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Posts Tagged ‘Pictures’

How to Take Good Pictures in Bright Sunlight: 11 Easy Tips

07 Jun

The post How to Take Good Pictures in Bright Sunlight: 11 Easy Tips appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.

how to take good photos in bright sunlight

How can you take good pictures in bright sunlight? As you may be aware, harsh lighting can lead to unwanted contrast, blown-out highlights, lens flare, and colors that look overly saturated. (If you’re shooting portraits, direct sunlight can also lead to the “squint factor.”)

So what’s a photographer to do?

It turns out there are simple methods of capturing stunning shots in bright light. You just have to choose your compositions and camera settings carefully – and at times, get a bit creative.

how to photograph in bright sunlight

So to discover 11 quick and simple tips for combating problems caused by bright sunlight, read on:

1. Move into the shade

The simplest way to take beautiful images in direct sunlight?

Just move into the shade.

Obviously, this isn’t always feasible – you certainly can’t move an entire seascape! – but with some subjects, heading into the shade is quick and easy. It’s a good solution when shooting portraits, assuming you’re not tied to a particular location.

After all, sometimes the simplest solutions are best!

2. Make your own shade

For small subjects that aren’t movable – for instance, a small flower in a field – create your own shade!

You have a few different options, some more convenient than others:

  • Block the light with your body
  • Ask an assistant to stand between the flower and the light
  • Hold a piece of cardboard or an umbrella above the flower
  • Use a pop-up diffuser

Note that some of these options will be more effective depending on the direction of the light (e.g., if the bright sun is directly overhead, it’ll be tough to block it with your own body).

And a diffuser, because it softens the light rather than blocks it, will give you the most balanced, flattering results.

how to take good pictures in direct sunlight umbrellas

3. Use fill flash

One of the biggest problems with shooting in direct sunlight is the harsh shadows. For instance, portrait subjects will get unwanted shadows under the chin, flowers will get heavy shadows underneath the petals, and pets will get dark shadows under their head and body.

In general, these harsh shadows look bad, but there’s an easy solution:

Fill flash.

Simply point a flash toward the dark shadows and fire away! Make sure the flash is on a low power setting – after all, you don’t want to make the underside of your subject brighter than its top! – and experiment with different flash angles for the best results.

You also might try putting the sun behind your subject, then using the fill flash to brighten up your subject’s front. It can look really good, though watch out for lens flare.

4. Use a reflector

Want to fill in harsh shadows but don’t like using flash?

You have another easy option:

A reflector.

Reflectors are white or metallic items that bounce light back into darker areas, and they’re really easy to use. Simply point the reflector at the area you want to brighten up, then adjust it until you get some nice fill (by angling the reflector back and forth, you’ll see the reflected light change position, and you can use this “preview” to fine-tune the effect).

Note that you can also try the same tactic I mentioned in the previous section, where you position your subject in front of the sun and bounce light back onto their front. A reflector isn’t as powerful as a fill flash, so you’ll need to carefully angle it for maximum effect – but if you get it right, the results will be amazing.

portrait with backlight

5. Change your perspective

Sometimes, moving your subject into the shade isn’t possible – but moving around your subject can give the same effect.

For instance, if you’re shooting an interesting tree in the forest, you might move to the tree’s other side, you might find an interesting part of the tree that’s shrouded in shadow, or you might get low and shoot up.

bright sunlight looking up at trees

The idea is to observe your subject carefully, looking for ways to maximize shade and minimize bright highlights and annoying contrast.

6. Use a lens hood

Suffering from lens flare?

While flare can be artistic, it can also be very annoying, especially if you’re after a clean, straightforward image.

Fortunately, many lenses come with hoods, which block flare-causing light and keep your photos flare-free.

a lens hood

If you don’t have a lens hood, don’t fret; it’s not that difficult to construct a hood out of cardboard or to use your hand to shield your lens from the sun.

(Just make sure you keep your makeshift lens hood and your hand out of the shot – otherwise, you’ll be doing a lot of cropping in post-production!)

7. Consider using a filter

a filter

Unfortunately, filters don’t offer a magical solution for bright sunlight – there’s no “avoid direct sunlight” filter, at least not currently – but filters can be handy for direct sunlight photography.

For instance, a polarizing filter will help cut down on reflections, plus it’ll help you achieve vibrant colors (including a beautiful blue sky).

And a neutral density filter will reduce the light hitting your camera sensor, allowing for slower shutter speeds and smaller apertures at midday.

(Why might that be useful? Sometimes, you’ll want to shoot with a wide aperture for the shallow depth of field effect, or you’ll want a slow shutter speed to convey motion blur.)

8. Play with your white balance settings

These days, pretty much every digital camera lets you choose between different white balance settings (for instance, you can dial in a white balance preset, such as Cloudy or Daylight, or you can set a custom white balance based on your scene).

Now, you can adjust the white balance later on in post-processing, assuming you’re shooting in RAW. But if you shoot in JPEG, or you simply prefer to get things right in-camera, you’ll want to carefully set your white balance from the start.

How is this helpful for taking good pictures in bright sunlight?

Well, white balances can offer artistic effects that enhance the look of highlights and shadows. A cooler white balance, for instance, can give a neat effect to more monochrome images – while a warm white balance will make bright sunlight appear softer and more inviting.

9. Use spot metering for the best results

Harsh sunlight makes correct metering tricky. So here’s my advice:

Use spot metering. This will force your camera to expose based on a targeted portion of your scene; you can aim at your main subject, then dial in the recommended exposure settings.

woman in the bright sun

Alternatively, you can spot meter off a midtone in your shot – this will ensure the entire scene is exposed relatively well (as opposed to the former technique, which will ensure you expose for your subject).

After taking an image, check the back of your camera for a preview; you may need to adjust your technique depending on the result. Here, your histogram can be very handy, especially because it’s tough to accurately evaluate an LCD preview in bright sunlight.

Also, if you have the luxury of time, try metering off different parts of the scene while taking multiple shots – that way, you can choose the best option later on.

10. Carefully choose the time of day you shoot

Most of us don’t have the luxury of sitting around all day waiting for the perfect light.

But heading out an hour or two earlier or waiting until an hour or two later might be feasible – and if that’s manageable, I highly recommend you consider it.

You see, the time of day can dramatically impact your shot. Midday offers unpleasant, harsh light, but if you go out in the early morning or late afternoon, even direct sunlight starts to look good. You’ll lose the unwanted contrast, you’ll lose the ugly shadows, and you’ll get soft, golden light that’ll flatter your subjects.

Make sense?

camel silhouette

11. Shoot silhouettes

As the saying goes:

If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em!

And that applies when photographing subjects in bright sunlight. If the sun is causing you problems, just use it to your advantage; make your subject stand in front of the bright light, then capture stunning silhouettes all day long.

I recommend getting down low (so that you’re shooting against the bright sky). And compose so your subject is clearly defined against the background.

bright sunlight silhouette

How to take good pictures in bright sunlight: conclusion

Well, there you have it:

Eleven easy tips for shooting in bright sunlight.

Capturing beautiful photos in harsh light might seem difficult – but remember these tips, and your photos will turn out great!

Now over to you:

Do you struggle to shoot in bright sunlight? Do you have any tips or tricks for dealing with these issues? Share your thoughts (and images) in the comments below.

how to take good pictures in direct sunlight city at dusk

The post How to Take Good Pictures in Bright Sunlight: 11 Easy Tips appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.


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Top 10 Mistakes That Cause Blurry Pictures (And How to Fix Them)

20 Apr

The post Top 10 Mistakes That Cause Blurry Pictures (And How to Fix Them) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Anne McKinnell.

top 10 mistakes that cause blurry pictures

“Why are my pictures blurry?”

It’s a common question, and one that doesn’t have an easy answer. The truth is that blurry pictures are caused by many factors – so if your photos are blurry, it’s often difficult to pinpoint the exact problem.

That’s why I wrote this article. I’m going to list the 10 main reasons why you’re ending up with blurry photos. I want you to carefully go through this list. See if any of the reasons stand out.

And then make the necessary changes!

Odds are, if you can address the problem, you’ll be taking tack-sharp images in no time at all.

Let’s dive right in, starting with the biggest reason why your photos are blurry:

1. Your shutter speed is too slow

A too-slow shutter speed is the number one culprit of blurry photos.

You might think you can hold perfectly still for half a second, but I assure you there are very few people in the world who can.

In fact, most folks can only handhold a camera down to the 1/160s to 1/80s range (though this can fluctuate, depending on the focal length of the lens, as well as the size, the lens technology, and the level of magnification).

When handholding your camera, remember this rule of thumb to avoid blur caused by camera shake:

Your shutter speed should be the reciprocal of your lens’s focal length.

So if you’re using a 60mm lens, your shutter speed should be 1/60s or faster. With a 200mm lens, use at least 1/200s. With a 400mm lens, use at least 1/400s.

(The longer your lens length, the more camera shake is magnified, so telephoto lenses require much faster shutter speeds.)

sharp pelican without blur
Using a 400mm lens, I selected a shutter speed of 1/400s to reduce the possibility of camera shake.

Some lenses and cameras have image stabilization technology built into them. Now, image stabilization usually allows you to slow your minimum shutter speed by around 3-5 stops, so you can handhold a 60mm lens past the 1/8s range. But you should always be cautious and take extra shots just to be sure.

What is your minimum shutter speed?

In addition to the reciprocal rule, it’s important to know your own personal minimum shutter speed.

You see, we all shake a little, but some of us shake more than others. So it’s good to know at what point camera shake becomes an issue for you.

Try this exercise:

Put your camera in Shutter Priority mode and take a photo at 1/500s. Then lower your shutter speed and take another image. Keep this going until you head all the way down to 1s or so, then pull up the images on your computer. Ask yourself: When does the blur become a problem? Personally, I rarely go below 1/125s if I’m handholding my camera.

2. Not using a tripod

sharp arches with proper depth of field

If you’re experiencing camera shake and you can’t use a faster shutter speed (due to low-light conditions), or you don’t want to use a faster shutter speed (because you’re purposely trying to blur something in the frame), then you need to steady your camera another way.

And I highly recommend using a tripod. It’ll keep your camera completely steady even as you dial in exposures of one second or longer. If a tripod is too inconvenient, consider a monopod, which is a more compact, flexible option.

Also, when you use a tripod, image stabilization is not necessary and may even be counterproductive, so it’s a good idea to get in the habit of turning any IS off when you put your camera on a tripod.

3. Bad camera-holding technique

For the best stability, practice the official photographer position:

Stand with your feet slightly apart, one staggered forward, and firmly planted to stabilize your body right to left and back to front. Support the camera with your left hand by holding the lens from underneath, and use your right hand to grab the grip and gently press the shutter button. Tuck your elbows tight to your chest and use the viewfinder rather than the Live View screen (holding the camera to your face will help keep it steady).

Some photographers even go so far as to listen to their breathing and heartbeat, taking care to fire the shot between breaths and beats for maximum stability.

photographer handholding camera with technique to prevent blurry photos
Proper technique when handholding your camera.

4. Your aperture is too wide

The size of the aperture determines the depth of field, which is how much of the image is in focus. And this has a direct effect on the sharpness of your photo.

When a lens finds focus, it locks onto a specific distance known as the plane of focus. So if you focus at, say, 15 feet, everything 15 feet away from the camera will have maximum sharpness, and anything in front of or behind that plane will start to blur. The strength of this blur effect – that is, the speed at which sharpness falls off – depends on the aperture.

If you use a wide aperture such as f/2.8, the depth of field will be very shallow. This effect is magnified by longer focal-length lenses. So if you use a telephoto lens and the aperture is f/2.8, there may be only a razor-thin sliver of the image that is in sharp focus. But if you use a small aperture such as f/11 or f/18, the depth of field will be larger. More of the image will be sharp.

desert landscape
Using an aperture of f/20, everything is sharp from foreground to background.

Choosing the right aperture depends on the type of image you want to create. But if you are trying to get everything in the frame as sharp as possible, try using a small aperture (produced by a larger f-number such as f/11 or f/22).

Note that a small aperture will let in less light, so you will need to use a slower shutter speed to compensate. See the first problem on this list!

5. Not using autofocus

These days, cameras are sophisticated. So let them do what they are good at! Cameras do a fantastic job of nailing focus, both with still subjects and subjects in motion.

Is autofocus perfect? No, and later on in this article, I’ll discuss a few times when manual focus is actually helpful. But generally speaking, autofocus is the way to go.

why are my pictures blurry? sharp vulture

6. Not focusing in the correct place

Even if you’re using the perfect handholding technique or a rock-solid tripod, if you focus in the wrong place, you’ll end up with blurry pictures anyway.

Focusing carefully is especially crucial when using a wide aperture (because you’ll have a razor-thin depth of field!). A slight miscalculation in the focus can throw the subject completely out of the focal plane, or give you a subject with perfectly sharp earlobes and blurry eyes.

Photographers often leave their cameras set to an auto AF-area mode – one that tells the camera to decide automatically what part of the picture should be in focus. Most of the time, modern cameras are pretty good at this, particularly if the subject is prominent in the frame. However, with more complex compositions, the camera can get confused and try to focus on the wrong thing. To specify the focal point yourself, switch to a single-point AF-area mode.

When you look through your viewfinder, you should see an array of little dots or squares laid over the display, like this:

AF point spread

These are your focus points, and they show you where in the frame the camera can lock focus. In single-point AF-area modes, you can use the camera’s direction pad to select one of these dots, and the camera will always focus on that point (and that point alone).

Note that, to tell the camera to focus, you would normally depress the shutter button halfway before pressing it the rest of the way to take the shot. This works pretty well, but cameras can be overly sensitive – if you press too lightly, the button may come unpressed and try to re-focus after you’ve already found your point of focus. If you press too hard, you might capture the shot before the focus is ready. And if you take multiple pictures in succession, your camera may try to focus again before each shot. For these reasons, some photographers highly recommend back-button focusing.

7. Using the incorrect autofocus mode

There are three main autofocus modes offered by most cameras. You should be switching between these modes every time you’re faced with a new shooting situation; otherwise, you’re bound to miss shots that you normally could’ve nailed.

Single-shot autofocus, called AF-S or One-Shot AF, is meant to be used with still subjects.

Continuous autofocus, called AF-C or AI Servo AF, is designed to track movement through the frame, so it works best when your subject is in motion.

Finally, there’s an automatic mode, called AF-A or AI Focus AF. This is likely the default setting on your camera. It reads the scene and determines which of the first two modes it should use.

cactus flower

8. Not using manual focus

While I’m a big advocate of autofocus, there is one particular time when manual focus comes in handy:

When your camera is on a tripod, and you’re using a wide aperture to achieve a very shallow depth of field.

If you want to make sure the most important thing in your frame is sharp, switch to manual focus. Then use the LCD zoom function to magnify the display by 5x or 10x. And make tiny adjustments to the focus until you get it just right.

You can also try manual focusing when shooting close-up subjects (e.g., a flower petal) or when photographing landscapes in the darkness.

9. There’s junk on or in front of your lens

A big smear on your lens is going to affect the clarity of your image.

And if you put a cheap plastic filter in front of your lens, that’ll degrade image quality, too.

So make sure your lens is clean. And make sure that all your filters are high quality. If you always shoot with a UV filter and you keep getting blurry pictures, try taking a few shots without the filter to see if the quality of the glass is negatively affecting your images.

10. Poor lens quality

Beginners love to blame their blurry pictures on their optics, though a bad lens is rarely the problem.

That said, lens quality can make a difference, and you’ll occasionally find lenses that are genuinely soft. And some lenses may be sharp in the center but get blurry around the corners and edges of the image, or sharp at certain apertures but slightly fuzzy at others. Every lens has a unique character that may or may not be useful to the type of work you’re doing.

It’s also worth noting that each lens has a “sweet spot” – a certain aperture at which it performs best. This is usually in the middle of its aperture range, around f/8 or f/11.

Fixed focal length lenses are usually sharpest, though it’s not always convenient to carry around two or three lenses rather than a single, all-purpose zoom.

buildings on the water

Mistakes that cause blurry pictures: final words

Well, that’s it:

The 10 most common reasons your pictures are blurry.

If you’ve been struggling with blurry photos, you hopefully now know (or can at least guess) the culprit! And you can make adjustments to get things looking sharp.

Now over to you:

Are your photos blurry? Did you figure out why? Which of these mistakes have you been making? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

The post Top 10 Mistakes That Cause Blurry Pictures (And How to Fix Them) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Anne McKinnell.


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Bill Dane Pictures …it’s not pretty. 50 Years of Photographs I’m Still in Love

21 Feb

“It seems to me that the subject of Bill Dane’s pictures is the discovery of lyric beauty in Oakland, or the discovery of surprise and delight in what we had been told was a wasteland of boredom, the discovery of classical measure in the heart of God’s own junkyard, the discovery of a kind of optimism, still available at least to the eye.” John Szarkowski, director of photography, Museum of Modern art 1962-1991

I received Bill Dane’s wonderful book, Bill Dane Pictures …it’s not pretty.  50 Years of Photographs I’m still in love, in the mail today.  

For those unfamiliar with his work, Dane has been actively photographing the world around him for over 50 years.  Since 1969 he has generously mailed over 50,000 of his photographs as postcards to people.  More recently he has been active on Flickr where he continues day in and day out to share his world with the rest of us.

Yesterday he shared a diner scene from Tracy, California in 1970, earlier today he shared a bit more abstract flower from Oakland in 2011.  

As you work through his flickstream you find yourself moving from Las Vegas in 1972 to Mexico City in 1974 to Olympia, Washington in 2018.  The one constant thing is that Bill is there with his camera walking you through his unique view of the world.  His view of the world, as his book title admits, is not always pretty, but it is like no other photographer you’ve probably ever seen.  It’s not easy work to get through but it’s rewarding when you do.

Accompanying his images in the book are his own sttaccato like typed words.  Like a beat poet Bill opines on his own photographic path as well what he sees around him — words to go with the pictures.  It’s part personal history/biography, part documentary, part politics, part life vision — always poetic.

“Hunt treasure   strike-snap-gather   edit   judge

I still photograph like it’s 1969   sort of

Advancing  weaving  focused scanning   dam  Bill  hold still

Leica Rangerfinders  straightforward refinement  guess settings real good

Film has wonder dept   forging Tri-X  darkrooms   mail

Costco for color prints to edit  send

2007 My last film camera  Contax SLR zoom-macro

Digital  Nikon D80 with the 28-105 macro”

In my own artist’s statement, I quote the great Charles Bukowski who once said that endurance is more important than truth.  As far as endurance goes Bill’s got it.  He’s got it in spades and you have to admire that.  Bill’s spent time hanging out at workshops with Friedlander and Arbus.  He’s had shows at MoMA, his photographs hang in the permanent collections of MoMA, SFMOMA, the Art Institute of Chicago — and yet here he is day in and day out still putting work up out there for the public where?  At Flickr? Yes, at our beloved Flickr.

Interestingly enough the title of Bill’s book actually comes from Bukowski’s poem “I Met A Genius.”  The poem is about a 6 year old boy on a train ride with Bukowski who sees the sea for the first time and remarks upon seeing it that “it’s not pretty.” It’s the sort of innocent honest insight that can come from a child who has not been saddled down with society’s version of the sea as a remarkable and beautiful scene, the way most artists might present it.

Bill gives us a messy world, it’s not always pretty, but it’s worthwhile to see it as he shares it. It is a bit of a junkyard as Szarkowski suggests, but there is beauty in the junkyard as well.

Weighing in at over 300 pages of high quality printing and limited to only 500 copies, do yourself a favor and pick this one up before it sells out and before one of these big name museums decides to do a retrospective. You’ll have an original collector’s item. Bill Dane is a treasure — and so are his flickrstream and book.

Some photos from Bill’s Flickrstream below.

1974 Mexico City
1970 Tracy
1974 Berkeley
1970 Point Richmond_
Hamburg 1971


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How To Take Good Pictures of Flowers- An Easy Step by Step Guide

03 Jun

Do you want to learn how to use light in photography? Photograph a flower. A flower in and of itself is an interesting subject. Flowers have different textures, bright colors, and won’t get bored of sitting still while you adjust your settings. But a quick snap of a flower, while beautiful, can be boring. If you really want to bring Continue Reading

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Five Steps To Making Better Pictures

30 Apr

The post Five Steps To Making Better Pictures appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jeremy H. Greenberg.

If you’re reading this, you are an aspiring artist and photographer. You might be just starting out or somewhere on the amateur, hobbyist, professional spectrum. Whatever your personal or professional aspirations may be, you might agree that there is room for improvement in your work. The purpose of this article is to suggest five strategies leading to the improvement of your craft. While not an exhaustive list, any single strategy or strategies described below, when practiced regularly, will result in significant improvements in your picture making. You can use this list to establish your photographic goals for this year and beyond.

1. Study photography

There are formal and informal paths to get better at just about everything. Photography is an art form and craft just like many others. If you wanted to learn how to make clothing, paint, or work with wood, you would take classes and lessons to learn how to do those, right? Photography takes time to learn and a lot of effort to become really proficient. You may even decide to go to art school and work towards a Bachelor of Fine Arts or similar academic credential at an accredited college or university. There are many good options in many countries if this is the route for you.

Depending on your situation and other factors, you might take the path that I did that was to pursue a professional certificate in photography online. The online option works well for people who have families, full-time work in another career, or just not enough time, money, or interest to enroll in an undergraduate program in the arts.

Other ways to study may include subscribing to online blogs and newsletters like Digital Photography School and read the material each week. Weekly newsletters get pushed to your e-mail, and you can reap incredible benefits from the wealth of free information online.

Online subscriptions are usually free and so easy to use that every photographer should be exploiting these valuable resources.

2. Go to the show

Art and photography exhibits are everywhere all of the time. We are surrounded by opportunities to view real art and images by rising and established professionals. There is a terrific site called photographmag that hosts information about current photography exhibits and shows across the US and other countries. If you travel from time to time as many of us do, take advantage of the opportunities to see photographs in these places. Use the site above to plan your photography excursions around your travel plans, and check out what is going on. Go and see the show!

Often you can get access to new work closer to home. Purchasing photography books (rather than new camera or lens), attending local museums, and of course reading through the plethora of websites related to photography should be a regular part of your artistic and self-improvement diet. Any or all of these activities, when practiced regularly, should lead to significant improvements in your work.

Seek critique

Looking for and recruiting “likes” will not improve your photography. Social media should work for you rather than you working for social media (unless you are employed by Instagram). Real improvement happens when you make and share your image and then receive a proper critique on your work. What’s a proper critique? The purpose of critique in the art world in its most simple form is about two things 1) describing the work, and 2) making statements about whether or not the image works, doesn’t work, and most importantly, “why.”

Critique isn’t really about whether someone likes or does not like an image. A proper critique goes beyond the obvious and subjective statements about an image in favor of a discussion on what constitutes a photograph that works. When viewing art becomes an objective process, we all benefit and can discuss the piece using more sophisticated vocabulary. This is the purpose of critique, and the process is not only extremely beneficial to the artist, but I would also submit that critique is essential to a photographer’s growth.

Avoid asking your friends and family about your work since they will likely love almost everything that you do. Seek proper critique by accomplished and successful colleagues, or professional photographers if you have access to some. Meetup groups or local photography clubs are an excellent source for periodic critique sessions where the participants aim to provide constructive criticism and proper critique of each other’s work.

Cross train for big gain

There are many interesting genres in the field of photography, such as aerial, events, food, macro, portrait, sports, wildlife, and many more. You might be lucky enough at this point of your artistic existence to be able to say “I shoot weddings and portraits, but I don’t do macro.” Maybe you are still learning what you like and dislike. I would strongly suggest doing a Project 365 and shoot every day to learn over time what you like, dislike, and what you are good at. This helps you narrow down your genre that is the first step in developing your own style.

Somewhere along your personal journey as an artist and photographer, you should experiment. Each genre within photography has its own lessons and techniques that can benefit your work in the area of your preference. Plus, the process of shooting across multiple genres, artistic cross training so to speak, will force you out of your comfort zone. You will have the opportunity to learn new lenses, processes, and techniques. The benefits and lessons learned will benefit your work in your genre of preference. If you prefer to shoot portraits of people, shoot landscapes for a while or vice versa. Try shooting sports, wildlife, or trick photography techniques.

If you really want to mix things up, shooting film and even developing it at home yourself may be the best photography lesson you can engage in. Composing, developing, processing, and scanning images from film teach you everything about the process of making images. Plus, it’s super fun!

Shoot, process, and repeat

I’m reminded of the old adage “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?”

Practice, practice, practice!

It is self-evident that to improve at anything you must do it a lot. Do you shoot everyday? Do you wear a camera? Perhaps you should. If you do embark on a Project 365, you will wear a camera every day. This provides many opportunities to make images of all types. Shoot with your smartphone if you prefer, but shoot often, and learn to edit ruthlessly. Become your own best or worst critic.

Learn post-processing. Even if you are generally opposed to post-processing images, the techniques at your fingertips these days, are far beyond those of the darkroom days. Post-processing is a terrific way to see your image making through and aids you in the development of images that match your unique artistic vision.

When you think about making images, you have a sense in your mind’s eye of the finished image. Camera, film, and gear may get us close to the final image that matches our artistic vision, but post-processing may be needed to get you there. There are many applications available to us these days, although Lightroom and Photoshop are some of the best for this sort of activity.

Conclusion

In summary, you now have five steps to making better pictures. Each of these five strategies will lead to significant improvements in your photography. If you choose one, two, or all of these strategies, and work on them regularly, your images will improve. However, this will take some time. Start small and work at it regularly. You can only get better over time.

The light is always right.

 

The post Five Steps To Making Better Pictures appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jeremy H. Greenberg.


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Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

08 Aug

Have you ever been stuck in a car or a bus and seen all this great photographic potential passing you by? Fantastic landscapes, funny signs, unusual animals, and stunning compositions seem to always appear when I’m stuck in the passenger seat of a car. It’s frustrating, especially if the car can’t stop to let you capture the view.

A landscape photographed from a car on a highway. - Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

A fantastically colorful landscape by the highway in the Atlas mountains of Morocco.

The Challenge

For someone who actually doesn’t like the idea of just driving through an area and taking photos of it through the window (maybe because it feels so impersonal), I’ve done a surprising amount of it. Often because it’s a now-or-never situation; the view won’t be there later, or I won’t be returning in the near future.

Sometimes I’m on a highway and can’t stop, or there are so many photos I’d like to take that I feel bad asking the driver to stop over and over again. Also, taking photos from a car or bus can be great for people who have a hard time walking.

A landscape seen through a bus window in Iceland. Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

I couldn’t resist this view seen through a bus window in Iceland.

In a car, bus, or train, there are many contexts in which it’s inappropriate, difficult or impossible to take a photo. Fortunately, there are also many situations in which you don’t have to leave completely empty-handed. It is possible to take photos from a moving vehicle, but it takes a bit of knowledge and planning.

It’s a suboptimal situation but sometimes you just have to find a way to make the best of it. Most likely it’s better than not trying at all! In this article, I hope to give some tips to help make your trips more enjoyable and creative. Let’s begin!

A house seen from a car in the Rif mountains of Morocco. Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

The amazing houses and views in the mountains of northern Morocco were difficult to resist, even though it was a bit tricky to compose well.

When to try and when not to shoot

Safety is paramount

Even though trying is almost always better than not, there definitely are situations where you shouldn’t be taking photos from a moving vehicle. Remember that you’re sitting in a metal box moving through space at high speeds!

It goes without saying that you shouldn’t be doing any photography if you’re the driver. But as a passenger, you also need to be aware of how your photography may pose a danger to you or others. In short: think about safety.

Make sure you don’t block the driver’s line of sight or disturb them in some other way. Communicate with the driver and the other passengers. If you’re on a tour bus, don’t block other the passengers’ view through the window.

A woman on a donkey in rural Morocco. Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

A very old photo I took through a car window. There are clearly some issues in terms of sharpness and composition, but it’s still a lovely memory.

If you’re in a car and planning to open a window, make sure nothing can fly out and be aware that there might be branches or objects by the side of the road that can hit you or your camera. Also be aware of oncoming traffic, and don’t lean out! Only slow down if it won’t disrupt the flow of traffic and if you convince the driver to stop the car for a photo break, make sure it’s in a safe place.

Is it worth it?

Even if everything’s okay in terms of safety, there are a few other things to consider before you start photographing.

Can the car stop for a little while instead of you attempting to take pictures through the window? If not, can the window be opened? Is there enough light for photography? Will doing so mean that you’ll miss out on seeing and enjoying the view?

There may also be places where I wouldn’t recommend photographing through a window. Driving through a city or village pointing a telephoto lens at people could be considered a bit creepy.

A mountain landscape seen from a highway in Morocco. Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

This is how you do it

Enough of the don’ts and the warnings. It’s time to learn how to take great photos in this challenging situation.

Expose right

Not surprisingly, the most challenging part of this kind of photography is dealing with movement. In a moving car, your subject matter might swoop by at very high speeds.

In practical terms, this means using a shutter speed that can freeze that movement, finding an aperture that allows for enough depth of field, and choosing the ISO that makes all of that possible.

A view of rural Morocco. Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

Here, the car was moving quite slowly so I got quite a sharp photo with a relatively wide angle. The dark and rainy weather made exposure a bit challenging, but it also made the sky much more dramatic.

The desired exposure depends a lot on what kind of a photograph you want. To get a sharp landscape photo from a moving vehicle, it’s important to have a fast enough shutter speed.

How fast depends on how fast you’re moving, but faster is generally better. I would suggest using at least 1/400th, but preferably faster. Be aware that the foreground is more likely to reveal signs of movement, whereas photographing something that’s further from the road is more likely to be successful.

Between the mountains and the desert in Morocco. Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

A photo with a lot of depth, taken from a moving car.

If we continue with the example of a landscape photo, it’s also important to have a large enough depth of field to get a sharp capture of the whole view. This means you’ll need to use a small aperture, preferably around f/8.0, also depending on the sweet spot of your lens.

If you have the chance, try different settings, but if you can only take one or two photos, aim for a small aperture. Again, this depends a lot on what kind of photograph you’re aiming for and light levels.

Geological features photographed from a highway in the Atlas mountains of Morocco. Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

I was aiming for a sharp photo of these beautiful geological features rushing past the car in the Moroccan Atlas mountains.

The last element of exposure, ISO, doesn’t make as much of a difference to this kind of photography as shutter speed and aperture do. ISO has the effect it always has, so the lower it is, the better.

Still, with modern DSLRs, using a higher ISO might be the key to allowing you to use the shutter speed and aperture you need while not adding a lot of noise.

An urban landscape near Casablanca, Morocco. Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

It was cloudy and rainy, but by aiming for silhouettes and a dark atmosphere, this industrial view turned out sharp enough.

Plan well

It might seem difficult to plan in these situations, but there are usually some things that can help you create as good a photograph as possible. Even before you take your photo you can observe the light levels outside, which can help you with exposure.

You may also be able to get a good composition by observing the landscape outside and imagine what it might look like behind that curve or beyond that next hill. You can also see when there will be power lines appearing in your photo. I find that one of the most annoying parts of this kind of photography is power lines. They always get in the way!

Also, remember that this is one of those situations where taking a lot of photos is not a bad thing.

Signs and advertisements after a storm. Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

Really annoying power lines! Still, I decided that I wanted to document the aftermath of a pretty bad storm outside Rabat, Morocco.

Optimise

To get as good a photo as possible, you should open the window to avoid unfortunate reflections or dirt in your photo. A closed window will also limit your movement and your options when it comes to composing.

There are many situations in which opening the window isn’t really a great idea, though. Remember that the most important thing is safety. If you can’t open the window, use the viewfinder and possibly a polarizing filter to try to avoid getting reflections and dirt in your photo.

A mountain landscape in Morocco. Tips for Taking Better Pictures from a Moving Vehicle

I didn’t have time to open the window so I photographed this view of houses seemingly pressed between mountains and clouds through the window.

Conclusion

Have you taken photos out of a car, bus, or train? I find the hardest part to be composing the photo.

What do you think? What benefits and challenges have you noticed? Do you have any tips for better photography on the road?

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First pictures of rumored Samyang 24mm F2.8 AF lens

05 Jun
Image via Nokishita

Japanese rumor site Nokishita has published images it claims are of the forthcoming, as yet unannounced, Samyang AF 24mm F2.8 lens for the Sony E mount. If accurate, the lens will look very similar to the company’s existing AF 35mm F2.8, and will share its 49mm filter thread.

The lens in the leaked images is marked with a closest focus distance of 0.24m/0.79ft, and features a rubberized close-ribbed focus ring.

There is no word at the moment from Samyang regarding when this lens will appear.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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This 7.3-gigapixel panorama ‘timelapse’ of London is made from 6,240 D850 pictures

18 May

Photographer Henry Stuart has created a 24-hour panoramic timelapse image of London that combines 6,240 raw photographs to form a picture that contains over 7 billion pixels.

Captured through a Nikon D850 and AF-S Nikkor 300mm F2.8 lens using a robotic mount by Nikon-owned robotics company Mark Roberts Motion Control (MRMC), the 155° view presents the city in an incredible amount of detail, with Nikon claiming that you can read signs up to 5 miles away from where the image was captured.

The full frame
A fully zoomed-in frame from the center of the picture above

The Twenty Four Hour London project was taken on by Visualise—a company of virtual reality filmmakers—in partnership with Nikon UK and MRMC. The camera was supported and moved by MRMC’s Ulti-Head robotic camera mount, which allowed Stuart to repeat the exact shooting position—to pixel level, according to the release —for 260 shots per hour over the course of the 24-hour sequence.

Once processed and stitched together, the resulting image allows viewers to pick the time of day and to zoom into the image to see the details of distant buildings—and even people relaxing inside their apartments!

The concept was a commission for Lenstore, a UK vision-care company, to promote eye health. To see the full 7 gigapixel ‘timelapse’ for yourself, and explore London in all its glory, head over to the 24 Hour London website.

Press Release

World’s first 24-hour Gigapixel time-lapse panorama, captured with the Nikon D850 and MRMC’s robotic Ulti-Head

24 Hour London is a unique collaboration between Lenstore, Nikon, Visualise and the Nikon-owned robotics company MRMC. Together they have created the biggest ever time-lapse of London’s skyline, taken from the roof of Canary Wharf’s One Canada Square.

In total, over 6,240 photos were taken across a 155-degree view over 24 hours, and subsequently stitched together to create an incredibly detailed panorama, and the first gigapixel timelapse of London. This level of detail was achieved by combining a Nikon D850 and AF-S NIKKOR 300mm f/2.8 lens with MRMC’s robotic Ulti-Head to precisely repeat the same pattern of detailed photos 260 times an hour for 24 hours. The finished product allows you to see London change colours across the hours, from sunrise to sunset, with all the shades the capital has to offer in between.

Commenting on the collaboration, Jeremy Gilbert, Marketing Director for Nikon Northern Europe said:

We’re thrilled to be involved with this unique project. The Nikon D850 captured London in incredible detail in challenging conditions. Finding the best combination of camera, lens and precise motion-control was essential for this project and we are proud to have been integral to its success.

The project was shot by Henry Stuart from Visualise, he had the following to say:

Shooting gigapixel photos is hard – we have been shooting them for the Olympics, the World Cup, for events and places all around the globe. Each panorama is so large it needs specially built computers to process it. In this case, we had to build a special server system and network all of the workstations in our studio to the content so that we could stitch five of the photos at a time.

To capture a photo like this you need a really capable camera – we used the Nikon D850. It has this beautiful big sensor and captures a huge range of light and dark (large dynamic range). This is so important when shooting panoramas where one part of the image is bright, such as towards the sun, and another is dark such as over the Thames. We shot everything on the camera’s ‘RAW’ setting, which keeps loads of extra information in the shots that you would usually lose.

The 24 Hour London ‘Gigalapse’

  • The image is 7.3 Gigapixels (7,300 Megapixels or 7bn pixels), which is over 1000x more powerful than the camera on an iPhone X.
  • The Nikon D850 and Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 300mm f/2.8 lens combination delivered phenomenal detail – you can even read signs which are up to 5 miles away in the photo!
  • The robotic motion control technology using the MRMC Ulti-Head used to create the pinpoint accuracy of images, leading to every single pixel of every point in the panorama being the exact same position as the photos 24 hours earlier.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Sunset, golf and a fake nuclear missile: How I spent four days taking pictures in Hawaii

27 Jan
Sony a6500 | 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 OSS @ 95mm | ISO 100 | F6.3

Being a child of the Midwest a hike, in my mind, is more or less walking across land that is mostly flat. There are trees, usually a dirt path, and maybe the occasional hill. A hike in Hawaii, I came to learn recently, can mean something vastly different.

I was in Hawaii on a Sony-sponsored trip along with a handful of other photography journalists, on Oahu for two vastly different shooting experiences: shooting pro golf with the a9, and trying out a new 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 zoom for the a6000-series. I was armed with a TSA-approved 3.4 ounces of sunscreen, a handful of memory cards and a pair of running shoes that prove to be woefully outmatched by the “hike” we’re about to embark on.

My first clue should have been when one member of our party put some spiky, chainmail-type overshoes on top of her street shoes. We walked across a parking lot toward the “trailhead,” a rocky slope where a faint suggestion of a path disappeared into some trees. What followed was 30 minutes of scrambling up a steep incline, grabbing at roots, tree branches and rocks for support. Oh, and did I mention I have a slightly weird thing about heights?

Suddenly, I was quite grateful for the a6500 and the lens’ small size. The whole kit fit easily into a low profile backpack and didn’t provide an extra physical challenge to overcome. Along the way we found a couple of points to stop off, breathe, and take a few photos. Every time we stopped I considered chickening out on the rest of the climb. Nobody would judge me, and I’d get perfectly nice photos from halfway up.

Sony a6500 | 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 OSS @ 18mm | ISO 100 | F4.5

Maybe the morning’s events made me feel bolder (more on that later). Maybe being the only lady journalist on the trip made me hungrier to prove my grit. Maybe it was just the beer I had at lunch giving me some extra courage. I kept going whatever the reason, and I’m pretty darn glad that I did.

Insert your favorite inspirational quote / rap lyric about making it to the top here.

Sony a6500 | 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 OSS @ 18mm | ISO 200 | F5.6

I wouldn’t have wanted to carry a lens/camera combo much bigger than the a6500 and 18-135mm on that hike. For its size, it proved to be a pretty versatile kit. The lens was wide enough for a sweeping view of sunset in the valley, but long enough for a quick shot of a helicopter in the distance when it swooped by unexpectedly. Your standard kit zoom wouldn’t have provided quite as many options.

Did you instinctively start humming the Jurassic Park theme when you saw this image? No? You’re a liar.

Sony a6500 | 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 OSS @ 90mm | ISO 100 | F5.6

I tend to gravitate toward wide lenses and like the convenience of carrying lightweight primes, but I was very happy to have the variety that the telezoom offered. When you’re standing on one 3′ x 3′ rock scared to move left or right for fear of falling to your death, you don’t have too many composition options with a 24mm prime.

As it turns out, that hike wasn’t the only time I contemplated my own mortality that day. Let me tell you about the events of that morning.

We all know now what happened, but when you’re woken up by your phone buzzing with this message (special attention to the part that says THIS IS NOT A DRILL) it makes for a very strange start to the day. The short version of my story is that I spent about 15 minutes in a semi-panic, and having only the tornado drills of my youth to call on for guidance, huddled in my hotel bathroom with a single bottle of water. Not exactly your best shot at surviving a nuclear attack.

I wish I could say I had some kind of profound experience when I found out it was all a mistake. In reality, I just put on some shoes and went downstairs for coffee and a yogurt, and more or less just went about my day. I made time to get into the ocean. That was nice.

A couple of days before the threat of nuclear warfare appeared on my phone, I found myself in a very different state of mind as I tried to photograph professional golf.

Sony a9 | FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS @ 121mm | ISO 100 | F5.6

Golf is a mysterious game. As opposed to the tennis tournaments and baseball games I’m familiar with, the action happens all around you. I’ve thought of it as a game with a leisurely pace, but trying to photograph it for the first time, I’m amazed at how quickly the action unfolds. You have to get into position, pray that a caddy doesn’t step into your way at the last moment, and you only have a few seconds to get your shot before it’s all over. Oh, and you have to keep in mind the direction of the sun, ugly things like trash cans creeping into your backgrounds, and woe betide you if you make even a peep as a golfer prepares to swing a club – you’ll be swiftly escorted off the grounds.

“Game changer” has become sort of a joke around the office since it’s a phrase that’s been used to death and rarely lives up to its meaning. But if you’re a golf photographer, you really could consider the a9 to be a game changer. Plenty of resolution, 20 fps and silent shutter – particularly that last bit – is huge for a sport where silence isn’t just golden, it’s mandatory. Jeannette Moses noted this revelation when she photographed the Presidents Cup last year with the a9. I’ve seen it firsthand too, and it really is strange to be so close to a professional golfer raising his club to strike the ball while firing away at 20 fps.

Sony a9 | FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS @ 100mm | ISO 100 | F5.6

Sony’s making a clear appeal to pro sports photographers with the a9, and before we set foot on the golf course we got a primer on the company’s efforts to bolster its offerings with Pro Support. If you aren’t familiar, this is a program for working photographers that aims to put Sony on even footing with Canon and Nikon.

Sony Pro Support members pay a $ 100 annual fee that entitles them to 24/7 phone and email support and access to service centers in Los Angeles and New York. If you need to send a product in for a fix, Sony claims a three-day turnaround with free loaner gear to cover repairs that take longer. To qualify, photographers must own at least two full-frame Sony bodies, three lenses and must be actively earning income from their photography.

For comparison, Nikon uses a point system and requires at least two camera bodies and two lenses. The system is tiered, but all levels include priority repairs, repair loans and discounts on repairs. Canon also uses a point-based tiered system, but doesn’t require a certain number of lenses or bodies.

I’m by no means a pro, and shooting golf proves to be a much more challenging experience than I was anticipating. An afternoon carrying two camera bodies, one of them with a sizable 100-400mm lens attached, was a fairly taxing endeavor. I also put my finger on the shutter too gingerly a few times, and with 20 fps silent shutter it’s easy to end up with hundreds of photos you didn’t mean to take. From over 3000 (!) images, I managed to scrape together a handful I feel comfortable putting my name next to. Not exactly a stellar hit rate.

Sony Open gallery

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I have a renewed appreciation for the tough job pro sports photographers have, and a respect for Hawaii’s lovely-yet-dizzying hiking trails. I also jump out of my seat now when my phone buzzes too loudly and I’m finally getting serious about putting together an earthquake preparedness kit. But my feeling of having stretched myself as a photographer, and I suppose as a hiker, outweighs my sense of distress over the whole thing. And if you’re going to survive a fake nuclear missile attack, there are worse places to experience it than Hawaii.

Sony 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 OSS sample gallery

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Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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10 pictures from Fat Bike Riding in Northern Colorado

20 Nov

I enjoy a variety of outdoor activities. Of course, paddling in different flavors (SUP, kayak, canoe, packraft) comes first. It includes long distance racing. But, there is also biking, hiking, inline skating, drone flying and 4WD driving. The common theme […]
paddling with a camera

 
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