Articles
July 9th, 2010 by Allison Gibson Posted in Articles, Blog, Hardware Reviews
ThinkTANK Airport International V2.0 Review
by Thomas Trimbach
The Airport International V2.0 camera bag from ThinkTANK Photo ($329.00 MSRP) does exactly what its name implies. It’s a travel bag for your cameras, lenses and just about anything else of value, and is designed for just about any travel situation—even if you don’t take an airplane.
From the Outside
The Airport International V2.0 has the look and solid feel of a bag that is able to withstand even the most demanding travel conditions. The V2.0 has straps and handles which encircle the whole bag, allowing you to lift it easily from any angle of attack. This feature is especially handy when pulling the V2.0 out of an airplane’s overhead compartment if you have filled the bag to capacity with equipment (as I’m known to do) since exiting an airplane is habitually a grab and go affair. In addition, once out of the car or in the Jetway, there is a telescopic handle that pulls out quickly to get you going by the V2.0’s three-inch, easy rolling removable and replaceable wheels in fast order.
There are two outside zipper compartments—one for storing memory sticks, card readers, etc., and another compartment that has a nifty insulated steel cable with a combination lock inside in case you want to secure your V2.0 (and your valuables) to just about anything. The steel cable itself is about four feet long and is anchored securely inside the zipper compartment. The V2.0 also comes with another lock that will securely lock the main zipper compartment.
From the Inside
One thing that I really appreciate about the V2.0, which some camera bags do not offer, is the ability to remove all of the padded dividers. Don’t get me wrong, the padded dividers (with Velcro anchors) will allow you to construct infinite variations of compartment design to protect your cameras and lenses. However, I really like the fact that if needed (which I recently took advantage of on a trip to China) one can remove all of the padded dividers and use the V2.0 like any other piece of carry-on luggage.
Conversely, when used for what it was designed for, the V2.0 offers the photographer just about any compartment design to protect cameras, lenses, assorted support cables, chargers and anything else needed for the pro photographer on the go. With the padded zipper top I even felt safe with my laptop tucked in with two cameras and a couple of lenses.
In addition, there are four transparent zipper pockets on the inside of the lid that offer a great place to store more small electronics, such as a cell phone, or even letters and postcards (if you still use them).
Observations
When taking the V2.0 on an airplane as carry-on you will quickly notice that it fits easily inside the upper compartment above your seat. You will find this true for all the larger airplanes that you might take going across country or beyond. However, you will find it difficult to put the V2.0 in the overhead compartment on most of the smaller commuter jets. To make sure that you will have no problems fitting the V2.0 inside one of these smaller overheads you will find it necessary (as I did on two occasions) to remove the wheels. This for the most part is no problem at all since the wheels are designed to come off and on. However, you will need to buy an Allen wrench first at your local hardware store since the V2.0 does not come with one supplied. Once you do remove the wheels (it will take you about five minutes to remove both wheels) the V2.0 does fit in these smaller overhead compartments (like a glove). However, just be careful when you do take the wheels off since the V2.0 has a tendency to tip over when you stand it upright.
Overall, I do love this bag. I’ve taken it on four trips thus far (one to China) and it has performed wonderfully. All of the various compartment designs have kept my cameras, lenses and computer safe and secure for over 24,000 miles of travel. My only “fix” would be to give the wheels a quick release option so you don’t have to bother with Allen wrenches. To see the full line of photo bags from ThinkTANK Photo, visit their web site at www.thinktankphoto.com.
May 25th, 2010 by Digital Photographer Posted in Articles, Blog, Software Reviews
Adobe Photoshop CS5 & Photoshop CS5 Extended
Text and Images by Tony Gomez
Adobe Photoshop CS5 and Photoshop CS5 Extended—part of Adobe’s recently introduced Creative Suite 5—are the latest versions of the world standard for digital imaging software. CS5 comes packed with several new features that will be of great interest to you as digital photographers, including: the clean removal of unwanted photo elements; High Dynamic Range (HDR) Pro image processing with multiple exposures; better noise removal and image sharpening; and Automatic Lens Correction to minimize lens optical distortion effects. Here I will delve deeper into how these tasks work and what effect they will have on your post-production work-flow.
High Dynamic Range (HDR) Processing and Simulation
HDR processing is a solution for the inability that a digital camera tends to have in capturing a single digital image that contains the full tonal detail range—from extremely bright, to very dark shadow detail. You need to capture a multiple set of images, each with under, normal, and overexposed settings. HDR then blends these multiple images into one image which has an expanded dynamic range. Photoshop has incorporated HDR processing into CS5.
OVEREXPOSED, NORMAL EXPOSURE, UNDEREXPOSED AND COMPOSITE
click the thumbnails to see the full-size images
There are some important tips to consider before Photoshop CS5 can work its HDR magic. First, take your D-SLR off the Automatic mode, and use the Aperture Priority Mode to shoot. This is because you don’t want successive images to be captured with different f-stops, as this would result in images with different focus points. Next, it is ideal to use a tripod to shoot your multiple exposures because you don’t want your hand to move the camera significantly between successive exposures, or there will be “ghosts” created in the final HDR image. However, if you don’t have a tripod available, and if your D-SLR can be programmed to rapidly shoot three successive exposures while automatically varying the shutter speed by the required amount, the three captured images should be stable enough so that HDR Pro software will give you the desired result without ghosts. Even if there are ghosts, Adobe HDR Pro has a “ghost removal” feature. My rule of thumb for good hand-held HDR image capture is about 1 to 2 frames/second.
Select your multiple-exposed images and then from the Tools menu select Tools/Photoshop/Merge to HDR Pro to import the images into Photoshop CS5. You can control the degree of HDR processing by adjusting the Radius, Strength, and Detail Sliders to higher numbers. Also adjust the Vibrance and Saturation sliders for more intense color. Finally, the Contrast of the overall HDR image can be further adjusted from the Curve Control. When finished, save your image as a TIFF file for high quality preservation.
Clean Removal of Unwanted Photo Elements
Most of us shoot in the real world, not in the ideal photographer’s studio. Our captured images often contain distracting objects besides the main intended subject—trees or poles popping out from behind a subject’s head, or ugly telephone wires which detract from a scene’s beauty. Wouldn’t it be great to magically remove these distracting objects? This unwanted object removal has long been the bread and butter task for professional Photoshop artists, but even the most masterful among them can leave behind telltale signs that something has been removed from the background.
BEFORE AND AFTER
click the thumbnails to see the full-size images
Photoshop CS5’s new Content-Aware Fill Option performs this image removal magic for you automatically without painstaking effort or masterful selection skills. This new fill feature removes a distracting object intelligently, without leaving signs of its removal because the lighting, tone, and actual noise of the surrounding areas are matched. The removal is transparent.
Unwanted objects can be removed by either being painted over with the Spot Healing Brush tool and the Content Aware Fill option, or by using the Lasso Tool and then the Edit-Fill/Content Aware Fill option. The process is automatic and nothing short of magical. Bravo, Photoshop CS5!
Noise Removal and Image Sharpening
Digital noise is present to some degree in every captured image. You need to reduce this digital noise, particularly if you are making a large print. The Camera RAW 6 plug in for Photoshop CS5 has some expanded controls for noise reduction—not only noise in the luminance (brightness) region, but also in the chrominance (color) region. To take full advantage of these expanded noise reduction tools in CS5, you have to capture a RAW image. Photoshop CS5’s RAW 6 Plug-in recognizes more than 275 D-SLR models, so there’s a pretty good chance your RAW image will be supported.
BEFORE AND AFTER
click the thumbnails to see the full-size images
Opening up your RAW image in CS5 makes available several new control sliders: Luminance, Color, and Edge Detail. Move the Luminance slider to the right to remove grayscale (non-color) noise. Move the Color Slider to the right to remove Color noise. Both of these controls can have a softening effect on the image detail, so to sharpen up your noise-free image, move the new Edge Detail slider to the right. When all adjustments have been completed to your liking, save your Camera RAW image as a TIFF format.
Automatic Lens Distortion Correction
One of the greatest things about a D-SLR is that it allows you to use various lenses for different effects. However, even expensive interchangeable lenses have imperfections known as optical distortion.
BEFORE AND AFTER
click the thumbnails to see the full-size images
Three common types of optical distortions that exist, particularly in wide angle lenses, are: Barrel distortion (where straight lines seem to bow out, as if around the sides of a barrel), Chromatic Aberration (where blue fringing is present), and Vignetting (where darkening occurs in the extreme edges of the image).
Photoshop CS5 offers a Lens Correction feature which automatically removes most of these imperfections. You engage this feature from the Filter/Lens Correction menu selection. Adobe has implemented a growing database of interchangeable lenses to choose from, allowing you to custom tailor your profile to your own specific lenses if you wish to correct these optical distortions. The Adobe Lens Profile Creator is available as a free download from www.labs.adobe.com.
Computer Requirements
Photoshop CS5/CS5 Extended is available for either Mac or Windows format. For the Mac platform you need OS10.X or higher. For the Windows version, you need Windows XP/Service Pack 2 at minimum, with later versions of Windows Vista and Windows 7 recommended. Photoshop is very memory intensive, so you need 1GB minimum, and 2GB recommended. And your processor needs to be powerful enough to handle the more complex processes—dual core CPUs are recommended, with quad core preferred.
If you want ultimate control over your captured digital images, Photoshop CS5 is more than capable. The basic Photoshop CS5 version is $699.00 MSRP, with a $199.00 upgrade from CS4. The 3-D graphics market is very hot now, and a more powerful version, Photoshop CS5 Extended ($999 MSRP) offers exciting 3D extrusions through its Repousse feature. With it you can also create exciting 3-D images with realistic lighting, shadows, reflections, and refractions of lighting. For more information go to www.adobe.com.
May 4th, 2010 by Allison Gibson Posted in Articles, Features
Many Traveled Roads: An Interview with Harvey Stein
Text by Robert A. Schaefer, Jr.
Images © Harvey Stein
Although I have known photographer Harvey Stein since 2000, when we were introduced at Fotofest in Houston, Texas, for a long while I hadn’t had an opportunity to talk to him about the many facets of his photography. Attending an opening at the new photography gallery, Umbrella Arts, in the East Village in New York City (where Harvey is curator), I recently had the opportunity to find out more about him and the directions his involvement with photography has gone.
Robert A. Schaefer, Jr.: Your body of photography is quite extensive with exotic locations as well as studies of different segments of the population. Do you have any personal favorites among these? Also, what would you site as a common theme, visual or otherwise running through your work?
Harvey Stein: I really haven’t been to very exotic locations, unless you consider Haiti and New York City as exotic. I will be going to Mexico, Peru, Ecuador, and New Mexico this year to photograph and don’t really consider these places exotic. I’ve never been to Asia, Australia, or much of Africa or Latin America. I love to travel, but I also love to be in New York to photograph. But no matter where I am, I pretty much photograph the same way. I say that you don’t have to go far to photograph. I tell my students to shoot at home, in their bedrooms and kitchens, in their neighborhoods, in their cities and towns. Good work can be made anywhere.
It’s hard to say which of my extended studies of “different segments of the population” is my favorite. I’ve done six-year studies of identical twins, of artists (painters and sculptors), and of People Living With AIDS. I’ve been photographing a series on children for over 20 years, and photographing in Mexico and Harlem for over 15 years each. This year marks my 40th year photographing the people and area of Coney Island. I think the best idea I’ve ever had photographically is the twins work, probably no one has photographed and interviewed twins as thoroughly as I have (1972-1977). I was thrilled to produce the book, Parallels: A Look at Twins (1978) as a result. So this may be my favorite project, but not necessarily my best work.
The common theme or thread that connects my work is an abiding interest in the human condition, mostly on an individual basis. Getting close, involved and wide angle to achieve a context and connection with my subject is the way I like to work best.
Tell me about your background. (Where were you born and raised?) Were you involved with art and or photography as you were growing up?
I was born and raised in Pittsburgh Pa. I still have relatives and friends living there, and like to go back to photograph occasionally. It’s a hilly, visually interesting city with friendly people. A good place to shoot.
I have a BS degree in Metallurgical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, worked at Bethlehem Steel for a few years, and then attended Columbia University to earn an MBA in marketing. I worked in the corporate world for about six years, hated it, dropped out and tried my hand at photography.
I’ve never looked back or regretted becoming a photographer. It feeds me emotionally and physically, keeps me engaged, informed, and in daily contact with my fellow beings. It takes me to places I don’t belong, is ever challenging, and never gets easier; it satisfies my curiosity, but never lets me become smug since it’s internal rules and logic are forever mysterious and unsolvable. Photography keeps me on my toes, always.
I say that photography saved my life, I was rather aimless and unhappy during my corporate years, and I found photography and have loved what I’m doing ever since. And have been happy ever since.
Did you study photography formally? Which teachers inspired you? Which photographers or other types of artists have motivated your imagery?
I consider myself to be self-taught in photography, although I have taken many, many individual classes, but not in a formal program. I still take classes at ICP where I teach. I’m always learning.
Ben Fernandez was one of my first teachers in the early 70’s at the Public Theater here in NYC. He was very inspiring and bigger than life. He suggested I get a Leica, a 21mm lens, and go to Coney Island to shoot. Being the good student that I was, I followed his advice, still shoot mostly with a Leica and 21mm lens, and continue to photograph at Coney Island. As a matter of fact, next year I will have my next book, tentatively titled Coney Island: 40 years (1970-2010) published. I’m proud of that, 40 years of shooting anything either means you are stupid or a genius. We shall see.
I have always admired the work of Paul Strand, Diane Arbus, Lee Friedlander, and Garry Winogrand. Man Ray has also been an inspiration for his creativity, wide range, and alternate life-style. Various writers, filmmakers, painters (especially Van Gogh) and dance companies also feed me creatively and emotionally.
How do you produce your work?
I still shoot film with two Leica M4’s that I bought in the 70’s. I have been shooting digitally also for the last three years, but really still favor film. I make prints in my darkroom and develop film at home. I develop four rolls almost every day, and am still about four to five years behind, and about eight years behind in making prints. But the important projects jump to the front of the line. I know I will never catch up, but that’s OK. I’ve yet to print much of the digital images, hope to someday, but the film images seem to have more importance and immediacy for me.
What prompted you to do the series Living With AIDS? Why AIDS and not some other disease like cancer or Alzheimer’s? How do you feel about the lifting of the ban on visitors who are HIV positive or to the United States?
In 1992 I read a notice in an ASMP bulletin asking photographers to volunteer at the Gay Men’s Health Crises (GMHC). They wanted photographs for their clients, people who have full blown AIDS. This would be another free service that they provided, along with such things as legal and medical advice, meals, theater and movie tickets, haircuts, physical and emotional therapy, etc. GMHC is an amazing place, and always looking for volunteers; it’s the world’s first and now largest AIDS organization.
I was seeking a new project with a 4×5 camera. I lived in the epicenter of the AIDS epidemic in NYC, knew no one with AIDS, but wanted to contribute something. As I remember, I was one of about 70 photographers who volunteered, and was one of only two who remained after five years of shooting. We could design our own projects, some photographers shot environmentally, some in the hospital, and some worked only for a few weeks. I set up a studio environment with the large format camera—studio lights, backgrounds, etc—in an office that they provided. I shot about four people every week or so for several years, and gave each sitter a beautiful archival 11”x14” print. I photographed and interviewed about 120 individuals, and tried to publish a book. The subject was too “hot” and emotional, and only about 10 years later was there serious interest in a book. By then, the “temperature” subsided, but they did a traveling exhibition of 60 images for three years.
This was one of the most rewarding projects I’ve ever done, I got so much back from my subjects; they were very appreciative of the photographs and my interest in them. How could I complain about a sore finger in the face of their illness. They were very inspiring; they all believed they would survive AIDS. I’d say that approximately 60 percent did not.
I think it’s time that the ban on visitors who are HIV positive be lifted; it’s an example of another misguided United States policy.
Another series of your work deals with famous artists from which your book Artists Observed was published. Did you find this group of people easier to work with than others? Do you have any interesting stories from any of these shoots?
I photographed unknown, emerging, and famous artists (approximately 165 individuals) from 1980 through 1985 and had the book, Artists Observed, published in 1986 by Harry Abrams, Inc. My idea was to photograph them in their studios, with some of their work. I wanted to integrate, relate, fuse them to their art, and also conducted tape-recorded one-hour interviews, which are excerpted in the book. This was a personal quest; my motivation was to see how and where my life paralleled theirs, i.e., is the way I live and conduct my life similar to theirs? Am I living the life of an artist? Really, how do they live differently than a businessman, etc.?
I found that the younger, unknown artists were easy to approach and photograph. The more famous the artist, the more difficult and the less time they wanted to give me. Three exceptions were Red Grooms, John Cage and Robert Rauschenberg; each was very gracious and helpful. After a few meetings with Warhol’s business manager, and several years of trying to arrange a session, I had only ten minutes with Andy. I didn’t even get his famous fifteen minutes. He was the only artist who wouldn’t agree to an interview, and he was the creator/owner of Interview Magazine. Hmmmm.
Another of your books, Parallels: A Look At Twins, works with images of identical twins. How did you become involved with that subject? Were you influenced at all by images done by the German photographer August Sander or by Diane Arbus? Have you considered working with triplets or other examples of multiple births? Any interest in contrasting images of identical and fraternal twins?
I met and photographed three sets of identical twins on the streets of Manhattan one weekend in May of 1972. I liked two of the resulting images, and this began a six-year effort of photographing about 155 sets of identical twins. My book, Parallels: A Look at Twins, was published by E.P. Dutton in 1978. Its ideas come from the work, meaning that after shooting for a while, I occasionally notice that certain themes and patterns and connections bubble up from the mire. I look and re-look at the work frequently, trying to perceive threads. I definitely believe that my work speaks to me, guides me, and often informs me of my direction and next steps. I trust myself and trust the process entirely; it has rarely led me astray.
I came to realize that part of my fascination with identical twins stemmed from knowing a set of female twins in grade school. I wondered how there could be two of one, and actually was in awe and afraid of them. And as a photographer, I was intrigued by the very strong visual qualities of their duplication. I photographed fraternal twins but this wasn’t nearly as compelling as identical twins. I also did some triplets, but that was too rare to pursue; it might have taken at least double the time to produce a meaningful project.
I started and mostly did this work while I was not a professional photographer and was totally unaware of August Sander. I knew of Arbus and her one photograph of identical twins. Many people think she did many twin photographs, but I believe she only did the one shoot. I love both Sander and Arbus and share their very direct, confrontational approach to photographing people. I maintain that this photographic style is innate and natural to me, not influenced by any other practitioners.
You have produced several photography books and teach courses in the making of a photography book. Besides taking your courses, what might you suggest to photographers in publishing a book of their imagery?
This question might take hours to answer. I teach a two-weekend course at the International Center of Photography that addresses this issue, and have done one and two-day long seminars around the country on the topic. So this is not a subject with a short answer. Suffice it to say that while almost everyone wants to do a book of their images, it’s not easy to find a commercial publisher. An average size book with perhaps 70-80 photographs might cost a publisher $75,000 to $100,000 to put out, depending on the number of copies and the print quality. The more focused and unique the subject, the better the chances to get published. The chief reason that projects are rejected is that the work isn’t coherent, consistent, and/or focused. Also, there should be a reachable, definable audience for the book.
Besides producing your own work you also teach extensively at the International Center of Photography and the School of Visual Arts, among others. Do you find that teaching enhances your own work? How? Is it ever a burden?
I love teaching and find it very rewarding. Besides teaching at ICP and SVA in New York City, I do my own workshops to Mexico, Ecuador, Italy and now Peru. And I’ve taught many workshops at all the major places—Maine, Santa Fe, Palm Beach, etc. Through teaching I meet interesting people, many who become friends, and make images while at the workshops. Photography can be a lonely and isolating profession; teaching keeps me in touch with issues and people. I learn and get ideas from students, and while sometimes it’s tiring and time consuming, teaching is never a burden. Mostly, it’s a joy and I recommend it highly.
What have been some of the most memorable events of your career in photography?
Events don’t stand out, places and the people there do. Places I return to time and time again, and where I love to photograph, include: Coney Island, Harlem, Mexico City, Italy and New Mexico. I don’t really photograph news events or famous people much, and when I do, I’m photographing for me, not for a media outlet. I go to events where I photograph, but not the event per se, rather the people at the event. But I have photographed a Democratic National Convention, the aftermath of 9/11, Fashion Week in New York City, and Mr./Ms. Nude America in Naked City, Indiana. And I’ve also managed to photograph such well-known people as Andy Warhol, John Cage, Robert Rauschenberg, Jimmy Carter, George Wallace, Donald Trump, Annie Sprinkle and Spider Webb. I’d rather photograph a friend or the average person on the street than a famous person. Perhaps I think they are more real and ultimately, more interesting.
Your images of Coney Island— at least those on your website— are in color. What made you select color for that particular body of work when most of your other images are black-and-white?
With film, I mostly photograph in black-and-white. I prefer it, and still shoot lots of it. I think black-and-white is personal, color pictorial. I achieve more emotion and drama in black-and-white. But I also photographed with slide film, up to 2006 when I finally started to also shoot with a digital camera. So the digital camera has replaced shooting slide film, but not shooting with my Leicas and black-and-white film.
I had two bodies of work for Coney Island, and my editor at W.W. Norton wanted to do the color version for the book. I was happy with this decision since I thought it would get that work out, even though most people thought I only shot in black-and-white. With film only, in the past, I would often shoot with three cameras simultaneously, one Leica with a 21mm lens, one Leica with a 35mm lens (both with black-and-white film), and an SLR Nikon, 24mm lens loaded with slide film. I’m still shooting black-and-white with both Leicas, and color with the digital camera.
In 2011, I will have another book published on my Coney Island work, 40 years of photographs taken in black-and-white. So ultimately, both bodies of work will see the light of day. It’s the best of both worlds, and very satisfying to me.
More recently you took on an added role of curator at the Umbrella Arts Gallery in the East Village in Manhattan. How has this new role affected your own work?
In September of 2009, I was appointed Director of Photography at Umbrella Arts, a gallery on East Ninth Street in Manhattan—one of the prettiest streets in the East Village. It’s a small gem of a gallery and presents photography and painting exhibits in equal measure. I was brought in to initiate, organize and present photography exhibits of both emerging and established photographers.
It’s been a busy and exciting time. I love dealing with people, and find photographers uniformly intelligent, open and creative. I enjoy helping talented photographers to get their art to the public. It’s been fun, the only way it’s affected my own work so far is that it limits the time I have to work on my photography, but I’ll find a balance.
Where do you see your work heading later in 2010 and beyond?
I take things day-to-day, year-by-year; I am patient and persistent. I think these two qualities have helped me survive in the tough but always exciting field of photography. I cannot imagine myself ever not being involved with photography, in one capacity or another. I look forward to making new images. My work is what sustains me, keeps me going, keeps me happy.
I need to shoot more at Coney Island for my new book; I look forward to continuing to photograph for my Ecuador project; and will go to a new country for me—Peru—and perhaps begin a new project.
To see more of Harvey Stein’s images visit www.harveysteinphoto.com
Robert A. Schaefer, Jr. is a fine art photographer whose work is represented by the Domeischel Gallery as well as the private dealer William Floyed, both in New York City. He is also represented by the DeFrog Gallery in Houston, Texas. He writes about photography for various online publications as well as The Photo Review published in Philadelphia, Pa.
March 29th, 2010 by Allison Gibson Posted in Articles, How-To
How-To: A Primer on Long Exposures
Text and Photos by Lynne Eodice
In contrast to using fast shutter speeds to freeze action, using long exposures is a very creative means to convey motion in a photograph. A blurred image can be a very impressionistic rendition of movement, giving the viewer a sense of sensation. This how-to story will cover blurred motion, panning, zooming your lens during an exposure and capturing streaks of light from traffic at night. Experiment with these simple techniques, and have fun getting dramatic images!
Blurring Motion
How much blurring you allow affects the quality of motion the photo conveys. In this image of a waterfall, I used a one-second exposure to make the water look very soft and silky. I was also in the shade, so I could use a longer exposure than had I been in bright sun. Also, the shutter speed you select will depend on how fast your subject is moving. A speeding car can blur at a faster shutter speed, say 1/60 second. In general, the slower the shutter speed, the more blur you’ll get. Speeds slower than 1/30 second will blur motion dramatically, but you’ll want to use a tripod to keep the rest of your photo in sharp focus.
When planning to shoot, keep in mind that the closer you are to your subjects, the more likely they will be to blur. The same is true of subjects moving across your field of vision rather than those approaching you head-on. The fastest-moving parts of a subject will be the most blurred.
Panning
A relatively sharp subject against a blurred background also conveys the feeling of speed. To achieve this effect, you must follow the subject with your camera during an exposure. As this example of a little girl on her scooter shows, panning focuses attention on the subject, while the background is de-emphasized. Panning is a tricky technique, takes practice, and the results are not always predictable. But it’s fun— and definitely worth the effort.
For best results, start tracking the subject from the moment it appears in your viewfinder. Stand firmly with the camera to your eye and rotate the upper part of your body in the direction your subject is moving. When you have the composition you want, release the shutter and continue following your subject in one smooth movement. Panning requires a somewhat slow shutter speed, but the exact speed will depend on the situation and your subject. I used shutter speeds of 1/15 to 1/30 second to photograph this subject.
Taillights & Traffic Streaks
By using a long exposure at night, your camera can record patterns of moving lights that can’t be seen by the human eye. Cars, trains, busses and other motor vehicles are excellent subjects for this technique. The vehicles often move too fast to be recorded on your camera’s sensor during a long exposure, yet their lights leave ribbons of bright colors across the scene. Busy roadways can become rivers of red and white.
It’s best to set up your tripod at locations where the ambient light (from streetlights and buildings) isn’t too strong, and where you can get a good view of fast-moving traffic. I like to shoot from a city sidewalk or on a bridge over a freeway at dusk. Your time exposures will probably be very long— from several seconds up to a minute— so a tripod is important. Use an ISO setting of 100 to 400, and although you’ll be using your camera on shutter priority, try to use very small apertures like f/16 or f/22 to prevent overexposure.
Zoomed Lens Technique
By adjusting the length of your zoom lens during an exposure, you can get some striking effects. The most common result of this technique, called zooming or racking your lens, is the appearance of strong lines radiating out from the center of interest. This can give your pictures a real sense of motion, even with an inanimate subject. Although you can shoot zoomed lens exposures during the daytime, this technique produces exciting patterns of lights at night.
To create a zoomed photo, you must use a slow shutter speed—no faster than 1/30 second and probably longer. I’ve used this technique with and without a tripod, but you’ll want to use one to ensure getting any additional camera movement during the long exposure. Zoom through the full range of focal lengths for maximum results, or zoom your lens just part way if you prefer—you’ll get interesting effects either way. You can zoom from the shortest focal length to the longest, or vice versa.
In a Nutshell:
Blurred Motion
• Use this technique for getting a blurred subject against a sharp background.
• Shutter speeds of 1/8 or slower will give you the most dramatic blur.
Panning
• Follow a subject with your camera during a somewhat long exposure.
• Use this technique to get a relatively sharp subject against a blurred background.
Traffic Streaks
• Taillights and headlights on vehicles will be rendered as ribbons of light.
• Use a tripod and shutter speeds of several seconds to one minute.
Zoomed Lens
• Zoom your lens during a fairly long exposure to get exciting effects.
• Use shutter speeds from at least 1/30 second, and probably longer.
Tags: aperture, blurred motion, exposure, How-To, light, light streaks, long exposure, motion, panning, shutter speed, zoomed lens | 2 Comments »
February 9th, 2010 by Allison Gibson Posted in Articles, How-To
How-To: Shooting in Existing Light
Text and Photos by Lynne Eodice
Some of the best photo opportunities present themselves in situations that would appear to pose lighting challenges, such as outdoors at dusk or dawn, or indoors with window light or artificial illumination. This how-to story provides tips on meeting these challenges without using flash.
Dusk and Dawn
For a half-hour to an hour before the sun rises and after it sets, the sky is filled with soft, beautiful light that has inspired the term magic hour among photographers. Beginning with the first faint light of daybreak, colors in the sky brighten quickly—from cool blue tones to soft pastel shades, and finally, the warm tones preceding sunrise. After sunset, this process takes place again in reverse.
Because you have such a slim window of time in which to shoot, it’s best to scout out a scene that you want to photograph ahead of time. During the shoot, you’ll want to use a tripod (or plan to use a fast ISO setting like 800 or greater if a tripod is not available). You should also use a small aperture like f/8 or f/11 for great depth of field. Check your exposure readings frequently. The darker the scene, the more important it is to bracket your exposures. Long time exposures of several seconds are very likely once the sun goes down.
Dusk is a great time to photograph city skylines. You’ll still have some exciting color in the sky, and the lights from street lamps and buildings will also contribute to creating a truly dramatic photograph. An extra bonus is that if you’re using a very small aperture, like f/11, f/13, or f/16, small points of light in the scene (like street lights) may resemble multi-pointed stars.
Natural Light Indoors
Occasions may arise in which you’ll want to shoot indoors, but aren’t permitted to use flash because of certain restrictions; i.e., weddings in chapels, art galleries, and other public buildings. When shooting indoors with natural light that comes in from outside, use windows or doors that get reflected light from the sky. This light will be directional, but softer and not as intense. Diffused window light may provide flattering illumination when photographing people. If you’re not using flash, you’ll probably need to use a higher ISO reading like 800 or 1600.
If there is a lot of bright light coming in through a window or doorway, you can reduce this contrast by using a secondary source of light, like some sort of reflective material. You can use white poster board, Fome-Cor board (both are available at art supply stores), or a commercial reflector (from your local camera store) to bounce light back into shadowy areas of a person’s face. Whenever possible, you can open a door or curtains to let light in from another direction to fill in shadows.
Your camera’s meter is often fooled by bright areas of direct light from a window, so you may want to switch to your camera’s spot metering mode to get a more accurate reading. Take your spot meter reading from an important part of the scene—like a person’s face or mid-tone object. Use your camera’s exposure-lock feature to hold that reading.
Artificial Indoor Light
Taking pictures with ambient indoor light can be challenging. First of all, you may want to change your Auto White Balance (AWB) setting to match the main light source. Some indoor artificial lighting requires that you switch your White Balance setting to a tungsten setting to correct for incandescent lighting. (But if you like the warm cast created by this light source, use your camera’s AWB setting.)
To photograph a person in a public place, try to position him/her in a place with even indoor lighting, or surround the individual with bright, reflective surfaces. If you’re photographing a subject next to candlelight, the person may appear warmer than he/she would with tungsten lighting. When photographing performers on a stage, you’ll have the challenge of bright lighting on the person or group against a dark background. Use a telephoto lens to bring the performer in closer and switch to your camera’s spot-metering mode to get a reading from the person’s face or clothing.
In a Nutshell:
Dusk or Dawn
• Scout out your scene ahead of time
• Use a tripod for best results
• Photograph the lights of the city balanced with the color of the sky
Natural Light Indoors
• Shoot with reflected light coming in from outdoors
• Use a reflective material to fill in shadows
• Use your camera’s spot-metering feature
Artificial Light Indoors
• Adjust your White Balance setting to match the light source
• Photograph a person in a place that’s evenly lit
• Use a telephoto lens to bring stage performers in close
November 25th, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Articles, Blog
photo © Stefan Baudy (Flickr creative commons)
UPDATE: In order to get several perspectives on our discussion about the future of point-and-shoot cameras (see original post about the topic below), I approached Ed Lee, Director of Consumer Imaging Services Group for InfoTrends to get his “insider’s” take on the issue. He had a lot of great insight, and some very explicit views about the digicam VS camera phone questions we raised, which would be interesting to both people in the camera manufacturing business and camera consumers. Here’s what Ed had to say:
“Point and shoots will continue to hold a strong position in the digital camera market. Camera phones will co-exist. While some people will decide to forego a digital camera and just use the one on their phone, others will be inspired by their camera phone photography to go out and buy a digital still camera. As for sophistication, digital still cameras will continue to offer better features than camera phones because they are dedicated devices and do not have to make compromises because of other product constraints. They also continue to work hard at staying one step ahead of camera phones, for instance, digital still cameras offer 14 MP resolution today and camera phones are just getting into the 5 MP range. Digital cameras have a good flash, which when used drains the battery, something that phones cannot afford to happen, if people want to still use the phone function and have a long idle time between charges. Decent 10 MP digital cameras can be purchased for well under $100 now, so in many instances, the up charge to buy a more fully-featured camera phone will far exceed what an entry-level digital camera will cost. So besides the integration feature, some will not see the benefit of paying the extra money. 5 years from now, it may not matter what device you use to capture the image. The key will be what can you do with the image after capture. That is where the real value begins.”
Now we want to hear what you have to say about this topic. Do you think Ed Lee’s predictions are correct? Do you see yourself continuing to use digital point-and-shoot cameras down the road even as your cell phone’s camera advances it’s technology? Comment below or join the discussion at the DP Facebook Page.
Original Post:
As fans of both the art of photography and the complex tools that help us to capture images–namely cameras–we at Digital Photographer would like to pose a question:
What do you think the future holds for point-and-shoot cameras, when it’s possible that in, say, five years time the cameras built into cell phones will meet the level of shooting sophistication of most consumer level digicams? Will point-and-shoot digital cameras as we know them today become irrelevant or, perhaps, extinct?
So called “instant cameras” have been around on the consumer level since 1948, when the Polaroid Model 95 went on sale (ref. The Impossible Project); and beginning in 1963, the Kodak Instamatic began to make photography accessible to the masses.
As it stands today, there are over 130 new compact digital cameras on the market, offered by Nikon, Canon, Sony, Olympus, Pentax, Samsung, Fujifilm and Kodak, and each of these manufacturers seems to be in a never-ending race to crank out more. Meanwhile, most anyone who owns an Apple iPhone (like myself) would agree that the image quality of the camera feature in the phone is inferior to even the lowest level point-and-shoot digital camera on the market. Sure, the 3MP camera boasts a built-in auto focus (iPhone 3GS) and a tap-induced digital zoom, but most digital cameras being produced by the above named companies come standard with, at the very least, an 8MP image sensor and 3x optical zoom. Oh, and there’s also always a little helpful feature called flash, which the iPhone still lacks. But the iPhone does record video as well as stills–something that a large number of the current point-and-shoot cameras on the market cannot also claim.
Join the discussion by posting a comment with your thoughts here, or at the DP page on Facebook.
Tags: Cameras, Canon, Ed Lee, Fujifilm, future, Infotrends, iPhone, Kodak, Kodak Instamatic, Nikon, Olympus, Pentax, point-and-shoot, Polaroid, questions, Samsung, Sony | 4 Comments »
November 20th, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Articles, Blog
As fans of both the art of photography and the complex tools that help us to capture images–namely cameras–we at Digital Photographer would like to pose a question:
What do you think the future holds for point-and-shoot cameras, when it’s possible that in, say, five years time the cameras built into cell phones will meet the level of shooting sophistication of most consumer level digicams? Will point-and-shoot digital cameras as we know them today become irrelevant or, perhaps, extinct?
So called “instant cameras” have been around on the consumer level since 1948, when the Polaroid Model 95 went on sale (ref. The Impossible Project); and beginning in 1963, the Kodak Instamatic began to make photography accessible to the masses.
As it stands today, there are over 130 new compact digital cameras on the market, offered by Nikon, Canon, Sony, Olympus, Pentax, Samsung, Fujifilm and Kodak, and each of these manufacturers seems to be in a never-ending race to crank out more. Meanwhile, most anyone who owns an Apple iPhone (like myself) would agree that the image quality of the camera feature in the phone is inferior to even the lowest level point-and-shoot digital camera on the market. Sure, the 3MP camera boasts a built-in auto focus (iPhone 3GS) and a tap-induced digital zoom, but most digital cameras being produced by the above named companies come standard with, at the very least, an 8MP image sensor and 3x optical zoom. Oh, and there’s also always a little helpful feature called flash, which the iPhone still lacks. But the iPhone does record video as well as stills–something that a large number of the current point-and-shoot cameras on the market cannot also claim.
Join the discussion by posting a comment with your thoughts here, or at the DP page on Facebook.
Tags: Cameras, Canon, Fujifilm, future, iPhone, Kodak, Kodak Instamatic, Nikon, Olympus, Pentax, point-and-shoot, Polaroid, questions, Samsung, Sony | 2 Comments »
November 9th, 2009 by Debbi K. Swanson Patrick Posted in Articles, Blog, Politics in Photography
Fort Hood Tribute
Debbi K. Swanson Patrick
This photo was taken by Martin Howard, a retired Lt. Col. and pathologist from the US Army in Mississippi. I saw it on Flickr and felt it instantly conveyed the feelings of the Fort Hood rampage last week that left 12 soldiers, one civilian, and one unborn baby dead—and the shooter in the hospital. The questions are endless about the making of this tragedy—Who missed the signs? What was the final straw? How long had this been building? Were there terrorists ties? What is the Army and other armed services going to do about it? In the meantime, there are soldiers, husbands, sons, brothers, daughters, wives, and a soon-to-be-mother, to mourn.
Here is retired Lt. Col. Howard’s story:
I served in the US Army in Iraq in 2004 with the Mississippi National Guard. I was briefly at Fort Hood during my Reserve duty in 1999. I look upon all soldiers here and abroad as my brothers and sisters. These VOLUNTEERS are the finest people I have ever known in my life. I am continually amazed at the sacrifices these young people make on our behalf. The tragedy touched me as it occurred here in America, on a base, where they should have felt safe one last time. Their loss is no less tragic than those a world away but it reinforces the resolve we must have even at home.
As for the photo, I took my boots outside to compose a tribute for the troops to post on Flickr to remind everyone to pray for the victims. The sun was just rising as I set the boots and flag on the ground to get my camera. The scene just made itself. I used a small flash on the boots but the whole shot was done in 3 or 4 takes.
Martin Howard, MD
LT COL, US ARMY (ret)
Here is a list of the deceased.
September 9th, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Articles, Blog, Photo Essays
The Station Fire, shot at the top of Lake Avenue in Altadena, CA
all photos © Lynne Eodice
Stunning images of the Los Angeles area Station Fire have been circulating for weeks now online and in newspapers, as area residents and professional photographers alike seek to capture the drama of the blaze that has devistated homes and even taken the lives of brave firefighters here in Southern California. Digital Photographer editor and professional photographer, Lynne Eodice, happens to live very close to the area where a majority of the fire was concentrated last week, and captured the following images with her Canon EOS 5D Mark II full-frame D-SLR using a Canon EF 100-300mm lens on August 29, 2009, just a couple miles from her home. See more of Lynne’s photos of the fire after the jump…
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Altadena, CA, Canon, Canon5DMarkII, fire, Los Angeles, Lynne Eodice, photo essay, photographs, photography, smoke, Station Fire | 1 Comment »
August 31st, 2009 by Tony Gomez Posted in Articles, Digital Insider, News
f you are planning to purchase a new digital camera or D-SLR anytime soon, be sure to see our Editors’ Picks article in this issue. And after you get your new camera, don’t forget about all those wonderful accessories that can make your digital imaging experience more exciting and fun. These accessories can range anywhere from external hard drives (now so common and very inexpensive), to a bag (or bags) to protect all your newly acquired gear, and new software to make your digital image captures more creative. Of course, I have to mention a camera in this column as well— after all, Nikon has just announced a new flagship D-SLR. Read on.
Seagate External USB Hard Drives
If you are like me, you are suffering from too many digital images consuming precious storage space on your home computer. Traditionally, if you needed more space, the solution would be to update the internal hard drive in your computer to a much higher capacity model— up to 1 Terabyte (1000 GB) is very common today. But that involves the hassle and inconvenience of shutting down your computer, removing an existing hard drive, installing a new one, reinstalling all your programs (and also the Windows OS if it’s on the drive you are replacing which is not without its own idiosyncrasies like getting the software re-authorized). In short, it’s a HUGE hassle. The better solution today is to go with one of the external high capacity USB drives.
In my opinion, one of the best external hard drive manufactures is Seagate (www.seagate.com). If you didn’t know it, Seagate is a household name in selling replacement drives for internal upgrade use, but they also make a wide variety of USB type external drives. These external USB drives have got to be the easiest way to expand your hard drive capacity. Just connect the drives up to your USB port, and away you go— no re-installation necessary.
All of the models in the FreeAgent hard drive series from Seagate work with USB2.0, and are backwards compatible with standard USB. Each FreeAgent drive is available in three model types: Go, Desk, and Extreme. The Go model drives are ultra-compact and available in 250GB ($120), 320GB ($150), and 500GB ($200) capacities, and come in ten cool colors (think pink, ruby red, orange, spring green, forest green, royal blue, sky blue, champagne gold, titanium silver and tuxedo black). An optional desktop dock and travel kit make the Go series practical for mobile or desktop applications. The Desk series models are available in 500GB ($130), 640GB ($150), 1TB ($200), and 1.5TB ($250) capacities. At the top of the line, the Extreme FreeAgent drives come in 500GB ($160), 640GB ($180), 1TB ($230), and 1.5TB ($280) capacities.
In addition to USB2, the Extreme models also sport eSATA and Firewire 400 ports for the maximum flexibility in connectability. I am constantly running up against the 1TB limit of my internal hard drive for stored images, so the FreeAgent Desk and Extreme models gave me blessed relief. From my personal experience, these two advanced models are without a doubt the easiest way to expand the capacity of your internal hard drives. For more advanced users with eSATA (Serial ATA interface) ports on their computers, the Extreme series run at top speed, capable of file transfers 6X faster than using USB2. FreeAgent drives are also available in pre-formatted Mac versions as well.
Toshiba External USB Hard Drives
Toshiba is another one of those companies well known for making internal hard drives for laptops and desktop computers, but until now it’s kind of been a big secret. Well now they are coming on strong as a supplier of high quality external USB2 hard drives. Toshiba (www.toshibadirect.com) offers three different capacities— 400GB ($180), 320GB ($160), and 250GB ($130). These models are very compact (.65” H x 3.2” W x 5” L), lightweight (about 6oz), and are available in a variety of colors: electric blue, black, carbon grey, hot rod red and gecko green. Also pre-loaded on each drive is NTI’s Shadow software, which allows for hassle-free file backup. The drives are compatible with Windows XP/Vista and Mac OS 10.3.9 or later.
New Camera Bags from Lowepro and M-Rock
For years I have been known as the “bag man” around the office here, and for good reason. I am constantly on the move with cameras, lenses, and other accessories that need continuous protection. If you think about it, a good carrying bag is just about the best, most inexpensive investment you can make in the care and well being of your equipment. Two of my favorite bag manufacturers are Lowepro and M-Rock. Lowepro is the most seasoned veteran, but M-Rock is coming up very strong as an alternative source of quality bags.
Lowepro’s Classified AW series (www.lowepro.com) are designed for hardworking photojournalists. They are available in four different models based on size: 140, 160, 200, and the 250. The fast-access main compartment with an angled opening makes camera or lens selection fast and secure.
If you’re into ecologically “green” products, you’ll love Lowepro’s new Terraclime series of multi-purpose bags. Terraclime series bags are made from more than 95% recycled products. The Terraclime series is available in four models—10, 30, and 50 pouches, and the100 shoulder bag. Each model is also available in three colors: black, plum, or grass. Terraclime bags provide durable, soft-sided protection for a variety of cameras, D-SLRs, and other digital gear.
Some of you might be serious nature photographers, and that generally means you have an assortment of super telephoto lenses. The 600mm lens is considered a staple in telephoto lenses for nature photography. The only problem is how to carry such a long, heavy lens. Lowepro comes to the rescue with its Lens Trekker 600 AWII lens carrying case. The Lens Trekker AW carries not only a huge 600mm lens safely, but also your D-SLR body.
M-Rock (www.m-rock.com) recently sent me a couple of their latest offerings to test— the Zion 525 Laptop/backpack and the 516 Glacier. What I like about the Zion 525 is that it’s compartmentalized up the max for storing several digital cameras and lenses, and has a protected space at the back for up a 15-inch laptop computer. It all fits quite nicely on my back. The Glacier 516 is more of a conventional shoulder-carrying bag, with spacers and dividers for a single D-SLR and an assortment of lenses. It comes in two additional sizes— 515 and 517.
M-Rock also sent me a unique water hydration system called the Great Lakes 550. It’s actually a water bladder with a tube and mouthpiece and comes in a neoprene case with an insulated lining. It fits inside the rear compartment of the Zion and McKinley bags, but it can also be used separately. The bladder is easy to fill with water, or another liquid you might wish to drink while hiking on your photography excursion. Drinking is a simple matter of sucking through the provided plastic hose, and the valve seals to prevent leakage.
onOne Photoshop Plug-In Suite 4.5
onOne Software (www.ononesoftware.com) has long been a leader in releasing software plug-ins. While these plug-in software tools are targeted towards use with Adobe Photoshop, they will work equally well with Adobe’s Lightroom 2 and Apple’s Aperture 2. The plug-ins work on both Windows and Mac platforms.
The powerful plug-ins in the Plug-In Suite 4.5 include:
Genuine Fractals 6 Professional Edition (PE), which resizes digital images over 1000% with no claimed loss of detail or sharpness. PhotoTools 2 PE utilizes the power of Photoshop Actions to provide a complete library of effects created by Kevin Kubota and Jack Davis. PhotoFrame 4 PE creates stunning border and edge effects. Mask Pro 4.1 creates high-quality masks and selections even from tough subjects like hair and glass, making it easy to place a subject in a new background. PhotoTune 2.2 provides professional-quality color correction in an easy-to-use interface. PhotoTune 2.2 includes ColorTune for general color correction and SkinTune for color correcting skin tones accurately. FocalPoint 1.0 simulates selective focus or tilt-shift lenses, helping photographers blur and/or vignette an image to focus a viewer’s attention. Plug-In Suite 4.5 is now available to new users for about $500. This represents a total savings of almost $800 if each of the applications were purchased separately.
Nikon’s Capture NX2 Software
You don’t normally associate Nikon with software, but due to a co-development with Nik Software, Nikon has released a very powerful image processing application— Capture NX2 (www.nikonusa.com), which rivals Adobe Photoshop in many instances, and in some cases is much easier to use— without the learning curve of Photoshop. Capture NX2 works with Nikon NEF RAW files (no other manufacturer’s RAW files, however), but more importantly with all other manufacturers TIFF and JPEG files.
Capture NX2 utilizes revolutionary U Point technology (developed by Nik) to give photographers access to powerful Control Points that enhance color, exposure, and other image quality settings quickly and easily. This is a much easier process than using masks and layers with Photoshop. Capture NX2 works on both Windows (XP or Vista) or Mac platforms (OS 10.4 or higher) and is available for $179.95 (full version) or $109.95 (upgrade). A 60-day free trial version is also available.
Nikon’s new “Extreme D-SLR”— The D3X
If you’re a professional into no-holes-barred digital photography, you just might be interested in Nikon’s latest D-SLR— an extreme version of its flagship D3— the D3X (www.nikonusa.com). Like the D3, it sports the FX format full-frame sensor, so you achieve every bit of performance your lens offers without the focal length magnification issue. You also get an extreme resolution of 24.5 Megapixels, which is DOUBLE that of the D3! More importantly, this camera is wicked fast, capable of capturing extreme resolution images at speeds up to five frames/second. This is a very powerful tool for commercial, high fashion, fine art, and landscape photographers.
For the ultimate in flexibility, image files can be recorded in TIFF, JPEG, or NEF (Nikon’s proprietary RAW format), in either 12-bit or 14-bit compressed or uncompressed formats. Low noise capture is possible at ISO settings as high as 6400. This low noise ISO feature will be a boon to professional studio photographers, who until now had to be restricted to using larger format digital cameras to achieve a noise-free capture for large image blow-ups. Low noise capture with high ISO can help capture compelling images under extremely low light conditions. Twin CompactFlash slots are available, and the faster UDMA writing speed standard is supported. Like everything else in this high tech world we enjoy, professional performance has its price. The new Nikon D3X retails for about $8,000, body only.
