Thursday, October 27, 2011

HDR (High Dynamic Range) Love it or Hate it!

Up unto a week ago I was not a big fan of HDR.  It was fake but cool to see.  However more interesting at times then looking at people's post cards.  So this week I'm supposed to shoot HDR images for class.  Okay, I'll give it a try.

Last night I spent all afternoon and evening catching the sunset that was hidden behind fog and was a little disappointed. So today I'm processing my images and was shocked what HDR did to this image!

For those of you who don't know what HDR is, it is basically taking the same shot of different exposures and combining them.  You see God created the human eye to adjust to light.  When you go into a dark room your eyes adjust, when you go outside they adjust.  But the camera is NOT that smart.  So by taking a series of images ( I took 7 at one stop each) and combine them in software, it will allow you to see something like this that has the right exposure all the way through.

This may be my new favorite image that I'll need to get a gallery wrap hung on my wall!
Click to enlarge!
Shot yesterday in the Nanjing on the wall.  HDR combined in Photomatix Pro and Lightroom Lens Calibrations.
So, do we love it or hate it?  I know I've changed my mind a little and this powerful.   What should I name this image folks?


Wednesday, October 19, 2011

How to know your slr camera needs a cleaning?

Q: The question is how do I know my camera needs to be cleaned?

A: If you have a SLR camera that has not been professionally cleaned, then you should probably get it cleaned if you still want to shoot with that camera.  Here is how you test it:

  • switch your camera to manual mode.
  • Change your f/Stop to f/22 or as high as that number goes.
  • point your camera it up to the clear blue sky, make it blurry and out of focus.
  • Then take a shot.  Try not to get clouds if possible.
  • Then bring that image into a photo editor and look at every section of it at 100%.  This last step is REALLY important.
  • Re-Test by shooting in the sky and reclean until you don't see any spots.
Here was my camera after I had it professionally cleaned.  Yes, even the professionals were not able to remove it all after two cleans.  This means 2 things.  It's not easy to clean, and yes, you probably have junk on your sensor.  Which means you should get it cleaned or learn how to clean it yourself.

See all the dots int he red circles.  This is at fit to screen mode:


This is at 100% mode:


So I took my camera back to Canon and they re-cleaned it for free since I just had it done last week.  You can see that all the dust spots were on once side which means when he cleaned it in the first place, in his attempt to clean it, he actually gathered it up on one side.

FYI, it will cost you about $60-100 to get your camera cleaned.  But imagine you have a great picture that is memorable and you have this black dust on your son's face while he is blowing out a candle.  Yikes!!!!!!

Here in Asia at the only official repair, he cleaned it for about $15.  Of course todays cleaning was free.

When was the last time you cleaned or had your lens cleaned?

One more tip my instructor told me, she said try to avoid cleaning your sensor in the winter where there is more dust in the air.


Thursday, October 13, 2011

Today's Photography Quote


Of course, there will always be
those who look only at technique, who ask "how,"
while others of a more curious nature will ask "why."
Personally, I have always preferred
inspiration to information.

-Man Ray
Questions to Ponder:
As I look at tons of images for class I say wow, how did they do that lighting something similar.  However as we edit our own photos my instructors ask "WHY" did you take that photo?  What drew you snap that shot.  THEN you can edit it to the reason why you took it in the first place.  
So as you look to editing your own photos, remember the WHY's not the how's.  As you compose the scene on your next shot, remember to ask yourself WHY you are taking your camera out.  
Some of the most powerful images are NOT technically sound.  They are blurry!  -me :)

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Really Nervous!

In 10 minutes, I'm leaving to take pictures of 5 people in the community for my Mid-Term Assignment.
I'm really nervous!  Why?  Because I'm engaging people and it's not me.  This class assignment of mine is really pushing me.

Yesterday I went to these people and let them know that I will be coming.  So I should not be nervous right?  But I am!

Kinda different than taking people shots from a far with a long lens.

I also asked one street vender if she has old people at her home.  That is what they call people here without being offensive.  And she said yes.  So after I shoot her making breakfast on the street, we will go back to her home to capture her mother.  As her father has already passed away.

Stay tuned for the pictures!

========
Update, it went really well.  Far beyond my expectations came out.  It was a different Shelly that showed up.  After the event I was exhausted!  But all I wanted to do was edit my pictures.  After taking 493 images in 2 hours I narrowed it down and got 21 good pictures of different people.  I'm so excited, but more importantly I was MOVED by the people and their stories.  I went to a poor part of town and it was like a HELP-PORTRAIT where I would take pictures of them and promise to bring them back the pictures.  So in 2 weeks I'm gonna make good on my promise. Can't wait to show the images.  Twelve years ago it was all farmland.

Today's Photography Quote


At forty-two
I decided to become a photographer because
it offered a means of creative thought and action.
I didn’t rationalize this, I just felt it intuitively
and followed my intuition,
which I have never regretted.



-Wynn Bullock



Questions to ponder:

What is your passion?

Why would you (or not) consider a life change at age 42?





Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Today's Photography Quote

When you photograph a face . . .you photograph the soul behind it. 

- Jean -Luc Godard




Questions to Ponder:


How has your images of a face describe the soul behind it?


What do your eyes look at when you first see a picture of a face?

Monday, October 10, 2011

5 Take Aways from Week 4

  1. In Lightroom: create virtual copies does not take up any space!  This alone is worth buying Adobe Lightroom 3.
  2. In Lightroom create a normal processed image, then create a virtual copy and then BE CREATIVE!  You'll be surprised!!!  Really!
  3. In my ISO TESTS, that shooting in ISO 800 had noise on my Canon 5D Mark II, but I was able to use the Noise Reducer in Lightroom and the image looked GREAT!!  I used to only go up to ISO 400 but now after all the tests, I feel comfortable bumping it up to ISO 800 if necessary.
  4. That my Canon 5D Mark IIspot meter is 1/3 stop underexposed.  So that I should always overexpose by 1/3 stop.  Bottom line is when I shoot in Manual mode that I should always go right 1 click (1/3 stop).
  5. Lastly, I've learned how to measure RGB and LAB values to determine the true speed of my camera.  And that each camera is different even if it's the same Canon 5D Mark II.  I'm sure you are saying "Shelly....what the heck are you talking about?".  Yes, I know!  I'll have to explain myself one day and show you my revised homework to explain how to find your true speed of your camera.
Hope this has been helpful for you all.  

Today's Photography Quote


“For me the printing process is part of the magic of photography. It’s that magic that can be exciting, disappointing, rewarding and frustrating all in the same few moments in the darkroom.”

-John Sexton


Questions to Ponder:
Apply this to the digital age of cameras and software.  How is it similar to today as you work in a photo editing software?  
Do you experience the same exciting, disappointing, rewarding and frustrating moments?

Required Books for my Masters Degree in Digital Photography

Many of you have asked me to keep sharing about my things I've been learning from my Photography classes.  So I thought I've give you my required book list.  The cool thing is that you can download it straight to your computer and use the Mac or Windows PC App and read it on your computer.  Or you can read it on your iPad/Kindle.  Amazing these days being a college student with all your books fitting on your iPad.

Thank you Steve Jobs!  We will miss you!

(Also available for iPad/Kindle App for desktop/or Kindle itself)

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Today's Photography Quote

If your pictures aren’t good enough, you aren’t close enough. 

- Robert Capa
Questions to Ponder:
Have you ever felt that your pictures are not good enough?  Why?
What are ways to get closer?
How does it make you feel to get closer?

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Today's Photography Quote

“The characteristic common to God and man is...the desire and the ability to make things….It is the artist who, more than other [people], is able to create something out of nothing….The mind of the maker and the Mind of the Maker are formed on the same pattern, and all their works are made in their own image.”

– Dorothy Sayers, The Mind of the Maker 
Questions to Ponder:
How does this quote strike you?
What have you created that you are really proud of? 
How does your previous answer relate to you in this world?

Friday, October 7, 2011

Today's Photography Quote



"The best camera is the one that's with you."


- Chase Jarvis
 Questions to Ponder:
Have you ever pushed yourself to make a great photo with your phone camera? Why or why not?

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Funny!

Today I was searching for a "how to tip" for Photoshop and as I was caught off guard because I saw my image on a site that iStockphoto was advertising.  So cool!  To think iStock is advertising my photo.

That is my image in the black box saying "What is our Mission".

Too Funny!

Today's Photography Quote


The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera. 

-Dorothea Lange

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Copyrights

A classmate turned me on to this.  It's a free copyright for your blog or photography site.

http://myfreecopyright.com/

Check it out!

Today's Photography Quote

A true photograph need not be explained, nor can it be contained in words.

—Ansel Adams

Monday, October 3, 2011

Getting Started in Lightroom 3 & Resources

Now that you have recently purchased Lightroom 3 in your hands let me give you some resources from things my instructor gave us and things I've found on the internet.  So we can have this all in one place.

Julieanne Kost: she works with Adobe and these videos are AWESOME, these were required videos for my class and they are done REALLY well.  Here's a few to get you started:

Presets: FREE!  Keep in mind, these presets are to get you started.  You should always ADJUST presets to match your photo.  And never install presets without knowing who the person is.  Check to see if this person is credible or not.

Sunday, October 2, 2011

5 Take Aways from Week 3

1) Vignettes: Go easy on them!  This week we submitted some of our images for our instructor to give feedback on.  I was almost embarrassed because some of my vignettes were a little too much.  I love vignettes, but you can easily go overboard on them.  Really depends on the image and if will add to it and help you focus on where you want to focus on.  Remember subtlety is the key when in doubt!

2) Noise in an Image: This is noise:

See all that grain?  Noise is the digital age of cameras come from many things.  One of the most common ways is shooting at a higher ISO.  For example this above shot was taken at ISO 6400.  Below is an image shot at ISO 100.

The trade off is sometimes by keeping your ISO too low, you may miss the shot.  I personally stay between 100 and 400 ISO.  When shooting in dark lighting conditions, I stay below ISO 2000.  I have shot both with Nikon and Canon and Nikons do a better job with minimizing grain.  But the newer Canons have done a better job.

So now that I've explained noise.  Here is what you can do in Lightroom to recover your image with a high ISO.

Now compare this to the first image.  See how much of that grain is gone.  Remember that as you smooth things out with the NOISE REDUCTION slider you will loose sharpness.  But it sure looks a lot beter with the noise reduction.  Back to why this is a HUGE LESSON for me.  Hold the OPTION | ALT key while moving the Mask slider under the sharpening section in the Lightroom DEVELOP module.  And drag it to the far right.  This is called a mask.  This mask allows you to sharpen the edges only.  Then the Noise Reduction in the middle areas removes the grain while the sharpen slider keeps it sharp.  This was a BRILLIANT discovery for me!  I use this method on almost every image these days when reducing noise.

3) Cropping: Sometimes we try to put too much into a picture.  Here is a crop my instructor shared with me that after she did it kicked myself in the shin for not thinking of it.


Before: 

After:

Notice how simple it is?  Don't try to do too much in a shot.  Here is another tip: see how the chopsticks are coming in from the bottom left corner.  I planned that!  I probably will write another post one day on it, but try to frame things that come from the corners.  Gives your eyes something pleasant to look at instead of everything so straight.

4) Sandbox Time:  Spend 30-60 minutes each week playing in your sandbox.  As a kid playing in a sandbox is a fun place to be.  Making things up digging and creating.  Well as adults we get so busy in life that we don't take time to just play.  So as you are learning new things like Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop.  Spend 30-60 minutes just playing with an image.  You can really learn a lot!

5) Be creative: I'm working on a calendar project for 2012 and one of the homework assignments I had was to be creative with an image.  So it was kinda like a forced sandbox time.  As I was playing around in Lightroom I started messing the presets and colors and check out this before and after shot of Asia's LARGEST train station.

Before:


After:



The second image just pops and add's in a creative element.  Wish you could see it bigger, not as black as it appears here.