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Archive for September, 2018

Chroma Chrono is a programmable RGB camera flash for colorful long exposures

18 Sep

A new Kickstarter campaign seeks funding for Chroma Chrono, a programmable RGB camera flash that emits multiple colors during long exposures. Users can program the flash using a web interface accessible on any device with a web browser and WiFi; the system enables users to choose the flash colors and the on/off duration for each color.

Sample image via Chroma Chrono

Chroma Chrono features a high-intensity RGB LED, a WiFi-enabled microcontroller, and three AA batteries. Users can connect the flash to a standard hot shoe or trigger it remotely via a Prontor-Compur adapter. The camera flash currently exists as a final production prototype with anticipated manufacturing if the Kickstarter is successful.

Backers are offered an early bird Chroma Chrono flash for pledges of at least £120 / $ 164.

Via: Kickstarter

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer

18 Sep

Most of us photographers struggle with our creativity. As time goes on you’ll likely experience fewer moments of passionate inspiration and longer periods of hard work and creative dryness.

It was during a period of creative dryness in my photography business that I discovered a whole breed of photographers who had been able to express their creativity in surprising ways.

They brought every part of their life to their photography, found beauty in unlooked-for places, and got in over their heads. Their ideas were just what I needed to breathe new life into my own photography.

Let me share with you three quotes that will help you understand yourself as a creative photographer.

3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer - boat on a lake

It’s liberating as a creative photographer to forget about making money or comparing yourself to other photographers and just go play with your camera. For me, it’s climbing sand dunes or wading through water at sunset. It brings me to life.

1. You Bring Your Whole Self

“You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.” – Ansel Adams

When you first became a photographer you likely focused on finding the perfect camera and lenses. For a while, it was all about chasing gear. But in the end, the gear doesn’t satisfy. Unless it helps you expand your creative horizons it becomes a worthless dust collector sitting on a shelf somewhere.

Fuji Cameras - 3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer

These are my favorite cameras to use. The Fuji x100s is perfect for everyday life. I’m nostalgic about the photo quality of the iPhone 4s. It was the first phone camera I ever used. The Fuji XT1 along with a portrait lens and silent shutter mode is perfect for portraits.

You probably tried your hand at copying what you saw on Pinterest or other photo sharing groups. I bet that once you were successful you got bored and moved on quickly.

Gear and gimmicks don’t satisfy you. In fact, you’re more likely inspired by the books you read, even though they are non-visual because they fire up your imagination.

3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer - kid in a dingy on a lake

Two winters before this photo was taken, my imagination had been fired up after reading “The Wind in the Willows.” But I had no idea how to capture that in photos. That is until one spring when the bay that we live on overflowed its banks and took over our yard! I bought a dingy for my son, put on my chest waders and spent the evening in and on the water. Ratty would be proud of us.

The creative photographer brings to their work their whole life, their whole selves. That usually includes a whole host of other creative endeavors like music, painting, writing, or acting, even if you pursued them at different moments in life.

Photograph of Alice Cooper - 3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer

Though I loved photography as a kid, I was a musician before I became a photographer. Knowing what it’s like to perform and connect with the audience, I always look for those engaging moments when I photograph bands. Is there anything more engaging than Alice Cooper in a straight-jacket staring down the barrel of your lens?

Alice Cooper with a booze bottle. 3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer

An Alice Cooper performance goes beyond the music and incorporates drama as well. The story that is played out for the audience is part fiction and part biographical. Alice brings everything to the stage, including his past battles with alcohol, showing the audience and fellow musicians what can be accomplished in life and art.

2. Making Beauty Out of Chaos

“I don’t just look at the thing itself or at the reality itself; I look around the edges for those little askew moments – kind of like what makes up our lives – those slightly awkward, lovely moments.” – Keith Carter

As a creative photographer, you’re often going to feel like you don’t fit in. You’ll likely find it hard to commit to one type of photography for the rest of your life (or as a business).

Here’s one idea that might characterize everything you photograph; beauty out of chaos.

Creative photographers are often at the fringes, on the edge of chaos and order, in unpredictable situations, trying to make something beautiful in difficult situations.

Kieth Carter quote - 3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer

Many of us deeply resonate with Carter’s words as we “look around the edges for those little askew moments.” While it’s natural to photograph the happy, predictable moments of life, I’m most at home looking around the edges. When a little guy “acts up” he’s taken out of the game to the edges for a time-out. But aren’t these the defining moments of life? I was drawn by the boy’s face and his inability to look his father in the eye.

boy and his father - 3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer

The situation was irresistible to me as a photographer. It was a “theological” moment and I was fascinated by the boy’s unwillingness to look his father in the eye. He expressed himself through his hands and fingers instead.

kid wiping his eyes - 3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer

I love that even the dirt on his arm speaks to his guilt. You can’t plan these moments, you just appreciate them as they come.

You’re likely drawn to “the real,” not being satisfied with mere poses but what happens between the poses, at the edges of a photo session – those “slightly awkward, lovely moments.”

Window silhouette of 2 kids - 3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer

No parent in their right mind would allow their kids to play in the curtains. Those curtains will end up a complete mess. But, even for just a moment, I saw beauty in that mess.

Golden hour silhouette - 3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer

Sometimes those moments in the window are more serene. I couldn’t help but notice afterward that the curtain ties were “slightly askew.”

3. You’ve Got to Get in Over Your Head

“I realize more and more what it takes to be a really good photographer. You go in over your head, not just up to your neck.” – Dorothea Lange

With the pursuit of the perfect camera behind you (happy to use whatever camera you’ve got on hand), and Pinterest a distant memory, you bring everything you’ve got to your photography. But even when you find yourself up to your neck, you’re still holding back.

There’s nothing to force your creativity quite like walking into a situation that puts you in way over your head. You’ll be forced to figure out what to do at the moment.

Rock band photography - 3 Quotes for the Creative Photographer

I still remember the first time I took the stage as a musician. It was a high school talent show on a makeshift stage in the cafeteria. All I could think was, “How did I get myself into this?” I knew I wasn’t qualified in any way to be on that stage (even though it was just a bunch of tables pushed together). But the moment took over and I knew I was made for the music.
To this day, I look for raw emotion when photographing musicians.

I daresay that, for most of us, going in over our heads means overcoming ourselves. Overcoming our social anxiety, fear, and laziness. While a little social anxiety, introversion, or laziness can kill your creativity – it can also fuel it.

Successful creative photographers talk about how they challenged themselves through their fears and assumptions and constantly embraced constraints that forced them to grow as people and as photographers.

What do you look like as a creative photographer?

I love hearing from you. Which ideas do you resonate with and what do you look like as a creative photographer? Let’s chat in the comments below.

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5 Ways to Photograph Birds

18 Sep

Birds are beautiful animals to look at and are graceful in flight. However, it can be challenging to photograph birds due to their fast-moving nature.

Here are 5 methods to help you capture better bird photos.

5 Ways to Photograph Birds

1) Go Wild

Have you ever wondered where to find birds and which are the best places to photograph them? My first tip is to seek out locations where you can photograph birds in the wild.

The great thing about birds is that you may come across them anywhere you go when on holiday or at home. Birds live everywhere in the wild, wherever there are nature and a place they can build a nest.

5 Ways to Photograph Birds

Next time you are out walking in your local neighborhood, park or woods look up and listen out for birds in the local environment. Capturing birds in the wild offers you the opportunity to photograph them in their own natural habitat and therefore you can photograph them in their surroundings such as on a branch, in a nest, or in a bush.

5 Ways to Photograph Birds

It is not easy to photograph birds of prey in the wild.

If you are really keen to capture great images of birds you may want to consider investing in a commercial hide to give you a better opportunity to capture rarer species that are likely to visit. Hides can provide camouflage and cover for you and will assist in preventing birds from getting scared and flying away which they may do when they become aware of your presence.

2) Get Close

5 Ways to Photograph Birds

Zoos and bird of prey centers allow you to get really close to birds in their enclosures. They are brilliant places to practice your bird photography skills. Enclosures provide fairly limited space meaning the birds are more visible and cannot fly as far as if they are out in nature.

At centers, the advantage is that birds are trained to fly near to visitors. This gives you the chance to capture images of birds of prey in flight and their natural behavior.

Most birds have amazing details such as their eyes, beaks and colorful feathers which are great subjects on which you can focus your camera.

5 Ways to Photograph Birds

3) In your garden

It can be easy to ignore a photographic possibility right on your doorstep, but rewarding bird photography can be enjoyed from the comfort of your own home. Where woodland birds can be trickier to approach, birds visiting gardens can be enticed by providing food in your garden.

Leaving food out in your garden is a great way to attract birds living in nearby trees and bushes. Birds often have families to feed and will return regularly to your garden if they know it is a reliable food source. If you are lucky, you may witness birds feeding their fledgling young from the ground.

You can lay food on the ground or place it on an elevated bird table or feeder to capture more eye-catching pictures from higher up. A wide food choice will attract a greater diversity of birds. Blackbirds and song thrushes like sultanas while others like peanuts, seeds, or fat.

5 Ways to Photograph Birds - bird on a tree branch

Mornings are good for bird activity, while late autumn to early spring is the best season when there is a great opportunity to photograph rarer species.

4) Birds in Flight

The next recommendation for photographing birds is to capture them in flight. Birds are creatures of habit and will generally take the same flight paths to and from their nests. If you can, try and photograph them when they are moving whether at take-off, during landing, or mid-flight.

5 Ways to Photograph Birds - birds in flight

If you want to capture a good shot of a flying bird, you will need a fast shutter speed and will need to focus accurately.

In terms of equipment, you will generally need a lens with a longer reach to capture birds in flight.

5) Flocks

5 Ways to Photograph Birds - flock of birds

Birds tend to migrate in winter months and this allows the chance to photograph them all together. Groups of birds flying overhead can make interesting photos rather than when photographed individually as they form different shapes and patterns.

5 Ways to Photograph Birds

Sometimes, birds such as starlings flock together to protect themselves from predators. By joining together they make it difficult for falcons and sparrowhawks to target one bird and make great formations worth photographing. Flocks of birds can be photographed as a group either in motion or static.

Conclusion

Next time you go out with your camera to photograph birds, put these tips to the test and share what you capture. Add your photos and tips in the comments below.

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Why Your Camera Gear Doesn’t Matter

17 Sep

graffiti wall - Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter

Many discussions in online photography groups and discussions revolve around “What’s the best camera brand?” or “What is the best lens for x?” or “Thinking about upgrading, should I pick between camera x or camera y?” and so on.

It seems that a lot of people think that there is a Holy Grail of camera gear that will solve all their problems if only they can achieve it. However they fail to understand that it isn’t the gear that matters, it’s what you do with it that counts.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - pink flower

So many people praise Ansel Adams or Cartier-Bresson as peers of the craft, yet those photographers were dealing with old film cameras. The camera in your cell phone is more powerful and advanced in technology by light years in comparison.

If all the photographers in history were capable of making lasting impactful images with old film camera hardware and development techniques – if you have a modern camera (of whatever brand you choose) or even just your cell phone – what is your excuse?

old cabin b/w - Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter

It isn’t about the gear. It has never been about the gear and as soon as you realize that, you will be free to create and shoot in a new and exciting way.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - still life image

Let’s Count the Ways That Gear Doesn’t Matter

  1. The camera doesn’t decide what brand or model you buy, or what lens you opt for. You do your own research (presumably), make your choices, place the order and pay the money. Or perhaps you were gifted with some gear or loaned it. Maybe you just have a phone with a camera. It doesn’t matter, they are all cameras with essentially the same capability to capture images.
  2. Your camera doesn’t haul itself out of bed early in the morning to get to the desired destination for a sunrise shot. It doesn’t drive for hours to get to a pretty lake, nor does it pack itself into a backpack and hike its way into the mountains to get the perfect shot – would be nice if it did though!
Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - ice and snow in the sun

This image was taken on a recent camera club trip in the mountains – roughly 4 hours drive from home. Lying full length on a snow bank to brace to get this shot, I chose to do it backlit for the desired creative outcome.

  1. The camera doesn’t decide what the composition will be, it doesn’t walk this way and that way, crouch down low, or climb up looking for a better vantage point.
  2. The camera doesn’t go without its daily latte for a year, while it saves up to go on holiday to an exotic destination so it can take lovely new photos while its there.
  3. Your camera doesn’t sit for hours on the side of a river, lake, or estuary waiting for the birds to come close enough to shoot.
  4. The lens doesn’t decide, “Hey I want to be the lens on your camera today, shoot with me all day”.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - rolling hills landscape

  1. Unless you are a complete beginner and shooting with everything on Auto, the camera doesn’t decide what settings it’s going to use. Nor does it decide when to click the shutter, when is exactly the right time to take the shot.
  2. The camera doesn’t say, “I don’t want to shoot macro today, instead let’s do architecture instead, I’m bored with flowers”.
  3. The camera doesn’t go, “I know it’s going to be cold and frosty tomorrow in the snow but it will be super pretty so let’s get up early to take photos before everyone walks all over it”.
Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - food photo setup

A behind the scenes shot of what it takes to stage a food photography shot – I haven’t even got the camera out yet.

There are so many decisions that you, the photographer make, that are essential to the image being created. But you could get the same shot with a Canon, or Nikon/Pentax/Sony or whatever brand you have.

For many of the shots that are taken, a recent cellphone has a pretty good camera in it and will do a good job too.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - flower abstract

Specifically mounted and lit against a black background, this was deliberately shot with selective focus and edited for a dark moody rich color tone.

What the Photographer Does Matters

  • You are the one saving up to go on the exciting holiday, deciding where to go, what time of year, what places to visit, what things you might want to see and photograph.
  • It’s you that decides how your image is going to be composed – portrait/landscape, close in or far away, what the subject is, what aperture or shutter speed to use for the desired creative outcome.
  • You choose your subject, you decide how the image is going to look, where you will shoot from, what height/angle, and what settings you will use.
  • You make the creative choices such as is it going to be macro, or shot with a very wide open aperture for a blurred background. Perhaps a long telephoto lens to separate the subject from the background. Maybe an ultrawide or fisheye lens for a different look, or even an old vintage lens with swirly bokeh.  You choose the gear and decide how you are going to use it at any given point in time.
  • It’s you that makes the sacrifice to get out of bed early in the morning for the sunrise shots.
  • You load up the gear, put on walking shoes, load up a drink bottle and head off into the unknown for an adventure and you earn your blisters and sore feet.
  • If you are a food photographer, you might spend hours baking in the kitchen to create tasty treats which you then spend ages styling and propping before you eventually shoot.
  • If you are a portrait photographer you might dabble in hair or makeup, and you absolutely need to have control of the light, shaping and modifying it to suit the desired outcome.
  • Maternity photographers probably have to do some hair/makeup/clothing as well as set design and lighting for newborn shots.
  • If you are a wedding photographer you probably have a bag full of tricks and emergency supplies to cope with any last minute drama or wardrobe failure, plus you have to wrangle all of the people on what is often a stressful day.
Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - frosty morning mountains

Minus 6C Hoar Frost – yeah it was pretty cold getting out of bed that morning but it was totally worth it.

There are so many creative choices that you can make – high key or low key, black and white or color, cool or warm tones, tight abstract or bigger picture, low to the ground or eye level, morning/daytime/evening light – but none of these references your gear at all. These are all things you may even decide before you even pick up the camera.

So much of what we do is visualizing the image in our heads, and putting in place the required circumstances or situations to make that image happen. You may have to save for a couple of years to afford the trip to Patagonia or Alaska. Perhaps you might chase storms for months before you get the absolute best cloud formation or lightning shot you were after.

You might get up night after night to capture an aurora or every morning for a month to get the stunning sunrise. Maybe you have to wait until the next breeding season to get the shot of the bird that only flies in once a year. Plus you have to stake out a nest, build a hide and keep it secret.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - cutlery still life

Sometimes Gear Does Matter

Yes, there are absolutely situations when having a specific piece of gear totally matters. It is difficult to take macro shots of things if you don’t have a macro lens, or extension tubes or similar options.

Having a longer lens makes those birding shots a lot easier as well, not only are birds skittish, they can fly away from you. Plus you should be a responsible environmentally aware photographer and stay out of their habitat and not scare them deliberately.

I don’t shoot astrophotography but am aware that there are recommended lens choices to get the best outcome for your night shots.

Sports, action, and wildlife photographers usually want a camera with a high burst rate for the action shots, fast focus action, and reasonably good high ISO for low light situations and a really long lens.

Wedding photographers need high-performance camera/lens options that are adaptable to a range of situations and can work in low light.

If you want to do soft flowing waterfalls and waves, neutral density filters, a tripod, and a remote shutter are usually requirements.

So yes, there will always be situations where you do need specialty gear, but the same rules apply. You still need to make all the creative choices and decisions. Adding that extra hardware choice into the mix just becomes part of it.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - flowing water frozen in the air

To get this shot I needed a 70-200mm lens mounted on a tripod and then I experimented with fast shutter speeds to get capture the motion in the water and the splashes.

Conclusion

Being there matters. Having the right light matters. Your subject choice matters. How you choose to frame up the composition matters. Your creative choices matter. Post-processing matters.

What gear you use to take the shot – doesn’t matter.

Any general camera gear can do the job for the vast majority of images taken. Does the brand matter? No.

Is it a cell phone? If you can take images you are happy with on a cell phone, then keep doing it.

Are there situations where specific lenses or gear makes a difference? Absolutely, and yes you probably will need to have what’s required to make those images.

But not everyone wants to do macro. Lots of people have no need for a tilt-shift lens for those architecture shots. 600mm lens that weighs several kilos? No thanks!

Street art in Melbourne, Australia. Some of these laneways are so hidden away only a local knows where to find them.

But even when you do get the specialty gear, there are usually multiple choices of options to purchase. But again, the brand doesn’t matter.

Even if you do have the top-end camera with the fanciest tripod, the longest lens with all the bells and whistles…unless YOU take it out and use it, it isn’t going off and having photography adventures on its own.

As the saying goes, “The best camera is the one you have with you” so work with what you have, learn to use it to the best of your ability. Experiment, be creative, try different things, push your boundaries and have fun.

My camera does landscape, nature, birds, macro, food, still life, fine art self-portraits, flowers, cats, long exposures, black and whites, high key, low key, sports, abstract, events and probably many other things I have yet to point it at.

What does matter is that you are out there, with whatever gear you have, and are using it.

Happy shooting!

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The Magic of Creativity Rarely Happens in Your Comfort Zone

17 Sep

You’re not likely to ever excel at anything unless you push past what you normally do and exit your comfort zone. That’s unless you’re the type of person who’s not comfortable unless they are constantly taking risks.

Python in a Pit © Kevin Landwer-Johan - The Magic of Creativity Rarely Happens in Your Comfort Zone

Becoming more creative with photography requires you to seek out new subjects. It means trying different techniques. It demands you tackle the difficult and uncomfortable at times.

Most creatives seek to improve on what they have already achieved. This can mean photographing what they normally photograph different and better. It could mean working in whole other genre of photography altogether. Both approaches are challenging and vulnerable to failures.

How can you step out beyond your comfort zone and experience real magic in creativity?

Flag performance at a street parade - The Magic of Creativity Rarely Happens in Your Comfort Zone

Watch Your Attitude

I believe the biggest struggle many people have in growing creatively is that they can be too hard on themselves. When they try something new they set themselves up to fail because of negative thought patterns. Sound familiar?

Taking a step outside your creative comfort zone with a positive attitude is the most important factor towards your success. Acknowledging to yourself that what you are doing is new and difficult and that your initial result will probably suck, is important. If you are broken hearted at your photos the first time you try a new aspect of photography, you will never grow. You will not find the magic.

You need to press on and make the most of what you find difficult to help you improve.

Karen pipe smoker - The Magic of Creativity Rarely Happens in Your Comfort Zone

Commit to Learn

Studying the new technique or subject you’re challenging yourself with is a positive step towards creative magic. If you launch headlong into something new without knowing much about it you will most likely fail. I know this to be true from far too much personal experience.

Taking time to study a little more, step by step, you can become an expert. When I first worked in a photography studio with subjects, lights, props, and backgrounds I could manipulate it was all new to me. I had come from working as a newspaper photographer where I often had no control over these things. I didn’t know what to do.

Initially, I wasted a lot of Polaroids, (instant photos which were used to preview the setup, now we chimp our LCD screens).

Then, I found a gem of a book in the local library, (yes, this was when the internet was still a baby.) Light Science and Magic was a superb teacher. This book taught me so much of how to control the lighting. I am also a big fan of Irving Penn and love his still life arrangements. I have always learned a lot by studying the work of high achieving photographers.

Studio photos of food and cocktails - comfort zone

Creating Photos for Someone Else

The main difference between amateur and professional photographers is not that pros take better photos and earn a living doing so. The most significant difference is that professional photographers must consistently produce photos that fit a brief and please someone else, not just themselves.

Photographing what you are passionate about is meaningful for enjoyment and creative growth. Photographing something you have no interest in is often a huge challenge.

When I first started work at the newspaper I learned very quickly that I was well out of my comfort zone. I was having to not only talk to strangers but to go back to my picture editor with publishable photos of those strangers. I was painfully shy and it was so difficult, but I wanted to keep my job, so I took on the challenge.

Later came other challenges like photographing sports events and other action photo situations I had no experience with. The opportunity to attend top international matches was a good incentive. I learned because I had to and I came to love it.

one day cricket action- comfort zone

Role-Play Being a Pro

You don’t need to get a job working for a newspaper. These photography jobs are few and far between nowadays. You can role play effectively and imagine you are a pro.

Set yourself assignments and treat them as though you are working for a newspaper or magazine. Better still, have someone else task you assignments of their choosing. This way you will begin to photograph subjects and in situations, you may never have chosen.

You will discover that you love some of these assignments as you are being stretched beyond what you normally do. As you are outside your comfort zone you will have to think and behave differently.

Set deadlines. Approach this exercise realistically. If someone else has set your assignment, have them review your photographs with you and make a selection.

By role-playing like this, you may have the advantage of rephotographing the same subject if you can see room for improvement. This is a luxury I did not often have when working at the newspapers.

Forest Waterfall - comfort zone

Photographing What is Familiar

I am not advocating only photographing new and different things with techniques you’ve never used. Making great photos of what you love can be equally challenging.

Taking pictures of what you love over a long period of time your photos may begin to lack flair. This is common. If you are truly passionate about what you are photographing you need to press yourself to remain creative.

We are often at the local markets in Chiang Mai taking photo workshops. I told myself after we’d been going there for about a year that I need to come away with at least one new portrait each time. Not of the same people who I knew and were easy to photograph, but of different people in different locations at the market.

I’d passed this guy many times and felt a little intimidated by his tough looking exterior. One winter’s morning he was standing in the sun outside his flower shop watching the world go by. The light was fabulous and he had on a cool beanie. I had to ask him. Turns out he was happy to pose for me. I took him a print of this photo next time we were there and now he often gives my wife or our customer’s flowers when we are passing.

Street portrait of a Thai man - comfort zone

Photographing People

I have become pretty comfortable photographing people, but still, find it challenging. Like with the tough looking flower seller, initial contact and relating to a stranger is not easy for most people. If you step out and ask often the results can be most rewarding.

Photographing people you know can pose other problems. My friends got engaged recently and asked my wife and me to do a photo session for them. My challenge was pressure I put on myself to excel. I wanted to bless them with photos that made the event special.

Working with my wife is always enjoyable. We work well together. I found I could capture different moments, especially when their attention was on her. My expectations and desire to do well for my friends was my biggest challenge. My fear of failing was my biggest hindrance.

Once I relaxed and enjoyed myself as much as they were I was able to take some photos that they told us later were their favorite image of themselves they’ve ever had. This is feedback every portrait photographer loves to hear.

Thai woman and white man in the street - comfort zone

Two New Personal Photography Challenges

My wife and I recently moved to a new home in the countryside. I have never been particularly interested in landscape photography, but now I need to be.

We are running a homestay and need to show off the wonderful environment so people will want to come and stay here. This means I must make the best landscape photos I can. It’s good to be working with a subject that I have not cared for much and to have a reason to be taking these types of photos.

My second challenge is to use my phone for more photography. I am comfortable with my camera, thank you. I have had little interest in using my phone except to take the occasional snapshot. Currently, I think I am using my phone more than I am using my camera.

Bicycle on a road in the rice field - comfort zone

I am using the panorama mode frequently.

I ride my bicycle in the surrounding region each morning. But I don’t like carrying a camera when I ride so I am using my phone to photograph the local landscape.

Part of my motivation to take up the challenge of photographing with my phone is that this is how most photos are being made in the world now. I need to know more about it so I can teach it. The best way for me to learn is to just do it.

The limitations I have with using my phone are a big challenge. I must innovate and be creative to capture the photos I want. Now I am also beginning to use my phone to photograph more than only landscapes. As the challenges continue I hope my creativity continues to grow.

Thai rice landscape - comfort zone

Be encouraged, find something new that’s not easy for you. You will only reap the rewards if you step outside of your comfort zone and try. Tell me in the comments below how you are getting on with your challenge, I’d love to know.

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iPhone XS, XS Max and XR cameras: what you need to know

16 Sep

Introduction

On Wednesday Apple launched its new iPhone models for 2018, the XS, XS Max and XR. The two XS devices come with OLED HDR displays, that offer a 60% improvement in dynamic range compared to the iPhone X. On the iPhone XS the screen measures 5.8″, on the Max variant it is 6.5″. Both devices come with a dual-camera setup that combines a wide-angle main camera with a 2x tele module.

The iPhone XR is a more affordable model and has to make do with a 6.1″ LCD display and a single-camera setup. The iPhone XS and XS Max will be available first, shipping September 21st in 64GB, 256GB and 512GB configurations. The XS starts at $ 999; the XS Max starts at $ 1099. The iPhone XR will ship October 26th starting at $ 749 with 64GB, 128GB and 256GB configurations.

At first sight the new cameras aren’t much different from last year’s iPhone X but improvements have been made in terms of hardware, software and features. On the following pages we take a closer look.

Camera hardware

The iPhone XS and its larger sibling XS Max share the same dual-camera setup. On paper the specifications look pretty much identical to last year’s iPhone X but there is an important change: the 12MP sensor in the wide-angle camera now comes with larger pixels (1.4 µm, up from 1.22 µm) for improved low light capabilities and dynamic range.

The F1.8 aperture on the 6-element wide-angle remains unchanged and the 12MP tele-module with F2.4 aperture is the same as before as well. The tele comes with six elements as well and both lenses are optically stabilized.

The most affordable of the new devices, the iPhone XR, comes with the same wide-angle camera as the XS and XS Max but has to make do without a tele-lens.

New Neural Engine and ISP

The new iPhone’s A12 Bionic processor has been upgraded in several areas compared to its A11 Bionic predecessor. It comes with faster and more efficient processing cores and a more powerful GPU. More importantly, though, the 8-core Neural Engine is now more directly involved in image capture and processing and strongly linked with the image signal processor (ISP).

For example, the Neural Engine helps improve facial recognition and image segmentation. The latter helps distinguish the subject from the background and plays an important role in Apple’s bokeh mode portrait images.

The processor’s additional speed also allows for more image information to be captured and processed. This has enabled the Apple engineers to create the new Smart HDR feature, which they claim is faster and more accurate than the HDR mode of previous iPhone generations. The company says that the device is capable of performing one trillion operations on each image that is captured.

Bokeh-effect in Portrait mode

A background-blurring bokeh effect has been available in the iPhone’s Portrait Mode for some time now. In the new models the feature has been refined, however, and now offers adjustment of depth-of-field for stills in the native camera app.

At launch, this will only work in post-processing after the photo has been taken, but a software update this fall will enable a real-time preview at the point of capture. You can set the aperture on a virtual slider on your screen from F1.4 to F16 and see the results instantly, allowing for easy optimization of that portrait look.

Thanks to the updated Neural Engine, Portrait mode is now also better at distinguishing subject and background. Advanced depth segmentation allows for a more realistic bokeh effect with fewer artifacts.

In the iPhones XS and XS Max the camera can also make use of the secondary tele lens to for subject segmentation. The iPhone XR has to make do with a single-camera setup but is still capable of generating a convincing portrait look.

On the XR the camera uses the sensor’s focus pixels for parallax and then segmentation masking. Thanks to the device’s processing power, the depth effect is still visible in real time but currently only works with faces.

Smart HDR

Smart HDR is another new camera feature made possible by the new iPhones’ beefier processor and updated Neural Engine. Smart HDR is quite similar to Google’s approach to HDR on its Pixel devices and continuously captures a four-frame buffer while the camera app is open. This means when the shutter is pressed the image is captured instantly, with zero shutter lag.

In addition, Smart HDR captures several interframes at different exposures and a long exposure for added shadow detail and intelligently combines all frames of the same scene. The system picks and blends the best parts of each frame in order to create the final image. This helps reduce ghosting artifacts on moving subjects and create a well-balanced HDR look with good detail in both highlight and shadow areas.

Video

The new model also come with improvements in the video department. As before, the new models can shoot 4K video at 60 frames per second and 1080p Full-HD at up to 240fps, allowing for smooth slow-motion footage with good detail.

When limiting the frame rate to 30 fps, the camera can extend dynamic range which will be specifically noticeable on the HDR10 enabled displays of the XS and XS Max. Thanks to the larger sensor in the main camera and increased processing power, low light performance has been improved as well, with lower noise levels and brighter exposures in very low light. In addition all cameras come with an all-new video stabilization system.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Affinity Photo for iPad gets major update, 30% off discount

16 Sep

Affinity Photo for iPad has put out a new update that further improves the Photoshop competitor with new features, updated tools and bug fixes.

Serif, the company behind the Affinity suite, also noted there’s now more than a quarter of a million people worldwide using Affinity Photo for iPad, following on the heels of Apple’s App of the Year accolade it received at WWDC in May 2018.

Affinity Photo version 1.6.9 introduces a long list of changes including ‘massively’ expanded support for touch gesture control, a tweaked UI designed for more intuitive control and better brush management, a new Export persona for easy exporting of multiple layers and a slew of under-the-hood changes to boost performance.

Below is the full list of features and tools that have been updated in Affinity Photo for iPad:

  • Added support for brush nozzle base texture mode.
  • New Undo/Redo gesture with two and three finger tap.
  • Added drag modifiers to studio icons for color, text, navigator and history.
  • Added canvas rotation control via Navigator Studio.
  • Added swipe gesture to swap primary and secondary colors on the Color Studio
  • Context menu now uses a long-press release gesture to invoke.
  • Added two-finger hold gesture to resize a layer from its centre.
  • During shape creation, a two-finger hold gesture will transform the layer.
  • On the Layers Studio, with a layer selected, a two-finger tap on another layer will select all layers in between.
  • On the Layers Studio, pinch inwards (either vertically or horizontally) to group selected layers. To ungroup, do the opposite and pinch out.
  • With the Move Tool active, a two-finger hold gesture on a layer plus a one finger drag duplicates the selected layer.
  • Easy access to merge and rasterize commands via Layer Studio icons.
  • New Export persona. A new workspace for exporting regions of your image as slices.
  • Improved brush stroke lag and small stroke response.
  • Brushes remember previously used stroke settings.
  • Move any custom brush to any category.
  • Added support for on-screen keyboard trackpad mode.
  • Added Tab key to on-screen keyboard context bar.
  • Updated Persona icons.
  • Numerous other improvements and bug fixes.

To entice new users, Serif has announced a 30% off sale through 7AM ET on Tuesday, September 18th. Normally, Affinity Photo for iPad retails for $ 20, but with this discount, you can snag it for $ 14 in the iOS App Store.

Do note Affinity Photo for iPad only supports iPad Pro, iPad Air 2 and iPad (early 2017). If you have an older device, it won’t run — so don’t waste your money.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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The Six Killers of Night Sky Photography (and how to avoid them)

16 Sep

One of the best things about night photography, in general, is how forgiving it is. That is to say, you generally don’t need special weather conditions to create a really nice picture. The night and urban lights give you all you need to work with. Once it is dark the light isn’t changing so you aren’t chasing the light. Almost any night will do.

 

But if you are trying to photograph the night sky it is a completely different story. The reality is that night sky photography is very finicky. If you are going to pursue this sort of photography be ready for your opportunities to be very limited. You should also be ready for some failures.

Milky Way - Night Sky Photography

Failure is never any fun, but it is even less so in night sky photography. You have to go to remote areas, so you will often have to drive long distances to get the shot. You will be cutting into valuable sleep time as well.  So let’s try to avoid some of those failures. In that regard, here are the six biggest problems I expect you will run into and how you might deal with them.

Night Sky Photography Killer #1: The Moon

There is nothing that will destroy your opportunities for night sky photography more than the moon. This might surprise you, but it is true. Why is that the case? Because the light coming from even a quarter moon is over 100 times more powerful than starlight. So it simply washes out the scene.

Having the moon in the sky does have its advantages. It can light up your foreground, for example.  But when it comes to photographing the stars, it is a killer.

What’s more, the moon is in the night sky for most of the month. Frankly, I wouldn’t plan a night sky outing more than about 4-5 days on either side of a new moon. Anything near a full moon is out of the question. That takes about 70% of the year out of the picture for night sky photography. As such, it is a huge limitation.

Campsite panorama of the night sky.

So how do you avoid problems with the moon? There are two ways, and for both of them, you need nothing more than a website called TimeAndDate.com. That website will tell you the moon phase, first of all. That way you can plan your night sky outing on or close to the new moon.

If you are totally unfamiliar with the moon and its phases, the new moon is when there is no moon in the sky at night. From the new moon, the moon will transition into a crescent moon, to a quarter, and then a few weeks later to a full moon (and then the process starts reversing itself). The nights around the new moon are critical because not only does that limit the illumination coming from the moon, but during a new moon phase the moon won’t even be in the night sky.

The moon travels across the sky in the daytime during the new moon phase, and across the sky at night during a full moon. The closer you are to a new moon, the less time the moon will be in the sky at all during the night.

That leads to the second way to avoid the moon, which is to take note of the times of moonrise and moonset. Again, you can get these times through TimeAndDate.com. Make sure this lines up with the other conditions you need for success (ie. times of complete darkness, weather conditions, movement of stars, etc.) which we will talk about in a second.

night sky photography - Milky Way over a road

Killer #2: Light Pollution

You may have read that heading and said “duh.” You already know you need to be in a dark place to have any success in capturing the night sky. But you might be surprised by just how dark it needs to be. You cannot just drive outside of a city for half an hour and expect it to be dark enough to really capture a great night sky shot or the Milky Way.

What you need to do is consult the Dark Site Finder. This is the best resource I have found for avoiding light pollution. It is basically Google maps with an overlay of different colors that tell you how much light pollution a given place will have. The darker the color the better (ie the less the light pollution).

dark sky finder map - night sky photography

How dark do you need it to be? Really dark. Take a look at this picture:

church and Milky Way - night sky photography

This picture was taken in a blue area on the Dark Site finder, which is the fifth darkest area out of the 15 different levels. The light pollution you see on the bottom left of the picture was not from a big city, but rather from a small town shaded green on the map that was about 10-15 miles away.

The light pollution was not something you would see as you were shooting – everything looked totally dark to me as I was standing there. But it shows up very clearly in the shot, obviously. Make sure it is very dark where you are planning to shoot.

Killer #3: Star Movement

If you are not familiar with night sky photography, you might think you can just open up the shutter for a minute or two to allow enough light into the camera to achieve a proper exposure. But you can’t, because the stars are moving. And they are moving a lot faster than you might think. (Okay, I know this is actually due to the earth spinning – I’m not a flat-earther – but it appears as though the stars are moving!)

If you shoot the night sky with a long exposure, the stars will move while you have the shutter open. They will show up as small trails. It doesn’t look attractive and just makes the stars look blurry. Of course, you can go with it and create trails that go across the entire frame, but that is a different story entirely. What you are after here are crisp pictures of the stars in the night sky.

How long of a shutter speed can you use? On all but super-wide-angle lenses, you shouldn’t go longer than about 15 seconds. Even on super-wide-angle lenses, you shouldn’t go longer than 30 seconds. You can also use something called the Rule of 500 to determine your longest useable shutter speed. That rule says that the maximum shutter length should be 500 divided by your focal length (eg. with a 24mm lens it would be 500 / 24 or 20.8 seconds).

Because of this, you should use your widest angle, fastest lens for night sky photography. For more information on picking a lens, check out this article.

shooting star night desert photo - night sky photography

Killer #4: Lack of Foreground Element

A starry sky or Milky Way shot will provide a nice background for your picture. It is sort of like having a nice sunset. It is a great thing to have, but on its own, it won’t be enough. You also need a foreground element.

If you just head out to shoot the night sky with no real idea of where you are going, you will likely have problems. You will end up with an uninteresting foreground, and therefore uninteresting photography. The middle of the night is no time to explore and try to come up with something. Remember that where you are going will be very dark. It will be full darkness, with no moon, in a place with no light pollution. You won’t be able to see anything to come up with a foreground.

To fix this problem, you need to scout your area ahead of time. Sometimes that is possible by physically going there, but often it isn’t. When you cannot go ahead of time, you can still virtually scout the location.  Use the Street View feature in Google Maps to get you started.

Killer #5: Unforeseen Conditions Blocking Out the Stars

You probably already know that you cannot head out on a cloudy night and expect to have any chance of success at photographing the night sky. You need a clear sky, or at best partly cloudy conditions. There is no secret as to how you check this. There are a number of weather apps, so just use the one you are comfortable with.

But that isn’t the end of the issue. I have had many outings ruined when there was not a cloud in the sky. They have been ruined by things like dust clouds, smoke, and mist. These conditions aren’t as flukey as you might think. Remember you will usually be doing your night sky shots in remote places.

A desert environment is a pretty commonplace, and moderate winds kick enough dust up into the atmosphere to essentially block out the stars. If you are in a coastal environment, sea mist can do the same thing. Forest fires from hundreds of miles away can also impact your ability to get the shot.

So be sure you take a close look at conditions in your target area. It is no fun to drive for many hours and then not even pull the camera out of the bag.

trees and stars - night sky photography

Killer #6: A Boring Sky

Finally, not just any clear, moonless night will do. If you go out without understanding which stars will be in the sky when you will be shooting, you might be destined for a boring sky. If you have a strong enough foreground element, this might not matter so much. But if the night sky is the predominant subject matter, you need it to look really good.

For most people, this means including the Milky Way in your shot. That means capturing the band of stars that runs across the sky. It is best when you capture a cluster of stars at the heart of it. But the Milky Way isn’t visible all year. It isn’t visible at any time of night during about November through February. Starting in about March it will become visible just before sunrise. In June through about August, it will be visible most of the night. Starting in about September it will only be visible just after sunset. This is true no matter what hemisphere you live in.

To plan for including the most interesting stars and constellations (and, again, usually the Milky Way), just pick up one of the apps that are available for your phone. I use Star Walk 2 and I like it very much, but there are others available such as PhotoPills.

tree at night - night sky photography

Putting It Together

Again, night sky photography is finicky. Taking steps to prepare will pay huge dividends. Because you need to be in remote areas, that means a long drive to get there. Planning will keep you from wasting a whole lot of time and effort.

But don’t wait for perfection – that never happens. Plan for the best conditions you can get, and then give it a shot. It could lead to some stunning pictures.

The post The Six Killers of Night Sky Photography (and how to avoid them) appeared first on Digital Photography School.


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How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

16 Sep

There is little quite as delightful as going through family albums, reliving memories and watching how things have changed over the years. Having digital copies is great but nothing really beats the excitement of having them in print, holding all those memories in your hands and going through them at your leisure.

It’s a sentiment I’ve especially grown to appreciate since the birth of my daughter. The rare times my hard drive starts giving me trouble and I begin to fear the loss of my digital files, I’m assured if anything, my favorite photographs with my loved ones are safe in their spot on my shelf. So, how do you go about creating such family albums?

The Lightroom Book Module

If you use Lightroom in your post-processing workflow (who doesn’t?), you’ll be delighted to know it helps you make beautiful albums even if your sense of design isn’t the best.

It keeps you from looking for other software – where you’ll probably be re-uploading your photos, struggling with their size, cropping, and even brain storming for creative and appealing layouts.

The Lightroom Book Module even goes a step further and gives you the option to send your photo book to Blurb for printing from within Lightroom!

In case you don’t know, Blurb is a publishing company which prints quality books on-demand for people like you and me. They’re reasonably priced and could rival professional photo books. To sweeten the deal, they deliver your order right to your doorstep!

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Of course, you still have the option to convert your photo book into a PDF or JPEG images. That way you can have them printed yourself or just save those layouts as collages. So, without further ado, let’s look into how you can make beautiful family albums!

Step 1 – Make a Collection

Before you start creating your book, you should make a Lightroom Collection of the photos you want in the book.

Since I take a lot of photos of my daughter and they’re all in different folders, I’ve set up a Smart Collection which saves any picture I keyword with her name. This way, Lightroom automatically saves them to that Collection. Whenever I need to look at all her photos together, I just navigate to that folder and they’re all there.

For this example, I’m making a photo book of my daughter’s first year. Once you’ve made your personal Collection, select it and head over to the Lightroom Book Module.

Step 2 – Save your photo book

In the Book module, you’ll immediately see all the photos of your Collection laid out in the form of open book pages. (Note this only happens automatically if you set that up in your Lightroom preferences).

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Before you start anything, it’s a good idea to save the book so you don’t lose any changes you make. To do so, look for this button in the top-right: Create Saved Book.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

After clicking that, you’ll be asked to name your book and choose where you want to keep it in Lightroom.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

It’s preferable to keep it under the collection you’re working from so it’s always easily accessible. To do so, select the Inside checkbox, and in the drop-down menu select the collection you’re using. I’m using a collection with my daughter’s name. (Keep the other options ticked as they are by default).

On the Collections panel, the photo book will appear under your collection.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Viewing your photo book

You can choose how to view your photo book from the different “Views” options on the toolbar at the bottom.

The default one is the Multi-Page View which shows your entire photo book. You can enlarge or shrink the size of the pages by using the Thumbnails slider on the bottom-right, the same way you do in the Library module.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Then there’s the Spread View, which shows how side-by-side pages will appear in the book. This is useful when you’re having a closer look at your photo book. You can shift through the pages using the arrow keys on the toolbar below.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Finally, there’s the Single Page View to get really up close and personal, for when you’re adding finer details.

v

Step 3 – Select Book Settings

The first panel on the right-hand side is the Book Settings panel. Here, you can choose the format of the book between Blurb, PDF, and JPEG.

Publishing with Blurb

First, let’s look at the options you have if you choose to publish through Blurb.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Depending on your requirements, you can change the size of the book.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

You also have the options to change the paper type and the book cover. An interesting thing to note is that at the bottom of the panel you’ll see a rough estimate of how much your book will cost. However, the price is only visible if you’re using the Blurb option (as seen above).

As you change your options the price will also change. This helps you manage your photo book within your budget.

Publish as a PDF or JPEG

If you choose PDF or JPEG in the Book drop-down, the options will also change (shown below).

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

You still have the liberty of changing the book size and choosing the book cover, however, now you also have to look over other things like your image quality, resolution, etc.

Step 4 – Layout

Now that basics are out of the way it’s time to get to the good stuff!

Right now, your photo book may have a lot of empty pages and it clearly doesn’t look like what you want. The appearance, or rather, the layout of the book can be changed in the Auto Layout panel.

Notice that the Preset selected by default is Left Blank, Right One Photo, and that’s likely how you’re seeing your book right now: the left page is blank and the photo is on the right side of the spread.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

If you want you can choose any of the other presets available to you, though you’ll find there’s little available.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

To change everything to your liking, you’ll first need to hit the Clear Layout button in the Auto Layout panel.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

This clears away everything and gives you a completely new canvas to work on.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Making your own Layout

In the Preset drop-down, select Edit Auto Layout Preset.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

This opens a dialog box where you can select how you want your pages to look.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

You can see that the dialog box is divided in half to accommodate the design for the right and left pages. By default, the left page is blank. On the Left Pages drop-down, select Fixed Layout.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

This will open a variety of layouts for you to choose from. You can scroll through them to see if anything catches your fancy.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

The grey area in the template shows how much space the photo will take on the page. In the image above, the first sample (on the left-hand page) portrays an image having some space from the edges of the page, thus we can see the white border. The second template (on the right-hand page) shows an image being fit onto the entire page with no blank space at all.

As you scroll down, you’ll see a number of different layouts, some of them with text as well.

Your page might not be the same proportion as your photograph, so it’s a safe option to choose “Fill” from the Zoom Photos drop-down menu.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

This makes sure that the final look is exactly as you see in the template, or you might be seeing more blank space than you were supposed to.

You might have noticed that so far we’ve been working with “1 Photo: from the secondary drop-down that appeared after selecting Fixed Layout.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

If you choose any of the other options from the dropdown, the templates will change accordingly.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Similarly, you can choose any template on the right-side pages. Don’t forget to choose “Fill: in the Zoom drop-down before you hit Save!

One tip I offer is that you should choose templates where images have some space (white lines) between them. It gives a more elegant, classy look. In the end, though, it all depends on your personal preference.

When you hit Save, the New Preset dialog will ask for a name. For convenience, name the Preset according to how you’ve selected the layout to look (see example below).

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

When you click Create, the Auto Layout panel will have the new preset selected. To apply it to your photo book, you just have to click the Auto Layout button.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

If you don’t, you’ll find your book to still be in the default setup of “Left Blank, Right One Photo”. This is what my view looks like after clicking Auto Layout.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

As you can see, Lightroom applied the selected layout (that we created) to the entire photo book.

Step 5 – Changing Layout for Individual Pages

For now, your entire photo book follows a single layout. But you can also change the layouts for individual pages too! Let’s check out the Page panel for that.

Select the page where you want to change the layout by clicking on the little arrow on the Page panel.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

You can also access these options directly by clicking on the little arrow below any page you select.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

This allows you to choose from all the layouts available.

Step 6 – Working on Individual Panels

There’s still more tweaking you can do as well. If you think an image would look a bit better after a little bit of zooming in or out, you can select the image and a zoom slider will appear. Simply drag the marker as you see fit.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

This sort of work is better done in Spread view since it shows you a larger view and is also easier on the eyes.

You can also change the position of a photo by dragging it. It will move within the confines of its template. In the image below, you can see the photo has been dragged a little bit from left to right.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

You should go through your entire photo book in the Spread View at least once to make sure everything looks good and no image is getting cut off in an unpleasant way.

You can get really creative and make interesting sets of photos by using zoom and dragging the image to adjust its position.

Step 7 – Changing Photos inside Panels

Lightroom arranges all the photos automatically. So obviously there may be images which you want to see on another panel, or another page, or a certain set of images you wanted to keep together.

You can change the photos inside panels pretty easily by dragging and dropping. Select the photo you want to move and drag it towards the panel you want it in. Once you drop it, the two photos will swap places.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

You can also drag photos into the panels from the Filmstrip below.

Removing a Page

If you want to remove any page, right-click on the page and select Remove Page.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Step 8 – Adding Text to your photo book

When you select any page or photo, a small button “Add Page Text” or “Add Photo Text” will appear near the bottom line.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Simply click this button if you want to add text and write whatever you want.

Lightroom’s default font might not be very pleasing to the eye, so if you want to edit your text, select the text and look over at the Type panel.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

The Type panel is pretty straightforward. Here you can change the font type, font color, font size, opacity, alignment, etc. By default, the font is set tightly against the photo.

You can adjust this through the Text panel too.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

The Offset slider on the Text panel helps you adjust how near or far you want to place the text from the photo.

You can also adjust the text to sit Above, Over or Below the photo. If you want to remove the text, uncheck the Photo Text option in the Type panel.

Step 9 – Adding Backgrounds to your photo book

Our last stop is the Background panel. If you want to add images or some sort of design in the background, this is where you need to be.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Adding a Photo in the Background

If you want to add an image as the background, simply drag it from the Filmstrip and drop it on “Drop Photo Here” in the Background Panel. It’ll appear as a faded background.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

You can control its density with the Opacity slider near the bottom of the panel. It’s best to keep it at a low opacity like 20-30% so it doesn’t distract from the main image.

Adding Background Color

If you want to add a color to the background, you need to check the Background Color option. Then you can click on the color selector and pick a color, or add a HEX code to get your desired color.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

Adding Graphics to Background

Adding graphics is just as simple. Click on the arrow icon in the Background panel and it will open a side menu.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

By default, “Photos” is selected. Change it to “Travel” or “Wedding: and you’ll see graphic images similar to the ones in the image above. Select the one you like and you’re good to go.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

You can experiment with the Opacity slider using graphics too.

Note: Any background effect that you apply will apply to only the selected page. If you want to apply it to the entire photo book, you’ll need to check the Apply Background Globally option.

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Step 10 – Ready for Printing!

Once you’ve worked out the finer details and are all set to see your photo book in print, select the Send to Blurb button at the bottom of the panels. In case you’re working with the PDF or the JPEG option, you’ll have Export Book to PDF/JPEG as the last step.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

When you click Send Book to Blurb, you’ll get a Sign In window detailing the final look and price of your photo book.

How to Create Memorable Family Albums Using the Lightroom Book Module

If you want to get good quality prints at a good price and a professional looking photo book ready at your doorstep, I’d suggest making an account at Blurb and taking full advantage of it.

Afterward, the only thing left to do is to wait for the memories to be given a form.

I know for a fact that I’d love to look through this album of my daughter’s first year in the world, from time to time, even ten or twenty years later. At that point, who knows where my digital files will be.

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Blackmagic Design announces new Blackmagic RAW codec for video

15 Sep

Blackmagic Design has announced the public beta of its new Blackmagic RAW video codec. The company says the new format combines the benefits of shooting Raw video with the ease of use and smaller file sizes usually associated with compressed, gamma-encoded video files.

Raw video typically produces very large files and requires lots of processing power to edit when compared to compressed formats. Blackmagic says it has addressed this problem by moving part of the de-mosaic process into the camera, which is able to provide hardware-based acceleration. By performing this process in-camera, editing software like DaVinci Resolve won’t need to work nearly as hard to decode the files.

Blackmagic RAW supports two types of compression: constant quality or constant bit rate, allowing users to prioritize image quality or file size based on what they’re shooting. Images are encoded using a non-linear 12-bit space designed to provide both high quality color data and dynamic range. According to Blackmagic, its new Raw format will also provide more accurate skin tones and color thanks to its Generation 4 Color Science. (All of this processing does make us wonder whether these Raw files are completely comparable to the Raw files we’re used to in the still imaging world.)

The Blackmagic RAW public beta can be downloaded immediately for use on the URSA Mini Pro camera.

The company says the new Raw format will also simplify media management by creating single files rather than directories of still images, as is the case with CinemaDNG. When files are edited in software like DaVinci Resolve a sidecar file will be created, similar to a Raw photo in Adobe Camera Raw.

Speaking of DaVinci Resolve, Blackmagic has just released version 15.1, which includes full support for Blackmagic RAW. For users of Blackmagic cameras, this means it will be possible to shoot, edit, and color grade using the same files through the entire workflow.

Blackmagic has released DaVinci Resolve 15.1, which fully supports its new Blackmagic RAW codec, and is available for download immediately.

For users of other software platforms, Blackmagic has announced a Blackmagic RAW Developer SDK that will allow third party developers to add support for the new format in other applications.

Users can download the public beta of Blackmagic RAW for use with the URSA Mini Pro through the Blackmagic Camera 6.0 Beta update, with the final version shipping in several weeks once testing is complete. DaVinci Resolve 15.1 is available for download immediately from the Blackmagic website. If you happen to be attending IBC 2018 in Amsterdam, you can stop by the Blackmagic booth for a demonstration.

Press release:

Blackmagic Design Announces Advanced New Blackmagic RAW Codec

Revolutionary new and modern codec that’s easier to use and much better quality than popular video formats, but with all the benefits of RAW.

IBC 2018, Amsterdam, Netherlands – September 14, 2018 – Blackmagic Design today announced the public beta of Blackmagic RAW, a new and very modern codec that combines the quality and benefits of RAW with the ease of use, speed and file sizes of traditional video formats. Blackmagic RAW is a more intelligent format that gives customers stunning images, incredible performance, cross platform support and a free developer SDK.

The Blackmagic RAW public beta will be demonstrated on the Blackmagic Design IBC 2018 booth at #7.B45. Customers can download the public beta for use with URSA Mini Pro cameras via the Blackmagic Camera 6.0 Beta Update. In addition, DaVinci Resolve 15.1 Update, which includes support for Blackmagic RAW, is also available free of charge from the Blackmagic Design website.

Blackmagic RAW has been in development for years and is a next generation codec that features multiple new technologies such as an advanced de?mosaic algorithm, extensive metadata support, highly optimized GPU and CPU accelerated processing and more. It can be used from acquisition throughout post production for editing and color grading, all from a single file.

Traditional RAW codecs have large file sizes and are processor intensive, making them hard to work with. Video file formats are faster, but suffer quality problems due to the use of 4:2:2 video filters that reduce color resolution. Blackmagic RAW solves these problems with an intelligent design that moves part of the de-mosaic process into the camera where it can be hardware accelerated by the camera itself. This results in incredibly efficient encoding that gives customers the same quality, bit depth, dynamic range and controls as RAW, but with much better performance and smaller file sizes than most popular video codecs. Because the processor intensive partial de-mosaic is done by the camera hardware, software such as DaVinci Resolve doesn’t have to do as much work decoding the files. In addition, GPU and CPU acceleration make decoding of frames incredibly fast, so you get extremely smooth performance for editing and grading.

Blackmagic RAW is much more than a simple RAW container format. Its intelligent design actually understands the camera and the sensor. This means the image data, along with the unique characteristics of the image sensor, are encoded and saved into the Blackmagic RAW file, giving customers much better image quality, even at higher compression settings, as well as total control over features such as ISO, white balance, exposure, contrast, saturation and more.

In addition, Blackmagic RAW uses Blackmagic Design Generation 4 Color Science for superior imaging that results in reproducing extremely accurate skin tones and gorgeous, lifelike colors that rival those of cameras costing tens of thousands of dollars more. Images are encoded using a custom non-linear 12-bit space designed to provide the maximum amount of color data and dynamic range.

Blackmagic RAW also makes it easy for any software developer to access all this technology. The free developer SDK lets any third party software application add Blackmagic RAW support on Mac, Windows and Linux. The Blackmagic RAW developer SDK automatically handles the embedded sensor profile metadata, along with Blackmagic Design color science, for predictable and accurate image rendering that yields consistent color throughout the entire pipeline.

Blackmagic RAW features two types of file compression. Customers can choose either constant quality or constant bitrate encoding options, depending on the kind of work they are doing. This lets them prioritize image quality or file size. Constant quality uses variable bitrate encoding so complex frames are encoded at higher data rates to preserve detail and maintain the highest possible quality. Blackmagic RAW Q0 has minimum quantization and yields the highest quality, while Blackmagic RAW Q5 uses moderate quantization for more efficient encoding and a smaller file size. Blackmagic RAW 3:1, 5:1, 8:1 and 12:1 use constant bitrate encoding to give customers the best possible images with predictable and consistent file sizes. The ratios are based on the unprocessed file size of a single frame from the camera’s sensor, making it easy to understand the relative amount of compression being used.

The pristine camera native quality of Blackmagic RAW Q0 and 3:1 are perfect for effects heavy feature film and commercial work. Blackmagic RAW Q5 and 5:1 are extremely high quality making them great for episodic television and independent films. Blackmagic RAW 8:1 and 12:1 offer high quality and speed, making it suitable for productions that wouldn’t normally consider shooting RAW. Now, more customers than ever will be able to use high quality RAW images in an incredibly efficient way that was impossible before.

“Blackmagic RAW could entirely change the workflow going from camera through post production,” said Kees Van Oostrum, Director of Photography and President of the American Society of Cinematographers. “A superb image quality, fine detail and incredibly small file sizes could possibly make Blackmagic RAW the go to format for filmmakers. It will be an important change for post because the editorial team can work with the camera original files, which are fast enough to use for everyday editing. That means less confusion in regards to creative choices I make at the camera. The images can now travel throughout the entire workflow because we’re shooting, editing and grading with the same files! Blackmagic RAW could be a game changer in the way films, television shows and commercials are made.”

Blackmagic RAW dramatically simplifies and speeds up post production workflows. DaVinci Resolve 15.1, which was also released today, includes full support for Blackmagic RAW. The performance of Blackmagic RAW is much faster in DaVinci Resolve than any other RAW format. This makes editing, color correction and visual effects incredibly fast. In addition, working with single files instead of folders full of still image sequences greatly simplifies media management. When the RAW settings are changed in DaVinci Resolve, a .sidecar file can be generated or updated if one already exists. When opened in other software applications that support Blackmagic RAW, the .sidecar file, which contains the RAW settings made in DaVinci Resolve, will be automatically used to display the image. If the .sidecar file is removed then the file will be displayed using the embedded metadata instead. This innovative new workflow gives customers a non-destructive way to change RAW settings while working between different applications.

Featuring a fully scalable design and completely modern CPU and GPU acceleration, Blackmagic RAW is optimized for AVX, AVX2 and SSE4.1 enabled processors, multi-threaded, works across multiple CPU cores and is GPU accelerated with support for Apple Metal, CUDA and OpenCL. Frame decoding and image processing is extremely fast, making it super smooth for editing, color correction and visual effects in DaVinci Resolve. Another benefit of media being stored as single files, and not image sequences, is it makes media management easier and file copying much faster.

The free Blackmagic RAW Developer SDK is available on Mac OS, Windows and Linux. This SDK takes care of all the work for developers, so adding support for Blackmagic RAW to third party software applications is easy and fast. Developers get access to GPU and CPU accelerated algorithms for decoding files, along with unique information about the camera’s image sensor so their applications can accurately decode and display the files. The SDK features highly descriptive and flexible metadata options designed to support today’s modern workflows. Metadata is embedded directly in the .braw file or it can be stored in a .sidecar file. Metadata is important because it contains the RAW settings along with information for the slate, iris, focus, focal length, white balance and a lot more. The metadata in .sidecar files can be used on top of the embedded metadata without overwriting it. Blackmagic RAW also supports frame based metadata so customers can access values, such as focus distance, that often change on a frame by frame basis.

“Blackmagic RAW is the world’s only truly modern, high performance, professional RAW codec that is open, cross platform and free,” said Grant Petty, Blackmagic Design CEO. “It’s exciting because customers can get the visually lossless image quality of RAW with the speed of traditional video workflows. Best of all, there are no hidden licenses or ongoing fees. Blackmagic RAW has been designed to provide the industry with an open, elegant and standardized high quality image format that can be used across products and in customer workflows absolutely free!”

Availability and Price

Blackmagic RAW is available today as a public beta via the Blackmagic Camera 6.0 Beta Update for URSA Mini Pro. The final release of Blackmagic RAW is expected to ship in several weeks’ time once further testing is complete.

The DaVinci Resolve 15.1 Update, which features support for Blackmagic RAW, has also been released and can be downloaded today free of charge from the Blackmagic Design website.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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