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10 Stage Photography Tips (for Beautiful Images)

09 Sep

The post 10 Stage Photography Tips (for Beautiful Images) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Rick Ohnsman.

10 stage photography tips for beautiful photos

Perhaps it’s time to enter a new stage in your photographic journey: stage photography, where you capture performers on the stage at concerts, plays, dance recitals, and more.

This genre combines some of the skills of studio photography, portraiture, and even sports photography. When light is often dim and the action fast, you will be challenged to make sharp shots and need to understand your camera controls well. Stage photography will test your skills, but when you nail a great shot, the results can be very rewarding.

Let’s cover ten tips to help you achieve that command performance.

1. Get permission

Here’s a key thing to remember when you are shooting a stage performance: The show is on the stage. You are not the show. If your presence disrupts the performers, distracts the audience, or otherwise draws attention to you, you are not only being a nuisance, you run the risk of being thrown out. And even if that doesn’t happen, it is unlikely you will be invited back and other photographers may then be prohibited from future shows.

Don’t be that guy.

dancers on the stage — If I had to shoot the whole performance from the vantage point of the first shot (above, top), my photos wouldn’t have turned out well. Even cropping in on the second version, I still didn’t have the full backdrop behind the dancers. Fortunately, I always attend the dress rehearsal (which I strongly advocate!) and can position myself pretty much wherever I like with no fear of being a distraction to the performers or the audience.

It is a bad idea to just show up at a performance with a professional-looking camera and long lenses without prior permission. You may not be permitted inside, and if you are, you could be asked to leave your expensive equipment behind. If you do somehow slip inside and get caught later, there will be an ugly scene. And if you somehow do shoot the whole show and later want to post your shots, you risk getting sued because you didn’t have rights to make photos…which is…well…let’s not go there.

Again, don’t be that guy – period.

2. Be a “photo ninja”

When you do stage photography, “minimal disruption” should be your motto. Here are a few things you can do to get your shots while staying invisible to the performers and audience.

Grease play — These shots date back to 2003, when I was shooting with my first digital camera, a Nikon Coolpix 950. It was a simple 1.92 MP point-and-shoot camera. I got there early, sat in the first row, and used the swivel-body LCD while holding the camera in my lap. There was minimal audience disruption and I captured some decent shots.

Dress in dark clothing. Because the house lights will generally be off during a stage performance, wearing dark clothing will help you hide in the shadows and be less noticeable.
Be stealthy and silent. Turn off all camera distractions, including beeping, lights, and perhaps even your rear LCD screen. If your camera has a silent shutter mode, then use it. If you must chimp your shots, do it between acts and in a way that your screen isn’t visible to the audience or performers. Do not stand between the audience and the performance, even if that gets you the best angle.
Never use flash unless you have obtained prior permission from the stage manager beforehand.
Shoot the dress rehearsal when possible. Assuming you can do it, this is the best option. Without an audience, you will have much more freedom to roam, find good angles, perhaps use flash if you check first, and sometimes get multiple “takes” of the same scene, dance, or musical number. Concerts might be the exception to this rule, as the dynamics of the performers and audience reaction to a live performance will be lacking at a dress rehearsal and that typically shows up in the shots. For the most part, however, shooting a dress rehearsal will greatly expand what you can do.

3. Know the show

As with any kind of action photography, knowing what is going to happen in advance will help you anticipate and get the best shots. Read the program, talk to the stage manager, know the plot of the play, and do whatever else you can to better know and plan your shots.

actors playing Cinderella — Know the show. If you’re familiar with the story and plot, you’ll know the key points to photograph. (I suspect you’ll know immediately what the story is here without me telling you.)

4. Do a “site survey”

If possible, go beforehand to the theater or venue when the event will take place. Take your camera and find the best vantage points.

Can you shoot from those spots and still be non-disruptive? Are there multiple places you can shoot from, and can you move from one to another without attracting attention? How long or wide a lens will you need to get good shots from those spots? Might there be someone there to show you the lighting before the show so you can gain an idea of what you’ll encounter?

If you can’t be at the location in advance, at least get there as early as you can on the day of the performance. Winging it while the show is already underway will almost always adversely impact the quality of your shots.

5. Take the right equipment

the magic lantern — A long lens can get you tight shots like this one (taken at 200mm). There have been many times when a 100-400mm lens would not have been overkill.

The two biggest challenges in stage photography typically are:

Getting close enough
Having enough light to work with

And taking the right gear can help. A camera featuring a strong low-light performance with minimal noise will be your best bet. A fast f/2.8 lens makes a difference, too.

I shoot Canon, and the two lenses I typically take when doing stage photography are the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS zoom and the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS zoom. There have been many cases where I’ve wished for a 100-400mm zoom.

Your focal length needs will be dictated by your distance from the stage. Closer is almost always better, and if you can be stageside (and not violate the “minimal disruption” rule), that is almost always best.

dancer reaching out — Talk to the stage manager beforehand, and you might get permission to shoot backstage from the wings. You can sometimes get some unique angles the audience doesn’t see.

I should also address the readers who might be parents going to their child’s play, dance recital, or other stage performances. It’s likely you’ll be taking a point-and-shoot camera with no interchangeable lenses and shooting from wherever your seat might be in the theater. There’s nothing wrong with that. Hopefully, your camera has good optical zoom and not too much shutter lag. Get there early and sit in the front row if you can. If you don’t need to sit in your theater seat, maybe you can find a better spot to shoot from and be less noticeable.

kids on the stage — When little Johnny or Emma makes their stage appearance in their cute little costume, a parent will find it hard to not stand up and do what’s necessary to get the shot. Please don’t be *that* parent. Try to be as unobtrusive as possible while you make your photos.

Glean what you can from this article, and most importantly, be as unobtrusive as possible while capturing your photos. I know you’ll want to stand up when little Johnny takes the stage in his cute little character costume, and you may forget to turn off the flash and blind everyone with a burst of light in the darkened theater. My simple advice: Don’t be that parent. With luck, a pro will be shooting from the sidelines. Look for that person and give them your e-mail. If you’re nice to them, there’s a good chance they will send you a stellar shot of Johnny.

creative stage photography examples — Play with camera settings like a wide aperture and selective focus and look for reflections on the stage to make your shots more interesting. Don’t make the shot everyone would make. Work at it!

6. Use the right settings and technique

I already mentioned that one of the most challenging things in stage photography is working with low light (especially when action is involved). You’re also likely to be shooting handheld. Maintaining a fast enough shutter speed in low light will require you to either open up your aperture (while being mindful of depth of field), raise your ISO (while being mindful of noise levels), or both.

dancers running under a rug — Dark backgrounds and spotlighted subjects: sometimes the lighting will be dramatic with a wide dynamic range. Understand your metering modes and when you might want to use center-weighted or even spot metering.

The following camera settings work well for me in most cases, though you’ll need to make adjustments depending primarily on how much light you have to work with. It is not unusual to have the lights go from very bright to very dim as a scene changes, the actor walks to a different part of the stage, or (at a rock concert) the lights flash on and off while changing colors. So consider these stage photography settings as a starting point.

Aperture Priority mode – (Av on Canon, A on Nikon, varies on other cameras.) You will usually want your aperture as wide open as possible while still getting adequate depth of field.
Auto ISO – Let the ISO “float” to deal with various lighting changes. If you find your ISO pretty much stays the same through the performance, you could set it at that spot, but always trying to keep it as low as possible. Learn when your camera produces unacceptable noise and set the Auto ISO top limits just under that value. If you don’t do this, you could later find that the ISO went much higher (and that all your shots are very noisy!).
In Aperture Priority, your shutter speed will also float. The amount of action on stage, the focal length of the lens you’re using, and the speed needed to freeze action will dictate what is acceptable. In a play where the actors are standing still and speaking you might get away with 1/30s if you have an image-stabilized lens or in-body image stabilization in the camera. If you’re shooting ballet dancers spinning and leaping and want to freeze them, you might need 1/500s or more to get the job done. See if your camera lets you set a minimal shutter speed when using Aperture Priority.
Focus mode – This will again depend on the amount of action you’re dealing with. If the action is slow, single-shot focus is fine. (Remember to turn off the focus lock beep!). If you must track faster movement, continuous focusing can help a lot. Newer cameras may have eye-tracking focus, which can work really well – except when multiple people are performing and in close proximity. Then the autofocus may become confused about which person to lock in on. Learn your camera’s focusing modes so you can choose what is best for the given situation.
Metering – This will depend on the lighting you encounter. Usually, I stick to full Evaluative metering, and the camera does a pretty good job. Sometimes, however, when the performer might be brightly lit by a spotlight and the background is very dark, the camera can be fooled and the performer will be overexposed. In those cases, center-weighted metering or even spot metering can be a better choice.
Commit it to Memory – I often store different camera settings in each of my camera’s memory modes (C1, C2, C3), so I can quickly change complex settings with the turn of a dial when the situation changes.

7. Composition is always key

As with all photography, composition is king. Use good compositional practices; remember the rule of thirds, leading lines, the rule of odds, and so on. And remember to check your borders for distracting elements.

Shoot wide establishing shots that show the entire stage, then go in for mid and close shots that highlight one actor or performer. Get in tight on facial expressions to capture the emotions of the performer. Don’t overlook really tight shots of details like the shoes of a ballet dancer “on pointe,” or a rock guitarist’s hands really “shredding his ax.”

girls doing ballet — Sometimes you’ll need to go wide.

actors and dancers — Medium shots are great when two people are interacting.

actors with emotion — Tighter shots let you catch the drama and emotion on actors’ faces.

ballerina feet pointing — Detail shots can tell the story. Being “on pointe” is a hallmark of ballet, and these images of dancers on their toes make for iconic photos.

8. Work with the light

Stage lighting can be tricky, especially when you’re trying to photograph with good color accuracy. Various lighting types will have different Kelvin temperatures. Mood is often created with color gels and other lighting color control.

Sometimes you will want to try and correct for these color changes, sometimes you might want to capture the scene as close to the original color as possible (i.e., a deep blue cast designed to simulate a night scene). And other times, you might want to enhance the color or take it in a different direction.

Now, there is one key item that will give the creative control you need:

Shoot in RAW format! There are a lot of reasons you should be shooting in RAW, but stage photography might be right at the top of the list. During the shoot, you do not want to be adjusting white balance or trying to guess what might be best. Shooting in RAW means that the white balance adjustments can be saved for later in editing. I typically just leave the White Balance setting on Auto and disregard it while photographing. Later, when editing, I can adjust it however I like. If a series of shots were all made under the same lighting conditions, I can adjust the first shot, select all the subsequent shots, and sync the white balance to that first adjusted shot. Bazinga!

image with corrected white balance — White balance can be tricky given the different lighting types and colored gels used in the theater. Always shoot in RAW format and you can fine-tune the while balance when you edit.

Dancers in different styles — Left to right: Original white balance; Lightroom-corrected RAW image; black and white version. Which is correct? When shooting in RAW, you get to decide when editing!

There is one thing to keep in mind here: Don’t rely on the LCD screen to judge white balance. It will always show a JPEG image with the camera’s white balance pick, and since you’ll be shooting in RAW, you can make dramatic changes afterward.

For example, in one theater the stage lighting was very warm. I put the camera on Tungsten white balance so the playback on the LCD looked better, but I still shot in RAW. Later, when editing, the Tungsten setting did give better skin tones, so I used that as a starting point. Had it not worked out, however, I could’ve edited my white balance for a completely different result.

Artistic color gel — Sometimes the scene might start or end with creative lighting. Always be ready to take advantage of creative looks the lighting designer might serve up!

Once, a friend filled in for me at a graduation ceremony on a theater stage. Then they sent me the images for editing, and I saw they’d shot the whole ceremony in JPEG. Arghh! The theater had mixed lighting, some tungsten, some fluorescent. The JPEG images had very little potential for adjustment and the skin tones were awful. I even thought about converting the entire set to black and white.

9. Tell the story

I don’t know if every picture tells a story, but when photographing a play, a dance recital, a performance, or a concert, there is definitely a story on stage. It’s your job as the photographer to tell that story with your photos. Here are some tips that will help:

Know the story – If you’re attending a play, know the plot beforehand. The same is true of a dance. Almost all ballet is built around a story. Modern dance numbers usually are designed to evoke a meaning and a mood. A rock guitarist will evoke a mood with their music and the song lyrics may tell a story. How can you bring out those stories in your photos? By capturing expressions, movement, peak action?
To freeze or to blur? – Not all motion needs to be frozen. Letting moving people blur can add to the feeling of action in a scene.
The mood of the light – Good photographers learn to “see the light” and know how its color, direction, softness, harshness, and other properties affect the mood and story. Good theatrical lighting designers know this, too, and work hard to light scenes to evoke the right mood and enhance the story. Unlike a studio photo session where you as the photographer might set the lights, when photographing a stage performance you will work with someone else’s lighting choices. Pay close attention to what they’ve done and try to capture it in your images.

actors happily on stage — Capture the shots that tell the story. I’m guessing you can identify the story here with a glance!

frog leaping through the air — I wanted to freeze this leap. Even with an ISO of 2000, I had to shoot at 1/160s, though I could have opened the lens up to the full f/2.8 setting for a shorter shutter speed.

creative stage photography images with motion blur — Here, I wanted some motion blur; the hand motion in an image from Grease, the attack of the flying monkeys in the Wizard of Oz, and Don Quixote tilting at the windmills. For the bottom right photo, I wasn’t necessarily going for motion blur and was happy to make a fairly sharp shot at a slow 1/13s. Score one for the Canon R6 with both IBIS and lens stabilization.

10. Enhance with good editing

In the film days, after a shoot, all you had were the unprocessed negatives. There were many steps before you could look at your image as a finished print and many opportunities for creative adjustments along the way. Today, with digital cameras, we simply click the shutter and can immediately view the result on an LCD screen.

black and white glow images — So you don’t like to edit, huh? That’s the only way to get this kind of looks. The dancers in their flowing gowns and graceful movement made me think of angels, so when editing, I went for that feeling. How’d I do?

My opinion is that too many photographers are content with the straight-out-of-camera (SOOC) image; after that initial click, they believe their work is done. Many skilled photo instructors will preach the importance of “getting it right in camera” and express a distinct distaste for having to spend time behind a computer screen.

As you may have guessed, I scoff at these folks. Ansel Adams didn’t shoot digital, but I think his quote is worthy of consideration:

“The negative is the score, and the print is the performance.”

Ansel Adams

My personal belief is that you’re not done with an image until you’re done, and that includes editing. This might be especially true when taking photos of stage performances. You will not have control of the scene that plays out before you, you will have limited options for changing your vantage point or perspective, you will work with someone else’s often fast-changing lighting, the scene may be dimly lit and you will struggle to juggle shutter speed, depth of field, and camera noise. There are also no do-overs. If the shot isn’t everything it might be, editing can be the fix. Even if it is a very good SOOC shot, might some editing make it even better?

(You did shoot RAW, right? So don’t tell me you don’t edit; you have to do at least some editing with a Raw image.)

Okay, I will turn off the rant. Suffice it to say, I personally believe editing your stage photography images is almost mandatory if you want them to shine.

ballet posters — You’ll also need editing and design skills if you want to do these kinds of things with your images. I’ve been shooting this Boise, Idaho troupe for years. I make posters for them, they keep inviting me back. It’s a good relationship.

Stage photography tips: final words

How could I write an article on stage photography and not include a famous quote by this guy? You might have heard of him:

All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.

William Shakespeare

In this play we call life, you’ve been cast in the role of the photographer. Now go expand your talents and abilities. Hold a mirror up to the other players with the medium of stage photography!

warm up routine — Honing your skills as a stage photographer will keep you on your toes.

Stage photography FAQs

If I only remember one thing about stage photography, what should it be?

The show is on stage. You are not the show. If you are a distraction to the performers or the audience, you are not welcome, may be thrown out, certainly won’t be invited back, and will probably prevent other photographers from being asked to photograph performances. Get good shots, but be unobtrusive.

What are the biggest challenges in doing stage photography?

Getting close enough. Working with dim and frequently changing light. A long lens or a good vantage point can help with the former. A fast lens (i.e., f/2.8 or faster) and a camera with a good low-light performance can help with the latter.

How can I make more compelling stage photos?

Know the story. Tell the story. Know what the play, dance, performance, song, or whatever you’re photographing is about. Work to capture that story in your images.

What should my camera settings be for stage photography?

This will vary depending on the lighting, type of show, amount of action on the stage, and other factors, but for starters: Aperture Priority (Av, A), Auto ISO (with an upper limit), Continuous/Servo Focus, Evaluative metering (though center-weighted or even spot works for certain situations).

How can I best deal with white balance issues when photographing under different lights and colored gels/lights?

Always shoot in RAW format and be prepared to edit your shots. A RAW file will allow you to adjust the white balance after the shoot, open your creative possibilities, allow some rescue of overexposed and underexposed images, and help you better deal with image noise.

The post 10 Stage Photography Tips (for Beautiful Images) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Rick Ohnsman.

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Update: Images appear to confirm Nikon’s Z9 is being tested at the Olympics, gives us the first look at its back side

30 Jul

Update (July 30th, 2021 at 1:30pm EDT): We have added a new tweet from the Photolari Twitter account that shows new images of what appears to be the same Nikon camera shown off in the two images from yesterday.

Today, Twitter account Photolari shared a tweet with a pair of photos showing what appears to be Nikon Z9 mirrorless cameras in the wild at the Olympics.

The original tweet has been deleted, but digicame-info managed to save the above images before their removal. Nikon has confirmed some details of its forthcoming flagship mirrorless camera, but only shown renderings of the front of the camera. These new images reveal the back side of the pro-style camera body, which appears to feature Nikon’s signature circular eyepiece, dual joysticks, a directional pad and a generous array of buttons. Below is a breakdown of the buttons (many of which are surely going to be customizable):

There appears to be black gaffer tape around the screen of the camera, obscuring what may or may not be an articulating display.

DPReview confirmed with Nikon earlier this week that it had its Z6 II and Z7 II mirrorless cameras and Z mount lenses on-hand at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, but there was no mention of its unreleased Z9 mirrorless camera. It’s been confirmed Canon has photographers testing out its forthcoming EOS R3 mirrorless camera at the Olympics as well, so it’s no surprise Nikon is using the Olympic Games as a testing ground as well for its professional camera system.

Below is a new tweet from the Photolari Twitter account showing off two new images of what appears to be the same camera shown off in the above images:

Más fotos de la Nikon Z9 en los Juegos Olímpicos pic.twitter.com/u8UKyZmqND

— Photolari (@Photolari) July 30, 2021

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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13 Abstract Landscape Photography Tips for Mesmerizing Images

03 Jun

The post 13 Abstract Landscape Photography Tips for Mesmerizing Images appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Rick Ohnsman.

Abstract landscape photography is all about expanding your vision as a landscape photographer. Anyone can go to a pretty place, aim their camera, and click the shutter. To be great, you need to be able to see differently, to look deeper, see what others might miss, and come up with your own interpretation.

Anytime I write about abstract photography, I like to include the quote from the famous photographer Minor White:

“One should not only photograph things for what they are but for what else they are.”

– Minor White

Abstract Landscape Photography - Look for the details — The shot at left is a pleasant landscape image. Zooming tighter, it becomes more abstract. Getting in really tight, it starts to become an abstract landscape photograph. See things for “what else they are.”

Often as landscape photographers, we want to make an image of a scene, perhaps a lake surrounded by trees with mountains in the background. But when doing abstract landscape photography, the idea is to go beyond the obvious, looking for components within the scene, details that catch your eye.

Maybe it’s the texture of the bark on a tree, the colors in water ripples on the lake, or the curving lines of the hazy mountains in the background.

It’s not unusual for people observing an abstract photo to ask, “What is it?” They are seeking to identify the subject of your shot. But you must get past that.

You are not trying to make a photograph of the scene or a “thing” here. Abstract landscape photography is more about the look, the feel, the emotion an image conveys and less about what the subject might be. So how do you do it? How do you get great results? Let’s look at thirteen tips, a baker’s dozen, to get you started:

1. Look for details

Look within your scene for things that catch your eye. Pay attention to details, colors, textures, and patterns.

Plan on taking a little more time to study your scene, dissecting it. Abstract landscape photography is not a one-and-done snapshot style of shooting. Slow down, relax, study, and contemplate before you put your eye to the camera. Have a zen moment and feel the scene.

Then make your shot and study the LCD preview. What might you do to improve it? Make another shot. Be purposeful and deliberate. You will find this deeper approach to photography can greatly improve your work.

2. Use the right lens

Often, landscape photography is done with a wide-angle lens to take in as much of the scene as possible.

But with abstract landscape photography, you’ll be picking out little pieces of the scene. Yes, you can crop into interesting sections of a larger image to create abstract images from the master shot. I do that when I see something later in editing.

But anytime you crop an image, you lose quality, reducing the pixel dimensions of the image. Better to crop in-camera by composing your shot while shooting. It’s also better to learn to see the abstract image from the beginning rather than later as an afterthought.

beach pattern — Watch and nature may present you with an interesting abstract photo op, like this pattern formed by the waves on the sand of an Oregon beach.

So what lens should you use for abstract landscape photos?

You might try a longer focal length lens to capture the rock pattern on a distant mountain, or perhaps a macro lens to study the colorful lichen on a rock within your scene. A zoom lens can help you hone in on a portion of your scene when you’re looking to create an abstract shot, but don’t forget the “sneaker zoom” – zoom with your feet by simply walking closer to your subject.

Abstract Landscape Photography - Get close — A mobile phone camera also works fine for making abstract landscape images; it allows you to get very close to your subjects while retaining great depth of field.

3. Look for the play of light

Good photographers are students of light, observing how light and shadow play across objects to reveal texture and create interesting looks. Sometimes, just the light and shadow on a subject can be the subject of a photo all on its own!

Abstract Landscape Photography - The play of light — Look for how the light plays across your subject. These fantastic natural abstract sculptures are carved in the basalt rock of the Black Magic Canyon in Idaho, a paradise for abstract landscape photography.

So take the time to look at your scene and see if there are sections you can isolate to create a photo that is uniquely yours.

abstract compositions of rock sculptures — Color or black and white? Either can be effective with abstract landscape photography. These are more detail shots from Black Magic Canyon.

4. Consider line, shape, form, tone, and texture

In previous articles, I’ve referred to these five characteristics as the “bones” of a good photograph. Here’s just a brief definition of each:

Line: The one-dimensional path between two points. It can be straight or curved. Lines lead the eye through an image.
Shape: A two-dimensional outline of an object in a photo. Photography creates a two-dimensional representation of a three-dimensional world and so all objects in a photograph are shapes. We must create the illusion of depth through other means.
Form: The simulated three dimensions in a photograph created by other factors. A cube photographed from just one side will have the shape of a square, but when photographed at an angle, then line, tone, and texture will create the illusion of three dimensions (i.e., form).
Tone: The range of brightness levels from white to black in a photograph.
Texture: The simulated look of the smoothness, roughness, reflectivity, depth, and feel of an object created by light playing over the object.

sand dune abstract — Line, shape, form, tone, and texture – the “bones” of a good abstract landscape photograph.

Understanding the “bones” of a good photo can help you make interesting photos in general and better abstract landscape photos in particular.

Abstract Landscape Photography - Texture — Can you “feel” the texture of the wood in these shots?

5. Photograph water

Abstract Landscape Photography - Watercolors — After making the image of the lake scene, I zoomed in to catch the beautiful “watercolors.”

The unique properties of water – its reflectivity, motion, transparency, translucence, and fluidity – make it a great subject for abstract landscape photographs. Water can even take on a texture of sorts, thanks to the dynamic motion of rushing water and the smooth-as-glass look of static water.

In fact, you could do nothing but water photographs and have more subject matter than you could photograph in a lifetime! I’ve written an article on doing abstract watercolor photography; take a look for more good ideas.

water is spectacular for abstract images — The sand, the surf, and the reflections of the colors in the sky can make for wonderful abstract landscape photographs.

abstract ice — When things turn cold, switch from abstract water images to snow and ice.

6. Focus on textures

We’ve already touched on using texture as a subject in abstract landscape photography. For instance, you can capture abstracts of rocks, wood, and patterns in the landscape – and just like the “watercolors” described above, the images that can be made from texture are infinite.

When capturing images with texture as the main subject, pay attention to the quality of light and its direction. Light coming from behind the photographer to hit the front of the subject tends to minimize texture, whereas cross light (i.e., light coming from the side) helps to maximize it.

Abstract Landscape Photography - At your feet — Sometimes, abstract landscape photographs will be right at your feet. Don’t forget to look down!

7. Try some shoot-throughs

I use the term “shoot-through” to describe photos with materials or objects between the camera and the subject.

These objects could be transparent or translucent materials, such as a rain-streaked window or ice. Shoot-throughs can also use out-of-focus objects in the foreground that frame or change the look of the subject beyond.

For instance, you can shoot through an out-of-focus clump of grass while focusing on a subject in the distance. However you do it, shooting through something can add an interesting abstract feel to your photos!

snowy abstracts — Natural or human-made, keep your eyes open for abstract image opportunities!

8. Use slower shutter speeds and intentional camera movement

A photograph captures a sliver of time, freezing a moment. Shoot with a fast shutter speed and that sliver is small, freezing the motion of objects.

But use a slower shutter speed, and moving objects start to blur and streak, as you capture a lengthier slice of time:

long shutter speeds — Slow down your shutter speed and water becomes a great subject for abstract landscape photography.

Slow shutter speeds combined with moving objects can create abstract images that are unlike anything the eye can see. Moving water can be blurred to create silky waterfalls, and with even longer shutter speeds, ocean waves can be rendered as a blurry fog.

Another fun technique: You can move the camera during a long exposure to blur the image. This is known as intentional camera movement, and it’s definitely a technique worth exploring.

9. Use focus stacking to improve sharpness

The optics of lenses limit what can be rendered sharply in a single image. We call the extent of the in-focus area in an image its depth of field. How to control the depth of field in a photograph with lens selection, focal length, proximity to the subject, and aperture is something that all photographers should learn.

Depth of field in an abstract landscape photograph can also vary depending on the photographer’s intent. Do you purposely want some things rendered out of focus in your image? Perhaps you want to creatively use bokeh artifacts. However, if you want everything tack-sharp from front to back in a photo, you may need to capture more than one shot in a process known as focus stacking.

Learning the techniques of focus-stacking can be useful in many genres of photography, abstract landscape photography included. Take a look at the abstract photo above of the trees in a tree farm where everything is sharp. Such depth of field in a single image would be practically impossible, but – thanks to focus stacking – it became relatively simple.

Focus stacking trees — It’s not about the forest or the trees, but more about the repeating patterns of the vertical trunks, the texture of the bark, and the shadows in the snow. Abstract landscape photos don’t have to be unidentifiable.

10. Find fresh perspectives

Good photographers seek to show things in a way we don’t usually see them, and abstract photography should take this a step further. Consider it a compliment when an observer of your abstract image says, “I don’t know what it is, but I like it!”

One way to approach abstract landscape photography is to get a new and unusual angle on your subject. Get high, get low, shoot from a bird’s-eye or maybe a worm’s-eye level. Look up, look down, mix it up.

Shooting from eye-level or tripod height is boring. Dare to be different, especially if you’re walking on the abstract side of photography.

Abstract Landscape Photography - Higher perspective — Shooting down off a pier gave the aerial perspective here, and the colors and textures of the ocean waves made for pleasant abstract landscape (or seascape?) photos.

A great way to get abstract landscape photos is from the air. Drones have brought us a whole new view of the world, one previously available only to those who could get up in an aircraft themselves.

Even if you don’t own a drone, you can still get aerial-like perspectives from mountaintops and high structures.

View from above, Palouse — An aerial shot can give you a great perspective for abstract landscape photos – except this isn’t a drone or an aircraft image. Steptoe Butte in Eastern Washington rises high above the Palouse farm country, giving great views of the surrounding area.

11. Make it monochrome

Though the roots of photography are black and white, all monochrome images are abstract in that they are not the way we see the world. So consider how you can use black and white to make abstract landscape images!

A dark black sky over an almost white landscape is an abstraction, yet completely possible with a few editing tweaks. You could easily invert the colors and tones for a negative image or shoot with an infrared-converted camera. There are no rules when you walk on the abstract path, so experiment.

A black and white composition can remove distractions, focus attention, and give an abstract quality to your image.

colorful abstract landscape shot — Color?

black and white abstract landscape shot — Or black and white? Both are nice abstract landscape images, each with its own strengths. These are from the Palouse country, a paradise for abstract landscape photography.

12. Avoid scale

In most photos, particularly landscape scenes, there will be visual clues as to the size of objects. We know the relationships of smaller plants to trees and to mountains. But here’s something fun to try in abstract landscape photography: take away visual clues that would tip off the viewer as to the size of things.

A tight shot of the texture on some rocks could be taken from six inches or six miles, and the viewer might not have any point of reference. Sometimes in standard landscape photography, we might purposely include a person to lend scale to the image; in abstract landscape photography, taking away reference to scale can be the key to a great shot.

abstract landscape photography — Without reference, it’s tough to judge the scale here, and that can make for an interesting abstract landscape photo. In reality, the tree growing out of the crack in this mountainside is easily 20 feet tall!

13. Use minimalism

Unlike still life, portraiture, and most studio photography, landscape photographers don’t usually get to choose what objects are in their shot. You can remove a tree digitally if you don’t like where it stands in your photo, but you certainly shouldn’t get a chainsaw and cut it down.

Instead, you must choose scenes that include what you want in the frame and leave out what you don’t.

minimalist beach composition — The beach is a great place for minimalistic photography. This is minimalist, but is it also abstract? The definition can vary and perhaps it doesn’t matter.

Minimalistic photography is a whole subject unto itself, and one I believe landscape photographers should investigate. How abstract and minimalist photography intersect and differ is a topic worth exploring, as well.

Landscape photographs can be minimalistic but not abstract. Abstract landscape photos can be abstract but perhaps not minimalistic. Do the distinctions matter? Perhaps not, but both are styles that you, as a landscape photographer, would do well to try as you seek to grow your skills.

Minimalistic? Absolutely. Abstract? Maybe. Surreal? For sure. These stark trees against the featureless snow and sky of a Yellowstone snowstorm make for a dramatic shot.

Abstract landscape photography: final words

Let’s come back full circle to the Minor White quote. Abstract landscape photography is not likely to be the first thing you do as a new landscape photographer. Most people see the forest, they might see the trees, but they’re much less likely to pay attention to – or photograph – the way the light reveals the texture of the bark.

To paraphrase White, you should learn to photograph things “for what else they are.” Practicing abstract landscape photography will take you to that place and teach you a whole different way of seeing.

That, for a photographer, is an invaluable lesson.

abstract rock compositions — You’ll find an endless source of abstract landscape photography subjects in rocks.

FAQs

What is abstract landscape photography?

Abstract landscape photography is where the subject of the photograph may not be readily identifiable and the focus is more on the line, shape, form, tone, texture, pattern, and/or colors in the image. It differs from what is called representational photography in that the image is less about a literal depiction of a scene and more about an artistic interpretation.

Why should landscape photographers explore abstract landscape photography?

Rather than simply see a scene for what it is, abstract landscape photography teaches the photographer to look deeper, to study the elements that make a good image, and to be creative. Doing so will expand one’s ability to see the beauty in all things and to create images that are unique.

Name some ways to get started with abstract landscape photography.

1. Look for details.
2. Experiment with focal lengths.
3. Study the light.
4. Pay attention to line, shape, form, tone, and texture.
5. Explore water, ice, and snow as photo subjects.
6. Look for and find ways to depict texture in a photo.
7. Shoot through other objects.
8. Try slow shutter effects and intentional camera movement (ICM).
9. Try focus stacking multiple images for extreme depth of field.
10. Explore various perspectives.
11. Consider monochrome, infrared, or alternative color.
12. Make images where scale is difficult to determine.
13. Consider minimalistic compositions.

What are some challenges in abstract landscape photography?

One of the biggest challenges is getting past the need to accurately portray reality. Often the first question someone may ask when seeing an abstract photograph is, “What is it?” That doesn’t matter. What does matter is how the photograph makes you feel and what it communicates. An abstract photograph is like an instrumental piece of music: it is a way to create emotion without the need for words.

The post 13 Abstract Landscape Photography Tips for Mesmerizing Images appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Rick Ohnsman.

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How to Do Storytelling With Your Images: 8 Useful Tips

25 May

The post How to Do Storytelling With Your Images: 8 Useful Tips appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ben McKechnie.

As a photographer of people and cultures, I spend a lot of time thinking about storytelling with my images – how I can convey emotions and narratives through a few simple frames.

Beginners often fail to think about the storytelling aspect of photography, and that’s okay. When you’re just starting out, it’s important to focus on lighting, composition, and camera settings. But once you’ve familiarized yourself with those key concepts, what’s the next logical step? How do you hook people for more than just a few seconds?

Storytelling.

In this article, I share eight tips to get you started with storytelling in photography, accompanied by my own images to help illustrate the points. The photos may be taken in far-flung locations, but I promise you: the tips I offer can be applied anywhere on Earth.

1. Include small details to tell a story in a single frame

Imagine your task is to tell the story of a person. A parent, or even yourself.

How would you do it?

A standard portrait wouldn’t tell the full story. A person’s full story is often in the details: a picture of their desk, travel books strewn across a bedroom floor, a close-up of their hands dirty from working in the garden, a wide-angle portrait of them surrounded by a few of their favorite things.

So the next time you’re photographing a person, try to include small details that add to their story.

I didn’t visit India to focus my lens on poverty alone. However, when trying to tell the story of Mumbai, it would have been dishonest of me not to include it. Confronted with the scene above, I saw the gap between the rich and poor. The small details here are my subject’s plastic bag, the skin condition on his arm, and his frail body. A big (and still important) detail is his juxtaposition with a backdrop of expensive high-rise buildings.

2. Aim for variety in a series of shots

This storytelling tip is related to the last point:

You must take a variety of different images of a single situation. Whether you want to photograph a camel market in India, a farmers’ market in a Chicago suburb, or your niece’s birthday party, just creating one type of photo won’t tell the whole story.

Instead, you need portraits, wide-angle shots, shots from up high, shots from down low, action shots, zoomed-in details, and more. All of these perspectives combined tell the whole story.

In the image series below, I tried to tell the story of a sunrise hot air balloon flight over the ancient, temple-strewn plain of Bagan, Myanmar. Capturing a variety of images was key to my success.

3. Take control of the entire frame

Now that you’re thinking about telling stories, you’re not just a photographer; you’re a storyteller, too. And that role involves taking control of the whole frame.

In other words:

Don’t just think about your subject, their lighting, their positioning. Be aware of the whole scene in front of you, including surrounding details, backdrops, shadows, bright areas, etc.

Sometimes, I lie flat on the ground with my camera. Why? I want to include environmental details in the frame that improve the shot through storytelling. I get strange looks, but I don’t care; it’s the price of telling the real story.

do storytelling images riverfront barges — I tried to tell the whole story of this chaotic riverfront by zooming out and including multiple subjects (Dhaka, Bangladesh).

4. Plan ahead with a shot list

Whether you’re heading out into your hometown for some street photography or to the Eiffel Tower for some vacation photography, why not create a shot list? I’m talking about ideas for specific shots, angles you want to try, and people you might include in the frame.

Research the kind of shots that other photographers have taken at your destination. Seek out new angles that’ll produce fresh storytelling even at well-known locations.

do storytelling images taj mahal — A traditional Taj Mahal composition that I just had to include on my shot list. I focused on capturing beautiful light and clean lines instead of a brand-new angle.

do storytelling images dog taj mahal — Sometimes seeking out fresh angles is a real pain in the neck, especially when you’re photographing buildings like the Taj Mahal. I jumped for joy when I saw this dog showing the Taj some serious love at sunset. I’d like to think even animals can appreciate how awesome this building is.

5. Learn to narrow down, trim, and exclude

Uploading a hundred photos to Facebook, all of a similar setting and taken from the same few angles, is a surefire way to lose people’s attention. Those 100 photos could easily be narrowed down to the 10 essential storytelling shots.

So learn to be selective! Start sharing only your best images.

Loktak Lake (pictured below) was so spectacular that I wandered around a single hilltop taking hundreds of images. It was bliss. A lot of the results were great, but would I really want to dump them all online for friends, family, and followers to sift through? No, I would not!

Instead, it’s important to find a few favorites that tell your subject’s story:

6. Emotions are an important part of storytelling

To capture emotions, you’ll primarily need people and faces. Emotion can also be communicated through body language, so capturing whole bodies works sometimes, too.

At the marvelous Mother’s Market in Manipur, India, I met these lovely ladies (above) animatedly playing a board game. I broke the ice by asking if I could join in. They said “No,” but it made them laugh and I got permission to shoot away. The best photos came after they’d forgotten about me; their natural expressions returned and I was able to capture their emotions.

7. Don’t forget about the basics

In your bid to learn storytelling, don’t forget about settings, composition, and lighting. It’s all too easy to fall out of touch with photography basics, especially when you’re first learning to tell a story with pictures.

After all, when you’re thinking about storytelling, you might start to drift away from photographic fundamentals.

So instead of replacing composition, settings, and lighting with storytelling, make sure everything works together. A shot with beautiful light, excellent composition, perfect exposure, and a great story? That’s how you capture people’s attention!

8. Use narrative structure

How does a traditional novel or movie work? Novels and movies are stories, so they contain beginnings, middles, and ends.

You can do the same with your photos!

If you’re just starting out taking a series of storytelling pictures, try creating a chronological narrative. It’s by no means the only or even recommended narrative structure to follow, but it’s a fun and easy way to practice.

You might tell the story of a single day in a place you know well. Start with sunrise, then take photos throughout the day as the light changes. Conclude the series with sunset and night shots.

Here, I attempted to tell the story of day and night on the rivers running through the cities of Chittagong and Dhaka:

Telling a story with pictures: final words

Now that you’ve finished this article, you’re ready to begin telling stories with your photos!

So remember these tips, get out there with your camera, and have fun.

Now over to you:

Have you tried doing storytelling photography? What was it like? Did you enjoy it? Share your thoughts and storytelling images in the comments below!

The post How to Do Storytelling With Your Images: 8 Useful Tips appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ben McKechnie.

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Star Stacker lets you create star trail images and timelapses on iPhones, iPads

05 May

Star Stacker, an astrophotography app available for iOS, allows users to create star trail images and timelapses on their phone, computer or tablet. Michael Webb, the developer, posted about his latest creation on Reddit’s r/LandscapeAstro community. To demonstrate a final result from using the app, Webb posted the image, seen above, and explained how he achieved it in the post’s comments section.

Using a Sony a7R III camera and Rokinon 14mm M2 lens, Webb captured 170 15-second exposure images with an ISO of 640 and an F4.0 aperture. Webb then copied the 170 RAW files to his phone using an SD card adapter and stacked the images in the app. To be clear, you can also import JPEG, .tiff or .png images from your iPhone or iPad’s photo app into Star Stacker. Pixelmator was used to combine images of the foreground and stars together for a final product.

After importing your selected photos, you can start creating images or timelapses with the following effects:

Full trails – shows every star at full brightness.
Faded trails – stars get brighter as the process runs.
Shooting star – similar to faded trails but the last image is brighter than the previous, giving off a shooting star effect.
Warp mode – zooms into the image stack slowly creating a warped effect. This will also impact the foreground so post processing may be required if the images have the foreground included.

Astrophotographers typically take a series of images in the same place and stack them to reduce noise. Is 170 necessary? Likely not. This video from Milky Way Mike breaks explains how many photos you should stack and why.

The app isn’t available for Android yet though Webb mentioned he would ‘certainly consider making an Android version depending on how popular this version is.’ One Reddit user pointed out that Star Trails, available on Google Play, could be a decent alternative. Star Stacker is available for $ 1.99 in the App Store for the Mac, iPhone and iPad.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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15 Mountain Landscape Photography Tips for Stunning Images

16 Apr

The post 15 Mountain Landscape Photography Tips for Stunning Images appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by John McIntire.

Of all of the undertakings you can make with your camera, mountain landscape photography can be one of the most rewarding. Apart from the fact that mountains are straight-up beautiful, their imposing nature makes them a great landscape photography element.

This article will give you 15 quick tips – so you get better results the next time you go chasing after mountains.

1. Fill the frame

Mountains, by nature, are huge. You don’t have to get the entire thing in the frame. It’s just as acceptable to fill the frame with a certain element that draws your attention. This will make the mountain the background in your images.

Yes, it can be tempting to try and get a huge vista in the frame. But if you take a moment to look for smaller details that could make an interesting photo, you might find something unexpected.

15 mountain landscape photography tips — Although the entirety of the mountain isn’t in the frame, it is still clear that the background is a mountain, and the tight crop gives a clue to just how big it is.
Canon 5D Mark III | Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM | 200mm | f/5.6 | 1/2000s | ISO 200

2. Use reflections when possible

mountain landscape photography lake reflection — Using reflections in your compositions is a great way to show off mountains.
Canon 7D | Canon EF 35mm f/2 | 35mm | f/16 | 1/50s | ISO 100

If the mountains you are photographing are near a body of water, you already have a ton of visual interest to use in your foregrounds.

If you can, wait until the water is still. Then you can use the reflections of the mountains in your composition. This may be personal taste, but it is always a winning combination in my book.

3. Show scale with smaller elements

village on a mountaintop — This tiny village near the top of a mountain in Spain shows just how enormous the landscape is.
Canon 7D | Canon EF 35mm f/2 | f/11 | 1/60s | ISO 100

Again, mountains tend to be huge, but when you shoot with an ultra-wide-angle lens, you wind up pushing the perspective back. And this makes it difficult to give your viewers a true sense of just how large things are within your frame.

You can combat this by including an element that shows the scale of things in the scene. Buildings, people, and animals all work well.

4. Include people in the landscape

As with the previous point, putting people in your mountain landscape photography can convey just how big the mountains are.

It does more than that, however. Because with the inclusion of a human element, you are adding something that your viewers can relate to.

5. Try a panorama

lake reflection with mountains — Stitching several images together into a panorama is a great way to ensure that you capture the entire scene.
Canon 7D | Canon EF 35mm f/2 | f/16 | 0.4s | ISO 100

When you are photographing mountains, don’t be afraid to take a sequence of shots that you can stitch together as a panorama.

Mountain ranges tend to suit the panorama format especially well because there is just so much to see!

6. Fill your foreground

This may be standard landscape photography advice, but it still applies when shooting mountains. If you’re using a wide-angle lens, you will have plenty of space in your foreground – and you’ll need to fill it with something interesting.

So pick a foreground subject and get up close to it. This could be flowers, an interesting rock formation, or something simple like a sign.

Then take a shot that combines the interesting foreground and a beautiful mountain background, like this:

mountain landscape photography foreground flowers with mountains in the background — Having lots of visual interest in the foreground of your images can help your viewers stay engaged.
Canon 7D | Sigma EF 10-20mm f/3.5 | 10mm | f/11 | 1/60s | ISO 100

7. Include a human element

mountain landscape photography village — Not all mountains are wild places. Including signs of human habitation can be a good way to capture something interesting.
Canon 5D Mark III | Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM | 169mm | f/11 | 1/60s | ISO 100

By human element, I don’t mean people. Instead, I advise you to find something human-made that will show your viewers how the people that live nearby incorporate the mountain into their lives.

On their own, mountains are impressive. But as part of our world, they are also part of our lives. If you can show this in your images, you might be able to convey an interesting narrative.

8. Use a different focal point

In your mountain landscape photography, the mountain does not need to be the focal point of your image. Instead, you can find a different focal point and use the mountain as environmental information.

Of course, you can still take a photograph of the sweeping vista. But once that is done, look smaller – and see if there are other subjects to be found in the scene.

9. Use your GND filters

mountain with farm fields — Graduated neutral density filters are a great way to control your exposures.
Canon 7D | Sigma EF 10-20mm f/3.5 | 10mm | f/16 | 0.3s | ISO 100

To help you get good exposures while in the field, don’t forget to pack your graduated neutral density filters. These will allow you to even out your exposures at the time of capture, making it easier to process your images when you get back home.

10. Wait for the light

foggy mountain lake — Here, I waited from 4 AM to 8 AM for the fog to break. If you can, always, *always* try to wait out the weather.
Canon 7D | Sigma EF 10-20mm f/3.5 | 11mm | f/16 | 0.5s | ISO 100

This tip cannot be understated. If you want the best-looking mountain landscape photography images that you can produce, wait for the light to be at its best. If you get on location early and find the composition that you want, don’t be afraid to stay until the light shifts – even if it takes a couple of hours.

Yes, I know it can seem boring, and it’s hard to justify the effort, but please, trust me. It is very much worth the time and effort.

11. Use longer lenses

When you are packing for your trip into the mountains, don’t forget to take your longer lenses with you. Standard-length primes can be great for panoramas, but telephoto lenses can help you pick out smaller details in your scenes.

In other words:

There is a lot of room in landscape photography for lenses aside from the wide angles that dominate the genre.

12. Plan for the light

With the technology available to us, it’s easier than ever to know exactly which direction the light is going to come from on any given day of the year.

So once you know when and where you are going, do your research and figure out where the sun is going to rise or set. Then plan your shots based on that.

13. Plan for the weather

Like planning for the light, it’s also a good idea to plan for the weather. Knowing the weather will help you determine if you need to pack any extra gear like rain covers and waterproof clothing.

Of course, it’s also in the best interest of personal safety to have an idea of when snow or rain might appear. This is even more important if you intend to be on the mountain, especially after golden hour.

14. Don’t avoid bad weather

moody mountain landscape photography — After an entire day of low visibility, the fog broke for a total of five minutes, just long enough for a shot. Don’t avoid bad weather, even if you ultimately fail to get a photo.
Canon 7D | Sigma EF 10-20mm f/3.5 | 20mm | f/16 | 1/30s | ISO 100

While planning for bad weather is good, you don’t always need to stay indoors. Many times, the most interesting photos will come in the worst weather.

In fact, some of the best light I have ever seen has been during a break in a storm; these breaks allow just enough light to make things look like a fairytale.

And if you lock yourself away when the weather is bad, you’ll never get to experience such moments.

15. Be safe

Above all, strive for safety. Mountain landscape photography can be incredibly rewarding, but don’t risk your personal well-being for a great shot.

Watch where you’re going, take weather-appropriate clothing, be aware of the forecast, and tell somebody where you are going to be. And if you’re going to stay out until after blue hour, make sure you know exactly how to get back.

Mountain landscape photography: the end

I hope this article has inspired you to get out and create your own mountain landscape photography.

The next time you’re out shooting mountains, remember these tips – and have fun!

Have you photographed mountains before? Do you have any tips of your own? Share them in the comments below!

What type of lens is best for mountain landscape photography?

All lenses have their uses. Wide-angle lenses are the most popular, but standard and telephoto lenses can work, too.

What’s the best time of day to photograph mountains?

It entirely depends on where the light is hitting the mountain. The golden hours are best as long as the sun isn’t behind your mountain.

How do you show how big a mountain is in a photograph?

You include an element that is easy for the viewer to identify, such as a person. This will give your images a sense of scale.

Why do the mountains in my photographs look so far away?

Wide-angle lenses distort perspective, and this can push everything back in the frame. Use a standard focal length (35mm to 50mm) for a perspective close to the human eye’s. To include more in the frame, consider shooting in a panoramic format.

The post 15 Mountain Landscape Photography Tips for Stunning Images appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by John McIntire.

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How to Use Foreground to Create Depth in Your Images

28 Feb

The post How to Use Foreground to Create Depth in Your Images appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Anne McKinnell.

how to use foreground to create depth in your photos

What is the foreground, and how can you use it for stunning photos?

That’s what this article is all about.

I’m going to show you how you can identify and incorporate strong foreground elements in your photography – so that you end up with beautiful landscape shots, architectural shots, nature shots, and more.

And I’m going to explain my favorite way to use foregrounds:

To create depth.

(It’s a technique I use all the time in my own images, as you’ll soon see.)

So if you’re ready to become a foreground photography expert…

…let’s get started!

Cannon Beach, Oregon in the fog with sand ripples in the foreground to create depth

What is a foreground?

When you’re photographing a grand landscape scene, you can often divide it into three sections:

The background.

The middle ground.

And the foreground.

The foreground consists of anything that lies between you and your main subject.

Then there’s the middle ground, which is often the subject (i.e., the main point of interest in the photo).

And the background is made up of everything behind the subject.

Now, the foreground, middle ground, and background areas are not at fixed distances. They’re understood relative to one another.

For example, the scene below contains some colorful shrubs in the foreground, a pond in the middle ground, and trees in the background:

Another way to think about this is using a stage.

You have upstage, toward the back – that’s the background. It gives setting and context.

Center stage is the middle ground, where the bulk of the action takes place.

And downstage – the foreground – is closest to the audience, and therefore the most intimate part of a scene. Downstage is capable of whispering to the audience and luring them into the action. It is the most easily seen and heard part of the theater, and it can reveal the finer details of the story.

Trona Pinnacles, California with a nice foreground to create depth

One thing to note:

While many photos – especially landscape photos – contain a foreground, a middle ground, and a background, not all photos are so layered. Some images include only a foreground and a background. Others have no layers at all.

How should you use the foreground?

In general, you don’t want an empty foreground.

Instead, you should fill the foreground with some key point of interest, such as a human figure, a tree, a boat, some flowers, rocks, or anything else that is comparatively near to you.

So when you’re out shooting, once you’ve found a nice background, check the area around you for a good foreground element.

Then include that element in your composition!

(You may need a wide-angle lens for this; that’s how I captured most of the photos in this article.)

For instance, when capturing the photo below, I used the beautiful sky as my background, and the colorful rocks as my foreground element:

Green Point, Newfoundland with rocks in the foreground

One tip:

Don’t be afraid to change your perspective! If you find a nice foreground that won’t fit into the scene, try moving your camera higher, lower, or to one side to incorporate the foreground into the frame.

Why is a foreground so important?

A strong foreground is one of the simplest ways to create deep, three-dimensional photos.

You see, one of the biggest hurdles in photography is that majestic, three-dimensional scenes are rendered into mere two-dimensional images; the physical depth that the photographer experiences in real life is lost.

So how do you create the illusion of depth?

With strong elements in the foreground!

When you’re composing a photo and it’s looking a little too flat, simply adding some foreground interest can instantly improve depth.

For example, imagine a group of trees in a field, all standing in a row. If you photograph them head-on, they’ll look more or less identical – their size, distance, and sharpness will be the same, and the composition will likely be a flat, static one.

However, if you change your perspective and shoot the trees from one side, everything changes. One tree becomes closer and therefore larger, while the other trees shrink in comparison.

Like this:

When a viewer sees the image, their eyes will immediately fall on the tree in the foreground first, and the implied line created by the row will pull their gaze inward toward the other trees. Suddenly, the composition has depth!

Now, scenes can have many potential foreground elements. For instance, you can lower your camera to incorporate rocks, flowers, or anything else on the ground. That use of foreground will provide a point for the viewer’s eyes to enter the image, and any lines created in the foreground will direct the viewer’s gaze toward the middle ground and background.

Tips for using a foreground in photography

As with any compositional element, the foreground is only helpful if it adds to your image. If the foreground doesn’t help tell the story or – worse yet – it distracts the eye, then it isn’t going to improve the photo. Your foreground should be an important part of the scene and not a distraction.

Foreground elements can even be made of simple shapes and lines, like the foreground in the photo above.

In fact, your foreground elements can be nothing but shapes and lines, such as the paint on a stretch of road, the waves on the ocean’s shore, or the shadows cast across a windswept desert. Any lines that point toward your subject will be especially effective because they will guide the viewer toward the main attraction.

(Lines that point toward your subject are known as leading lines; these are a powerful compositional device!)

Similarly, a wall that stretches from foreground to background will carry the eye along with it. The corners of your frame are strong points, and anything that leads inward from these corners will have a significant impact.

Textures are another compositional tool that can make for an interesting foreground, like in the photo below:

sunset with rocks in the foreground for enhanced depth

Ultimately, however, the best foregrounds are those that you like the most!

So test out different foregrounds.

Experiment.

And capture some shots that are full of depth!

Using foreground to create depth: Conclusion

Now that you’ve finished this article, you should be well-equipped to create stunning, depth-filled images.

You know how to find powerful foregrounds.

And you know how to position them for gorgeous results.

So have fun with foreground photography!

Now over to you:

What do you think about using foregrounds to create depth? Do you plan to use this trick the next time you go out shooting? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

The post How to Use Foreground to Create Depth in Your Images appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Anne McKinnell.

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NASA’s ambitious Perseverance rover lands on Mars and sends back its first images

19 Feb

The first image sent back to Earth from Perseverance following its successful landing on Mars. You can see Perseverance’s shadow in the foreground. Image credit: NASA

On July 30, 2020, NASA launched its Mars Perseverance Rover on an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Yesterday, February 18, 2021, Perseverance landed successfully on the red planet.

The 2,260-pound (1,025kg) rover touched down with precision at an ancient river delta site in Jezero Crater. Perseverance is exploring an area where a lake existed nearly 4 billion years ago. The Perseverance mission has numerous objectives, including exploring its geologically diverse landing site, assessing ancient habitability, seeking signs of ancient life, gathering rock and soil samples, and demonstrating technology for future exploration by robots and humans alike.

Map showing Perseverance’s landing site at the Jezero Crater on Mars. Image credit: NASA

In the video below, you can see mission control react when Perseverance landed on Mars. Mission control was recorded using an Insta360 Pro 2 camera. When using a compatible browser, you can rotate the camera around mission control. The moment of elation is around the 1:46:00 mark. It’s an emotional moment for the team, and it’s cool to see it captured in 360 degrees.

Perseverance will spend at least one Martian year (about two Earth years) exploring the landing site region. Onboard are seven instruments, including the MastCam-Z, SuperCam, Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry (PIXL), and Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals (SHERLOC). The Mastcam-Z is an advanced camera system with panoramic and stereoscopic imaging capabilities. The camera, which can zoom, will analyze the minerals of the Martian surface. SuperCam is provides imaging, chemical composition analysis, and mineralogy at a distance.

Engineers working on Perseverance. Image credit: NASA

PIXL is an X-ray fluorescence spectrometer and high-resolution imager. PIXL will map the elemental composition of surface materials. SHERLOC provides fine-scale imaging and uses an ultraviolet laser to map mineralogy and organic compounds. SHERLOC is the first UV Raman spectrometer to land on Mars. SHERLOC also includes a high-res color camera for microscopic imaging of Mars’ surface.

Mission control. Image credit: NASA

It’s difficult to overstate what an accomplishment it is to land not only NASA’s most ambitious Mars rover yet, but also to do so during a pandemic. As Chelsea Gohd writes for Space.com, ‘This mission didn’t just propel technology and science forward, it demonstrated the incredible Perseverance of the human spirit. Despite everything, the teams at NASA were able to accomplish this incredible feat, which, even in ‘normal times,’ would have been difficult.’ Matt Wallace of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) shared a similar sentiment following Perseverance’s successful landing, ‘It’s been a tough year. It’s been tough to do this mission in this environment. But the team, like they have with every other challenge, has stepped up to it…’

An illustration of the Perseverance rover. Image credit: NASA

If NASA had been forced to delay the launch from last July, the launch window would have been pushed back 26 months due to planetary alignment. Perseverance is a $ 2.7B mission, so a more than two-year delay is a tough pill to swallow. Instead, NASA was swift to enact COVID protocols, which came with unique challenges and ultimately allowed the mission to continue as scheduled.

This is the first image Perseverance sent back to Earth following its successful landing on Mars. Image credit: NASA

Back to yesterday’s historic landing. Perseverance, or ‘Percy’ as some at mission control call the rover, landed at 3:55 p.m. ET. The landing went smoothly, and Percy wasted no time sending its first image back to Earth. Perseverance then sent a second image, showing the view from the rear of the spacecraft. Both images were captured using onboard ‘hazard cameras,’ and the protective covers were still in place. Future images will be more detailed and impressive, but these are nonetheless important photos. The images will be used to help the team very precisely locate Perseverance’s landing site on the Martian surface.

The second image shows the view from the rear of Perseverance. Image credit: NASA

For Perseverance, the next few days on Mars will be spent exploring the area. Its handlers will come to grips with the area and stabilize the rover’s onboard systems, including communications systems that will allow specialized software to be uploaded from Earth.

A 3D-printed model of MastCam-Z. Image credit: NASA

Per Space.com, ‘Perservance’s head-like, instrument-laden mast will also be deployed in these first few sols, allowing capture of great new imagery. For example, the rover’s MastCam-Z camera system is scheduled to take its first color panorama on sol 3.’ Mars 2020 deputy project manager Jennifer Trosper says that NASA will do about four days transitioning to new software before digging its teeth into planned scientific endeavors. It’s taken a considerable amount of time, money, and work to get to this point so that the team won’t rush anything.

As you can see in this diagram, Perseverance includes a lot of onboard instruments and equipment. Among other objectives, the rover will use its instruments to analyze and gather information on the chemical and mineral composition of the Martian surface. Image credit: NASA

Perseverance includes an onboard helicopter, Ingenuity. The four-pound helicopter will drop from the rover soon and, if all goes well, become the blueprint for future extraterrestrial exploration.

An illustration of NASA’s new Mars helicopter, Ingenuity. Its maiden flight will mark the first powered flight on another world. Image credit: NASA

If you want to take part in the celebration of Perseverance’s successful landing, NASA has set up a Mars Photo Booth. You can upload a selfie and place yourself on Mars, in mission control, or in front of a handful of other backgrounds.

There’s a lot to look forward to over the next Martian year (and hopefully longer). Perseverance includes 23 cameras, so we should be treated to some amazing imagery throughout 2021 and beyond.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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How to Shoot Images for Book Covers: The Essential Guide

28 Jan

The post How to Shoot Images for Book Covers: The Essential Guide appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Charlie Moss.

There’s lots of information out there about making money shooting stock images. However, the most successful stock photographers have a secret – they’re shooting niche content for specialist agencies! There are lots of different specialist fields that you might consider, but in this blog post, I’ll walk you through how to shoot images for book covers.

Let’s get started.

How to break into the book cover industry

There are several specialist book cover stock agencies that exist purely to match clients with photographers and illustrators. These agencies can be a great way to get into shooting book covers.

However, book cover stock agencies do require a good portfolio as part of your application. If you don’t already have a portfolio suitable for a book cover agency and you want to get started right away, you can try networking with potential clients on social media – Instagram is a great place to connect with other creatives.

Think about format and layout

One of the most important things to think about when it comes to shooting book cover images is the aspect ratio. Book covers are almost always produced in a vertical format, so landscape images generally won’t be of interest to book cover designers.

shoot images for book covers examples — Left: Canon EOS 5D Mark II| Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM | 100mm | 1/125s | f/8.0 | ISO 100 | Window Light + Reflector
Right: Canon EOS 5D Mark II| Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 IS II USM | 70mm | 1/640s | f/2.8 | ISO 800 | Available Light

Books can be printed in all different sizes, meaning that no single aspect ratio is the best for shooting cover photos. Therefore, book cover designers will usually need to crop images to make them fit on a cover.

Keep this need to crop in mind when you shoot images for book covers, and make sure you don’t place any interesting parts of the subject or composition near the edge of the frame. This will give a designer more options when using your images in different book cover layouts.

Leave some blank space

When you shoot images for book covers, you can’t just think about the photo. You also need to leave room for the title of the book and the author. In other words, there should be at least one place in your book cover shot that is plain enough to place text.

book cover layout examples — Left: Fujifilm X-T20 | Fujifilm XF 35mm f/1.4 R | 35mm | 1/280s | f/1.4 | ISO 200 | Window Light
Right: Fujifilm X-T20 | Fujifilm XF 35mm f/1.4 R | 35mm | 1/3500s | f/1.4 | ISO 200 | Available Light

You can achieve these plain sections by using simple colors, by shooting areas with less detail, or by using a shallow depth of field to blur backgrounds and foregrounds.

There’s no rule dictating where book cover designers must put the title and author text. However, it’s good practice to shoot several variations of each image, including compositions that leave room in the middle of the photo, as well as compositions that leave room at the top and bottom.

Plan your images out

If you’re finding it hard to shoot compositions that allow for text placement, then go old school and get out your sketchbook.

Take a pen and paper, draw some empty rectangles, and start imagining all the different places a designer might put the title and name of the author. You can then start to imagine how and where you might leave blank space.

book cover sketches — These are a set of sketches based on the bestseller listings of a popular bookseller. The boxes show the text location on the cover of each book.

To take your shots to the next level, think about the props you’d like to use in your photos and how they might fit into the sketches you just made.

Playing around in a sketchbook can really improve your images and save you lots of time.

Finding inspiration

If you’re trying to come up with ideas for potential book cover images, I highly recommend browsing through a bookstore. You don’t have to do this in person; there are plenty of opportunities to browse book covers on the internet, as well!

You’ll quickly get a feel for the different styles of cover images across various genres.

shoot images for book covers — Left: Fujifilm X-T20 | Fujifilm XF 35mm f/1.4 R | 35mm | 1/450s | f/2.0 | ISO 200 | Window Light + Reflector
Right: Fujifilm X-T20 | Fujifilm XF 35mm f/1.4 R | 35mm | 1/640s | f/1.4 | ISO 200 | Window Light + Reflector

It’s also a good idea to follow the social media feeds of publishers in your favorite genres. Many publishers regularly post pictures of upcoming books, which will give you a sense of industry trends.

If you’re an author, but not a photographer

So you’re a self-published author who wants to do the design work for your book yourself? That’s great, and all of the tips above still apply. However, you might find some of our beginner’s articles helpful; these will help you understand the creative potential of your camera.

It’s also important to be realistic when shooting images for your book cover; photography isn’t instinctive for everyone, and the best photographs are usually the result of years of hard work and practice.

However, if you put your mind to it and you learn the basics, there really is no reason why you shouldn’t shoot photos for your own book cover. Though it’s always worth asking a few trusted friends for their opinion when it comes to the final layout – especially if you have friends who buy and read a lot of books!

How to shoot images for book covers: Conclusion

Whether you want to diversify your photography business and start shooting images for a book cover agency, or you simply want to create your own book cover for your self-published book, the tips above should get you started. Follow traditional rules of composition, make space for titles and other text, and seek out inspiration in your genre.

Ultimately, if you’re looking to start shooting images for book covers, the best advice is to jump right in. Put together a portfolio, then get it out there for people to see. Ask around to determine which stock agencies work best for photographers you know, and see if you can get your pictures on a new bestseller!

The post How to Shoot Images for Book Covers: The Essential Guide appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Charlie Moss.

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8 Simple Guidelines for Capturing Spectacular Sunrise and Sunset Images

24 Jan

The post 8 Simple Guidelines for Capturing Spectacular Sunrise and Sunset Images appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Tim Gilbreath.

8 simple tips for stunning sunrise photography and sunset photography

When we are asked to think of popular subjects for landscape photography, images of beautiful sunsets and sunrises immediately come to mind.

What outdoor photographer worth their salt doesn’t have at least a couple of images of the sun dipping below the horizon?

In most people’s minds, sunrise and sunset photography is an easy thing to capture; the beauty and scale of the event itself should carry the photo, with minimal interaction from the photographer.

But is this really the case?

Unfortunately, it’s not. Unless you’re relying on luck alone, you’ll need to possess a few seeds of knowledge (eight, in this case!) to get you started capturing that epic sunrise or sunset.

None of these guidelines are difficult to comprehend, and they can all vastly improve your chances of properly capturing one of Mother Nature’s most incredible events.

So let’s jump right in!

1. Scout the location

As tempting as it is to just show up at a convenient location and start shooting, you greatly increase your chances of success by planning your sunrise or sunset photoshoot in advance. The first thing you’ll want to determine is the best location from which to shoot.

Pick a location that is out of the way of road and foot traffic, where you’re unlikely to be disturbed. Go to the location in broad daylight before the shoot, and ensure your view of the horizon will be unobstructed and free of any hazards.

The most important factor after the location is the time of day. Obviously, this will vary depending on whether you’re capturing a sunrise or a sunset.

But start by checking the weather. If your shooting time coincides with an approaching or recently-ended storm, the results can be staggering. Rain and storm clouds can add a dramatic layer of dimension to the scene.

You can also pinpoint the perfect time to shoot with an online tool or smartphone app that will display precise sunrise and sunset times for your location. Many low-cost (and sometimes free) solutions are available, including PhotoPills (for Android and iOS), and The Photographer’s Ephemeris (for Android and iOS).

2. Sunrise or sunset?

If you’re familiar with color temperature, you’ll know that there is a slight difference in the appearance of light at sunset versus sunrise. Early morning light tends to be cooler (higher blue) than light in the late evening, which leans toward warmer color casts consisting of orange and red.

Since there are different color temperatures at work here, you might need to adjust your photos, depending on the look you’re after. You can do this through your camera’s white balance settings, through warming or cooling filters, or via adjustments in post-production – where you’ll need to add or remove warmth to achieve the perfect final photograph.

Be aware that physical filters placed over your lens will degrade image quality slightly, because they’re an additional obstacle for light to pass through, so adjusting color temperature with camera settings or in post-production is often the better choice.

3. Plan your shots

Another important step to accomplish before heading out is to plan what you hope to achieve in your sunrise or sunset photo.

Ask yourself:

What look are you going for? Will you capture a definitive subject lit by the sunlight, or will the sunset itself be the star of the show?

Planning beforehand is also a great time to determine any other special considerations, such as whether you’ll be shooting an HDR (high dynamic range) photo.

If you do decide to use an HDR technique, you’ll need to prepare your camera for bracketed exposures to capture the full range of tones in the scene.

But while HDR can be a bit tricky to pull off, it’s a great way to produce some truly dramatic images!

4. Gather the proper gear

You can’t capture the right shot without the right gear, so make sure you have everything ready to go before you head out.

First and foremost, you’ll want to bring your tripod. Sunrises and sunsets are potential low-light situations (depending on the part of the sunset you’re trying to capture), so you’ll need a steady base for your camera.

Second, you’ll want to determine the right lens to use for the shoot. While beautiful landscapes can be captured using a 50mm to 85mm focal length, a wide-angle lens is preferred, including any zoom lenses that can shoot at 40mm or below. If you have a prime lens in the 12mm to 40mm range, you’ll have a better chance of capturing an even sharper image, and using a wide-angle lens will allow you to capture a vast, sweeping portion of the scene.

Do you own and use screw-on filters for your camera?

Although using filters can degrade image quality a bit, some can be useful here. A GND (graduated neutral density) filter, for instance, will darken the upper portion of the sky and keep it well-exposed and dramatic, even without HDR techniques.

A polarizing filter, on the other hand, may actually be a hindrance in these situations, so I recommend you avoid them.

(Polarizers reduce the amount of light coming in to the sensor, further increasing the required exposure time, which may not be ideal if you’re trying to freeze motion, such as ocean waves.)

5. Use the right settings

Before you even arrive at your photoshoot destination, you can choose the settings on your camera.

Since you’re shooting a landscape image, you’ll want to use a smaller aperture, such as f/8, f/11, or even higher, to maximize the depth of field and capture sharp detail throughout. If you’re using a tripod, this shouldn’t be a problem.

Although you can shoot in Manual mode, I personally prefer to shoot almost everything in A/Av (Aperture Priority mode). This way, I can lock in my aperture and let the camera choose a proper shutter speed. Since low-light situations like this can confuse the camera and you run the risk of overexposure, you can always use your camera’s exposure compensation settings to drop the brightness a bit.

If possible, you should use a low ISO, such as 100 or 200, to ensure there isn’t a lot of noise in the final shot. This should be very achievable if you’re working with a tripod. However, if you’re hand-holding your shot, you will need to bump the ISO up to get a shutter speed that’s fast enough to avoid a blurry photo.

This is also the time to choose your white balance, and as I mentioned above, you can use this setting to boost (or reduce) the warmth of your shot. If you’re after a warm, orangish image, set your white balance to the Shadow, Cloudy, or Daylight option.

And, of course, always shoot in RAW! To a certain extent, shadows and highlights that are lost in a shot can be recovered in post-processing later – but only if you have a RAW file.

6. Compose for interest

Now that the preparation is over, we get to the fun part! Once you’re on location and are ready to take the shot, you’ll need to consider your composition.

The most common error when shooting sunsets or sunrises is positioning the horizon exactly in the middle of the photo. While this can work, it normally causes a bit too much symmetry and can make the picture uninteresting.

Take a moment to look your scene over. Ask yourself: What part of the sunrise or sunset is the most dramatic? Are there any parts that aren’t that interesting?

Once you’ve done this, simply compose the shot to include more of the most dramatic scenery. If you have an angry, cloudy sky that accentuates the sunlight, let that occupy the upper two-thirds of the scene. If you have an interesting foreground or landscape but a less intriguing sky, let that occupy the bottom two-thirds of the image.

You want to draw the viewer into the composition, then let their eyes drift to the most dramatic part of the image.

7. Waiting for the right shot

If you already have experience shooting landscapes, you know that sometimes waiting is the name of the game. Because of the dynamics of natural lighting, a scene can completely change from one hour to the next – and sometimes even from one minute to the next.

That’s why a sunrise or sunset shoot is the time to be creative! Try different exposure times and play with your exposure compensation settings for different tones. Let the clouds and sun change positions, then reshoot, or try a slightly different angle.

Maybe even include additional subjects in the frame, and shoot them in the foreground against the sunrise or sunset. The longer you’re at the location shooting, the more variety you’ll end up with!

8. Don’t leave too early

One of the most common tips you’ll hear regarding sunset photography is to stick around after the sun dips below the horizon.

This is certainly good advice, as the entire dynamic of the scene changes after sundown.

Specifically, the tones, colors, and hues in the sky often become more saturated and dramatic. You’ll need to compensate for the loss of your main source of light, probably with a tripod – but it’s hard to deny some of the most beautiful images can be shot right after the sun is out of sight.

8 simple guidelines for sunrise and sunset photography: Conclusion

Now that you’ve finished this article, you should be ready to capture some stunning images at sunrise and sunset!

So get up early, stay out late, and create some gorgeous photos.

Now over to you:

Do you have any beautiful sunset or sunrise photography you’d like to share? Post it in the comments below!

The post 8 Simple Guidelines for Capturing Spectacular Sunrise and Sunset Images appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Tim Gilbreath.

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