RSS
 

Posts Tagged ‘Changing’

Video: Curiosity rover captures 360-degree panorama of Mount Sharp on Mars, showing changing landscape

24 Aug

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover recently explored Mount Sharp. The mountain is 8km (5 mi) tall and is within the 154km-wide (96 mi) basin of Mars’s Gale Crater. Curiosity captured a new 360-degree panorama at Mount Sharp, revealing its diverse terrain and shedding light on the area’s ancient environment.

NASA writes, ‘Images of knobbly rocks and rounded hills are delighting scientists as NASA’s Curiosity rover climbs Mount Sharp, a 5-mile-tall (8-kilometer-tall) mountain within the 96-mile-wide (154-kilometer-wide) basin of Mars’ Gale Crater. The rover’s Mast Camera, or Mastcam, highlights those features in a panorama captured on July 3, 2021 (the 3,167th Martian day, or sol, of the mission).’

Studying the region has been a long-term goal for the Curiosity mission, which is now in its ninth year on Mars. By studying the layers of Mount Sharp, scientists hope to understand how the environment of Gale Crater dried over time. Similar changes in mineral composition are seen across the planet, so understanding Gale Crater should pay dividends in understanding other parts of Mars.

‘The rocks here will begin to tell us how this once-wet planet changed into the dry Mars of today, and how long habitable environments persisted even after that happened,’ said Abigail Fraeman, Curiosity’s deputy project scientist, at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.

‘NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover used its Mast Camera, or Mastcam, to capture this 360-degree view near “Rafael Navarro Mountain” on July 3, 2021, the 3,167th Martian day, or sol, of the mission. Stitched together from 129 individual images, the panorama has been white-balanced so that the colors of the rock materials resemble how they would appear under daytime lighting conditions on Earth. A craggy hump that stretches 450 feet (137 meters) tall, the geologic feature is located on Mount Sharp in northwest Gale Crater.’ Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS. Click to enlarge.

When Curiosity landed on Mars on August 5, 2012, its primary mission was to study whether different Martian environments could have supported microbial life in Mars’s ancient past. Lakes and groundwater once existed within Gale Crater, and scientists want to use Curiosity to understand better what happened and how Mars changed over time.

Looking forward, Curiosity is currently working its way up a path between Rafael Navarro Mountain and a towering butte. In the coming year, Curiosity will drive past these features and enter a canyon. It will then revisit Greenheugh Pediment.

You can learn more about the Curiosity mission by visiting NASA’s dedicated Mars website. You can also check out some of our prior coverage, including Curiosity photographing rare shimmering clouds in June and a neat selfie Curiosity sent to Earth in March.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
Comments Off on Video: Curiosity rover captures 360-degree panorama of Mount Sharp on Mars, showing changing landscape

Posted in Uncategorized

 

Video: How Kodak became yet another victim of the juggernaut of changing technology

27 Sep

The Eastman Kodak Company, better known as Kodak, was co-founded by George Eastman and Henry A. Strong way back in 1888. In the more than 130 years since, the company has been through a lot. It once was a dominant force in the photography industry, at times being almost as synonymous with photography as the Apple iPod once was with respect to music. For all but the youngest in society, we have all heard the phrase, ‘Kodak moment.’

However, with the advent of digital photography, Kodak began to lose its place at the forefront of photography. Interestingly, Kodak itself patented the first handheld digital camera in 1978, eventually shelving the product in order to better preserve its film business. With the benefit of hindsight, we can see that Kodak created its own demise a few decades in advance.

Believing in the long-term viability of a predominantly analog photography industry, Kodak missed critical opportunities to diversify, a mistake Fujifilm didn’t make, as is evidenced by the Japanese company’s impressive lineup of digital photography cameras and lenses.

Kodak’s meteoric rise to near-total market dominance and the precipitous fall from grace is a fascinating story. The Wall Street Journal recently produced a short documentary covering the story of Kodak, which can be viewed below. The video begins with the origins of the company before ramping up to Kodak’s prime and its eventual decline.

In Kodak’s heyday, the company focused on creating simple and easy-to-use still and video cameras for everyday people. This goal, one the company had long met successfully, resulted in Kodak employing more than 145,000 people in 1988. It was Kodak’s best-ever year. At the time, Fujifilm was the biggest threat to Kodak’s business. In 1989, Fujifilm managed to capture an 11% share of the U.S. film market. The next few years saw Kodak’s position of power further eroded, and the company brought in a new CEO from outside in an attempt to right the slowly sinking ship.

Kodak’s digital camera shipments in the United States from 2008 through 2011. Image credit: The Wall Street Journal. Data credit: IDC.

Losses continued to pile up and jobs were cut as Kodak moved to a new CEO at the turn of the 21st century. Kodak continued to produce new digital photography product and jumped into new product sectors, such as printers, but Kodak was fighting a losing battle. The advent of smartphone photography added further difficulties for Kodak, as no longer were consumers as inclined to buy a dedicated camera to capture life’s most important moments. No longer was there a desire to create ‘Kodak moments.’

Kodak’s stock prices have trended very downward since 2014. Image credit: Wall Street Journal. Data credit: Factset.

Eventually, the financial challenges became too great and Kodak shuttered its camera business and filed for bankruptcy in 2012. However, the story of Kodak didn’t end there. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Kodak began licensing its very identity, resulting in the Kodak name being plastered on many different products. Kodak even made a cryptocurrency in 2018. However, its stock price kept falling.

With the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Kodak found a new opportunity to pivot. On July 28, President Trump announced Kodak would receive a $ 765M government loan under the Defense Production Act. Kodak, a company long known for producing products using its chemical expertise, is poised to move into pharmaceuticals. Trump’s announcement sent Kodak stock skyrocketing. However, the deal is currently being held up as the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigates the deal and Kodak itself for insider trading.

Kodak is far from the only company that has faltered in the digital age of photography. However, Kodak may be one of the most famous examples of how changing photographic technology can sink a company.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
Comments Off on Video: How Kodak became yet another victim of the juggernaut of changing technology

Posted in Uncategorized

 

Alien Skin Software is changing its name to Exposure Software

31 Aug

Plug-in and stand-alone imaging application manufacturer Alien Skin Software has announces it’s changing its name to Exposure Software. The company, which started life in 1993 and is well known for its Eye Candy and Exposure Photoshop plug-ins, will switch its name to align itself more closely with its flagship Exposure X package. It says that with the release of Exposure X5 the transition will be complete.

Writing on the company blog CEO Finley Lee says the Exposure X5 plug-in ‘will be a big stride forward in creativity and efficiency.’ The new company name expresses our complete focus on serving creative photographers.’ The current version of the plug-in is Exposure X4.5, which retails from $ 119. For more information see the Exposure Software website.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
Comments Off on Alien Skin Software is changing its name to Exposure Software

Posted in Uncategorized

 

California will debate a bill amendment changing how photo shoot employees are paid

06 Jun

Last month, the California Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 671, which proposes an amendment to the state’s labor law related to ‘print shoot employees.’ Under the change, California would fix a ‘discrepancy in payment timelines’ between crew hired for short-term photo shoot work and employees working on a TV or movie production.

The bill was sponsored by California State Senator Robert Hertzberg, whose office was alerted to the payment timeline discrepancy, according to his press secretary Katie Hanzlik speaking to PDN.

The proposed amendment revolves around existing California labor law, which requires the majority of short-term workers be classified as employees and receive their full wages on the last day of the job. There’s an exception for employees working on a movie or TV production, however, who receive the wages for their work on the next regularly scheduled payday.

Under the proposal, the definition of ‘print shoot employee’ is changed from a short-term worker involved with a print shoot to a short-term worker involved with a ‘still image shoot, including film or digital photography, for use in print, digital, or Internet media.’

The proposed amendment would allow photographers, directors, and other to pay ‘print shoot employees’ their wages on that same timeline, meaning photo shoot crew members will receive their checks on the next regularly scheduled payday like everyone else.

Under the proposal, the definition of ‘print shoot employee’ is changed from a short-term worker involved with a print shoot to a short-term worker involved with a ‘still image shoot, including film or digital photography, for use in print, digital, or Internet media.’ Photo assistants, stylists, and other crew members involved in a photo shoot would be covered by the change.

Now that it has passed the California Senate, the bill will be debated by the State Assembly’s Committee on Labor and Employment on June 12. The bill may then be passed on to the Assembly for a vote, potentially being passed into law.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
Comments Off on California will debate a bill amendment changing how photo shoot employees are paid

Posted in Uncategorized

 

How to Improve Your Photography by Changing Perspective

18 Mar

The post How to Improve Your Photography by Changing Perspective appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.

Sometimes I find myself stuck in a bit of a photographic rut, and it seems like no matter what I do I just can’t quite find interesting subjects to take pictures of or compelling scenes to capture. Even worse, when I do think I’ve stumbled across something that would make a good picture, I’ll start clicking away only to be disappointed with the results.

One trick I’ve learned over the years to dig myself out of these pits is to change my perspective. By looking at familiar subjects from a different angle, or under a different light, I often find myself seeing it almost for the first time. It’s a fun exercise and doesn’t involve much effort. It can transform even the most boring scene or bland subject into something worth photographing and framing.

There is any number of ways you can change your perspective on things to get a good photo. I’m going to examine four of my favorite techniques and show you an example of each one. Hopefully, this gives you some ideas to try out on your own and start turning the mundane into something magical.

Look at the lighting

Not long ago I was walking around a pond near my work with my Fuji X100F when I stumbled across the following scene. As you can see, it really wasn’t much to look at whatsoever. I noticed two brown leaves among a sea of dull green leaves, but nothing stood out to me as photo-worthy.

A few minutes later the sun poked out from behind the clouds. I decided to take a look at this same scene from a slightly different perspective, and with a bit of a change in lighting as well.

Instead of shooting from above with the sun behind me, I shot from below with the sun behind my subject.

That simple change made a massive difference.

The result is one of my favorite leaf photos I have ever taken.

One morning in May, I used the same technique to get this shot of a butterfly.

I put myself in such a position that the sun would be behind this particular butterfly. It not only gave an incredible glow to its wings but made the dew on the grass glow and sparkle in a way that makes the scene seem almost magical.

Normally, I incline to take pictures like this with the sun behind me, not behind my subject. However, this was a good reminder that sometimes creative lighting choices yield amazing results.

You cannot overstate the effect that lighting has on your photos. Even the word photograph itself means to draw with light. Even so, I often think of lighting in terms of formal portraits or other contrived situations. It doesn’t immediately cross my mind to alter the lighting when I’m trying to capture casual shots in an interesting manner.

The next time you feel a bit of a slump coming on, try looking at everyday items and situations from a different perspective. A perspective where the light is altered, and see how it changes everything right before your eyes.

Another tip is to try creating your own lighting, like in the shot below. It is nothing more than a jar of pasta in my kitchen that I set on top of a flashlight. However, the result was something interesting and unexpected that brought a big smile to my face.

On a similar note, this purple vortex was shot using pretty much the same principle. It might look like something out of a movie or painting, but it’s just a plastic bottle with some purple water that I lit with a flashlight.

The original setup is far less dramatic and quite boring – not the type of scene that seems ideal for an interesting photo. However, with a bit of light manipulation, even scenes like this can result in a magical picture.

Get closer

When I first started taking pictures, I didn’t realize how much I could change the impact of my images by moving myself around a bit. Sometimes I would end up moving to shoot a subject or a scene from a different angle. However, the proverbial light bulb really lit up when I realized how moving closer to my subjects could have resulted in such a dramatically different outcome. This has come in to play when taking pictures for clients – such as this one that I shot at 190mm with an aperture of f/4.

The picture is fine on its own. However, when I moved closer, I found the resulting image more intimate and personal. It was almost like I had caught the two in a bit of a private moment. I shot this image at 150mm with an f/4 aperture. While the focal length was shorter, the image feels more comfortable and natural because I was physically closer to the couple.

I didn’t zoom in to get this shot – I zoomed out. But, I moved a lot closer to them. Not only did this give me a more personal picture, but it also helped the couple feel more comfortable with me. Instead of being remote and distant, I was now able to talk and joke with them. This enabled them to let down their guard and smile a bit more naturally.

Of course, the converse of this is true as well. Sometimes you might find that moving farther away can give you a better shot. The point is that a simple change in perspective can profoundly impact your pictures. Also, if you are working with people, it can change the entire mood and tone of the photo session as well.

Re-frame your subject

When you don’t want to move back and forth but you want to kick your pictures up a notch or two, try moving your subject around. Such that they are in a slightly different spot with slightly different surroundings. Take this photo from a maternity session as an example. The expectant mother is in a garden leaning against a brick outcropping.

Like the couple in the earlier example, this picture is fine on its own, but it feels like it’s missing something. By moving my subject to a nearby flower bed and shooting a similar photo, we were able to add an entirely different dimension to the photo. As a result, I captured an image that feels much more personal and intimate despite a similar pose and expression.

A simple re-framing of the subject, and even adding foreground and background elements, can have a huge impact on the resulting images and the story you want to tell or emotions you are trying to convey. This works with more than just people too, such as this image of the moon. It’s not bad. The subject is sharp and in focus. However, the picture isn’t all that compelling. It’s just a big white circle against a black background. As a result, the image is somewhat lifeless and uninteresting.

Now contrast that image with another one that I captured months later just after sunset. This time I composed my shot so there would be some tree branches in the foreground. This simple compositional decision made the final image far more compelling than just a shot of the moon in the sky with nothing else around it.

Above and below

There is one final tip that can help make your pictures a lot more interesting (or just more fun to look at). Examine your subject or the scene from a vantage point that’s either much higher or lower than you might be accustomed. That may involve climbing up on a ladder or crouching down to the ground. The more creative you can get, the more compelling your results can be.

These two shots are the same sleeping infant. However, I took one from a very low angle and the other from directly above. Neither one is better or worse than the other, and that’s not the point. Instead, both pictures showcase the same subject in different ways. Thus, they convey different meanings to the viewer.

The same scene from a different angle feels more personal and intimate, even though almost nothing about the baby has changed.

On a similar note, I did a family photo session for some clients recently where they wanted a picture of all their hands together. After discussing some ways to accomplish this, we decided to shoot the hands from above. It involved a tall ladder, and all the family members crowded around a tree stump. They were thrilled with the result.

It all came about because I shifted my vantage point to directly above instead of my normal inclination to take photographs from my eye level.

Finally, one more example involves nothing more than a washing machine that my father had rigged to run with the lid open. I held my camera directly above to get this picture of the spin cycle in action.

While it may not be as special as an infant or three generations of hands together, it’s an interesting image of a familiar situation made possible by shifting perspectives.

Hopefully, these images give you a sense of what’s possible by changing a few simple things with your photography. You don’t need expensive gear or fancy studio setups to accomplish some interesting results. Often you just need to adjust your viewpoint or find ways to use the light differently.

I’d love to see some of your examples and read your tips on this same idea. If you have any thoughts or images about this, please share them in the comments below!

The post How to Improve Your Photography by Changing Perspective appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.


Digital Photography School

 
Comments Off on How to Improve Your Photography by Changing Perspective

Posted in Photography

 

Panasonic interview: “Our business philosophy is based on ‘changing photography'”

31 Mar
From L-R, Hidenari Nishikawa, Asistant Chief, Merchandising Group, Kohei Fukugawa, Supervisor, Software Design Group, Tetsuji Kamio, Staff Engineer, Image ENgineering Group, Emi Fujiwara, PR / Communication Group, Naoki Tanizawa, Manager, Communication Group, Michiharu Uematsu, Advisor, Merchandising Group.

Recently we visited the 2018 CP+ show in Yokohama, Japan and booked an in-depth interview with Panasonic. Among the topics covered were the company’s new twin flagships, the Lumix GH5S and G9, as well as how Panasonic hopes to grow their appeal to professional and advanced amateur stills photographers.

The following interview has been edited slightly for clarity and flow.

Why did you feel that the GH5S was necessary, when the updated GH5 is in many ways so competitive?

The Panasonic Lumix GH5S comes with an oversized 10MP sensor that forgoes a stabilizer, but allows for shooting in multiple aspect ratios without cropping the field of view.

For the GH5, we aimed for hybrid users shooting both photos and video. We thought that we needed 20MP for stills, and that was kind of a compromise for video users. With the GH5S, we had a lot of video users who wanted more video capability, but with the conventional [20MP] sensor, it was quite difficult to shoot in low light situations because of [hardware and software] limitations.

Professional shooters will prefer a multi-aspect sensor versus IBIS

So we developed a video-centric camera to open up more freedom for video users by having a 10MP sensor, which is good for low light. Also, we incorporated multi-aspect ratios, which many people prefer to have. For example, professional shooters will prefer a multi-aspect sensor versus IBIS.

Is there a technical reason why the G9 and GH5-series continue to rely on contrast-detect autofocus with depth-from defocus technology in preference to a hybrid/PDAF system?

The speed-and-stills oriented Lumix G9 can shoot at up to 20fps bursts in Raw, and is the first Micro Four Thirds camera to come with a top-plate LCD.

When we were developing the GH4, we were discussing whether to go with phase detection AF, or hybrid AF system of contrast AF with our own DFD (depth-from- defocus) technology. We thought that by having contrast AF with DFD, we could maximize picture quality.

With phase detection AF, picture quality can be damaged

This is because with phase detection AF, picture quality can be damaged [by the phase detect pixels]. With contrast-detection AF and DFD technology, we don’t need any dedicated pixels [for autofocus] and we believe it is more precise.

With the release of the G9, since it’s so sports and speed-focused, is this an ongoing conversation, or are you committed to going forward with DFD?

After we put DFD and contrast AF into GH4, we’ve been continuing to develop this format. At this point, we’re not thinking about shifting, but rather trying to make it better and better. We do see room for improvement; we’re studying to improve the algorithms in DFD to minimize the range of hunting, or AF ‘flutter,’ required for accuracy.

Do you think there’s an opportunity for Panasonic to develop more fixed-lens large-sensor compacts?

Panasonic’s LX100 incorporated a large Four Thirds type sensor and fast zoom lens. It remains a very capable camera, but in some ways – particularly its 12MP of resolution – it’s looking a little dated.

Yes, we have lots of requests from editors and users waiting for the next LX100, so we are studying that. At this point, we can’t say when, but it is something that people are expecting.

As we head into 2018 and 2019, how will Panasonic send the message that it wants to be taken seriously by stills, as well as video professionals?

When we developed the GH5, a lot of video users were attracted to it, but we were aiming for stills users as well. In developing the G9, we wanted to communicate to customers that we are also capable of creating a more stills-focused camera; in terms of marketing, we are trying to communicate that we have cameras that are focused on stills, video, or a hybrid of both.

It’s been ten years since Panasonic introduced the Lumix G1, the first Micro Four Thirds interchangeable lens camera.

Our business philosophy is based on ‘changing photography.’ And any change we make must be a benefit for the customer, and for the last two or three years, we’ve really focused on our video capabilities. But we still want to satisfy stills-focused users with our philosophy. It’s been ten years since we introduced the first mirrorless camera, and many things have changed in the mirrorless industry in terms of innovation, but we are trying to continue to change the market to satisfy our customers.

We don’t want to just pick one feature and improve it; we want to improve more generally

We are going to continue to develop video features, but we also want to improve stills performance in terms of speed and autofocus. We don’t want to just pick one feature and improve it; we want to improve more generally, and we are trying to re-brand somewhat in the stills category. And we want to do this not only for professional cameras, but entry-level and midrange cameras as well.

Editors’ note:

Always an influential and respected brand in professional video circles, Panasonic deserves a lot credit in recent years for introducing high-quality video capture into small cameras with a conventional form-factor. In fact it’s arguable that without cameras like the Lumix GH-series laying the foundation, the prosumer hybrid ILC class would look very different today – if it existed at all.

It’s clear from speaking to Panasonic’s executives that the GH5S was designed as a no-compromises video platform. That’s the reason for its low pixel count, and why the company opted to include a multi-aspect sensor in preference to in-body stabilization. I happened to be speaking to a professional filmmaker recently who told me that the GH5S is at least on a par, if not superior in some respects to his usual Arri Alexa cameras, and that’s a pretty big deal for such a small camera. One of the reasons he said he likes the GH5S so much is that he can use the camera in tight spots – and in lightweight rigs – that he wouldn’t normally be able to.

The LX100 is still one of our favorite large-sensor compacts, and we’d love to see some proper competition in a segment increasingly dominated by Sony

The market for stills cameras is pretty tough right now, and Panasonic could be forgiven for continuing to focus on video, but it seems that the company still sees some opportunity in the stills-dedicated market segment. The hint at ‘re-branding’ in the stills market is intriguing, and could suggest that the high-performance G9 is just the beginning of Panasonic’s renewed attempt to capture the hearts – and cash – of working stills photographers. The explanation for Panasonic’s continued use of DFD contrast-detection autofocus technology in preference to phase-detection was interesting. It’s true that PDAF-equipped ILCs can have issues with so-called ‘striping’ artifacts in images taken in certain conditions, but whether this is a solvable problem remains to be seen. For now, Panasonic clearly believes that DFD works well enough, and appears committed to continued improvement of the system.

We were excited too to hear that a successor to the LX100 is probably on the way. It’s still one of our favorite large-sensor compacts, and we’d love to see some proper competition in a segment increasingly dominated by Sony.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
Comments Off on Panasonic interview: “Our business philosophy is based on ‘changing photography'”

Posted in Uncategorized

 

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

03 Nov

There are many rules, guidelines, suggestions, and ideas around what makes a good photographic composition. Every person has their own particular aesthetic and way of seeing, and it can be difficult to find your way through all the information to a concept that works for you.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

However, there is one simple tip that may be the easiest and quickest way for you to improve your images. It’s free and doesn’t usually require you to buy anything. All you need to do is stop, think, and make a different choice. What is that choice? The choice of changing your point of view.

The vast majority of images are taken from a standing position, looking out at, or down onto the subject. So, instead of doing what everyone else does, why not try something different?

Change Your Point of View

#1 – Go Low

Get down on the ground as low as you can get (depending on your physical capabilities or what might be in the way). This can give you a much more intimate connection with any creature you might be shooting – being at eye level with the subject is always ideal.

Being on the same plane as a ground-based subject is unexpected. Too often we view the world from a standing position so this viewpoint challenges us.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

I crouched as low as I could get without scaring this curious bandicoot.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

Lying flat on the damp sand at 6 am on a tropical island isn’t a bad way to start the day.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

I spent a couple of hours crawling around on my hands and knees on the edge of a cemetery, capturing these Fly Agaric in full bloom.

2. Go High

Climb onto a fence, up some stairs, a tree, or a ladder and use that height to better effect. Looking straight down on your subject is a very alien view for most people. This is a big part of why drone photography is so popular, it allows us to see our world in an entirely different way.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

3. See from a different angle

How many times do you point the camera straight or straight down? Most people rarely look immediately up above themselves, so that is quite a different image. If you combine adding height with looking down you can be very creative as it is unexpected by viewers who normally have their feet planted firmly on the ground.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

Vertical flat lay overhead still life shot.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

Pointing the camera directly down the stairwell from the top floor provides a unique angle.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

Stalactites in a limestone cave right above my head.

4. Make a Different Lens Choice

Changing from your standard lens to a different one can also make a big difference.

Try using a macro lens, or an ultra wide-angle. Even better, don’t use them conservatively. Use the ultra-wide to take macro shots, and use the macro lens to take portraits.

Get a cheap vintage lens, one that has all sorts of interesting visual effects inside the glass (they usually need to be focused manually). Play with a Lensbaby or another specialty type lens. Don’t be afraid to experiment. After all, whats the worst that could happen?

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

The only way to fit this really wide piece of farm equipment into the frame was to shoot up close with an ultra-wide-angle lens. It also allowed the creative choice of including all the wonderful clouds in the sky as well.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

Macro lenses offer a window into a world we cannot normally see with standard eyesight. Fascinating tiny details become visible.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

Shot with an antique Russian lens, it has a lot of circular distortion around the edges, which when used creatively can be effective. The bonus is that these lenses are very cheap and easy to find in antique shops. Usually manual to operate though.

5. Shoot Tight

Stick that lens right up close to your subject, get in tight. Fill the frame with the subject, as much as you can. Go completely abstract if you like, but push yourself out of your comfort zone. Get in as close as you can, and then go closer still.

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

6. Take Your Time

Long exposures can be a lot of fun and give you a very different image. Soft flowing water effects are nice, but what about a really long exposure where the water looks like smoke and mist? Night shots of fire dancers making patterns in the darkness? Playing with light painting? ICM or Intentional Camera Movement? Slowing down the action and capturing it can offer a lot of creative fun.

Low light or night time photography offers lots of opportunities for using long exposures in creative ways. Astrophotography is very popular at the moment and requires you to use a tripod and take often several long exposure frames. Light trails from traffic on busy city streets or a car climbing its way up a mountain road in the distance.

These kinds of images take time to make, which requires you to think about and plan it in advance. It can be frustrating to have to wait to achieve them but the pay off for creating an image under difficult conditions is very rewarding.

Fire dancers on the beach

Fire dancer using a colored light bar and taken with a longer exposure to capture the spinning movement

A tree draped in strands of lights becomes a very different image when Intentional Camera Movement is applied. Just a slightly longer exposure time and a wiggle of the wrist and you get this.

7.  Be Abstract

Going really close to a subject or selecting just a part of it to include in the frame is a great way to bring abstract concepts into your work. You tease the viewer with just enough of the subject that they wonder what it is. This often makes them engage longer with the image as they think more about what it could be.

There is a fine line between enough and too abstract, depending on your subject. Of course, you may want to go all the way into very abstract which is perfectly valid, although might challenge your audience and lose engagement.

This is the very battered toes of a pair of ballet pointe shoes

Summary

Putting some effort and thought into the way you use your camera gear is one of the most effective ways to improve your images in my opinion. Strong and eye-catching compositions can be achieved with any kind of camera provided you put some thought and time into making it.

Yes, for some kinds of shots you might need special gear, like a macro lens for those really good close-ups. In general, though, you can still see a noticeable improvement in your images by just taking the time to stop and think BEFORE you shoot. Ask yourself the following questions before you press the button:

  • What is the obvious angle here?
  • What other options could I use instead?
  • Do I have time to experiment?
  • Is there space and opportunity for me to physically move to a different viewpoint?
  • Is it safe/legal?
  • Will I do any damage to property or environment by changing position?

Learning to see in a different way was a critical step in my photography path. By expanding my options and developing new styles, my work was noticed and commented on much more. This prompted me to experiment even more and really challenge my own preconceived boundaries.

Having the ability to shoot in many different ways adds flexibility and depth to your skillset. Cold rainy day? Break out the macro lens and raid the pantry for something different to shoot. Pick a flower from the garden and bring it inside. Wander the city streets looking for the small interesting details and focus on them. Be abstract, tell a story from your point of view. Get shots of people’s feet crossing a zebra crossing or panning shots of a cyclist dodging traffic.

Your turn

Take your time to look and see what is around you, then think about how you can frame it up. Be creative. Don’t be afraid to try something new. It might take a few goes to get the hang of it or you might fall in love with seeing the world around you in an entirely different way immediately.

Challenge yourself to grow and improve. And please share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below.

The post Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View by Stacey Hill appeared first on Digital Photography School.


Digital Photography School

 
Comments Off on Improve Your Composition by Changing Your Point of View

Posted in Photography

 

The Changing Face Of Photopreneurialism

26 May

For a while at least, photography enthusiasts who wanted to make a little money from their photos, had it easy. Or at least they had it easier than they used to have it. Not only had the prices of professional-quality digital cameras fallen to an affordable level but at the same time, photo-sharing sites made showing those images easy, websites created a whole new demand and microstock sites popped up to deliver those images to buyers. Suddenly anyone who knew their aperture from their elbow had an opportunity to shoot pictures that made money. But Flickr is now nearly ten years old and iStock, the first microstock site, will soon enter its fifteenth year. Both are now owned by large parent companies and the ease with which either could be used to make money has fallen significantly. While there is still demand for images, the methods used to sell them and promote them has changed—and they continue to change.

For most microstock contributors, sales and profits are harder to come by. Once, contributors like Shutterstock founder Jon Oringer could get away with images as poor and as cheap to produce as these. Today, they’re more likely to be professionally shot in a studio, using paid models and high expenses. But they’re also less likely to win the sales necessary to cover the costs of producing them. With nearly 80,000 contributors on iStockPhoto and just under half that number on Shutterstock, keywords are saturated and the number of sales generated by each image has fallen. Even Yuri Arcurs, the market’s leading producer, has now signed an exclusive deal with iStockPhoto ensuring that he receives the higher rates offered by exclusivity—and the premium he would have negotiated.

That’s likely to continue. While top contributors take up exclusivity, more occasional shooters can expect to see falling revenues that only produce profits if they disregard costs.

Single-Use Licenses For Microstock

But there may be an alternative route for contributors. One of the big stories of 2013 was Getty’s decision to ban Sean Locke for criticizing the company’s decision to license images for free use on Google Drive. Canva, a new graphic design tool that now employs Lee Torrens of Microstock Diaries, takes a similar approach but with a significant difference. Like Google, Canva allows producers—in this case designers—to access microstock imagery at the point of use. But while Google has paid a small amount in advance for the images so that users can access them for free, Canva charges a fee for each use.

Users of Canva pay a dollar to use the image once and Canva pays the photographer a commission of 35 percent. While those are still small amounts, they’re higher than the commissions received by many microstock photographers for a much less restricted license.

It’s possible that as WYSIWYG editors like Wix for website owners increase, we’ll see a rise in single-use licenses bought at point of use. Canva launched with a million photos. Whether that will mean better deals for part-time photographers looking for sales remains to be seen.

While microstock battles to stay relevant to small producers, other opportunities are rising. The growth of social media initially meant better marketing for event photographers on Facebook and better networking with other photographers on Twitter. Instagram, though, has changed all that. Build up a large following on the mobile photo-sharing site and photographers can find that they’re being approached by brands who want to put pictures of their products in their timelines.

Klouts Perks have brought the same opportunities to users of Twitter and Facebook. Companies can identify key influencers based on their Klout score and expertise, and offer them benefits in return for their ability to reach large numbers of followers. Perks have included a shooting trip to Vail and two new Sony cameras.

It’s not something you can depend on. But for photographers who are active on social media and who manage to build up large followings, the chances that they’ll receive attention and rewards from large firms has increased.

Chances Go Mobile

And photographers who like to shoot on their mobile phones have also seen new opportunities. When Bruce Livingstone launched iStockPhoto, smartphones with strong lenses were still a glint in Steve Jobs’ eye. The iPhone didn’t launch until 2007 and even then it only had a 2 megapixel camera set to f/2.8. Now apps like Scoopshot send announcements of wanted images directly to phones and sell shots of news, accidents and extreme weather uploaded by its users. Those sorts of photos might not be the artistic, beautiful photography enthusiasts like to produce but they still require some photographic skill—and they’re opportunities that weren’t available previously.

And for photographers who are more artistic, an old opportunity may be returning, doubled. Flickr has been refurbished and still has an agreement with Getty which provides an easy way for buyers to license the images they find on the site. Its younger rival 500px pushes fine art photography prints—with help from the photographers who produce it.

For both the sites, the number of contributors have grown as well as the number of images they offer but because Facebook has siphoned off many of the social images which use to crowd Flickr (and for which the site was originally intended) the quality of the images left behind has also improved.

The bottom line for photography enthusiasts trying to sell images today is that the market continues to change. Microstock has got tighter but may open up again in new and different ways. Social media now offers a way to reward popularity directly as well as market and network. Mobile technology has opened markets for occasional photojournalists, and photo-sharing platforms that specialize in fine art photography continue to grow and develop.

The photography business has always changed, and it will continue to do so. The opportunities available five years ago are not the same as the opportunities available now. But if you can take great photos and are willing to put the effort into matching them to buyers, opportunities are still there.


Photopreneur – Make Money Selling Your Photos

 
Comments Off on The Changing Face Of Photopreneurialism

Posted in Equipment

 

Instagram is changing its feed to use algorithm

18 Mar

Instagram has confirmed in a blog post that it will change the way the photos and videos of your friends are displayed in its stream. Chronological sorting will be scrapped in favor of a new algorithm that sorts images based on ‘the likelihood that you’ll be interested in the content, your relationship with the person posting and the timeliness of the post.’ Read more

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
Comments Off on Instagram is changing its feed to use algorithm

Posted in Uncategorized

 

Winds of Change: Shooting changing landscapes

26 Apr

There are more people taking pictures now than ever before, and as a consequence, some of the world’s most beautiful views have been photographed to death. In this article, nature and landscape photographer Erez Marom explains the value of shooting ‘changing’ landscapes, which offer different perspectives every time you visit – or even from day to day, or minute to minute. Click through to read his article

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
Comments Off on Winds of Change: Shooting changing landscapes

Posted in Uncategorized

 
« Older Entries