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Photokina’s new manager talks about the future of the trade show

Back in May, Photokina, the biennial photo industry trade show in Cologne, Germany, announced that it would become an annual event and include products and technologies beyond its historical focus of cameras and photography.

Now recently appointed show manager Christoph Menke is providing some background on the decision to change the dates of the future shows and other changes in a short Q&A session with the internal PR team of Koelnmesse, the company that is organizing Photokina.

You can read the full Q&A below, in case you’re curious:

What made Koelnmesse decide to change the show cycle from every other year show to a yearly show?

Today, professionals and consumers view the subject of imaging completely different compared to 10 years ago. Now virtual reality, wearables, tablets, mobile and smart home security are an integral part of the imaging world. The same applies to imaging software for editing, sorting, storing images, or even for CGI & sharing solutions.

As an imaging platform, we need to embrace those new technologies. As a part of this embrace, we acknowledge the significantly shorter innovation cycles of those new technologies compared to established capture technologies. For instance, the software industry has always been characterized by short development cycles. To offer these industries a suitable exhibition platform, the answer can only be a shorter cycle.

Based on surveys we know that our visitors prefer an annual photokina. The annual show cycle will also put a more regular spot light on other segments of our show such as photo equipment, photo accessories and photo studio segments and the brands represented there. They will benefit from more frequent exposure to buyers, consumers and the international media attending our show

Why is photokina going to move to May in 2019 and the following years?

The photokina dates for the next 2 years are Sept 26-29, 2018 and May 8-11, 2019 (Wednesday to Saturday). The switch to the May dates starting in 2019 is the result of conversations with key accounts from all segments. The feedback we received indicated that the May dates will provide an ideal time frame to fully take advantage of international demand before the start of the summer season.

The Show will be shortened from six to four days – what will be the upside of this change?

Based on attendees surveys we conducted we know that four show days are sufficient to see all the imaging technologies and content. Within those four days we create a more compact and thereby more intense show experience that is appreciated by both exhibitors and visitors. The fact that our customers will no longer have to wait two years for the next photokina had a significant impact on the decision to shorten the sequence.

Will the annual show cycle also mean changes to the content and focus of this event?

The changes in content and focus are what led to the structural changes. New technologies are accelerating in the innovation cycles in the imaging world. The annual show cycle is photokina’s response to a rapidly changing market place. Our mission is to provide a platform that shows the imaging technologies of the future and promotes the exchange between developers, engineers, start-ups and manufacturers.

Take video for example: In times of the YouTube-revamped trend towards amateur videos and an increasing convergence of the technologies for photo & video (4K-Grabbing), the moving picture is as important as it was in the first hour of photokina – hence the name. One of the highlights for the next event will be an Imaging Lab at photokina.

What has been the reaction of your photokina customers to the date change?

So far the responses are mostly positive. Budgets and logistics are certainly issues which have to be dealt with and we expect a transition process to adjust to the yearly dates. We are confident that the date change will provide an improved photokina for exhibitors and attendees alike.

The latest editions of Photokina were noticeably smaller and less busy than previous shows which is not much of a surprise given the decline of the camera market. Let’s hope the changes mentioned by Christoph Menke will help Photokina remain as relevant and vibrant as it has been throughout most of its existence.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

July 18, 2017
Pixel, the Water Corgi, 2007-2017

Related posts: – Stand Up Paddling with Pixel, the Water Corgi – Paddling with Pixel, the Water Corgi – Paddling Workout with a Dog – Pixel First Time in Sea Wind Canoe – Dismal River 2009 – Slideshow from Paddling […]
paddling with a camera

July 18, 2017
This Olympus OM-D E-M5, lenses and accessories are made entirely from paper

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Japanese paper artist Kamihasami (his artist name means ‘paper-scissors’ in Japanese) has recreated the Olympus OM-D E-M5, a few lenses, and accessories using nothing but paper and paste.

The faithful recreation is identical to the original models, and includes things like an SD card, battery and battery charger, underwater housing, and flash. In fact, the models are so precise that the paper lenses can be attached to and removed from the paper camera body!

According to Kamihasami’s website, the entire creation process for this artwork took more than three months. Fortunately, his effort was not a waste, the paper OM-D E-M5 earned Kamihasami an award in the prestigious Kamiwaza Grand Prix competition.

To see more of Kamihasami’s paper artwork, visit his website or follow his page on Facebook.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

July 18, 2017
5 Guidelines of Minimalist Photography to Help Improve Your Work

Minimalism is one of those movements that some people see as a recent fad or newfangled things, like fidget spinners or man buns. In reality, minimalism is a true case of making what was once old new again, and unlike the aforementioned man bun, that’s a good thing.

In photography, minimalism is an obvious visual statement; the story of the photograph is simplified, elements are reduced, and clean space is added. Not only has minimalist photography become its own genre (you can see some excellent examples of minimal imagery here), but photographers specializing in the discipline have come into their own, creating a revitalized, attractive space of art for us all to enjoy.

Minimalism (even in photography) isn’t new. Before the term became ubiquitous and synonymous with “new” and “clean”, the style existed in various forms under other names. It has had a profound and positive influence on photography as it exists in the modern world.

But do you have to fully embrace specializing as a minimalist photographer to benefit from the advantages of the style? Absolutely not! Each of the tips below can work for almost any kind of photography. Let’s explore some of the guidelines and see how you can apply them to your own work, regardless of genre or type.

#1 – Make the story concise

As with any photo, the story is the most important thing to convey to your viewer. In minimalism, you want to tell that story as efficiently as possible. That means clean backgrounds, negative space where appropriate, and a well-defined subject.

We will discuss background and separation of the subject in more detail below, but generally, you don’t want any distracting elements in ANY photograph. Keeping your background clean, whether through blurring, or using a solid color or simple texture can remove any unwanted distractions.

Negative space is defined as the margin around your subject and other important objects in your composition. Properly used, this space accentuates what you actually want the viewer to deem as most important in the photo.

When looking through the viewfinder at a potential shot, take a moment to get a feeling of the complexity of what you’re seeing. If the composition feels muddy or hard to discern, recompose your image to include some extra negative or white space around your subject.

#2 – Isolate the subject

Wide-open apertures along with proper positioning of the subject to background tend to make smooth, creamy backgrounds, separating it from the subject of the photo. This is right up the minimalist’s alley. Having a solid or smoothly blurred background really isolates what you want to highlight in the photo, and keeps the viewer’s eye from being overrun by more complex patterns to distinguish.

In some photos, you may not want that blurred effect on your background. Many landscape photos, for example, are shot using stopped-down apertures such as f/11 or f/16, because you want most of the scene in focus. This is because, in those situations, the entire scene can be the subject. In those situations, using color or patterns are other ways of separating the subject from your background.

But many other types of photos, especially nature and portraiture, benefit greatly from a wider aperture and using that to create separate layers in the image. Experimenting with the effects that aperture and distance have on that separation can provide many different looks for the same composition.

#3 – Use color to your advantage

One of the most powerful methods of constructing a minimalist image is by using color to create a contrast. While you don’t necessarily have to go to the extremes that you would in a completely minimalist photo, picking two or even three colors that juxtapose well with each other and featuring them prominently in the textures of the image can improve the attractiveness of the shot.

While minimalist photographs tend to use large areas of solid contrasting colors to establish simplicity, other photography can benefit by keeping the color palette small and using colors that work well together or invoke a particular feeling in the viewer. For example, I find one of the most intriguing and pleasing color combinations to the eye to be blue and red, as in this example of the old red rowboat on the shore (bel0w).

Using a color wheel (as shown below), you can identify color harmony, which are complementary color combinations that are pleasing to the eye. Then try to use those color combinations in your images.

Diagram by Wikipedia contributor Jacobolus

#4 – Embrace leading lines

Because minimalist photography tends to feature very simple compositions, lines and textures are often used to improve upon storytelling and point the viewer in the right direction. Finding natural leading lines in your compositions can help guide the eyes of the viewer where you want them to go, which allows you to minimize the number of elements in your photo needed to tell the story.

Lines can be found everywhere; train tracks, roads, sidewalks, and buildings are just a few examples. While they are easy to find, it is just as easy to misuse them and confuse the viewer. If the line is easy to pick out, then it should lead the eyes somewhere relevant. Lines should not lead the viewer randomly away from the subject, or out of the frame with no real destination.

#5 – Find texture and use it

Texture can be a powerful element in a photograph, especially when an entire image is built around it. Obviously most often used when shooting subjects in the natural world around us, textures are a tool that can communicate many things to the viewer, including emotions, mood, light, and darkness.

Because of the limited language of minimalism, texture itself is often used as the subject, usually in the form of repeated patterns. All photography, however, can benefit from its strategic use. What is the effect when the subject features a consistent, repeating texture, as opposed to one that consists of an uneven texture made up of objects of varying size and smoothness?

Texture is a great way to put a large, consistent element in your image without introducing too much distraction.

Can millions of grains of smooth beach sand, saturated with ocean water, serve as a different backdrop than a large area of broken shells and sand mixed together? What type of effect will this have on the viewer’s perception of the image?

Conclusion

As photographers, regardless of skill level, we are destined to be students of an innumerable amount of subjects. We must constantly keep learning, and apply the things we learn to our work, to keep innovating our style, invigorating our images, and keep our viewers interested.

While minimalist photography is very popular today and is an intriguing discipline, it’s not the chosen style for us all. But the ability to take the most important points from that genre and apply it to your own work is what elevates you as a photographer, and keeps you on top of your game.

What are your thoughts on the current state of minimalism, and its influence on art and photography? Is minimalism your favorite photography style? Have some minimalist images of your own to share? Let’s discuss this and more in the comments below.

The post 5 Guidelines of Minimalist Photography to Help Improve Your Work by Tim Gilbreath appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

July 18, 2017
Clear or UV Filters – Essential or a Waste of Money?

In this video from Phil Steele he discusses the debate over whether or not you should use clear or UV filters on your lenses. It’s a highly heated topic, and Phil makes some very good points. See what he has to say, and then tell us your opinion.

What are your thoughts?

Please fill in this quick poll and tell us if you use UV filters on your lenses or not. Add your comments in the discussion area below – we want to hear from you.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post’s poll.

If you want to learn more from Phil check out some of his video courses covering topics like event photography, Lightroom, headshots, and more on Steele Training.com.

The post Clear or UV Filters – Essential or a Waste of Money? by Darlene Hildebrandt appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

July 18, 2017
Google taught an AI to create pro-level photos from Street View imagery

Google is in possession of vast amounts of Earth imagery via its Street View product, and now it is testing machine learning as a way to harvest ‘professional-level photographs’ from that imagery. As detailed in a newly-published study, Google researchers created an experimental deep-learning system that trawls Street View landscapes in search of high-quality compositions.

Machine learning, while capable at tasks that involve ‘well defined goals,’ struggles in the face of subjective concepts such as determining whether a photograph has high aesthetic value. Google developed this latest deep-learning system as a way to explore how artificial intelligence can learn subjective concepts such as photography—training the system using professional photographs taken by humans.

Compositions identified by the AI from the Street View imagery were then automatically improved using an editing tool called ‘dramatic mask’ that enhances an image’s lighting.

Here are a few examples from the Google Research Blog:

“Using our system, we mimic the workflow of a landscape photographer,” the researchers explain. “From framing for the best composition to carrying out various post-processing operations.”

To test the quality of its AI-generated photos, Google asked professional photographers to blindly rate a collection of photos from various sources, including its Street View photos. The team’s conclusion from those ratings is that, “a portion of our robot’s creation can be confused with professional work.”

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

July 18, 2017
Panorama selfie goes horribly wrong, leads to viral photo

Need a bit of comic relief this Monday? How about nightmare fuel? This panorama selfie gone-wrong provides a little bit of both. The photo was captured by Mitchell Flann, who was using his Samsung Galaxy S7 to take a selfie of himself and girlfriend Erika Gomos.

They were using the phone’s Wide Selfie mode, which requires that you stand still while the camera is panned up to 120° to capture more of the scene. According to Samsung’s website, Wide Selfie “puts an end to getting cropped out.” While that’s technically correct, it did a bit more than that for Flann when Erika sneezed halfway through the selfie.

The nightmarish shot they captured has gone ‘viral’ as they say, earning an insane 150K upvotes on Reddit.

“We’re on vacation in Budapest and I couldn’t even enjoy the scenery at parliament because of the tears,” Flann said on Reddit. Apparently they’ve been taking photos like this across Europe, with some pretty fun malfunctions along the way, but nothing else has turned out quite like this.

Photo © Mitchell Flann, used with permission.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

July 18, 2017
3 Creative Exercises for Using a Slow Shutter Speed

The reason I’m a big fan of experimenting with different shutter speeds is that the opportunities seem endless. By only using a fast shutter speed you’ll limit your photography and miss out on so many great images. In my opinion, shutter speed is the setting which allows you to be the most creative and to capture unique and visually interesting images.

By changing the shutter speed only slightly (let’s say from 1/120th of a second to 1/60th) the image can look completely different and tell a whole different story.

A typical use of a slow shutter speed.

If you are already somewhat familiar with using a slow shutter speed, you’ll know that it’s highly recommended to use a tripod for this technique. Doing so will lead to sharper images and you’ll most likely avoid camera shake (at least if you use a delayed shutter or remote trigger as well). I’ll be the first to say that I use a tripod for 99% of my images, but every now and then, I choose to break this rule as I know that leaving it behind will, in that case, be the best choice.

In this article, we’ll look at three creative exercises you can do using a slow shutter speed. They may not be typical or the most logical but the results can be stunning.

Creative Exercise #1 – Tilt and Pan

As I said, one of the main reasons for using a tripod when photographing with a slow shutter speed is to remove any vibration and movement from the camera, leading to crisp and sharp images. This creative exercise goes against those guidelines and instead of leaving the camera on a steady tripod, you’re going to tilt or pan it while taking the image.

The use of a tripod is not necessary for this technique and it’s easy to do without one. If you’re using a shutter speed slower than one second, I do recommend using a tripod though as you’ll most likely get a better result.

You’ll get the best results when your subject contains different colors and also has texture and patterns. When you’ve found the subject you wish to photograph, let’s say a treeline or a patch of grass, slow your shutter speed down to between 1/15th and 1/4th of a second. You can use an even slower shutter speed, but I’ve found that the best results are in this range, as you’ll still get some good texture and detail in the image.

Now, when you press the shutter button, quickly tilt or pan the camera in one direction – make sure that you’re quick enough though! As you can see, the result is an abstract image with lots of lines. This technique doesn’t work for all scenes though and I recommend zooming in on your subject to avoid including the sky.

Photographed with a Nikon D800, Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 lens at f/11, ISO125, 1/15th.

Continue repeating this technique and try moving the camera both slower and quicker, as well as making small changes to the shutter speed. You’ll soon see that even small adjustments will have a huge impact on the final image. It may take quite a few attempts before you get an image you’re truly satisfied with, so keep playing.

Creative Exercise #2 – Zooming

Exercise number two is similar to the first in that it will create an abstract image with a lot of movement. Also this time you will forget about the guideline of keeping your camera still when photographing and will deliberately create motion, this time by zooming your lens.

This is a technique you can experiment a lot with, as the results can vary greatly. You may also want to use a longer shutter speed than you did above. For a more detailed description of this method, you can also read: How to Create a Dynamic Zoom Burst Photograph

Let’s try this first. Set your shutter speed to five seconds and place the camera on a tripod. Press the shutter button and wait two seconds before you slowly start zooming your lens, continue until the exposure is completed. As you can see, it appears as if two images are put together into one. The background is sharp but the ghost-like lines going away from it creates a sense of motion and can add a lot of extra depth.

Image courtesy of dPS Managing Editor, Darlene Hildebrandt.

Again, as with all of these creative exercises, trial and error is your friend. Don’t just do it once and leave. Try this multiple times with different settings, vary the exposure, try a different tempo of the zoom (go fast, then try slow), zoom in then try zooming out, zoom and stop at varying intervals, etc. After a while, you’ll hopefully capture something that has potential!

This method can result in fascinating images taken at night. By capturing two images (one where this technique is used and one that’s normal) and blending them together you can get a quite interesting result. The landscape will be normal while the stars look like their shooting out of the image. It’s all about trying the unknown and take a moment to disobey the “rules”. For more on this technique read: How to Create a Dynamic Zoom Burst Photograph or Intentional Blur- How to Create it and Why It’s Awesome

Image courtesy of dPS Managing Editor, Darlene Hildebrandt.

Note: if you want to try this on a bright daytime scene you may need to use a Neutral Density filter to cut down on the amount of light. Otherwise, your image will just be overexposed.

Creative Exercise #3 – Close-up

This last exercise for practicing using a slow shutter speed is quite different than the other two. For this one, you will use a tripod and delayed shutter or remote trigger to capture a sharp image. Then, you will be zooming in on some details in the landscape and using a slow shutter speed to capture it.

For many years I rarely used anything other than an ultra-wide-angle lens, as I wanted to capture everything in the same image. As I became more experienced and my art began evolving, I realized that I found a much greater pleasure in viewing abstract and intimate shots. In many ways, these simple scenes result in more powerful images that better tell a story.

So, for this exercise, you’ll need to go outside and search for something that includes a moving element, such as a waterfall, river, or perhaps waves. The composition isn’t crucial yet as you’re mostly going to be experimenting with different shutter speeds but if you’re able to find a good one that’s a benefit.

Once you’ve found the subject you wish to photograph, set your shutter speed to 0.5 seconds. Capture an image and start lengthening the shutter speed until you reach somewhere between 5-10 seconds (you might need to use an ND filter and compensate with ISO/Aperture for this to work). By scrolling through the series of images you’ve taken you will see just how much it changes by making only small adjustments. I bet that the 0.5-second exposure looks nothing like the 5-second exposure, right?

What fascinates me with this exercise is that every now and then you’re going to find patterns or shapes in the image that you couldn’t see with the naked eye. The motion creates these shapes and in some cases, it can even be scary. Can you see all the screaming faces in this image?

Summary

So now it’s up to you to go out and try these shutter speed exercises. Share your results in the comments section below as well as any questions you may have.

Note: If you want more info, my eBook The Ultimate Guide to Long Exposure Photography, covers the basics of using a slow shutter speed and shares multiple case studies on how changing the shutter speed can affect your image.

The post 3 Creative Exercises for Using a Slow Shutter Speed by Christian Hoiberg appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School

July 18, 2017
Faux Photoshop in 3D: Artists ‘Erase’ Graffitied Car with Transparency Pattern

[ By SA Rogers in Art & Street Art & Graffiti. ]

A crew of artists found a new way to ‘clean up’ graffiti in a public place by simply erasing a car and dumpster from a street in Russia using the old familiar Photoshop transparency pattern. Called CTRL+X, the piece was created as part of the Stenograffia street art festival, and carrying it out was simple – if a little bit time consuming. Before they got started, the surfaces were covered in tags in all shades of the rainbow, and they had to paint everything a matte light gray as a base.

After dark, they set up a projector so they could trace the Photoshop checkerboard pattern from the perspective point from which the scene would be viewed by the public, so it’s angled just right. They used pencil to mark the lines, and then taped off the squares that needed to be painted a darker gray.

The end result is a pretty fun optical illusion that’s probably only effective for people who are used to working in Photoshop. Check out lots of behind-the-scenes photos on the Stenograffia Facebook page.

Real Life Photoshop: Giant Eraser Takes Out Urban Scenery

In another case of Photoshop invading the real world in three dimensions, giant erasers are appearing all over urban surfaces in London. Murals, street signs, billboards and trash bins are among …

Street Retouch: Bus Riders Get Live Photoshop Treatment

Unsuspecting travelers waiting to catch a ride were shocked to see their own photos integrated into humorous advertisements on the walls of the bus stop shelter. Berlin-based Photoshop artist …

Faux Photoshop: 15 Surreal Images Look Altered but Aren’t

Photoshop has revolutionized design, photography and illustration to the point where any image that manages to capture something really amazing is quickly dismissed as fake. But, it is still …

[ By SA Rogers in Art & Street Art & Graffiti. ]

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WebUrbanist

July 18, 2017
How to Photograph a Solar Eclipse
On the afternoon of August 21, 2017, an event will take place in the United States that has not happened in almost 100 years. A total solar eclipse will be visible for a huge swath of the mainland population. While total solar eclipses aren’t an entirely uncommon phenomenon, it is highly irregular for one to be seen by such a large portion of the country and it won’t happen again anytime soon.

Image via Wikimedia Commons

In 2019 a total eclipse will be viewable for people in Chile, Argentina, and Uraguay and after that, the next one will not happen until June of 2020 which will be visible for a large chunk of Africa and southern Asia. This means that anyone who wants to get some good photographs of the upcoming event will need to spend time preparing, getting some essential gear, or even traveling to the USA if you live in another country.

Fortunately, you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars to get a good shot of the eclipse. This guide is designed to give you a good idea of what you will need without breaking the bank.

What is a solar eclipse?

To understand a bit about photographing a solar eclipse, it’s important to know just what it is you will be looking at on the afternoon of August 21st.

The moon orbits the earth once every 28 days, but the plane of the moon’s orbit is not quite even with the plane of earth’s orbit around the sun. Because of this disparity, the moon does not usually block out our view of the sun, except for once every few years. If the earth gets between the sun and the moon it’s called a lunar eclipse, but if the moon scoots between the earth and the sun it results in a solar eclipse which is rarer and, in my opinion, more spectacular to watch.

The fun part happens when you are lucky enough to be in the path of totality, which is where you will experience a complete blackout of the sun during the middle of the day. Keep reading to find out what gear you will need to photograph the eclipse, and how to locate the path of totality so you know where to be on this eventful day.

A solar eclipse happens when the moon passes directly between the sun and the earth. This diagram is most definitely NOT to scale.

How can I see the eclipse?

The most important thing to remember when viewing the eclipse of 2017, or any solar eclipse, is that you do not want to look directly at it unless you are in the path of totality – that is, unless the moon is completely covering the sun.

I need to make this abundantly clear: do not look at the solar eclipse with your naked eyes!!

Even if most of the sun is covered up by the moon, the light streaming out will be much too bright for your eyes to handle. NASA’s website has more detailed information, but suffice it to say if you want to watch the eclipse unfold in real time you will need something to protect your eyes like these solar eclipse glasses or a strong piece of welding glass. Sunglasses are far too weak to be effective and don’t ever just try to squint.

Protect your eyes properly, they’re the only ones you’ve got.

Image via Wikimedia Commons

How do I take pictures of the eclipse?

Here’s where things get a little tricky since you will probably need to spend a bit of money, though hopefully not as much as you think. If you want to get the kind of close-up images you’ve already seen in this article, you will need the following camera gear:
- A zoom lens, preferably one that has a focal length of at least 400mm.
- A solar filter to protect your lens and camera.
- Solar glasses so you can watch the eclipse unfold as it happens.
- A tripod to hold your camera steady.
- A place to view the eclipse, free of obstructions.
Here’s a bit more information about each of those so you can make sure to get the best photos possible.

Lenses and Cameras

Most consumer-level zooms such as the Nikon 55-200mm lens or Canon 18-200mm do a good job at covering a variety of focal lengths. But shooting at 200mm isn’t going to handle an event like the solar eclipse with as much resolution and detail as you may want.

That’s where a longer lens such as the Tamron 150-600mm (or the Sigma version) really comes in handy. It will allow you to get a much closer view and to take the kind of pictures you might see on blogs and magazine covers. The downside is that these longer lenses are quite expensive.

Fortunately, there are several places online where you can use to rent lenses from for a few days at a time, which I highly recommend. BorrowLenses, LensRentals, and LensProToGo are popular sites that all carry a similar lineup of lenses, but it’s also a good idea to check with your local brick-and-mortar camera shop too. Many of these stores will let you rent lenses for a very short period of time, which is good since you only need one day to photograph the eclipse.

Tamron’s 150-600mm lens is ideal for shooting a solar eclipse, and you can find it online at places like Amazon.com or B&H Photo Video.

Alternatives

Another alternative is to look into buying or renting a teleconverter that will increase the focal length of your existing lenses. A 2x teleconverter can be rented for about $ 35 depending on your location. While the resulting images won’t be quite as sharp as if you were using a dedicated zoom lens it should be more than adequate to give you enough reach to photograph the eclipse with a lens you already own. (Note: Some point-and-shoot cameras have impressive zoom lenses but I would advise against using these for the eclipse because there’s not a good way to attach a solar filter to them, which I describe in the next section.)

Finally, it’s worth noting that crop-sensor cameras such as the Canon Rebel T6 Series or Nikon D3400, D5500, and D7200 are ideally suited for this type of event because they will give you more reach out of your lenses. A 200mm lens on a Nikon crop-sensor camera effectively becomes a 300mm lens, and the same holds true for Canon. Micro-four-thirds models have a 2x crop factor so shooting with a 200mm lens on the Olympus OM-D EM-10 is like using a 400mm lens on a standard full-frame DSLR. So for shooting the eclipse, if you have both crop-sensor and full-frame cameras you will be better off using the former instead of the latter.

You don’t need an expensive camera to get good shots. Even an older crop-sensor model like the Nikon D3200 will work great, provided you have a telephoto lens or a teleconverter.

Solar Filter

You wouldn’t look directly at the sun during an eclipse without proper protective equipment for your eyes, and the same holds true for your camera. If you are lucky enough to be in the path of totality you can look at, and take pictures of, the eclipse without needing any special gear. But if you are anywhere except the line of the complete blackout, or want to take pictures of the eclipse as it begins and ends, you will need certain equipment to keep your camera safe.

A special solar filter that attaches to the end of your lens is a great way to protect against damage to your camera. Not to be confused with standard neutral density filters, which are not at all strong enough for this type of situation, solar filters are specifically designed to photograph eclipses and other solar events. Make sure to find one that screws on, or fits over, the end of your lens and not one that goes between your camera and the lens. If it’s the screw-on kind it needs to actually fit your lens too, so double check that the thread size of the filter you get matches the thread size of your lens (look inside the lens cap for your lens, that is the filter size).

You will need a solar filter like this one from Amazon if you plan on pointing your camera at the eclipse at any point other than when the sun is completely covered by the moon.

Solar Glasses

These function much in the same way that a solar filter does, but are designed to protect your eyes instead of your camera. They are not expensive and look like the old style of 3D glasses you might have used in a movie theater decades ago, except these block out virtually all light except what comes from extraordinarily bright objects like the sun.

While wearing solar glasses won’t help you take better photos of the eclipse, it’s good to wear them as the Eclipse waxes and wanes so you can see it with your own eyes instead of through your camera’s viewfinder.

Solar glasses like these are required if you want to look directly at the eclipse as it begins and ends.

Tripod

Unless you have very steady hands or an impressive image stabilization system on your camera, a tripod is essential for shooting an eclipse. While you don’t need anything fancy or expensive, it will help to have a larger one that can keep your camera and lens rock steady. This is why I would recommend against small mount-anywhere tripods that you can find rather cheaply online.

If you are using a zoom lens with a built-in tripod mount, make sure to attach your tripod to that instead of your camera. Otherwise, you will put a great deal of stress on the mount where the lens attaches to the camera. Finally, any time you use a tripod make sure you disable your lens’s vibration reduction system because it can backfire on you and actually make your images more blurry when mounted to a steady surface.

A place to view the Eclipse

If you have all your gear ready, solar glasses on your face and your friends and family gathered to witness this historic event, it could all be for naught if you don’t put yourself in the proper location. The best spot to view Summer 2017’s Eclipse is by finding a location along the path of totality–the geographic line where you will see an entire blackout of the sun for as much as two full minutes. Places not on the path of totality will still see part of the eclipse, but the effect will not be nearly as pronounced.

Many towns and cities located on or near the path of totality have been taking hotel reservations for August 21st and are planning community events to promote the Eclipse. So if you haven’t started looking for lodging yet I would recommend making those plans now. This site has an interactive Google Map with all the information you need to get a good viewing location. Try to find a park, field, or another open area free of obstructions so that you can have a clear view of the eclipse. Though of course, weather plays a big role in this too and it’s entirely possible that your best-laid plans will result in rain or even just a lot of clouds.

Image via NASA’s Eclipse Map site.

Shooting Techniques

Finally, it’s important to keep a few essentials in mind so you can actually get the kind of pictures you are hoping for when the eclipse happens. Here are some tips that can make the difference between a blurry almost-had-it shot and a brilliant glowing halo that you would be proud to print and hang on the wall.
- Use a fast shutter speed. It’s not about stopping the vibration of your camera, which is what a tripod is for, but freezing the motion of the moon as it travels across the sun. 1/125th of a second will be more than adequate, and going faster than that won’t really give you much of an advantage. Once again, make sure you have a solar filter or else you will damage your camera, and get a pair of solar glasses for your eyes too.
- Use a small aperture, but not too small. Each lens is different, but in general f/8 or f/11 is going to give you a sharp image without much diffraction or chromatic aberration. Go much larger than that (i.e. f/4, f/2.8) and you risk getting an image that isn’t as sharp as it could be. Much smaller than that (i.e. f/16, f/22) will likely result in weird optical artifacts that happen as the light enters such a small opening and is reflected throughout the glass elements of your lens.
- Shoot in RAW, not JPEG, and correct your white balance afterward in Lightroom, Photoshop, or another similar program
- Use a two-second delay timer (if you’re shooting with a tripod) so you don’t get any vibration from your finger pressing the shutter, which can cause the image to appear blurry.
- Use Live View to check for focus. Alternatively, you can use autofocus but make sure to check your pictures on the LCD screen right away to make sure they are properly in focus. However…
- …Don’t spend all your time chimping, or looking at the LCD screen on the back of your camera after you take photos. You will only have a few minutes at most to take pictures of the total eclipse, and you will have plenty of time to admire them after it’s all done.
If you want to know more, PBS has a fantastic short video about the upcoming eclipse and you can find all sorts of information by searching online including NASA’s page dedicated to the event.

Do you have any other tips for getting photos of the upcoming eclipse? Please leave your thoughts in the comments below, and be sure to revisit this article after the eclipse to share your photos!

The post How to Photograph a Solar Eclipse by Simon Ringsmuth appeared first on Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography School
July 18, 2017