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Challenge Yourself by Photographing One Object [video]

01 Feb

The post Challenge Yourself by Photographing One Object appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.

In this great video from COOPH, they ask you to challenge yourself by photographing one object!

Will you do the challenge? If so, show us your results in the comments below!

Look for a versatile object that allows you to photograph it in different ways.

Take your object and try the following techniques:

Techniques

1. Get texture

Go close-up or use a macro lens to create different effects

2. Play with Colors

Add color using crayons, pencils or textas. Elevate your object to create bokeh with the colored background.
Experiment with color gels. Make contrast with color.

3. Experiment with Black and White

Use dramatic lighting.

4. Shoot Silhouettes

Cut some wire and attach to your object. Shoot in front of a bright light source. Bounce your side light with a mirror to create a glowing silhouette.

5. Cut and Peel it

Cut it into shapes. Use a whiteboard to reflect and a translucent surface to place your object on. Place your object on the translucent board, and backlight it.

6. Shape it

Make some creative cuts. Find interesting patterns that match and place your object onto it.

You may also find the following helpful:

How to Use Colored Gels for Creative Off-Camera Flash Photography

Tips for Fast and Effective Studio Product Photography

Reflections on Product Photography

How to Make Funky Colorful Images of Ordinary Plastic Objects Using a Polarizing Filter

Add Interest to your Background with Colored Gels

How to Backlight Translucent Objects for Dramatic Effect

10 Amazing Photography Tricks You Can Do at Home with Everyday Objects

How to Use Backlight to Create Incredible Images

The post Challenge Yourself by Photographing One Object appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.

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7 Mistakes to Avoid When Photographing Wildlife

29 Jan

The post 7 Mistakes to Avoid When Photographing Wildlife appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jeremy Flint.

Wildlife photography can be a great way to secure yourself a series of images of animals that you are proud of. However, it can be extremely challenging to capture good wildlife images because photographers often make errors resulting in missed opportunities.

1 - 7 Mistakes to Avoid When Photographing Wildlife

When you have been waiting for a while and are suddenly faced with photographing a wildlife encounter of a rare species, it is easy to get carried away with the excitement. You may forget the essentials and make mistakes, consequently missing out on the perfect shot.

To help you improve your chances of capturing a great wildlife image, avoid making these common mistakes:

1. Not doing your research

Knowing a bit about your subject, such as where and when you can see them, is an essential part of capturing a memorable wildlife shot. Turning up to a place and hoping for the best will likely result in disappointment. Your best bet is to do your homework and be as prepared as you can.

2. Motion blur

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Leopard, Wilpattu national park, Sri Lanka © Jeremy Flint

Generally, animals move quickly, and if you aren’t careful when taking your pictures, they can often result in motion blur. Sometimes adding intentional motion to your wildlife pictures can be effective and is a great way to add dynamism to your images through techniques such as panning. However, if you want to achieve sharper and more static images, which I would recommend for the majority of wildlife photographs, you need to take care that your shutter speed is not too slow.

3. Using too low an ISO

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Murlough Bay, Antrim Coast, Northern Ireland © Jeremy Flint

One way to ensure a faster shutter speed is to increase the ISO. Many photographers make the mistake of keeping the ISO low when photographing wildlife. This is usually to maintain maximum image quality. However, with a higher ISO, sharper shots will be achievable as the shutter speed increases.

4. Not being prepared

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Deer, Rondon Ridge Hotel, Mount Hagen, Papa New Guinea © Jeremy Flint

One of the biggest mistakes photographers tend to make when photographing wildlife is not being prepared. If you are not ready for the shot before it happens, you will miss it. Being unprepared could be something as simple as your battery going flat when you are taking photos or running out of space on your memory card.

Having prepared my camera the night before by charging my batteries and making sure my memory card had sufficient room to accommodate several images, I was able to take this shot of a deer as it appeared between the trees.

5. Out-of-focus pictures

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Green bea eater, Udawalawe national park, Sri Lanka © Jeremy Flint

Have you ever returned home from photographing wildlife images only to discover that your images are not sharp? This is one of the biggest pitfalls of recording good wildlife photos. It is likely that it may have been a case of not focusing on the subject properly. Therefore, be sure to aim and focus the camera on the part of the image you want sharp.

6. Your subject is too small in the frame

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Wild animals are easily spooked when approached by humans which means getting close to them is usually a challenging undertaking. As a result, you may find that your wildlife shots tend to have more of the surroundings in your shot, with your subject looking insignificant and lost in the background. Sometimes shooting an environment portrait of an animal can work well, but most of the time you will want to fill the frame with your animal shots. So if you aim to try and capture more of your subject, zoom in a bit closer.

7. The composition isn’t great

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Hornbill in flight, Wilpattu National Park, Sri Lanka © Jeremy Flint

Taking pictures of fast moving animals can often result in poor compositional shots. For example, a fleeting moment of a bird in flight or landing happens so fast that just getting a shot usually occurs to the sacrifice of the composition. Pictures can be spoilt by flapping wings, clipped parts of the body (such as the wings or tail), and not giving your subject enough space.

Conclusion

Common mistakes that you are likely to make when photographing wildlife include not being prepared or doing your research, motion blur, using too low an ISO, out-of-focus pictures, poor composition and including too small a main subject in the frame.

Now that you are aware of what not to do when photographing wildlife, turn these mistakes around to enhance your chances of capturing an image you can be proud of.

Now it’s your turn to venture out with your camera to photograph wildlife and share your images with us in the comments below.

The post 7 Mistakes to Avoid When Photographing Wildlife appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jeremy Flint.

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3 Tips for Photographing Mixed Lighting in Interiors

17 Jan

The post 3 Tips for Photographing Mixed Lighting in Interiors appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Lily Sawyer.

For many photographers, photographing mixed lighting scenarios can be painful. At weddings, for example, several lighting sources provide constantly changing colors such as DJ lighting, candles, fairy lights and up-lighters in the venue. It’s not too dissimilar in your home. Say you have your indoor tungsten and incandescent lights on in your lounge while the bright natural daylight streams through the windows. You get two different light sources with different color temperatures, which is a mixed lighting scenario.

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Mixed lighting scenarios

This scenario is the reason why, for interiors, the general advice is to turn all artificial lights off and stick to one light source – natural light. I am aware that some photographers use flash for interiors, and in most of those cases, they make sure they are using daylight color temperature for their bulbs to match the ambient light.

Natural light, even if there is very little of it, can still be perfectly fine for interiors. As long as you can mitigate the amount of available light by using a slow shutter speed with your camera mounted on a tripod because nothing in the picture moves. It is more difficult to achieve when you are photographing portraits because you have subjects – people – who are living, breathing and cannot hold still for an extended length of time.

This is why artificial lighting such as strobes and electronics flashes get used as primary lighting for portraits to provide a light source with a color temperature you can control.

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However, sometimes, you want to break the rules and photograph for fun or to capture what the eye sees regardless of the types of lighting in the scene. Sometimes, it is appropriate to embrace it all, just like what I have done in the photo above! When you decide to do this, here are my tips for you!

1. Ensure there is even lighting

My easy tip is matching light with light such as this photo on the below-left, where these fairy-light-lit Christmas tree with other string lights are all placed in a very bright space. The same could work with dark as in the photo on the right. A lot of dim lighting to even out the room lighting.

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If you have a room that has a very dark corner and a very light corner, you will inadvertently overexpose the light section to expose the dark area correctly. Also, vice versa.

Photographers get around this problem by doing a composite where they put two properly exposed photographs of each corner together in Photoshop to create a perfect scene. This method is commonplace in a backlighting scenario where you are facing a very bright window and not using flash.

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However, if you don’t have or want to use Photoshop, instead of putting your artificial lighting, such as a neon light or a lampshade, in a dark corner, put it in a light corner. Doing so evens out the lighting in a space.

For example, when placing neon in a dark corner, to correctly expose the darkness surrounding it, the neon lights are overexposed. Conversely, underexposing the neon light means losing the details of the dark area such as in the shot above. However, if you have to, ensure there are other lights to illuminate the dark area as well. That way, the neon is not acting as the sole illuminator in the dark area. Balancing the amount of light makes it easier to photograph a space.

2. Shoot deep using a small aperture and slower shutter speed

Use an aperture upwards of f/5.6. My preference is f/8 and if need be f/11. These apertures help you get all the details in focus. However, if you are aiming for background bokeh as shown in the photo below if using standard lenses, you need to use either a wide aperture. Moreover, if you are using macro/micro lenses both wide and small apertures should be applied. Play it safe by shooting with at least an f/5.6 opening. These shots below were taken with a 24-70mm lens at f/2.8.

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Shooting with a small aperture helps alleviate the problem of overexposing a bright source in a very dark corner especially if it’s the only light source. You can see an example of this in the below-left photo, with the living room corner illuminated by the incandescent bulb lampshade. Just to the right of the image, you can see the daylight seeping through from a different room. It looks so much colder and whiter compared to the warm yellow light in the left corner.

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3. Ditch the rules and embrace all the fun

The above kitchen photo contains all sorts of lighting: natural daylight from the windows, warm lamp lights on the floating shelves (the darkest part of the entire space), red fairy lights on the foreground left and more warm tungsten on the top-left. This scenario is what one sees in real life so why change it to conform to the rules? Why not embrace it instead and aim to take an excellent realistic photo rather than change reality to fit the other people’s expectations!

I hope you found this little article helpful, albeit it’s not what’s expected and out of the ordinary! As always, comments and options welcome below. After all, we are all entitled to have our own!

The post 3 Tips for Photographing Mixed Lighting in Interiors appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Lily Sawyer.

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SmugMug Films: An inspiring BTS look at photographing the autumn beauty of Slovenia

15 Jan

SmugMug Films has released ‘Framing the Journey,’ a short film that follows photographer Karen Hutton around the landscapes and cityscapes of Slovenia.

The seven minute film, which was made in partnership with Fujifilm, ‘unveils both the epic beauty of a charming country tucked between Italy and Croatia and the wonder of the artist experiencing it all for the first time.’

Hutton, whose past careers have included acting, singing, voiceover work, figure skating and horseback riding, says her ‘photography is about a philosophy […] It’s about the world, about life, and all the possibilities that exist in between.’

The short film does a great job highlighting the fantastic work of Hutton and showcasing the seemingly endless beauty across Slovenia. Sure it’s effectively a glorified ad for both SmugMug and Fujifilm (as well as DJI whose Mavic Pro 2 drone was used to capture much of the 4K footage), but that doesn’t take away from the inspiring and informative narration provided by Hutton nor the stunning scenery.

To see more work from Karen Hutton, visit her website. To see other SmugMug Films, head to the SmugMug Films’ YouTube Channel.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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5 Tips for Photographing Festivals

10 Jan

The post 5 Tips for Photographing Festivals appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.

Goroka Show, Papa New Guinea. © Jeremy Flint

The performance, color and wonderful crowds that are the signature features of festivals make them an excellent subject for photography. Festivals are great organized events worth attending and can occur anywhere at any time.

A festival is defined as ‘a day or time of the year when people have a holiday from work and celebrate some special event.’ Festivals could be a day or period set aside for celebration to commemorate an anniversary or other significant events. A festival may also occur for feasting, such as religious events or for performances of music, theatre, and dance.

These special events are usually held periodically and are designed to entertain, providing a fantastic opportunity to capture some interesting images.

Consider if there is a festival or event you have always wanted to attend? Whether it’s at home or abroad, it will be sure to offer an array of colorful and compelling subjects and scenes.

Here are five 5 tips for photographing festivals:

1. Shoot local festivals

You don’t have to travel long distances to visit festivals. Find an event that is going on near you and head out with your camera to capture it. Often festivals are seasonal, so time your visit to a festival that takes place during your favorite time of the year such as summer or winter. Arrive early for the chance to get your bearings and find a suitable place to see and photograph the event.

Remember festivals in towns and cities can cause built up traffic, and road closures may restrict access. Allow extra time to get to the event and be observant to ensure your gear stays safe in crowded situations.

2. Shoot festivals around the world

If you are traveling abroad, consider visiting a festival during your vacation. Some incredible festivals are celebrated around the world including the Holi festival in India, the Rio Carnival, the Goroka and Mount Hagen shows of Papa New Guinea and Oktoberfest in Germany. They offer the chance to see a unique and varied side to the people of the place you’re visiting.

Goroka Show, Papa New Guinea © Jeremy Flint

There is generally a great atmosphere during these events, and the costume-clad festival participants are dressed to impress and hopefully won’t mind having their photograph taken.

Festivals involving cultures, such as those in Papa New Guinea and parts of Asia, brilliantly combine local culture with exciting tribal traditions. I photographed this image at the Goroka show in Papa New Guinea where local groups demonstrate their unique song and dance.

Goroka Show, Papa New Guinea © Jeremy Flint

Try and get a bit closer to the action and capture the variety of activities taking place. Alternatively, if you are with friends and family and prefer to remain in one place, wait for the action to come to you.

3. Add color

Festivals such as carnivals, street parties, and fetes create endless opportunities for lively, colorful images. Since everyone taking part in the celebrations are enjoying the occasion, they are happier than usual to have their picture taken. You can take advantage of this by capturing interesting poses and joyous people.

Be sure to look out for vibrant individuals in which to point your lens. Take portraits of cheerful revelers and capture the participants in their colorful clothing.

4. Capture action

At festivals, things happen fast. With parades and processions, attendees move quickly, so be ready to capture the action. With this in mind, I recommend you use a fast shutter speed to capture any aspects you find interesting. Try experimenting with different shutter speeds of 1/100th of a second and above.

A guy falling off a horse, Llanthony Show, Brecon Beacons, Wales © Jeremy Flint

5. Relax and enjoy it

Don’t get hung up on getting the perfect shot. Take time out from the photography, and you can enjoy it more. Spend time soaking up the atmosphere and see the activities with your own eyes. Similarly, immerse yourself in the event and enjoy the spirit of the festivities and the kaleidoscope of color.

Join in the festivities and dance or walk with the participants if they are marching.

Most importantly, have fun and enjoy the event, you will have a much more memorable experience.

Conclusion

In summary, festivals offer a wonderful chance to create pictures with color, impact, and action. Most importantly, relax, enjoy it and don’t get too engrossed in taking the perfect shot. When photographing festivals remember these tips to help you improve your images. Therefore, get out there and capture a festival near you and share your photos below!

The post 5 Tips for Photographing Festivals appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.

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Tips for Setting Up and Photographing Mini-Sessions for Extra Income

17 Dec

The post Tips for Setting Up and Photographing Mini-Sessions for Extra Income appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jackie Lamas.

Photographing mini-sessions is a perfect way to generate extra income from both new and returning clients. They can also create buzz and word of mouth during the slow season for many photographers. Knowing how to set them up and photograph them ensures you are successful and offer your clients the best mini-session experience.

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What is a mini-session?

Mini-sessions are sessions that offer your clients a session at a reduced price and usually photographed in less time than a regular full session.

Typically, the sessions run between 30 and 45-minute time slots for each client. It is up to you if you want to offer your mini-sessions to families, individuals, or children. Perhaps you are willing to do all types of photography, which can also create more buzz in different niches.

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Mini-sessions are a reduced price, but it is up to you to factor in costs so that you are still earning enough to generate income for your photography business. These mini-sessions are all about booking volume, and so don’t price it not too low, or you may burn out quickly. Set your price, so you are making enough money, however, not too high where it’s not cost-effective for your clients who perhaps don’t have money to spend on a full session.

How do you set up a mini-session?

It’s important to make sure that you have all of your mini-session details set up and prepped before sending the information out to social media or your client list.

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Before you begin, figure out how much you to charge and what you intend to include in the mini-sessions. For instance, if you are charging $ 250 per session, perhaps you can include an 11×14 wall print. If you are only including digital prints, make sure to state how many your clients receive. Including a product can be an excellent incentive for clients to book rather than just getting a digital product.

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For example, if you’re doing holiday minis, you may include a set of greeting cards. If you are doing beach mini-summer-sessions, perhaps a beautiful wall portrait is the best option. Either way, work out your costs and be sure that you price your sessions accordingly to avoid losing money or just breaking even.

This is an example of all the different poses you can do in the same location to make the most of the time limit of your mini sessions.

Once you have figured out the basic details of the session, it’s time to determine what season of the year you are planning on having the sessions. Weekend dates are advisable because many people tend to have the weekends off from work and are free from other obligations.

If you plan on doing fall minis, schedule them far in advance so that you have time to edit and deliver all of the materials to your clients before the holidays. For example, scheduling holiday minis from mid to the end of October is perfect because you still have plenty of time before the major holidays to deliver your photos.

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Be sure to schedule enough time slots during the day so that enough clients can have their photos taken without overlap or running into each other. For example, start at 10 a.m. and photograph every hour and a half until 5 p.m., or an hour before the sun sets.

Depending on the season you’ve chosen to do the mini-sessions, you can photograph them all in one particular location or two very different locations to offer variety. For example, you can offer mini-sessions at a park on Saturday and Sunday photograph downtown. Offering two different locations for different days means clients can choose which look they would prefer.

You can also set up just one day, say a Sunday, and photograph in only one location like a park or field.

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Prep before booking a single client

It is essential you be prepared for running mini-sessions. Otherwise, you can get lost in all of the small details. Here is a sample worksheet that you can use so that you can keep track of your mini-sessions.

Keep track of clients, payments, contracts, timeslots, and locations for each session. It can help you not get confused and also keep track of who has paid and who hasn’t.

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Also, prep an exclusive print package for your mini-sessions that include several products. Doing this to send out to booked clients can prepare them just in case they want to buy more photos from you. Giving them an exclusive print package can boost your income and make up the difference for the reduced price of the mini-session.

Having your business ready for the mini-sessions ensures that the campaign runs smoothly and without fuss. Plus, having all of your materials ready, like contracts and product guides, makes you look more professional to both returning and new clients.

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It also less stressful keeping track of all the mini-session details after the shoot and it’s time to edit and deliver.

Remember, photography is an art, but portrait photography is also a business. You must run your business efficiently to avoid burn-out or losing track of information or details.

Create a mini-session campaign

Now that you have all the details, the locations, and the dates set for the mini-sessions, it’s time to get the information out.

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Create a buzz. Send out an email or social media post informing people that you are prepping for a run of mini-sessions and details are coming soon. Doing so gets your clients excited and gives them time to book because you have already informed them.

First, send the information to your existing client list. Give them the chance to book first. Not only does it make it more exclusive but also keeps your current clients happy. Returning clients are much more willing to book than new clients. Send them all of the information about a week before you send it out to new clients. While it gives them exclusivity, it also adds urgency for them to book because someone else may get their slot.

Returning clients have a higher rate of booking than new clients.

Afterward, send out your mini-session campaign through the best form that brings in clients. Try an email list, social media, or your website. Wherever you get the most traffic and exposure, publish your campaign there.

Continue announcing the campaign. Make sure that you remind people daily through email and social media. Once a time slot gets filled, make sure to update the information. You don’t have to do this every single time, but it can save people from trying to book the same time slot and be turned down.

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Remember, the client who signs the contract and pays the retainer fee is the one who gets booked. People who message but don’t do those two things don’t get booked. Unless you know your client is reliable, don’t reserve the mini-session timeslot. Otherwise, you could miss out on a paying client.

Don’t be afraid of getting to the point! Mini-sessions have a reduced price, which makes them in-demand. Especially among your existing clients! If you get a request for a mini-session, direct them to where they can pay the retainer, and send them the contract as soon as possible.

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You can write them something like this: Thank you so much for wanting a mini-session! I do have that time and date available, however, it’s first-come-first-served. To book your preferred time and date, please go to this link and pay the session retainer. As soon as I receive confirmation, I can send you the contract. I’m excited and look forward to photographing your beautiful family!

It’s short, simple, but to the point. Letting your clients know the steps they have to take to book the mini-session ensures that you filter out the people who are just shopping around. This way you’re not wasting your time.

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How to photograph mini sessions

Mini sessions are wonderful because they usually mean that you have back to back sessions all in the same location. However, it also means that you are out there all day photographing in all types of light.

Prep your gear so that you are ready for any type of lighting situation that can occur during the sessions. For example, bring extra batteries for your flash in case you will be competing with the sun. Bring a reflector to bounce some light. Take a tripod.

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Sessions typically run from 30 to 45 minutes spaced at every hour and a half. This timing gives you at least 30 minutes between sessions to rest, eat a snack and drink some water. It also helps to adjust to new lighting conditions for the next session.

Mini-sessions can enable you to look for new ways to photograph multiple families in the same location. Use their energy to determine which angles and specific locations work best for them. It’s a great time to push your creativity and perhaps experiment new ideas you’ve wanted to try.

Here you can see all the variations in posing with different family combinations in the same location.

Make sure to set a timer so that you know when it’s time to stop photographing. Put your alarm about 5 minutes before the time is up to ensure you are aware you have a few extra minutes to get any last photos.

Time goes quickly, and your clients may feel like they didn’t have lots of variety or even that you took enough photographs. One thing that I do is I tell them how many photos I’ve taken, which is usually anywhere between 200 and 400 photos. Clients know that they won’t get all of the 200 photos, but they feel more confident that you’ve taken enough for them to choose.

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If you offered your clients a set number of photographs, make sure that you photograph enough to cover that amount. For example, if you’ve offered 50 digital images, make sure you photograph more than double to have enough variety for them.

Making the most out of little time

Mini-sessions go by quickly, and if you have chosen to photograph for 30 minutes, it is important to make the most out of the time.

Make the most out of your time by having set poses for different combinations during the mini-session.

Prep yourself with 5 – 7 poses that work for all family types and sizes. Try to use poses that don’t require you to move your clients too much and waste time.

The most common set of poses include:

the whole family together
siblings only
parents only
each child
mothers and daughters
fathers and sons
mothers and sons
fathers and daughters

If grandparents are participating, you can also do the same above combinations with them included. Don’t forget to photograph the grandparents both individually and with only their grandchildren.

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Once you have all of the main portraits taken, allow the children to have a bit of fun. Have them walk with their parents or play so you can capture them in a natural state of joy and happiness.

After the session

Immediately after taking the last photo at the mini-session, give your clients a printed pricing sheet that includes other products you offer. Also, include any exclusive packages you’ve created for the promotion. That way they can keep it in mind before they view a single photo.

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After you’ve completed your mini-sessions, get one or two photos onto social media as sneak previews. Doing so can help drive more interest to your mini-sessions from potential clients.

Also, take the time to send a thank you message to your clients and email the price list again for the mini-sessions. If you have created something exclusively for the promotion, make sure to highlight the top three products. Do this before you show your clients the images so that they can plan how much they want to purchase and which products they like best.

Use this photo as inspiration for different posing during your next mini-session.

To keep the excitement of the mini-session going, edit and deliver the images to your clients quickly.

If your mini-sessions included a set number of images, allow downloads or choosing for that amount, but include all of the photos that you believe are great. For example, if your package includes 50 edited photographs for your client with only 10 downloadable images, include all 50 in the gallery or sales appointment slideshow.

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Including more photos makes it likely that your clients purchase more than the ones included in the mini-session promotion.

Online versus in person

You have two options for your mini-session image delivery. You can send your clients an online gallery or make in-person sales. It’s up to you which you prefer to do depending on your business style.

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If you do online, be sure you’ve outlined all the parameters regarding the gallery. Have your watermarks in place, limit the downloads to the number you’ve specified and use an expiration date. Also, add email logins to keep track of emails for future marketing.

Also, have your products displayed front and center so that your clients can find them quickly. If your clients have to jump through lots of hoops to get their images, they most likely won’t buy much. Make sure the gallery is user-friendly and easy to access.

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If you have opted for in-person sales, schedule the appointment after you’ve finished photographing the family. Doing so helps settle any delays in delivering photos. Have a physical calendar or use your phone calendar to note the time and date of your in-person sales.

In-person sales can happen at your studio or the client’s home. Take your top products, pricing sheet, and samples along. Include a preview of the images in a premade slideshow that highlights the top 15 photos.

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Work with your clients to choose their favorites from the promotion and any additional products they may want to purchase.

Take an order form and have a secure way to process payments. For example, use a PayPal credit card reader or Square software. Doing so allows clients to pay then and there, avoiding payment excuses. You also look more professional.

Pricing Sheet and Products

I want to highlight pricing sheets and products. I’ve repeated it throughout the entire article. Make it a point to put your pricing sheet and products in front of your client’s eyes at all times.

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Mini-sessions often bring in quick income because you are working in volume. In the long run, what brings you greater income and returning clients is selling prints and products.

Reminding your clients of pricing and products allows them to think about what they would like to purchase. If you only say it once, it doesn’t stick. You’ll need them to see the information at least three times for them to think about buying something other than digital images.

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Send out the pricing sheet and all other selling materials in an email when your client books the session. Send it along with their signed contract or payment receipt. Hand them a printed pricing/product sheet at the end of the session. Be sure to include your logo and any other necessary information such as credit card payment details. When you send the gallery invitation or see them at the in-person sales appointment, give them the pricing/product sheet again.

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It’s important to keep the pricing/product sheet available to them and as a constant reminder to purchase printed products from their session. Having your work displayed in their home also serves as a good referral among friends and family who see their portraits.

In conclusion

Mini-sessions are a great way to drive volume business and get more experience in portrait photography. Price your mini-sessions according to your target market and business model so that you don’t lose money by doing the promotion.

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Remember to get your pricing sheet and product pricing to your clients at least three times to ensure extra income after the sessions have been completed.

Have you photographed mini-sessions before? What was your experience?

The post Tips for Setting Up and Photographing Mini-Sessions for Extra Income appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jackie Lamas.

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5 Tips for Photographing Flowers with Impact

14 Dec

The post 5 Tips for Photographing Flowers with Impact appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Megan Kennedy.

1 - 5 Tips for Photographing Flowers with Impact

If like me, you live in the southern hemisphere, you’ll be well amongst the season of spring. Although this can mean the onset of the dreaded hay fever season, it’s a great time of the year for photographers to capture an amazing diversity of flowers that bloom in the warmer months.

Flowers make beautiful subjects for photography. In fact, they’re probably one of the most photographed subjects in history. An abundance of colors, species, and sizes means that flowers provide an endless array of photographic opportunities.

2 - 5 Tips for Photographing Flowers with Impact

However, floral photography isn’t limited to spring either. If you aren’t currently living it up in the southern hemisphere, now is a great time to show some self-love and buy yourself a beautiful bouquet of flowers…because you deserve it! And for photography purposes, of course.

No matter if you are in the thralls of spring or living vicariously through this post, this quick list is a great way to load up on ideas for that next floral shoot.

3 - 5 Tips for Photographing Flowers with Impact

Macro photography

Macro photography is the photographic reproduction of small subjects at a size that is larger than real life. Through macro photography, a photographer can take extreme close-up photographs of small subjects, reproducing them at a much larger size. Macro photography is often used to photograph flowers because it reveals attributes that can’t be seen by the naked eye. It’s easy to observe a flower in passing. But it takes a photographer to reveal the hidden details of a flower’s complex shape and structure.

A variety of dedicated macro lenses, as well as extension tubes and filters, mean that macro photography gear is becoming more and more accessible. For my macro flower photography, I use a set of extension tubes. They’re simple, don’t break the budget and they produce lovely results.

4 - 5 Tips for Photographing Flowers with Impact

5 - 5 Tips for Photographing Flowers with Impact

Abstraction

Abstract photography itself is a little hard to describe. Wikipedia defines abstract photography as “…a means of depicting a visual image that does not have an immediate association with the object world”. Abstract photography relies on compositional aspects like form, shape, color, line, and texture without worrying too much about depicting identifiable subject matter.

It’s a complicated subject, but flower photography is a great excuse to explore abstract photography for yourself. Try focusing on the details that make up the network of organic shapes in a flower, or home in on the subtle lines that form the flower’s shape. Don’t worry too much about the bigger picture. Go for it – it’s a lot of fun!

6 - 5 Tips for Photographing Flowers with Impact

In this abstract image, the flowing lines and natural color lend the impression of an organic subject

Color

Focusing on a colorful subject matter is a great way to form a dialogue between a photograph and viewer. Flowers are known for their abundance of color and variety. Their beautiful and sometimes surprising hues make them wonderfully diverse photographic subjects.

For vibrant color in your floral photography, you want to photograph a well-lit subject. If you are photographing outside, aim to shoot on a day with a good amount of sunlight. If you are inside or shooting on a particularly cloudy day, try incorporating on-camera flash into your photography. Direct flash will usually blow out a subject, so try using a diffuser or bouncing your flash for a softer effect that will lift a flower’s color without washing it out.

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Taking advantage of the color in floral subjects will allow you to build up a body of diverse botanical photography by relying on the natural features of the flower

Black and White

Of course, not all flower photography has to be in color. Color photography can have the drawback of directing attention away from the subject itself. Black and white photography, on the other hand, enhances form and texture by minimizing distraction. And because flowers are associated with color, black and white photography also lends a timeless, surreal angle to your floral imagery.

To photograph flowers in black and white, you can set your camera to shoot in monochrome mode. Or, you can convert your images to black and white in post-production with programs like Photoshop or Lightroom. Either way, black and white photography is a great way to add a unique perspective to your flower photography.

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This photograph of was taken using a process called Scanography. The black and white scheme accentuates the subtle details in the subject

Perspective

Perspective dictates the way a viewer places themselves in a photograph. As a basic example, a high perspective can remove the viewer from the scene, inviting them to asses a photographic environment clinically. It introduces a sense of unease, as height is considered innately dangerous. A low perspective amplifies the height of subjects, lending a sense of grandeur to an environment. At the same time, it can also instill a feeling of ‘smallness’ in the viewer, as if they were an ant inspecting an impossibly tall building.

Viewers get drawn to images that are out of the ordinary. Creatively utilizing your camera’s point of view challenges the way a viewer sees their surroundings. For a unique twist on perspective, try photographing floral subjects down at their level. It’s amazing how much a subject can be transformed with a quick change in perspective.

9 - 5 Tips for Photographing Flowers with Impact

Conclusion

Focusing on color, black and white, perspective, macro, and abstract photography are only some of the ways to approach flower photography. Even the smallest flower poking its head through the cracks in a path can bring a smile to someone’s face. So, combining photography and flowers is sure a sure-fire way to create beautiful imagery. I’d love to see your results below!

The post 5 Tips for Photographing Flowers with Impact appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Megan Kennedy.

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Photographing Still Life Can Teach You These 3 Things

12 Nov

Composition
Lighting
The importance of taking your time

Photographing Still Life Can Teach You These 3 Things © Kevin Landwer-Johan

Photographing still life, more than most genres, gives you more control. You can control your subject, location, lighting, composition etc. when you make still life pictures.

Photographing just about anything else gives you have far less control, or it’s much more difficult to control the photo session. Landscape photographers must rely on external factors like the weather and vantage point. Sports photographers are restricted by how close they can get to their subjects. Wildlife photographers are often hampered by their subject’s movements. Portrait photographers have to deal with all manner of moods and emotions from their clients.

Photographing inanimate objects can happen just about anywhere. A studio space is not necessary. You can use your kitchen and set up on the table. Backyards and public parks can be great locations for outdoor still life photography.

Subject matter options are wide open. What do you like looking at? Find something you like – it will be more engaging. Small (but not too small) objects are easier to manage. Still life with large items like refrigerators or park benches will be more challenging to work with. You are not restricted to fruit and bunches of flowers.

Whatever and where ever you chose, you can improve upon three essential skills by photographing still life.

Composition

You have unlimited freedom to place and move your subject material about. This can help you gain a better understanding of composition.

Moving your objects around you will see how they relate differently to each other. You can overlap them or choose to position each one so it’s independent.

Camera position can view your set up from any angle you imagine. Experiment with high and low angles. Watch how this can dramatically affect your composition. Doing this in a situation where you have control and freedom to move about will help you learn to do so other times you are taking photos.

Backgrounds can be varied. You can use just the natural surroundings or add in your own backdrop. If the room ambiance is conducive to the images you want to make, use it well. However, if there are distracting elements behind your set up, insert a backdrop of your own. This can be a piece of card or cloth or something else to help enhance your composition.

Hopefully, photographing still life will stimulate your imagination. Having the freedom to manipulate your compositions will enhance your photography in general.

Lighting

Working with inanimate objects is a great opportunity to learn more about lighting. With people, animals and other things that move about, being consistent with lighting can be challenging. Landscapes and architectural photography can have more complex lighting demands.

Starting with a simple light set up is good if you are new to photography. The kitchen window if your objects are on the kitchen table. Start making your series of photos and then open the kitchen door to let light in from another direction. Compare your photos and see the changes adding more light makes.

Switching on an artificial light source allows you more control. Use a lamp or flashlight. These allow you to see the effect of the light, unlike using a camera flash. Vary the position of the lights. Lift them higher or drop them down lower. Moving them further away will lessen the amount of light on your objects.

Reflectors can be made good use of in still life photography. Even a sheet of white A4 printer paper can be an effective reflector. Try different reflective surfaces of varying sizes and study the difference they have on your scene.

Look at the direction of light and shadows. How do they interact when you have more than one light source?

By trying different light sources and setups you will develop a better eye to discern light in other situations where you are taking photos. It can help you to know when to add another light source or reflector.

Taking Your Time

Setting up for a still life photo session somewhere you can leave it a few days or weeks has its benefits. So often people are in too much of a rush to get a photo and move on. Take your time, and work slowly as a painter does. There’s no rush.

Being able to go away and come back to your arrangement of inanimate objects allows you to see it with fresh eyes the next day or next week.

Maybe you will see the relationship between elements differently. The lighting will have changed from morning till afternoon if you are using natural light. You might think of another object you want to add to the scene that will really make the photo. Ideas will come that you had not thought of initially.

Changing lens focal lengths is also good to experiment with. Compare how the objects interact with each other and the background as you view them with different lenses.

Setting up outdoors, you can photograph at different times of day and night to see the effects of different light. Does moonlight provide the most interesting lighting for your composition? Or is it best first thing in the morning?

Conclusion

Find yourself some space. Gather together a few of your most aesthetic things. Take your time to move them around and change the lighting. Think about how the objects relate to each other. Think about the different results you achieve when you change the lighting. If you don’t like what you photographed one day, come back another and make some more photos.

Please share with us any still life photos you may have taken in the comments below.

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Almost human: photographing critically endangered mountain gorillas

11 Nov

I’ve recently returned from a visit to Africa, where I spent three days photographing mountain gorillas in Uganda. It had been a long while since I’d last photographed animals. I started my way in the photography world shooting wildlife, but for many reasons I quickly became obsessed with landscape photography and went on to devote most of my time, attention and resources into this field. I have been wanting to revisit wildlife photography for ages, and when two friends of mine mentioned they were going to photograph mountain gorillas, it seemed like a sign that the time had come for me to take the first step back into that world.

Mountain gorillas are a critically endangered species only found in central Africa (Rwanda, Uganda and DR Congo). After coming back from the brink of extinction with numbers as low as 254, massive conservation efforts have resulted in their numbers slowly rising, and they have recently topped the 1000 figure. Still, these numbers are very, very low and they are dependent on conservation efforts to survive.

A silverback mountain gorilla in a striking pose. Their similarity to humans, in so many aspects, is astounding.

To avoid too much human contact, the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) allows people to be with the gorillas for no more than one hour a day. That hour comes at a cost of hundreds of dollars. Multiply that by the number of shoots you want to conduct, and you get the cost for the permits. Not cheap at all, and keep in mind that hotels, food and a car with a driver have to be added to the cost, not to mention (well-deserved) tips for the gorilla tracking crew.

A mountain gorilla toddler trying its strength at eating the bamboo shoots his elders love so much.

Every morning, after a drive to the park, we met our porters, handed them our photo bags, and walked for a few minutes to reach the ranger’s hut. After undergoing a safety briefing, we started the hike. A gorilla tracking team had already located the gorillas, and were in touch with the ranger to let him know where to go.

The hike isn’t particularly difficult, but it is uphill. We usually reached the gorillas after 1.5 or 2 hours, depending on the gorillas’ location and on the pace of hiking. When getting closer to the gorillas, we could hear the chest-pounding and smell the overwhelming and unmistakable gorilla body-odor (wow).

Two mountain gorilla toddlers play-fighting over a branch. They are developing their skills for years later when they’re adult silverbacks fighting for life itself and the right to procreate.

After years without doing any serious wildlife photography, I was a bit concerned that the learning curve would be too moderate. On one hand, my composition skills have been well trained by shooting landscapes. On the other hand, landscape doesn’t move that much or face away, and wildlife shoots are much more dynamic. I made peace with the possibility that some of the precious time with the gorillas would be partially wasted on regaining my wildlife shooting instincts. I knew I had to try to learn on the fly as well as I could, and most importantly, be very focused on the mission and make the best out of my time among the gorillas.

This juvenile mountain gorilla was trying on a tough stance and some chest-pounding. Others in the group were not impressed.

The gorillas are much more incredible in real life than can ever be shown with an image. The sheer size of the silverback males is astounding – they weigh in at over 200kg, without a gram of fat on them. Their heads are as big as watermelons, and their hands are huge. To maintain that bulk, they have to eat about 35kg of vegetation every single day.

The toddlers and juveniles love fooling around, dangling from branches and making funny faces. You are not allowed to approach the gorillas too closely, but that doesn’t mean a curious youngling can’t take interest and inspect the strange creature with the shiny thing!

With his mother lazily watching, this toddler came very close to my lens when I was lying on the ground, trying to get an angle. This resulted in an interesting wide-angle perspective.

The very dynamic and playful nature of the toddlers often made the situation very chaotic. It was difficult following them when dangling from the branches, getting a focused shot while maintaining good composition. This was the biggest challenge, and I feel I didn’t perform perfectly in this aspect. Still, I got a few lucky shots.

A seemingly frustrated mountain gorilla mother frowns as her very mischievous toddler dangles from nearby branches.

The conditions were not easy. A thick cloud cover offered beautiful soft light, but also made it quite dark, with the thick vegetation not helping. To add to this, the gorillas often stay beneath trees. High ISO is extremely important in such conditions – I often found myself shooting at 3200, 6400 and even 12800. Even that was often not enough.

I had brought most of my lens arsenal to this shoot, but found myself mostly shooting with my Canon 70-300mm F4-5.6L IS (for faraway animals and for close portraits) and with my Canon 16-35mm F2.8L III (for closer encounters and for multiple gorillas in one shot). I almost always used wide open aperture, for obvious reasons.

I took this image at ISO 12800, and to get a proper exposure, a shutter speed of 1/25 sec was needed at 70mm, F4.

To get interesting shots, good compositions are important. While in landscape photography compositions are relatively easy to pre-visualize, wildlife doesn’t always cooperate. It is up to the photographer to find the opportunities when the animals position themselves in a compelling way within their surroundings.

This silverback male sat in a way that framed him with leaves.

It’s important to use the nearby elements, to connect the subject with its surroundings.

I think the most captivating thing that the gorillas offer is a glimpse into us as a species. In my personal opinion, there is simply no way you can see them in reality and still think we’re not related. The look in their eyes, their grumpiness after the rain, their fingerprints – everything about them is so (almost) human.

All in all, photographing the gorillas was an excellent experience for me, a perfect return to the world of wildlife photography and one that encouraged me to shoot much more wildlife in the future. The excitement and many challenges kept me focused and helped me give it my best efforts. I hope you’ve enjoyed the images, and perhaps you will consider making the effort and visiting these magnificent relatives of ours yourself.

Erez Marom is a professional nature photographer, photography guide and traveler based in Israel. You can follow Erez’s work on Instagram and Facebook, and subscribe to his mailing list for updates.

If you’d like to experience and shoot some of the most fascinating landscapes on earth with Erez as your guide, take a look at his unique photography workshops in The Lofoten Islands, Greenland, Namibia, the Faroe Islands and Ethiopia.

Erez offers video tutorials discussing his images and explaining how he achieved them.

Selected Articles by Erez Marom:

Parallelism in Landscape Photography
Winds of Change: Shooting changing landscapes
Behind the Shot: Dark Matter
On the Importance of Naming Images
On Causality in Landscape Photography
Behind the Shot: Lost in Space
The Art of the Unforeground
Whatever it Doesn’t Take

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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6 Tips For Photographing Better City Scenes

01 Nov

6 Tips For Photographing Better City Scenes 1

Towns and cities can be noisy, busy, stressful and congested but provide excellent subjects for photography. Taking great photographs of cities is not easy so here are six ideas to help you capture city scenes:

1) City Skyscrapers

Urban photography offers a great opportunity to document a cities environment.

On a sunny day, most photographers choose to head out into nature, where the coast or a rolling landscape is usually only a short drive away.

However, if you opt for urban landscapes, there are a whole manner of worthwhile subjects where you can point your lens. Skylines, architecture, famous landmarks and bridges are all beautiful examples of city elements worth capturing.

Cities dominated by skyscrapers are visually exciting and provide a wealth of interesting buildings to view and photograph. You could find strong patterns, symmetry, dramatic lighting and different textures amongst high-rise buildings.

Look for architectural or urban features that create interest and use a wide angle of view to convey a grander sense of the scene.

6 Tips For Photographing Better City Scenes 2

Shanghai, China

2) A Nocturnal Cityscape

Cities are becoming more popular as destinations for short breaks. Overnight stays in cities provide an opportunity to photograph a nocturnal cityscape.

One key advantage of shooting a city at night is you can work in all kinds of weather such as rain, snow or light fog.

It is possible to do this because you are mainly focusing on elements that are characterized by darker tones with a few spots of color and light.

When capturing cities in the dark, you don’t need to concentrate on the usual shadows and tonal gradations that are relevant in the daytime. You work purely with light.

I suggest that you set yourself up before it gets dark so you can see what you’re doing and experiment with the changing light as it shifts from light to dark.

6 Tips For Photographing Better City Scenes 3

MILLENIUM BRIDGE, London

3) Reflected City

Many buildings and city landmarks are so photogenic that they can be too familiar a subject to photograph.

Instead of shooting the usual perspective of just buildings, concentrate on reflective surfaces that mirror back the surrounding architecture.

You can find reflections in a pool of water, a polished surface or shiny glass (reflecting abstract patterns) and the bonnet of a car parked on a rooftop.

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Photographs of reflections are visually pleasing when executed correctly. To be most effective, select the maximum depth of field and aim to achieve an image that’s as sharp as possible.

4) City Scenes by Night

City centers become great light shows at night.

They give an array of color from buildings to lights of passing cars. One tip I recommend is you capture the energy and excitement of a nighttime scene by including a human element.

Doing so will make your images more dynamic and dramatic.

6 Tips For Photographing Better City Scenes 5

Radcliffe Camera

If you are shooting at night, you will need a slower shutter speed to capture the scene. Use this to your advantage by recording flowing traffic such as buses and taxis or colorful clouds.

These can add motion to your city scenes or a splash of color to supplement the buildings in the background.

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Piran, Slovenia

5) An Urban Landscape – Day Shots of the City

Another way you can capture striking images of cities is to photograph the urban landscape.

Perspectives can be obtained from ground level or by capturing the city from above. Overlook a city from a tower or a rooftop. Find interesting patterns, contrasting buildings or views of street life to photograph.

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University Church of Saint Mary the Virgin viewpoint

When shooting from high elevations, if you have to lean out for your shot, make sure it is safe to do so. Secure your camera strap around your hand or neck to keep it safe.

6) City Streets or Cityscapes From Afar

6 Tips For Photographing Better City Scenes 8

City streets provide intriguing and picturesque subjects such as human interest and variable light.

You may find yourself walking past a location every day and not realize its potential. Until striking shadows from the sun transform it into a great composition that brings it to life.

You don’t have to take pictures of city scenes only from close range. Take a step back and capture a wide shot of the urban landscape from afar. Seek out a viewpoint that allows you to obtain more context from an unusual angle.

Conclusion

Use these tips to go out and capture your best shots of city scenes and share your images in the comments below.

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