Posts Tagged ‘Tips’
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
January 18th, 2010 by Allison Gibson Posted in Blog, Tips
Starting today, optics company, Tamron, is beginning a new video learning series. The “DSLR Know-How” videos will air on Tamron’s YouTube channel every Monday for 12 weeks. The videos are geared toward first-time Digital SLR owners, according to Tamron, but are “also likely to appeal to a broad spectrum of shooters including experienced enthusiasts, and those who simply want to get a better handle on all the exciting features built into their new Digital SLR cameras.” Episode One, which was released today, features professional photographer, Andre Costantini, giving a very brief overview of the “physics of photography”—a capture device, shutter and aperture. While this first episode was not very in-depth in terms of tips, I suspect those that follow will be, now that they’ve gotten that introduction out of the way.
December 30th, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Blog
- Tip from a Pro: Professional photographer, Larry Lytle, gives an in-depth tutorial on using studio lighting.
- Winter shooting tips from Olympus photographer, Jay Kinghorn.
- DP’s tips and insights on photographing children in a developing country.
- Tips for brilliant photos of fireworks from Olympus.
- Tips for capturing the colors of Autumn.
- Tips from a travel photographer- from the New York Times.
We also had a lot of helpful how-to tips in the magazine this year, including tips for: Producing High Dynamic Range (HDR) photos, capturing the essence of winter scenes, and ten things to avoid when shooting—in the Digital Photographer winter 2009 issue; understanding the basics of resolution, image quality and zoom—in the Digital Photographer spring 2009 issue; shooting photos underwater—in the Digital Photographer summer 2009 issue; and photographing cemeteries and shooting in low-light—in the Digital Photographer fall 2009 issue.
December 16th, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Blog, Midweek Photo News Roundup, News
photo © ellie (Flickr creative commons)
It’s Wednesday afternoon and all that most people can think about is how many days, hours, minutes remain until the weekend. But not you, you’re a photographer! You’re never bored, but are always plotting your next photo shoot or researching the new D-SLR you’ve had your eye on. We’re right there with you, friend. To keep the wild world of photography on your mind midweek, here’s our roundup of what’s been happening in it lately.
- Gizmodo is displaying the winners and all of the 107 Dazzling Christmas Lights entrants from their latest shooting challenge.
- An amateur photographer in the UK was questioned by police under anti-terror laws for taking “too many” pictures of Christmas lights.
- The New York Institute of Photography is sharing tips on how to take great photos of holiday lights.
- Bokeh effect Holiday lights photos abound on Flickr this year. Check them out for inspiration!
October 27th, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Blog, Tips
photo © Robert Caplin, via The New York Times
The New York Times‘ Matt Gross recently featured a Q&A with travel photographer Robert Caplin in his “Frugal Traveler” column. Caplin’s images have been published in National Geographic, ESPN The Magazine and The New York Times, and in the discussion with The Frugal Traveler, he talks about shooting with a Canon 5D Mark II as well as an iPhone, and names the Canon G11 as his go-to point-and-shoot if he had to spend under $500 for a camera.
One of my favorite exchanges is below. Click here to read the full Frugal Traveler/Robert Caplin Q&A.
October 16th, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Blog, Tips
I recently returned from an 11-day, 1,500 mile driving tour of New England, which took me across six states (which is a big deal to a California native because here you can drive nearly 1,000 miles just going from one end of the state to the other) and I got to see a few burgeoning signs of what is considered “Fall Foliage Season” in that region of the country (see my photo above). It is an annual endeavor for many professional and amateur photographers from across the country to capture the colors of fall, so it’s great that Olympus is sharing some helpful tips for doing so at the peak of this beautiful season. My favorite tip is below. Click here to see the whole story by Olympus.
Use Exposure Creatively
On a clear sunny day, you can take pictures of the red and yellow autumn colors against the blue sky. On a cloudy day, try using exposure compensation to give the impression of a painting. Set the exposure compensation more towards the + (positive) side and the details of the cloudy sky will disappear and become white. When the sky turns white, the autumn colored leaves will appear in the picture as if painted on a white canvas.
July 1st, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Blog, Tips
photo by mrpattersonsir (creative commons)
Olympus is sharing some great tips for photographing fireworks just in time for the 4th of July. My favorite tip is below. Click here to see the whole story by Olympus.
Create a trail of lights with a sparkler
Experiment with your camera’s Night Scene+Portrait mode to capture amazing photos of light trails. This Scene Mode will fire a flash to illuminate your subject – but it will also keep the shutter open long enough to capture a light trail.
*If your camera does not have Fireworks Scene Mode or Night Scene+Portrait, your best alternative is to try Night Mode while using a tripod.
June 12th, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Articles, Blog, Tips
I recently came across this post by cashewman called “13 Tips for Great Photography in a Developing Country” (via BoingBoing) and it got me to thinking about the times I’ve shot scenes of life in a developing country. Over the past few years, I have spent time visiting the orphanages of Tijuana and Baja California, and always bring my camera along for the trips. Whereas in the U.S., photographing children is fragile and often dangerous ground for photographers to trample, even for those of us with the best intentions, in Mexico the children and their guardians seem to welcome the chance for little ones to be in front of the lens. However, there are two things about photography that I have learned over the years that have helped me to understand the true experience of these orphaned children even better.
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January 30th, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Tips
Olympus tapped digital imaging consultant Jay Kinghorn to share some great tips for shooting in the harsh elements that winter can bring. In the article, Kinghorn details the process of winter-time shooting from what to wear to boosting ISO speed. My favorite tip is below. Click here to see the whole story by Olympus.
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January 26th, 2009 by Allison Gibson Posted in Tips
Rather than gather up virtual tips from various photo magazines, websites and blogs, and then regurgitate that information back to you in the form of a “tip” from DP, I’ve decided to seek out the best of the best in the professional photography world and have them deliver an authentic, hand-crafted tip especially for DP readers. To kick off our “Tip From A Pro” section, I’ve tapped Los Angeles photographer Larry Lytle to give you an in-depth how-to on studio lighting. Larry is a prolific commercial and fine art photographer. I’m sure you have seen his work, whether you knew it or not. One of his most notable commercial pieces was the poster for the “Psycho” remake in 1998, which he won a Hollywood Reporter Key Art Award for.
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