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Photographing a ‘First Look’: The Pros and Cons for Wedding Photographers

18 Oct

The wedding timeline can be different for every couple. That’s why you need to learn to ask important questions, such as whether they’ve considered a ‘First Look’ or would rather keep it traditional. This simple decision can change the entire course of the day in terms of taking portraits.

Let’s dive in and look at the pros and cons of having the couple see each other before the wedding ceremony.

What is a ‘First Look’?

Traditionally, the bride and groom don’t see each other until the bride walks down the aisle. It’s thought to be good luck, and keeps in line with centuries of tradition.

A ‘First Look’ is where a couple decides to see each other either before the wedding ceremony or before the important events begin. This new concept is growing in popularity, with many couples opting to go for the first look rather than keeping the ceremony traditional.

Sometimes, as is normal with weddings, other factors will determine whether keeping it traditional or doing a first look is best in terms of both the photography and the day’s timeline.

The pros of having a first look

One pro of having a first look is when the wedding day timeline calls for it due to a schedule that might interfere with the bride and groom portraits. For example, if there isn’t enough time to take portraits after the ceremony because the couple would rather attend their cocktail hour, doing a first look earlier in the day will give you enough time to capture the couple. (Click here for other tips on overcoming common wedding day setbacks).

Another example is if the sun sets early on the wedding day and you’re not sure you’ll have enough light to take the couple’s portraits. This is where a first look can let you choose the best time during the day for the portraits.

Another pro of the first look is that when a couple sees each other before the ceremony it can calm their nerves and help them relax for the portraits. A first look can also act as a seamless transition into the bridal portraits without anyone else being present or having to wait for guests to move to the next event.

The first look will usually give you more time for bridal portraits. After the ceremony, many of the guests will want to congratulate the couple, which can eat up your precious time. They may also want photos taken of them with the couple, cutting further into your bridal portrait time.

A first look can make the transition to the couple’s portraits smoother on a wedding day.

I tell couples that the first look is usually the only time during the entire day they’ll be completely alone. This helps them savor each moment and really lean into each other during the photos. Since the first look typically lasts about ten minutes, it’s easy to transition into portraits of the couple. This works in your favor, as you get to spend more time with the bride and groom capturing real emotions before you seamlessly transition into the couple’s portraits.

A first look can bring out a lot of those nervous emotions and relax the couple before the day unfolds.

The cons of having a first look

One major con of doing a first look is it usually happens in the hottest part of the day or when the sun is at its brightest. First looks are typically done between 11am and 3pm. Photographing in the midday sun has its challenges, and the harsh direct light can sometimes mean changing locations for the bride and groom portraits.

Try to find a covered walkway, or somewhere that keeps the couple out of the sun. Look for large trees with lots of shade, but be aware of spotted light. In direct sunlight it may be easier to find big natural reflectors that bounce light back onto your subject. You can also help fill the shadows with flash or a photo reflector.

Another con to the first look can be the couple needing to get ready much earlier than anticipated just to fit it into the day’s schedule. Be sure to communicate with the couple so everyone knows the best time to photograph the first look and how long it will take.

How to photograph a first look

You can set up the first look in many different ways. A common way is to place the groom in a position where the bride comes come from behind and taps the groom on the shoulder. The groom then turns around and faces the bride. This is where emotions run high, and you can photograph from all angles so they can enjoy the moment.

The best angle is to photograph the groom facing away from the bride as she comes behind him. Then switch to the other side to get the groom’s reaction of seeing his soon-to-be bride in her dress. If you have an assistant photographer, place them at the opposite end of where you are so you can cover it from all angles.

Give the couple time to take in the moment and simply enjoy it.

Another way to do the first look is to have the groom facing the same direction the bride will be walking from. This will give you an instant reaction to them seeing the bride in her dress, so be ready to photograph all of those real emotions.

When you place the groom, take some solid portraits of him to help him relax before the bride walks into the scene. Talk to him, making sure your tone is soft, positive and excited.

Tell the couple that it’s their time, you don’t exist, and that they should just enjoy the moment. Let them know that kissing, hugging and looking into each other’s eyes is what the first look is all about.

Once the couple has relaxed and finished with the first look, move right into the portraits by taking them to the location you’ve scouted (if it’s different from the first look location).

In conclusion

A first look helps you get the most out of your wedding timeline for bride and groom portraits. It also helps the couple relax and feel even more excited about walking down the aisle. Having this beautiful and emotive experience will create more authentic photos, and give you more time to create them.

Ask your next client if they’d like a first look, and refer to these tips when answering their questions. You may be able to help make their special day even more special.

Have you ever photographed a first look? Let us know in the comments.

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Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera

26 Sep

You may have guessed from my use of the phrase real camera in the title that this article may contain some bias. Everything I write does to some degree, that’s normal. Hopefully, though my experience is helpful to you when you come to think about upgrading.

I want to present some of the pros and cons of upgrading to a real camera from a photographer’s perspective. This article is for you if enjoy using your phone to take photos but feel limited by it. It is also for you if you have a real camera to help answer questions from phone photographers who ask why you use a camera.

My intention here is to share information from my perspective. I am a long-time professional photographer and photography teacher. But I have also recently started taking phone photography more seriously.

Phone and Camera - Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera

Size Matters

Almost all cameras are bigger than a mobile phone. Phones have the advantage of portability, but this is about the only advantage size has. Let me explain.

Lenses

DSLR Lenses - Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera

A good camera lens is essential to being able to make good clear photos. If the lens is small and low-quality, you are not going to get the best results.

Lenses on phones are tiny and most often made of plastic or sapphire crystal. Lenses for real cameras are larger and most often made of multiple glass elements.

Light is essential for creating a photograph. Light must first pass through lens, which bends it and focuses it so an image can be captured by the sensor. If there is any distortion in the lens the image quality will be compromised. Good quality larger lenses are more capable of producing sharper, more accurate images.

The range of lenses for cameras is enormous. Even small compact cameras have the capacity to zoom from wide-angle to telephoto optically. When the lens does the work of manipulating the light and sending it to the sensor, the quality is far better. On a phone when you zoom in, the image is just enlarged digitally and the quality suffers dramatically.

Image Sensors

Smart Phone Photo selfie - Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera

Sensor size is the other main factor in the image quality difference between phones and cameras. By sensor size, I do not mean the megapixel count. Often phones can now have more megapixels than cameras. The actual physical dimensions of the sensor are what make the biggest difference.

A phone sensor is tiny and measures approximately 4.8 x 3.6 mm. There’s no room in a camera to put a larger sensor further away from the lens. Sensor size in cameras varies a lot, but suffice to say they are a lot larger than the ones in phones. Compact cameras have the smallest sensors in cameras which measure approximately 6.2 x 4.6 mm. Currently, the largest sensors in mirrorless and DSLR cameras are 36 x 24 mm (full frame).

Some phones boast huge megapixel counts, similar or larger than some cameras. I would prefer fewer megapixels on a sensor with a larger physical dimension. Squeezing more pixels into a tiny sensor may seem impressive, but it’s not in reality.

If you have the same number of megapixels on a sensor which is physically larger you will have technically higher quality images. To learn more about sensor size and why it’s important, please read this article.

Creative Control

Woman Photographer at the Shopping Mall- Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera

Cameras are generally easier to have creative control over the outcome of the photograph. Phones are designed to be easy to use to get a quick snapshot. This is how most people use them. There are many good apps available to enable more manual control of the camera settings on your phone. Some are easier to use than others.

Entry-level cameras are not often any easier to control manually than phone cameras. Higher-end cameras of any type are more user-friendly for photographers who want a higher degree of control.

On cheaper cameras, it’s often necessary to dig into the camera’s menu system to adjust things like exposure and white balance. Higher-end cameras have more external controls so they are easier and quicker to set manually.

Creative Intention

Photographer at an Outdoor Event - Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera

One of the most significant differences between a phone camera and a real one has nothing to do with the technology. When most people pull out their phone to take a photo it’s for a quick snapshot. The picture may be posted to social media and quickly forgotten about.

Using a real camera requires more focused and creative intention. You are more likely to take time and think creatively when you are taking photos with a camera. This increases the likelihood of producing better photos. For me, taking the time to concentrate on photography is more important than the hardware I use to make the image.

Image Processing and Sharing

Photographer at an Outdoor Event taking a selfie - Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera

Processing and sharing photos from your phone is much easier than from a real camera. Phones are built for connectivity. The internal image manipulation, either native or in any number of apps, is impressive.

The biggest drawback when post-processing images on your phone, is that they are prone to lose quality. Often this is difficult to detect until the image is viewed on a monitor or you want to have it printed. It is very easy to over sharpen or saturate a photo using an app. It might look good on the screen on your phone, but not printed or on a larger monitor.

With a real camera there’s a certain amount you can tweak an image and share it, but it is not nearly as extensive as it is on a phone. Some cameras have built-in wifi and there are also memory cards with wifi available.

The Best Camera is the One You Have With You

Photographer n the Street taking a shot - Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera

This is true. You cannot take a photo if your camera is in a bag in the cupboard at home. But you don’t often forget your phone. This makes it a very good camera, because it is right there with you.

Learning to use your phone to do more than taking snapshots will improve the quality of all your photos. Spending money on a real camera that you don’t learn to use properly and leave at home is not going to make you a better photographer.

The biggest downside to phone cameras is the lower quality images they produce. Most of the time this is not relevant as most photos are shared and viewed on mobile devises these days.

bike on a path with a shadow - Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera

I processed this image with the Snapseed app on my phone. It looked okay on my phone.

Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera - close up of image above

At 100% on my computer monitor, the deterioration of the image quality caused by processing is obvious.

The things that will keep you from relying too much on your phone for taking pictures are:

Lower quality images.
Less control over exposure settings.
Little ability to effectively zoom.
The possibility of getting a stunning image that cannot be enlarged and hang on the wall.

These things do not stop me taking photos with my phone. Currently, I am using it more than ever, but I need to understand my phone camera better so I can teach people to take better photos with theirs. I am particularly interested in experimenting with the panorama mode.

Poi Sang Long Festival Photographer- Pros and Cons of Upgrading from a Phone to a Real Camera

I believe there are still many years left when real cameras will hold their own against phone cameras. How quickly the technology evolves will determine just how long.

If you are a phone photographer I hope this article will tempt you to pick up a real camera. When you learn to use it you will discover the real joy of photography. If you already use a real camera I hope this information will help you better answer questions when people ask why you don’t just use your phone.

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Seagate 14TB IronWolf and IronWolf Pro NAS HDDs are made for creative pros

14 Sep

Seagate has introduced new hard drives for Network Attached Storage (NAS) devices: the 14TB IronWolf and 14TB IronWolf Pro HDDs. The new models offer users access to high-performance hardware alongside management and recovery tools, making it possible to upload and download large amounts of data remotely without stressing about drive failures.

Both the 14TB IronWolf and IronWolf Pro models feature Seagate’s AgileArray technology, which optimizes the HDDs for multi-drive storage systems. Both models also offer up to 256MB cache, but the IronWolf Pro has a longer mean time between failures (MTBF) of 1.2 million hours versus the IronWolf’s 1 million hours.

As well, the 14TB IronWolf comes with a 3-year warranty, whereas the IronWolf Pro has a 5-year warranty. The regular IronWolf model is targeted at small businesses and home use with a 180TB/year workload rating, while the IronWolf Pro is intended for creative professionals, among others, with a 300TB/year workload rating.

The Pro model includes data rescue services, which are an optional addition for the IronWolf model

Both the 14TB IronWolf and IronWolf Pro feature rotational vibration sensors, but differ in support for multi-drive configurations: the IronWolf can be used in devices with up to 8 bays and the IronWolf Pro can be used in devices with up to 24 bays. The Pro model includes data rescue services, which are an optional addition for the IronWolf model.

Seagate’s IronWolf product page doesn’t currently include the 14TB model in its retailer availability search, but Tom’s Hardware reports that the 14TB IronWolf costs $ 530 USD and the 14TB IronWolf Pro costs $ 600 USD.

Via: Seagate

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Pros and Cons of Chimping – What is it and how it can hurt or help you?

15 Jul

Whether you are an amateur taking photos with your smartphone or a pro using a DSLR, if you make digital photographs, you do chimping. It doesn’t matter if you’ve heard the term or not it could be hurting your photographic practice so keep reading to learn about the pros and cons of chimping and how to use it (or stop using it) to your advantage.

Chimping Tutorial Intro - Pros and Cons of Chimping - photo of a DSLR camera screen

What is chimping?

There’s no doubt that digital photography has many advantages. One of them is being able to see the result of your shot immediately instead of having to wait until you got your film developed. This practice is commonly known as chimping, since Bryan Peterson coined the term and it became popular.

However, it’s not all good. If used without much thought you may not be taking full advantage of it or even worse, it could be working against you.

So, chimping is simply the act of checking your images on your camera’s LCD screen. It doesn’t necessarily imply what you do after that. You may delete some photos, you may do some adjustments to your settings for the following shots or you may even stop taking any more photos because you’re satisfied with what you’ve got. That’s where it gets tricky.

Pros and Cons of Chimping

Pro #1

If you change the conditions dramatically and need to readjust your settings it’s very helpful to find out immediately if you got the shot right. Here is an example.

It was a bright sunny day so I was photographing outside with an ISO of 100, f-stop of f/5.6 and a shutter speed of 1/250th. When I walked inside a room it was obviously much darker. But because I was looking at the beauty of the walls and the play of the elements and design I just snapped a photo without thinking about the change of lighting. Needless to say, it came out extremely dark.

Fortunately, however, I did some chimping, realized the issue and adjusted the ISO to 400.

Chimping Tutorial Outside Inside - Pros and Cons of Chimping - comparison of two photos

Con #1

Things look very different on your camera’s small screen as compared to the big screen of your computer. You might think the photo you just took is perfect but that’s not always the case. For example, this image looked good when I was chimping on the camera when I shot it, but once I downloaded it back home I realized the focus was not really sharp.

Chimping Tutorial Soft Focus - Pros and Cons of Chimping

When zoomed in on the computer this image is clearly out of focus, but it looked sharp on the camera.

Pro #2

If you are looking for a really concrete shot or effect you can immediately know if you are achieving it or what you need to adjust in order to get it by chimping and reviewing the image on the camera.

For example, I wanted to capture the movement of these ice skaters. This is always a tricky effect because you need to set the right shutter speed so it doesn’t freeze the subject or leave just a smudge if it’s too slow. If you are interested in learning how to do this I invite you to check out my tutorial, “How to Have Fun with Shutter Speed and Added Motion Blur”.

You also need to move the camera (panning) at the same speed of the subject so this is an exercise where you need to try many times and definitely do some chimping.

Chimping Tutorial Slow ShutterSpeed Blur Movement - Pros and Cons of Chimping - skaters

Con #2

Another con of chimping is you can miss out on the perfect moment, that once-in-a-lifetime shot because you were looking at your screen instead of paying attention to the scene.

Here, for example, I wanted to capture the elephant throwing the dirt with its trunk. But I looked at my screen (and snapped) a second too late and all I got was the dirt cloud and the trunk almost all the way down.

Chimping Tutorial the Decisive Moment - elephant

Fortunately, elephants do this a lot, so I just had to wait a little bit longer (without taking my eyes off them this time) and got the photo.

Chimping Tutorial the Decisive Moment2 - elephant spraying dirt

Tips

If you have some time to review your photos and you’re sure you’re not going to be missing a once in a lifetime opportunity, then go ahead check, but do it well. Zoom into your image especially on any risky parts, like the shadows and highlights, to see they still have detail as well as your focus point to see that it’s sharp.

Chimping Tutorial Critical Points Zoom Review

Use the Histogram

When you are chimping, check your image but don’t forget to review the histogram as well. It should have a good range from black to white with many grey tones (unless you purposely went towards one end of the spectrum).

Most DSLR cameras have this feature integrated. On mine (a Canon 70D), for example, you access the histogram by playing the image, then clicking on the info button and it gives you the histogram by color channel and the general histogram.

Chimping Tutorial Histogram In Camera Review

Even after reviewing your photos and deciding you have what you need, do some extra shots. For example, I went to photograph a temple so it was mostly about architecture photos. After walking around it and shooting every angle on the outside, I went inside and did some shooting there as well.

I figured I had all I needed to head back to the city. Fortunately, I never put away the camera when I’m out for a shoot, especially in a new place. So when I was walking down the stairs I found this little girl in a traditional costume just resting from all the tourist attention she was getting. Never close the door to possibilities!

Chimping Tutorial Extra Shot

Finally

One last thing, reviewing and deleting the photos you don’t want can save you space on your memory card but having the screen on consumes a lot of battery so make sure you keep a good balance. No use in having lots of battery life if you don’t have space for more photos and equally useless to have an empty card but no battery to shoot!

So chimping is not a good or bad thing in itself, it’s more about how you use it. Let us know in the comments what are your chimping habits and share some of your tips!

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Some of the Pros of Using Micro Four-Thirds Cameras for Wildlife Photography

11 Jul

Micro four-thirds (MFT) cameras have been on the market for 10 years now and have grown to be a preferred option for professionals and amateurs alike. The small camera bodies (you might even say tiny) house high-quality features including high dynamic range, high ISO sensitivity, and 16mp (or greater) sensors.

As the MFT format has gained popularity a range of professional-quality lenses has also been developed. I have been shooting the Olympus Em5 and Em5II since they came on the market in 2013 and 2015 respectively. Throughout my travels shooting wildlife across the U.S., I have been shooting this system with great results.

There are many aspects that micro four-thirds cameras great for wildlife as well as a few drawbacks. I will walk you through my impressions of this system for wildlife photography, both the pros and the cons.

humpback whales - Pros and Cons of Using Micro Four-Thirds Cameras for Wildlife Photography

I took this image of bubble-net feeding Humpback Whales with an Olympus OMD E-M5. All of the images featured in this article were captured using the MFT system.

Intrinsic Advantages (Pros)

The micro four-thirds system has some advantages for wildlife photographers due to the nature of its sensor and technology. These “intrinsic advantages” as I’m calling them are inherent to the system and can assist in your wildlife photography. In the next few sections, I will walk through how a 2x 35mm equivalency, quiet camera, high ISO range, high shutter speed, and high-resolution.

I will also review some features specific to the Olympus E-M5 Mark II system that you may find beneficial.

Micro four-thirds for wildlife - caterpillar

Here I have used MFT to photograph all forms of wildlife. From coastal brown bears to insects.

Pro – Get Closer with the 2x Crop Factor

Everyone who shoots wildlife photography wants to get closer to their subject and this is one way in which micro four-thirds sensors shine. When talking about how a sensor’s size affects the final zoom of your lens, the photography industry standardizes to “35mm equivalency”.

Without diving into the ins-and-outs of that means, here’s the bottom line: if you have a 100-300mm lens the micro four-thirds system effectively makes it a 200-600mm lens. The camera intrinsically doubles the length of your telephoto lens – you can likely appreciate how that doubling of focal length will help you get your wildlife shots!

Micro four-thirds for wildlife - portrait of a deer

2x equivalency is a big deal! You can get closer to wildlife with your enhanced telephoto lens.

small bird with a berry - Micro four-thirds for wildlife

As an avid birder, I appreciate the 2x equivalency to get closer to small birds.

Pro – High Maximum Shutter Speed

The micro four-thirds system is capable of really fast shutter speeds. As a wildlife photographer, it can give you a leg-up on fast-moving animals such as small birds or even insects.

The Olympus OMD E-M5 II is capable of shutter speeds up to 1/8000th of a second! In bright lighting conditions, you can use the fast shutter speed to stop water droplets of an animal walking in a river or the fast pulse of the wings of a hummingbird.

hummingbird in flight - Micro four-thirds for wildlife

Fast shutter speeds will help you stop the wings of a bird even as quick as that of a hummingbird’s!

Pro – 40MP High-Resolution Mode

A feature specific to the Olympus OMD E-M5 II is the 40-megapixel high-resolution mode. Sensor shifting-technology allows the camera to increase the resolution of the image.

One restriction of this process is the subject or animal has to be completely still. However, if you know you have the right conditions and a shot for which you need high resolution, you will find this mode convenient if your goal is to make large prints later.

owls in a tree - Micro four-thirds for wildlife

These great horned owl chicks were sitting so still that I was able to use the high-resolution feature of the Em5II to create a 40-megapixel image of them.

Pro and Con – ISO, and Light

The micro four-thirds system is capable of using high ISO settings to boost your camera’s sensitivity to light. However, high ISO values can create image noise (graininess in the image), and this is one area where the MFT systems fall much shorter than full-frame systems and DSLRs.

You will find that you can comfortably shoot up to ISO 800 or 1600 and be able to post-process out the noise. However, at ISO 1600 you will notice the noise if you crop the image, so be aware of that. Low-light conditions are common for wildlife photography, so consider that this system will not give you the performance of full frame cameras.

great horned owl eyes closed - Micro four-thirds for wildlife

This great horned owl was photographed in low light, so I needed to increase my ISO to capture it.

Pro – A Stealthy Camera

This camera contains no mirrors or moving parts inside the camera – every process occurs digitally. That makes the camera extremely quiet when you press the shutter button and it will not disturb the wildlife you are watching. This helps you keep the animal in range and also be an ethical wildlife photographer that does not negatively impact the wildlife you are shooting.

dragonfly damselfly - Micro four-thirds for wildlife

A quiet camera is very important for capturing skittish animals such as this damselfly!

Pro – Flexibility

This camera can provide incredible flexibility to your kit. In the next sections, I will review some features that I find helpful for wildlife photography.

Pro – Light Body

All of the mirrorless cameras are light which makes them ideal to transport. This is due to the lack of moving parts within the camera such as mirrors – which allow the cameras to be smaller. The lenses native to micro four-thirds cameras are also generally light.

Reiterating my point about 2x equivalency, you can get a 600mm equivalent telephoto lens that only weighs a few pounds. As a traveling wildlife photographer, you will appreciate the light weight in your backpack, carry-on luggage, or strapped around your neck.

micro four-thirds for wildlife - olympus camera

This is the Olympus Em5II body and Lumix 100-300 that I use for wildlife photography. You can see how small the body and lens is!

Pro – Fast Autofocus

The autofocus system on this camera is very fast and is useful for inflight shots of birds and general wildlife photography. Upgrades to the autofocus systems in the Olympus E-M5 II have provided accurate focus points giving you the ability to target an exact spot in your frame to focus.

One disadvantage is I find that the autofocus hunts in low-contrast situations. So you should be prepared to manually focus in low-light shooting conditions such as at dusk or in a heavy forest canopy.

micro four-thirds for wildlife - eagle in mid-air

A fast autofocus system will help you a lot with in-flight images of birds.

crane in flight - micro four-thirds for wildlife

I relied on the autofocus to capture this sandhill crane as it flew by.

Pro – High Resolution

Almost all micro four-thirds cameras come with a high-resolution (16mp or greater) sensor. The 16mp sensor on the Olympus E-M5 II gives plenty of resolution for enlargements. This is useful for printing and also gives you the ability to crop a shot and maintain sharpness.

I have made canvas prints up to 36” with images from this camera and found the resolution was ample for that as long as you have a sharp shot.

owl in Lightroom - micro four-thirds for wildlife

Here is a 1:1 crop of an image of a great horned owl. You can see that the image maintains decent sharpness even at a large crop.

Pro – Native Lenses and Adapting Lenses

If you are willing to shoot with manual focus it is possible to adapt nearly any brand of telephoto lens (Canon, Nikon, Sigma, etc.) to your MFT camera using an adaptor. This is thanks to the small flange distance of the MFT format. I have had success adapting long telephotos, old Olympus OMD lenses, and even old screw-mount lenses such as a Takumar 35mm that I have.

Why does that matter? Adaptors are cheap ($ 25 – $ 50 generally) and allow you to utilize glass that you may already own bringing down the price-point of your system.

olympus camera and adapted lens - micro four-thirds for wildlife

You can adapt almost any lens to the MFT bodies. Although I do not use this Takumar portrait lens for wildlife, it shows off the ability to adapt even a screw-mount lens such as this one built in the 1960s.

Pro – Sealed Bodies and Lenses

The body of the Olympus E-M5 Mark II is sealed from dust and water. Although that is not the case with all MFT cameras, as long as you do your research you’ll find other camera bodies that are sealed and well-built too.

This is invaluable to a wildlife photographer! I am sure you can think of times that you needed to shoot in the rain, the dust, or perhaps the mist of a waterfall. Having a sealed body will protect your camera and investment.

breaching whale - micro four-thirds for wildlife

On a boat or on land, you need to be able to count on a sealed body to protect your camera.

The Bottom Line

You may have found the features above appealing for your photography needs, so let’s look at the bottom line and the value-to-cost of this system.

You can find micro four-thirds cameras starting at $ 200 and going up to about $ 1,000. For those prices, you are getting a camera capable of shooting high-resolution images with excellent quality. With practice and patience, you can take beautiful images of wildlife and not break your back (or your bank) while doing it.

As I like to say, “pixels are cheap”, so I hope you make lots of them photographing wildlife with a micro four-thirds system.

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CorePhotonics white paper explains the pros and cons of the triple-camera

11 Apr

A couple of weeks ago, we saw the first announcement of a mobile device with triple-camera in the shape of the Huawei P20 Pro. Gil Abraham, Director Product Management at Corephotonics—an Israeli company that specializes in the development of smartphone camera solutions—has taken the opportunity to author a white paper titled “Triple cameras: Are three better than two?”

The document looks at the evolution of dual-camera systems from the HTC One M8 to current models, such as the iPhone X, and then jumps straight into the challenges and rewards of camera systems that feature a third camera.

Abraham says the main challenges for the design and development of triple-camera solutions are cost, space and calibration, as well as firmware, algorithms and power. Three cameras inevitably need more space than two in the already very close quarters inside a thin smartphone and, depending on configuration, a third sensor and lens can add between $ 10 and $ 30 to the device’s bill of materials.

Very careful calibration of the entire setup is also needed in order to avoid any artifacts during image fusion—firmware and algorithms have to be tuned to control three physical cameras that should work as one. Power consumption can also be greatly affected if not all hard and software components work together efficiently.

In the final part of the white paper three triple-camera configurations are presented in detail, and their pros and cons explained. There is a zoom camera for low-light conditions and a fish-eye zoom that offers focal lengths from fish-eye to tele. It’s the third variant, however, that we really hope to see on a production device very soon.

The “Super zoom with excellent low-light” offers a 5x optical and 25x overall zoom combined with good low light image quality using Corephotonics’ folded optics with OIS that we have already seen in an Oppo prototype device.

Overall, Abraham’s white paper is an interesting and educational read for those of us wondering where smartphone camera technology is headed. To dive into the details, read the complete white paper on the Corephotonics website.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Pros an Cons of Shooting Alone Versus Being a Group Photographer?

06 Mar

An age-old question in life, not just photography, is are you a pack animal or a lone ranger? Everyone reading this will have their own answer to this question, it’s not even a black and white answer. In this article, the question posed is whether you shoot alone or are more of a group photographer?

Let’s take a look at the two different approaches to doing photography, and then compare them to see which one is better. Whether one is better is really just subjective, but depending on your favored form of photography you’ll certainly have a preference.

Do you Shoot Alone or are you More of a Group Photographer?

Joining other photographers is great, although they sometimes get in your shot!

Photographing solo

The preference for many photographers is to photograph alone. There are a lot of good reasons why this is best, so let’s take a look at a few of them:

Get into the zone – To achieve the best photos, being distracted by others is rarely a recipe for success. Photographers will often get into a zone where a heightened sense of the environment around them will lead to better photos.
Set your own schedule – When you visit a place, and how long you spend there are very important factors in photography. Whether you’re a street photographer waiting for that perfect moment, or a landscape shooter photographing blue hour, the schedule matters.
Choose where to visit – Equally important, and related to the point above is where you choose to visit and shoot. Even if you travel with a fellow photographer, they may well want to visit a different place to suit their style of photography. Shooting alone allows you to be totally focused on your goal.

Photographing alone is the favored choice of many photographers, it helps you get more in the zone.

Get your own angle – There will never be another photographer standing in the way of your composition when you photograph alone. Equally, you don’t need to worry about getting in the way of someone else, or getting to the best angle second.
Curate your own photo – Those who do portrait photography will know that creative control of the pose and position of your model are key. As is forming a close working relationship with your model. When photographing without other photographers these things are easier to achieve.
Learn from your own mistakes – You’ll make mistakes along the way, even those with experience do. It might mean adding to your knowledge after you have made your mistake, but the next time you photograph this self-improvement will take you up a level.

The chance to work one to one with a model means you can work on your own concepts and ideas.

Photographing with a group

Of course, sharing your photography with others has some drawbacks, but there are also a lot of positives to photographing with other people. So whether you’re a solo or group photographer take a look at this list, and decide for yourself if you can benefit from joining a group, even if only occasionally.

Share your experience – The act of exploring and seeing a new place is often more pleasurable when you have company. You may even be able to model for each other if the location would be better enhanced with a person in the scene.
Pool your resources – Photography can be expensive when it comes to equipment, model hire, and location rental. These costs can be cut considerably by joining forces with other photographers.
Share knowledge – One of the very best ways to learn about photography is from other photographers, that’s why you’re here right? Whether you’re experienced or new to photography you’ll find everyone can offer advice or tips that could improve your work.

Joining a group of photographer allows you to dip into their pool of knowledge.

Safety – Carrying an expensive piece of camera gear? Heading out late at night for some photography? Having a few people with you when you photograph makes it a lot safer.
Collaborations – To create a group project, you need a group! So getting to know some fellow photographers will facilitate this. Likewise, photographing a model often takes more than one person, sharing duties to hold the light stand helps a lot.
Share your photos – Groups of photographers often share their work either each other. Sharing your photos is a great way to improve your photography, as you often get feedback on the photos you have shared.

This group of photographers was on a photo walk which I organized.

This is a photo taken on that photo walk, it was later shared with the participants through social media.

Being a solo or group photographer, which is best?

There are lots of pros and cons for shooting alone or with a group of photographers. The best answer is to make time to do both. Join a group perhaps once a week, and photograph by yourself on other occasions.

The genre of photography you do will also have a big impact on your choice, portrait photographers using strobes often need a team. On the other hand, if you’re a landscape or street photographer photographing alone may be best.

There is a middle solution though. The group doesn’t have to be large, perhaps only two or three. When all the photographers share the same interest, it can be just like photographing alone, only you have a group.

Are you a solo or group photographer? Why not be both? My friend and fellow dPS writer Pete DeMarco is someone with whom I’ve often photographed. We allowed each other enough space to photograph “alone” but then meet later after we’re done shooting.

Myself and Pete enjoy taking cityscape photos, so meeting up to do the same style of photography makes sense.

What kind of group should you join?

There are plenty of types of groups that you can join if you’re interested in meeting some new people. Not all of them even require you to meet other photographers in person, we do after all live in a digital global age. So let’s take a look at a few possibilities.

Attend a photo walk – These are often one-off events and can involve large crowds. They’re great for meeting a lot of new faces, not always so good for taking the best photo. A very well known event like this is Scott Kelby’s worldwide photo walk, held once a year. An alternative idea to a photo walk is a potluck photography party, why not try it out?

This steel wool fire spinning photography event was organized by a photography club.

Join a photo club – A great way to meet other photographers on a regular basis, and therefore learn from them. Groups like this often organize photography outings or perhaps hire a model for the club members to work with and photograph.
Online communities – In reading and participating with this website you are part of a photography community. Even though not in person, participating online is a great way to gain knowledge. There is always the possibility of travel as well, you can meet people on a trip perhaps.
Take part in a workshop – Meeting other photographers on a workshop is a great way to socialize, and learn at the same time.

Joining a group of photographer allows you to share the cost of hiring a model. It also means you lose control of pose and position. You also need to avoid getting into each other’s photos.

Are you a solo or a group photographer?

So which kind of photographer are you? A solo or a group photographer? Are there any other reasons why you like to photograph alone, or in a group?

If you photograph alone, why not reach out to a group and become part of a community. Although it’s nice to photograph alone, there is a raft of benefits to joining up with others. You’ll likely make some new friends, the type you can form a close friendship with through a shared interest.

The post Pros an Cons of Shooting Alone Versus Being a Group Photographer? by Simon Bond appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Video: The pros and cons of natural light vs off-camera flash

15 Sep

Photographer Manny Ortiz took to the woods with his wife and model Diana during golden hour to film a comparison video that many amateur photographers on up will find useful: natural light vs off-camera flash. What are the pros of each setup, why would you choose one over the other, and how can off-camera flash make natural light photos look even better? Manny dives into all of this while performing a live shooting demo.

The video starts with a quick demo where Manny alternates between shooting natural light and off-camera flash to illustrate how each style changes his settings and the final product. Then, once he’s finished, he breaks down the pros and cons of each style.

Here are a couple of before and after pictures Manny shared with us from his demonstration, so you can see the difference between his natural light only portraits and the ones augmented by off-camera flash:

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After the demo Manny discusses the reasons he shoots both natural light and off-camera flash, and when he chooses to shoot which style.

Traditionally a flash photographer, shooting natural light only is ‘liberating’ for Manny. He also appreciates the ability to stay mostly incognito when shooting on-location in a popular area—nobody wants to draw a crowd or unwanted attention during a portrait shoot.

On the other hand, flash photography gives Manny the option to create his own light when mother nature doesn’t cooperate or the time of day isn’t ideal. And since so many portrait photographers start out shooting natural light, properly using off-camera flash can help you to stand out from the crowd.

To hear more of Manny’s thoughts or see him in action, check out the full video above. And if you want to see more of his work, don’t forget to follow him on Instagram where he’s most active.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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10 Things You Can Learn from the Pros to Help You Take Better Photos

28 Aug

As a photographer, there are so many things that you learn and do on a regular basis. Creating habits in your craft is a good approach to making it become second nature. Here are a few things that most professionals do that you can incorporate into your workflow to help you take better photos.

10 Things You Can Learn from Professional Photographers to Help You Take Better Photos

1. Blink Blink

Pros use the highlight overexposure alert. If you have this turned on in your camera, you will no doubt understand one of its more common name, “blinkies”. When this feature is turned on, it gives a preview of your image with blown out highlights slowly blinking black and white, as a warning.

Blinkies (or blown out highlights) are not always wrong, but if it is in an area you want to show detail, then this information will be useful. You can then correct the exposure as necessary and review the image again.

10 Things You Can Learn from the Pros to Help You Take Better Photos

The highlight alert (circled) blinks to show an overexposed/blown out sky.

2. Focus Focus

Knowing how to quickly move your focus point where you want it is a definite plus. On the opposite side of that is locking focus, which is another great skill to have. Both tell your camera exactly where you want to focus. Moving your focus point helps you place it exactly where you want while locking your focus enables you to grab your focus point, lock it in and recompose your image.

Knowing when to use both of these can also help you get more creative, so practice.

3. Know when to use spot metering

The in-camera light meter helps you determine how to adjust your exposure settings by measuring the brightness of the scene. The default metering mode in your camera is most likely set to Matrix mode (also called Evaluative or Pattern metering).

Evaluative metering works well in most situations but pros know that there are times when they need to switch. Spot metering evaluates only the light around your focal point and calculates exposure based on just that area. Some examples of when a pro would use spot metering include; photographing the moon, someone on a stage, or any scene with a lot of contrast.

Evaluative Metering versus Spot Metering.

A good way to learn when Spot metering is the right choice is by switching to it from time to time and looking at your results.

4. Use Live View to set White Balance

A handy little trick is using the LCD monitor at the back of the camera to set your White Balance (WB). This way you get a real time preview of what your final shot will look like comparatively. This is especially handy if you are shooting jpeg and don’t have the luxury of changing the White Balance after the fact.

5. Good Memory

Simple enough is to walk with extra memory cards. A trick that you can only get from experience though is not cramming too much on any one card. If you are shooting for any paying client, split your shots into several cards because believe it or not, cards can fail on you. If your shots are spread out, you may still have enough images to salvage a shoot.

Bonus memory card tip: Invest in good card recovery software. If you take your card out and for some reason are not seeing the images on your computer, do not put it back in and shoot. Good recovery software has saved many a pro.

6. Bracket

Bracketing in short, is taking several shots of a subject using different exposure levels. It is one of the easier ways to produce images with a high dynamic range. Pros also use bracketing when they unsure about exposure or dealing with tricky lighting.

Bracket images to reveal more dynamic range.

7. Sharpness – Check

By now you may have realized that everything looks sharp on a 3” screen – only to open it up on your computer and see that it is blurry. You could save yourself some heartache by zooming in and checking the image sharpness while you’re still in the field as the pros do.

8. Extra Batteries

When packing your gear, always make room for extra camera batteries. This seems obvious enough, but of note is that if you are shooting in cold weather you may even need to supplement that. Batteries are the one part of your camera that is affected the most by cold weather. A drop in temperature causes your battery to deplete faster and thus not last as long. Keep this in mind the next time you are outdoors targeting golden hour into twilight time.

Pack extra batteries when shooting in the cold.

9. Use a lens hood

The main reason to use a lens hood is to prevent side light from hitting the front of the lens. A lens hood thus reduces or eliminates lens flare that can occur when shooting outdoors during daylight hours.

But, most pros keep their lens hood on even when shooting indoors for more than just blocking light. They use it as protection against scratches, cracks, fingerprints and even some impact. It’s a good habit to use a lens hood.

10. Beep Beep Beep

Backup your images. Pros will tell you that this is at the top of their list. One recommended backup strategy is twice before formatting your memory cards – once to your computer and make a secondary copy to an external drive. If you are even more paranoid, it does not hurt to back up while out in the field. There are a number of portable drives available where you can copy your cards over without a computer.

Backup your images to save yourself some heartache.

Conclusion

Those were just a few of the many things you can keep in mind and add to your own routine. What are some of the things that you would suggest to help newbies take better photos? Share in the comments section below.

The post 10 Things You Can Learn from the Pros to Help You Take Better Photos by Nisha Ramroop appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Pros And Cons Of Working As A Wedding Photographer

12 Apr

If you love taking pictures of people in extraordinary social situations, wedding photography might be for you. Being part of such an important event in your clients’ lives is both an honor and a huge responsibility. But before you jump in with both feet, there are some things you should know to make sure that you’re choosing the right profession. Continue Reading

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