Timless

There is a saying in the digital world, "it isn't a photo until it is printed". Although I disagree it isn't a photo until it is printed, I do agree there is nothing like holding a print of your favorite image.

I call this image timeless because it represents three generations of hands. I was shooting an event and noticed the three generations of hands embracing and felt a timelessness about the image. The grandmother, mother, and child all embraced each others hands. [It brings tears to my eyes as I think about it.] A timeless image. I could not pass it up and fired off a few shots. This image proved to be one of my favorite images. I converted it to black and white to create a sense of age.

I am not one to rush holidays but before we know it Christmas and all the joy it brings will be upon us. However, too often we wait till the last minute to find a great gift for those we love. There is nothing wrong with planning now for the gifts you want to give during the holidays. A mouse pad with your favorite image is always a very nice gift. I use smugmug or mpix for my prints and other photo gifts. Both sites offer free software to create books, cards, calendars, etc. Last year, I created a book I called "The Year in review" [I think I heard that title on a commercial somewhere :-] ] and gave it to my parents as a gift. It covered mid 06 to late summer of 07 and it was a hit. Why? Because it was some fancy production? No, because it contained many images of the family in print. Yes, a digital frame is great but they remind me of a video. There are times I just want to stare at an image and embrace what it represents.

Mouse pads, photo albums or, calenders with a different picture each month is a great idea too! If you begin to plan now by going through all those memorable images and organize them into a folder on your hard drive, it will be easier when you put them together in a 'timeless' treasure.

Back to photobooks. Last year, a long-time friend and work associate retired and I was at the surprise retirment party with camera in hand [of course, isn't there a saying that says 'never leave home without it' or is that something else not leave home without]. Anyway, back to the story. I was able to capture a good number of fun images and compiled them in a photobook [I printed it from mpix] and gave it to her. Well, the tears flowed and hugs given then timelessness took hold again. There is nothing like giving a gift that makes the other person cry. Unless they don't like the gift and are crying because they don't know what else to say and begin to cry.

I can go on and on about this subject but I think I hear the doorbell. Maybe it's FedEx with a new mousepad and a favorite picture on it. :-)

Today's tip: Begin to write your Christmas list and put together all those favorite images in an easy location to find on your hard drive. It will make them easier to find when you create that timeless gift for someone you care about. Oh yea, if all the images are organized it will make it easier to back them up. You do back up your images don't you? More on backing up in future blogs.

Go out and capture the beauty of life and share it with others!

Use back light to change the look of your photo

It is a time tested truth concerning photography. Use back-light to create a glow and change the impact of the picture. In this image the light was behind the subject and created an amazing silhouette. If I would have used a flash or if I exposed for the subject to be lit, the mood of the image would be much different. It would be flat and although the subject is beautiful, the mystery of the image would disappear.

The first image was spot metered and shot at f/5.6 and 1/3 of a second @ 260mm [hand held]. I was a good distance from the subject in the sound booth [which provides me a different vantage point than audience]. Although I hand-held this shot, I use the railing of the sound booth to 'rest' my left elbow and utilize it as a mono pod. [Pretty slick that God equipped us with a built-in mono pod :-] ).

In the second and third image we utilized hot lights to create the back lighting effect. Although the third image is heavily processed in Lightroom, you can see the effect of back lighting. Why does any of this matter? Imagine you are in a situation where you want to take a picture of a child, toddler, adult, cat, dog, etc.. Position yourself and your camera in a manner that allows the light to wrap around the subject. Remember the statement, we are taking pictures of light with a subject in it. When the light wraps around the subject, it creates a look with dimension. It reduces the 'flat' look that is prevalent in many images.

Next take your camera off auto and practice with manual. If you are taking a picture in your house of a child, toddler, adult, dog, etc, then turn off the overhead light and utilize a lamp or table light as the main source of light. Yes, you might need to bump your ISO to 800 to capture enough light but the great aspect of digital. Instant feedback! Experiment with the lighting. Get the light behind or to the side of the subject.

Last tip for today. Change your position relative to the subject. In the third image, I was below eye level and shot up which created a different effect to the image. Get out and capture life's beauty!

Creative images

 

 These are a few more images from last weekends afternoon with Rachel and Mike.  The top image was modified in Lightroom 2.0 to create the effect and the second image is a 'story board' I completed in Photoshop CS 2.  I use storyboards to create a fun look which matches the fun time I had shooting the images and creating them. 

The third image was created in Lightroom 2.0 and the effect I wanted to present was timelessness.  Yes, we took this image in the playground and big kids can enjoy playgrounds too.  :-)

 

Victory Golf Outing - Fox Run Golf Course

All proceeds benefit Parenting by one ministry!














Now this is trust! :-0

Dentist anyone? The first image: Thomas and Penny wanted a 'different' photo for the records. Not to be out done, this next group decided that they needed a back massage [hopefully the spikes did not go in too deep]. While they were getting the back massage they figured they would go after the team record for the longest drive. Yes, the course doctor had a few extra teeth in his black bag.


I will have more images from this an a few other events posted later in the week.

Wow! What a weekend!

I had an tremendous weekend of shooting. It started Friday afternoon with an amazing time with the Silver Ring Thing Tour Team photo shoot. [Try to say Silver Ring Thing Tour Team fast :-0 ] Please see Saturday's post for a few of the images.

Saturday morning and afternoon was spent photographing the Victory Family Church golf outing at Fox Run in Beaver Falls, PA. The weather was great and two other event photographer volunteers came out to shoot the event and I cannot wait to see everyone's images. Thanks Angela and Lisa for all the help and support! The proceeds from the golf outing [scramble] go to supporting the Parenting by One ministry at Victory Family Church. Images of this event will be posted later in the week.

Saturday evening and Sunday morning I had the privilege and honor of shooting the baby dedications at VFC.

Baby dedications are where the child is dedicated to the Lord by the parents (parent in a single parent family) according to Bible. There are too many passages surrounding baby dedications to list them here but my favorite 'story' from the Old Testament illustrating baby dedications can be found in I Samuel 1:24-28 when Hannah, the mother of Samuel dedicated her son to the Lord in this story.

The weekend finished with a fun weekend shooting images of Rachel and Mike at Cranberry Park. Wow! The weekend was a photographers dream The Lord provided a beautiful weekend and every subject was so special to shoot.


I had a great time with Rachel and Mike and I will have more of their images posted later in the week too. The image to the right is a combination of a graduated blend between a color and black and white image.

Silver Ring Thing Team Photos

I had the privilege to spend an afternoon with the Silver Ring Thing Team. "SRT promotes the message of abstinence until marriage centered in a relationship with Jesus Christ through two methods: a Live Event and a small group program called SRT 434." [SRT home page]

The team is an amazing group and is made up of leaders from all around the country.

We spent the afternoon at their office in Moon Township, PA, shooting some team photos 'indoors' then we traveled to the South Side of Pittsburgh. This image was taken on an overpass from Station Square to the docks along the river. The structure of the overpass made for an tremendous photo opportunity and the Lord provided an amazing day of weather. We could not have asked for a prettier day. There were beautiful clouds in the sky and the temperature was perfect.


I converted the image to an 'antique black and white' in Lightroom 2.0

We took over two hundred images throughout the day and every image is filled with enthusiasm and fun. I had a a great time!

I say this often and I mean it every time but photography and documenting life through photography is way too much fun to be legal. :-]

The last two photos show only a partial side of the fun and enthusiasm of the team. The team is a 'blast' to be around and always ready to show their joy and love for Christ!

The image of the team under the 'tree' was taken in a parking lot in Mt. Washington. Whoever painted the scene did an great job!

SRT, thank you for the opportunity to spend the day with an amazing group and the privilege of documenting an afternoon of your wonderful life!



Colossians 3:23-24 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.

Creative Exposures and Depth of Field

Do you wish you could get the image to jump off the screen or print? Do you wish you could understand why some photographers images look so different than yours?

1. Take your camera out of auto or program mode. [They have a purpose but not for creative images.] If you want a ‘creative’ image, auto or program mode will let you down. To create an image that screams creative begin to experiment with manual mode.

When an image is exposed, many combinations of shutter speed and aperture will render an image ‘exposed’ properly. However, normally only one image will scream creative when the shutter ‘clicks’.

Using any lens, place the camera in manual mode. In the viewfinder you will notice your exposure meter. To obtain an exposed image typically the line is in the middle of the meter or on 0. Adjust your shutter or aperture to set a ‘properly’ exposed image. [We will discuss how to use creative exposures in future lessons.]

All of the following combinations of shutter speed and aperture render an ‘exposed’ image via the meter on my D200 with the ISO at 1250 using my 70-300vr @ 70mm. [I am doing this exercise in my basement office with only one overhead light on.] Which exposure is correct? According to technical terms, they all are appear to be ‘correct’ but only one combination will render an expressive or creative exposure. Keep in mind the larger the number on your aperture the greater the depth of field. E.g. The depth of field [or what is in focus] is much larger on f/10 than f/5.6. Therefore, the correct exposure is the exposure that creates the image YOU are attempting to create. If you want a large depth of field [landscape image] where a large portion of your image is in focus, then you would use f/10. However, if you want to create an image where the subject is in focus but the background is ‘blurred out’, then you would ‘open’ up your aperture as much as possible.

Shutter speed: 1/30

Aperture: f/5.6

Or

Shutter speed: 1/25

Aperture: f/6.3

Or

Shutter speed: 1/20

Aperture: f/7.1

Or

Shutter speed: 1/15

Aperture: f/8

Or

Shutter speed: 1/10

Aperture: f/10

The above image I shot at f/5.6 with a shutter speed of 1/250 second and the lens I used was the Nikkor 70-300vr @ 250mm. Notice how the background is blurred out. If I used an aperture with a greater depth of field [f/11], the background would not have blurred out and the singer would have been lost in a sea of background clutter.

Go out and try this experiment. Have fun and enjoy taking pictures of life!

San Rocco Days 2008 -Aliquippa, PA

I had the opportunity to shoot the 'crowning' of my beautiful niece as queen of San Rocco Days.  This image was shot at f/4.8 and 1/500 sec @ ISO 400 & 200 mm [Nikkor 70-300vr].  I converted the first image to a black and white in Lightroom 2.0.  Both images had their respective frames added in CS2. 

Today's tip: Getting the blurred out background.

Many folks ask; 'how do you get the background blurred out'?  In this case it is a result of the combination of focal length [200 mm] the aperture [f/4.8] and the distance I was from my niece.  

If you have a telephoto lens try this experiment.  Zoom to 200 - 300 mm, open the aperture as wide open as you can go.  In most cases the aperture will be in the 4.5-5.6 or in some cases 6.3.  Then zoom in on your subject and walk to your subject and away from your subject [changing the distance between you and your subject] and notice how the background begins to change.  The depth of field is changing which is changing the area in focus [in front of your subject and behind your subject].  If you want to study more on the subject, goto Online DOF calculator. The site is a tremendous resource in learning about this amazing subject.  

 

The third image was taken at the Steelers training camp and if you notice the background is 'blurred' out in this image also.  The combination of my distance from the subject [which was not too far, maybe 20 feet], the focal length [240 mm] and the aperture [f/5.6] created a very nice image with the subject in focus and the background 'blurred out' [Bokeh].  I will discuss more about this subject in future posts but my first suggestion.  Have fun, practice often, and capture the beauty of life!