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How to do Tilt-Shift Style Photography with the Lensbaby Edge 50

14 Jan

Professional architectural and landscape photographers use tilt-shift lenses to avoid converging vertical lines and to get the entire scene in sharp focus. Portrait and food photographers use them to create interesting effects using blur and shifts in the plane of focus. Tilt-shift lenses are exciting creative tools, but they are also specialist items. That means they’re expensive to buy, especially for hobbyists.

Lensbaby Edge 50 lens - How to Lens Tilt-Shift Photography with the Lensbaby Edge 50

But there is a way you can apply a tilt-shift style effect (although there are no shift movements) with a relatively inexpensive camera lens – the Lensbaby Edge 50.

The Edge 50 is a 50mm lens attachment that fits in the Lensbaby Composer Pro II. The two are sold together, or you can buy the Edge 50 separately if you already have a Composer Pro II. It’s available for all major camera mounts.

How to Lens Tilt-Shift Style Photography with the Lensbaby Edge 50

The Lensbaby Edge 50 (with an inexpensive lens hood that I bought on Amazon) and Composer Pro II mounted on a Fujifilm X-T1 camera. The Edge 50 lens is tilted down in this photo.

On my APS-C Fujifilm camera, the Edge 50 is a short telephoto lens ideal for portraits and many other subjects. If you own a full-frame camera then you’ll get the same field of view and a similar effect with the Edge 80 optic.

The Edge 50 lens lets you tilt the plane of focus so that it runs in any direction across the frame you like.

The red lines show the direction of the plane of focus in the photos above.

Why buy a Lensbaby Edge 50?

So, why buy the Lensbaby Edge 50 optic? For me one of the driving factors was curiosity. I had so many questions. Could I make interesting photos with this lens? Is it any good for portraits? What happens if I add an extension tube to make close-up photos? The images in this article will provide some answers.

What I didn’t expect is that I would love using this lens. There’s something strangely fascinating about viewing the world through a lens that has tilt movements. The Edge 50 is so much fun to use there’s a genuine danger that you use it all the time and forget about your other lenses!

The Edge 50 can help you make photos with a miniature effect created by tilting the lens. These work best when you have a high viewpoint overlooking the subject.

Practicalities of using the Edge 50 lens

There are some differences between the Edge 50 lens and regular camera lenses that you need to know about before you buy one.

The Edge 50 is a manual focus lens

This is not an autofocus lens and you need to take great care when focusing for accuracy. It’s easier to focus with cameras that have electronic viewfinders and focus peaking. Or you could use Live View.

The Edge 50 lens is perfect for fine art black and white photos like these.

The Edge 50 doesn’t come with a lens hood

This is disappointing as it means you can’t point the lens anywhere near the sun without getting lens flare. I bought a metal lens hood from Amazon for a few dollars. The lens hood reduces lens flare and protects the front element from accidental damage when the camera is hanging at your side.

You can experiment with shifting the plane of focus, photographing the same scene in multiple ways.

Depth of field is very narrow at the widest aperture of f/3.2

I’ve learned to stay away from the widest aperture setting and stop down to f/4 or f/5.6 to get the best results. You will also have to use a higher ISO to get the correct exposure in low light than you would with a regular 50mm prime lens.

The Edge 50 lens with an extension tube can create close-up photos like this.

You can shift the plane of focus in all directions

With this lens, you can position it so that the plane of focus lies horizontally, vertically or at any angle in between. This allows you to get creative and experiment with different focusing effects.

For example, portraits are very effective when the plane of focus is horizontal, as you can focus on the model’s eyes and throw the rest of the scene out of focus.

How to Lens Tilt-Shift Style Photography with the Lensbaby Edge 50 - portrait

The Edge 50 is great for close-ups when combined with an extension tube

I use a Fujifilm MCEX-16 extension tube with this lens for taking close-ups of flowers. It lets me shift the plane of focus around and create interesting effects in a way that you can’t do with a conventional 50mm lens.

How to Lens Tilt-Shift Style Photography with the Lensbaby Edge 50

Conclusion

The Lensbaby Edge 50 lens is a great addition to my camera bag and one that I’m very happy to have made. If you like creative photography, interesting bokeh, and blur effects, or if you’re looking for something a little different for your portraits, then the Edge 50 could be just what you need.

Would you like to learn more about lenses and your camera? My ebook Mastering Lenses teaches you everything you need to know. The buying guide alone will save you many times the cost of the ebook!

The post How to do Tilt-Shift Style Photography with the Lensbaby Edge 50 by Andrew S. Gibson appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Weekly Photography Challenge – Macro or Close-Up Photography

13 Jan

Last week’s challenge was to get out and shoot some winter photography. Maybe you already tried some macro then – if not, now’s your chance.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Weekly Photography Challenge – Macro

Close-ups of snow, icicles, frost patterns, etc., can be stunningly beautiful. So bundle up, grab your macro lens or extension tubes and a tripod and get out there and shoot some winter macro photography.

Need more help? Try these dPS articles:

7 Different Ways to Approach Macro Photography
5 Quick Tips for Outdoor Macro Photography
How to Get Stunning Macro Photos with Your Mobile Phone
Behind the Scenes of Marvellous Macro Insect Imagery
Tips for Depth of Field Control in Macro Photography
5 Macro Photography Tricks to Make Your Images Stand Out
Getting Started with Abstract Macro Photography

Simply upload your shot into the comment field (look for the little camera icon in the Disqus comments section) and they’ll get embedded for us all to see or if you’d prefer, upload them to your favorite photo-sharing site and leave the link to them. Show me your best images in this week’s challenge. Sometimes it takes a while for an image to appear so be patient and try not to post the same image twice.

Share in the dPS Facebook Group

You can also share your images in the dPS Facebook group as the challenge is posted there each week as well.

The post Weekly Photography Challenge – Macro or Close-Up Photography by Darlene Hildebrandt appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Beginner Photography Mistakes to Avoid

12 Jan

When you’re just starting out in photography there are so many things to learn it can be overwhelming. Here are two videos with some tips on common photography mistakes and how to avoid them.

Mistakes to avoid as a beginning photographer

This video by Serge Ramelli will give you 6 things to avoid doing as you start out in photography.

Shooting during the daytime instead of sunset or sunrise.
Not using an ND filter when shooting the ocean.
Not using a tripod for night photography.
Putting too many elements in your photo, not telling the story well.
Shooting JPG instead of Raw.
Not using Lightroom or its presets.

10 More beginner mistakes to avoid

If you’ve got those things covered, here are 10 more beginner mistakes to avoid including:

Forgetting something at home.
Not arriving early enough to the shooting location.
Not scouting the location ahead of time.
Shooting in the wrong lighting (see mistake #1 above from Serge!).
Not moving around enough.
Images that aren’t sharp (use a tripod, etc.)
Going home too early. Stay later than you planned.
Forgetting to set your camera back to zero (default settings, ISO, exposure compensation, etc.)
Don’t worry so much about shooting in Manual mode.
Not getting close enough to the subject, being too shy.

The post Beginner Photography Mistakes to Avoid by Darlene Hildebrandt appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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3 Tips for Setting Boundaries to Avoid Burnout in Photography

11 Jan

Whether you’re a professional photographer or a hobbyist, there have likely been times when you’ve felt ready to throw in the towel and quit photography forever. Those feelings are normal and are usually the result of added stress from things like a looming deadline or a project that you don’t feel prepared to tackle.

Often, once the added stress subsides, so does the desire to quit photography. However, if that stress becomes chronic it can cause physical, emotional, and mental burnout that’s much more difficult to bounce back from.

3 Tips for Setting Boundaries to Avoid Burnout in Photography

One of the most effective things that photographers of all levels can do to prevent and avoid burnout is to set appropriate boundaries. In this article, we’ll discuss a few different boundaries that you may want to consider setting now in order to protect yourself from future burnout.

1. Set Office Hours

Between smartphones and wi-fi access, it’s easy to be available all the time. It’s easy to respond to a quick text while you’re on vacation. Replying to a midnight email when you’re already awake doesn’t seem like a big deal.

On one hand, being accessible to your clients (whether paid or unpaid) can make them feel appreciated and enhance the client experience. On the other hand, it can also lead to exhaustion and burnout because it always feels like you’re “on duty”.

It’s actually okay not to be available 24/7. In fact, it’s more than just okay. Setting boundaries in terms of availability is crucial to a healthy balance between your work and your personal life.

3 Tips for Setting Boundaries to Avoid Burnout in Photography

Consider setting business/office hours, and do your best to stick to them! The client experience is primarily driven by the quality of the service they receive rather than the speed with which they receive it. Most current or potential clients will be satisfied to receive a response within 24-48 hours.

Just because you happen to see a midnight email pop through doesn’t mean you need to respond to it right away! If you’ve always been immediately accessible and are concerned about making this transition, it’s easy to set an auto email or Facebook Messenger reply to let potential clients know that you’ve received their inquiry and when they can expect a response back from you.

3 Tips for Setting Boundaries to Avoid Burnout in Photography

2. Build in Downtime

I know as well as anyone that it can be really difficult to build downtime into your schedule because doing so often feels like you’re either losing opportunities or income. However, when you’re very busy with photography, it’s important to remember to schedule two kinds of downtime in order to prevent burnout – processing time, and days off.

In the spring, summer, and fall, it can be tempting to book photo sessions every night and weekend. It’s not a bad thing to fill your schedule, but don’t forget that your work generally isn’t done once you leave the session itself. Most sessions require some degree of processing time, which could include everything from culling, editing, social media posts, communication with your clients, and arranging for delivery.

When you’re creating your calendar of availability, don’t forget to factor in all the time you’ll spend after the actual session itself and build in that processing time (or plan to outsource it) accordingly.

3 Tips for Setting Boundaries to Avoid Burnout in Photography

In addition to processing time, I have discovered that there’s tremendous value in blocking out a day or two on my calendar as personal days, even during my busiest season. For me, this is so important both in terms of self-care and also in terms of prioritizing and preserving relationships with my family.

Although I started doing this in order to save my own sanity, I’ve discovered that setting and communicating boundaries in terms of my availability has been helpful in other ways as well. Potential clients tend to book more quickly than they used to because they know that my availability is limited. I also receive far fewer last minute requests to reschedule to a different date or time for the same reason.

3 Tips for Setting Boundaries to Avoid Burnout in Photography

3. Communicate Your Timeline

Another small thing that can greatly reduce your stress and frustration is to communicate your timeline with your clients up front and let them know what they can expect in regards to receiving their images.

Make sure that this timeline is realistic. Factor in all scheduled sessions, your post-session processing time, and your scheduled downtime. By doing so, you’ll be able to give clients a more realistic timeline for receiving their images, while also decreasing the number of all-night editing sessions for you.

3 Tips for Setting Boundaries to Avoid Burnout in Photography

Obviously, the timeline for a professional photographer with five weddings in their queue is going to be totally different than a hobbyist photographer taking photos of a friend’s children. However, you don’t know who a client has worked with in the past, or what their expectations are as they enter into a session, which is why it’s so important to clearly communicate your timeline from the beginning!

Conclusion

Do you have any other advice for setting boundaries to avoid burnout in photography? Have you experienced it? What did you do to prevent it from happening again? Please share your thoughts in the comments below!

The post 3 Tips for Setting Boundaries to Avoid Burnout in Photography by Meredith Clark appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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5 Ways to Ensure That You Stay Ahead of the Travel Photography “Game”

07 Jan

There’s no doubt about it, the business of travel photography has never been tougher. More competition, an oversaturated market, falling license fees and limited client budgets mean that travel photographers have had to work harder and change their business models. Here are five ways to ensure that you stay ahead of the travel photography “game”.

5 Ways to Ensure That You Stay Ahead of the Travel Photography “Game”

1- Embrace Social Media

It’s hard believe that there was a time before social media. While some of us remember that time and have fond memories, there’s no doubt that social media has become a necessity for any business wanting to market itself. The opportunities to be able to speak to such a huge audience has meant that any brand that hasn’t embraced social media has been left behind.

Like a lot of other people, I was skeptical at first and didn’t really see the point or need for the likes of Instagram and Twitter. But slowly I have come to realize that it really isn’t an option and every photographer needs to embrace social media and maximize its potential.

So if you haven’t already started to do so, begin to learn about how to maximize the different social media channels available. It is integral to the success of your business.

5 Ways to Ensure That You Stay Ahead of the Travel Photography “Game”

2 – Think About ROI

One of the things that I always find interesting when I speak to people wanting to break into travel photography is their expectations of the industry versus the reality. Unfortunately, travel photography is an incredibly oversaturated market. That means there are more photos available than buyers actually need.

This, coupled with a few big stock agencies reducing prices over the years, has meant that the fee paid to photographers for a stock image is lower than it has ever been. The knock-on effect of this has also meant that the majority of clients who previously might have commissioned photographers are now turning to stock photos as it’s cheaper than hiring a photographer.

This means that as a travel photographer, you now have to really evaluate if a destination is worth the investment required. For example, a few years ago I headed to the Orkney Islands off Scotland (somewhere that had been on my bucket list for a while) and captured some great photos. But to this day I have not made enough sales from that trip to cover the cost of it, whereas somewhere like Abu Dhabi has paid for the cost of the trip a few times over. Clearly, a location like Abu Dhabi is a much more popular destination and so it is also more likely to be in demand for photos.

5 Ways to Ensure That You Stay Ahead of the Travel Photography “Game”

Obviously, this doesn’t mean you should never go anywhere like the Orkney Islands. But if you are building your business around those far-flung destinations you may find that you are simply not selling as many photos as you need to cover the cost.

3 – Expand Your Skills

DSLRs changed photography forever. Then smartphones came along and changed the whole industry. The explosion in digital photography has also meant that there is now, even more, an opportunity for unique photographs, but also more competition than ever.

So as a travel photographer, you have to be looking for ways to always expand your skills and repertoire. These days that might be by branching out into video, time lapse, or even drone photography. Whether we like it or not, these new innovations offer a completely new way of looking at the world and if you want to stay ahead of the game you need to try and expand your skills accordingly.

5 Ways to Ensure That You Stay Ahead of the Travel Photography “Game”

4 – Move With The Current Trend

Like most things, photography styles and trends move with the times. While it’s important to always keep your own style if you want to earn a living from photography you also need to ensure that you sell photos.

For example, these days more and more picture editors are looking for travel images that convey an experience or story rather than just a generic tourist type photo. In fact, I recently spoke to one of the stock agencies I work with and they said that their clients are now looking for more lifestyle type of travel shots that almost look like they have been taken with a smartphone rather than in a studio.

The key, as in any other industry, is to stay up to date with the current trends. Sign-up to newsletters, look at magazines and read industry news to ensure you know what is going on and where the trends are going.

5 Ways to Ensure That You Stay Ahead of the Travel Photography “Game”

5 – Re-evaluate Your Business Model

The biggest difference that amateur photographers notice when then move to being a professional is that they have to start treating photography as a business where every dollar is accountable. Like any business, every few years you need to evaluate where you are and where you want the business to go.

That means you might have to change your strategy, your marketing, and even as mentioned above your offering as a business (like video or time-lapse). No business can ever survive forever without changing with the times and photography is no different.

So if you haven’t done so already, think about your business and where it is and where it needs to go to to stay in the game.

5 Ways to Ensure That You Stay Ahead of the Travel Photography “Game”

Photographers are often some of the most creative people in the world. But very few often evaluate and relaunch their business to move with the times. Whether we like it or not, change is constantly happening in every industry and photography is no different. Unless you are willing to ensure your photography business can and will evolve, you might be left behind.

The post 5 Ways to Ensure That You Stay Ahead of the Travel Photography “Game” by Kav Dadfar appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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2 Video Tutorials – Tips for Better Winter Photography

06 Jan

If you live in the Northern Hemisphere you may be in a snow-covered land at this time of year. So here are some videos to help you get out and do some winter photography and make some stunning images.

15 Winter Photography Ideas

Don’t know what to photograph in the winter? Here are 15 ideas to help you get started.

5 Winter Photography Tips and Hacks

Now that you have some ideas of what to photograph in the winter, here are some tips on how to go about it including:

How to properly expose for snow.
Eliminating the blue cast.
Use a tripod.
Be careful with Chromatic Aberration.
Freeze the snowflakes and make sure the scene is sharp.

The post 2 Video Tutorials – Tips for Better Winter Photography by Darlene Hildebrandt appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Weekly Photography Challenge – Winter

06 Jan

If you have already gotten some ideas and tips for how to do winter photography here – then you’re ready to go on this week’s photography challenge.

Photo by dPS writer Holly Higbee-Jansen

Weekly Photography Challenge – Winter

If you need more tips try these dPS articles:

4 Tips for Low Light Photography During the Winter
Tips for Winter Landscape Photography on the Prairie
Shooting in the Cold – Tips for Winter Photography
Tips for Processing Winter Landscapes in Lightroom
10 Tips for Taking Stunning Winter Portraits of Your Kids
How to Take Care of Your Camera in Cold Weather

Share in the dPS Facebook Group

You can also share your images in the dPS Facebook group as the challenge is posted there each week as well.

The post Weekly Photography Challenge – Winter by Darlene Hildebrandt appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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The Wait: A beautiful ode to patience and wildlife photography

04 Jan

Michel D’Oultremont is one of the brightest rising stars in the world of wildlife photography, and that’s not just our opinion—at just 22-years-old, he was named ‘Rising Star’ by the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. His work very much speaks for itself, but his work ethic is what’s turned the most heads, thanks to this intense short film by Contra titled The Wait.

The Wait follows Michel on a trip to Romania, where he went searching for the ‘perfect’ photo of the bison recently reintroduced to the Carpathian mountains.

Throughout the film, Michel explains his evolution as a wildlife photographer: how he began by taking pictures that were very “documentary” style before backing away to allow more breathing room and compositional space between himself and the animals he was capturing.

“I tried to put more importance on the environment or the play of light, rather than the animal itself,” he explains in the video. “I’d prefer to take a picture of a common bird in a beautiful environment…” That’s how he captures photos like the ones he shared with DPReview below. Environmental shots that are about so much more than their primary subject; photos that show the scene as it was.

“I do not cheat in my pictures, no flash, no post-treatment after,” he told me over email. “I do not remove any items and add none.”

$ (document).ready(function() { SampleGalleryV2({“containerId”:”embeddedSampleGallery_4635490971″,”galleryId”:”4635490971″,”isEmbeddedWidget”:true,”selectedImageIndex”:0,”isMobile”:false}) });

But the short film is titled Wait, after all, so it doesn’t take long for Michel to arrive at his main subject. As he hunkers down for his week-long wait in the Carpathian mountains, he begins to speak of patience, one of the most challenging skills one must develop to capture powerful wildlife photography.

“Patience is one of the most important things to have. Without patience it’s not possible to see the animals,” he narrates. “If half an hour, an hour passes and you’re fed up and want to leave the hide, it’s just not going to work. Generally, you’ve got to be in place for [at least] a few hours to be forgotten by nature.”

For many of his shots, it often takes a week or a week and a half of waiting, watching, and learning the environment before he captures the photograph he’s after. Which is, in the end, about how long it took to finally capture the bison on camera:

To see the rest of the bison photos he captured while in the Carpathians, or if you’re just in need of inspiration this Thursday, definitely check out the full short film at the top. It’s one of the more poignant and accurate descriptions of the kind of love-of-nature and love-of-photography that it takes to stand out as a wildlife photographer these days.

And if you enjoy the film, be sure to visit Michel’s website, like his Facebook page, and give him a follow on Instagram for lots more.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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5 Tips to Getting the Most out of a Photography Conference

04 Jan

One of the best ways to rapidly improve your photography skills and broaden your photographic community is to attend a photography conference. But, if you’ve never been to a conference before, just the idea of going can be intimidating. The rewards are great though, so read on for five tips that will help you select the right photography conference for your needs plus get the absolute most out of it once you get there.

Tip #1: Know your goals

Before you plunk down your deposit, evaluate your own specific goals for attending the photography conference. First, think about what you want to learn when you are at the conference. Obviously, if you’re a wildlife photographer and the conference focuses solely on street photography, it’s probably not right for you. But, if the conference offers many different learning options, you’ll need to do some investigating before you decide whether or not to attend.

Photography Conference Tips - northern Nevada landscape

I’m primarily a wildlife and nature photographer so when I evaluate a conference, I look for courses that will support my goals. I want to become a better landscape photographer too so I look for classes that will help me do that as well. Canon 7D Mark II, 24-105 II @ 70mm, f/11, 1/400th, ISO 100, handheld, stylized in Lightroom.

The instructors

Start by checking out the bios and websites of the instructors. Ask yourself if they are making images that inspire you. Do their images look like the images that you aspire to make yourself? Read their blogs and watch their videos too to get a good idea of whether their teaching style suits your learning style. If you find a few instructors that are simpatico, check out their courses at the conference.

I signed up for a Photoshop course at AdobeMax with Glyn Dewis but, since I didn’t know much about him, I looked up his website and read his About page first. Turns out he was an excellent instructor.

The course offerings

Now, review the course offerings. Is there content that you need to learn? Most photographers want to improve their existing skill set, whether that’s learning how to make better-exposed images or how to mask in Photoshop.

Does the conference offer courses at the right skill level for you? If you’re not sure, reach out to either the instructors or the conference organizers.

Photography Conference Tips - Course description

I use Lightroom and Photoshop in my work often so discovering how two different photographers use these tools felt like a course that would teach me a great deal. Plus, Julieanne Kost is my photography hero!

Learning new things

Learning new things is important too so look at courses that are completely out of the box for you.

If you’re a wildlife life photographer and you invest your time in a 90-minute course on street photography, you might be surprised at how that affects your work the next time you head out on an African safari. It can help you get “unstuck” if you’re mired in a creative rut.

After the class, you might even be inspired to continue learning street photography.

When I attend a photography conference, my goal is to improve skills I already have but also to learn new things. At AdobeMax I did a bit of both, with courses on public speaking and Photoshop.

Tip #2: Networking

A huge reason to go to a photography conference is to expand your photography community. One thing I really love is that I can connect with people I’ve only ever met online. Meeting “live” at a conference is almost like a reunion. Of course, you can make new friends too, plus you can meet expert instructors in person.

Big conferences versus small ones

When you’re evaluating a conference, if networking is a big part of why you’re attending, definitely reach out to past conference attendees to gauge their experiences. At a 12,000-person conference like AdobeMax, it’s not as easy to hob knob and make new friends.

At a smaller, 400-person conference like Out of Chicago, making new friends is a snap. You’ll be in the same courses with the same people over and over. You’ll probably be best friends and be planning a photography trip together before the weekend even ends.

Photography Conference Tips - OOC community

The Out of Chicago Community page has over 1000 members. That makes it easy to reach out to people to ask if the conference would be a good fit for you. Most photography conferences have similar social media community pages.

Instructor accessibility

Likewise, at a huge conference, the instructors might not be so accessible for you to chat with, except at special times. And at those special times, since 12,000 people are waiting to speak with them, it will be a mob scene rather than a cozy tête-à-tête.

At a smaller conference, your instructors will probably be eating lunch right next to you. Bigger conferences draw bigger names though. So while you might not make as many personal one-on-one connections, it might be worth it if you’re going to learn from someone you hold in extremely high esteem.

Tip #3: Take advantage of every opportunity

In addition to seminars and hands-on courses, most photography conferences offer opening and closing keynote speeches. Big-name photographers or well-known industry experts usually give these talks. You might think of these things as “free” – just regular stuff included in your conference that everyone gets – but don’t think that way.

Often the keynote speeches are the best parts of the conference. The opening keynote sets the stage for the week and lays out all of your opportunities for learning. The closing keynote caps the week with a review of what you did learn, and a reminder to go out and practice it.

AdobeMax didn’t offer any photo walks while I was there. So instead, I photographed the expo hall one morning while the light was amazing. Canon 5DIV, 24-105 II @ 31mm. 1/100, f/14, ISO 640, handheld, stylized in Lightroom.

Photo Walks

Another great add-on is photo walks. They help combine learning and networking into one fun outing. As you can imagine though, these are more prevalent in smaller conferences than large ones. Herding 12,000 attendees with cameras around the Vegas Strip doesn’t typically make for very good picture-taking.

On the other hand, 400 attendees walking through the Chicago Loop is a drop in the bucket. If photo walks are important to you, check into smaller, regional conferences. Either way, don’t skip these if they’re offered at the conference you’re attending.

Vendors

Every conference has a vendor or exhibition area where you can check out the latest and greatest gear and technology. Make sure you plan time into your schedule to visit this area. I usually grab a quick lunch on the go and use the 90-minute lunch period checking out all the different booths.

Photography Conference Tips - Interactive

Just outside the AdobeMax vendor area, there were lots of interactive activities for creatives, like this “chalkboard.” Canon 5DIV, 24-105 II @ 24mm, f/6.3, 1/100th, ISO 640, handheld, stylized in Lightroom.

At small conferences, you’re more likely to be able to rent a piece of gear for the day and test it out on a photo walk. Sometimes vendors offer discounts and even have product on hand that you can buy and take home with you.

At a large conference, you probably won’t be able to do more than review the gear at the vendor booth and talk to the rep. However, at a large conference, the vendor area often has a carnival-like feel to it, with interactive creative and technology exhibits set up to draw you in.

Tip #4: Conference bonuses

There will almost always be a party and often that party will include free food, drinks, and entertainment so go! It’s a bonus. Don’t skip it. Remember, if you’re goal is to network, the party is where you’ll meet fellow photographers and instructors.

Bring your camera

While night-time concert photography isn’t even remotely one of my fortes, I had a blast photographing this band at the AdobeMax Bash. Canon 5DIV, 24-105 II @ 105mm, f/5, 1/320th, ISO 8000, handheld, stylized in Lightroom.

That party – and probably a good bit of the conference – will be a blast to photograph so bring your camera. A lot of people won’t. Some people will bring them, but will never take them out of their camera bags. You, on the other hand, should keep your camera in hand and happily shoot away.

Even if you’re a wildlife photographer, and the images won’t go into your portfolio, making images of the conference will help you solidify everything you’ve learned over the course of the weekend.

Photograpjy Conference Tips - dragon's breath

Serving up dragon’s breath dessert at the Adobe Max Bash. Canon 5DIV, 24-105 II @ 24mm, f/4.5, 1/320th, ISO 10,000, handheld, stylized in Lightroom.

Swag

Hopefully, it doesn’t surprise you that you will get swag (free stuff!) at a photography conference. There might be a raffle or contest where you can win big door prizes – like lenses, tablets, and cameras. There will surely be a bag of goodies handed to you when you check in.

Most often you’ll get a reusable bag containing a sample pack of printer paper, a tee shirt, stickers, magnets, lens cleaning cloths, candy, water bottles, and lots of flyers. Now I know it’s tempting to just pitch most of it but before you do, review it all. There will be coupons and promo codes and it’s possible that there might be one for 20% off the business cards you always order or a BOGO (buy one get one) for your favorite ink or fine art paper.

A notebook and pen, courtesy of Adobe, in my AdobeMax swag bag.

Tip #5: Maximizing your trip

This is pretty much my favorite part of going to a photography conference. Most of them are only three or four days but there’s no rule that you can’t play hooky from work a bit longer. I recommend that you pick a conference near a cool destination. After the conference ends, stay in the area a few more days and put everything you learned to practice.

Wild horses couldn’t drag me away

Photography Conference Tips - wild horses

Wild mare and foal in the Onaqui Mountains in Utah. Canon 5DIV, 100-400 II @ 400mm, f/10, 1/60th, ISO 200, handheld, stylized in Lightroom.

After the AdobeMax conference in Vegas this past October, I headed off on a week-long wild horse photography road trip. I drove through Nevada, all the way to Utah, meeting half a dozen friends along the way, and flew home from Salt Lake City.

No surprise that for me that maximizing the conference was about heading off to photograph wild horses! For you, it might be photographing the Vegas Strip at night, or creating panoramas of the nearby Grand Canyon.

Which photography conferences are your favorites?

While AdobeMax was pretty amazing, my favorite is still the Out of Chicago Summer Conference. Of course, I’m biased since the conference is run by some of my good friends.

Chicago has so much beautiful architecture, it’s perfect for magical photo walks. Canon 5DIII with 24-105 @ 24mm, f/8, 1/125th, ISO 250, handheld, stylized in Lightroom.

Which photography conferences are your favorites? Please take a minute and list the conference name in the comment section, and why you recommend it so that other photographers can benefit from your experience.

The post 5 Tips to Getting the Most out of a Photography Conference by Lara Joy Brynildssen appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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5 Ways to Invest in Your Photography Over the Next 365 Days

02 Jan

Happy 2018! Can you believe it is already 2018? Seems like just a little while ago we were all celebrating ushering in the Y2K era and now to think that 2020 is just two years away seems unreal. I love the new year. It brings forth hope, aspirations, and positivity.

Metaphorically, it is like the slate has been wiped clean and you have a chance to chase some of your most amazing and lofty goals. So why not use this new year to invest in something that you really love as well – your photography. Here are some simple easy ways to invest in bettering your creativity and your craft over the next 365 days.

Sunset golden hour photo - How to Invest in Your Photography Over the Next 365 Days

#1 – Create smart goals for your photography

Let’s drop the myth that only professional photographers who are in business are allowed to have photography goals. I don’t care if you are just beginning to learn photography or have been doing this for years, one of the best ways to improve at anything is to have realistic goals for what you aspire to and want to achieve.

Goals can be things like learning to photograph in manual mode, selling stock images or booking your first wedding client. No matter what your goals are, I encourage you to take it a step further and create SMART goals. A SMART goal is defined as one that is;

Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Results-focused
Time-sensitive

So for each of your goals, add additional parameters to convert them to SMART goals by figuring out how to measure them, how to achieve and execute them, and what specific timeframe you want them to be completed by.

Jaipur Lake Palace Photo - 5 Ways to Invest in Your Photography Over the Next 365 Days

A SMART goal to travel and explore my home country has lead to some amazing opportunities. All because I really thought through what I wanted to do, how I wanted to execute it, and what outcomes I wanted from those opportunities and really working towards those goals!

#2 – Plan to do at least 4 personal photography projects

I really believe that personal projects are the cornerstone to helping you improve your photography. Once you take the pressures of working with clients out of the equation, you are free to explore, get creative, and challenge yourself. This creative freedom is bound to reflect positively on your work.

Personal projects can be short exercises directed to help you improve in some area of your photography or extended self-assigned projects that really take you completely out of your comfort zone to try something different. You can choose to space out your personal projects throughout the year – perhaps even commit to doing one per quarter.

No matter what you choose, have SMART goals on what, when, and how you are going to execute your personal projects. You can see more details on the importance of personal projects in this previous article.

Ocean views from the caribbean - 5 Ways to Invest in Your Photography Over the Next 365 Days

One of my ongoing personal projects to learn and master film photography because it provides so much more room for learning and improving my photography in general. I even went so far as only taking a 35mm film camera on vacation to the Caribbean.

#3 – Practice photography every day

One of the easiest ways to practice photography every day is by signing up for a 365 series. Quite simply put, a 365 series is a commitment to creating one photo every day for 365 days. You can use a DSLR, a point and shoot camera, or even a smartphone to work on this series.

You can even take this a step further by joining one of the many online groups available. They are created solely for the purpose of encouraging you to photograph and post a single photo every day for 365 days straight. They even provide photo prompts to help you stay on track so you are constantly thinking of what to photograph every day.

Small waterfall photo - 5 Ways to Invest in Your Photography Over the Next 365 Days

A picture a day is literally just that – a photo a day. Get as creative as you want with this exercise. Use it as a way to get out of the house, meet fellow photographers, or just as some quiet time to reflect on who you are as a photographer and what motivates you.

#4 – Share your work online and offline

Join online groups or even local camera clubs to meet and socialize with other photographers. Many clubs have critique nights where members submit photos and comment on each other’s work. This is a great way to not only have your work be seen by others but also to get unbiased feedback on your work, which can be used for improvement and growth.

Many times we are our own worst critic and downplay our talents and skills because we are afraid or maybe lack the confidence in our photography. And you know what’s the best part? Having a group of like-minded people that you can talk photography about with all day long without them tuning you out within the first five minutes of any conversation (Can you tell this is how my family is when I start to talk photography!?).

Photo of the Taj Hotel in Mumbai at sunrise - 5 Ways to Invest in Your Photography Over the Next 365 Days

I have made some amazing friends via online communities – we have collaborated together, referred work to each other and bounced life and business challenges off one another. But most importantly, I have made some incredible friends who I know have my best interests at heart.

#5 – Attend a photography workshop, conference or take an online course

Like most other professions, the photography industry is continually evolving and changing. New products, techniques, and styles are constantly being introduced. So attending a photography workshop or conference is a great idea.

Plus you never know who you might meet there in terms of future friends, potential clients, or even referral opportunities. There are numerous workshops, seminars, and even free online events and tutorials to keep you busy learning new things.

Keeping abreast of the latest in any business is a good thing. It shows your clients, both present, and future, that you value your business and skill, enough to invest in it.

Mirror reflection of an alpine lake in Oregon - 5 Ways to Invest in Your Photography Over the Next 365 Days

Workshops, and conferences are another great way to expand your professional circle, make industry friends and learn new skills/techniques. Make sure you do your research prior to committing funds to attend an event/workshop or conference.

What will you do with the next 365 days?

I hope these tips were helpful to you as you plan out 2018. Remember, getting your photography to a level that you are proud of takes time and a lot of hard work. Make this your year to shine with your photography.

The post 5 Ways to Invest in Your Photography Over the Next 365 Days by Karthika Gupta appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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