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Posts Tagged ‘Effective’

7 Shades of Effective Boudoir Photography Marketing (18+)

24 Jun

Despite an emerging popularity of boudoir photography, there’s often certain confusion and misinterpretation surrounding this division of the photographic services causing many photographers to avoid it and thus, lose quite a profitable source of income. This post is going to help you define the specific nature of boudoir photography and suggest some best practices of boudoir photography marketing. The specifics Continue Reading

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Creating Effective DIY Studio Lighting With Household Items

12 May

When I first started to experiment with controlling the light, I couldn’t afford to splash out on studio gear just to experiment, so I improvised with what I could find around the house, or acquire for only a few dollars. Some improvisations were, let’s just say, less successful than others. But some did produce good results. Some DIY studio lighting I still use, even though I now have a studio setup.

Let’s start with an easy and free lighting method, because free is my favourite price!

Use a table lamp

HawkinsDPS1

This shot was taken with a table lamp. Most of us have some sort of lamp around the place. Any kind will do. They come with their own diffuser, the lamp shade, and are easy to move around. You can adjust height with boxes, books, or anything stable you can find. You can experiment with alternative lamp shades as well as different strength, variety, or colour of light bulbs, or the number of lamps you use.

Lamp lighting usually isn’t very bright so you might need a tripod or somewhere solid to put your camera. For the image above I had the model hold the lamp and move it around slowly as I fired away, getting her to go even slower or stop when things were looking good.

For the shot below I put the green glass dish directly on top of a lampshade, in front of an abstract painting. It’s all about experimenting.

HawkinsDPS2

Make-shift softbox

While lamps were great, I really wanted to try soft box style lighting, so I had to get a bit more creative. The portrait below of friends and their dog was lit using a large open cardboard box lined with aluminium foil and placed on its side. I then shone a bright halogen work-light into the box, and softened the resulting light with a white sheet held up in front of the setup. Off to the side was a similar setup using a lamp with the shade removed, a smaller foil lined box, and a white pillow case.

HawkinsDPS3

It’s not a perfectly lit portrait. I was just starting out with portraiture and it was my first attempt with my DIY softboxes, but the results were encouraging enough for me to keep experimenting.

Try different things – experimentation is key

I went on to using regular white umbrellas, of the rain repelling variety, to diffuse the bright bulbs used for household outdoor lighting. I’ve bounced the light from an array of heavy duty flashlights, into a foil lined rain umbrella, all attached to a tripod with about a million miles worth of gaffer tape. I’ve used metallic cardboard sheets from the newsagent, or foil covered boards as reflectors. There were many experiments, some good, some not so much, and some were surprising.

Basically you just need a light, or two, and something to diffuse or reflect/bounce the light, or both. Preferably without setting fire to anything. Work-lights and other really bright bulbs can get surprisingly hot. It’s best not to have flammable things like sheets or cardboard too close and have something protective underneath if the light is placed on surfaces.

If you are not so keen on lining boxes and hanging sheets, you might like to try light painting.

Light painting

HawkinsDPS4

Apart from the emanating beams of light which were added later in Photoshop, the rest of this image, shot in my kitchen, was lit with only a two dollar LED light from the junk store. This was a complicated shoot, which had to be lit and shot several times, then blended in Photoshop. But you don’t have to go to that extreme. With a bit of experimenting and practice you can light a subject this way in one single shot.

There are many interesting and informative articles about light painting here on dPS. I highly recommend having a browse through them if you’ve never tried it before, but I’ll just run you through the basic idea here.

You’ll need a tripod (or somewhere solid to put your camera), a completely or almost completely dark room and a cheap little flashlight, or LED light. This is what I used for the shot above, a two dollar press button, night light.

HawkinsDPS5

A slow shutter speed is necessary to give you time to paint. I usually start off with a shutter speed of about 20 seconds, ISO 400, aperture at roughly f/11. Then adjust from there, depending on the subject and light brightness. Once you are all set up, turn out the lights, shine your flashlight on your subject while looking through viewfinder to get your focus, then click the shutter and start painting your subject with light.

You’ll have to move in close and run your light around only a few inches from the areas you want to light. That means being in front of the lens when the shutter is open, but the camera will only pick up what you shed light on, so as long as you don’t accidentally light yourself up, you won’t show up in the shot.

Try a bit of side lighting, play around with different lengths of exposure time, different light sources. If the light shines directly into the lens, you will get what I call ghost lines, which can be used deliberately as I did in this shot below.

HawkinsDPS6

While these methods are obviously not a replacement for studio lighting gear, they are an effective alternative that can produce some surprisingly good results and allow you to take a bit of control over your lighting without forking out more than a few dollars. It’s also very fun and even though I now have a properly equipped studio, I still sometimes love to play around with a simple table lamp or two dollar torch (flashlight).

Feel free to share any photographs you created with DIY lighting setups in the comments, I’d love to see them!

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4 Tips for Effective Lighting Using Only One Speedlight

19 Jan

Flashes

If the idea of incorporating flash into your photography work strikes fear in your heart, this is a must read article for you!

The ability to use a portable electronic flash can do wonders for your work by giving you more creative options, and the truth is you don’t need a ton of fancy equipment to begin utilizing flash. In fact, this article is focused purely on the speedlight, the Canon 580 EXII Speedlite to be exact (equivalent to the Nikon SB-900), and how you can get started experimenting with lighting effects using just one speedlight.

Among the smallest, most compact forms of external lighting, speedlights offer consistent, daylight-balanced lighting powered by four AA batteries. They are easy to fully integrate with your DSLR camera, allowing the two units to operate as one. While most speedlights offer manual settings, it is also easy to just leave it on auto (TTL) and let it adjust the light output according to your camera settings. Depending on what kind of camera you own, it might come with its own built-in pop up flash, but a speedlight is still recommended due to its ability to tilt and swivel, giving you more control over where the flash is aimed.

The following examples were photographed using a Canon 5D Mark III and a 580 EXII Speedlite. All included photographs were shot in auto (TTL) setting and received no retouching other than cropping and resizing.

Ambient Light Isn’t Always the Best Light

No Flash

While ambient lighting is often the easiest lighting source to use, it comes with its share of shortcomings. There might be too much or too little ambient lighting, it might be coming from the wrong direction, or it might have a strong color cast. To kick-off this example, let’s see how this Balinese mask photographs using just the ambient light available in the room (see image above). Notice that the colors are dull and the surfaces of the mask are unevenly illuminated. It’s a less than optimal photo, showcasing all of the shortcomings of relying purely on ambient lighting.

If you’re lucky, the ambient light might be able to be moulded using a reflector or simply moving your photo subject. But say you can’t control the ambient light? Here are some tips for using a speedlight in your favor.

Option 1: Shoot with the flash straight on

Straight On

The easiest way to use your speedlight is to aim it directly at your subject. The result is a decently lit subject, similar to the type of photo that a built-in pop up flash would produce. Notice how that colors pop more and the mask is more evenly lit compared to the photo shot in ambient light. However, aiming your flash straight forward can result in some harsh shadows, not to mention cause human photo subjects to be temporarily blinded by light flashing in their faces. It is also very non-directional light making the subject appear flat and lacking dimension.

Option 2: Bounce the flash off the ceiling or wall

Straight UP

Flash bounced straight up off the ceiling

The simplest way to soften the speedlight’s effects is to bounce the flash off of a nearby surface. In this case, the flash is aimed directly up at a white ceiling. When the flash is fired, the light is spread out onto the ceiling and reflected down on the subject. As a result, the front part of the mask from the eyes to the nose are nicely lit, but the mouth, ears, and ornamental headdress are left in the shadows. This is one of the pitfalls of simply bouncing the flash off the ceiling: the image will generally produce shadows on any protruding elements of your subject.

Bounce Off Wall My Left

Bounced of the wall to the left of the camera.

Alternatively, the flash can also be pointed directly at a nearby wall so the light is bounced in another angle. In the above example, the flash was bounced off a white wall to the right of the mask. The result is more dramatic lighting that focuses on one side of the mask, using the shadows to indicate more depth.

Option 3: Use the built-in white bounce card

 

Straight Up with Whitecard

To solve the problem of shadows produced by bouncing the light off the ceiling, one solution is quite simple. Keep the speedlight pointed at the ceiling, and simply pull up the thin white bounce card that is built into the top of the flash. When the flash is fired, the light not only bounces off the ceiling, but a portion of it is also reflected off the bounce card, as seen in the catchlight of the mask’s eyes.  The resulting image is much more evenly illuminated, all thanks to a thin piece of plastic. However, the eyes do reflect quite a bit of the spilled light from the ceiling.

Option 4: Use a white flash diffuser cap on your speedlight

Flash Cap copy

When it comes to flash modifiers for speedlights alone, there are a ton of options to choose from. One of the most effective modifiers is also incredibly compact and cheap: a translucent white cap or box that fits snugly on your flash. It helps to evenly spread out the light to eliminate harsh shadows. In this case, the diffuser cap was attached to the flash which was pointed directly up at the ceiling. The effect is similar to using the built-in white bounce card in Option 3, but the light is more controlled. The evidence is strongest in the mask’s eyes, which now only have the catch light and not the spilled light bounced from the ceiling.

This is just a very basic introduction to flash photography with a speedlight, intended to simply demonstrate how adding a single external flash can produce dramatically different results. What is your take on flash photography? Do you prefer natural light, speedlights, or strobes?

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Dodging and Burning to Create More Effective Black and White Images

16 Oct

With the huge assortment of software and plugins you have at your disposal these days, the photo processing technique of burning and dodging is practically ancient. It was (and still is) one of the most common ways of enhancing film images in the darkroom, and everyone from Ansel Adams to Imogen Cunningham used it.

myra2

They used it because it is powerful and simple and still is to this day. With all the complicated plugins and post-processing procedures you have at your disposal, you won’t get any better bang for the buck than creative dodging and burning.

This tutorial with show you  how I do dodging and burning in Photoshop, for black and white images. I’ll save another article for you about using the technique for your color images. First, though, let’s make sure we all know what dodging and burning is.

WHAT IS DODGING AND BURNING?

Originally, dodging and burning was used in the traditional darkroom, to retouch film to enhance highlights, and deepen shadows on photographic prints. Photographers used simple darkroom tools to either allow more light from the developer machine to reach certain parts of the light sensitive photographic paper. This was known as “burning in” which made these parts of the photo darker. The photographer could also dodge the light – hold it back from the paper – allowing that part of the photo to remain less developed or lighter than the non-dodged area.

Using this method, photographers or retouch artists could control with great accuracy the developing process to ensure that their prints displayed the full range of tonal values needed to make the photograph pop.

Darkroom Burning and Dodging digram

Darkroom burning and dodging: allowing more light to pass, or holding light back.

WHY YOU SHOULD DODGE AND BURN YOUR DIGITAL PHOTOS

So what has an ancient darkroom technique got to do with your photography? Plenty! Dodging and burning can add a whole new level of depth to your images. With Photoshop it’s simple.

Here are some compelling reasons to incorporate dodging and burning into your digital photography post-processing workflow:

  • To create more dimensionality, make things pop out at your viewers, and make others recede into the shadows.
  • To draw your viewer into your image. Our eyes are programmed to follow the light, and the lightest, brightest parts of your photo are where you want to direct viewers. Some creative dodging and burning will help get their eyes where you want them to go.
  • To isolate the subject.
  • To minimize distracting backgrounds.
  • To turn the lights on, in a photo – if you need some creative lighting after your shot, dodging and burning can help.
  • To make things more dramatic and moody – enhance the shadows to darken things down.
  • Add a vignette to keep the viewer’s eye in the image.
Dodging & Burning adds dimension.

Dodging and burning add dimension.

The three dimensionality of the circle on the right was created purely by dodging and burning a copy of the one on the left. As well, it is super easy with the technique you’re about to learn. As with most things in Photoshop there are many ways to accomplish the same goal, and each have their advantages and drawbacks. I prefer this way because it gives you a huge amount of control and flexibility. It’s drop dead simple, and non-destructive.

Let’s look at  before and after shots so you can see  the difference between nothing, and selective dodging and burning.

Before Dodging and Burning

Before dodging and burning, the image is flat and has no center of interest.

Final Image, with Burning and Dodging applied - exaggerated for effect.

Final image, with dodging and burning applied – we are drawn by light to the door.

The second image has more drama, more of a moody feel. The snow has texture and dimension, and the small door and window are the clear center of interest. Nothing was changed in this photo other than adding tonality by dodging and burning. The look has been exaggerated so you can see the changes, normally dodging and burning is more subtle than this example. Although you can get quite dramatic results if that’s the mood you’re going for.

USE THE BEST TOOLS FOR THE JOB

toolsYou may have noticed in Photoshop’s Toolbar, a couple of tools called Dodge and Burn. Forget about them. I don’t use  these for my dodging and burning. I like to have more control when I work on my images. So instead of the pre-made tools I create my own using layers and the brush tool. It becomes artistic like creating a painting, and you have more freedom to be flexible.

Using layers give you the flexibility to change opacity, and to group your different layers into folders. You can then selectively turn on layers to see how your work is progressing.

HOW TO DO DODGING AND BURNING

Dodging – adding more light:

  • Create a new layer. Switch the blending mode to Color Dodge, and rename this layer Dodge. You may end up having many dodge layers, so name it something more descriptive, door dodge or tree dodge.
  • Select a pale gray color from the toolbox palette, initially this color will be light, for example #bcbcbc, or 188,188,188 on the RGB scale. This color determines the main intensity of the dodge, or how bright it will be.
  • Select a soft brush at a size suitable for the area you want to bring out or emphasize.
  • Initially set the Opacity and Flow of the brush to about 20% each.
  • Brush on the new layer and instantly see the light colors start to POP. If there’s too much, you can either reduce the opacity of the layer, or reduce the opacity and flow of the brush itself.

step1

Once you have an intensity you like, brush dodge segments of the image – the door for example. If you move to another part of the image use a new layer for that area or element. You do this because you may want to adjust the intensity by changing the opacity of the layer, or the brush, or even change the color to a lighter or darker shade of gray.

Finally create a Layer Group – click the little folder icon in your layers palette. Move all your Dodge layers into one Group. Name the group Dodge. This allows you to instantly turn off all the “lights” to see before and after. Did you go overboard too much, should you do more, or is it just right? Being able to turn all the dodging off with one click will help you decide.

Where and what to dodge:

You want the lightest parts of your image to lead the viewer’s eye to your subject. Can you create a pathway of sorts with a dodged or brighter leading line, a bright path that the eye can easily follow? Alternately you can also make leading lines darker by burning. Leading lines don’t always have to be bright.

Dodge (and burn) places with texture, to add that three dimensionality, to make the texture really stand out. Try dodging the subject a bit, just a subtle brushing with a gentle opacity to add some brighter tones relative to the rest of the image. Does it pop out a little more now?

You’ve finished dodging for now, next let’s go over to the dark side!

Burning – creating darkness:

Next you’ll do the exact same process for burning. I suggest starting with the exact same color and opacity settings too. Simply create a new layer and set the blending mode of Color Burn, and name the layer Burn.

Once again, if you need more drama, you can change the color of the brush, or change the opacity and flow of the brush or the layer. You can add more layers if needed, duplicate a layer to instantly double the amount of darkness.

This method is quick and intuitive, and if I feel that you’ve gone too far, you can turn off a few layers to hide their visibility in the image. I suggest you make a Layer group for the Burn layers as well.

You can even create another Layer group called D&B (for dodge and burn) and put the the other groups inside. Just ctrl+click to select them and drag them over top of the D&B layer. Now you’ll be able to see the total before and after view with one click. Off and on – good or not? More work needed or done?

SEEING THE BIG PICTURE

Once you’ve brushed in the areas that you want and think you have all the burning and dodging done, you can burn a vignette around the edges of your image to keep the viewer’s eye from leaving. It’s like framing your photo with a bit of darkness, so the eye stays on the brightness.

All  you need to do here is create (yes) another layer and use the elliptical marquee tool, with a feathering setting of at least 50 pixels. On the new layer drag out the circle so it touches the edge of your frame. To add darkening to just the edge of the image to create the vignette, go to the top menu in Photoshop and click on Select>Inverse. This will now let you fill the area OUTSIDE the selection.

In the Tools Box, select the same grey color you used for the initial burning of your image as your foreground color, then hit Alt>Backspace on your keyboard to fill that selection with color.  Set the layer blending mode to Color Burn. You may have to decrease the opacity of this layer a bit depending on the tones in your image.  This vignette should be pretty subtle, it’s not meant to be a frame, just a very slight darkening to keep your centre of interest a few tones brighter, to keep the viewers’ eye in your frame.

marquee

Initial selection

Selection inverted

Selection inverted

Vignette added

Vignette added

_2DS2932VV

FInal image

I’ve made a short screen capture video showing my technique for dodging and burning you can watch below if you prefer to follow along:

Once you give this method a try, you’ll see how easy it it and how you can achieve dramatic effects with a few quick steps. You have full control of the look and style of your image, and you can revert your steps at anytime to adjust if needed.

If you have alternate methods for dodging and burning let me know why you like them, and also what challenges they create for you. If you’d have any dodged and burned images you’d like to share, please do post them here. Inspire us!

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5 Psychology Studies to Make Your Photography Business More Effective

24 Sep

The vast majority of marketers are not psychologists, but they do know how to apply psychology studies to attract and engage customers. This is not some kind of special knowledge or secrets of the Mayans – it’s quite obvious things you might have never been thinking about. I’ve been putting together five psychology studies and wanting to make us better marketers Continue Reading

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How to Master Sunrise Photography in the Most Effective Way Possible

13 May

Sunrise photography is underappreciated. Heck, many people take the sunrise for granted; after all, it happens every day! If this is the way you actually feel, you are missing out on a golden opportunity to capture some of the most breathtaking pictures on Earth. People seem to be more captivated by sunsets, but that’s really regrettable when you think about Continue Reading

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Photoshop: Creating Effective Clouds!

29 Sep

Create nice clouds in Photoshop! Digg it: digg.com Watch it on TutCast: www.tutcast.com Visit www.PhotoshopTalent.com for more tutorials, contests and more! Music Kevin MacLeod

 

Simple But Effective Tips For Digital Photographers

26 Aug

Sometimes the simplest tip can make a huge positive difference in the results a digital photographer produces.

One simple tip I learned when I first got into photography was the "Rule Of Thirds".

This simple tip taught me to look at a given scene, or look for a particular scene, that would allow me to place the main subject in an off center place that made for a better focal point than if it was centered.

Check out the list of simple …

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