The Weekly Wrap-up compiles interesting articles published this week on Photofocus. This week we learned about the rule of thirds, how to use the whites and blacks sliders in Lightroom, lens choices, shutter speed and attracting clients.
Why are there so many lens choices? - Why are there so many lens choices for your camera? The simple answer is that every photographer sees the world differently requiring the use of different focal length lenses. Different photographers, different lens choice For example, landscape photographers typically use wide-angle lenses, in the 10mm to 24mm range. This allows the photographer to create expansive images that are sharp from the foreground to the background. Wildlife photographers typically shoot with super telephoto lenses, 400mm and longer, as they are unable to get close to their subjects. At times, they also like to shoot very tight. Portrait photographers are known to use midrange telephoto lens, around 85mm-100mm. Faces look better when shot in that range. Distortions are minimized as well as some of the compression experienced with a longer telephoto lens. Photographers shooting insects, flowers and food may prefer a macro lens so they can get very close to their subjects, showing minute details. Lenses typically range from 55mm to 180mm. Night sky photographers recommend wide-angle, “fast” lenses, as the sky is expansive and very dark. There are even specialty lens such as the Lensbaby lenses, which provide the photographer creative soft focus options. Architectural and food photographers use tilt-shift lenses to better control perspective in an image. Some photographers enjoy going ultrawide, with a fish-eye lens. No simple answers As you may have probably guessed, there are no simple answers. Yes, a portrait photographer may typically use a midrange telephone lens, but a portrait photographer may also prefer a wide-angle lens, capturing an image of a person in the environment. A landscape photographer may decide to shoot a mountain close-up, showing its peak in morning fog. No matter what type of photographs a photographer may make, he or she may thus prefer to have available a variety of lens in the camera bag. Zoom vs. prime There is also another choice for photographers: zoom vs prime (fixed focal length) lenses. When I bought my first SLR camera I could only afford a 50mm lens. I aspired to own a zoom lens and was thrilled when I could afford to finally buy one. My zoom lenses made life easy. I carried just one or two lens to get a full range of focal lengths. The problem with zoom lenses, I eventually concluded, is that they can be big, heavy and conspicuous. Image quality was sometimes an issue at either end of the zoom range. I also had to work very hard to get a sharp image if I was hand-holding my camera in low light, using a slow shutter speed. I found I could not rely upon stabilization features within the lens. A few years ago I sold the last of my zoom lenses and totally converted to fixed-focal length, “prime” lenses. I realized I didn’t need to always have a range of focal lengths available to me. There would always be missed shots, no matter what lens I had on my camera. My goal now is to just shoot the best image I can with whatever lens I choose to put on my camera. Why do I love my prime lenses? My success rate of high quality, sharp images with my primes exceeds the success rate I experienced with my zoom lens. In addition, my primes travel easy as they are smaller and lighter. They are very fast, producing great images in low light, even without a tripod. The lenses are not intimidating for street or portrait photography. A high quality prime lens is also usually much less expensive than a high quality zoom lens. Lenses for fixed focal length cameras Surprisingly there are lenses for fixed focal length cameras. My Fuji X100F, for example, has a focal length equivalent to 35mm. However, I am able to screw on one of two Fuji conversion lenses to change the focal length. One lens enables me to shoot at the equivalent of 28mm and the other at 50mm. Third-party lenses Even once a decision is made regarding a lens to buy, there may also be an option of whether or not to buy it from a third-party manufacturer such as Sigma or Tamron. Third party lens may be lesser priced or offer preferable features over a lens made by the manufacturer of your camera. What to do? So you are a new photographer with limited funds. What to do … so many choices? Most importantly evaluate your photographic needs and your budget carefully. What type of lenses would you use the most? Do you want the ease of a zoom lens or the portability, quality and low profile of a prime? What features are important to you? Read the reviews on your lens choices. Ask the sales staff at a camera store, such as B&H Photo. Rent the lens and try it out for a few days. Also, think about buying a used lens with a warranty, from a reputable seller, versus buying new. Maybe you will be able to buy the lens you rented, applying the rental cost to the price of the lens. And if you buy a lens and later decide you have made a mistake, do not despair. Consider it a lesson learned, sell your lens or trade it in for the lens you wished you had bought.
Understanding exposure: The shutter speed setting - Exposure is the process of choosing the correct settings on your camera to produce a picture that “looks right;” not too bright, not too dark, and sharp where it should be. In this series, you will learn what each setting means, how they affect the way your images look, and how they work together to create an image that matches your creative ideas. In this article, we dive into the shutter speed setting, what it represents, and how to use it in your photography. What is the shutter? The shutter is like a door in front of your sensor or film in your camera. When you press the button on your camera to take a picture, this door opens, letting light hit the sensor (or film). The longer this door is open, the more light is allowed to hit the sensor, creating a brighter image. Traditionally, the shutter was a mechanical device that literally opens up to expose the sensor or film to light. While mechanical only versions are still used in many DSLRs, as technology evolves these are being replaced with hybrid electromechanical or fully electronic shutters that power-on the sensor. If you a have “Live View” of some form on your camera you are seeing an electronic shutter at work. Shutter speed The length of time the shutter is open is termed the “shutter speed,” this along with the other two sides of the triangle above, aperture and ISO determine your exposure. Most often your shutter speed will be measured in fractions of a second. However, instead of showing the number as a fraction, most camera systems will display this setting as a number like 50 or 200 or 400, dropping the “1/” to save space on your display. If this number has a quote mark after it, that represents whole seconds. A number like 5″ or 30″ would represent a 5 or 30-second exposure, otherwise, assume it’s a fraction. Motion blur In addition to image brightness, the main effect of shutter speed is on how a subject in motion appears in your photos. Anything that moves during the time the shutter is open will appear as a blur from the point where it started at the shutter opening to the point is when the shutter closes. While this blur will be relatively unnoticeable at fast shutter speeds, the longer the shutter is open, the more extreme this blur appears. While there are many types of blurs in photography, the shutter mainly deals with motion blur, and either freezing or exaggerating it. This blur can also be caused by your movements too. Let’s say you are taking a picture of a landscape, which is not moving. But it is in low light, you didn’t feel like using your tripod, and you thought that a triple espresso before the shoot was a perfect “pick me up.” At longer shutter speeds any shake or other motions you impart to the camera will also blur the image. But the blur will appear in the directions you are shaking or shimmying, instead of the direction your subject was moving. Combine your espresso fueled self with a moving subject and odds are very against you producing a sharp image. This isn’t to say that blur is always a bad thing. Blurs can be used to great artistic effect to set mood, express motion, or create unique effects. Although it may be a touch cliché, think of the dreamy silky look popular in waterfall photography. This is accomplished by using a long exposure causing the water cascading down to appear as a blur, while the motionless rocks appear sharply in focus. “Pan blurs” are another artistic effect, panning with a subject, but at just a slow enough shutter speed that while they appear sharp, the rest of the scene appears blurred, giving a sense of motion. Shutter speed in the real world To put this idea of blur and freezing action in to real world concepts, let’s use one of my favorite wildlife subjects as an example, Sandhill Cranes. Although they are big, these feathered friends of ours can move fairly quickly. A sandhill crane typically flies between 25-35 miles per hour. I can fly as slowly as 15 mph and as fast as 50 mph. Doing a quick bit of math and unit conversions, if our crane is moving at a leisurely 20 mph, it’s still covering about 30 feet per second*. And these guys are not the fastest critters out there by any stretch! (For my fellow Monty Python fans, the crane is unladed, and no coconuts were harmed in this example). This is where shutter speed becomes crucial. Let’s say that a sandhill crane flies across the scene in front of you. At long (slow) shutter speeds you are capturing that animal from the moment the shutter opens to the moment it closes. Any movement is perceived as blur, from the point it started in the frame to the point it ends up. If you have a 1 second shutter speed, and the camera is locked in position, you will have a streak of gray stretching 30 feet through your scene. If you use a high (fast) shutter speed, like 1/2000th of a second, you will freeze motion, as the sandhill doesn’t move very far in this amount of time, only about 1/8th of an inch. Of course, this is all assuming you aren’t panning, or tracking the crane with your camera. In action photography the combination of smooth panning, long lens technique, and proper camera holding are critical skills to learn and to practice regularly. With these you can minimize the appearance of blur to some degree by matching your pan speed to the speed of your subject, making them appear more motionless against their motion blurred background. But, using our one second exposure example, even if you are moving fairly smoothly the odds are very slim that you perfectly match the cranes speed through a long exposure. Any variation will
How to attract and keep more clients - Being a photographer obviously implies taking pictures. But being a photographer also requires many other skills in order to be successful. Some of those skills are not about photography. They make a huge difference between a struggling business and a thriving one. Here are the ones I use to grow my photographic business. Surprising facts that are NOT about your photography skills We’ve all seen great photographers with amazing creativity having a hard time getting contracts. On the opposite side, we’ve also seen very “average” photographers with extremely busy schedules. How can this be? Photography is, first of all, a service — and those services are being bought by people. In order to run a successful business, we need to be able to do more than pretty pictures. We need great social aptitudes! Connecting with people A lot of my best clients were complete strangers who became friends. Over time, by listening to each other and sharing our experiences, we’ve built a trust relationship. Honestly, I treat my clients (a word that I don’t tend to use very much) pretty much the same way as I treat my friends. I’d rather talk about “partnership”, “projects” and a “teamwork” rather than “mandates” and “contracts” — because that’s how I see it. We share a common goal that we both want to realize. Someone has enough confidence in me as a person AND as a photographer will work with me. The opposite is also true. Lots of time, I’ve chosen to work with someone in particular, not necessarily because of his or her superior competences but because I had a good feeling and I knew we’d get along. Most of the time (if not all the time) my gut is right. It’s not a tangible skill but I know you’ve certainly already experienced it yourself too. Being efficient So you did a photoshoot and your client is expecting his proofs? How long will it take you to provide them to him? I make it a point of honor to start and complete a contract as efficiently as I can, from the negotiation to the photoshoot to the editing and the final delivery. And frankly, between you and me, when I have too many things on my plate at once, I can hardly keep my interest level up for all of them. As the old saying goes “it is best to strike while the iron is hot”! Responding to emails/calls When someone sends me an email, I respond to him/her. Not 2 months later, not 2 weeks later. I make it a priority to respond within a 24-hour window. If I am busy and don’t have time to write a complete response, I’ll reply and tell them I’ve got their email, took good note of it and will come back with a more in-depth response within “X” amount of days – depending on my schedule. Following-up How do you like when a friend or a client tells you they’ll send you info… and you are still waiting for it? You know how frustrating that is. Please, don’t be this kind of professional. I like to send reminders the day prior to a photoshoot. That way I make sure everything’s fine, that they haven’t forgotten and that when I’ll show up, they’ll show up too. Being respectful I shouldn’t really have to say it because it’s the base of everything. Being respectful to everybody in life is the first key to successful relationships. FUN is the name of the game Nobody is excited about a burdensome day. Even when working on more serious contracts, it’s important to remember to have fun. I want people to feel good around me because it makes me feel good too. Darn it, if I’m doing photography, it’s because I love it and I really enjoy it! If I’m having fun, my clients are having fun. We spend a great time together. If it is fun for them, they’ll want to live this experience again — and so will I! Remember, photography isn’t only about the pictures. It’s about a person (you) offering his services to another person (your client). One of your jobs is to make each photoshoot an exciting, fun unforgettable experience? In the end, this experience is what will set you apart, create valuable relationships and ultimately, help you attract and keep more clients.
How to use the whites & black sliders in Lightroom - Right there in the middle of the Basic panel are two mysterious controls bearing the names “Whites” and “Blacks.” What do they do? More to the point, how are they used? First, let’s explore clipping. What is clipping? Simply, clipping is the area of a photo that is pure white or pure black. Not everything in an image is meant to show detail. There are areas where detail must appear in both their highlights and shadows. Other areas want to be completely white or black. The “Whites” and “Blacks” are how to set the brightest white and darkest black while seeing where detail will be lost. Frankly, these are the two controls I use first, on every photograph. Often they are the only exposure adjustments I make. The Whites control There are parts of a photograph that aren’t going to have detail, nor are they supposed to. The reflection of the sun in a chrome bumper on a classic car, the light streaming into a room on a bright clear sky day or spotlights in a retail store. In the Beetle example, here’s what the Whites look like before adjusting the Whites and Blacks. Let’s dig into the opening photo of the classic Volkswagen Beetle. The areas that you would expect to see go to pure white or completely black are outlined in red. Visual adjustment This one is so easy to use. Hold down the Option key (Windows: Alt key) and click the Whites slider. The preview goes black except for those areas that are pure white in the photo. Note that the Beetle’s hood highlights are dots, not the long strips seen in the original. Move the slider to the right. The whites grow from the black preview. As soon as the brightest highlights are showing on the screen release the mouse. Tip: Preview the effect by releasing then pressing Option/Alt. Areas that appear white in the preview are completely white in the photo. An area that shows only red, for example, is saying that the reds are as bright as they can be. This says “there is no detail in the reds.” The Blacks adjustment Some shadows are going to be black. The inside of the tire and the shadow underneath the car are examples. The Blacks slider works the same way as the Whites with two exceptions. Hold down the Option key (Windows: Alt key) then click the Blacks control. This time the preview turns white. Move the slider to the left to make the areas that are supposed to be black actually black. Black areas in the white preview are black. Pure black. No detail at all. A color that shows in this preview is as dark as it can be. Zero detail. So if an area is shown in blue, to pick a color, that blue is completely gone. There simply is no blue there. The neglected adjustments Most photographers mistake the Whites and Blacks controls for contrast adjustment. They are not, although moving the black slider to the left a lot seems like it. The Contrast slider controls contrast. These two set the brightest and darkest areas of a photograph. My primary controls I find that these two sliders have become the ones I use the most on properly exposed photos. It’s easy to see where detail is needed in an image. Highlights have to be white. Shadows, where no detail is needed, have to be black. Beware of this one though. It is super tempting to horse the Blacks to be, well, black. Once the raw file is converted to pixels those shadows are locked in as blocked up. They cannot be effectively lightened. Look at the white preview for the Blacks slider. Release the Option/Alt key. Is the area that is showing as black supposed to be that dark? Do you really want the auburn hair behind the model’s ear to be completely black? Probably not. The two photos below are the original from the camera on the left and with only the Whites and Blacks modifications on the right. The difference is dramatic. Check out these two tools. I know you’ll love the results.
Understanding composition, with the rule of thirds - When it comes to photographic composition, one of the most well-known “rules” is known as the “rule of thirds.” Many photographers dismiss the rule of thirds as being overly simplistic and not always applicable in the real world of photography. However, if we consider the underlying principles behind the rule of thirds, I think you will find it is a good concept to keep in mind when framing up a scene with your camera. The basic concept The underlying principle of the rule of thirds involves dividing the scene you are photographing into equal thirds, both horizontally and vertically. The key subject you are photographing should then be placed along one of the virtual lines that divide the frame into thirds. So, if you are photographing a hot-air balloon set against a clear blue sky, you might frame the scene so that the balloon appears one third of the way from the left edge of the frame. In other words, the balloon will be positioned along one of the lines that divides the image into thirds, in this case horizontally. Taking this concept a step further, you might position the key subject at the intersection of a horizontal and a vertical line dividing the image into thirds. In other words, the subject would be positioned near one of the corners of the image. The real point of the rule of thirds From my perspective, the real point of the rule of thirds doesn’t really have anything to do with dividing the frame into three sections horizontally and vertically. After all, there isn’t anything especially magical about a line positioned one-third of the way from the edge of the frame. One of the most important aspects of the rule of thirds isn’t about the “thirds,” but rather about the notion of not placing the key subject right at the center of the frame. In other words, having the key subject off-center in the frame can provide a better sense of balance for a composition. Taking the concept behind the rule of thirds a bit further, it is worth keeping in mind that you don’t need to be precise about always placing your key subject along one of the virtual lines that divide an image into thirds. In many cases you can put that key subject even further away from the center of the frame with excellent results. The key is to generally avoid having the prominent subject (or even the horizon line) at the exact center of the frame. Which third? A corollary to the rule of thirds relates to providing space for a subject to look or move toward. For example, if a subject is looking toward the left, it is best to have more open space on the left side of the image than on the right side. Otherwise there may be a feeling of tension because the subject seems to be looking out of the frame. Similarly, with a moving subject you will generally want to have more space ahead of that direction of movement. So if a bird in flight is traveling from left to right, you would want more space on the right side of the frame than on the left, so the subject has space to move. In some cases you may not have a subject looking or moving in a particular direction, but you still want to follow the rule of thirds. In that case you will want to consider which portion of the scene is more interesting or unique. Often you can make a decision based on what inspired you to photograph the scene in the first place. If the sky is what caught your eye, for example, you will probably want to include more sky than foreground when composing your photo. So, when framing up a scene while keeping the rule of thirds in mind, it is important to remember that it often isn’t enough to simply place a key subject in a “thirds” position, but to choose the right position based on the direction the subject is looking or moving. The rule of thirds: not really a rule! I actually don’t like that the rule of thirds is known as a “rule” unless I also keep in mind the old saying that “rules are made to be broken.” First, I think it is important to keep in mind that in some cases it can absolutely work great to have the key subject or horizon line centered in the frame. While it is generally best to avoid this approach, for some situations the best composition calls for ignoring the rule of thirds and positioning the subject at the center of the frame. In addition, sometimes having the subject looking or moving out of the frame works well. It might simply provide the best overall framing of the scene, or provide tension that adds to the mood for a photo. Having a subject looking out of frame can also create a sense of curiosity in the viewer, as they wonder what it is that the subject is looking at. The reason the rule of thirds is one of the most well-known rules of composition in photography is that in most cases it represents good advice. However, it is important to keep in mind that sometimes it might make perfect sense to break the rule of thirds, or at least to bend the rule a little bit so you aren’t focusing on always placing a subject along a virtual line defining one-third segments for every photo you compose.
