Category: Photography

The dPS Ultimate Guide to Fine Art Photography
Daring to be Different

One of the contentious topics in the world of photography these days seems to be what exactly is fine art photography. Ultimately it is what the photographer deems it to be, but in the world of art, there is a lot more to it. If you want to get recognition as an artist that uses the medium of photography, then there are certain expectations of what your body of work should be like and how you go about executing it.

Galleries and collectors are not going to collect work or invest in art when there isn’t a lot of consistency within that body of work. One fine art image is not enough to make you a fine art photographer. The work needs to be done with intention, with a direction, and have a consistency over all the images. A style is developed that is recognizable in all the images.

It is important to look at other famous artists, not just photographers, but painters and sculptures, to see how their work has evolved. See how you can do something similar with your photography. Photography is no different to those other mediums and the same definitions that apply to them are also applicable to fine art photography.

Who can be a fine art photographer?

A long exposure that was taken during the day, but the light in the image has been manipulated to make it look like it was taken at a different time.

Anyone can be a fine art photographer; there are no hard and fast rules about it. Though it does demand a fair amount of dedication. There are no rules or special qualifications that a person needs to follow or have before they call themselves a fine art photographer.

Some of the things that help define a fine art photographer

Perhaps the best way to describe how you can be a fine art photographer is to look at how they work. There is a lot more to it than simply creating beautiful images. We can all do that, but an artist works towards something. Their work is done with intention, and they have a direction they are following. Finally, there is a consistency to their work. Let’s take a look at each of these points individually.

Intention

Often when you go out to take photos, you pick a place because you think you might get nice images at that location. That is most likely never going to be a problem for you. But if you want to be considered more of a fine art photographer then you need to go to places that you know will help you create images that will further your work, and build your portfolio. There has to be some intention behind why you photograph things.

The cityscape that has some differences, but it is quite effective and if I was short of images for an exhibition this one would be included.

For example, a fine art portrait photographer who does images of people in certain scenes, like dark moody beach scenes, is not going to go and take photos of a baby in a park. Well, they might for a friend, but they wouldn’t include that work in their portfolio.

Artists are always trying to take photos that work with what they already have. They go out with the intention of photographing subjects that follow the direction of their work.

Direction

This is a lot like intention, but it means the photographer has direction. If they are taking photos somewhere, they are being directed by their previous work. This helps them to get images that will continue to follow that style.

Before processing.

After processing to give it my signature style.

Consistency

For the same reasons as intention, that same portrait photographer is not going to photograph a baby because it won’t give their workflow any consistency. For a fine art photographer, you need to have work that is fairly consistent and looks like it all belongs together.

That doesn’t mean it has to be the same subject all the time, it can also be a similar processing style. All the images are processed in a similar way so they look consistent when a gallery or investor is looking at the portfolio.

The more consistent you are the more galleries and investors will be interested in your work.

Consistency is important and making sure the images all have the same feel and look is important in creating a body of work.

This is definitely the case. I asked the curator for Stills Gallery in Sydney, Josephine Skinner, about how important it is that there be consistency in a body of work. This is what she had to say:

It’s very important. If an artist were contacting us, I would hope to view a resolved body of work, both conceptually and materially. Of course, we’re used to working with artists as they develop new work for an exhibition, but a cold submission won’t pique my interest unless you establish your capacity to deliver.

What is a body of work and how do you create it?

A body of work is where you have several pieces that show the consistency and intention that was spoken about earlier. When you have a body of work it should have a similar style and look as though one person created it all.

The subject matter should be all the same or very similar. There needs to be a number of images in the body of work so you can have an exhibition. The actual amount will depend on where you are exhibiting and how many are needed.

This is a selection of my work, notice the similar processing style, subject matter, and mood across all the images.

Artist Statement

Whether you want to believe it or not, an artist statement is very important. It doesn’t have to be an essay, but putting what you are trying to achieve with your photography down on paper is a great way to help with those areas that we just discussed; intention, direction, and consistency.

When writing one you want to be clear about why you are doing what you are doing. What is important about it and why you have chosen the medium of photography?

Here is what Josephine had to say about artist statements:

An artist statement is helpful: be brief, clear and use accessible language.

Some statements can waffle on and not make much sense. It is good to sound professional, but it should be concise and leave the audience of your work with a very clear understanding of what you are trying to achieve.

This image was taken with the intention of being able to change the mood and make it look different.

The final image. Many aspects were changed so this image would look like it was taken at night with just one light shining.

Look at some fine art photographers that are practicing now

Have you ever been told that if you want to be a good writer that you should study and read the writing of those in the same field? The same can be said for fine art.

If you want to be an artist then you should study and look at the work of other great artists, in this case, fine art photographers. Though, you should include a wide range of artists as photographers can also learn a lot from painters, drawers, printmakers, and sculptors.

This image of the 12 Apostles doesn’t really belong with most of the work, but it still has the same. The light has been manipulated, so it almost belongs. But, the different subject matter would make mean it would probably not be included in an exhibition.

You really need to look at what your work is and find similar photographers. There is such a large number of photographers working at the moment, that it’s hard for me to tell you who to study. But here is a list of a few fine art photographers to give you a starting point.
- Julia Anna Gospordarou
- Bill Henson
- Tracey Moffat
- Cindy Sherman
- Brook Shaden – artist statement and gallery of work.
- Andreas Gursky
- Joel Grimes
- Art Wolfe
- Annie Leibovitz
What is an Artist CV?

A cityscape image before processing.

The final image showing how the light has been changed to create this look.

This is very similar to a work CV (curriculum vitae) or resume. But instead of listing all the jobs you have had, you list everything that galleries and other people in the art world might want to know about you.

They usually start with your education, where you have studied and when. Then you list what solo exhibitions you have had if you have had any. The goal is to end up with a massive list of those. Then you follow those with the group exhibitions in which you have been involved. Then you might add what prizes you have won.

Finally, comes a list of places where your work has been published. For example, if you have had work published in a magazine. You can also include collections and in this section, you will mention if you have sold work to important places like a major public gallery, for instance.

Another image that has the same look and processing, but doesn’t belong. It does belong more than the image of the 12 Apostles though.

Every time you approach a gallery you will be asked for your Artist’s CV. If you don’t have one, it is time to start working on it. They are usually one page.

Here is a link to my CV as an example.

Do you need to study Fine Art at a Tertiary Level?

The simple answer to this is no, you don’t have to study at a tertiary level to be a fine art photographer. But the long answer is that if you do, you will gain a greater understanding of the many aspects of being an artist. The really good places also give you studio space and impose the need to work in that space like a professional artist would.

Another one of the power stations, that could work, but wouldn’t be included in an exhibition.

There are so many other things you learn as well, for example, how to develop your style or your body of work. Or, how to create the consistency we talked about earlier. You begin to understand how the gallery system operates and how to approach them. Often you are given opportunities to exhibit your work so you can get an idea of what it is like. These can help you to get a start on your artist’s CV.

The lecturers are usually artists themselves, so they can guide and mentor you. They understand what you are going through and their advice can be invaluable.

Getting a Bachelor of Fine Art is never a bad thing. Many other artists and galleries will take you more seriously because you have shown a commitment to your practice.

This one is a little different, but it still fits the artist statement.

Where to study it if you so choose

There are places all around the world and where you study will depend on where you live, the cost, and if you are accepted. Look at other artists and see where they studied. Do your research to find out what is available near you. Find out how many graduates of that institution have had successful careers when they finished.

Not all art schools are equal. Some have very good reputations, while others will get you the degree, but not necessarily the prestige. For example, in Melbourne, you can get a Fine Arts Degree from many places, but two are more sought after, University of Melbourne, Faculty VCA, and RMIT University. People take more notice if you have attended and graduated from those schools.

This image appears as though it would work, but since the rest of the images are more cityscapes and not close-ups of anything, it would not be included. If more similar images were made, I may have to reconsider that decision.

Keep in mind that this type of degree will not lead to a paying job, and you are being trained to be an artist. It is expected that you will work at it full-time when you finish. Of course, most artists end up doing other jobs to supplement their income until they are making enough from their art. Though this appears to only happen for a few. Nearly all teach or have other jobs to pay the bills.

I had a lecturer once that told us if we were still doing art and exhibiting our work 10 years after graduation we would make money from it. Unknown if this is true, but it is a nice sentiment.

Visit galleries and see what others exhibit

This was taken near a marina, but it is too different and I couldn’t make it look like the other images, so it would never be included in an exhibition.

To get a great understanding of what fine art photography is one of the best things you can do is visit art galleries, both public and commercial. You can see how the artist works, look at the consistency and also how the work all looks when it’s put together in an exhibition.

Look for commercial galleries that are exhibiting photography works, or better still find ones that specialize in fine art photography. If you can’t visit them in person, then look on the internet. They all have websites and usually show the works of the artists they represent.

Study the work and the artist. If you find some whose work you really like, pay a lot more attention to them. Find out what motivates the artist, look at their artist CV, and see if you can find an artist statement. That will really help you to understand their intention, direction, and the consistency.

Public galleries often have some of their collection online, but you are usually required to go and look. Don’t be disappointed if the photography section if very small, other artworks often get more wall space. You can look for galleries that specialize in photography, for example in Victoria, Australia there is a place called Centre for Contemporary Photography and that is all they show. It’s a great way to see what other photographers are doing.

Like the ocean image, this has the same look and feel, but the subject matter doesn’t match.

Here are a few others:
- International Center of Photography in New York City
- A Gallery for Fine Photography in New Orleans – they carry prints by many famous and iconic photographers including Ansel Adams, Julia Margaret Cameron, Henri Cartier-Bresson, W. Eugene Smith, Edward Steichen, Elliott Erwitt, and many others.
- Center for Creative Photography in Tucson, Arizona. They house a large collection of photography archives including many of Ansel Adams original negatives.
- Maison Européenne de la Photographie in Paris dedicated entirely to photography.
- Torch Gallery in Amsterdam
- Galleria Carla Sozzani in Milan
- Magnum Photos and Gallery – they represent several iconic photographers’ work and have a gallery in Paris, as well as events in many cities worldwide and a great online gallery for viewing.
- The Photographers’ Gallery in London, England.
- Camera Work in Berlin.
Study about all art, its history and what is happening now

Part of being an artist is keeping yourself informed. As previously stated, you should be going to galleries and seeing other exhibitions. It is so important to read and study other artists. It can help you understand what their lives were like and what drove them to create their art.

It is also good to keep up to date with what is happening in the world of art. Who is winning awards, what work is really popular right now, and how you could fit in. Look at who is being exhibited and which galleries are showing their work.

Look at painters, sculptures, and other mediums

Don’t limit your photography study to just photographers. You should also look at painters, sculptures, printmakers, and drawers. You can learn a lot from them as well.

Rembrandt lighting is a type of lighting pattern that portrait photographers strive to create. It involves a triangular spot of light on the cheek of the portrait subject. Photographers have been trying to replicate that style for years, but it came from a painter – Rembrandt.

The image is similar, but it probably wouldn’t be included in an exhibition. It doesn’t quite fit.

In some ways, painters were our earliest photographers as they tried to paint what they saw. Looking at their work is very important. You can learn a lot about subject-matter and more importantly, about composition. For those artists, the composition was key and they would have spent a great deal of time working on that element of their craft. Study how they put their paintings together and learn.

Sculptors create compositions and often work conceptually. If you are interested in conceptual photography then looking at how these artists work can help you find direction. See what lengths they go to in creating their sculptures.

Living an artist’s life and what that means

There is a myth that many creatives were “suffering artists”. That to be an artist you had to be in some kind of struggle. The other myth is about being the “starving artist”, so if you are going to be an artist you have to also be very poor.

An image that would be part of the body of work. It follows the theme of the rest of the images.

The first is a myth, you don’t have to be on some internal struggle to be an artist. It has been said that you have to go through disasters in your own life in order to help you create masterpieces. It isn’t true, of course. Very normal people create the most amazing artworks. There is a lot more to it than some emotional suffering.

In the past, many artists were starving. Even in today’s world, making money as an artist is incredibly hard. There are more people wanting to be artists than there are people wanting to buy the work. The reference to starving was more to do with making no money and not having enough to buy food.

The reality is that most artists live very normal lives. They often work part-time jobs to survive and live in ordinary houses. They are often very normal people. There are some eccentric artists, but they are more the exception to the rule. Many have studios and workspaces, and every free moment they get, they work in their art practice.

A cityscape that would work in an exhibition, it has the same feeling as the others.

Exhibiting your work

There are various different kinds of galleries and if you want to exhibit your work then you need to start studying them. Find out which ones are the best for you to approach first of the several different types (large public and private).
First, you need to find out what the galleries are looking for. Once again, Josephine has some advice for those wanting to approach galleries:

The first piece of advice I would have is to do proper research into which galleries you approach and be selective with those you do. We get submissions from painters, for instance, who haven’t even looked on our website to find out we exhibit photomedia and video. In the process of narrowing it down, bear in mind that if a gallery has an emphasis on photomedia that doesn’t mean that all forms of photography will fit with their broader aesthetic and focus. Also, be conscious that each artist brings something unique to a gallery so diversity is desired – they probably won’t want someone whose practice mirrors an existing represented artist. Lastly, each gallery has a different policy for receiving submissions, so a good idea is to call and ask what they prefer. Don’t just show up and expect to sit down with the Director!

A cityscape taken from an observation deck. While it is a cityscape it also would not be included. It really does not have the same look at the others.

That is great advice and a good idea for all artists. Do your research and study the galleries you are interested in to see if they are a good fit for you. You can also ask questions to see what they have to say. They will often be more than happy to talk to you about what type of work they are looking for, and how to submit your work.

Josephine has provided some information on how they find new artists:

Our focus is contemporary photomedia and video, so we tend to look at art prizes that are often interdisciplinary, such as the Hatched Graduate exhibition at PICA, and keep an eye on what’s happening in ARI (Artist Run Initiatives) spaces. These platforms provide an initial filter because the work has already undergone a process of competitive selection. Galleries with a more traditional or commercial aesthetic would probably look elsewhere.

Most galleries will have information and guidelines about how to send in proposals for exhibitions; you need to follow those closely. They get a lot of submissions and if you don’t do what they ask then you could be eliminated straight away. Do everything you can to get them to look at your artwork.

Preparing your work to exhibit

The subject matter fits with much of what the fine art work is about, but it’s the wrong colors and sends a different message than the others.

Having an exhibition of their work is the ultimate goal for most artists. It is where they develop a name and reputation. If you want that too, then you have to make sure your work is good enough to show.

There are so many decisions to be made before you do a show. You have to decide who will print your work and how it will be printed. Part of the reason for exhibiting is to sell your work and if it doesn’t look good then people won’t buy it.

Before the work is sent to be printed you need to make sure that there aren’t any defects in the images. When they are blown up, sensor spots or other unwanted items in your scenes will be enlarged as well. They could end up standing out so much that they take over the image. Magnify the image on your computer (view at 100% or 1:1 size) and look very closely for any mistakes or faults.

Work in an exhibition.

Work that is packaged and ready to be sent to an exhibition.

Find a professional printer who will work with you. Look for one that you can rely on, and who knows their business. They should be able to help you figure out the best way to present your work. There are so many options for photographs these days. You can do canvas prints, put images on fine art paper, and even have them on metal, which is very popular right now.
Then you are faced with the option of framing or not. Most galleries will answer that question for you.

Read my article: How to Prepare a Photography Exhibit of Your Work for more on this topic.

Editioning your work

This is not compulsory, but one thing that many photographers do is edition their work. This means they will only sell a certain number of that image or a limited edition. The artist sets the edition to what they think they might sell.

A cityscape that is very similar to many I do, but I wouldn’t include this image as it doesn’t have the impact that many of the others do.

For many artists starting out, the number of editions is usually small, around 10 or 20. The more successful an artist becomes, the more expensive the images get, and often the edition number increases as. Some will do editions of up to 200 photos.

For most of us though, especially starting out, it isn’t necessary to do editions. You may only sell one or two copies of an image. As sales pick up and you begin to make a name for yourself it is good to consider putting out editions of your work.

If you die your work will double in price

This is probably the biggest myth out there about fine art photography and art in general. While it is true that when some artists die their work becomes a lot more valuable, it isn’t the same for everyone. If the artist had a successful career and was being collected by a lot of people then there is some truth in this.

Image with similar colors and a long exposure, but it is not an image I would include in an exhibition.

When they die their work gains in value because it becomes rare. As no new work will be produced, all of their previous work becomes more valuable. That’s all there is, a finite amount, so it will increase in value.

For most artists, our death will only matter to those around us and our artwork will only increase in sentimental value. It’s sad, but you dying likely isn’t going to cause an increase in the value of your work.

Being a fine art photographer

There are many steps you can take that will make you a fine art photographer. There are many different paths and it is up to you to decide which ones you will take. In the end, being an artist is about doing work with intention, having a direction and working consistently.

This would very definitely be included. The light has been changed and it works with the artist statement.

Artists usually exhibit their work with the idea of gaining a reputation so collectors will purchase it. This, in turn, leads to their work increasing in value and they can sell more. Being an artist is a noble profession and one that dates back hundreds of years, who doesn’t want to belong to that group?

The post The dPS Ultimate Guide to Fine Art Photography by Leanne Cole appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School
November 30, 2017
4 Tips for Better Nightscape Photography

A nightscape is a representation of any place or scene at night. If you are venturing into this area of photography, you will quickly realize that there are some other things to consider along with getting your exposure right. Here are a few tips to help you.

1. Settings and Gear

Shooting nightscapes is a very cool way to teach yourself shooting in low-light conditions. The location and conditions will vary your settings, but there are a few things you can keep in mind. For example, digital noise is detected easily in darker areas. So, while newer cameras are handling noise better, it is a good practice to keep your ISO setting as low as possible.

Since light is at a premium at night, it is a good time as any to work with more open apertures (smaller f-number), to let in more light. At night, sometimes your background details are lost anyway, so there are few added benefits of having a large depth of field. Star effects are a nice exception to this (created when shooting point light sources with a smaller aperture like f/11).

It’s also a great time to experiment with longer shutter speeds. During the day, keeping your shutter open means you need to add filters to cut the light. At night you need to add light and can use shutter speed to be more creative.

Before you frown on High Dynamic Range (HDR) images, consider what value it adds. Bracketing is a good way to deal with the very contrasty reality of night photography.

Note: Long exposures also add noise as your sensor heats up (known as thermal noise). This makes it a good time to check that Long Exposure Noise Reduction box on your camera menu.

2. Location Scouting

As with other genres of photography, your location is important. Start with a plan of what you want to capture. Maybe it’s the city at night, that elusive Milky Way; exciting light trails left by cars or some sort of nightlife action. While some of these coexist, most times they are independent of each other and require their own unique conditions.

Since photography means thinking about your light source(s) at all time, night photography needs added consideration for obvious reasons. What are the light sources in your location? Is it a street lamp, the moon, building lights, traffic or do you have to walk into the scene with your own light (light painting)?

When shooting landscape images at night, you could get there before nightfall and observe how the light changes. If you do not have the luxury of time, there are phone apps that help you figure out the light direction of your location. Scouting for a location can be as simple as a google search, someone’s recommendation or making an actual trip to understand the environment. Familiarizing yourself with your destination in advance gives you a photographic advantage and even keeps you safer.

Bonus Tip: Water can be an asset to night photography especially where there are light reflections.

3. Moonwatching

The moon is a fascinating subject. Since it is a light source, you need to take it into consideration when scouting and planning your nightscape shots.

If it is your subject, then you may want it at its peak for drama (full moon, supermoon, or harvest moon) and shoot on a clear night to capture as much detail as possible. After you have worked out the correct exposure for shooting the moon, try composing it into a scene.

On the other hand, if you are shooting other celestial objects (e.g. the Milky Way, meteors, or star trails), it might be preferable if the moon is barely there or not so dominant (new moon to the first quarter). Like sunrise and tides, there are many apps that can help you figure out moon phases and direction in relation to your location.

4. Other Environmental Notes

Condition your gear!

Since temperatures usually drop at night, you need to be aware of moving your camera from warmer to colder conditions (the reverse is also true). Any seasoned night photographer can attest that “lens fog” is a nuisance as it blocks/cuts the light passing through your lens. Lens hoods help a little with reducing moisture build-up on your glass.

So another bonus of arriving at your location a little earlier is giving your gear time to acclimate to your shooting conditions.

Walk with a flashlight

A flashlight is an asset for several reasons. You can use it to ensure proper footing for yourself or your tripod. It also helps when you need to make changes to your camera settings (knowing your controls off-hand is very useful in the dark).

More than these practical uses, it can play a part in your night photography as well. Use it to light paint areas in your image or even create a light spot to help with focusing.

Conclusion

Night photography provides a great learning environment and gives you the opportunity to play around with your settings. Depends on what you are shooting, your available light is not changing quickly (if at all) and this gives you more time to experiment and get it right. You can take advantage of less traffic around or use it to your advantage (shooting nightlife).

Be safe while you’re out there and scout beforehand if possible. If you are an avid night photographer, share with us some of your night photography tips in the comments below.

The post 4 Tips for Better Nightscape Photography by Nisha Ramroop appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

November 29, 2017
7 Tips for Business Cards for Photographers

Having a proper business card is the first step towards establishing branding as well as earning potential customers, regardless of whether you are a freelance photographer or engaged within photography agencies. Not only do they serve to boost the reputation of an individual or corporation, they are also an opportunity to showcase the many good qualities one has to offer. Continue Reading

The post 7 Tips for Business Cards for Photographers appeared first on Photodoto.

Photodoto

November 29, 2017
Review: Interfit Honey Badger Studio Strobe and Universal Remote
Right now is a great time to be a studio photographer. Never before has there been such a multitude of options available to you in terms of photographic lighting. It seems that the recent surge in new photographers has lit a fire in the industries that create photographic gear. Lighting is a sector that has seen a huge influx of new options and new innovations.

Interfit has been one of those companies that constantly add to the mix for a while now. Not only do they make affordable studio strobes and continuous lights, they also make a ton of lighting modifiers and an indescribable amount of other studio accessories. If you need something for your studio, chances are that Interfit makes it.

Stylish design is usually absent from studio lighting, but the Interfit Honey Badger aims to remedy that.

The newest light in Interfit’s range is the Honey Badger. A small, mid-powered studio strobe that fits into the low-middle pricing range. the light itself is in a stylish, bright yellow casing which adds a bit of a flourish to the monolight (the sort of product which is usually lacking in any sort of aesthetic design). I had chance to spend some time with and review the Honey Badger as well as the Interfit Universal Remote. Here are my thoughts.

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What Exactly is a Honey Badger?

If you’re not familiar with the light’s namesake, a honey badger is a medium-sized mammal found in Africa and Asia. At first glance, they’re adorable. However, honey badgers are infamous for being unstoppable murder machines that maim, mutilate and maul everything in their path. You’ll often find them near the top of lists of the world’s most dangerous animals.

Knowing that you can probably figure out what Interfit are going for with their branding. You have a small, stylish light that’s cute to look at, but packs a punch when set loose in the studio.

So did they achieve that? The short answer is – yes, quite well.

The Strobe

As per the Interfit website, the specifications for the Honey Badger are as follows:

The biggest takeaways here are the seven stops of power range up to 320ws (which is pretty decent for a strobe in this price range), the S-mount, and the built-in receiver.

No HSS or TTL

Before I get into anything else, let’s address the elephant in the room. Announcements of new studio strobes these days always seem to include the wonderful features of High-Speed Sync (HSS) and Through the Lens metering (TTL), both relatively new features in the world of studio strobes as they have been previously limited to flashguns (speedlights). The Honey Badger does not have these features. Then again, its price point reflects their absence.

Price

The Honey Badger sells in the US for $ 299.99 and the UK for £259.99, putting it squarely in the low-middle range of the market. For this price range, it packs a decent punch and pulls its weight easily.

The Interfit Universal Remote is sold separately at a more than reasonable $ 79.99 USD and £39.99 UK.

Built-in Receiver

What the Honey Badger does include, which surprised me a little, is a built-in receiver. This means that you can fire the strobe with a transmitter on your camera without having to worry about extra receivers, errant sync cables, and dead batteries. Interfit sells a Universal Manual Remote (covered by this review) that works with the Honey Badger and a selection of other Interfit lights.

Power

While 320ws is a long way from the power output you can get from some strobes, it is more than enough in most everyday situations. As long as you bring your lights in close to your subject like I do, you should have no problem obtaining apertures of f/8 and f/11 for portraits and f/16 and beyond for tabletop set-ups.

If you’re working out of a home studio or another small space, the power output of the Honey Badger is likely going to be enough for you.

Size

As far as strobes go, the Honey Badger is quite small and highly portable.

The size of the Honey Badger was far more noticeable than the color when I first took it out of the box. This light is small. For comparison, above is a photo of it next to a Bowens light with similar specifications and a Canon 580 EX II Speedlite.

I can speculate on both the advantages and the disadvantages of the size of the Honey Badger.

I have no way of testing it, but I imagine that fitting three or four of these lights into a carry-on sized Pelican case would be pretty easy. If you’re a traveling photographer, being able to easily transport that many studio strobes might be a huge bonus.

When I attached one of my own modifiers, a large Interfit Strip-box, the small size of the strobe and the narrowness of the strip-box allowed me to point the light straight down. This isn’t usually possible without a boom arm and it got me pretty excited about the possibilities. (That said, one of the kits that Interfit offer with the Honey Badger includes a stand with a boom arm.)

The shape of the Honey Badger may allow you more configurations with some modifiers.

On the other hand, we live in a world where appearances matter. Between the size and the color, the Honey Badger does look a little bit like a toy. Throughout the rest of this review, I will try to assure you that the Honey Badger does perform well, but if you have clients that like to see big productions with big lights everywhere, they may be less than impressed.

The Softbox

The Honey Badger kit I tested included a 24” popup softbox. It’s a small softbox; I can’t say much more than that about it. In fact, it’s identical to a Neewer branded one that I bought a few months ago for use with my speedlights. The only difference is the Interfit branding. It is of good quality, fits snugly on the Honey Badger and has no apparent effect on the color temperature of the light that passes through it.

If your intent is to shoot portraits, especially in a fixed studio environment, you’re going to want a bigger light modifier. The softbox is useful and you will be able to get results from it, but you will want to find something much larger.

If you purchase this kit, be forewarned. The softbox comes in a pouch much smaller than its actual size. When it comes out of that bag, it opens itself with quite a lot of force. Don’t do what I did and please, please hold it away from your face.

S-Mount

With a Bowens S-mount, the Honey Badger gives you access to a vast range of modifiers.

The fact that the Honey Badger has a Bowens S-Mount on it is a major advantage in my opinion. There is a vast range of modifiers available that fit the S-mount, ranging from cheap imports to high quality, but far more pricey, proprietary modifiers from brands like Interfit and Bowens. I may be a bit biased as I am a Bowens user, but if I were to invest in the Honey Badger system, that S-mount would make my life so much easier.

As an aside, Bowens has gone out of business. That doesn’t mean you should forsake the S-mount. As mentioned, there are hundreds of products and dozens of other lighting systems that use the S-mount. Bowens might be going, but modifiers that fit the S-mount are going to be around for a long while yet.

White Balance

The Honey Badger has a color temperature of 5600k. This means it’s a touch warmer than the flash White Balance setting in Lightroom. If you like warmer tones in your images, this is not a problem. However, if you would prefer a more neutral look, remember that you will need to dial your White Balance back a hundred degrees. Bear in mind, if you’re using cheaper modifiers, they tend to have a significant effect on your color temperature which renders this point moot anyway.

Diffusion Dome

The frosted diffusion dome covering the flashbulb gives an extra layer of diffusion behind your modifier.

Unlike most strobes, the Honey Badger has a frosted dome over the flashbulb. This adds a tiny amount of diffusion to the bare bulb. In most cases, you’re never going to want to shoot with a bare strobe, but I tried it anyway. The light is as hard as you would expect, but it is possible to use it to creative effect.

Modeling light

When I first turned the Honey Badger on, I didn’t expect an LED modeling light. This is a plus as it means that your subjects aren’t going to boil under hot lights. In fact, I used the Honey Badger nearly constantly in four studio sessions and it never even got warm, never mind overheating.

The Interfit Universal Remote

The Interfit Universal Remote allows you to control the Honey Badger (and other Interfit strobes) from the top of your camera.

I will admit that using the Universal Remote to control the Honey Badger from the top of the camera is an absolute pleasure. I tend to work in confined spaces anyway, but not having to actually walk to the light to change the power output was fantastic. The remote is easy to use as well, and all the functions are labelled clearly. When I’m next in the market for new strobes, this remote may very well play into my considerations. I imagine a scenario where I don’t have to dodge behind a subject to the back of a studio to change the power output on a pair of rim lights. I can dream right?!

That said, the remote was the only problem I had while testing the Honey Badger. For the first 20 minutes or so, I couldn’t figure out why the modeling light was turning itself off. I was convinced there was a problem with the light itself, but it turns out that for whatever reason, on the unit I tested, the modeling light shuts off any time you change the power output via the Universal Remote. I don’t know why this would be and I am unaware if it was a problem isolated to the unit I used, but it did not do the same when you change the power output on the actual strobe.

With a price tag of $ 79.99 USD (£39.99), if you are interested in the Honey Badger, or other Interfit lights, this remote is a no brainer.

The Test

For the first test, I set up the Honey Badger straight out of the box with everything included (24” softbox and the Universal Remote). I had the whole thing set up in no time and once the batteries went into the remote, all the channel settings were sorted out in seconds. (It really is that easy.)

Pop-up Softbox

To start with, I placed the light at 45 degrees in a basic Rembrandt setup. Because the softbox is so small, I brought it in really close to the subject (about a foot away).

From here, I moved the soft box away a short and distance and further to the subject’s left. I wanted to take advantage of the harder light from the smaller softbox and try to create some images with deep, defined shadows.

Strip-Box

I happen to own a large Interfit strip softbox (which I adore), so that was the next modifier to go on the Honey Badger. At first, I was overcome with glee as I realized I could point it straight down thanks to the Honey Badger’s small size; however, I chose not to keep it that way as it’s not the most flattering light for human subjects.

Instead, I put it straight in front of my subject, slightly above and pointed straight at her nose for a basic butterfly lighting set-up.

Bare-bulb

As mentioned, I felt inclined to see what the light from Honey Badger looked like as a bare bulb. The diffusion dome got the better of my curiosity. In my opinion, it’s perfectly usable. You won’t want to use it a lot, however, but the hard light might suit some high fashion portraits quite well.

7’ Parabolic Umbrella with Diffusion

This is where I started to see some possible limitations with the Honey Badger. I wanted to see if the Honey Badger could cope with a giant parabolic umbrella. The answer is yes, but not without extra pieces of equipment. The light itself does have a hole for an umbrella, but I wasn’t willing to see if it would hold that much weight. Instead, I placed a Bowens umbrella reflector on it and attached the modifier.

Because the light is so small, I had to bring the umbrella really close to the light before it would support the umbrella’s weight. With the light so close to the umbrella, it was not able to use the full surface area of the modifier. The 7’ umbrella effectively became a 4.5’ umbrella. This is not the end of the world, but it was annoying. There are plenty of options for umbrella holders and mounts on the market that would solve this problem, I just don’t happen to own any of them.

Beauty Dish with Grid & Diffusion Sock

The final variation I tried was using a 24″ beauty dish with both a grid and a diffusion sock. For this setup, the light was placed about 10 feet in front of the subject for a harder light and to reduce the speed of the light fall off so that more light hit the background.

Extra images

Below are other photos taken using the Interfit Honey Badger and the included pop-up softbox.

Pros and Cons

Having used it for a while, I can tell you that the Honey Badger has more pros than it does cons (and a few of the cons are hyperbolic).

Pros of the Honey Badger
- Reasonably priced
- Small
- Reasonably powered
- Bright LED modeling light
- Bowens S-mount
- Fast recycling times (I never had to wait for it)
- Built-in receiver
- The Universal Remote works like a charm
- Doesn’t overheat easily
- Good build quality
- Stylish in appearance
Cons
- The light might be too small in some situations
- 24” softbox is too small for many studio situations, albeit perfectly functional
- Modeling light turns itself off (on the unit I tested) when the power is adjusted via the Universal Remote
- No HSS or TTL
- May have issues supporting the weight of large modifiers like an 8’ Octabox
Overall

In the end, I enjoyed using the Honey Badger. It is a good quality, competent light that would suit any photographer working a studio environment, especially for those setting up a home studio. The Universal Remote really adds to the experience as well, making power adjustments from the top of the camera a breeze.

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If you’re looking for HSS or TTL functionality, or a light with a self-contained battery, no, the Honey Badger is not for you. For anything else, the Honey Badger is absolutely worth your consideration.

Disclaimer: Interfit provided the product on loan to our dPS author so he could test and do this review. However, all reviews on dPS are 100% the author’s unbiased opinion.

The post Review: Interfit Honey Badger Studio Strobe and Universal Remote by John McIntire appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School
November 29, 2017
Strobist Lighting Cookbook

Introducing the Strobist Lighting Cookbook. Read more »
Strobist

November 29, 2017
How to Apply Creativity to Your Images with Texture Overlays Using Luminar
Layers of fun

One advantage that Luminar has over the average Raw processor is the ability to work with Layers. “What is a layer?” I hear you ask.

Well, your basic image is a single layer, like a sheet of paper on a table. Adding another layer is akin to adding another sheet of paper on top. With layers, you get the benefit of being able to control the layer opacity (the transparency effectively) as well as what parts of the layer are shown – a bit like choosing tracing paper or cutting holes out of the paper.

Think of layers like a stack of paper. By cutting out parts of the sheet you can see the one below, or like with tracing paper, you can see through to the layer before.

Originally you’d need to erase the bits of the layer you didn’t want showing, which could be messy if you made a mistake erasing. These days you’d use a layer mask instead. A layer mask is a greyscale map running from white, where everything is visible, to black, where everything on the layer is hidden. Varying shades of gray indicate how visible a part of the layer is or the mask opacity. Lighter is more visible.

There’s a mantra I learned many years ago that helps you remember. “White reveals, and black conceals”.

The beauty of Luminar (by Macphun, soon to be Skylum) is that it hides some of the mechanics of this because rather than painting in black or white, you have a brush that either paints in, or erases the mask. It’s really great!

When you have a few layers together, the combined set of layers is called the layer stack. Working in layers allows you to apply effects to only certain parts of your photo, or to combine more than one photo into a more interesting composition.

Beginning

Let’s open Luminar and choose a photo. Click Open Image to begin.

Luminar opening screen.

Navigate to your photo and select it. This process will be easier when the new DAM (Digital Asset Management) module for Luminar 2018 comes next year. I’m going to work with this shot of an old cottage.

Original image.

Making a Layer

Luminar provides a few options for creating new layers. In the right panel, you have the Layers panel. To make a new layer, click the + icon in the panel header and select one of the following options:

Layers: click the plus symbol to make a new layer.
- New Adjustment layer; which creates a layer that contains only the filters that you add.
- Create Stamped Visible Layer; which copies the results of all the underlying layers (combining them) to a new flattened layer.
- New Original Layer; which copies the base layer on top of the currently selected layer.
- Add New Image Layer; which allows you to add any other image to the layer stack. This is the one that allows you to add texture and other files!
Add a texture file

Luminar doesn’t store textures, but you can use any texture file you like. Personally, I keep my favorite textures in a folder on Dropbox for easy access from anywhere, but you can use any cloud service you like for this.

From the Layer options, choose Add New Image Layer and navigate to your textures folder. Choose the texture you want to add to the current photo. Viola. It’s loaded.

Texture image.

Now obviously the texture file will load over your original image. This is fine, you’ll fix this shortly. But first, you should check that the file fits how you like. By default, Luminar will make it fit over the layer below, but you’re not stuck with it.

You have three options in the Layers menu for this. Right-click on the layer and from the Image Mapping option in the menu, choose from Fill, Scale to Fit, or Fit (as seen below). If you don’t like how these look, you have another option: the Transform tool.

You can pull and drag your textures file into shape as required. It doesn’t have to retain its original aspect ratio as it’s adding to your original image and isn’t the actual focus of the final composition. In my case, the texture looks fine for now in regards to size.

Blending Modes

The next step is to go through the different blending modes to find one that suits the images best. Different ones work for different images, so it’s best to experiment. Overlay and Soft Light tend to get used a lot, but often Multiply or Screen can work too. Even Hard Light can be perfect sometimes.

Overlay Blend Mode.

Soft Light Blend Mode.

Whichever one you use, you’ll probably find that the effect is really strong. That’s fine because you’re working with layers, you can just reduce the opacity until the texture looks good.

For this image, I thought both Multiply and Color Burn looked great. I loved the saturation that Color Burn gave to the photo, but reducing the opacity to bring back some shadow detail removed too much of that. For that reason, I went with Multiply.

Multiply Blend Mode.

Color Burn Blend Mode.

Masking

You may not want the texture to appear on all parts of the photo. So you’ve got two options. Paint in the texture, or just paint out where you don’t want it. To access the masking functions, click on the brush icon on your texture layer. This opens a menu allowing you to choose the type of local adjustment you want to apply. Your options are Brush, Radial Mask, or Gradient Mask. You can also go with a Luminosity mask. For this image, the brush is the best option.

Access the masking tools.

Once the brush is selected, the options appear at the top. I’m going to remove the texture from the house. If you want to remove (hide) part of a layer, click the Erase option on the Brush settings menu. Set Size, Softness and Opacity to taste as you paint.

You will see this menu at the top of your screen when you active the Brush tool. Choose Erase to paint away effects, choose Paint to add it in. This allows you to make corrections if you go too far with your painting as well.

Once you’re finished, click Done on the end of the brush options bar.

Adjusting the Texture

One good thing about Add Image is that the layer you’ve created has full access to all the Filters in Luminar. Let’s say you’re using either the Overlay or Soft Light blend mode. Any part of the image that’s mid-grey will be unaffected by the texture.

If your texture is dark, or light, the image will reflect this. You can easily change this by adding a Tone filter and adjusting the exposure. If the color from the texture is too strong, you can use Saturation to reduce this or use Hue Shift to change it.

Apply filters to the texture layer to fine tune it.

Finishing the image

Of course, you can also apply filters to the original image. Being a landscape, this would be a good time for you to try the Landscape workspace. When you click on the original image, layer Luminar hides the layers above it. To get to the workspaces, click on Clear Workspace and choose Landscape from the menu.

Landscape workspace.

Using the suggested filters in the workspace, it’s easy to add back the saturation I saw when I used Color Burn blending mode on the texture.

To activate the texture again, simply click on the texture layer.

Saving the file

Once you’re done, you’ve got a few options for saving your image. Using Save will create a .lmnr file, which is Luminar’s native editing file format – this will retain all layers and filters you’ve applied (similar to a PSD file in Photoshop).

By using Export instead, you can choose a range of other options, like JPEG, PSD or TIFF.

Export options.

Using Filters to add Texture

You’re not forced to use a layer to add textures with Luminar though. They also have a handy new filter called Texture Overlay. Pretty much everything you can do on a layer can be done with this filter. The only thing you can’t really do is rotate the texture at a random angle via Transform, but it’s very rare that you’d ever need to do this.

Start with the image you want the texture on again. Click the blue Add Filter button. Use the Search Bar in the Filters Catalog menu that appears to find the “Texture Overlay” filter. Click to add it.

The Texture Overlay filter added. These are the options and sliders for this filter.

To add your texture file, click “Load Texture…” This will open your file on top of the background photo. The default amount of 50, means you can see the mix of the original image and the texture at 50% opacity; it’s also in Normal blend mode.

The texture added at the defaults – 50% and Normal blend mode.

The Amount control can also run to negative figures, so you can add an inverse version of the texture, which is a cool feature. Here’s how -20 on the Amount slider looks.

If your texture is a different aspect ratio to your original image, you can use Keep Aspect Ratio to force it to fit the image. The two buttons below this allow you to flip the texture file horizontally, or vertically, or both (they appear blue when applied so you know if it’s been flipped).

Zoom will let you scale the texture file to fit the features of your underlying photo. Below Zoom is the Blend mode menu. From here choose the blend mode that suits in the same way as with our first method. Again Color Burn looks great at 100 Amount.

The effect is still a little strong, so you could pull it back by reducing the Filters Amount slider. Here 67 looks great.

Amount = 100, Filters amount = 67

Masking the Filter

Filter masking is really straightforward with this method too. You simply hover over the panel header to reveal the brush icon. Click on this to choose the mask type: Brush, Radial or Gradient. Choose Brush to apply your mask in a specific area.

Filter masks are useful and are applied the same way as a layer mask.

If you’re only looking to remove a small area of texture, switch to the Erase Brush in the brush toolbar that appears above the photo.

In this photo, I’ve brushed the texture away from the cottage.

You can add as many texture overlay filters as you like, just remember that the Filters Amount affects the whole filter set.

Getting Texture files

You can get plenty of commercial texture packs to get you started, but there are free ones out there too. When you’re out and about, consider capturing any textures you find interesting to try out yourself!

Please share your finished textured masterpieces created with Luminar in the comments below. We’d love to see what you make.

Disclaimer: Macphun is a dPS advertising partner.

The post How to Apply Creativity to Your Images with Texture Overlays Using Luminar by Sean McCormack appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School
November 28, 2017
Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED

The team at Aputure via Kayell Australia (thanks) sent me the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D LED studio light to try out and that’s exactly what I’ve been doing! I had planned a day’s worth of food shooting, but that wasn’t to be after the client delayed the session. So I went about doing what I like to do and photographed myself holding a coffee in preparation for a portrait series I’m working on called “In My Shed” which is literally just that, but more on that later… Back to the light, and what a light it is!

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What’s in the box of the Aputure Light Storm

The Aputure Light Storm is an LED light with only one light source, as opposed to a panel with lots of little LEDs on it. The COB stands for “chip on board” which is basically multiple little versions of those LED’s you’re used to seeing, but all mounted on a board with a blob of phosphor flowed on top of them.

The phosphor is the bit that gives the LED light its color temperature (The D or the T) The version I have is called the 120D, the D is for Daylight. This means it’s closely daylight balanced, as opposed to the other model, the 120T which is more closely tungsten balanced. If you’re super interested in how they’re made, search on YouTube, it’s pretty interesting. Anyways…

I must admit, when I first started talking about the C120D with some industry peers, the initial feedback I got was, “It isn’t built very well.” and, “It won’t be bright enough for what you need to do!” but I pressed ahead despite those second-hand reservations and I’m very glad I did.

The unboxing part is always exciting for me, new gear and all that, and this little fellow was no different. The Aputure Light Storm COB 120D kit comes with its own semi-rigid case complete with a small reflector, power supply, cables and a remote control with a working distance of 100 meters. Everything you need to be up and running with some stunning light in less than five minutes is included.

Stunning light

So, I say stunning light, and I guess, like almost everything in photography, that’s a subjective statement. But I really love the light this unit produces, in the situations I’ve used it. I held off working on this article as I wanted to get some good use in with the light as I’d originally planned for this review. That was to use it as my key light for food photography.

I prefer to use a big soft window for food photography, but sometimes you don’t have that option, so you need to create your light. I typically use a Jinbei HD600 which is a portable studio flash. It’s a great unit, but I wanted to try out a constant light source and see how that worked for what I was shooting.

Let’s kick it off with your dinner and dessert. Thanks to Trackside Noodle Bar for letting me use these images! There are images that they’re going to use in their marketing and menus. Entree and dessert for you, mains we’ll have a little bit later

No surprises with continuous lighting

I think the best bit, given I’m not a full-time photographer and I don’t shoot as often as some of you, is that using LED lights means that I see exactly what I’m going to get.

So you light your scene and adjust it, and you can see the adjustments immediately as the light source is always on. You can do the same when you use strobes or flash, but you need to make an exposure to check (I’m shooting a Sony a7rmk2 and so I see what I get on the screen at the back).

I find it super easy to set up my plate of food, use the light’s remote to back off the power if I need to do so, and click – job done.

When I came to the main course, I wanted a bit of light coming back in from the left of the plate. So a really simple bounce card (aka white square of card that can stand on its own) sitting out of shot on the left and I was good to go. You can see my hand-drawn “artist’s” impression of my setup, below.

Or, as a real photo, without my awesome drawing skills!

Self-portrait time

A funny thing happened on this journey. As I mentioned at the start, I did a little self-portraiture in my shed for a project I’m working on. I shared the image with Aputure and it’s now in their catalog! So, that was kind of cool…

For this portrait, I had the light set up outside the shed window, the camera on a tripod being controlled via my iPhone which if you look really closely, you might spot on the window ledge (Sony’s Playmemories app). I could adjust the light power from inside the shed using the controller. The light was running on a vLock battery, I used the Core SWX Slim which meant I could take the light anywhere, I also used a Bowens S Mounted 90cm deep para reflector.

Summary

The summary, after working with this light for a couple of months is that it’s a great unit! Well built, plenty bright, easy to transport. I only have one minor negative point, and it’s that the controls have to be so big, but then the light itself is quite compact, so I guess all the controls and battery mount have to go somewhere! Like I said, minor.

The Aputure Light Storm COB 120D LED studio light is a fantastic addition to my regular portrait and food photography kit. This is a five-star review of a well deserving product! Let there be light.

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Disclaimer: this product was provided to the author for review, but all reviews on dPS are 100% unbiased opinions of the author.

The post Review of the Aputure Light Storm COB 120D Studio LED by Sime appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

November 28, 2017
What to Photograph on Vacation When You’re Feeling Uninspired

Vacation is a great time not only to recharge and relax but also to practice your travel photography skills. Whether you’re a pro with lots of gear, or a hobbyist with your first camera, there are plenty of photo opportunities in a new place. In fact, there can be so many that you can easily get overwhelmed or uninspired to shoot anything at all.

If you hit a wall and don’t know what to photograph while traveling, here are some ways to fire up your creativity.

1. Shoot with a different lens

An easy way to literally change your perspective of the world is to use a lens you don’t normally shoot with. Trade your zoom lens for a prime and notice the way you view and capture the world from a fixed focal length.

If you usually shoot close-ups, try your hand at shooting wide, or vice-versa. If cost is an issue, invest in affordable or third-party lens options, or simply rent a lens.

2. Change up your camera

Similar to the point above, try your hand and shooting with a totally different camera. If you normally shoot with a DSLR, restrict yourself to shooting with a point and shoot or even your cell phone. Many small, compact cameras have improved greatly in image quality, and they might surprise you with their quailty.

By giving yourself a new technical challenge, you’ll open up room for creativity.

3. Put yourself on assignment

One of the best ways to shoot more is to have an objective or project in mind. Even if you’re not on official assignment, you can invent a similar scenario. Think of the ideal photography project that you’d want to do for a client, such as luxury vacation photos of Mexico, and aim to make that photo portfolio.

These are the type of personal project that you could easily use later in your portfolio if you ever seek out paid, professional work.

4. Start a themed personal project

On the note of personal projects, here’s an easy one that you can do over the course of one trip or many. Pick out a theme or photography subject that interests you and capture versions of it in new places you travel.

As an example, you could photograph cultural foods unique to the region you’re in and put them in an album of “Ethnic Foods from Around the World.” Or focus on a topic such as unique doors of Italy, as I did on a recent trip.

Having a theme helps you focus and gives you something to look out for and photograph as you travel.

This photo came about by simply talking to a beekeeper about my personal project surrounding farms. Before I knew it, I was suited up and having close encounters with honeybees.

5. Take advantage of Golden and Blue Hour

There are certain times of day when just about everything looks photogenic thanks to the positioning of the sun. While sunset and sunrise are obvious times of day, also consider Golden and Blue Hour, those times of the day just before/after sunrise and sunset.

On most days, this is when the lighting gets the most dramatic and optimal for shooting in natural lighting.

6. Do some research

If you’re in a new part of the world and don’t know what to photograph, check out what others have shot before. Go online and check Instagram hashtags or do a Google image search for the town you’re in. Find the iconic shots that others have taken and visit those places yourself.

Not only does this put you on a fun discovery quest, but it also gives you a chance to put your own unique twist on famous places.

This photo came about thanks to poking around Google Maps and Google Image search.

7. Find some meetups

Thanks to social media and the availability of quality camera gear, there are talented photographers in just about every corner of the world. And odds are, there are easy ways to meet them in person. Try to attend Insta Meets or Meet-Ups for photographers in new places that you visit.

Or if you follow and admire a certain photographer’s work on social media, shoot them a message and see if they would like to meet and shoot in person. These are great ways connect to locals and get inspired to shoot in a new place.

8. Just go shoot (or don’t)

If you’ve reached the end of this article and still feel overwhelmed, just pick up any camera you have and go out and shoot! Don’t worry about finding the perfect image; just snap away at whatever inspires you.

Or keep your camera in your bag and just enjoy the moment. Sometimes, a little break from photography is exactly what you need to inspire your creativity.

Sometimes the perfect photo unfolds in front of you when you least expect it.

Over to You

What tips do you have for getting past a creative slump? Please let us know in the comments below!

Did you know that smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S8 can capture lightning? I gave it a shot on a pure whim and captured this image.

Attending a cultural performance might inspire your creativity as well. Milan, Italy.

The post What to Photograph on Vacation When You’re Feeling Uninspired by Suzi Pratt appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

November 28, 2017
Why Volunteering is a Great Way to Grow as a Photographer

Many years ago as I was making a start freelancing, I saw an opportunity to give away my services and a selection of photos by volunteering to cover a community event. Our city administration was hosting a tree planting at our local park, so I went to down with my spade and my camera, to plant some trees and to record the event in pictures. The following day I visited the office of the event organizer and presented them with a selection of prints, (this was back in time when I was only using film.)

Silkworms feeding on a leaf in northern Thailand.

I enjoyed planting trees. I enjoyed covering the event photographically. And I enjoyed the on-going business relationship that I developed with the city administration as a result of covering their community event and not charging them.

Volunteering has many benefits

If you are just starting out on your photography career, or even if you have no desire to work as a professional photographer, there are a number of benefits to be gained by volunteering your time and skills to the right people or organizations.

A woman prepares raw silk before she spins it in north Thailand.

Covering a community event was easy and enjoyable for me as I had had years of experience as a newspaper photographer. I knew the style of photos that would be useful and appreciated so it was not difficult to produce them.

Whether you are just starting out as a pro photographer or you just want to help out, producing a series of photos that will be useful for someone else is a great way to stretch you into new photography experiences and help you to develop new skills.

Spinning silk thread by hand.

Maybe you are not so confident when photographing strangers. Covering a community event will give you a good reason to go beyond your normal comfort zone, and you may even discover you like it.

Perhaps you have heard of a non-profit wanting some product shots, or a local service club that needs new photos of their executive members. Once you start to look, I am sure you will find plenty of opportunities to offer your services.

Adding pigment to water for dying thread.

Treat it like a paid gig

Approach your volunteer work as though it is a paid job. Be professional. Clearly communicate your intentions. Listen carefully to the needs of those you are providing the photos for so you can ensure they will be happy with the results and be able to make practical use of the photos you take.

Ask them how they will be using the photos so you have a good idea of what they need. It is no good to give them a series of vertical headshots if they already have horizontal space designed for them on their web page.

Dyed silk thread.

Do your best work

Don’ be tempted to produce less than your best because you are not getting paid. It’s always good to do your best work possible. Your reputation is important, especially if you are interested in potential paid work that may come as a result of your volunteering. If you provide photos that are not up to standard you are not likely to be invited back or recommended to other potential clients.

Be pleasant to work with. No one wants a bad experience dealing with a volunteer. People like working with others who make their lives easier. Being professional in your manner and approach to the work, and those organizing it will be beneficial towards future relationships. But choose carefully who you give your time to because occasionally you may come cross someone who wants to exploit your generosity with no concern for you.

Hand winding silk thread in preparation for weaving.

Choose who you work with carefully

Some people may struggle to appreciate you are giving your skills and time for free and expect too much from you. If this happens, once you’ve fulfilled what you have said you would do, tactfully back out of a situation that you think is turning sour or if you feel you are being manipulated.

In these circumstances, it’s not likely to turn out well for anyone involved to persevere. Remember, it’s you who are working for free and it is important you have options so you can choose how much and to whom you want to give your work. Be generous, but be generous of your choosing.

Preparing silk thread for weaving.

Set your expectations reasonably

You will reap what you sow. If you don’t expect anything in return for your volunteered services and you might be pleasantly surprised when something comes back your way in the future.

It may be in the form of paid work for the same organization. It could be from a contact you made during the photography session. A paid job could come from someone who has seen the photos you’ve produced and appreciates your skills.

But to volunteer yourself and then expect something in return is only setting yourself up for disappointment. You will grow as a photographer when you take on situations you might not normally photograph and it’s a good feeling to see your photos being used productively.

Women weaving silk on a traditional loom in northern Thailand.

The best thing about giving your service and photos for free is seeing the benefit they receive from them. Giving of what you find enjoyment in is a great reward in itself.

I continue to offer photography and video services for free from time to time as I still enjoy being able to help non-profits and individuals who are helping others. The photos accompanying this article were produced for a non-profit organization here in Thailand who help facilitate a local silk weaving cooperative.

Thai woman working on a traditional loom weaving silk.

Have you given back with your photography services?

If you have had experiences, good or bad, in volunteering your photography services please share them in the comments below so others can be encouraged to share their skills too.

The post Why Volunteering is a Great Way to Grow as a Photographer by Kevin Landwer-Johan appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

November 28, 2017
Why Photography is Beneficial for Your Mental Wellness

I initially took up photography for one simple reason – I couldn’t draw. My 16-year-old self reasoned that photography must be pretty easy. Just point the camera and shoot, right? But as I worked away in the high school darkroom, I realized how powerful the camera is for artistic output. And as I built up my own photographic practice, I got to see another side of photography too, its therapeutic qualities.

It tasks photographers with the opportunity to truly see an environment, making the most out of any situation. Photography requires adaptability and focus, driving photographers to chase that elusive perfect shot. This is why many people find photography so effective for cultivating good mental health.

There is a unique satisfaction in executing a photograph you are happy with.

Mental health is a vast topic. It plucks external experiences and mashes them with physiology indiscriminately. Personally, I feel like photography isn’t just about cameras and photos, but consistency. Something I can fall back on when times get tough. Often I find that photography can be the difference between a good or a bad day – that’s pretty powerful stuff.

Here are a few ways that I’ve found photography to be beneficial for my own mental wellness.

Motivation

From the earliest stages of photographic study, the camera trains the eye to seek out detail and opportunity. Whether you notice it or not, chances are you’ll quickly begin to see the world through the perimeter of the viewfinder – camera in hand or not. A photographer’s process is often cyclical – seeking out subjects will drive you to document them photographically. And to photograph those subjects adequately, you’ll need a discerning eye. One feeds the other and motivation fuels both.

I’m a bit of an aviation nerd, so taking photographs of something I love always picks me up emotionally.

But the relationship between photography and motivation can be tenuous. Sticking with photography in better times creates a sense of stability in harder periods. Chasing the elusive “perfect shot” and the afterglow of a photo session slowly starts to become a necessity – instilling resilience.

We photographers are lucky in that we have a self-contained tool to reach out to. Photography opens an inexhaustible amount of doors, providing opportunities to explore, travel, experiment and grow experience. It also helps form relationships with different places and subjects, leading to tangible locations that are a haven for low days. A valuable self-care technique.

People on the outside may not understand a photographer’s inner workings or mental well being, but even the smallest of accomplishment spills over to a new day, easing the complex difficulties experienced in a low. Photography has many benefits and it all comes down to taking a camera in your hands.

Photography can take you to amazing places.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness can be an important fixture in mental health. Usually, you’d think of yoga or meditation when discussing it. But it’s no different for photographers.

This is a time to take stock of your mental landscape. It encourages a state of attentiveness to your surroundings and your own thinking. Whenever you bring awareness to your own senses, you are being deliberately mindful. It’s almost like hitting a reset button for a moment, taking a breath, and paying attention to your sensory experience.

Mindfulness has been found to reduce stress and rumination, working memory, focus, and self-insight.

Photography isn’t just like mindfulness, it is mindfulness. Photography requires a deep focus on all of the body’s sensory input to seek out photographic subjects. It prioritizes the actions involved in photography first – avoiding some sort of sensory overload.

This deep sense of a photographer’s surroundings transforms a moment into a carefully considered image, even in a split second And it all comes together to form one fluid moment, with each click of the shutter activated with purpose and reason. As Don McCullin, documentary and war photographer said,

“Photography for me is not looking, it’s feeling. If you can’t feel what you are looking at, then you’re never going to get others to feel anything when they look at your pictures”.

Green is the color our eyes are most sensitive to. Seeking out nature, even in an urban environment can cultivate mental well being.

Perspective

From it’s earliest incarnations, photography has shaped our understanding of the world. Eadweard Muybridge is known for his photography of the Mid West. But he shifted his focus to a more scientific endeavor when Leland Stanford, a race-horse owner asked that he could study the dynamics of a horse’s gallop.

Muybridge had been tasked with breaking down what the eye could not. Up until Muybridge’s efforts, most artists painted horses at a trot with one foot always on the ground. But Myubridge’s use of photography revealed the horse’s gait was performed with all the feet in the air over the course of each stride. His method was one of the early uses of perspective in photography, revealing the scientific potential of the camera.

Taking advantage of an interesting perspective is a valuable form of-self expression.

Photography can reveal beauty with a simple change in perspective. The mental gymnastics required to form an unusual image slowly becomes second nature, aiding with racing thoughts and anxiety.

Photographers make use of both mental and physical perspective to re-imagine the world. Sometimes a new perspective is physical, or it reflects the inner machinations of a photographer’s process. Inspiration can hit at any time – that’s why I try to keep a camera with me as much as possible.

Thinking, planning, investigating, scouring. Photographers make use of personal experience to convey a new way of digesting a scene, both deliberately and on purpose. The result is an unusual insight into a subject. This genuine approach can reveal a greater faith in your own photography. But it also encourages relationships between a viewer and the photographer.

This contentedness cultivates awareness, thoughtfulness, and insight. This sharing of ideas is also cathartic and mentally beneficial – a problem shared is a problem halved.

Conclusion

Photography leaves your mark on the world.

Artists have always translated art from the mental manifestations of the artist. Photography cultivates thought, inspiration, awareness, and focus. Your photography reflects your own experience – creating new perspectives and connections with people. Art can flip perspective upside -down.

Buy honing in on your own experiences, you can cultivate a mindfulness in your practice that flows into the heights of creativity and eases some of the burdens of mental lows.

The post Why Photography is Beneficial for Your Mental Wellness by Megan Kennedy appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

November 27, 2017