My work

Here is some of my work. Feel free to leave a comment or leave a link to your own photos.

Portrait - part 2

Here is a good article on how light can affect a photo from today's edition of USA Today.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/2008-07-22-photo-tips-lighting-camera_N.htm?csp=DailyBriefing

Portrait

Portrait photography can be as easy or as complex as you want it to be. You can have several light sources doing different things, or it could be as simple as using window light. I recently took a portrait class and here are a few things I learned…

1. One of the hardest things about starting portrait photography is establishing a photographer / subject relationship. Ease into portrait work by taking photos of people you already have a connection / relationship with.
2. The direction and quality of light is especially important in portrait work. For example, taking a outside photo of your friend at noon will result in harsh shadows on the face because the light is coming down directly on top of them. Suggestion: Shoot in the early morning or early evening. That way, the light will be both directional and not as harsh.
3. Cloud cover is your friend! Think about it, if the sun is the ultimate light source for photographers (and in general), then a cloudy day would be the ultimate light diffuser. That would give you omni directional lighting and lighter shadows.
4. An external flash can help you out if you have to shoot in difficult light conditions. It also can serve as in inexpensive directional light source if moved off camera.
5. Look at other people’s work. I get creative ideas from looking and thinking about other people work and how they achieved the lighting they did.

Here's a video from USA Today's Talking Tech featuring Strobist publisher David Hobby. If you are into learning portrait photography, his site is one you must visit.

Camera shopping?

Check out this article from the Star-Telegram on camera shopping:
http://www.star-telegram.com/living/story/750845.html

My suggestions:
1. Think about what you are going to shoot. If you are going to shoot sports, a pocket-size camera is probably not for you.
2. If you have to decide between getting a good camera body or a lens, go with the lens.
3. If you are picking a lens for an SLR, spend the extra money on the image stabilization (that what Cannon calls it). That will allow you to minimize camera shake and give you crisper photos (especially in low light).
4. Learn how to read an MTF chart. This will allow you to understand differences in lenses.

Hope this helps.

Going semi-automatic

Believe it or not, most cameras today are semi-automatic - not in the shoot em’ up sort of way. What I mean is that camera settings, such as aperture priority mode (AV) or shutter priority mode (TV), will allow you to control one setting while the camera controls the other. Note: You still have to select the ISO, which can be accessed in your camera’s menu setting.

Why is this helpful? Believe or not, your camera is pretty stupid. All those settings like sunset, night, sports (or as I like to call him, running man) are just factory settings that some programmer put in. They are settings that are based on similar situations that may or may not correctly expose your photo. In addition, settings like AV and TV are baby steps to understanding and using your camera’s manual setting (where you are in control of both aperture and shutter speed).

What exactly is AV and TV mode?

• AV (aperture priority mode)
  - you select the aperture and the camera selects the shutter speed.
  
• TV (shutter priority mode)
  - you select the shutter speed and the camera selects the aperture.
  

How do I know which shutter speed or aperture to use?

• AV
  - The larger the number, the more depth of field you have (the more that is in focus). Opposite for smaller number.
  - You might use a high aperture (high number) if you were taking a photo of a city skyline, or a smaller aperture if you want to isolate a person in your photo from the background.
  
  
  

• TV
  - The smaller the number (smaller the fraction Ex: 1/200) the better your camera will be able to stop motion. Opposite for larger fraction (Ex: 1 second).
  - You might use a high shutter speed if you wanted to take photos at a sports game.

Experiment on your own and see what happens. Feel free to ask questions.

Photo credit: JF Photography

What makes a good photo?

The three main parts that go into creating a great photo are: aperture, shutter speed and ISO.

1. Aperture
- Controls the volume of light, controlled by the lens, that enter the camera.
- In general, apertures (f-stops) range from f2.8 – f22
- The smaller the number, the more light is allowed to enter the camera.

2. Shutter Speed
- Controls the amount of time light is allowed in the camera.
- Common shutter speed values can range from 1 minute to 1/800 second.
- The longer the shutter speed the more natural light the camera takes in.

3. ISO
- The sensitivity of your camera's digitial senor to light.
- ISO can range from 100 – 6400.
- The lower the number the less sensitive to light your camera will be.

P Does not stand for professional

Just about everyone I know owns some sort of still camera and with the price for a good camera these days why not? The question is, do you really know how to manipulate your camera – complete with 2,000 different picture modes – so that you take the best picture possible? If the answer is no, I suggest you do two things: Read you manual and take your camera off the program setting (P or A on most cameras). Doing those two things will get you started taking control of your camera and not the other way around.

In the next couple of weeks, we’ll be looking at some different techniques and ideas to improve your knowledge of photography.

As the Eagles would say: Take it easy.

photo from: Lifehacker.com