A camera lens is arguably the most important part of a photographers set-up, to the point where most professional photographers would rather shoot with an ok camera body as long as they had a top-quality lens rather than the other way around. However, if you are just entering the world of DSLR lenses, at first glance they can be a Continue Reading
The post How DSLR Lenses Work: DSLR Lenses Explained appeared first on Photodoto.
The post How to Do Digital Scrapbooking – A Fun Activity to do Indoors appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ana Mireles.
Have you heard of digital scrapbooking? It probably sounds a little weird because a scrapbook is associated with crafts and handiwork. But it’s also a way of preserving and displaying your memories with a specific look that can be recreated digitally.
It’s also a fun activity for the whole family, and you can do it indoors. Keep reading to learn how to do it and even keep the crafting involved if you like.
As you would do with any kind of album, you need to go through your photos and select the ones you want to include. Sometimes it’s easier if you choose a topic for it, especially in scrapbooking as the embellishment will be guided by it. For example, you could choose your first trip to the beach.
If you want to make the most out of this exercise, you can even organize all those files that you’re reviewing. There are many programs dedicated to this, some of the most popular are Lightroom or ACDSee.
The most characteristic thing about scrapbooking is the embellishment.
You can add notes, frames, and all sorts of decorations around the photos. Digital scrapbooking is not different, what changes is the way you do it. However, if you want to keep some of the craftings, it’s also possible.
Let me give you some examples and ideas.
I’m going to do my scrapbook in GIMP because it’s free software, and this way, anyone can follow. You can also use Photoshop as the main feature you need is to work with layers. Just keep in mind that the individual tools and effects would be different.
Okay, now that you have the photos of your elements, you need to have them ready for use in digital scrapbooking. That means that each one is cut-out so that it can interact freely with others.
For this, you can do the work right inside GIMP, or you can use any of the many free tools to remove backgrounds that are on the market. I’ll show you how to do one here in GIMP.
Open your image and make a selection around your subject using any of the selection tools from the panel.
There is no right or wrong when choosing the tool; it depends on the image you’re working and your skills. For example, here, it’s easier to use the Rectangle because of the shape of the object. However, I could also use the scissors or the path tool to draw the edge manually.
Once you have it, go to Select > Invert so that it’s the background that gets selected. Then right-click on the Layers dock and choose Add an alpha channel from the menu to allow the transparency and finally go to Edit > Clear.
Now save your image in GIMP’s file extension by using Save As or Export to save as .png, which will make it available for other programs while preserving the transparency. Repeat the process for all the images you’re going to use and save them in the same folder for easy access.
To create the layout for your scrapbook, you need all the elements in the same document. To do this, you need to go to File > Open as Layers. Select all the files and click Ok. This will open one document with each photograph as an independent layer.
You can now use the Move, Scale, and Rotate tools to arrange your layout.
Keep in mind the order of your layers, as the ones on top will cover the ones below. So, if you want things to overlap, you can drag and drop the layers to change the order.
Once you’re happy, you can start adding notes, which is another important component of a scrapbook.
There are many experiments you can do to play with your text. Here are a couple of simple ideas to get you going.
Use the Text tool to write a title, note, date, or whatever you want to include. If you click and drag, you can create a specific area where the text will fit. Then choose the font you like.
In my opinion, the ones that simulate handwriting are the best for digital scrapbooking.
You can later change the Blending Mode to incorporate it more naturally into the image or create different effects. You’ll find this menu on top of the layer panel.
Another choice is to type directly in the background. Then use the Rectangle Select Tool and draw a selection around it. Then go to Filters > Light and Shadow > Xacht Effect which is a default script included in GIMP – 2.10, which is the latest to the time of this article.
This will create a 3D effect that simulates a tag for your text.
And there you go, add as much or as little as you like.
You can use it as a template and just change the image, or you can follow the same steps to create different layouts.
Have fun using digital scrapbooking to design albums, screensavers, wallpaper for your computer and so much more. I hope you enjoyed it!
Try digital scrapbooking out at home and share your results with us in the comments!
The post How to Do Digital Scrapbooking – A Fun Activity to do Indoors appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Ana Mireles.
The post How to Create Sun Flares Using Luminar 4 and Photoshop (video) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
In this video from Anthony Turnham, you’ll learn how to create sun flares using Luminar 4, either standalone or as a plugin in Photoshop.
This effect can be a great addition to any landscape photo or portraits, especially if you feel your image is lacking something special. This effect can possibly give your image extra life and dynamic.
Anthony takes you through this tutorial in an easy-to-follow way, making it easy for you to create your own sun flare.
Try out this technique and share your resulting photos with us in the comments section.
Do you have other methods for creating sun flares? Share those with us too!
The post How to Create Sun Flares Using Luminar 4 and Photoshop (video) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
The post Black and White Photography Exercises to Help You Improve Your Skills appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Kevin Landwer-Johan.
Black and white photography exercises can help you gain an understanding of how it differs from color photography. Concentrating on black and white images helps develop your photography in many ways.
“Color is descriptive. Black and white is interpretive.” ~ Eliott Erwitt
Loading a black and white film into your camera forced you to think in black and white. This is different with digital photography because it’s easy to convert a color image to monotones.
There are plenty of tools to help you do this. The Nik Software Silver Effects Pro is a superb Photoshop plug-in for converting color images to black and white.
Purposefully photographing in black and white is different than converting during post production. A photographer must think differently when their intention is to create photos without color. You see in color, so you must learn to disregard the color and think in black and white. Good black and white photography is not about taking the colors out of a photo.
Black and white photography relies on contrast and tone range and how these relate within your compositions. You must learn to look at the tones, not the colors, as you compose your photos.
Light has a huge influence on the tones in a photograph. The camera records reflected light to make photos. The amount and quality of the light used defines how a subject will appear when you take a photo of it. Hard light or soft light will produce very different results. This is the same with color, but it’s more pronounced in black and white photography.
One of the best ways you can learn to do this is by practicing black and white photography exercises.
Find one or two interesting subjects to photograph for these exercises. You may even choose to set up a small still life scene with various objects you have around the house. This will allow you to make comparisons and see differences.
You need to find things you can move around and place in different locations.
Look for things that are not all black or all white. A mixture of tones will produce the most helpful results. If you photograph something(s) with white, black and mid-tones you’re going to be able to see the effects more clearly in your photos.
The main aim of these black and white photography exercises is to help you develop a better understanding of tone. Don’t try to make masterpiece photos that you’ll hang on your living room wall. If you do, that will be a bonus.
The reason you need to photograph something you can move is so you can photograph it in different locations and lighting conditions.
The type of light you photograph your subjects in, directly affects how they will look. Using hard light will produce very different-looking black and white photos than when you use soft light.
Strong light creates high contrast, no matter what tone your subject is. Soft light makes an even exposure much easier. Think about the quality of light and how it affects the look and feel of your photographs as you work.
Place your subject in a location with hard light. Outside on a sunny day is ideal because you’ll be able to see where the shadows fall.
If you can’t manage that, using an on-camera flash with no diffuser will produce a hard light. You’ll need to take test images and study them to see where the shadows fall.
Take a series of photos from the first angle you think of. Expose some normally. Use averaged metering and set your exposure so the meter reads zero, or let your camera choose the setting if you use an auto mode.
Next, expose for the highlights.
Take a light meter reading from the brightest part of your composition.
To do this, set your camera’s meter to spot and point the spot at the bright area to take your reading. If you use live view, your camera may display the way your photo will look when you use manual mode. This way, you can adjust the exposure for the highlights based on what you see on your monitor. On many mirrorless cameras, the viewfinder will display the exposure the same as this when you are set to manual mode.
After taking a few photos with these settings, use the same technique to set your exposure so the shadow areas will be exposed well. Take another series of photos.
If you’re finding this exercise valuable and you have time, repeat this process.
Move around your subject and make compositions from different angles. Remember, the first angle you think to take a photo from is the most obvious, but not always the most interesting. Look at the way the light is falling on your subject and how the shadows look. Repeat the process and take photos at the three different exposure settings.
If you’re photographing outdoors in the sun, move your subject into a shady area. Find somewhere outside where there’s still plenty of daylight.
If you’re inside and have been using your flash, take this next series of photos without using your flash. You may need a tripod if there’s not much light.
Repeat the same series of exposures as you did when you were photographing in hard light. Think about the tones in your composition when you are making your exposure readings and looking at the results.
If you’ve been photographing outdoors, move your subject inside and away from any windows or other strong light and repeat the whole process. This lower contrast situation will produce different results again. The variation will be subtle, but it’s interesting to see.
During this process, make notes about what you are doing and your thought process. You don’t need to record your camera settings as these are included in the EXIF data. Instead, write down what you are observing with the tones, light and shadows. Why did you take photos from these angles? How has the light and tone affected the way you’ve chosen to compose your photos?
Especially in hard light, shadows have a major impact on black and white photography exercises.
Think about where the light is coming from in relation to where you are with your camera. How does this change the way the composition looks when you move around your subject? How does it change when you move your subject?
This is easier to see when you are working with the sun as your light source. Using flash, you’ll need to refer back to your monitor often to see the variations. Look at the differences in the shadow areas in the different sets of photos. How different do they look when you exposed for the shadows and when you exposed for the highlights?
Once you’ve uploaded the photos to your computer. Select one image from each setup and each exposure setting. Simply desaturate all of these photos. This is not an ideal means for converting your photos to black and white, but it will suffice for this exercise.
Now look at these and compare them. Think about the way they look and the differences between the exposure settings. Consider how the various light has had an effect on the tone of your subjects.
Under hard light and soft light, you’ll notice the tone of your subjects looks different. Each set of photos taken at the various exposure settings will produce very different results. This is particularly noticeable with those taken under hard light.
Choose one photo from each set to make some further post-processing adjustments. Work with the sliders for:
Experiment with these various settings. Play with them. Discover how much impact post-processing has on these black and white photography exercises. What you can do with post-processing monotone images is beyond the scope of this article, so just have some fun with it.
I’d love to see some of your best results and know what you learned by doing this exercise. You can share your photos and thoughts in the comments section below.
The post Black and White Photography Exercises to Help You Improve Your Skills appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Kevin Landwer-Johan.
The post Weekly Photography Challenge – Window Light appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
Since many of us are still limited to where we can go, this week’s photography challenge topic is the WINDOW LIGHT!
Window light is the way that the sunlight comes through a window or glass door and creates interesting light-play on walls, floors and other surfaces. It creates shadows, it can sometimes create colors. Anyway, get your cameras out and capture the way the light falls through your windows.
You can also play with them in post-processing if you like – make them black and white, or boost contrast. The possibilities are endless.
I look forward to seeing your shots!
Check out some of the articles below that give you tips on this week’s challenge.
Simply upload your shot into the comment field (look for the little camera icon in the Disqus comments section) and they’ll get embedded for us all to see. Or, if you’d prefer, upload them to your favorite photo-sharing site and leave the link to them. Show me your best images in this week’s challenge.
You can also share your images in the dPS Facebook group as the challenge is posted there each week as well.
If you tag your photos on Flickr, Instagram, Twitter or other sites – tag them as #DPSwindowLight to help others find them. Linking back to this page might also help others know what you’re doing so that they can share in the fun.
The post Weekly Photography Challenge – Window Light appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
The post The Sony ZV-1 Is a Powerful New Camera Designed for Vloggers appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.
Sony is preparing to launch a new camera, designed specifically for vloggers:
The Sony ZV-1, a small camera that will pack a large punch.
News of the ZV-1 has been leaking for weeks, but as we approach the likely announcement date (May 26th), information has appeared at a frenzied pace, including leaked product photos, leaked press announcements, and even a teaser from Sony.
What can you expect from this compact camera?
While nothing has been officially confirmed, Sony’s teaser shows a small camera with a full-articulating rear LCD. This is fully in line with the leaked press text, which suggests that the new ZV-1 will offer:
(And more!)
If all this information is accurate, vloggers will be in for a treat; the combination of an articulating screen, a 24-70mm focal length, and Sony autofocus capabilities (described in the leaked press text as “super-fast AF”) will be too good to pass up for plenty of content creators. The press text also promises “high-quality sound capturing performance and noise reduction in full stereo,” in addition to “a wind screen” and a “3.5mm input jack” for increased flexibility.
The camera will also likely appeal to still photographers looking for a compact, walkaround option. Twenty megapixels is just enough to satisfy beginners looking to enter the realm of higher-resolution photography, plus the 24-70mm lens offers a great range of focal lengths for street photography, landscape photography, architectural photography, portrait photography, and more.
So if you’re a vlogger or a still photographer looking for a camera that’s small, mighty, and tailored to the needs of content creators, the ZV-1 is certainly worth a look. Keep your eye out for news of the ZV-1’s official announcement on May 26th.
Now over to you:
What do you think of the ZV-1? Is it a camera you’d be interested in? Is it missing any features that you’d like to see? Share your thoughts in the comments!
The post The Sony ZV-1 Is a Powerful New Camera Designed for Vloggers appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.
The post ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020 Review appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Glenn Harper.
It’s not unusual for photo-editing software to be multifunctional. Any combination of browser, raw processor and pixel editor is normal. ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020 offers a slightly different blend of digital asset management (DAM) and pixel editing. In this article, we’ll see what this combo can do for you.
Many programs that help you organize photos are, rightly or wrongly, described as DAM software. An example of this is the now-discontinued “Picasa.”
With that popular program, you could browse photos, edit them, add metadata, assign keywords, create albums, mark photos as favorites, and so on. It was comprehensive. But was it DAM?
A defining feature of real DAM software is its ability to create a database of your photos. Lightroom does that, as does ACDSee Photo Studio Home.
These products aren’t just an extension of your OS. They record things, like the location of your photos and all the metadata attached to them. And they create thumbnails so you can fly through your collection at high speed whether you’re connected to it or not. This is what separates DAM software from fancy browsers.
In ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020, the first three modes are for browsing and DAM. The modes are as follows:
*Note that View Mode is not a good place for assessing critical sharpness in raw files, as the software displays the embedded JPEG to maintain speed. This JPEG looks especially poor at 100%, but it’s fine for assessing content and composition.
When it comes to importing files into ACDSee software, you don’t need to do it at all.
The software accesses the folder system of your OS, so it’s enough just to copy and paste the files onto your hard drive. They are added to the ACDSee database automatically when you browse them later. That being said, you can import files via the software if you want and adjust filenames or add metadata while you’re doing it.
If you need to catalog lots of pictures without browsing them all first, you can do that too in Manage or Photos modes. This is especially useful when you first start using the software, though you must wait a while for the process to complete.
It’s all very well cataloging your photos, but there’s still a way to go before they’re genuinely searchable.
In Manage and View Modes of Photo Studio Home 2020, you can open the Properties panel to the right-hand side. It’s here that you add keywords, captions, ratings, color labels, and categories to your photos.
You can use any or all of these features to make your photos searchable, grade them, and track them in your workflow. In a recent sponsored article, I suggested using ratings to grade the quality of your photos and color labels to mark your workflow progress. This is a common use of these tools.
Keywords make your photos searchable using a variety of criteria. For instance, you can add different photographic techniques to keywords as well as describing the subject of the photo. How thorough you should be in keywording depends on your needs, but you can import keyword lists to avoid having to create them yourself. That’s a new feature in 2020, and it saves loads of time.
To the top left of the properties panel is a check box for “tagging” images. This is a good way to highlight your keepers and reject the rest (or vice versa).
It’d be nice if ACDSee added the ability to proactively reject photos with a dedicated reject flag. As things stand, an untagged file could be one that you’ve simply missed.
A favorite ACDSee feature of mine is the image basket. This is like a virtual folder, where you can gather image files from various places without physically moving or copying them. It’s very handy for working on quick projects without cluttering up your drive with duplicate files. You can use image baskets for purposes of viewing, editing and sharing.
ACDSee software is good at detecting faces, at least when they’re not obscured, and it’s impressively good at recognizing them thereafter.
Often, you only have to name a person once for the software to learn facial features. There are obvious limitations. It won’t necessarily recognize faces across several decades, for instance. But this feature is decidedly useful for cataloging pictures of friends and family.
Two-thirds of ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020 is DAM software, aimed at getting your photos organized and being able to find them with ease. If that was all you got for your money, it’d already be good value. But there’s also an Edit Mode where you can work on rendered files (e.g. JPEGs, TIFFs) and get them looking good.
You can open most types of raw files in Photo Studio Home 2020, but there’s no develop module like there is in ACDSee Ultimate, for instance, so you don’t get to choose the processing parameters.
If you want to benefit fully from shooting raw, you should link this ACDSee software to a raw editor and switch between programs. That, theoretically, would be a higher-quality workflow than having to address technical issues after conversion. And you still have the DAM side of the software for cataloging and grading your raw files.
A bit like Photoshop Elements vs Photoshop CC, there are things missing in ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020 that aren’t missing in ACDSee Ultimate. For instance, there’s no 16-bit color support, no layers, no perspective tool, no dehaze, no dodge and burn, and no Color EQ
. But these absent features are all forgivable since there’s a ton of stuff you do get.
For basic work on color and tone, there are the usual levels and curves tools.
In fact, these tools are nicely implemented by ACDSee, with a built-in histogram and an exposure warning that tells you when you’re losing detail with your edits. You also get a basic version of the proprietary Light EQ tool, which lets you adjust shadows, mid-tones, and highlights separately.
Given that many people only use the basic version of this tool anyway, this is a valuable inclusion.
I should mention once more that the clone tool does not work for me in ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020 (nor its predecessor). I just get a black screen. That seems trivial when set against everything that does work, but it’s still a tad irritating. I can use the heal tool a lot of the time instead, though its pixel-blending function is a bit different.
ACDSee could be forgiven for providing the bare minimum of Editing tools, but they go beyond that. You get a cross-section of some of their most creative features. Under the “Add” filter menu, for instance, you’ll find Special Effects. And there are many of them for you to try.
I like the “Orton” effect, which smooths details for a dream-like appearance.
You can modify all edits with blending modes, opacity, gradients and the Edit Brush. This means you can adjust localized areas of your photo a bit like you can in Adobe Lightroom and other programs. What you can’t do is work on multiple edits at the same time, but this is still useful versatility.
The Tilt-Shift filter appears under the “Add” menu.
The temptation with this is always to dig out high-angle views and create that miniaturized effect where buildings, people, and vehicles look like toys.
However, you can try this filter out on other subjects, altering their depth of field and bokeh. It works quite well on close-ups of flowers, for example.
You’ll find the Convert to Black & White filter under the “Color” menu.
This lets you fine-tune your black-and-white conversions by adjusting brightness and contrast in all the colors that make up your picture. Also present here is the equivalent of Photoshop’s Channel Mixer, where you adjust the red, green, and blue (RGB) sliders to achieve your conversion, making sure the total value is at or under 100%.
Color LUTs are found under the “Color” menu, too. These have become popular in recent years, allowing users to mimic the world of movie production by applying color grades to their pictures. The effect is often radical.
ACDSee comes with some color LUTs built in, but you can download more from various sources on the Internet.
Genuine DAM software, the kind that catalogs your photos, often costs well over $ 100. Or it’s part of a subscription plan that locks you in annually. ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020 is appealing not only for its affordability but because it’s a great photo manager, period. On top of that, it’s a raw opener and pixel polisher with plenty of scope for creativity.
If you’re sold on the benefits of shooting and editing raw files, you could pair this software with RawTherapee or DarkTable without spending more cash. Whatever you choose to do, rest assured it’s impossible to waste money on ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020. This software is easy to use but has a depth that far belies its price.
Have you tried this software? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section.
The post ACDSee Photo Studio Home 2020 Review appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Glenn Harper.
The post 3 Reasons to Introduce Motion Blur Into Your Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Kav Dadfar.
Making a still image come to life can be a difficult task, especially if you don’t know the full functionality of your camera. When you’re first learning photography, it quickly becomes second nature to keep everything perfectly in focus, so you don’t instantly know how, why, and when to introduce motion blur to your images. But before you introduce motion blur, first, let’s learn what it is and how to do it.
First and foremost, motion blur is a lot different than a blurry image. If you shake the camera around or your subject starts to move right as you open the shutter, that creates a blurred image, but not necessarily motion blur.
Motion blur is when you purposely create an aspect of movement for your subject, but the rest of the photo is in focus. This is a really important element that makes the difference between motion blur and just a blurred image. Without some part of your photo being sharp, then your foreground and background are going to blend together and the photo won’t work.
Motion blur should also happen to something that the viewer would naturally assume is moving, like a car or a person running. Adding motion blur to something that is typically stationary, like a book or a salt shaker that is on a table, will seem awkward. Even though seeing a salt shaker move at the speed of light is an interesting idea, it won’t really make any sense to the viewer.
Now that we have the basics down, here are 3 reasons why you should introduce motion blur to your photography.
When done correctly, motion blur enhances the storytelling capability of a photo.
Imagine that you’re shooting at a horse racing track. You’re standing at an angle near the finish line, and when the two runners pass you, you compose your shot with them both in the frame and the finish line in the background.
If you introduce motion blur correctly in
your photo, then you’re going to have an awesome shot of the two runners in
motion, slightly blurred as if they are still running despite being frozen in
time. The finish line may even be in focus, along with the spectators.
This brings the viewer into the shot like they are standing right alongside you to see the race to completion. It tells the story of what you witnessed that day.
If done incorrectly, you’ll just get a blurred photo of two blobs running toward another blob. The elements in the photo will blend together and you’ll barely be able to understand what is happening in the first place.
Another great reason for adding motion blur to your photos is to convey a sense of “action” or “movement.” This can make your photos seem much more dynamic.
For example, imagine a dirt bike that is roaring around the side of a mountain. Imagine seeing the blurred dirt bike racing along the path while the mountain itself is in perfect focus. It almost makes it look like the dirt bike is rocketing through the frozen image, or that you’re present to witness the moment yourself.
Or, for example, imagine a dancer. If you introduce motion blur, you can show the viewer the movement that is taking place. It could be that he or she is spinning, moving their arms, or even jumping. Having the right amount of motion blur can bring the dancer to life in your photo.
You’ll need to select a slower shutter speed than you would do normally to get this to work properly. The exact settings will depend on the speed that your subject is moving at. For the bike example above, you won’t need a shutter as slow as you would need for someone walking for example.
If you set up your camera when the lighting conditions are dark, and set a slow shutter speed so that you have a longer exposure, you can create streaking lights that not only tell a story but also look fantastic.
First, you need to make sure that you have a steady tripod. Without it, you won’t get anything other than a completely blurred picture unless you raise your ISO ridiculously high. The problem with doing that is the amount of unwanted noise that you will end up with being in your photo. So if you want the best photo possible, use a tripod.
The long exposure will mean that any vehicles that drive past will create a streaked-light effect, or the stars above will streak across the frame as the Earth rotates.
Attempting this during the day won’t work unless you use a neutral density filter like a Lee little or big stopper. Without a filter, you will just end up with a completely blown out (white) image. Even if you do get it to work, it would not have the same impact as when it is darker.
Getting the hang of motion blur photography isn’t very difficult. But to do it well will require practice. So, experiment a little when you introduce motion blur to your photography and keep these reasons in mind to help push you along in your trials! With experience, you’ll get to learn how and when to best introduce motion blur to your photography.
The post 3 Reasons to Introduce Motion Blur Into Your Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Kav Dadfar.
The post Photographing on Your Home Patch and Why You Need One appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jeremy Flint.
Photographing on your home patch is an exciting way to practice your photography. Making a long journey to take photos can seem like a daunting task because of the travel times involved. Photographing closer to home is a much easier and inexpensive prospect and doesn’t require venturing too far.
You may be wondering what a home patch actually is? Well, it refers to “a local area that is close to home and is easy to access year-round.”
A local patch can be almost anywhere nearby, and for most people will be on public land. It can be a location that is close by that you can visit with minimal efforts, such as a field, woodland, park, city, or river. Being nearby, you can ideally walk, bike, or use a vehicle to get there.
There are several reasons why you need a home patch. Firstly, good photos can be achieved close to home with minimal effort. I took this shot less than five minutes from my home. I simply drove down the road, parked the car, and took the picture.
By
photographing on your home patch, you can focus your efforts in one area, you can
re-visit the location anytime and you can spend more time enjoying your
photography and taking pictures.
Some great advantages of photographing locally include saving on time, as traveling is minimal, and the area is close by and relatively easy to get to. Going local by photographing on your home patch saves on costs as all you need is your camera. It is also a great way to practice your photography skills.
Focussing your photography on an area close to home will help you to keep your technique sharp whilst improving your images over time. You can even find a local project to capture.
Having traveled to several countries around the world to photograph amazing places, there is nothing I find more satisfying than capturing strong images close to home. You don’t need to travel far to create good photos.
For this shot, I visited the field of dandelions at first light to capture the early morning glow.
When shooting close to home, you have the added benefit of being able to visit your local patch when the weather is more favorable. You can also visit at any time during the year, which is difficult to do when you visit somewhere abroad for a week on holiday, and the weather is unpredictable.
Other advantages of photographing on your home patch are that it enables you to practice your photography more frequently rather than waiting for a trip. You will also be better prepared for when you do go on a long journey with your camera.
You may be wondering what you should look for when photographing on your home patch?
Well, once you have identified a great location nearby, you just need to decide what you will photograph. Your approach could be to photograph wildlife, landscapes, street scenes, or even architecture depending on your favorite photography subjects.
Finding great subjects close to home is easier than you may think. You don’t need to go on an African safari to take great wildlife photographs, for example. In the UK, we are lucky enough to have deer, rabbits and foxes for wildlife photography. When out in the countryside, observe nature and look for any clues of wildlife being present. You may find animal tracks or signs of life on show.
Local
woodlands and fields can be great places to visit and photograph too whilst
getting some fresh air in the great outdoors. In the UK, they are a haven for
birds and mammals such as squirrels and deer.
Rivers and riverbeds provide homes to otters, herons, and fish too, which you may be lucky to photograph.
Some other ideas for things to look for in nature are beautiful landscape scenes such as valleys, trees or hedgerows, and details such as insects and plants. Shooting close-ups can give a more intimate view of a flower or insect.
If you live in a city, your home patch can include street photography, architecture photography, capturing reflections in windows, doing panning, or light trails to capture movement of traffic.
Working your local patch helps you to gain a
better understanding of your environment and become familiar with your
surroundings, the lie of the land, the buildings and their inhabitants.
Whenever you visit, remember a familiar location can look very different in diverse light, contrasting weather and variable times of the day and year.
In summary, photographing on your home patch is a great way to practice your photography closer to home and generally requires minimal effort. Finding a local area to photograph that is easy to get to also saves on time and cost. Look to photograph something you enjoy such as landscapes, woodlands, wildlife present in nature and urban scenes in local towns, or cityscapes and night photography.
Be sure to share the images you capture on your home patch with us below and any other tips you may have.
The post Photographing on Your Home Patch and Why You Need One appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jeremy Flint.
If you want to give a presentation of your artwork online which converts to sales, you need a portfolio website. This type of website is optimal for professionals in the niches of photography, digital art, creative writing, music and more. It may seem that creating an appealing and easy-to-browse portfolio website takes an expert. Well, indeed, powering a modern animated Continue Reading
The post 10 Tips And WordPress Photography Themes For Portfolio Websites appeared first on Photodoto.
You must be logged in to post a comment.