

Work ethic

Once you have your business in place, equipment at the ready and a brand built, the next key element to put into place is your working style. It goes without saying that to succeed you will need to be reliable and efficient and always meet deadlines, but how will you operate and how will divide your working day? The benefit of being self-employed is being your own boss and thus you can set your own hours, however this could also mean working late or weekends to compensate. A disciplined and motivated approach will ultimately reap the most dividends, but be sure to factor in time to relax and recoup creative energy too. For those less disciplined, create a schedule carved into twenty-four hour portions; colour eight slices to represent sleep and eight or so hours dedicated to work. The remaining hours can then be labelled for relaxation, activities, personal photography projects, housework or non-business related errands. With time, this segmentation will flow more naturally but is a great boon to those who are easily distracted. But be honest with clients and decide a reasonable date when you can realistically deliver on your promises.

In this four part series we will explore everything you need to know from getting started to finding work. In the second part, posted in the next week, we will outline the legal concerns with getting your business up and running. Stay subscribed to dPS for the next installment of this series!

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

How to Become a Pro Photographer: Part 1

This post is the final part in our Backing Up and Saving Your Images series. See previous posts on Backing up and Saving Your Images – External Hard Drives – Online Storage Sites and Software Solutions.

That crushing, sickening and agonising feeling of realising your memory card has corrupted or for whatever reason you’ve lost some of your most important or sentimental images, can stay with you for some time. It’s that combination of frustration and disappointment that takes its toll; perhaps knowing you can’t go back and reshoot what has already happened. Even directing your anger at your equipment can seem futile. But wait, lament no more, for there are solutions! Despite what people may think there are ways to retrieve files, even after they have been deleted or subject to technology failure.

Deleted files and formatted cards

Accidentally deleting images or formatting the card before the current frames have been downloaded are both common reasons for loss. However even when a card has been formatted in-camera the majority of the photos will still be able to be located. Success can depend upon the camera brand, with Canon and Nikon yielding the strongest rates of recovery. A quick trawl though the internet will present a list of companies which specialise in the retrieval of images from memory cards or data banks. For example Flashguardian (www.flashguardian.com)  charge up to £60 for the successful recovery of images from memory cards in capacities of 1GB or larger and offer reduced prices for smaller capacity cards, whereas the charge for recovering data from a hard drive can cost between £200 and £500 depending on the size of the device and the nature of the problem. DiskDoctors is another recovery company, that charges anywhere between £177 to £1500 depending on the size and brief of the problem, however the company offers a free analysis service to pinpoint a quotation and assess whether the issue can be rectified. To take advantage of this particular service, photographers should post the storage device or memory card along with a completed shipping form (available at www.diskdoctorsdatarecovery.co.uk/shipping-form.asp) to a local DiskDoctors lab for physical analysis. The company claims that photographers will receive an analysis report along with a quote in less than eight business hours once the item has been received.

Online and Software Recovery systems

There are an abundance of software and online solutions if you’d rather recover your files with a DIY approach.  DataRescue (www.datarescue.com) for example provides an app called PhotoRescue, which for only $29 checks your memory card, external hard drive or computer for deleted images, displaying a lengthy list of all the work you’ve binned. CardRecovery (www.cardrecovery.com) is another software option fronted by WinRecovery Software. Retailing at $39.95 CardRecovery performs a read-only operation on offending memory cards, and retrieves any lost pictures and video files to a folder on hard drive.

Computer crashes

One of the most common cases of data loss is due to a system failure. To recover files in these situation photographers will simply need to generate a copy of the information held on the machine which is accomplishable by using a CD that contains a bootable computer operating system. The user can then move the images to the system disk, which can then be backed up with the file manager or authoring software. If you are unsure of how to do this yourself, take your machine to a local computer shop that offers a restoration service.

Lesson learnt

Unfortunately there are some cases when files simply cannot be recovered, whether it’s because the memory card was a fake or because the camera used permanently deletes making recovery impossible. If nothing else, we can take the experience as a costly lesson never to be repeated. Prevention is said to be better than the cure, so to stop it happening again invest in a solid external hard drive and subscribe to an established online storage provider. Never delete files in-camera, wait until you have uploaded to them your computer, backed them to an external data bank or online storage provider, and then and only then format the card. Only use memory cards from a reputable brand and purchase them using a trusted website or at a high-street store.

To minimise the risk of losing photographs, we’ve compiled a cheat-sheet of tips to ensure your images are safe and secure.

1. Size doesn’t matter: Don’t keep all your photos on one high capacity memory card, instead use several lower capacity cards so there is less chance of losing everything if one card breaks or is lost.
2. Reputation is everything: Stick to reputable memory card brands and only buy from trusted sites and stores, as there are a large quantity of ‘fakes’ circulating online that don’t work.
3. Don’t forget a spare: Taking a spare card out with you on a photo session will ensure you don’t miss a thing, should the memory card you are using falter.
4. Don’t believe everything you see:  Just because the image thumbnail looks ok, it doesn’t mean that the file isn’t corrupt. Thumbnails are embedded in the files for fast preview and do not necessarily reflect the state of the full picture. Open several frames, or particular favourites to ensure they are ok.
5. Be patient: Don’t turn off your camera when it is reading and writing to the memory card and don’t rip the memory card out of the card reader before it finishes uploading files to your machine. Doing so could result in lost or corrupt files.
6. Safety first: Store memory cards in a safe and secure place. Protect them from moisture, dust, dirt, animals and young children.
7. Don’t delete: Refrain from deleting files in-camera. Instead wait until you have successfully transferred the images to your computer and backed up your files before deleting the ones on the card.
8. Once bitten, twice shy: If an image card is faulty – bin it, or better yet get a refund! Never use or write to a card where data has been lost before – it will happen again.
9. Back up: Keep your images on several external hard drives and/or with an online storage provider.
10. Watch out for nasties: Protect your machine with an up-to-date firewall and install sensible antivirus software. Never ignore those updates!

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

Recovering lost or deleted files – Backing Up & Saving Your Images: Part 4

It’s a new week and I’ve got a new set of tips to improve your photography. This week’s tips focus on planning and decision making while taking your shots…. Eventually it will feel like second nature and you won’t even be aware of the process, until then… keep these tips in mind.

1. Daydream

Yes, that’s right keep dreaming about your shot. Pre-Visualize in your mind what it will look like and walk through the steps you need to take to get it. This is a shot I thought about for several weeks before finally setting it up and taking it. With only one camera, I often feel like I’m constantly juggling lenses!

2. Use wide lens

Try to use wide lenses for landscape shots when you want to create an impact of size. You can use a wide range of lenses to shoot landscapes but the vistas are amazing if you shoot with the widest lens possible because they give you a bigger angle of view.

3. Sharpen Your Subjects

Keep your main subjects sharp. Sharp details in the image truly draw the viewers’ eyes towards the subject. Use your tripod in low light conditions to make sharp pictures. Try to make use of the new sharpening effect in Adobe Camera RAW. It does a great job and has improved from previous versions.

4. Keep it Clean

A background makes or breaks your shot so be sure to think carefully about the how you place your subject. Keep the background clean, simple and clutter free. Think about where the viewer should be focused….

5. You Can’t Have Too Many Clouds

Use fluffy white clouds on a blue sky to produce dramatic skies. Is it overcast with too many clouds to see the sky? The sky is now a giant soft box. This is the time to shoot portraits or waterfalls and streams with a motion blur effect.

6. Behind Every Great Shot is the Sun

Stand with the sun at your back and the light of the sun falling on your subject. Unless you are making artistic pictures always try to keep the sun behind you.

7. Light Trails

Enhance your dawn and night urban shots with light trails. Use vehicles or any other moving lights to add interest, mood, and drama. Light trails almost always makes the shot interesting (learn: how to shoot light trails).

8. Silhouettes

The key is an uncluttered, lit background. Simply place your subject in the foreground so that you have clean, sharp lines and go for it. Play with placement and angles to make awesome silhouettes (learn: how to shoot Silhouettes).

9. Top to Bottom

Look straight up. Look straight down. Now examine everything in between. There are great shots from every vantage point, including an unexpected angle. Sometimes we focus so much on the obvious shot that we miss something special just a heartbeat away.

10. And finally… It’s a Camera not a Machine Gun

Unless you are taking action shots or a time lapse series, try to reduce the number of shots. Don’t just fire away hoping for something good to appear during editing. Think, move, and adjust your framing before you click the shutter. You’ll develop better instincts and save hours of time editing those hundreds of extra images.

Check out these links to follow the whole series

• 10 Quick, Easy and Intuitive Tips to Improve your Photography
• 10 Landscape Composition Tips Illustrated with Pictures from Eastern Washington
• 10 More Quick Composition Tips Illustrated
• 10 Quick Tips for Photographing Antelope Canyons 

Amar Ramesh is an emerging photographer from Redmond WA, USA….Photography, to him is a passion with infinite opportunities and he loves to share the lessons and tips that he learned with others….Please visit his Facebook Page for more….He is also in Flickr|Twitter|Portfolio.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

10 Quick and Easy Tips to improve your Photography

I fondly remember earlier digicams like the Coolpix 5400 way back in 2003, complete with 5.1 million pixels, a 4x zoom lens and a vari-angle LCD viewfinder. Dirt cheap at AUD1599!

In terms of the Coolpix 5400, the new Nikon Coolpix P100 is definitely retro style-wise, with a severe kick up the tech specs posterior! It’s also an excellent example of a fixed lens mega zoom camera that does much of what a DSLR can do.

These shots show the range of the amazing 26x optic that relates to a 35 SLR focal length of 26-678mm. Capture to a CMOS 10.3 megapixel sensor can lead to a maximum image size of 3648×2736 pixels or a print dimension of 31×23cm. For what it’s worth, the CMOS sensor is shifted to perform vibration reduction.

What makes the camera doubly fascinating is its ability to shoot a run of six full-sized shots at ‘Normal’ quality (a peg down from Fine quality) and 10fps. Alternatively, the P100 can pull in 200 full-sized shots at 2.8 fps. Yet another option is the Sport Continuous mode, for continuous shooting of 25 1600×1200 pixel shots at 25 fps or 60 1280×960 pixels shots at 120 fps. Got me!

Nikon Coolpix P100 Features

No doubt thanks to a big slice of buffer memory the camera’s movie capture potential is also gob-smacking: it shoots MPEG4 video in the Full HD resolution of 1920×1080 progressive pixels, triggered by a rear-mounted button. This button is circled by a tiny lever that offers the option to shoot in HD or HS.

What’s HS? High speed or slow motion, which means it captures video at rates of 60 fps (1280×720), 120 fps (640×480) and 240 fps (320×240).

What appealed to me immediately was the vari-angle LCD screen that can be tilted 82 degrees downward and 90 degrees upward for shooting from a variety of angles. Added to this is an electronic turret finder.

Another delight was the CMOS sensor with its ‘backside illumination structure’; as I moved from a shaded area to a sunlit one the screen automatically boosted in brightness. Great!

I was surprised to find a High Dynamic Range (HDR) function built in; this is a mode where a run of shots are taken with widely varied exposures, then the shots are merged to create an image with optimise exposure in both the highlight and shadow areas. The camera must be completely still during the shooting phase. This is also used in Advanced Night Landscape mode to capture an ideally exposed night scene.

ISO Tests

The P100 was a surprisingly good performer in ISO tests.

ISO 160 and running well.

Reaching ISO 800 we see only a little noise while definition is still good.

At ISO 1600 definition is still good while noise is still minimal.

At ISO 3200 definition is lower but noise is still low. Well handled!

Distortion

With the zoom set to wide there was some sign of barrel distortion, while the tele end showed no problems.

Startup Time

The P100 took two seconds from power up to first shot; follow-on shots came in at a second each.

Comment

A very impressive camera with picture making controls that will impress the educated photographer, although I was surprised that there was only JPEG capture in stills. It does however have a degree of complication that could scare the wits of a beginner.

Quality: about average. The long end of the zoom presents problems in outdoor shooting with atmospheric haze and the need for a firm tripod.

Why you would buy it: you want a long zoom range; you want a very competent camera without a DSLR’s complexity.

Why you wouldn’t: you want a simple, pocketable point-and-shooter; you want RAW capture.

Nikon Coolpix P100 Specifications

Image Sensor: 10.3 million effective pixels.
Metering: Auto, Program AE, shutter and aperture priority, manual.
Sensor Size: 11mm CMOS.
Lens: Nikkor f2.8-5.5/4.6-120mm (26-678 as 35 SLR equivalent).
Shutter Speed: 8 to 1/8000 second.
Continuous Shooting: 2.8, 10 fps at full image size.
Memory: SD card plus 43MB internal memory.
Image Sizes (pixels): 3648×2736, 3648×2432, 3584×2016, 3264×2448, 2736×2736, 2592×1944, 2048×1536, 1600×1200, 1280×960, 640×480.
Movies: 1920×1080, 1280×720, 640×480, 320×240 at 15, 60, 120, 240 fps.
LCD viewfinders: Turret 0.6cm (230,000 pixels), 7.5cm (460,000 pixels).
File Formats: JPEG, WAV, MPEG4.
ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 160 to 3200.
Interface: USB 2.0, HDMI, AV.
Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery, DC input.
Dimensions: 114.4×82.7×98.6 WHDmm.
Weight: 481 g (inc battery and card).
Price: Get a price on the Nikon Coolpix P100 on Amazon

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

Nikon Coolpix P100 [Review]

I was blown away the first time I saw Jon Cornforth’s images.  Even more so because many of the images were taken in my native Washington State.  While we have many talented photographers in our fine state, I was also impressed with how personable Jon was on Twitter and when I subsequently emailed him to ask if he’d like to be interviewed for DPS.  His images have been featured on covers of Backpacker, Outdoor Photographer, Alaska Airlines Magazine and he has won numerous awards for his stunning photography.  I wanted to interview Jon to see what insights he had to help those considering following his footsteps into the awe inspiring world of nature photography.

1. By the look of your site, would it be safe to classify you as a nature photography, primarily?

For better or for worse, I shoot only landscapes that are untouched by man or wild animals in their natural environment.  So yes, I call myself a nature photographer.

2. How did you get your start in photography?  What lead you to it?

I bought my first SLR ten years ago to take on mountaineering trip as well as an extended backpacking holiday through Southeast Asia.  I have always been very connected to the outdoors, from growing up sailing to backpacking & rock-climbing in college.  I became hooked on photography once I started shooting with a real camera rather than disposable or point & shoot cameras.

3. At what point did you go pro?  In other words, when did it become your major source of income?  And what decisions did you have to confront on that path?

Fortunately, I was not addicted to a high income or a particular career path when I naively decided to make photography my career.  My wife was supportive of my initial ambitions, but it took several years until I started making any money at it.  After 9 years as a professional photographer, I now make a modest living.

4. On your blog you mention making a switch from traditional gallery showings and sales to gaining more sales online.  Can you fill in some of the gaps about how that came about for you?

I found initial success working with several art galleries in Washington & Hawaii, as well as selling prints at prominent juried art festivals.  Those sales started to dry up for me a few years ago as the housing market declined.  I was also advised early on by several pros that I became friends with that stock agency income was evaporating, so the only way to make any money licensing images was by doing it myself.  I realized that I needed to adapt to the new reality, so I built my website to be search engine optimized (SEO).  I have also started taking clients on photography tours.  I have zero interest in taking 6-12 photographers to popular National Park viewpoints, so most of my tours are on a custom/private basis.

5. What have become your biggest marketing tools in the last two years?

Admittedly, social networking has been a huge benefit for my business.  I was caught off-guard by it and it certainly does not come naturally to most people.  I started using Twitter 18 months ago, adapted my previous blog to a custom WordPress site 14 months ago, then reluctantly joined Facebook 12 months ago, Flickr 10 months ago, and only recently started using YouTube.  I can not definitively state that when I do X online that I then make Y amount of money, but overall my social networking has helped my reputation grow into a highly regarded and recognized natural history photographer.

6. What advice would you give to our readers looking to follow your path and make a living selling photos?

Do not even begin to think that you can quit a high earning job and make a comparable amount of money shooting nature photography.  There is a reason that a lot of photographers are retired.  You need to be able to pay your bills.  I am very careful about how I spend money on my trips.  I hardly ever pay for a hotel, but instead camp wherever I travel.  I recently flew to Iceland and spent 15 days shooting, but only spent $1921 including my airfare, but that was still a big indulgence for me.  I have a small boat in Alaska that is a major investment, but it has allowed me to shoot things that otherwise would have been impossible.  Ultimately, you have to treat your photography as a business in order to make a living.

——–

I want to thank Jon for taking the time in-between trips to Alaska to answer my questions.  More of his fine work can be spied on his site, Cornforth Images, and he can be followed on Twitter as @cornforthimages.  And if you’re intersted in traveling with Jon and learning a thing or two, he’s heading back to Alaska in early September then off to Patagonia in January.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

An Interview With Professional Nature Photographer Jon Cornforth

Aah the rings of marriage. As many’a groomsman speech has pointed them out: the engagement ring, the wedding ring and the suffering. Har har. Jewellery is pretty much the main detail of an engagement. As soon as the girlfriends take a breath after a long and high-pitched shriek, they want to see the ring. Then comes the wedding and the rings are only one of many details. Details that, come that huge and long-awaited day, YOU are responsible for photographing. She stayed up many a sleepless night tossing and turning over the colour of their centrepieces. You had better damn well take a picture of them.

There are a few wedding detail shots you should get at every wedding: the dress, the shoes the rings.

I like to take the shot of the rings someplace meaningful. While at the house photographing the bride getting ready, I like to snoop around the house and see if there’s anything that looks to be of deep meaning. An heirloom sculpture, a sumptuous velvet armchair or blown glass. Or I style the rings on the bridal bouquet or flowers in the garden. I heard a couple talking about their azaleas so I quickly borrowed their (Tiffany’s!) rings and placed them on a dewdrop covered azalea in their garden:

I seldom photograph the rings on the hands of the bride and groom (you know the one…resting gently on the bouquet). I think it’s so much more creative to photograph the rings as your main subject, completely independent of their wearers. They’re like a little golden couple all on their own.

Now to the technical. The ring shot must be absolutely perfectly focused and sharp as a tack. A beginner can use macro mode on their camera. A photographer who ventures into manual should use a nice open aperture for shallow depth of field and pay attention to your focus points. For this type of shot, I like to manually select my focal point. Then, you can be sure that what looks great on screen won’t be out of focus in the computer.

As for editing, I always further sharpen my ring shot and run some actions to juice up the colours and the light. A vignette can be a great way to pull even more of the viewer’s focus into the rings. And when shooting the rings on flowers, it’s not always easy to find a perfect flower. Find one as perfect as you can and then heal out any brown spots or wilty edges.

The ring shot is one of my all time favourite shots. I love searching out the perfect spot for them to rest and positioning them just so. And they’re by far the easiest subjects of the day. I mean…who ever heard of a ringzilla?!

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

Wedding Photography – How I take the ring shot

A Guest Post by Claire Woollam the Digital Iris.

Every few months I feel a lack of motivation creeping in and I realise that my daily photographs in particular (I’m doing a 365 project this year) are starting to become a bit dull and lacking in inspiration. Happily I’ve managed so far to climb back out of that hole and get creative again – here are my top tips.

1. Get Surfing

A few minutes spent on Google Images, Flickr and sites such as DPS never fails to help me get my photo-mojo back. I find pictures rather than words stimulate the creative juices best. If you blog, you may be able to find a tool which lets you view the pages of other bloggers’ who have similar interests to yours (I use Blogger where you can link to other people’s sites through your Profile page).

2. Exhibitions

I’m lucky – living in London means there is always a fantastic range of galleries showing pictures from all manner of photographers, many of which are free. An hour or so spent looking at someone else’s shots in ‘real life’ rather than on a computer screen always manages to inspire me. I particularly enjoy seeing less well-known works, which tend to be displayed in more intimate and interesting spaces, often a source of inspiration in themselves. But no matter where you live, you can usually find something going on near you, be it at a local library, community centre or even a shop window on the local high street.

Get online and check out your area’s listings to make sure you don’t miss any up and coming exhibits. I like to do a bit of quick research before I head along to a gallery – having some background knowledge on the photographer and their style means you can better appreciate the pictures in front of you and you don’t waste time when you’re there reading reams of gallery pamphlets or stuff on the walls.

I particularly like that many photography exhibitions are quite small scale, meaning that you don’t end up with the ‘museum fatigue’ experienced when trudging around a large, expensive art gallery, feeling obliged to see everything at all costs because you’ve paid for it and you’re damn well going to see it all! (or is that just me?!)

3. Library Books

We visit our local library most weekends. Admittedly some of the photography books are looking rather old and might be considered to be a bit technically out of date. However, big anthologies of pictures are always a pleasure to flick through and can help bring fresh creative blood to your brain.

The bonus of libraries is that there’s no bookshelf space dilemma at home and they’re free! You can always make like me and fill in a suggestion card for new titles – a few months after asking for ‘more photography books, please!’ low and behold a nice fresh little stock appeared on the shelves: if you don’t ask, you don’t get!

4. Change your Daily Routine

Always walk the same way to work? Take the same bus or train? Comfortable in the same Saturday morning routine? Make up your mind to introduce a change next hour, next day, next week. Find a new area or some different streets to roam during your lunch break. Get up an hour earlier and walk in the opposite direction than you usually do from your house. See where your feet take you and what your lens comes across.

5. Submit Photographs, Enter Competitions

It’s always helpful to get feedback on your shots via sites like Flickr, but nothing beats the buzz of seeing a picture you took in the local paper or short-listed for a competition. When you know you’ve done good, you can’t fail but want to do more and better!

Local papers often look for pictures from your area and most nationals run regular competitions, both in paper and online. A quick search of the Internet may bring up some interesting and inspiring opportunities. Why not give it a whirl – you may be pleasantly surprised! So these are the kind of things I get up to when I feel the need for a digital energy injection. It would be interesting to hear what other people do to revive flagging photo motivation.

Get more from Claire Woollam at her site – the Digital Iris.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

5 Cheap and Easy Ways to Re-inspire Your Photographic Creativity

You know I write everything from experience. No point in figuring things out and not passing on the info! So here is a list of simple things to remember (or in my case, forget) when packing up your bags for a photo shoot or wedding:

• Choose your bag. I have a girly camera bag (from Jo Totes) and a big Lowepro Roller. I use them for different types of work. For example, I bring the roller fully packed with everything I need if I know I have an assistant to roll it around for me. It it’s just me or I know the weather is rainy (mud in the wheels!) I make sure to bring a bag I can wear on me.
• Charge your batteries and pack the charger
• Wipe and format the memory cards. Nothing more annoying than stopping a couple midway down the aisle so you can change your memory card and wait the 20 seconds for 8 gigs of last week’s photos to clear out.
• Check that you have extra batteries for your flash and that you have them in a handy place for a quick change. If you’ve been using them for a while, it might be good to just change them before you head out so it doesn’t become an issue. On that note, ALWAYS make sure you trash used batteries. Even putting them in your pocket can be a no no because I assure you, you will forget if they’re old or fresh.
• Make sure you’ve packed a lens cleaning cloth.
• Business cards! Keep a little pile of cards in all your camera bags, handbags and put one or two in your pocket. If I notice that one of the bridesmaids has an engagement ring, I make sure to hand her a card and tell her to check the blog for her friend’s photos within a week.
• A pen. Seems unimportant, but I find myself needing a pen at least once.
• One of those little tiny folding umbrellas. But don’t put it back in your case once it’s gotten wet!
• In all my camera bags, I keep a check list of these things so I can just quickly run through before heading out the door.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

Packing your Bags for a Photo Shoot

Weekly Assignment

This week we got up close with some creepy crawlies in our Bugs or Insects assignment. I have to admit, sometimes it wasn’t too nice looking through the assignment, but there were some amazing details captured. And who realized that bugs were so colorful? Our winners this week were separated by only 1 point, so let me start out by saying well done. The winner though was pedro96’s Fly. This one had some great colours, and the details in the eyes really just drew us in. Technically very well done as well. Our first runner up was kansasA’s Hornet’s Nest. Oh, kansasA was brave to take this shot! The detail was great, and the blurred hornet flying in really adds to the shot. And last, but not least was yet another fly shot, this one by i speak in math. Once again, those colours just catch your eye. This time the fly’s body is a little bit different in colour though. Just goes to show how much bugs can vary!

This week we started an assignment that should please all the bookworms out here, because our assignment is Books. Whether it’s the lazy days of summer that make you want to pick up a book or just a desire to spend some time in another world, we want you to put the written word into your photos this week. As usual, a quick reminder of the rules. First, your photo must have been taken between 18 August – 1 September 2010. Second, your post must include the date the photo was taken and the words “Assignment: Books”. Finally, your EXIF should be intact, and it’s helpful if you can include some of the main details like camera, lens, aperture, shutter speed, ISO, etc. Next week will be fun for all the car lovers out there as we focus on Cars. We’ve all seen some gorgeous shots in car magazines, and that’s what we want you to aim for. Good luck everyone!

Hot Threads

• What’s Your Workstation Look Like?: We all have to edit out photos somewhere (or at least download them off the camera somewhere). But what does your workstation look like? Total mess? Ultra neat? Multiple monitors? Gorgeous view? Share a picture or tell us about it over in the forums.
• Help Me Understand Why You Use an External Flash: Most cameras have a built in flash, and that’s something almost everyone has used at some point or another. But as you start reading more and learning more about photography you might hear about external flashes, speedlights, and even off camera flash. But why would you want to use these things? Come share your experiences and examples of why an additional flash makes all the difference.
• Using a Wide Angle Without Warping People: Wide angle and ultra-wide angle lenses are fun. One of the fun things about them is that they distort things. But, how can you use a wide or ultra-wide angle lens without distorting people? If you’ve ever wondered, come on over to the forums to read what you can do. And if you have your own hints and tips to share, feel free to share those as well!
• Trying to Photograph Dark Skinned People: We all know that photographing people and getting the skin tones right is difficult in the best of situations. But it can become even more difficult with very dark or very light skin. So how do you make sure that dark skinned people don’t wind up overly shadowed while still getting a good exposure of the background? Come share your hints over in the forum.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

This Week in the Digital Photography School Forums (22-28 Aug ‘10)

Image by Éole

This week your photographic challenge is to photograph your ‘favorite subject’ and share the image with us.

Most photographers that I talk to have a subject that they just keep coming back to – whether it be a person, a landscape location, pet or some other kind of subject matter (I have one friend who just loves to photograph shoes and another who likes taking photos of himself jumping on beds…. yep…. beds).

So this weekend you’re invited to go back to that subject that you just can’t stop taking photos of and take one more!

Once you’ve taken your best “Favorite Subject” image, upload it to your favourite photo sharing site and either share a link to it below or embed it in the comments using the our new tool to do so. Please note it sometimes takes us a while to approve comments with images as there’s a moderation queue – particularly over the weekend.

If you tag your photo on Flickr, Twitter or other sites with Tagging tag it as #DPSFAVORITE to help others find it. Linking back to this page might also help others know what you’re doing so that they can share in the fun.

PS: don’t forget to check out some of the great photos shared last week in the ‘Imperfection’ challenge.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

Your Favorite Subject: Weekend Photography Challenge

Storing your images on a safe and sturdy external hard drive is one of the easiest and cheapest options available to photographers, however this shouldn’t be considered as the only option open to you. In recent years there has been a steady growth of online photo storage sites that specifically hold your images securely and privately. Consequently a growing number of photographers, particular professionals, are using these sites as their all important fail-safe; if the computer crashes and the external hard drives are stolen, then at least you can pull your images back from your hassle-free, digital safety box.

What is more, by backing up work into a “cloud”, photographers are ensuring the availability and accessibility of their work wherever they are in the world. Furthermore this method extends the opportunity for the user to exploit the facility as a way of sharing their most up to date files with colleagues, clients and friends.

With an external hard drive you have the obvious one-off fee, however with an online storage site most companies request a monthly subscription fee and sometimes a start up fee. Although the figure advertised may sound affordable, when you add it up over the year it can become quite costly, and bear in mind that the amount of storage capacity you desire will affect the cost involved; i.e. more space – more money. Another concern is what happens when you decide to cancel your membership; some providers will permit you to download your collection for the last time, whereas others won’t hesitate in erasing all your stored files upon deactivation.

The good news many services will let users try before they buy, with demo trials, either restricting to a time-limit of 30 days for example, or storage capacity. IBackup, is one such website that runs a timed demo – offering a 15 day trial version. The software provided by this service is said to be 30% faster than its nearest competitor and the interface very user-friendly. Whereas providers Syncplicity and Mozy, both offer the latter option, extending 2GB of storage space, free of charge.

Getting started

Once you have found a website storage provider that you want to try, the steps for getting started and saving will be very simple. Although each site will differ in approach our step by step included here is likely to apply to most set ups.

Step 1: With your chosen site loaded select the free demo version (if it offers this option) and complete any subscription information required.

Step 2: When promoted download the accompanying software, ensuring your computer can run it with ease.

Step 3: Once installed most programs will now present a summary of your folders and highlight the ones that are or are not backed up on the site

Step 4: Select which of the photographers or folders you would like to sync to the site, and hit the activation button, which is likely to be labelled as something along the lines of: ‘Upload’, ‘Go’, ‘Send’ or ‘Sync’ etc.

Step 5: The app will upload the files to the chosen storage site, and probably illustrate the transfer progress with a decorative status bar.

Step 6: When all your chosen files have been uploaded to the cloud, the program will produce a pop up message to notify you of its success.

Step 7: Now when you use the app, files that have been uploaded may appear different (highlighted or ticked for example) from those that have not to give the user an instant visual reference as to what is now saved.

Step 8: To retrieve files from the storage site, you may need to use the app and follow its appropriate instructions for removal or simply visit the site, enter you log-in details, locate your folder and download the items you require.

Five online storage providers

With a bevy of websites to try, here are five online backup solutions to add to the mix:

1. IBackup – Starting at $9.95 a month for 10GB, iBackup  is another website that permits users to securely login to their accounts no matter where they are or what computer they are using.

2. Mozy – Mozy promotes 2GB of space free of charge or users can sign up for unlimited space at a competitively priced $4.95 a month. Unlike other resource hungry versions, Mozy only backs up changes to photographs rather than re-backing up the entire file when a change is made.

3. Syncplicity – As mentioned this provider offers 2GB free of charge, but should this not be enough users can subscribe to 50GB at a cost of $15/month. The main benefit of Syncplicity is that it synchronizes across multiple computers, so you can access it from any computer in the world.

4. Carbonite – Carbonite charges users £33 a year ($54.95) for unlimited space, and once installed the program does it all for you: automatically backings up photos, documents, emails and other important items.

5. Norton Online Backup – One of Norton Online Backup’s best selling points is it can be set to back up automatically, for example when your PC is idle, so you don’t have an excuse for not doing it. It costs £39.99 for 25GB which can store approximately 7000 photos.

Backing-Up Software

As previously indicated in part one, there are software options available that can help users back up their files to DVD or CD. This can act as the third and final method for complete protection of your photographs. A quick search on shopping websites such as Amazon, will present all the current products the market has to offer, with the purpose of the software being to regulate and simplify the process.

Nero’s Backitup & Burn is one of the most recognisable products, offering an intuitive interface that allows users to back up their files easily and quickly to CD, DVDs, and Blu-Ray Discs. Newer versions of this product also allow users to use the software to quickly back up to external hard drives or online banks, with a free three-month trial of 1GB of online storage.  What is more this particular product includes Backup and Restore features that rediscover data which is thought to have been lost or deleted.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

Backing Up & Saving Your Images: Part 3 Online Storage Sites & Software Solutions

Image by Paul Cox

This question arrived in our inbox from a regular reader – Sammy – and I thought it might make an interesting community workshop where you, the readers of dPS, have a go at giving some good tips on how to approach the situation of working with a model for the first time.

Dear dPS. I have long wanted to work in a studio environment with a professional model to test my portrait skills (my kids are completely sick of me posing them). So this week I booked a professional model to come and sit for me. When I booked her I was full of bravado – but now as the day approaches I’m completely losing it and am so nervous.

I’ve been up front with her that this is my first time but don’t want to come off as a complete idiot – do you have any suggestions for working with a model for the first time? Perhaps some tips on how to make them at ease, posing tips and anything that won’t make me come across as a complete hack – or worse, a sleaze who is so desperate that he’ll pay for the company of a pretty girl (I promise I’m not)! Help!?!

What advice do you have for Sammy with photographing a model for the first time?

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

How Would You Approach Photographing a Model?

Let’s face it, starting street photography is no easy task. For the average photographer, going from shooting flowers into shooting people in the streets is like stepping into a Ferrari after driving a Toyota Prius. It is intimidating at first, but quite exhilarating once you try it out. After shooting on the streets for about four years, here are my top ten tips for somebody (with absolutely no background in street photography) to get their feet wet.

1. Ditch the zoom and use a wide-angle prime

Street photography is not like your 2nd grade science class. You don’t examine your subjects under a microscope. Rather, street photography is about experiencing life, up close and personal. When starting off street photography, you may be tempted to use your 70-200 zoom lens to feel less “awkward” from shooting in the streets. Rather, it will do much more harm than good.

First of all, you will look even more conspicuous in public holding a huge zoom lens. Secondly, if you use a zoom lens you have to point it directly at somebody, which makes the person you are trying to capture feel as if they have a gun pointed to their head. Rather, try using a wide-angle prime lens. This will solve two of the forementioned problems. One, prime wide-angle lenses are often quite small and look much less threatening than the typical telephoto lens. Furthermore, by using a wide-angle lens, you can still capture your subjects without necessarily pointing your camera directly at them. Which brings me on to my next point…

2. Get close

When I say close, I mean GET CLOSE. Get so close so that when you are taking photos of people on the street that you can see the perspiration dripping from their forehead or the texture of their skin. By using a wide-angle prime lens (as mentioned in the before point), you will be forced to get close to your subjects. The advantage of this is that the wide-angle lens will give you a perspective which makes the viewer of your images feel as if they are a part of the scene, rather than just a voyeur looking in. Not only that, but when you are taking photos really close to people, they often think that you are taking a photo of something behind them. I recommend using either a 24, 28, or 35mm on a full-frame or crop camera.

3. Always carry your camera with you

You have heard this a million times and you know that you should, but you always seem to find excuses or reasons NOT to always carry your camera with yourself. “It’s too heavy, it’s annoying, it’s a hassle, it’s frustrating.” I’ll tell you what’s frustrating. Missing the perfect photo opportunity (the decisive moment) and regretting it for the rest of your life. I have to admit that is a bit dramatic, but it is true. If you always carry your camera with you, you will never miss those “Kodak moments” which always seem to happen at the most unexpected times. I have taken some of my best images at the most unexpected moments—images that would have been impossible to take if I did not have my camera by my side.

4. Disregard what other people think of you

One of the things that people are worried about when starting street photography is worrying about being judged by other people as being a “creeper” or just being plain weird. Disregard these thoughts. When you are shooting on the streets, you will most likely be alone. That means that anyone who may be “judging” you is people that you do not know and will most likely never see again in your life. So why let them get in your way?

We may feel constricted by these “social rules” but remember, they can always be broken. There is no law out there which doesn’t allow photography in public places (regardless of what the police may tell you).

To prime yourself better for your street photographer “role,” try doing something unusual in public. Lay on the ground for a minute and see how other people react around you, get up, and simply walk away like nothing happened. Go to a busy intersection and stand like a statue and see how people react (trust me, nobody notices. I had to do this as an experiment for one of my sociology classes). When you go into an elevator, stand the opposite way. The social world is full of false rules that constrict us. Break them, and shooting in the streets should become quite natural.

5. Smile often:

It is funny how far a smile can go, especially when shooting in the streets. If you take a photo of somebody and they give you a weird look, simply tip your hat to them and show them two rows of your pearly white chompers. I would say that when smiling to strangers (even in the city of angels) I get over a 95% response rate. Even some of the most unapproachable people will smile back at you. By smiling often and to others, this will help you relax and lighten the atmosphere around yourself. People trust a street photographer who smiles, as they will simply disregard you as a hobbyist, rather than someone with malicious intent.

6. Ask for permission

Although many street photography purists say that the only true street photography is candid, I would highly disagree with them. Feel free to go up to strangers who you think look interesting, and ask to take a portrait of them. People love getting their photos taken, and as long as you act courteous and casual about it, most people will accept. Feel free to ask to take portraits of many mundane subjects of everyday life like the waitress at the diner, the bellboy of a hotel, or even a parking lot attendant.

7. Be respectful:

This is one of the tricky grey lines when it comes to street photography. I personally try my best not to take photos of homeless people when they look too down on their luck. Although I do agree that there are tasteful images taken of homeless people which call people into helping these people, there are also many images that look like pure exploitation. Think of the cliché shot of a homeless person crouched over on the street, begging for money. Before you take these images, think about what message you are trying to convey. Are you shooting for the reason of building awareness of the atrocious situations that many homeless people live in? Or are you merely taking a photo of a homeless person for the sake of taking their photo? Nobody can be the judge—only you can decide.

8. Look for juxtaposition:

I feel that this is what makes street photography so unique and fascinating when compared to other genres of photography. Street photographs are able to convey the humor, irony, and the beauty of everyday life, by juxtaposing people with others and the environment. Look for signs with interesting messages that seem to be contradictory to the people standing around it. Be on the lookout for human heads that seem to be displaced by street lamps. Look for two individuals that seem to be differing in height, complexion, or even weight. Capture an array of emotions from people, whether it be happiness, sadness, or curiosity.

9. Tell a story:

Imagine that you are a film director and that you are trying to make an interesting play. Who would you decide to play as your actors? What is your backdrop going to be. How are the actors going to be interacting with one another and the environment? What kind of emotion are you trying to convey—whimsical, curious, or gloomy? If a viewer looks at one of your photos, will they simply move on or will they take a minute or two and study your image, trying to figure out the intrinsic story? Does your image captivate the viewer and make them feel that they are a part of the scene? Ask yourself these questions the next time you are taking photos on the street.

10. Just do it:

This is the last but most quintessential point of all of becoming a street photographer. Reading all of these tips aren’t going to do you any good to become a street photographer. Photography is not done behind the computer screen, but on the streets with a camera in hand. Honestly when it comes down to it, all this obsession over cameras, lenses, and gear doesn’t matter. Grab your DSLR, point-and-shoot, iPhone, or whatever and hit the streets. The beauty of the world awaits you—don’t miss your chance.

About the Author: Eric Kim is a street photographer based in Los Angeles. He is currently writing a book titled “Street Photography 101” which will be distributed to the world for free in a convenient PDF format.

You can read excerpts from his in-progress book over at his blog and you can see his street photography on his website. Also feel free to also follow him on Twitter, Flickr, and Facebook as well.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

10 Tips for the Aspiring Street Photographer

Just a quick note to readers to inform you of a few important developments here at dPS over the last few days.

Firstly – we’ve just moved servers. dPS has grown so quickly over the last couple of years that our old servers were increasingly struggling to keep up (and were getting quite expensive to run). So we made the decision to switch (over to Amazon’s system). To do this switch meant a complete reworking of how the site was hosted and took a number of months – but yesterday we flicked the switch and we’re now on the new system.

This means a faster and more reliable system (cheaper too) however as with any move like this there have been (and probably will be a few more bugs. We’ve already fixed most of them but one that is still impacting some of our readers is a problem logging into our photography forum area.

We’re aware of the issue and our team are on the case. I’m unsure how long it’ll take to fix it up but wanted to let you know we’re aware of it and are on the job.

In the mean time – if you’re missing the ‘community’ thing here on dPS – there are some great discussions going on in our Facebook page where close to 40,000 of our readers now follow what’s going on at dPS (to join them simply hit the ‘like’ button on the page).

We’ll give further updates of the server move there and on our Twitter account.

Also – while I’m here, we’re tantilizingly close to hitting the 500,000 subscribers mark! We’re sitting on 497,198 – help us to get to the half million mark by making sure you’re subscribed to our RSS feed and/or newsletter (and by sharing us with your friends).

Update: forum login issues have now been resolved!

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

Updates on Servers, Forums and 500,000 Subscribers!

It’s been a great year for the DSLR. Not only have we seen the top models capture stills of amazing quality, leading to many serious workers questioning the need for medium format digital capture … and then, to many an amazed onlooker, we’ve seen TV series and feature films shot with high end stills cameras. ‘Mazing!

So, in typical fashion, we now see Sony hit the Go! button and pack even more capability into these two new cameras.

Then, a few days ago, heavily disguised, I snuck into Sony HQ to get a top secret preview of the new cameras. And ‘mazed I was.

On leaving, I was given a review camera to bring you the good news. As it was early days, I had to be satisfied with the lesser of the two models — A33 (pictured above) — because there was only one A55 (pictured below) to hand, and this was in the Sony techo’s hands. Ne’r mind, you’ll still get the full whiff of excitement this pair generates as, aside from a few specs, the cameras are near-identical.

Initially I was surprised at the smallness and lightness of the A33, barely larger than some maxi zoom, fixed lens models. The Exmor CMOS sensor is APS-C size, with a 1.5x lens factor, when compared to 35 SLR glass.

The feature list would seem to satisfy even the most desperate photographer, anxious to bedeck him- or herself with the toppest end camera around.

Features like: 4592×3056 pixels maximum size (A55: 4912×3264), leading to a print size of 39×26cm (42×28cm); writing to SD/SDHC/SDXC and Memory Stick Pro Duo/Pro HG Duo cards (but not to CF); SteadyShot image stabiliser; RAW and JPEG capture in stills; MPEG4 and AVCHD at a maximum res of 1920×1080 pixels; Sweep Panorama shooting; 7.5cm LCD screen that swings 180 degrees vertically and 270 degrees laterally; exposure modes that include auto, auto+, Program AE, shutter and aperture priority, manual and scene selection; face and smile detection; flash compensation; ISO sett8ings to 25,600; GPS (A55 only); three exposure HDR.

The Sweep Panorama feature is to die for. Works quickly and accurately.

High Speed

Then we get to the continuous shooting figures: with the A33 you can pull in shots at a rate of 7 per second — and, amazingly, 10 images per second with the A55!

So, how does it do this? Simply because there is no flipping mirror to slow it down! Instead, there is a semi-reflective mirror in the light path that transmits 66.66 per cent of the light to the CMOS sensor in the back of the camera — and 33.33 per cent of it to a tiny LCD built into the camera’s roof. When you move your eye from the large LCD at the camera’s rear to the eye level viewfinder you view the action via the smaller LCD.

Remove the lens and you can see how it works, with the mirror in place throughout the shooting cycle. Outside of shooting, the mirror can be tilted up in order to clean the sensor, but normally remains in place at a 45 degree angle.

For this neat trick you can thank a pioneering invention by Canon in their 1965 Pellix camera in which the traditional moving SLR mirror was replaced by a fixed, semi-transparent pellicle mirror splitting the light rays from the lens: two thirds of an f stop went to the film, with the rest passing to the viewfinder. The objects: simpler construction, quieter operation, no finder blackout, faster continuous shooting.

Of course, you can ask the question: why didn’t Sony build in a pentaprism to provide a full live optical experience — a la Pellix? The LCD view is a little murky and an optical view would have been far superior. Perhaps the third of an f stop loss for viewing is the reason: a dark finder view.

Movies

With even the occasional compact able to shoot High Def video these days you could expect this little DSLR duo to lead the band — and they do.

You have a choice: record in Full High Definition 1920×1080i AVCHD or MPEG4 1440×1080.

Kick off the dedicated record button adjacent to the viewfinder, pan around, zoom as you wish… and the system follows you, pulling focus firmly on everything you point the camera at and taking care of exposure right through the shot.

These four frames come from an AVCHD sequence: the AF and exposure working hard and well.

One caution: you may find the AF and stabilising functions leave some noise on the audio. A fix: turn off the stabiliser and place the camera on a tripod. There is an input for an external stereo microphone, which may help as you will find the wind noise from the camera mic excessive if shooting outdoors.

But overall, I absolutely loved the video feature!

ISO Settings

These shots cover the ISO settings at 100, 800 and ISO 3200. All show excellent resolution, low noise, colour fidelity.

At ISO 12,800 the wagon falls over: definition is down, noise well up, along with colour artefacts. Not useable.

This shot was taken at ISO 6400 and cropped to a quarter its original size: as you can see, the right shot can take advantage of high ISO settings.

Comment

Quality: overall, excellent, good colour, high sharpness.

Why you would buy one of these: small size and light weight; superb video capture; rapid stills rate.

Why you wouldn’t: card compartment is in the base of the camera, so if using it tripod-mounted, it’s a hassle to remove and reload the card.

Part of the pleasure of the A33/55 is its compact size and light weight. Even with one or two more lenses, this outfit would make a painless traveling companion.

Sony A33 Specifications (A55)

Image Sensor: 14.2 (16.2) million effective pixels.
Metering: Multi-segment, centre-weighted metering and spot.
Effective Sensor Size: 23.4×15.6 — APS-C sized — CMOS.
35 SLR Lens Factor: 1:5x.
Compatible lenses: Sony and Minolta A-mount, Konica Minolta Alpha/Maxxum/Dynax.
Exposure Modes: Auto, Program AE, shutter and aperture priority, manual, scene selection, sweep panorama.
Shutter Speed: 30 to 1/4000 second, Bulb. Flash sync: 1/160 sec.
Memory: SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/Pro HG Duo cards.
Image Sizes (pixels): 4592×3056 to 2288×1280 (4912×3264 to 2448×1376).
Movies: 1920×1080 to 640×480 at 25/29.97 fps.
Continuous Drive: 7 frames (10 frames).
Viewfinders: Turret 1.1cm LCD; rear 7.5cm LCD (921,600 pixels).
File Formats: RAW, RAW+JPEG, MPEG4, AVCHD, Dolby Digital (AC-3).
Colour Space: Adobe RGB, sRGB.
ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 100 to 25,600.
Interface: USB 2.0, AV, HDMI, microphone, wireless remote, DC input.
Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery, AC adaptor.
Dimensions: 124.4×92x84.7 WHDmm.
Weight: Approx. 492 g (with lithium battery and card).
Price: $TBA.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

Sony A33 and A55 DSLRs [REVIEW]

A guest post by Music Photographer Rick Bennett.

Bars are challenging shooting environments now matter how you slice it–crappy lighting, drunk crowds, cramped spaces. Add in musicians who like to move around a lot, speakers in photographically inconvenient locations, and microphone stands that tend to bisect heads, and you’ve got an ideal situation for a photographer who likes a challenge. In Part 1, I covered the basics of equipment needed to shoot bands in bars: low-noise-at-high-iso cameras, off-camera flash, and mongo glass. In Part 2 I talked about where I’ve found success with placing my flashes, and the camera settings that have yielded the best results. Finally, in this part, I get to the shooting.

Before you start shooting, take care of your ears so that you can do this more than a couple of times–buy some ear plugs at your local hardware store (near the goggles and other protective gear) or pharmacy (near the sleep aids). I find I spend a significant amount of time standing right in front of the speakers, and my ears are ringing pretty badly by the end of a performance if I don’t use ear plugs. Even with the plugs in, you’ll be able to hear every part of the performance.

While shooting, you must be polite. Most people are accommodating if you step in front of them for a moment to make a shot, but do that too frequently or for too long, and you’ll start to irritate the fans of the band. Remember that the band is there to perform for their fans. The pictures you make are secondary to that purpose. I’ve only been in one situation where I felt like my presence as a photographer was not appreciated by one fan–I finished the shot and stepped off the dance floor. The huge majority of the time, people are very forgiving of me moving in and out of the crowd in order to get the shot I want. But I’m very careful to not obstruct any one person’s view for more than a few seconds–no more than any other fan would obstruct their view.

The easiest way to stay out of the fans’ view is to crouch down for the low angle. Most big bands perform on a stage that is raised several feet above the heads of the crowd so that everyone can see. Bands who play in bars don’t generally have this advantage, but you can create that look by taking pictures from low angles. The shots look cool, and the fans will appreciate not having to look around your f/2.8 lens to see their favorite guitar solo.

I find the most challenging aspect of shooting musicians is composing shots without microphone shadows or severe instrument shadows. This isn’t a problem for guitars, but any instrument that is close to the face can be problematic, e.g. saxophone, trumpet, violin/fiddle. The shadows are easy to see if you’re shooting with ambient stage lighting and no flash. But with remote flash, it means you have to be on the same side of the instrument or microphone as your flash is. In this lighting diagram, if the left flash fires, the microphone will cast a nasty shadow across the singer’s face. If the right hand flash fires, no shadow problem. So you have to stay close to the flash, but not so close that it looks like on-camera flash.

The other major compositional challenge is getting pictures framed so that microphones and stands don’t detract from, or steal attention in, the photo. Microphones and stands are part of a performance, but I don’t like them to dominate a picture. For example, if I’m framing two musicians in the shot and the microphone from one musician is covering the face of the other, I won’t take the shot (or I’ll delete it later). I’ll change my position, or wait until the musicians change theirs if I can.

I also don’t particularly care for shots from dead-center on a signer. It will look like they’re eating their microphone, or worse, have it shoved up their nose. That’s why I tend to take pictures from the side–I get great shots when the singer pulls back from the microphone a little bit so that you can see their whole face.

If I’m shooting the gig for the band, or in the hopes that the band will hire me in the future, I’ll work through the following shot list during their performance:

• a couple of shots of every member of the band. If some play and sing, I’ll capture them doing both.
• detail shots, generally closeups of instruments during a set break. Not all of them, just those that strike me as interesting photographically.
• detail shots of instruments being played. Again, not all of them, but whatever strikes me as interesting at the time. I love shots of accordions!
• motion blur of fingers on instruments, usually a guitar or bass. No flash here, just a 1/15 to 1/60s shutter, and up close with a f/1.8 lens. The challenge here is to capture a moment where the instrument isn’t moving very much, but the fingers are.
• any time the band interacts with the fans or fans enjoying the show, e.g. clapping, dancing, rock hands, etc, with band and fans in the frame
• a group shot where a) all the band members are visible in the frame, and b) everyone is playing, and c) a little bit of audience

Finally, be sure to give the drummer some lovin’. Drummers are usually in the back, with no stage lighting whatsoever, and as such, they rarely have pictures taken of them. I’ll even change the angle and power of remote flashes if I need to in order to capture a drummer. I make it my mission to capture at least one killer image of the drummer before I go home for the evening. If the drummer has any ambient lighting hitting them at all, a slow shutter will create some great motion blur.

When taking all of these pictures, I’m looking for “music faces”–points where the musicians are clearly enjoying themselves, and “music moments” where two (or more) musicians are jamming together. These are the images I really like to see. When I look at my images in post processing, I can tell who captured my attention photographically because I’ve got a lot more images of them. And I’ve walked away from shooting some gigs (not paid, or pre-arranged by the band) because the musicians weren’t performing–they just stood there playing their instruments. Meh, that’s no fun. I could have taken five shots and have faithfully captured their performance.

Make sure the band knows how to get in touch with you by the end of the performance. They’ll definitely have noticed you (especially if you have that 70-200 f/2.8 lens) and are probably interested in seeing your work.

What you do with the images and how you processes them will depend on your purpose in taking them. If you wanted to get the band’s attention and hopefully have them hire you, then pick a handful of the best and get them on-line in a hurry. That will help solidify in their memory that you were the one taking pictures, and, holy cow, you took some great ones! If the band had already hired you, then I assume you’ve already worked out a method of payment and delivery.

As you’re going through the images from the night, don’t sweat the deletes. I typically keep only 1/4 to 1/3 of the images from a night of shooting. And the band doesn’t see those out-of-focus poorly framed shots.

Don’t wait for the band to contact you–reach out to them through whatever means possible: Facebook, Twitter, their website. Let them know where to see your work and how to contact you for more.

Good luck! And share your work in the forums.

Rick Bennett has been shooting bands in bars, at festivals, and on big stages for about a year. You can see more of his work on his blog, portfolio, or Flickr stream.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

How to Photograph Bands in Bars, Part 3 – Shooting

A guest post by Music Photographer Rick Bennett.

Band photography in bars can be very challenging, but with a little bit of knowledge and planning you can make images that blow away the standard fan photo. In Part 1, I discussed equipment choices: cameras, lenses and flashes. In this article, I’ll describe how to set up just before the performance to get the best shots.

First and foremost, you need to attempt to assess the security of your gear before you pull anything out. No band photographs are worth losing a camera or lens or flash over. The bands I’ve tended to shoot have played in nice neighborhoods in well established bars with well behaved clientele. But I’m constantly on the alert because the clientele could change in a heartbeat. In some situations, I’ll leave flashes and camera bags unattended, but I’ll never walk away from my camera. A VAL (voice activated light stand) can certainly help keep an eye on your gear, but the best place for the bag with extra gear is with the band’s gear, usually close to the stage. Having it close to their things means they’re more likely to help keep an eye on it as well. That being said, I’ve never had a problem with gear walking off, but that is something you’ll have to assess at every gig.

I generally try to find a seat (if they have seats) near to the front of the audience, left of center from the audience’s perspective. If there is an obvious front-row of fans, I’ll put my “home base” behind them since a) those fans would be the most irritated by a blocked view, and b) their excitement can make great framing devices. I choose left-of center because most guitar players are right handed, and I prefer pictures where the body of the guitar is closer to the camera. I want to be off-center because it generally results in better images of singers if the microphone doesn’t cover the lower half of their face. But this is just a “home base” where I’ll come back to in order to change lenses or enjoy some of the music. This is not where you’ll park your camera the whole performance. More on that in Part 3. After you’ve determined your home base, try to introduce yourself to the band, if this wasn’t arranged ahead of time. Get their permission to shoot their performance–I can’t imagine they would be upset by it, but it helps to build rapport by asking.

If you’re going to use off-camera flash, you’ll need to determine placement based on the layout of the bar. My standard layout is to work with two flashes, one at the extreme left of the stage, and the other at the extreme right. See this light diagram as an example. But again, it all depends on what you’ve got available to you for clamping/securing/mounting a flash. If I’m going to clamp a flash to something that the bar owns (and isn’t as simple as a chair or table or steel pole) I’ll check with a bartender or sound-guy first. I’ll let them know I’m there to shoot the band, and ask permission to mount a flash on their light-bar, for example. No one has ever given me grief, but its good to get permission first–asking forgiveness is not a good way to build your reputation. After I’ve placed the flash, I point the flash at the far side of the stage–this way the closest performer is in the “feathered” light, where the furthest performer gets the most direct blast, but at a much greater distance.

When shooting with two flashes, I generally set their triggers to different transmitter channels for the first set, and to the same channel for the second set. This gives me a wide variety of pictures–some with dramatic hard lighting, some with more balanced cross light.

Since I’m using manual flashes, I set my shutter speed to one click down from my max sync speed, which means I’m set to 1/160s. For the most part, this usually eliminates the stage lights, if any. I can always slow that down if I decide I want to let in more ambient or motion blur, but I start with 1/160s. Then I go to each of the positions of the band members, and if needed, place my hand about where their face would be, take a shot, chimp, repeat, until I determine the proper aperture for that performer. This ends up being pretty straight forward in a one-flash setting: the performer closest to the flash might be f/11, the next one might be f/8, then f/5.6 then f/4.8. I might write this down in a note pad, but usually I just get a feel for how “hot” the closest performer is, and knock the aperture down from there. If I can’t get enough light on the performer most distant from the flash, I’ll either increase the power on the flash or increase my ISO. I prefer to keep my flash power at 1/4 for fast recycle times, but that isn’t always possible because of the layout of the bar.

If you’re not using off-camera flash, I recommend setting your ISO to the highest setting you can tolerate based on the noise it produces, probably in the 800 to 3200 range. With my D60, I never went higher than 800 if I could help it. With my D5000, I can go all the way to 3200 with impunity. Next I’ll set the camera to spot metering, servo-continuous focusing, and aperture priority at the lowest setting for the lens. The D5000 (and other cameras I’m sure) can also enable “Auto ISO” where you specify the range of ISO that are acceptable (I’ll allow 200-3200) and the minimum shutter speed. The camera will then automatically boost your ISO as needed to match your given shutter speed. I’m still getting used to this feature, but I think it has the potential to really help in these kinds of situations. I’ll also set the camera to capture RAW+Basic JPEG. I save RAW and JPEG because the RAW files allow me to manipulate color balance better than JPEG, and the camera applies the best noise reduction to the JPEG.

To summarize, my camera settings generally look like this:

• Off Camera Flash: Manual mode, 1/160s, aperture depends on performer distance to flash, ISO 200-800 if possible to get flash power set to 1/4. Metering mode doesn’t matter since I’m in manual mode.
• Ambient Only: Aperture priority, smallest f-stop for lens, ISO high enough to get to 1/120s shutter speed, spot metering for close up shots, matrix metering for wide angle.

In part 3, I’ll cover shooting

Rick Bennett has been shooting bands in bars, at festivals, and on big stages for about a year. You can see more of his work on his blog, portfolio, or Flickr stream.

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

Photographing Bands in Bars, Part 2 – Set Up