The post Weekly Photography Challenge – Living Room appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
Continuing with the indoors theme, this week’s photography challenge topic is the LIVING ROOM!
Due to the lockdowns, I’ve had to rent a furnished apartment in a new town. It has a “sea” theme. I took this and made them into a series. In the third image, the shell close-up, I did it using the reverse lens macro technique. I took my nifty fifty off my camera, flipped it around, held it against my camera, and took photos. You get some interesting effects.
You could photograph objects in your living room. Create a still life from them, do interesting things with lamplight or reflections on your TV screen (if you have one). Photograph people sitting in your living room – your pet on your favorite couch (come on, I know many of you let your pets on the furniture!)
Do macro, wide, or do a series that includes all of them to tell a story. They can be color or black and white, moody or bright.
These are some quartz crystals that I have found while on my bushwalks just before lockdown. I photographed these in my living room next to the window. I used my iphone with a macro filter. These are quite small, but look rather large in these photos.
Try creating a series that work together too, if you like.
So, check out these pics to give you some ideas, have fun, and I look forward to seeing what you come up with!
Continuing with my living room “sea” theme. The close-ups where, again, reverse lens macro. The first image was with my nifty fifty.
Check out some of the articles below that give you tips on this week’s challenge.
Tips for photographing the LIVING ROOM
Reverse Mounting Your Prime Lenses for Affordable Macro Photography
Reverse Lens Macro: How to use it as a Great Learning Tool
How to Turn a Photography Technique into a Series
Reverse Lens Macro – How to Make Macro Photos with “Backward Thinking”
3 Tips for Photographing Mixed Lighting in Interiors
How I Shot and Edited a Series of iPhone Images
6 Helpful Tips for Doing Interior Architecture Photography
The post Weekly Photography Challenge – Living Room appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
The post Getting Photos Organized with ACDSee DAM Software appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Glenn Harper.
As soon as you begin using a camera with any regularity, you need to find a way of labeling photos and putting them in order. If you don’t, it could soon take hours to locate a given picture among all your folders, hard drives, and devices. ACDSee DAM software sets you on the right path from the beginning.
Cataloging photos used to involve writing on them directly or typing out captions on sticky labels. Many people didn’t bother, but digital photography made record-keeping easier. Original photo by Brett Jordan.
By investing in good DAM software at the earliest opportunity, you won’t get into a position where you have a huge backlog of digital pictures to organize.
By investing in good DAM software at the earliest opportunity, you won’t get into a position where you have a huge backlog of digital pictures to organize. In this article, I’ll introduce you to ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020, which offers a great set of features without breaking the bank.
More reasons for needing DAM
There are many
reasons you might want to locate specific photos among your collection. For me,
writing these articles is one of them. A set of photos illustrating a theme
might be scattered far and wide in my collection.
That’s where ACDSee’s Image Basket is so useful. You can work on
pictures from all over the place as if they were in one folder.
Ten photos from different folders collected in an ACDSee Image Basket. Note that I’m trying out a Lomo filter here using the experimental tools of View Mode.
Perhaps for you, it’ll be a photo book or a website that causes you to search for photos. Or you might be looking for portraits of friends and family. ACDSee DAM software includes excellent Face Detection technology. Once you’ve identified someone a few times, the software does a good job of finding other pictures of the same person. Or, if it’s not sure, it will ask you to confirm ID.
A quick demo of Face Detection technology, albeit using an artwork. With photographic portraits, the software learns facial features and starts to identify friends and family automatically.
A legitimate reason to label photos and get them in order is for posterity. One day, your photos may interest future generations of your family or even local historians. How many prints exist from the last century where the identity of the subjects and location is lost? I find that a shame.
Countless prints of places and people from the last century have become anonymous with time. Photo by Suzy Hazelwood.
ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020: A solution
There are some serious pieces of DAM software on the market. By far the best known is Adobe Lightroom, which happens to be a strong raw editor, too. Other examples include iMatch and FotoStation. But all these products come at a price.
The familiar interface of Adobe Lightroom on a MacBook. Photo by energepic.
ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020 is remarkable for several reasons.
It offers a lightning-fast browser, multiple ways to search your pictures, easy tagging and keywording of images, and a good set of editing tools for rendered files.
What’s not to like? You get all that for about a third of the price or less of many rivals.
Manage Mode
In Photo Studio Home and other ACDSee DAM software, Manage mode is where you make a lot of things happen. It’s an HQ for your photography. So, what can you do there?
Folders and catalog panes – finding pictures
The folder system
of your OS is accessible through the left-hand Folders pane in Manage Mode. And
that’s handy because you’re already familiar with it.
As long as your image folders are well named, it’s an easy task to find
what you’re looking for. Alternatively, you can use the adjacent Catalog tab to
filter photos by a wide variety of attributes.
The Folders pane in Manage mode. You only get to preview the images inside if they’re not in subfolders, but you can easily switch to Photos mode to see all content.
Manage Mode drop-downs
There are six drop-down menus exclusive to Manage mode: Import, Batch, Create, Slideshow, Send, and Editors. Importing files is easy. At this stage, you can rename files, add metadata, and divide file types into subfolders, among other things.
Building a contact sheet of flower photos via the Create drop-down in Manage Mode.
ACDSee links up seamlessly with other software too, which is what the “Editors” drop-down is for. Simply add any other programs you’re likely to use and you’ll be good to go. You can flick between them as you can with Lightroom and Photoshop or Photoshop and ACR.
Properties pane – organizing, categorizing
You can add metadata and keywords in Manage, View, or Edit mode of ACDSee. That’s what the Properties pane on the right is for.
As a stock photographer, keywords are a necessity for me. They help potential buyers find my pictures if I’m lucky. I add any words I think are relevant to the image.
At the very least, you should batch-add keywords to photos from the same shoot.
You can add geographical information to the IPTC data of your images by placing them on the Google map in Manage mode and hitting “Reverse Geocode.”
Import keywords
A welcome improvement in the 2020 version of ACDSee is the ability to import sets of keywords. It’s hugely time-consuming to create a keyword list from scratch, but now you can import lists from the Internet or elsewhere. You can also export lists so that you can move them from one piece of software to another.
Keyword lists help you to be thorough in your keywording instead of relying on random ideas. They also save you from repeatedly typing the same words.
Keywording in View mode using the foundation list linked in this article. You can adapt and grow your list as required.
You can import Foundation List version 2.0.1 into ACDSee. You’ll need to build on it, but it gives you a useful structure and a good head start.
Keywords are stored in the ACDSee database and can be applied to all file types. Note the “Embed ACDSee Metadata” tool does not write keywords to the IPTC keyword data field. I recommend copying and pasting keywords to this field if you want them to be visible elsewhere.
Here, I’ve pasted keywords from the Organize tab into the IPTC data field of the Metadata tab. This ensures visibility elsewhere. Of course, you could enter words directly into this field, but then you forfeit the rigor of using a hierarchical keyword list.
Photos Mode, View Mode
ACDSee automatically catalogs the images as you browse. You can catalog folders you haven’t browsed, too, which might be useful if you’re adding lots of pictures in one hit. This is possible in Manage mode or Photos mode.
Photos mode lets you rifle through folders of images according to their date. It even gives you a fair chance of finding pictures with no keywords or tags of any kind. This is a good way of seeing all the photos on your drive in a short space of time.
Flying through images by date in Photos mode. This was the day the “Tour de Normandie” cycle race began a stage in Vernon a few years back.
For browsing photos individually, View mode is the place to be. It’s
incredibly fast, and it gives you a big preview of each photo. This is also a
good place to grade, categorize, and keyword your photos.
I’ll give you a complete workflow to use below, so you can catalog photos like a pro!
Edit Mode
ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020 offers a solid set of editing tools for photographers of all levels. Of course, there are things omitted at this price point that advanced photographers may miss. Here are three absentees, along with their workarounds:
No layers or adjustment brush as such, but you can perform localized edits using gradient tools or a regular brush tool. These come with blending modes, so you get quite a lot of control over the result without the sophistication or confusion of layers.
No raw editing. You can open most types of raw files without any say in their processing. Don’t forget you can link ACDSee to a raw processor if you need that extra control. That may also solve the problem of other missing features (e.g. perspective tool).
No 16-bit support, so you have to save any files you edit in 8-bit color. If you bring 16-bit archival files into Photo Studio Home 2020 and want to preserve their color depth, you must use “save as” to create new 8-bit files with all your edits.
One niggle and some good points
On my PC, the Clone tool in this software and the version before it refuses to work. I get a black screen. That’s odd since I don’t see the same thing with ACDSee Ultimate.
There’s lots to like about the editing tools in Photo Studio Home 2020. You get all the control over color and tone you’re likely to need, including the basic version of ACDSee’s esteemed Light EQ tool. This lets you adjust shadow, mid-tone, and highlight areas of an image separately.
I like some of the little touches in ACDSee, such as the way right-clicking resets the default value of any tool. There are creative features here, too, like Color LUTs, Special Effects, and a fun Tilt-Shift tool.
The Tilt-Shift tool works well with high-angle views, but you can try it out on all sorts of photos to alter their “bokeh.”
Workflow suggestion
Although this is a sponsored post, I’m a regular user of ACDSee software. I use it to organize pictures and I edit a lot of TIFFs and JPEGs in it. Below is a Photo Studio Home 2020 workflow that takes you from importing photos to saving the finished articles.
Importing photos and naming folders
1. Import your photos. You can open the Import dialog box in Manage Mode or have it open automatically by selecting the software in Windows Autoplay.
2. Choose a destination for your photos in the Import dialog box. An example might be “Pictures” in Windows. Name a “single subfolder” using the following naming convention: yymmdd-location (e.g. 200531-Paris-France).
3. Locate your imported folder of photos via the Folders tab in Manage Mode. Using the above naming convention, the latest folders are at the bottom of the folder list by default.
4. Double-click the first thumbnail in your newly imported image folder. This will open the image in View Mode while allowing access to other images in the folder. You’re ready to start grading and cataloging your pictures.
Assessing and grading photos
5. Make sure the Properties pane is open alongside your photos.
6. Decide on rejects by tagging all keepers with the checkbox in the Organize pane (top left). At this point, tag all photos you will or might keep for whatever reason. Important: do not reject raw files on the basis of poor sharpness in View Mode, since you are probably looking at an enlarged view of the embedded JPEG. Check the technical quality of raw files later in Edit Mode.
7. Flick back to Manage Mode and click on View > Filter By > Untagged. Delete your rejects. Or, just filter them out by selecting “Tagged” if you don’t like deleting stuff.
8. Back in View Mode, you can now rate your images. Ratings go from one to five. Rather than rate photos on a whim, I suggest writing down the meaning of each rating at the outset so you have a reference point. For instance:
1 – poor photo with sentimental value.
2 – adequate record photo, average family snap.
3 – fairly strong photo with visual interest, worth showing to friends.
4 – approaching your best, worthy of inclusion in portfolios.
5 – your very best, potential competition winner.
Tracking workflow
9. In Edit Mode, use color labels to indicate where in the workflow images are. Again, I have suggestions:
Red – to delete. Once you get raw files into Edit Mode, you can assess their technical quality better at 100%. You might yet want to delete some of them or downgrade their rating.
Yellow – editing in progress. Still more work to be done on color and tone or retouching. Perhaps other possibilities to explore or versions to create.
Green – editing over. Nothing more to be done with this picture. Ready to use.
Blue – to print. You can return the status to green once it’s printed.
Purple – uploaded to a specific photo website, stock library, etc. You can use the blue label for this as well if you don’t tend to print photos.
No Color Label – nothing done since the initial assessments.
10. Photos that need work (those with yellow labels or no color labels using the above system) can be finished in Edit mode. Apply edits ranging from basic color and tone to special effects and LUTs. When you’re done editing, change the color label so you know you’ve worked on it or finished it.
Categories and keywords
11. Give your finished photos categories and keywords. If you’ve imported a set of keywords, you can go through the list top-to-bottom and apply any that suit the image. ACDSee comes with quick keyword lists built-in, which may be enough, depending on how thorough you want to be.
12. Copy and paste keywords from the Organize > Keywords field into Metadata > IPTC > Keywords. Write a caption in the Description field of IPTC. Hit “Enter” or none of this will save. This makes the data universally visible outside of ACDSee.
Naming files
I haven’t spoken of file naming above, since you might want to do that at the beginning or end.
Each photo needs a unique name. You can do it on import if you like. However, if you later delete photos, you might leave irritating gaps in your number sequence (file names invariably include numbers).
A way around this is to forget consecutive numbers and use date and time instead. This works as long as you don’t shoot multiple frames per second, which would create duplicates.
Photo libraries always had their own file-naming conventions. In the digital age, including subject names in the file name makes your photos SEO-friendly.
I always rename files after I’ve selected, converted, and edited them. That’s when I do most of my admin. Raw files keep their original names because I rarely revisit them.
I recommend using a sequential number and place, or subject names in your files (e.g. 0001-Eiffel-Tower-Paris). This can often be done quickly using ACDSee’s Batch Rename tool. The number should obviously be unique in every image.
Get started
Photo Studio Home 2020 is nothing if not versatile. Seasoned photographers who want extras like raw editing or layers can hook it up to other editors and still benefit from the superb DAM tools.
For beginners or photographers who only shoot JPEGs, this feature-laden software might be all they need. Why not get your photos sorted now?
ACDSee is a paid dPS partner.
The post Getting Photos Organized with ACDSee DAM Software appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Glenn Harper.
The post Creative Abstract Photography with Food Coloring and Milk appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Megan Kennedy.
Like any art form, photography thrives on experimentation. Creative abstract photography with food coloring and milk is a simple process, but it produces vibrant and immediate results. Using ingredients sourced from the pantry and the fridge, this is a fun project with plenty of room for creativity.
f/5.0 1/125 ISO 100 x 2
A bit of history…
Ever since they were discovered, humans have been enamored by the creative possibilities of dyes. Dyed flax fibers found in the Republic of Georgia in a prehistoric cave have been dated to 36,000 years BP.
The earliest dyes were obtained from animal, mineral and vegetable sources. Rare resources that produce brilliant and permanent colors like Tyrian purple and crimson were highly sought-after in the ancient and medieval world. As technology progressed, so did artistic mediums, creating more accessible and safe dyes and pigments.
f/2.0 1/50 ISO 500
The practice of adding colorants to food itself is thought to have started in Ancient Egypt around 1500 BC. Candy makers would add wine and colored extracts to their wares to make them more visually appealing to customers.
Nowadays, a variety of safely consumable dyes are readily available in grocery stores, cooking shops, etc. The vibrancy and behavior of these colorants has fascinated many, with food dyes being adopted for artistic purposes too.
How to make abstract photography with food coloring and milk
You will need:
a camera with a macro lens or extension tubes etc
a tripod (optional)
1/4 of a cup or so of plant-based or dairy milk
food dye in a range of colors
dish soap (optional)
a white dish or bowl
a mixing utensil or two
paper towel or a sponge or cloth to clean up any spills
Setting up
The first step to creating abstract photography with food coloring and milk is to prepare your canvas – the milk!
Sit your dish or bowl on a level surface exposed to a decent amount of natural light (or you could use flash).
Pour your plant-based or dairy milk into the dish so that the dish is covered by a few millimeters of liquid. Make sure you have a sponge or cloth at the ready to wipe up any spills.
f/5.6 1/200 ISO100
Next, set your camera up. You want it primed and ready for action as you drop the food dye into the milk.
For this project you can use a tripod to keep the camera steady, freeing up a hand to adjust the dye. You can also hand-hold your camera, whichever feels more comfortable. You can angle the camera any way you like, just as long as it is focused on the milk-filled dish.
Now for the dye!
Once your camera is ready, add a few drops of dye into the milk. Start taking photographs, gradually introducing more dye as needed.
As the dye spreads, try adding different colors to create a more layered effect. You can also stir the dye with a mixing utensil, cultivating intriguing shapes and forms.
F/8.0 1/125 ISO 400 | f/19.0 1/125 ISO 400
To create a sense of movement in your abstract creations, try blowing on the milk/dye through a straw, or fanning the concoction with a fan.
You can even add a little water, dish soap or vegetable oil to create separation within the dye and milk mixture.
f/8.0 1/125 ISO 400 | f/13.0 1/125 ISO 400
Once you are finished with a batch of food dye and milk, you can start again with a fresh bowl! Just remember to add the dye gradually so as not to over-saturate the mixture too quickly.
f/3.5 1/250 ISO 400 | f/22 1/125 ISO 400
Conclusion
Photography with food coloring and milk renders visually fascinating results. With a few simple ingredients, photo-worthy abstract images are created in a whirl of unrepeatable patterns and layers.
I’d love you to try creating abstract photography with food coloring and milk and share your results in the comments below!
The post Creative Abstract Photography with Food Coloring and Milk appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Megan Kennedy.
The post The dPS At-Home 7-Day Photography Challenge – Week Four appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
As many of us around the world are continuing self-isolation, and social distancing (whoever thought that would be a thing?), we thought we’d make it a bit more fun and creative (as well as keeping our photography skills sharp). So, we are giving you (and us) an “At-Home, 7-Day Photography Challenge.”
This is now week four of the challenge (see week one here, week two here, and week three here. You can still do those challenges, as there are no deadlines on any of these).
This week we are going to focus entirely on post-processing your images and fun techniques you can try.
As always, it would be fabulous to see your results, so please share them with us in the comments section. That way, we can connect and share, and keep ourselves occupied with something positive and creative!
At-Home, 7-Day Photography Challenge – Week Four
Day 1
This is a fun challenge. Take a series of photos of anything and turn them into an animated GIF in Photoshop! You can also add text or make it into an animated meme. You can then use them for social media if you like! How to Make an Animated GIF in Photoshop
Day 2
This one shows you have to make a multi-exposure image in photoshop. How to Create a Multiple Exposure Effect in Photoshop
Day 3
Another fun one – create a tiny planet in Photoshop! How to Make a Little Planet Quickly and Easily in Photoshop
Day 4
Split toning can give your image some interesting effects. So, jump into your archives and see what you can do to enhance some of those images with split toning in Photoshop. How to Rescue an Image in Lightroom With Split Toning
Day 5
This one is all about creating reflections in your images. Make it look like a landscape has a water reflection! See what you can come up with. Create Awesome Reflections in Photoshop with Ease (Step-by-Step Guide)
This one is for creating photo composites. Take bits and pieces of various images and turn them into a new image! Fake it to Make it – Creating Convincing Photo Composites
Day 7
Create a cool photomontage with this great technique! How to Make a Cool David Hockney-Inspired Photomontage in Photoshop
I’m looking forward to seeing your results. Don’t forget to share them with us in the comments!
The post The dPS At-Home 7-Day Photography Challenge – Week Four appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
The post Review – Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 Lens for Fujifilm appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Suzi Pratt.
It used to be that photographers were wary of third-party camera lens makers because they often sacrificed quality for a cheaper price. However, that’s no longer the case today. In fact, third-party lens makers such as Tamron and Sigma are now creating viable lens alternatives that even professional photographers are turning to. Relatively new to the game is Viltrox, a Chinese camera accessory manufacturer. They recently put out the Viltrox PFU RBMH 85mm f/1.8 STM and I tested it out with my Fujifilm X-T3. Here are my thoughts.
Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 lens for Fujifilm
Lens specs
The Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 lens is a fixed autofocus lens available for both Fujifilm X-Mount and Sony E-Mount cameras. It’s interesting to note that this is a full-frame lens as it works with both Sony FE and crop-sensor camera bodies; if Fujifilm made a full-frame mount, it would likely work with that as well.
This is a hefty lens, weighing in at 1.4 lbs (636 grams). It is an all-metal body that, unfortunately, is not weather-sealed. However, it would likely be able to hold up well over time, given its hard exterior.
The lens is simple with no buttons or controls on the body, which made for an interesting usability experience (more on that below). It comes with both a lens hood and front and rear caps.
Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 for Fujifilm with the included lens cap and lens hood.
Filter size: 72mm
Focal length: 85mm (roughly 127.5 mm on a crop-sensor)
Aperture range: F1.8-F16
Optical structure: 10 Elements in 7 Groups
Aperture Blades: 9
Focusing distance: 0.8m~?
Flange distance: 17.7mm
Object distance image ratio: 1:8
Image stabilization (IS): No IS or vibration reduction
Weight: 636g (1.4lb)
Price: $ 399 USD
Comparable lenses
One of the biggest selling points of this lens is its price: US$ 399 for an f/1.8 short prime lens is a pretty good deal.
Looking at Fujifilm’s native lens library, your closest other choices are the XF80mm f/2.8 for US$ 1,199.00 and XF90mm f/2 for US$ 729.99.
When compared to these two lenses, the Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 seems like a steal at its price point, plus it is the fastest lens of the bunch.
Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 for Fujifilm compared in size to the Fuji 18-55mm.
Usability
Part of the joy of shooting with a Fujifilm camera is the experience. Most cameras, including the Fujifilm X-T3 and X-H1 that I use, have dedicated buttons and dials for setting details such as shutter speed and ISO.
All official Fujifilm lenses are built to integrate well with this shooting experience as they include a dedicated aperture ring used to control your F-stop. This little tidbit is where shooting with the Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 took some getting used to.
The Viltrox lens has no buttons or dials on it, and no aperture ring for adjusting the aperture. Instead, the front dial on your Fujifilm camera becomes the default way of changing your aperture. For long-time Fujifilm shooters, this is a strange thing to get used to.
Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 for Fujifilm on the Fuji X-H1.
Camera lens balance
Another thing to get used to is the weight of this lens.
Fujifilm mirrorless cameras are typically quite lightweight and compact compared to many of their full-frame competitors. As a result, which camera body you choose to pair with this lens can make a big difference in how you shoot with it.
When attached to my Fujifilm X-T3, the camera was harder to hold due to the shallow grip on the X-T3. In comparison, the Viltrox felt better balanced when paired with the Fujifilm X-H1, which has a more solid body with a deeper handgrip.
However, don’t forget that you can enhance the grip of most cameras like the X-T3 by using the optional battery grips or adding an L-bracket.
Autofocus
The autofocus is a mixed bag. While the autofocus mechanism is accurate once you secure focus, it does quite a bit of hunting when you first begin framing your subject. This is also not a very quiet lens, and you can hear the focus mechanism as it works to find focus. It’s not necessarily a dealbreaker unless you shoot a lot of fast-moving subjects, or really need dependable autofocus. But you get what you pay for.
Image quality
Image quality is spot on and in line with what you would expect from a Fujifilm camera. Sharpness, color, and contrast are all great at various apertures, but the best feature is the bokeh. When shooting wide open at f/1.8, you get bokeh that is insanely smooth and gorgeous.
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/12 sec, f/1.8, ISO 200
In conclusion
Is the Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 lens worth it? It depends on your budget and expectations for quality.
Many features from solid build quality, respectable integration with the Fujifilm system, and overall image quality are on-point. However, autofocus is not as reliable as it would be on a native Fujifilm lens.
Then again, you’ll be paying a lot more money for a similar Fujifilm lens, so if the cost is an issue, you really can’t go wrong with this lens given its price point.
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/5000 sec, f/1.8, ISO 1000
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/4000 sec, f/1.8, ISO 1600
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/2200 sec, f/2.5, ISO 200
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/60 sec, f/5, ISO 200
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/5000 sec, f/1.8, ISO 3200
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/4000 sec, f/1.8, ISO 400
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/4000 sec, f/1.8, ISO 800
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/4000 sec, f/1.8, ISO 1600
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/950 sec, f/1.8, ISO 200
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/2200 sec, f/1.8, ISO 200
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/300 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200
Fujifilm X-H1 with Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 – 1/800 sec, f/1.8, ISO 200
The post Review – Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 Lens for Fujifilm appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Suzi Pratt.
How many of you love wasting hours of time making the same basic edits to a lot of photos? Anyone? No? Well, that’s understandable. None of us like doing menial repetitive tasks and it’s no different when editing images — even for those of us who enjoy the editing process. The good news is that Lightroom has a handy tool Continue Reading
The post How to Use Lightroom Presets- A Handy Guide appeared first on Photodoto.
The post The top Still Life Photography Cleaning Techniques in Photoshop appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darina Kopcok.
Photoshop is a powerful program with a great variety of tools to help you get the most out of your images. From simple cleaning techniques to complex composites, the software offers everything photographers need for photo manipulation at all levels.
There are a variety of tools to help you, depending on your subject and goals for your image. With the exception of product photography, there are only a few key tools that you’ll need 90% of the time in retouching still life photography. Cleaning techniques in Photoshop are the foundation of beautiful imagery in this exciting but challenging genre.
Let’s take a look at what they are.
Canon 5D Mark III, EF 100mm 1:2.8, 1/160 f/9 ISO 100 Manual Mode, Evaluative Metering
The cleaning tools in Photoshop
There are just a few key tools that you need for cleaning techniques in Photoshop. These are: the Spot Healing tool, the Healing tool, the Clone Stamp tool, and the Patch tool. These tools are all you really need to take your still life images from good to great.
Each tool has its strengths and weakness. Some will achieve desired results more easily than others. When you combine the tools together, the result is a clean and refined image.
Canon 5D Mark III, EF 100mm 1:2.8, 1/250 f/5.6 ISO 100 Manual Mode, Evaluative Metering
The Spot Healing Tool
The Spot Healing tool is the quickest way to fix little blemishes in Photoshop because it doesn’t require you to select an area to sample pixels from. Photoshop’s algorithm looks at nearby pixels and replaces them with pixels that it determines to be a good match.
When using this tool, you have some choices that will help Photoshop make the best guess as to what pixels would be the best replacement.
You can find the Spot Healing tool by the icon that looks like a bandaid. The shortcut for this tool is “J“.
When using this tool, you have some choices that will help Photoshop make the best guess as to what pixels would be the best replacement.
First, you want to choose a very soft brush. Start with a hardness of “0” and increase it slightly if needed. When retouching in Photoshop, every image is unique, so you have to assess your approach on a case-by-case basis.
Proximity Match will only look at the pixels around the sample area.
When you use this tool, it’s best to choose Content-Aware Fill. This will ensure that the tool chooses pixels that will give you a seamless result.
In still life photography, it’s a good starting tool to quickly clean up any dust or small bits and blemishes before moving on to bigger blemishes or imperfections. It’s better than using the Spot Removal tool in Lightroom because if you use this tool repeatedly, it will slow down Lightroom’s performance very quickly.
Although the Spot Healing tool is one of the best cleaning techniques in Photoshop, one drawback to note is that using it excessively in a given area can lead to a plastic-like look. You may have to layer your use of this tool with others.
The Healing Brush Tool
Still life should look clean and refined. Canon 5D Mark III, EF 24-70mm f/2.8, 1/160 f/9 ISO 100 Manual Mode, Evaluative Metering
The Healing Brush tool is similar to the Spot Healing Brush tool. However, when using this tool, you choose the area that you want to sample from. This gives you much more control, but of course, it’s not as quick as simply using the Spot Healing tool.
Imperfections blend into the surrounding areas. the brush works by matching texture, lighting, transparency, and shading of sample pixels to the pixels in the area we want to heal.
To use this tool, pick a source point to sample from. Think about what is going to work in terms of color and texture.
Start with a hardness of zero. You need a soft brush, but can add a bit of hardness if needed, depending on what you want to heal
Choose Aligned and Current & Below.
Choose where you want to select from and head over to where you want to “paste” the pixels
When utilizing cleaning techniques in Photoshop, the Healing Brush is a powerful tool because of the control it gives you.
Using the Healing Brush to clean up small flaws. Canon 5D Mark III EF 100mm 1:2.8 1/160 f/5.6 ISO 100 Manual Mode, Evaluative Metering
The Patch Tool
Using the Patch tool in Photoshop is another important tool for cleaning techniques in Photoshop. It’s like a large, customizable Healing Brush tool. The Patch tool repairs a selected area with pixels from another area. It seeks to match, lighting, shade, and texture from sample pixels to the source.
It basically works like a “cut and paste” tool. However, it doesn’t work very well on larger areas because there usually are differences in tonality.
If you need to work on a larger area, you should attack the area by working in sections. Also, note that it also doesn’t work well on edges. In this case, you may have to use another tool or combine it with another tool for more precision.
To use the Patch tool, select it from the sidebar or use the “J” key. Also, decide on your blending parameters.
The Patch tool’s Content-Aware mode works on empty layers by sampling below. It shuffles the content around a bit as it acts like a patch. If you’re using normal mode, don’t worry about lightness or color, as there will be a healing calculation when you release the mouse.
Use your mouse or pen to draw a slightly loose selection around the problem area (as pictured above) and then drag it to an area that might work to replace the pixels. You can drag it several times until you find a proper match.
The Clone Stamp Tool
Perhaps one of the most popular and often used tools in Photoshop, the Clone stamp tool may possibly be your best ally when employing cleaning techniques in Photoshop.
The Clone Stamp copies pixels to a new location. With this tool, you’re literally painting over one part of an image with another. You can do this in both very small and large amounts, depending on the brush size you use.
Unlike the Patch Tool, it works very well in areas where you have texture, pattern, or an edge. It doesn’t work as well in areas where you have conflicting exposures on colors.
Although it’s a fantastically useful tool, when it comes to cleaning techniques in Photoshop, it might not work perfectly in every situation; you’ll need to combine it with other tools and techniques.
To activate the Clone Stamp, use the shortcut > Cmd/Ctrl + S.
Use the clone stamp to clean up areas with texture.
You can also use “T” to Transform to adjust further. This means that you can alter the size and rotation of your cloned area to make it blend better.
One last tip
Canon 5D Mark III, EF 100mm 1:2.8, 1/160 f/5.6 ISO 100 Manual Mode, Evaluative Metering
When working with cleaning techniques in Photoshop, it’s a good idea to work using a lot of layers. This will allow you to go back a few steps if you make mistakes.
Using these tools together in Photoshop will give you the best results and will cover most of your bases when retouching your still life photography.
Do you have any other tips you’d like to share with us on cleaning techniques in Photoshop for still life images? If so, please do so in the comments section.
The post The top Still Life Photography Cleaning Techniques in Photoshop appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darina Kopcok.
The post Stuck at Home? – Ways Still Life Photography Can Keep Your Skills Sharp appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Rick Ohnsman.
As I write this, many of us are holed up at home. So what can we do to continue to practice our craft as photographers, have a bit of diversion and enjoyment, and maybe learn some new techniques? I suggest you give still life photography at home a try.
Still life images like this were what painters often did back before there was photography. This shot needed no fancy equipment. The “light-painted” shot used only a flashlight and a long exposure. This is just one of the techniques you can try if you want to give still life photography at home a try. Canon 6D with Canon 50mm “nifty-fifty” lens, 5 sec. f/14 ISO 100
If you’re a landscape, sports, fashion, portrait, or type of photographer who does work requiring you to get out and about, working at home doing still life photos on the kitchen table could be a new thing. Still life? Really? Why? Well, stay with me here and we’ll explore all the things you can learn.
1. Composition
In much of photography, you deal with the scene as you find it. Maybe one of the best things about still life photography is you are in complete control. You pick the subjects, the arrangement, and the background.
Making a shot in a hurry before the moment passes isn’t an issue. You can take your time, practice compositional concepts like the Rule of Thirds, the Rule of Odds, leading lines, negative space, simplification, background choice, depth-of-field, and many other artistic concepts of composition.
You set the scene and are in complete control. Few other genres of photography offer such an advantage.
A simple photo that explores some of the standard composition rules – Rule of Thirds, Rule of Odds, Leading Lines, etc. The monochrome version simplifies the image even further, making the shot even more about shape, line, tone, and texture. Sony DSC-HX5V, 1/100 sec. f/10 ISO 125
2. Lighting
Let there be light.
You decide what type, how many sources, whether to use hard or soft lighting. Might some colored lighting using gels give the look you want?
How will you use light to draw the viewer’s eye where you want it?
Have you explored the use of reflectors, fill light, or “flags” to block light from certain portions of the scene? Do you know what a gobo or a cucoloris is? A shoot, grid, or gridded-snoot?
Still life photography at home lets you be the set and lighting director.
It’s all about the lighting. I photographed the clock in front of a computer monitor with clock-themed images on it. The clock itself, I light-painted with a flashlight. Canon 50D with Tamron 17-50mm lens, 10 sec. f/18 ISO 100. The kiwi slices were placed in a glass dish and lit from below with an LED flashlight. LG G4 cellphone camera, 1/30 sec. f/1.8 ISO 200
3. Explore camera angles
A distinction between a snapshooter and a photographer is the former sees a scene, raises the camera to their eye, and snaps a shot. Little thought is given to composition and most photos are taken from the eye-level of the photographer. Yawn.
In a world where we are inundated with images, making yours different is the only way to stand out. Finding perspectives others haven’t thought of is one way to do that.
Learn to see differently. This is a window blind shot as illuminated by the morning sun. The photo was then rotated 90-degrees counter-clockwise. Canon 6D with Canon 24-105 f4 Lens, 1/6000 sec. f/16 ISO 800
Rather than always shooting from eye or tripod level, mix it up. Get up and look down for a birds-eye vantage point. Get down and try a worms-eye view. Have you heard of a “Dutch-tilt”? Maybe try looking through objects, using them as frames for your subject.
Much of my photography is landscape work, so I’m a dedicated tripod shooter. The advantages of that are, of course, stability and repeatability. I can leave the camera in a fixed spot and move other things; the lights and subjects, use long and different exposures and have variations of the same shot.
There’s something to be said, however, for getting off the tripod.
Going handheld will help you move more easily and explore different angles. Whatever you do, let me repeat something I said earlier…work to make your image different.
See if you can identify these household objects. When doing macro, and seeing differently, even stuck in the house you can find subjects for still life photography. (Clockwise from top left – Canon 6D , reversed lens, 1/40 sec. ISO 400, Canon 6D w/ reversed lens, 1/40 sec ISO 400, Canon 6D with Tamron 90mm macro lens, 1/4 sec. f/32 ISO 1250, Canon 6D with Tamron 90mm macro lens, 1.3 sec, f/32, ISO 1250
4. Lens selection
Doing still life photography at home is a great time to explore how different lenses can give you different looks.
You won’t have to worry so much about dust getting on your sensor as you change lenses and you’ll have a place to put lenses down while you do change them (rather than fearing a fumble onto the ground).
Try some things. Note how a wide-angle lens emphasizes the size of objects nearest the lens, how a telephoto compresses space between objects, or how a wide aperture reduces your depth-of-field. Learn what the “sweet-spot” is of each of your lenses, that aperture where the lens is at its sharpest.
Table-top photography is also a great opportunity to play with prime lenses, moving the camera or subject rather than zooming. I’ve grown to love my little Canon “nifty-fifty” for use in doing still life photography at home. This economical little lens might be one of my sharpest.
Using my shell/beach-stone collection and a pair of my wife’s sandals I was able to make this product-photography-like shot. Note the camera angle looking almost straight down. Canon 6D with Canon 50mm f/1.8 prime lens, 1/80 sec. f/20 ISO 200
5. Get close with macro
If you’ve not tried macro photography, being sequestered at home is a perfect opportunity to give it a try. It requires practice, patience, and a controlled environment where you are in charge of the composition and lighting (and there’s no wind). Being able to slow down and pay careful attention is a real plus, as being meticulous is a key to making good macro shots.
Often, your cell phone camera can take a great macro photo. This feather was shot with my LG V30 cell phone.
So you don’t have a macro lens? Try some alternatives.
The reversed-lens macro technique is a great way to dip your toe in macro waters on a budget. You will also find that common household objects become fascinating subjects when photographed at a macro level. Just be careful – macro-photography is contagious.
Don’t have a dedicated macro lens? This extreme macro, (the drop was only about 2mm wide), was shot with an old Vivitar film camera lens. The lens was reversed and combined with three (12mm, 20mm, and 36mm) extension tubes combined with the reversed lens at 28mm. This is also a 2-image focus stack – one for the drop and the other for the flower inside. Extension tubes on my Canon 6D. 15 sec. reversed lens, ISO 100
6. Tell a story
When choosing your subjects for a session of still life photography at home, give thought to telling a story. Rather than just choose random objects, think like a movie set director using the scene to tell the story.
Use your objects, background, lighting, camera angle, and whatever other photographic tricks you can summon. Your objective is to make the viewer see the story in your photo. A picture can be worth a thousand words, if you choose those “words” carefully.
Carefully selecting your still life subjects can allow you to create a story. My titles might help you understand what I was illustrating here. “Awaiting Santa” – Canon 50D, Canon 50mm prime lens, .5 sec,f/5.6, ISO 100 , “Family Album Photographs” – Canon 6D, Canon 50mm prime lens, f/22, ISO 800 , “Doc Brown makes a housecall,” – Canon 50D, XX lens, f/XX, ISO XXX , “The Conchologist” – Canon 6D, Canon 24-105 lens, 1/6 sec. f/4, ISO 100
7. Simple is better
A photo friend once said something that has stuck with me about a good photo – “Anything that doesn’t add, detracts.”
It’s important that, with a glance, the viewer immediately “gets it.” Without even thinking, they know what your intended subject is and what you are trying to communicate.
Landscape photographers must find ways to simplify the scenes they photograph, but as a still life table-top photographer, you have complete control.
Carefully consider what to put in and what to take out, where to concentrate the light, what to leave in shadow, and what is in and out-of-focus. The strongest photos will be those with a single, powerful message.
Sometimes the simplest images can be the most powerful. Canon 50D, Canon 50mm prime lens, 8 sec. f/22, ISO 100. Frozen with flash. Ordinary objects can become much more interesting with dramatic lighting. This one was light-painted with a flashlight. Canon 6D, Canon 24-105 lens, 10 sec. f/11, ISO 100
8. Reflect on this
Reflections can elevate an otherwise ho-hum subject to a new and exciting level. When doing still life photography at home, a good method of creating a reflection is to use a piece of black plexiglass under your set-up.
Unlike a mirror, which will create two reflections due to the surface and the mirrored back of the glass, the acrylic sheet creates just one. Of course, the inventive photographer will find other ways to create reflections as well.
A piece of black plexiglass reflects the jar of marbles. The string of Christmas lights provides a background of bokeh highlights. Canon 6D, Canon 24-105mm lens, 1/8 sec. f/4, ISO 800
9. Bokeh and how to use it
“Bokeh” (however you pronounce it), is defined as the “blurred quality or effect seen in the out-of-focus portion of a photograph taken with a narrow depth of field.”
Still life photography is a great opportunity to explore how you can use it to simplify the background, keep viewer attention where you want it, and enhance the story you’re trying to tell. You can also try some special effects bokeh using patterns cut in pieces of paper and put on your lens. If you’re a shut-in frustrated photographer, why not brighten your day making some fun “bokehlicious” pics?
My Canon “nifty-fifty”, the 50mm f/1.8 prime which often isn’t much over $ 100 US, is one of my sharpest lenses. It also creates interesting bokeh highlights when opened up to a wide aperture. Canon 50D, Canon 50mm “nifty-fifty” lens, 1/25 sec. f/2.8, ISO 100
10. Food photography
Food photography is by its very nature, still life photography.
Top food photographers make good money by making food images look especially delicious. Study great food photos for clues as to composition, lighting, backgrounds, props, camera angles, and other tricks. Then see if you can emulate those tricks.
Maybe grab some cookies and a glass of milk, or a beer and some pretzels, and see what you can do to replicate great photo photography looks. Not only will you hone your photo skills, but when you’re done, you can have a snack.
Food photography certainly falls into the genre of still life. This is definitely something to try if you’re having to stay home. Canon 20D, Canon 50mm prime lens, 1/250 sec. f/4, ISO 200
11. For my next trick
Two different years I did what some call a “Project 52,” a photo assignment a week for an entire year. I made it a point to try some special tricks I’d never tried before – photographing smoke, water splashes, flames and sparks, and oil and water abstracts.
Using both long exposures, as well as the extremely short duration of a flash and a camera trigger, were things I learned.
If you need ideas, search dPS, or Google “creative photography” and see what catches your eye, then figure out how to do it yourself. Part of the fun of still life photography at home is using your creativity to make shots you’ve never before attempted.
Light for these shots is provided solely by the sparklers used. The long exposure allows for interesting light trails. Left – Canon 50D, Canon 50mm prime lens lens, 4 sec. f/11, ISO 100 Right – Canon 50D, Canon 50mm prime lens, 1 sec. f/11, ISO 100 Who says still life photos must be still? The “Raspberry Milk Splash” froze the action using the short duration of a speedlight, Canon 50D, Tamron 17-50 lens, 1/60 f/25, ISO 100. “Tumblin’ Dice” was a longer exposure with a second-curtain sync flash. Canon 50D, Canon 17-40 lens, 1.0 sec f/13 ISO 100
12. Advertising and product photography
Making the ordinary extraordinary is why skilled advertising photographers get paid the big bucks. Pick up a magazine and study the way common objects are staged, lit, and photographed. Then find some objects at home and see if you can emulate those looks.
What might look like a simple shot is often much more complex if you were to take a look behind the scenes. Don’t have a studio with a bunch of fancy lights and modifiers? No worry, see what you can do “on the cheap” with simpler lighting equipment. You might be surprised at how using brains rather than bucks can still result in a stunning photo.
When doing still life photography at home, remember that rather than having powerful studio lights or even Speedlights, you can simply increase the exposure time since your subject isn’t moving and you can shoot using a tripod. Small, inexpensive hardware store LED lights like these can work surprising well.
Something else to consider is making photos for items you’d like to sell on places like eBay, Craigslist, or other online sites.
Your item with a nicely lit and composed shot will attract much more attention (and perhaps even fetch a higher price) than a “quicky” snapshot someone else made with their cellphone.
If you plan to do a lot of this kind of work, you might also look into buying a simple light tent or perhaps making your own. For smaller objects, a collapsible light tent can be had for under $ 20.00 U.S. and will give you pretty good results.
Note the lighting set-up in the inset shot using just the cheap LED flashlights for illumination. When doing still life photography at home, learn how you can get big results with little lights. Canon 6D, Canon 24-105 lens, 3.2 sec, f/14 ISO 100I wanted to accentuate the “emergency feel” of this police badge and so used a blue-gelled light on camera left and a red-gelled light on the right. Canon 6D, Canon 50mm prime lens, 2 sec. f/20 ISO 100.
13. No travel required
Even in times when we feel more comfortable traveling, not all of us can get to the exotic hot spots where we see other photographers going. I’m not expecting to get to Iceland anytime soon.
When doing still life photography at home, that’s not an issue. No one is going to guess that the location where you took that really cool still life photo was your kitchen table.
I formerly wrote for another now discontinued online photo site, Improve Photography, and did an article called “Tips for the Non-Traveling Photographer.” I’d encourage you to have a look, as almost all of the images in that piece were done at home or within 20-miles of my house. Imagination can often take you much further as a photographer than a passport.
Stuck at home? Drag out that collection of whatever you might have and photograph it for fun. “Campaign Buttons” – Canon 6D, Canon 24-105mm lens, 6 sec. f/22 ISO XXX. “Foreign Coins” – Canon 6D, Canon 24-105mm lens, 2.5 sec. f/22 ISO 100
14. Exercise for photo fitness
Want to be more photographically-fit? The key is the same as increasing your physical fitness – work out more.
The key to being a better photographer is routinely making more photos, learning new techniques, and practicing. Waiting to pick up the camera until you go on a special trip, attend an event or make family photos isn’t going to cut it if you want to be good. Unless you’re taking photos at least a few times a week, you’re probably not getting enough “photographic exercise” to be a strong photographer.
No flash, but high noon sun, a reflector, an aquarium, a high shutter speed, a fast trigger finger, timing, some luck and a lot of tries were what was needed for this shot. I had a fun afternoon making all kinds of splash photos on a picnic table in the backyard. Canon 50D, Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens, 1/3200 sec. f/4 ISO 400.
These are unusual times. You may find you’re not able to get out as much, perhaps not even going to your regular job. So why not use that free time to keep yourself engaged, entertained, and further your photo education?
Try some still life photography at home. Shoot, review, repeat.
As you get better, do as you would with exercise, and make the next session more challenging. Then post your images online and here in the comments section of this site so we can admire your work.
Be engaged, be productive, be learning and growing as a photographer and above all… Until next time, be well my friends.
The post Stuck at Home? – Ways Still Life Photography Can Keep Your Skills Sharp appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Rick Ohnsman.
The post Does Olympus Still Have a Place in the Camera Market? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.
These days, all the camera headlines seem to be dominated by Canon, Nikon, and Sony, with the occasional mention of Fujifilm thrown in.
Olympus, with its Micro Four-Thirds system, rarely makes the news. And popular resources frequently neglect Olympus in their recommendations, suggesting “Big Three” bodies for photographers selecting a mirrorless system.
But what is this about? Why doesn’t Olympus, a camera company with a history stretching back to the early 1900s, get any attention?
Is this a mistake?
Or does Olympus no longer have a place in today’s camera market?
That’s the question that this article will answer. I’m going to explain the benefits and drawbacks of Olympus cameras compared to other manufacturers.
And then I’m going to give a verdict:
Whether Olympus is a manufacturer that still makes sense in today’s world…
…or whether Olympus’s time is up.
Let’s get started.
The cons of Olympus
No camera system is perfect, which means that there are going to be some photographers that won’t be satisfied with Olympus’s products.
Here are the key issues that consistently come up with Olympus cameras, issues that help explain why Olympus hasn’t been getting much interest of late:
1. The micro-four-thirds sensor
In many ways, the lack of interest in Olympus stems from one thing:
The Micro-Four-Thirds sensor.
Olympus only produces Micro-Four-Thirds mirrorless cameras. The company offers zero full-frame options and zero APS-C options.
Canon, Nikon, and Sony all produce full-frame mirrorless cameras. Even Fujifilm, which ignores full-frame, offers APS-C sensors that push smaller sensor technology to its limits.
Why is this such a big deal?
Larger sensors offer two key qualities over smaller sensors:
Better high-ISO capabilities.
And better dynamic range.
So if you’re someone who requires either of these features, you’re going to feel compelled to buy a full-frame option over a more limited MFT body. For instance, you’ll be hard-pressed to find landscape shooters who don’t use a full-frame body. Landscape photographers frequently deal with high dynamic range scenes and need to maximize low-light image quality, which is why a full-frame camera is the tool of choice.
2. Resolution
A larger sensor doesn’t guarantee high resolution.
But it is closely correlated with it. All of the high-resolution camera models in the mirrorless market today are full-frame.
And when it comes to the megapixel race, Olympus hasn’t been doing so well. The company’s most professional bodies top out at about 20 MP, with some of their models only coming to 16 MP.
Here’s the thing about megapixel counts:
While they often don’t much affect the average photographer…
…they are real attention grabbers.
A big portion of camera headlines is dominated by the latest megapixel marvels, which means that Olympus, with its 16 and 20 MP sensors, just doesn’t get much coverage.
Olympus’s OM-D E-M10 III only offers 16 MP.
And resolution is talked about so frequently that the need for a high megapixel count is burned into the mind of almost every beginner photographer.
Don’t get me wrong:
Megapixels do matter.
But they only matter to some photographers – those that need to maximize detail, printing sizes, or cropping potential.
For others, more megapixels are just a comforting spec, but not a feature that’s truly necessary.
3. Crop factor
Here’s the final issue with Micro Four-Thirds cameras:
You get a huge, 2x crop factor.
And this makes basic wide-angle lenses (e.g., in the 20-30mm range) become standard focal lengths.
For landscape photographers, this is a huge issue. For sweeping scenic shots, you’re going to need a system that can offer true wide-angle coverage.
Though this 2x crop factor can be a benefit for photographers requiring a lot of reach, such as those who shoot sports or wildlife.
4. Electronic viewfinder quality
It’s a fact:
Olympus’s electronic viewfinders just aren’t that great.
Their best cameras offer a 2.36M-dot resolution, and it just doesn’t look that good compared to many Sony, Canon, Nikon, and Fujifilm options.
So for photographers coming from DSLRs and requiring a clear, sharp EVF experience, Olympus’s options don’t cut it.
The pros of Olympus
Though Olympus doesn’t get much attention, there are things that Olympus is doing better than pretty much every other camera manufacturer out there:
1. Camera and lens size
One thing that Olympus does really, really well:
Camera system compactness.
This is where the micro-four-thirds sensor really starts to pay dividends, keeping camera body size way down and keeping lens size equally small.
In fact, while cameras by Sony and Fujifilm, in particular, are often very compact, these systems will often come back to bite you when buying lenses. Mirrorless glass is often as big as DSLR glass, and this can be a problem. For one thing, bigger and heavier is just a pain to deal with, plus big lenses feel unbalanced when mounted on a compact camera.
So if you’re a travel photographer, you’ll love how easy it is to pack Olympus kit.
If you’re a street photographer, you’ll love how small and unobtrusive Olympus systems really are.
And if you’re a wildlife photographer who spends days hiking in the field, having a light, small body can be a real lifesaver.
2. Shooting speeds
If you take a close look at Olympus specifications, you’ll see that a number of their cameras offer shooting up to 60 frames per second.
And I’m talking still photography, not video.
Let me clarify:
You can shoot at 60 fps with no caveats, no cropped sensor, no drawbacks (though it is with the electronic sensor, rather than the mechanical one).
This is a huge benefit for anybody doing high-speed or action photography. Of course, you’re going to fill up your memory cards pretty quickly if you use the 60 fps option all the time, but this high-speed option is dead useful in certain situations where you just can’t miss the shot.
And by the way, you also have an option to shoot in Pro Capture mode, which ensures that the camera starts taking photos when you press the shutter button halfway. Then, when you finally press the shutter button down all the way, the last dozen or so images are saved to your memory card (along with any images taken after you fully hit the shutter button). This is fantastic for getting unanticipated shots, be it in sports or wildlife or event photography.
So if you’re the type that wishes for serious high-speed shooting capabilities, the Olympus cameras are definitely worth a look.
3. Image stabilization
Here’s the final key benefit of Olympus cameras:
They offer the best in-body image stabilization of any mirrorless camera system.
Some Olympus cameras offer seven or more stops of stabilization when including a stabilized lens, which allows for handholding down to 1s and longer (depending on the focal length and the steadiness of your hands).
If you’re the type of photographer who prefers to work without a tripod, this is the absolute best possible way to do it. You can capture gorgeous scenics using narrow apertures and not have to worry about camera shake.
Plus, even for the tripod-happy photographer, there are going to be times when carrying such support just isn’t feasible. But if you have an IBIS-equipped Olympus camera with you, you’ll be able to get a similar range of shots without a tripod.
So does Olympus still have a place in the 2020 camera market?
Absolutely.
Though Olympus systems do come with a few drawbacks, they also include characteristics that no other camera manufacturer can match. Characteristics such as:
Camera and lens compactness
High-speed continuous shooting
In-body stabilization
Are these benefits worth it for everyone?
No. If you’re a landscape photographer who plans to make huge, wall-sized prints, you’re going to want to pick a different system. If you’re a sports photographer who requires the best autofocus system that money can buy, Olympus probably isn’t your best bet either. And if you’re an event photographer who consistently shoots with four or five-digit ISOs, then I doubt that Olympus is for you.
But if you’re a photographer who prizes a compact system over everything else, someone who:
Travels frequently
Goes on long hiking trips
Needs blazing-fast continuous shooting
Needs an unobtrusive system for street photography
Just hates being weighed down by heavy equipment
Doesn’t like carrying a tripod
…then Olympus is going to be just what you need.
So before you buy a Sony, Canon, Nikon, or Fujifilm body, ask yourself:
Might Olympus be the better choice?
Maybe it’s not. You might do better with another system.
But it’s at least worth considering!
What are your thoughts on this? Do you have anything you could add? Please do so in the comments!
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post’s poll.
The post Does Olympus Still Have a Place in the Camera Market? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.
The post How to Keep Your Photographic Muscles Flexing During the Times of Isolation appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ana Mireles.
We’re currently facing challenges that most of us haven’t faced before. How do you keep photographing when you can’t visit interesting locations or meet your models? Here are some ideas for you to exercise your photographic muscles during this time of isolation.
1/13 sec. f/8; ISO 800
According to where you live, you may be more or less constrained regarding your travel distances. Maybe the problem is not even reaching an adventurous place but you can’t even get to your studio. Whichever is your case, these ideas are meant for you to keep photographing with minimum resources.
Get smart
If you happen to be in insolation and unable to reach your equipment, maybe it’s time for you to go into mobile phone photography, if you haven’t done so already. Smartphones today have multiple cameras, a wide range of focal lengths and super-high resolution. This is not to say that you can’t do great things with lower-range devices.
The device itself is only one part of the equation, then you can go into the huge variety of apps you’ll find on the market. There’s one for every need and budget. Firstly, you can use a camera app to control the settings of the camera, and then other ones for post-production.
I took this image with a Sony Xperia Z3 using the default camera app.
In this example, you see the original photo on the left made with a very basic (and old) device.
The middle image is a version processed for Instagram. I used ‘A Color Story’; an app that has some basic retouching tools, sets of filters constantly updating according to the trends, and a grid to schedule your feed.
In the image on the right, I used the Photoshop app for normal post-production as I would have done on my computer. I cropped and fixed the perspective, and also did some fine-tuning of the exposure. You can sync it up with your Adobe CC account or you can use a lighter version for free if you are not subscribed.
Self-portrait
If you’re housebound and you live alone, you can use yourself as a subject.
If you’re a portrait photographer, this can keep you going while gaining insight into what it feels like to be on the other side of the lens. However, if you’re not used to doing portraits, this is your chance to experiment with new types of photography. If you’re shy, you can go abstract or conceptual; so no excuses – keep photographing!
I decided to go with a creative collage.
You don’t have a problem getting models? Still, these times are giving everybody the extra push into boosting their online presence. A self-portrait may be just the thing you need to build your brand identity.
Look back
Photography is not just about the shooting, it starts with the idea and planning. Then it continues during development and post-production.
So, to keep photographing, you can also work on the other steps in the process. If you have your hard drive with you, or have your work in the cloud, use this time to dive into your old photographs to do any of these exercises:
Catch up with all the editing, cleaning and back-ups that you just haven’t had the time to do until now.
Do a self-reflection exercise by reviewing your work. There’s a lot that you can learn and improve while looking at the evolution of your projects and techniques. Find your style and what drives you. If it helps, start writing down your thoughts.
Save an old photo. We all have one (or more) photos that didn’t really come together in-camera, but we couldn’t bring ourselves to delete. Maybe you have some new skills that can improve it? Perhaps you just have a new take on it that you didn’t see before? Maybe it still won’t be great, but it will surely serve as practice.
1/1600 sec; f/5,0; ISO 400
Post-processing
Use this time to improve and experiment with your digital darkroom skills by processing old files.
Another choice is to download images from the web and practice on them. If you’re not buying them from a stock photo website, then remember to keep an eye on the copyright so that you’re not breaking any laws. Some good free stock sites are Unsplash and Pexels.
1/50 sec. f/8; ISO 1250 Processed with the wet-plate filter from the NIK Collection
For inspiration, you can check out many of the DPS tutorials on basic and creative post-processing.
DIY
I’ve always been a fan of DIY even when I’m not facing any specific limitations. I think that doing things yourself can make you fully understand how they work. Anyway, regardless of one’s philosophy, now we’re facing some difficulties in mobility, availability, and maybe even budget.
If you haven’t done it yet, it’s time for you to try some DIY. Luckily here at DPS, you can find many tutorials on the subject.
If you’re limited in lightning you can try: Creating Effective DIY Studio Lighting with Household Items. DIY Flash and Lighting Hacks for Digital Photographers.
If you’re missing your accessories: How to Use Ordinary Items to Make DIY Photo Filters. How to Make a DIY Lens Hood to Eliminate Lens Flare.
If you’re lacking props and backgrounds: DIY Food Photography Props on a Budget. DIY Lighting and Background Accessories for the Budget Conscious Photographer.
If you just want to have fun and try something new: DIY: How to Create a Coffee-Stained Texture for Aging Images in Photoshop. DIY Photography: How to Make Your Own DIY Lightstick for Cool Photos.
Conclusion
Being isolated doesn’t mean that you have to stop doing the things you love. Keep in mind that you’re not alone. Share in the comments section, your exercises and ideas so we can support each other as a community of photographers. And, also share any of your images as a result of trying any of these exercises. We’d love to see them.
The post How to Keep Your Photographic Muscles Flexing During the Times of Isolation appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ana Mireles.
tool. This lets you adjust shadow, mid-tone, and highlight areas of an image separately.
