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A Few Common Photography Abbreviations Explained

For a visual medium, photography is a bit of an alphabet soup when it comes to abbreviations. AWB, DOF, RGB… Even for the seasoned photographer, photographic abbreviations can be a confusing encounter. Here are a few of the most common photography abbreviations to help you tell your TIFF’s from your TTL’s.

A

Aperture priority commonly abbreviated to A or Av (for aperture value) is a setting on your camera that allows you to adjust the aperture value (otherwise known as the f-number or f-stop) while the camera automatically selects a shutter speed to produce an image with the correct exposure.

As you adjust the aperture for different photographic effects, the camera’s internal light meter measures the lighting conditions of the scene and adjusts the shutter speed accordingly.

Read more here: Getting off Auto – Manual, Aperture and Shutter Priority modes explained

AF

AF is an abbreviation for autofocus. The AF feature automatically adjusts the camera lens to focus on a subject, creating a sharp image.

There are several types of AF focus modes. Single focus, known as AF-S (Nikon) or One Shot AF (Canon) will cause the camera to lock focus on a subject and the camera won’t re-focus while you keep the shutter actuator depressed half way. Continuous or tracking focus – AF-C (Nikon) or AI Servo (Canon) on the other hand, continuously readjusts the focus if you keep the shutter button half-depressed. This maintains focus on moving subjects. Some cameras also have a mode called AF-A (Nikon) or AI Focus AF (Canon) that switches between the two modes automatically.

Read more here: 5 Beginner Tips for More Autofocus Success

Auto

Auto is short for automatic and is sometimes signified by a small green rectangle on the camera’s shooting mode selector wheel. In this mode, the camera calculates and adjusts all camera settings for correct exposure, taking into account shutter speed, aperture, focus, white balance, ISO and light metering automatically.

Some cameras have automatic modes programmed to specialize in taking photographs of a particular subject. For example, action or sports mode prioritizes a higher ISO value and faster shutter speeds. It is represented by a running figure on your dial if your camera offers such modes.

Auto mode is sometimes signified by a small green rectangle on the camera’s shooting mode selector wheel.

AWB

Light is different under different conditions. AWB or Automatic White Balance works in-camera to measure the white balance (WB) of a scene and remove any color casts that may impede on a photograph. In short, it tries to automatically analyze and color correct your scene. It works fairly well in most cases but can be tricked.

Note: if you shoot in RAW format you can easily tweak the White Balance later in post-production.

Read more: Auto White Balance: Yay or Nay?

B

B stands for Bulb, a mode designed for longer exposures like those often seen in time-lapse photography. In Bulb mode, when you depress the shutter button, the shutter will remain open until the button is pressed again (or until it is released, depending on your camera).

This mode is usually used in conjunction with a tripod and a remote shutter release and is necessary to achieve exposures longer than 30 seconds (the maximum exposure time on most cameras).

Read more: How to Use Bulb Mode for Long Exposure Photography

CMYK

CMYK stands for cyan, magenta, yellow and black. Black is referred to as K which is shorthand for the key plate – a printing tool which makes the artistic detail of a picture in black ink. CMYK is the color space used for most color reproduction printers (magazines, posters, business cards, etc.). This four-color mode utilizes each color in set amounts to create a color print. It is a subtractive process, so each additional color means more light is absorbed to create colors.

Because RGB (the color space in which your camera records an image) provides a larger range of colors available on the digital screen, a printed image will be inconsistent with the image you see when you press “print”. Converting an image to CMYK in Photoshop or Illustrator before printing will produce an image on the screen that is much closer to the printed product, allowing you to print an image accurately.

DOF

Depth of Field or DOF is the zone of focus in a photograph. Depth of field is affected by the aperture. A large aperture creates a shallow depth of field with a small amount of the image will be in focus. A small aperture creates a large depth of field with more in focus. Depth of field is also defined by lens focal length and the distance from the subject to the camera.

Read more: Seeing in Depth of Field: A Simple Understanding of Aperture

A small aperture creates a large depth of field with more in focus

DPI

DPI or dots per inch is often used interchangeably with PPI or pixels per inch. Technically, DPI measures the number of dots that can be printed in a line within the span of one inch. PPI also measures the number of dots in a line within the span of an inch but on a computer screen instead. Printers and screens with higher DPI or PPI values are clearer and more detailed.

You need to know the DPI of your printer or lab to correctly size your images for printing. Read more: How to Choose Your Lightroom Export Settings for Printing

DSLR

DSLR stands for Digital Single-Lens Reflex camera. A DSLR camera has a mirror that reflects the light coming in from the lens and directs it through a prism or set of mirrors to the viewfinder. This arrangement allows you to see what you are shooting by looking through the viewfinder. When the shutter button is depressed, the mirror flips up and allows the light coming through the lens to reach the camera sensor.

Canon 5D Mark IV full-frame DSLR camera – Image by dPS writer Mark Hughes.

Read more: The dPS Ultimate Guide to Photography Terms – a Glossary of Common Words and Phrases

F-stop or f-number

The f-stop or f-number is a term that indicates the size of the aperture opening on your lens. Every aperture is expressed as an f-stop or f-number, like f/8 or f/2.8.

Read more: How to Take Control of Aperture and Create Stronger Photos

IS

IS stands for Image Stabilization. This technology goes under several names; Vibration Reduction, SR, VR, and VC are a few. Image stabilization is a feature in your lens (not all lenses have it!) that enables you to photograph sharper images when shooting handheld at lower shutter speeds, in dark conditions, at longer focal lengths.

Note: Some cameras have the stabilization inside the camera body. Read your user manual to be sure.

ISO

ISO stands for International Standards Organization. In film photography, ISO (or formerly ASA) was an indication of how sensitive a roll of film was to light. In digital photography, ISO measures the relative sensitivity of the camera sensor. This value can be adjusted in-camera.

The higher the number, the more light the sensor can capture. However, the greater the sensitivity of the film or sensor, the grainier the image will be (in digital photography it’s called noise).

Editor’s Note: Before you jump up and down and add a comment below about the fact that the sensitivity of the camera sensor does not actually change, let’s agree to keep it simple for the purpose of this article and these definitions. No, it isn’t that simple, but people new to photography need to take baby steps in understanding these terms, so please accept that we’ve simplified it here.

The graininess in this image is caused by a high ISO value.

JPEG

JPEG (sometimes shortened to JPG) is an image file format. It stands for “Joint Photographic Experts Group” – the name of the group that created the format. It’s one of the most common image formats saved by digital cameras, the other being RAW.

JPEG files are lossy which means that images in this file format are compressed. Lossy formats are smaller and easier to handle, but they suffer from a loss of quality.

Read more: RAW Versus JPEG – Which one is right for you and why?

M

M or Manual Mode is a shooting mode on your camera that when activated, means that you have complete control over every setting on your camera. This includes the aperture, shutter speed, ISO, white balance, metering mode, and more.

Note: Manual Mode and Manual Focus are NOT the same thing and are not exclusive of one another. Meaning you can shoot in Manual Mode using Autofocus, or in an Automatic mode using Manual Focus.

Read more: Simplifying Manual Mode to Help You Take Control of Your Images

M4/3

M4/3 is short for Micro Four Thirds and it is also known as MFT. Developed by Olympus and Panasonic in 2008, the M4/3 is a mirrorless interchangeable lens system for digital cameras and lenses. This mirrorless system means that the camera does not have an optical viewfinder system like conventional SLR/DSLR cameras, but an electronic viewfinder (EVF) instead. This system is simpler, lighter and allows for smaller cameras than DSLRs.

Read more: The 19 Most Popular Compact System and Mirrorless Cameras with Our Readers

The Olympus OM-D EM-10 is a micro four-thirds camera which means it has a smaller sensor size but is every bit as capable as most other cameras on the market.

P

P stands for Program Mode. This shooting mode has the camera adjust aperture and shutter speed automatically, while allowing you to adjust other settings like ISO, flash, white balance and focusing functions.

Read more: Your Guide to Understanding Program Mode on Your Camera

RGB

Based on the human perception of colors, RGB stands for Red, Green, and Blue. RGB is an additive color space designed for viewing imagery on digital displays (see CMYK above).

Read more: Adobe RGB Versus sRGB – Which Color Space Should You Be Using and Why

S

Shutter Priority Mode (also known as SP or TV for Time Value) is a setting that allows you to select the shutter speed while the camera automatically adjusts the aperture for proper exposure. As you adjust the shutter speed the camera’s internal light meter measures the lighting conditions of the scene you’re shooting and adjusts the aperture accordingly.

This mode is best used for shooting fast moving objects or when you want to blur or freeze a moving subject.

Panning a moving target is a good time to use Shutter Priority Mode.

Read more: Getting Your Priorities Straight – A Guide to Selecting Your Shot Priority

SLR

SLR or “single lens reflex” refers to a non-digital camera with single-lens reflex capabilities (see DSLR).

TIFF

Short for Tagged Image File Format, TIFF is a file format for digital images that does not lose color and detail in the way that lossy compression formats such as JPEG files do. This type of file format is described as lossless.

TTL

TTL stands for Through the Lens and refers to an automatic flash metering system. The flash fires a short burst prior to the actual exposure, the camera reads the amount of light coming through the lens, and sets the power of the flash according to the selected aperture. This mode is most often used with the flash on the camera.

Read more: How to Understand the Difference Between TTL Versus Manual Flash Modes

TTL versus manual flash – image by dPS writer Kunal Malhotra.

USM

USM stands for Ultra Sonic Motor, a type of autofocus motor in lenses trademarked by Canon. Equivalent systems include Nikon’s SWM (Silent Wave Motor), Sigma’s HSM (Hyper-Sonic Motor) and Olympus’ SWD (Supersonic Wave Drive Motor). They are designed to have the lens’s autofocus work as silently as possible.

WB

WB stands for White Balance, the act of balancing the color cast found in different lighting conditions for an accurate image (see AWB). White Balance can be set in-camera and adjusted in post-processing if you have shot in RAW format.

Read more: How to Use White Balance as a Creative Tool

Conclusion

There you have it. Of course, there are plenty more photography abbreviations where they come from. But knowing these basics will get you on the right track to navigating the alphabet soup that is photographic lingo! Be sure to add any extra abbreviations you’d like to see in the comments below.

The post A Few Common Photography Abbreviations Explained appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

June 26, 2018
How to Use Conceptual Contrast in Photography

Contrast is one of the most important aspects of any photograph. It adds focus, distinction, and punch, and gives the viewer both a first impression of the image as well as a journey into its details.

At its most basic, contrast is defined as a difference. The most common types, which you’re probably quite familiar with, are tonal contrast and color contrast. In this article, I want to introduce yet another kind of contrast to your photography toolbox: conceptual contrast.

What is Conceptual Contrast?

The photograph above has conceptual contrast. Can you figure out what it is? Conceptual contrast is different from tonal and color contrast; it’s more abstract and perhaps less obvious. It has to do with ideas and as the name suggests, concepts, not with physical aspects such as light levels or color.

Just like other kinds of contrast, conceptual contrast can add punch by bringing together things that you might not normally expect to see in the same image. It makes a photograph more interesting and raises questions about the contrasting parts of the image.

When it’s done well, conceptual contrast can help tell a story, function as an eye-opener, surprise the viewer, and jar them into considering their response.

Why should you use conceptual contrast?

Visual storytelling is a part of any great photograph. It’s how your photo goes beyond being just aesthetically pleasing, how you get people to stop and really look at your photograph, and how you create an emotional response in the viewer.

Conceptual contrast is not only a great way to add depth to your photographs but also an opportunity for you (the photographer) to learn to look at and become aware of your surroundings in a new way.

You can use this technique to share a sense of wonder, to make a point, and to bring the viewer out of their comfort zone and make them think. What could be more important than that?

So how do you do it?

It takes some forethought and observation to create a photo with conceptual contrast. Coming up with an idea that works will be the hardest part; the rest is as easy or hard as taking any photograph. The steps I’ll be talking about focus on photography outside of the studio, but it can also be a very powerful tool for posed photographs.

The first and most basic stage is observation. You can find good material for conceptual contrast almost everywhere if you pay enough attention.

Try it right now! Move around in the space where you’re reading this, and see if you can find something that stands out and could make an interesting photograph.

After finding something to capture, the second stage is developing the idea. Just because the contrast is obvious to you doesn’t mean that it will be to others.

It doesn’t have to be obvious, but think about how you want to take the photo to make it both interesting to look at and eye-opening to explore.

For the best effect, your photo should contain more than just the conceptual contrast. To bring the viewer in and give them a chance to notice and react to the less obvious aspects of the photo, you should use everything else you know about photography to make it stand out and draw them in.

The final stage is capturing your photograph. This is the technical part where your abstract idea takes physical form. After you share it with others, it will gain a life of its own as viewers enjoy your photo and interpret it from their own perspective.

Conclusion

Is conceptual contrast something you have used or will try to use in your photography? What good examples of conceptual contrast have you seen? I’d love to see your images with conceptual contrast and hear your feedback and ideas in the comments below, please share.

The post How to Use Conceptual Contrast in Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

June 26, 2018
Adobe AI spots tampered images by focusing on noise and artifacts

Adobe researchers have developed a neural network that can identify Photoshopped images. The technology was detailed in a newly published study [PDF], which points out that it is often difficult for humans to notice altered parts of an image. However, differences between the original image and edited elements typically persist despite any attempts to obfuscate them, such as applying a Gaussian blur, and machines can be trained to spot those discrepancies.

Various differences may exist between original and edited image elements, such as different noise patterns and contrast levels. Manual adjustments to these edited elements can make them virtually indistinguishable to the human eye. Adobe’s neural network, however, can not only identify these changes, but also determine the type of tampering technique used to edit the image.

The system involves a two-stream Faster R-CNN network with end-to-end training in identifying manipulated images. The first, called an RGB stream, looks for various tampering artifacts, including big contrast differences and altered boundaries. The second, called a noise stream, looks for inconsistencies in the image’s noise to identify edited elements.

In the study, researchers explain:

We then fuse features from the two streams through a bilinear pooling layer to further incorporate spatial co-occurrence of these two modalities. Experiments on four standard image manipulation datasets demonstrate that our two-stream framework outperforms each individual stream, and also achieves state-of-the-art performance compared to alternative methods with robustness to resizing and compression.

Such technology could prove useful for verifying the authenticity of images used in photojournalism, photography contests, and similar situations.

Via: CNET

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

June 26, 2018
Apple launches service program for MacBooks affected by keyboard issues, offers free repairs
RawPixel/Unsplash

Apple has launched a new service program for select MacBook and MacBook Pros potentially affected by a keyboard issue that results in sticky, unresponsive keys and repeated characters when typing.

The service program comes after three separate class action lawsuits were filed against the Cupertino company for issues related to MacBook and MacBook Pro keyboards.

In a statement provided to 9to5Mac by an Apple spokesperson, the program ‘covers a small percentage of keyboards in certain MacBook and MacBook Pro models which may exhibit one or more of the following behaviors: letters or characters that repeat unexpectedly or don’t appear when pressed or keys that feel “sticky” or aren’t responding in a consistent manner.’

If believe your MacBook or MacBook Pro is being affected by the above issues, the first step is to check whether or not your model is part of the service program. To do this, go into the Apple (?) menu in the upper-left-hand corner of your Mac and select ‘About This Mac.’ Below are the eligible models:
- MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
- MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2016)
- MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, 2017)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Two Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2017, Two Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2017, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2016)
- MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2017)
If your MacBook or MacBook Pro is one of the above models and is experiencing keyboard issues, the next step is to set up the repair process. You can have the repair done at an Apple authorized service provider, make an appointment at an Apple retail store, or mail in your computer to Apple’s repair center.

Before any repairs are made, Apple will verify whether anything needs to be fixed. If it does, Apple will ‘service [the] eligible MacBook and MacBook Pro keyboards, free of charge.’ The repairs will consist of either replacing the affected keys or potentially replacing the keyboard as a whole if required.

You can find more details on how to get your device repaired by going to Apple’s documentation page detailing the service program.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
June 25, 2018
Why I Always Use an L-Plate Bracket for Landscape Photography
There’s no secret that there’s an abundance of accessories for landscape photographers. Some of them are considered absolutely essential while others might just be unnecessary extra weight in your backpack. With so many tools to choose between it can be hard to separate the useful from the unuseful, which is probably why we end up purchasing so many unnecessary products.

When talking about accessories that are useful for landscape photographers I find that there’s a handful of products that keep coming up: a tripod, a variety of filters, a remote shutter release and a cleaning kit. There’s no doubt that these are tools that can make a huge difference in your photography.

L-Bracket Plate in use shooting on tripod.

But there’s one that I feel goes under the radar quite often, which is fascinating as it’s one that the majority of professional landscape photographers use: an L-plate bracket.

What is an L-Plate Bracket?

If this is the first time you’ve heard about an L-plate bracket I urge you to keep reading this article and to consider if this is a tool you should be adding to your equipment list.

The L-Plate bracket is a piece of metal that is fastened to your camera body as a replacement for the regular quick release tripod plate. Unlike a regular quick release plate, an L-Plate is shaped as an L, bending 90 degrees up the side of the camera. This makes it easy to quickly switch between a horizontal or vertical orientation, which is a benefit I’ll come back to in a minute.

To connect the camera to the tripod you place a clamp on the tripod’s ball head. These clamps come in a few different options, including a quick-release lock and a twist lock.

Why I Always Use an L-Plate Bracket

Ever since I started with landscape photography and purchased my first L-Plate, this has been an accessory that I have recommended. During the last few years, I’ve noticed that more and more beginners are understanding the value of this tool and I’m often surprised to see that the majority of my workshop participants use one.

The main benefit of using an L-Plate is that you can easily switch between a horizontal and vertical orientation. Now, you might ask “how is it easier to remove and re-attach the camera than to just loosen the ball head and readjust it?”.

That is a good question and one that might not seem that obvious but the answer is actually quite simple. When shifting from horizontal to a vertical orientation with an L-plate you keep the same composition.

It’s easy to change the orientation of your camera when using an L-Plate

When shifting from horizontal to vertical orientation without an L-Plate you need to move the tripod as you’ve also moved the camera a few centimeters to the side, meaning you’ve lost the composition you had previously. With an L-plate attached, you maintain the composition and don’t have to worry about moving the tripod back and forth each time you change the orientation.

Another big benefit for those who shoot panoramas is that the camera perfectly pivots around the right spot, meaning you won’t have problems stitching the shots together later.

Who are L-Plates for?

Now I’m not going to lie and say that L-Plates are for everyone. If you’re a studio photographer or if you never use a tripod, it’s better not to waste your money on this tool. However, if you’re a photographer who regularly uses a tripod, I highly recommend that you get one right away.

It’s easy to quickly change to a vertical orientation when using an L-Plate

Here are a few photography genres which will greatly benefit from using an L-Plate:
- Landscape photography
- Astrophotography
- Architectural photography
- Commercial photographers
- Macro photographers
- Studio photographers (who use tripods)
Shot vertically using the L-Bracket.

What to look for when purchasing an L-Plate

Unlike many of the other types of accessories we find for photography, there aren’t a whole lot of options when it comes to L-plate brackets. There’s no fancy technology or must-have features. This is a simple tool, but there are still a couple of things to look for when you’re purchasing one.
- Never purchase “universal” plates: When you’re searching for L-Plates you’ll most likely come across several models which are branded as universal plates. Do not purchase one of these! While they claim to be universal, this is rarely the case. Most likely parts of the plate will block the pockets and plugs on the side of your camera.
- Metal plates are always best: Metal plates might be a few dollars more expensive but they are worth every cent. A sturdy metal plate is more durable and less likely to malfunction (I’ve had my RRS L-Plate for 4 years and it still works like new).
Final tips

The best option is to find a metal plate which is specifically made for your camera model. For example, I’m using a plate that perfectly fits the Nikon D800 and D810 but when using it on my backup camera, the Nikon D750, it covers the ports on the side, meaning I’m not able to use a cable release.

Lastly, you don’t need to purchase the most expensive alternatives. I know many photographers who use L-Plates that cost between $ 10 and $ 30, and these work just as well as more expensive versions. Just make sure that it’s made of metal and fits your camera. You’re likely to find good options for less than $ 50 so don’t feel like you have to get one of the premium $ 200 versions.

The post Why I Always Use an L-Plate Bracket for Landscape Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School
June 25, 2018
How to Mimic Window Light in a Studio Environment
One of the most common reasons you hear from photographers who avoid off-camera flash lighting is that it looks artificial. Yes, studio lighting can look artificial, but sometimes that’s part of the charm. Nobody claims portraits made with a ringlight look natural, but that doesn’t stop the thousands of photographers (myself included) that use them all of the time. But that doesn’t mean that it is impossible to mimic window light in the studio.

In fact, that’s kind of the point most of the time.

Obtaining natural looking result in a studio is fairly easy with a few basic tools and some know how.

With studio lighting, you can create whatever lighting you want at any time. Providing that you have the right tools (and they are pretty basic), creating natural looking portraits in a studio environment with off-camera flash is exactly as difficult as creating portraits using window light.

Why is window light so wonderful?

Window light has a lot of wonderful qualities that make it a great choice for photographing people and other subjects.

In a nutshell, windows give you a constant (during daylight hours) and large light source to work with. The light itself is soft, diffused (assuming that direct sunlight is not entering through the window), and lends itself well to virtually all subjects including portraits.

It also tends to be very directional (depends on how you position yourself and the subject in relation to the window), making it easy to work with to shape your subject.

Window light can give a variety of results depending on the time of day and the size and shape of the window. As such, there is no one size fits all solution to mimic window light and recreate it in the studio.

On top of that, we see things lit in window light all day, every day. It is a very natural state of things and it’s how we recognize the world around us. This familiarity makes window light an obvious choice.

Add to that that the master painters created a great many of their portraits in a studio lit by window light. The most obvious point of reference here would be Rembrandt since this style of lighting is one of the most common techniques that photographers use today.

The reasons for unnatural looking light

Some light sources, like the ringlight used here, are by nature very unnatural looking. When trying to recreate natural light, try to stay away from specialist tools like these and tri-flectors.

There are a couple of reasons why studio lighting can look canned and unnatural. These are:
- Too many lights – When using natural light, you’re usually shooting with only one light source. Perhaps there’s a reflector involved or there might be multiple windows, but for the most part, it’s one light. Going into a studio environment where a single setup can involve a key light, a fill light, a hair light, two rim lights and two background lights can feel both complicated and wrong (unnatural). Fair enough.
- The modifiers are too small – In most cases, windows are quite big. This means that the light source you are using to light your subject is large. Big light sources give soft, flattering light. Add some mesh curtains to that window and the light gets even softer and more diffused. What does that tell you about the size of modifier you need to use on your studio portraits to get soft light?
- The lights are too far away – In terms of the softness of the light, it’s the size of the light source in relation to the subject that determines how soft or hard it appears. If you have an 8′ octabox twenty feet from your subject, it will appear quite small comparatively; therefore, the light will be a bit hard. If you have a small pop-up softbox on there, it will be even harder. Bring your lights in as close as you dare to get for the softest light possible. If you have a small modifier, I recommend having it so close you can barely shoot past it without getting the light source in the frame.
- You’re using an odd light source – Specialist lights, like the ringlight used in the image above, create light that you wouldn’t normally find in natural scenarios. Even if a viewer doesn’t understand the why behind it, people are quite intuitive when things seem weird. If you’re going for a natural look, avoid lights like these.
How to recreate and mimic window light in the studio

Here, you’ll see just how easy it is to mimic natural light in a studio environment. Here’s what you’ll need to get started:
- An off-camera light source. Strobes, flashguns and continuous lights will all work equally well.
- A large light modifier. These examples use a 5′ Octabox (or recessed softbox as PixaPro like to call it), but anything will do. If you don’t have any large modifiers yet and are unsure about what to get, consider starting with a large translucent umbrella. They’re big, dirt cheap, fold away easily and produce a nice, soft light.
- White or silver reflector. This one’s optional, but you should have one anyway. If you’re using a really big modifier, the wraparound of the light may mean you don’t even need it, but they are useful for filling in dark shadows on the unlit side of your subject.
Setting up

A medium sized octabox placed close to an above the subject and a silver reflector was all it took to create these images.

To get started, place your light about three or four feet from your subject. Turn the light so that it’s forty-five degrees (in relation to your subject.) Raise the light up as high as you can (making sure the subject still has catchlights in their eyes). High ceilings are a bonus.

The reason for this is that with window light, the light is often coming from above. The window is shaping the light into the room, but it is still coming down into the room. If you’re using modelling lights or continuous lights, watch the catchlights in your subject’s eyes. Once they are falling towards the top of their eyes, you’re good to go.

Likewise, also watch where the shadows are falling. If the contrast seems too high, introduce a reflector. This does take practice, so don’t worry if you can’t tell just yet. It may help if you squint your eyes tightly. This makes it easier to see the contrast. In these examples, the silver reflector was placed flat and in front of the subject at around waist level.

Now, all that you have to do is to take a light meter reading (or take a test shot), adjust your settings (either in-camera or on the flash) and start taking photos.

To start with, try having your subject turned toward either the light or the camera. Beyond that, there’s not really much else to it.

Practice makes it simple

If you are completely new to off-camera lighting, this may seem like a lot to get. I promise it’s not. Once you’ve set this up a few times, it becomes so easy that there’s not much more effort involved than placing someone in front of a window.

The advantages here are that you aren’t at the mercy of the weather or the time of day and once you get started with a set-up, the light won’t change unless you tell it to.

Just remember to keep the light both high and close and there isn’t much room to go wrong.

Putting it to use

If you’ve had any hesitance to use studio lights for any of the reasons listed in this article, hopefully, you can see that with the right techniques, you needn’t worry at all. Honestly, it’s not as difficult or complicated as it seems. If you’re still unsure, rent a studio for an hour and put it to practice. You may be surprised at what you find out and learn.

The post How to Mimic Window Light in a Studio Environment appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School
June 24, 2018
DPReview TV: Sony RX100 VI review

Sony recently announced the RX100 VI, the newest addition to its compact camera line. With six iterations of the RX100 series now in circulation, how does this new model stand out from the rest? Chris and Jordan take the camera for a spin and tell us what they think about the new, longer lens, the updated viewfinder and more. They even manage to fit in some well earned hammock time in the process.

Read our RX100 VI first impressions and RX100 VI: What you need to know articles to learn more.

RX100 VI first impressions

RX100 VI what you need to know

And make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to get new episodes of DPReview TV every week.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel

Sony RX100 VI sample gallery

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Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

June 24, 2018
How to Improve Your Landscape Photography By Understanding Portrait Lighting

The further I have gone on my photography journey, the more I have come to learn about the importance of understanding light. I believe light is the single most important element that makes a photograph. Not a great subject. Not great composition. It’s great lighting that will make a photograph amazing.

So what is great light? There is no one type of light that makes a photograph good or bad. Hardness, brightness, color, direction. All these things and more will dictate how your image looks, and more importantly, how it feels.

One of the ways I’ve learned to see and understand light and how it affects my landscape photography is by learning about and understanding portrait lighting. Portrait photographers know that the way light falls on the human form dramatically affects the photograph.

Although you can’t control the light in landscape photography, learning to apply the principles of portrait lighting will help you create far more dramatic landscapes that make the viewer feel something.

Light and Shadow

At its most basic level, a photograph is made up of light and shadow. We have a tendency to focus a lot on light in photography, but shadows are just as important, if not even more so. Shadows reveal shape, depth, and texture.

Portrait photographers understand light and shadow better than anyone. They shape a portrait by moving the light source around until the light falls in just the right way so that the shadows reveal the contours of the subject. When shooting with natural light that can’t be controlled, they will move the subject instead.

The transition from light to shadow is often lost in modern landscape photography. Camera sensors with incredible dynamic range, along with the popularity of HDR techniques, have allowed us to bring back a lot of detail in the shadows of our landscapes.

This isn’t a bad thing in itself, because usually, we want some detail in the shadows, but it often goes too far. Just because we can brighten the shadows doesn’t mean we should. Leaving parts of the image in darkness add mood and mystery.

Rembrandt Lighting

I learned about Rembrandt lighting before I had ever heard of the artist it was named after. Rembrandt was a master painter who understood the principles of light and shadow better than anyone. Studying his paintings will teach you a lot about how they can create mood and drama in an image.

Rembrandt self-portrait.

Rembrandt lighting has become known as a classic lighting setup in portrait photography. Using soft side-lighting, this technique creates a beautiful look that you will likely recognize.

When the light source is coming from the side of the subject, it causes the light to reveal and conceal various elements. The parts of the subject that are visible to the light source will be illuminated while the parts which aren’t visible to the light source will be in shadow.

Understanding portrait lighting to bring out texture and dimension.

You obviously can’t control the light source when photographing landscapes, but you can still apply the same principles.

Considering how the light will fall on your landscape can guide the way you photograph it. The position you shoot from, your composition, and the time of day will all affect how the lighting affects your landscapes. Even though you can’t control the light, it never stays the same, so waiting for the angle of the sun to change or for a gap in the clouds can make a big difference to that way it illuminates the scene.

Reverse Engineering Photos

A great exercise for learning to understand light is to reverse engineer a photograph. When I was learning portrait photography I would regularly study an image and try to figure out how it had been lit. Is it natural light or flash? How far away from the subject is it? How big is the light source? Is there more than one light source?

These days as a landscape and travel photographer, I still ask myself those questions when looking at a photograph. Which direction is the light coming from? What time of day was it taken? Was the sky clear or cloudy? Learn to get in the habit of analyzing photos that you admire by asking yourself more specific questions like this rather than what gear or presets the photographer used.

Dodging and Burning

Shaping light and shadow doesn’t stop when you take the photo. Dodging and burning is the process of lightening and darkening areas of a photo in post-production. It doesn’t need to be a complicated process. Often all that is necessary is burning (darkening) areas that could use more shadow or might be distracting.

One of the best ways to think of dodging and burning is to ask yourself where you want the viewer to look. It may be a specific element of the photo, or you may want to draw the viewer’s eye through the image. You can paint more light and shadow into a photo to guide this process.

Our eyes are naturally drawn to brighter parts of an image. Portrait photographers will often dodge and burn to draw the viewer to the subject’s eyes or another important element of the subject. When editing landscapes, try to paint in light and shadow to control which parts of the image are attracting your attention.

Go Practice

The next time you’re photographing a landscape, try taking another look at the light. Ask yourself some of the questions I’ve mentioned. Look for the shadows. Experiment with side-lighting. Wait until the light changes. By understanding portrait lighting you will be better equiped to apply it to your landscape photography.

You’ll find that thinking of the landscape as contours with depth and shape rather than separate elements will help you make more engaging landscapes with mood and drama.

The post How to Improve Your Landscape Photography By Understanding Portrait Lighting appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

June 24, 2018
Two Ways to Replace the Sky Using Photoshop

There are many things that you can control when shooting a photograph, but the weather is not one of them! If you have a great landscape or architecture photo but the sky is too dull it will bring down the entire image, so just keep reading to learn how to replace the sky with Photoshop.

“Give the clouds an assignment.” said photographer Werner Mantz.

He was right, sometimes you can have the best weather and end up with a flat blue sky. Even worse if you have a horribly cold day that gives you a dull grey sky. Either way it can be the win or lose element of the image. No need to panic though, you can composite two photos into one perfect shot and replace the sky with a better one.

Method #1 – Sky Replacement in Photoshop

Most importantly you need an image from a cloudy sky that matches the mood of the image onto which you’re going to paste it. I’m going to work with a vertical shot so it’s better if the one from the sky has the same format. The subject is a ship aground in iced waters so my sky should be ideally from a stormy day.

With the image of the subject open, make a selection of the sky that needs to be covered by the new one. For this you can use any tool with which you feel comfortable. I usually start with a broad selection using the Magic Wand and then get closer with the different types of Lasso tools. You’ll see a dotted line (marching ants) around the area that is being selected.

Refine the selection

I find it’s also useful to go into Menu > Selection > Edit in Quick Mask. This will show the parts that are not selected in a red mask, so you can paint with the Brush tool what you want out and use the Erase tool to include in the selection.

Now open the sky image and select it all (Cmd/Ctrl + A), then go to Menu > Edit > Copy. Turn back into the first image and go to Menu > Edit > Paste Into. Notice that it becomes a new Layer and it has a Layer Mask with the shape of the selection you made, therefore you can now scale it and move it around and your subject won’t be affected, you’ll see the new sky directly as it would be fit in the image.

Once you’re happy with the montage, you can add some adjustment layers so that the two parts have the matching brightness, tone, etc., and the result seems as natural as possible.

Method #2 – Sky Replacement in Photoshop

When your landscape has a diffused horizon line like one with trees, for example, especially if you just need the sky to have a few more clouds instead of completely replacing the original sky then this technique is much more efficient because you don’t have to do the precise selection needed in the previous method. So go ahead and open both images on Photoshop.

In the image of the sky go to Menu > Selection > Edit in Quick Mask Mode and then choosing the Gradient tool draw a line from bottom to top, this will make the image appear with a red mask, faded gradually from one edge to the other.

Now go back to Menu > Selection > Edit in Quick Mask Mode and click again, this will turn the Quick Mask off, and you’ll see a rectangular selection on your image without noticing the gradient. But don’t worry, it’s still there.

Now pull the tab of the image to the side so that you can access the two images simultaneously, then drag the sky selection and drop it on top of the first image.

Now pick the Eraser tool and with a soft brush start erasing the part of the new layer that is covering the subject. You can also decrease the opacity of the layer so that it blends in a bit more smoothly.

There you go, you can do the final touches with adjustment layers so that levels and colors match.

Conclusion

So there you have two methods to replace the sky using Photoshop.

Have you tried this technique before? Please share your questions and comments about it below.

The post Two Ways to Replace the Sky Using Photoshop appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

June 23, 2018
Shooting Greenland in Winter Part 3: Familiar Places
In the previous articles in this series, I wrote about reaching Uummannaq in problematic conditions and about the better days that followed. For this final article, I’d like to tell you about my experience shooting Ilulissat and Disko Bay in winter.

I’m no stranger to Disko Bay. I’ve been traveling and guiding there for several years now, so I wasn’t as excited about shooting there compared to Uummannaq. My visit was quite productive however, and sometimes surprising. Weather was problematic some of the time, with very heavy snow making it hard to shoot anything more than a few meters away. On the few days I could shoot, I had a very good time and produced some images I’m happy with.

Winter is a very good time to shoot travel scenes in Ilulissat. I’m a nature photographer but had commitments to sponsors, and thus had to try my skill at shooting non-nature scenes that they had asked for. This included shots of town and shots of dog sledding.

Ilulissat harbor in winter. The boats are resting on sea ice.

The dog sledding was done on a snowy day, which added a lot to the experience and also allowed me to easily isolate my subjects. To shoot the musher and dogs from above while moving I had to kneel as high as I could and shoot blindly, but it wasn’t so hard after a few tries. I did almost fall a few times.

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When it stopped snowing, my guide Jakob and I took a fast snowmobile and headed to Kangia Fjord. The drive was going great, and I was enjoying the complete white cover created by the heavy snow the previous day. And then… we got stuck in the snow. It appeared that it had snowed so heavily, the powder was over a meter deep and had no time to harden. After 2 hours trying to dig us out, we had to call for help. The upside was that we got stuck right at a frozen side-fjord which was packed full of beautiful icebergs embedded in sea ice.

I took advantage of the situation and of the white conditions to take some surreal images of the icebergs surrounded by turquoise sea-slush, which had been exposed when the currents had slightly moved the icebergs.

The thing I was most looking forward to was an iceberg sail. I had done it many times in summer, but in winter the bay is covered by a layer of slush, which might have prevented the sail from happening, but otherwise creates opportunity for very interesting photography.

I attended two sails. The first was a normal tourist sail, which I took together with many other visitors. The sail was good, but the boat stayed near the fjord. This is problematic since the really interesting and intricately-shaped icebergs are ones which had time to melt into those shapes, which means they are also ones that are farther in the bay (usually to the north). The tourist sail missed those entirely.

Finally, right before finishing the visit, I managed to get a boat for a few hours just for myself. I tried my best to use it wisely, since costs were high and time was short. I sailed north of Ilulissat, and managed to find some beautiful icebergs surrounded by frozen sea ice, which added a lot to the images. The sea ice also gave the open water a calm and reflective appearance, a relative rarity in Disko Bay.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this series and that it encouraged you to think of visiting Greenland in winter, and trying what it has to offer.

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 Southern Iceland, Northern Iceland, The Lofoten Islands, Patagonia, Greenland in summer, Greenland in winter, Namibia the Faroe Islands and Ethiopia.

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

More in this Series:
- Part 1: Uummannaq Whiteout
- Part 2: The Better Part of Winter
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)
June 23, 2018