Every « 360Photography

RSS

Posts Tagged ‘Every’

Free Pennant Party w/ Every Instant Camera!

27 Apr

Let’s get your pennant party started, hip-hip-huzzah!

Today only, we’re giving you a pennant pack FREE when you buy any one of seven incredible instant cameras. If you’ve been waiting to pull the trigger on buying your favorite instant camera, today is the day!

Use the pennants for an impromptu photo booth and pop off prints instantly. Insta-fun, right?

Get Your Pennant Party Here!
(…)
Read the rest of Free Pennant Party w/ Every Instant Camera! (0 words)

Photojojo

Comments Off

Posted in Equipment

CP+ 2015: Canon Interview – ‘every day I’m saying ‘speed up!”

13 Mar

We recently returned from the CP+ show in Yokohama, Japan, where we sat down with executives from most of the major camera and lens manufacturers to get their insights and opinions on the challenges facing their companies and the market as a whole. One of them was Masaya Maeda – Managing Director and Chief Executive, Image Communication Products Operations at Canon. Click through to read the interview

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

Comments Off

Posted in Uncategorized

4 Photoshop Tools Every Photographer Should Know

01 Mar

When it comes to photo-editing programs, one of the most popular among both amateur and professional photographers alike is Adobe Photoshop. While it can appear more complex than Lightroom, and certainly takes more time to learn all of its tricks, Photoshop offers four post-processing tools that come in handy for retouching images. These tools are pretty easy to locate and implement, and in this article I’ll show you how they work, specifically while retouching the image of the Space Needle in Seattle (below). I have the privilege of having this view from my home office, but the problem is that if I take a photo using anything but a telephoto lens, I get telephone pole remnants and wires in my otherwise pretty cityscape image.

Here are the four Photoshop tools I use to retouch my Space Needle images. There are of course other ways to retouch this image to achieve the same or even better results, but these are quick and easy methods that also highlight essential Photoshop skills.

5 basic photoshop tools for photographers

Before we do anything to modify Photoshop images, the first thing to note is that within Photoshop, you can cause permanent changes to the pixels and details of your photos if you’re not careful. This is why you always want to make sure you are performing nondestructive editing so that you don’t overwrite the original image data.

There are several ways to do this in PhotoShop. For the tools I’m about to show you, the best technique for nondestructive editing will be to work within an adjustment layer or retouch on a separate layer. You can create a new layer by clicking on the New Layer icon on the bottom of the Layers panel. Repeat this every time before you employ a new editing process on your image and be sure to double click on the layer and rename it to help you remember what editing process you did on that layer.

5 basic photoshop tools for photographers

1. Spot Healing Brush

First of all, let’s tackle those thin, yet annoying, power lines in the upper left corner of the image. To start, we’ll use the Spot Healing Brush. One of three image healing tools that Photoshop offers, this brush creates a seamless repair to your image by replacing unwanted textures of the image with good textures from another area.

5 basic photoshop tools for photographers

To use it, head over to the Tools panel and select the Spot Healing Brush. It will be grouped together with other healing and patching tools. Be sure the Sample All Layers option is checked on the upper Options bar, as well as Content Aware (Photoshop versions CS5 or later) or Proximity Match (Photoshop CS4 or earlier). Next, zoom into the image’s problem area and click (or click and drag) on the areas you want to replace or heal. To adjust the size of the brush, press the left ([) and right (]) bracket keys on your keyboard. If you make a mistake, just hit Ctrl+Z (on Windows) or Command+Z (on Mac) to undo. In this example, I clicked and dragged the Spot Healing Brush across those thin power lines to erase them.

In this example, I clicked and dragged the Spot Healing Brush across those thin power lines to erase them, which is the quickest way of using it. However, be careful when attempting to spot heal in large chunks particularly near high-contrast edges, since some areas can appear improperly blended. For the sake of accuracy, a more effective approach could be using the spot healing brush to heal smaller chunks of the image, rather than attempting to heal the entire area in one go.

Other important settings to be mindful of are the Size and Hardness of the brush, which can be adjusted per the settings panel pictured below. Since the Healing Brush automatically blends pixels, it’s best to choose a higher Hardness value for best results.

Cloning Tool Settings

2. Clone Stamp Tool

Another alternative way to getting rid of the power lines is to use another Photoshop essential: the Clone Stamp tool, which is used for pixel-to-pixel cloning. Like the Spot Healing Brush, this tool can be used to replace unwanted areas of an image, but unlike the Healing Brush, it won’t do automatic content-aware blending. The Clone Stamping is best used to duplicate an item or pattern, remove a brand logo, or remove power lines, which is what I’m going to do in this example.

5 basic photoshop tools for photographers

To use the Clone Stamp tool, first create a new layer and then select the Clone Stamp tool from the tool bar. This tool works similarly to the Spot Healing Brush, but before you begin clicking away, position your cursor over the area you want to clone from and Alt-click (on Windows) or Option-click (on Mac) to define and sample the source of the clone. Be sure to re-sample and re-define as many clone sources as needed to provide a seamless cloning result.

Be sure to re-sample and re-define as many clone sources as needed to provide a seamless cloning result. To make sure the result appears realistic, it is important to zoom in and make sure the same pattern is not being cloned over and over again. Per the same settings as the Spot Healing Brush, be mindful of the Size and Hardness settings that you choose as these will determine how accurately the Cloning Tool samples and clones layers. When cloning an area with lots of patterns and details, it’s sometimes best to work with a low Hardness value and low cloning opacity for smoother results.

3. Magic Wand

Next, let’s get rid of the remnant of a telephone pole in the right hand side of the image. The easiest way to eliminate it would be a simple crop, but another way is to select and replace it using the Magic Wand Tool. This is one of Photoshop’s oldest selection tools and it causes many a photographer joy or suffering. The Magic Wand is incredibly easy to use, requiring just a click of its icon in the tool bar, followed by clicking on the area of the image that you want to select. Here’s where things can get complicated. The Magic Wand selects pixels based on tone and color, which means it has the tendency to select more areas of the image than you initially want. The simplest way to fix this is to play around with Tolerance in the Options bar. If the Magic Wand is selecting too much of an area, simply input a smaller value of Tolerance and then reselect the area.

5 basic photoshop tools for photographers

4. Content-Aware Fill

After the proper area of the telephone pole is selected, it’s time to fill in that area. Hit Shift+Delete on the keyboard, and the below pop-up box will appear. Make sure Content-Aware is selected, then press OK; Photoshop will then sample pixels in the surrounding area and fill in the selected area accordingly. The results may not be perfect, and this is where the aforementioned Spot Healing Brush and Clone Stamp tools can come in handy to make the filled in area more seamless.

5 basic photoshop tools for photographers

The final retouched image can be seen below. Using the Spot Healing Brush, Clone Stamp, Quick Selection and Content-Aware fill, the telephone lines in the upper left corner have been removed, as well as the remnant of the pole on the right-hand side.

5 basic photoshop tools for photographers

In this brief tutorial, I’ve introduced several very important tools that all photographers should be familiar with, but it’s also important to note that I haven’t explained every possible use of them. There are many other practical and creative ways to use these tools, and I encourage you to do further research to learn more about them. But for the sake of doing quick edits and getting familiar with the tools, these are approachable ways to get started.

googletag.cmd.push(function() {
tablet_slots.push( googletag.defineSlot( “/1005424/_dPSv4_tab-all-article-bottom_(300×250)”, [300, 250], “pb-ad-78623” ).addService( googletag.pubads() ) ); } );

googletag.cmd.push(function() {
mobile_slots.push( googletag.defineSlot( “/1005424/_dPSv4_mob-all-article-bottom_(300×250)”, [300, 250], “pb-ad-78158” ).addService( googletag.pubads() ) ); } );

The post 4 Photoshop Tools Every Photographer Should Know by Suzi Pratt appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

Comments Off

Posted in Photography

3 Principles of Light Behaviour Every Photographer Needs to Know

01 Feb

In this short video by Ed Vorosky he covers three rules about the behaviour of light. When you understand these principles you can then use them better in your photography.

Light travels in straight lines
The subject receives less light as the distance to the light source is increased
The larger the light source relative to the subject, the softer the light source

Watch the video for a more detailed description and demonstration of each:

So what does that mean for your photography? How can you use this information in practice?

The post 3 Principles of Light Behaviour Every Photographer Needs to Know by Darlene Hildebrandt appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

Comments Off

Posted in Photography

The Q Button – What Every Canon DSLR Photographer Needs to Know

09 Dec

Cameras can be super complex these days. Buttons, knobs and switches are everywhere. How can you remember what all of them do and where to begin? Well, Canon has given you a secret button to use that allows you to access all of those most important functions within your complex machine. Perfect, where is this secret button you ask? It’s right on the back of your camera marked with the letter Q. It’s not really a secret, it’s just under utilized.

The Q Button

What does Q stand for? Quick. The button makes navigating just that. Using the button gives you quick access to all of the major functions that you need. Let’s go through some of those functions so you can see how easy it is use your camera. Grab your Canon and let’s try it out.

How to use it

Go ahead, give the Q button a press while watching the LCD screen on the back of your camera. As you see it highlights one of your current settings. Depending on your Canon model this may light up the current selection in a blue/green color or it may outline it with an orange box. Next you can cycle through your settings by using the directional pad located around your SET button. Simply highlight the setting you want to change and then you have a couple of options.

First, and easiest, is to roll your settings dial while it is highlighted. This will cycle through your options for that particular setting. Your second choice is to push the SET button while a setting is highlighted. This will lead you to a more detailed screen showing all of your options for that setting.

Canon also made things easy by providing a description of each option at the bottom of the LCD as you scroll through. At first it will be more beneficial to use the second option so you become familiar with what settings are available, and what the symbols mean. Once you get that down, using option one to zip through the settings is a breeze.

As a beginner it can be really helpful using the LCD screen and the Q button so you can see everything about the exposure and settings right in front of you. When you depress the shutter button half way the current exposure reading will be displayed on the meter on your LCD. This makes it really easy to adjust your settings while seeing how each element of exposure (aperture, shutter speed and ISO) is affecting the meter.

Some of the settings you will adjust most are ISO, exposure bracketing, white balance, focus type, focus point and drive mode. When you use these techniques they each can be adjusted in seconds!

The Q button is particularly useful when you are bracketing exposures for HDR. Press it and highlight the Exposure Compensation/AEB setting. Now spin your settings dial to the right and watch as the light meter changes to three lines in lieu of the typical single line. Set the lines as far apart as you want your bracket to be (i.e. -1, 0, +1 or -2, 0, +2). Last, use the directional pad to highlight the Drive Mode setting. Again scroll to the right until you reach the Self-timer (2 seconds/remote setting). Now, once you fully press the shutter button your camera will wait two seconds and then take all three exposures that you set. It’s as simple as that.

As the light, and your shooting situation, changes your white balance settings need to be adjusted. You typically don’t find a special button for this important setting. Once again the Q button makes your life easy. As you scroll through the options you will see some simple pictures for each WB setting. A sun for sunny, a cloud for cloudy, a lighting bolt for flash, etc. Sometimes it is easier to see what your options are by looking at a picture. If not, Canon still gives you the description of the WB setting.

Next up is the Auto Focus Point Selection. This is seriously one of the hardest functions to find on most cameras. Again, made easy by Canon. Press the Q and then use the directional pad to navigate to the AF Point Selection. Spin that dial and watch as the points spiral around to each individual focus point at your will.

Do you switch between shooting action and still subjects often? If so you may find yourself digging through the menu to find your Single and AI Focus options and the Drive Modes. Simply press the Q button and move over to the AF Operation. Roll your dial and you can choose ONE SHOT, AI FOCUS or AI SERVO. Then you can navigate over a couple of settings to the Drive Mode and choose between Single, Continuous Shooting or Timer Mode.

Some Canon models are equipped with an internal level that is accessible from the Q menu. This is really helpful when you are shooting landscapes on a tripod. When in the menu highlight the Electronic level. Press the set button and a level looking like it belongs in the cockpit of an airplane shows up on the LCD. Tilt your camera from side to side and watch how the level changes. When your camera is horizontally level the line will turn green. This can definitely save you some time and heartache in post-processing when trying to make your horizon lines straight. It takes the guess work out of it for you.

As you can see the Q button is the most powerful and useful button on your camera. Navigating through those complex menus are over. Once you use the secret button you will begin to wonder why any of the other buttons even exist, with the exception of the shutter of course. Go ahead and feel free to start spreading the secret. Have fun!!!

googletag.cmd.push(function() {
all_slots.push( googletag.defineSlot( “/1005424/_dPSv4_mob-all-article-bottom_(300×250)”, [300, 250], “pb-ad-78623” ).addService( googletag.pubads() ) );
} );

The post The Q Button – What Every Canon DSLR Photographer Needs to Know by Jack Thatcher appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

Comments Off

Posted in Photography

7 Instant Cameras + Free Film with Every One

05 Dec

“Oh my good gracious.” “How did you know?” “Eeeeeek!”

That’s just the kinds of things you should get used to hearing if you put any instant cameras under the tree this year.

To make sure your lucky giftees can start shooting on Christmas morning, we’re giving you (and untimately them) a free pack of film with every instant camera in our shop. TODAY ONLY!

So hurry up and browse our instant cams below and pick the perfect one for each of your lucky pals. The films on us.

See All 7 of Our Instant Cameras (and get FREE film)
(…)
Read the rest of 7 Instant Cameras + Free Film with Every One (0 words)

Photojojo

Comments Off

Posted in Equipment

5 Unforgiving Post-Processing Mistakes Every Bird Photographer Must Avoid

03 Nov

Post-processing is one of the most important steps in the image making process. It is in fact one of the most powerful tools to make your vision come true. The camera does not see the way you see your world and it is your responsibility to translate your vision into reality in post-processing.

0 Nature Photography Simplified Bird Photography Post Processing Tips Peacock Portrait Featured Image

You can achieve most artistic results in post-processing that are simply not possible in reality. But, being a bird photographer you do not often get a chance to post-process your bird photographs artistically. Why?

Since the viewer would have seen the bird in reality, it is easier to compare to what is presented in a photograph. Bird photography is generally about showing the bird and its natural beauty not enhancing it artistically to achieve something else!
It is very similar to taking photograph of a person. Do you want to show the person as they are, or do you want to make them look someone else?

Does this mean, you have to just keep it real?

Not necessarily. But any enhancement in post-processing to make a bird or its features look beautiful has to be done with lot more care than if it was a landscape photograph for instance.

Remember that the mistakes will be caught easily!

Below I am listing the five post-processing mistakes that you, as a bird photographer, should avoid because they are unforgiving.
Committing any of these mistakes may ruin your bird photograph, and you definitely do not want to ruin your hours and days of effort in getting that one photograph you love. Do you?

Mistake #1: It’s cropped too tight

There is an ongoing debate about whether to crop or to get everything perfect in field. Though it is desirable to compose in the field, cropping in the post becomes necessary many a times in bird photography because of several factors like:

Not enough time to compose the fast action that unfolds in split seconds
Not enough focal length to fill the frame
Not enough time to compose an image especially in case of birds in flight

If you can improve the composition, then go ahead and crop the image. But too often, I see lot of bird photographers crop it too tight which makes the bird suffocate in the frame and the image look cramped.

1-Nature-Photography-Simplified-Bird-Photography-Post-Processing-Tips-Too-Tight-Crop

The little Egret in this photograph looks suffocated because there is no breathing space in front to look into, and no space to move which makes it look cramped.

2-Nature-Photography-Simplified-Bird-Photography-Post-Processing-Tips-Little-Egret

Notice how a little bit more space around the bird gives him room to look into and move. It is more pleasing to our eyes also.

Quick Tip: Use the Rule of Thirds as a guideline.

Mistake #2: It’s unrealistic

The clarity slider in Adobe Lightroom is such a lethal weapon that is hard to replicate even with Adobe Photoshop. It enhances the local contrast in an image, which is one of the most important aspects of processing. Too much local contrast makes an image looks unrealistic as it tends to sharpen.

The soft and smooth feeling of the smallest details in feathers of the bird starts to look very unrealistic.

3 Nature Photography Simplified Bird Photography Post Processing Tips High Local Contrast

Notice how unrealistic the Parakeet looks in the above image. Even the leaves look like plastic.

4 Nature Photography Simplified Bird Photography Post Processing Tips Rose Ringed Parakeet Female

Just enough local contrast (usually Clarity of +20 to +30) will bring out all the details in the bird.

Quick Tip: Instead of using your mouse to pull the Clarity slider, use keyboard arrows and watch the changes as you bump up the clarity. Restrict to the smaller numbers like +10 to +30.

Mistake #3: Everything is overly colorful

Over-saturated images are everywhere!

Birds are definitely colorful subjects and that is the reason we are all attracted to them. But are they so colorful?
Too much saturation looks overcooked. If you try to increase the contrast as a last step in your post-processing workflow (which is usually recommended), then it will also increase the saturation.

Note that Saturation slider increases the overall saturation of the image making everything in the image colorful. Do you really want everything in the image looking colorful? Do you want to emphasize the bird or the background?

5 Nature Photography Simplified Bird Photography Post Processing Tips Over Saturated

Everything in the above photograph of a Red-Wattled Lapwing is colorful. It is way too colorful.

6 Nature Photography Simplified Bird Photography Post Processing Tips Red Wattled Lapwing

In the above photograph I have selectively increased the Saturation only for the bird in Adobe Photoshop.

Quick Tip: Use selective coloring. Saturate only the colors or object that are very important. Use the HSL panel or the adjustment brush to apply the color.

Mistake #4: The bird looks like a wax statue

Have you seen a wax statue of a bird in a shop? You can also see them on the web. Excessive noise reduction will give a plastic or wax statue look to your bird photographs.

While it is important to reduce the noise because most often we have to bump up the ISO to 400 or 800 to freeze the action, it is also important to understand what the Noise Reduction filter does. It The smoothes out the edges, by smoothening out the minute and important details of the image and the bird.

7 Nature Photography Simplified Bird Photography Post Processing Tips Waxing

The above image of a Great Egret has a waxy look because of the excessive noise reduction applied to the entire image. Remember that the water looses texture due to excessive noise reduction giving it an artificial look.

8 Nature Photography Simplified Bird Photography Post Processing Tips Great Egret

By reducing the noise only in the out-of-focus or low detailed or shadow regions of the image, it will help to keep the details intact.

Quick Tip: Reduce the noise only in the smooth areas (like the background) since noise is generally not visible in the high detailed areas (like the bird’s body).

Mistake #5: Too much is bad

Too much is bad in anything that we do. Pushing any post-processing slider too far will yield a bad image. But the most important one that is noticeable with many bird photographs, is that it is over-sharpened. No matter how good your post processing skills are, if you make this one mistake, there is no way out.

Over-sharpening kills a photograph. Period.

It is better to keep it little less sharp than to go too far and be overly sharp.

9 Nature Photography Simplified Bird Photography Post Processing Tips Over Sharpened

The features of the Brahminy Kite are way sharper than what they should be. Also check out the halo around the bird formed due to sharpening on the overall image.

10 Nature Photography Simplified Bird Photography Post Processing Tips Brahminy Kite In Flight

Quick Tip: Apply sharpening only to the bird but not to the background.

Final words

These are some of the major mistakes that should be avoided. Because they are unforgiving and can potentially ruin your best photographs. The best way to avoid these mistakes is to keep a small checklist to see if you have committed any and correct them immediately. With practice, you will easily avoid all of them.

Now, it’s your time to tell me the mistakes that you think should be avoided. What mistakes have you made in post-processing? Feel free to add your opinion on this subject but please make sure it is productive and helpful to all our readers.

The post 5 Unforgiving Post-Processing Mistakes Every Bird Photographer Must Avoid by Prathap DK appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

Comments Off

Posted in Photography

When Every Inch Counts: 14 More Clever Small Space Hacks

22 Sep

[ By Steph in Design & Furniture & Decor. ]

Small Space Hacks Compact Kitchen 3

Making a tiny living space comfortable and practical means integrating multi-purpose furniture, custom built-ins and lots of other clever space-saving tricks. These 14 (more) small space hacks include a few DIY projects that can be achieved with components purchased at Ikea.

Incredibly Compact Kitchen

Small Space Hacks Compact Kitchen 2

Starting as a narrow dining table, this ultra-compact kitchen swings open to reveal an induction cooktop, oven, refrigerator and storage space with a sink and a work surface. Slide it under the white table unit when not in use or pull it out into its own little island – perfect for the minimalist cook working in a small space. Check out 15 more modular & multipurpose kitchens for small spaces.

Spaceflavor Mobile Cube: Office/Tea House in One

Small Space Hacks Spaceflavor Cube 2

Feng Shui expert Liu Ming created the Mobile Cube to compartmentalize his personal space in a live/work apartment that has to accommodate over 30 students during classes. The entire cube is on wheels, with a lower portion that can contain a bedroom or an office, and a loft that functions as meditation space, a sleeping area or a tea room (as he uses it.) It measures just eight feet square and has hidden stairs that double as drawers, as well as cabinets, closet space and translucent roller shades.

Fold-Out Picnic Table

Small Space Hacks Fold Out Table 2

This picnic table offered by a Brazilian furniture store has enough seating for six people, yet folds completely flat against the wall when not in use, opening up the floor for other purposes.

IKEA Closet Makeover

Small Space Hacks Closet 2

A cluttered closet in a small Brooklyn apartment now has a dedicated space for everything from shoes to handbags courtesy of an IKEA makeover. While the overall size of this closet would be luxurious in most small spaces, the setup could easily be customized to your own needs while maintaining organization.

DIY Murphy Bed

Small Space Hacks DIY Murphy Bed 2

If you’re an ambitious DIYer, you can attempt your own murphy bed, like this one at a sustainability camp in Maryland. DIY Network has plans for a simpler version, or you can try an Ikea hack with sliding doors over at Instructables.

Next Page – Click Below to Read More:
When Every Inch Counts 14 More Clever Small Space Hacks

[ By Steph in Design & Furniture & Decor. ]

[ WebUrbanist | Archives | Galleries | Privacy | TOS ]

WebUrbanist

Comments Off

Posted in Creativity

20 More Photography Tips Every Travel Photographer Must Know

21 Aug

Pick up Oded’s new SnapnGuide (a dPS sister company) Snapn Travel here for only $ 7, a lifetime of travel memories in a snap. Traveling is fun and rewarding, but sharing memories of your journeys with friends, family, and the world through your own beautiful images can be even better.

Georgia (the country)

Here are 20 more tips for great travel photography:

(You can read Part One 20 Photography Tips Every Travel Photographer Must Know here)

Before you go:

1. Make the visual decisions

For most of us, deciding where and when to go is based on many decisions, not necessarily related to photography. But there are some small decisions you can make to turn an ordinary trip into a photo-worthy one. For example, let’s say you are going on a business trip. You can squeeze a few hours of photographing between meetings. But a much better option would be to take a day or two off and spend this extra time photographing on location.

Or when planning your next family vacation, add a little visual research before the trip. Is there a nice festival or a market worth visiting at your destination? Is there something unique like an interesting ethnic group or unusual landscape that’s worth documenting? These small visual decisions can make a huge difference in your photographic experience during your trip.

2. Build a shot list

A “shot list” is a term from the movie industry. It’s a list of shots that are planned for a specific day. Want to come back home with better travel photography results? Then the shot list is your tool for the job.

Thailand

First, make a list of visual ideas as your “I won’t come home without” image list. Combine the iconic images with more creative ideas. For example, if you’re going to Paris, don’t skip the Eiffel tower. As a true symbol of Paris, it should be on your list. But make sure to add creative visual ideas, such as boutique wine shops, farmers markets, or anything to your liking. The shot list is there to help you, not restrict you. When you’re on the road, with so many new sights and smells competing for your attention, the shot list will keep you organized and be a continual inspiration for creating the next shot.

3. Smart gear choice

Don’t take all of your equipment with you! Match the gear to the destination. Do you really need that flash on the beaches of Thailand? Or that 50 mm prime lens for the safari trip to Tanzania? Choose wisely and you’ll worry (and carry) a lot less.

4. Photo boot camp

If you’re not making images on a daily basis, it will probably take you a few days on location just to “get in shape”. Get a jump-start by warming up at home by creating a daily photography routine at least one week before departure. This will make sure you’re at your best as soon as you step off the plane.

Thailand

5. Coordinate expectations

Apart from our photographer’s “hat”, we all wear other hats, such as “father,” “spouse,” or “friend”. When traveling with others, we must wear many other “hats”. You must coordinate expectations with your travel partners to make sure the importance you’re placing on your photography during the trip won’t cause problems. Think and plan together about places you all can visit that would be great for even those who don’t take pictures: vantage points with scenic views, colorful markets, religious centers, etc.

When you get there

6. Location scouting

This is another movie industry term. It means that before even taking out your camera, it is wise to get familiar with your surroundings. Take at least a few hours to learn the area. Understand if there are any interesting places around your hotel, visit one or two places that are on your shot list and adjust it accordingly.

Uzbekistan

7. Get up early

Yes I know, this one is a crazy ratings downgrade. But hey, travel photography is not for the lazy! The most precious thing on a trip is your time. Do not waste the hours of golden light of morning (or afternoon) on sleeping. Especially if you are traveling with non-photographers, it’s your time to do your best shots. You can save sleeping in for weekends at home.

8. Markets first!

Colors, food, local people, culture; markets are a photographer’s paradise. It’s always better to visit open markets (for the daylight) rather than covered ones. Some of the best markets I visited happen only once a week, be sure to be there.

China

9. Diversify your shoots

You took a landscape photo with a wide lens? Excellent, now do it again with a telephoto lens.

You’ve got the main square in daylight? Wonderful! Come back at night with a tripod and shoot long exposures. Make the most out of your once-in-a-lifetime trip as your diversify your shoots and portfolio.

10. Get out of your comfort zone

We all have places that are less comfortable for us, but visiting a new place is an excellent opportunity to get out of your comfort zone. Do you not have the courage to approach strangers in the street in order to take their portrait? This is an excellent opportunity. You might be surprise how easy and fun it is to do this with strangers.

Thaliand

11. Go iconic – but from a different point of view

We all know how Times Square, The Taj Mahal, and the Eiffel tower look. Don’t come back with the same, “we’ve seen it all before” images. You don’t have to skip those iconic places, they usually are truly worth the visit. But think of new and fresh ways to feature them. Try using a fish-eye lens, creative editing process, or reflections – the sky is the limit.

Uzbekistan

12. Get inspired!

When I’m on a photography assignment, I always try to pay a short visit to a local gallery. Yeah, it sounds bit snobbish, but seeing the photography, paintings, or any other local art forms acts as a huge inspiration for my travel photography. We all want to create different and unique images. This is great way to do just that.

13. Setting a trap

I love this technique. Instead of jumping from place to place, looking for interesting subjects to photograph, I suggest to stay put and start building your frame with the background. Find an interesting vantage point on the street. You can even do this sitting at a sidewalk café. Establish your frame by determining the composition and exposure setting. Then wait for something interesting to enter your frame.

Dominican Republic

14. Join forces with a local

From experience, in travel photography, there is nothing like working with a local photographer. Use a social platform (Facebook, Flickr, couchsurfing) and find a local photo enthusiast like yourself, who can show you all the best places to photograph. Of course, there are always risks when meeting strangers from the internet. Use your common sense and don’t meet them somewhere secluded at first.

Coming back home

15. Backup

I cannot stress how important this tip is. Don’t wait until it’s too late. Laptop, hard drive, cloud storage, you name it. Backup your images on more than one source.

16. Clean your gear

Before you store your stuff, you should clean it. Sea salt, sand, or even just fingerprints on the lens, can damage your gear. Keep your equipment in good shape and you will enjoy it for many years.

Kyrgyzstan

17. Have a successes and misses notebook

In the past, I was recording a notebook of all my “almost got it” frames. Those fuzzy, overly bright, and “what the heck is this thing in the background” images.

I kept this notebook in order to learn how to not repeat my mistakes (and because we photographers like to be angry at ourselves from time to time). Then, I realized that it is just as important to understand why I failed as it is to understand why I succeeded. So, even today, after every assignment, I write ten things to keep and ten things to work on until the next trip.

18. Rest from it

I know it’s tempting, but resist the urge to filter, edit, and post-process your images the minute you get home. Give yourself at least a week before you do so. We tend to emotionally connect to our images, usually by the degree of investment and hard work we put into creating them. Give yourself time to disengage yourself from the experiences of your journey. This will help you see your images with less bias.

Laos

19. Get feedback

After learning from your successes and mistakes by yourself, use the help of someone else. Choose a friend, (preferably one with tact) and get his/her opinion on the images. It doesn’t matter if they’re a photographer or not. They should be honest, sincere and non-competitive with you.

20. Get it out to the world

Now, after resting from it, seeing it again with a new perspective, and hearing someone else’s advice, it’s time to get your art out to the world.

Choose up to 15 photos (not more). It is important to pay careful attention to the opening and closing images. Each image must stand on its own and together as a set. Add some text and post it to the world.

Note: the author would like to thank Nicholas Orloff for his help in writing this article.

India

The post 20 More Photography Tips Every Travel Photographer Must Know by Oded Wagenstein appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

Comments Off

Posted in Photography

Actionable Tips to Get Sharper Photos Every Time

11 Jul

There’s almost nothing (besides maybe losing a memory card) that hurts more than having a great shot that ends up poorly focused! And even though sometimes we can blame our equipment, there are other factors that come into play when focusing. Sharper and crisper photos are the goal of every photographer, so it’s time we cover the basics to achieve Continue Reading

The post Actionable Tips to Get Sharper Photos Every Time appeared first on Photodoto.

Photodoto

Comments Off

Posted in Photography

Posts Tagged ‘Every’

1. Spot Healing Brush

2. Clone Stamp Tool

3. Magic Wand

4. Content-Aware Fill

The Q Button

How to use it

Does this mean, you have to just keep it real?

Mistake #1: It’s cropped too tight

Mistake #2: It’s unrealistic

Mistake #3: Everything is overly colorful

Mistake #4: The bird looks like a wax statue

Mistake #5: Too much is bad

Final words

Incredibly Compact Kitchen

Spaceflavor Mobile Cube: Office/Tea House in One

Fold-Out Picnic Table

IKEA Closet Makeover

DIY Murphy Bed

Next Page – Click Below to Read More: When Every Inch Counts 14 More Clever Small Space Hacks

Want More? Click for Great Related Content on WebUrbanist:

Small Space Hacks: 24 Tricks for Living in Tiny Apartments

Prototype to Reality: Super Space-Saving Bedroom Set

Compact Cube Home: Storage Unit Turned Micro Apartment

Before you go:

1. Make the visual decisions

2. Build a shot list

3. Smart gear choice

4. Photo boot camp

5. Coordinate expectations

When you get there

6. Location scouting

7. Get up early

8. Markets first!

9. Diversify your shoots

10. Get out of your comfort zone

11. Go iconic – but from a different point of view

12. Get inspired!

13. Setting a trap

14. Join forces with a local

Coming back home

15. Backup

16. Clean your gear

17. Have a successes and misses notebook

18. Rest from it

19. Get feedback

20. Get it out to the world

Next Page – Click Below to Read More:
When Every Inch Counts 14 More Clever Small Space Hacks