Experimenting with Optics + Light

When you fire a frame with your camera, you are literally painting that exposure with the light of that scene. This concept  has always fascinated me, and from time to time I like to intentionally play with that concept, pushing that light to create luminous paint strokes, if you will.

For an upcoming photo project I am experimenting with slowing down a fixed exposure in order to capture motion as something moves across an otherwise fixed scene. This can be challenging during bright daylight as the camera will quickly overexpose if the shutter is left open for more than a tiny fraction of a second. In order to compensate for that tendency to overexpose, today I have been playing with different kinds of mesh and filters.

A side effect of the mesh is that it creates lovely, ephemeral and soft bokeh patterns, made more subtle when using a wide aperture. (click on photos to enlarge, and note patterns in the background) 

I kind of love it. 

When you zoom in close on these files they start to look like a painter's brush strokes. 

Optics + light... how fun.

Photography Studio | Top 10 Tips for Success

With a desire to start the year with a positive outlook, Sandy Puc just began a great discussion thread on LinkedIn asking people to think about the Top 10 things they believe contribute to a successful photography studio.  

I love taking the first week of January to revisit goals for my photography business, and so was inspired to take a moment to reflect on my overall strategies for success. In no particular order, here are my Top 10 (ok 12) things I have observed over the years which motivate me every day.  Some I live with confidence.  Others I am still working to make wholly mine. What would YOU add?

1. THE CLIENT EXPERIENCE: Make booking, scheduling, delivering, and of course, shooting the photo session a memorable and fun experience.  Inspire referral business through existing clients.
2. SMILE: Yes, you. Genuinely. Smile!! On the job ... and at the proverbial coffee shop (can’t even count how many clients I’ve earned with this philosophy).
3. INSPIRATION / EDUCATION: keep reading, networking, attending seminars and workshops, and staying abreast of current trends, and try new things based on what inspires you.
4. GOALS / LISTS: keep both business and personal, and self-impose deadlines for non client driven ones. If you keep pushing back a deadline, ask yourself if the item should really be on the list (if so: do it! If not, remove it or put it on a separate back-burner list).
5. MARKETING: Schedule regular activity and think outside the box to market yourself creatively (in print, in person and via social media) Your website should reflect your personality. And especially when you’re starting out, don’t show every photo, show only your BEST photos!
6. COMFORT ZONE: Push it! Often! Shoot new material.  I love to use my phone camera to shoot personal projects even on days when I'm not shooting for clients.
7. PRICING: Review cost of business and package pricing annually and always communicate clearly and confidently with clients (unless you happen to love negotiating -- which I decidedly do NOT -- printed materials with pricing menus help tremendously).
8. MONEY: Fall in love with the business side of what you do. This is still my biggest challenge. I had to finally design myself a beautiful system of spreadsheets b/c the available software systems were all too dry for me. May sound silly, but it works for me. Find what works for you.
9. CONTRACTS: Know and continually update your contracts to stay on top of constantly changing on-line world (especially if you work with digital files and licensing). Educate your clients about copyright laws, and gently educate clients that they are investing in your talent, creativity, instinct and vision, NOT paper and ink.
10. GRATITUDE: Be grateful for the fact that you get to do what you love for a living! Remind yourself of this simple and amazing fact when times are tough.
11. ACCEPT CHANGE! Don’t attach to old ways of doing things and don’t be afraid of learning new tricks. Let go of fear, take chances, dive in...
12. TAKE DANCE BREAKS. Often. Crazy ones. They are immeasurably good for the spirit. Not to mention sore, over-worked eyeballs.

Capture Philosophy | Photo Tip 04: Finding Portrait Light on Location

A week or so ago, I had the opportunity to work with talented Denver studio portrait photographer, Mark Pells, on an ambitious headshot project for the theatre department at my son's school.  

As a completely self-taught photographer and a HUGE fan of natural light, it was fascinating to watch Mark create magic with his studio lights.  I found it most interesting to learn that I am often drawn to or actively seeking out  the very conditions in the field, which he sought to create in the studio.

Thought I'd share a few of my personal favorite conditions through examples, in case you're curious to experiment the next time you're out photographing your family and friends.  

These are all photos I took on a single walk with my son on a bright, sunny afternoon in Denver (as you can see in the first photo below).  These photos were all taken with a 100mm macro lens with a Canon 5D, set on aperture priority (all shots are between apertures of 2.8 and 4.5).

Often, it is instinct for us to want to place our subjects in the sun.  But beware!  Direct sunlight can be a great dramatic tool when used intentionally, or with reflectors, fill light, etc., but if you are out with your camera and don't have such accessories (which I did not use for the shot above), not only will your subject likely be squinting, direct sunlight will create harsh shadows that generally aren't as flattering for skin tones, facial features, etc.  Thus, it is usually better to take the subject out of direct sunlight...

Once you take your subject out of the direct light, you'll have better luck getting even skin tones.  In this photo, light bouncing around from north and east facing windows at a coffee shop provided gorgeous, flattering conditions in the afternoon.  I simply exposed the shot to feature the correct amount of light in his eye and let the camera and natural light do the rest.  You can actually see the north facing windows reflected in his eye. 

In this shot, I asked my subject to stand in a spot of reflected light -- sunlight that was bouncing off the windows of a building across from us.  Beams of reflected light are fun to experiment with, and are a bit easier on the subject's gaze.  As you can see, while it still casts some dramatic shadows, it also can create fun magic in the eyes.

One of my favorite things to look for is nice, subtle bouncing light that is slightly weighted in its direction.  By that I mean that the light is essentially coming more from one side than the other creating a nice broad highlight on one side of the face, in this case, the side towards camera.  A darker background pops his face as the main focus of the composition.

These last two photos are shot on the same long wooden bench, but facing opposite directions.  In this first one, there is only indirect light on my subject, but an open area of VERY bright light behind him.  I exposed for his face (so essentially you'd need to OVERexpose if you were using a camera that meters for an overall scene), and I let the background go white.

For this photo, we switched positions so that the brighter area is now behind me (the camera), and it's a little easier to get a traditional photo with a nice tonal range, great skin tones and no hot spots.
And of course it never hurts to capture an impish grin :)
Happy shooting!!

Springtime in the City

Rushing water is the hallmark of springtime in the mountains.  Rivers burst at the seams and ponds emerge in the valleys as snow melts and rages on its annual springtime descent. 

After a dozen or so of these high alpine springs, I had completely forgotten how abundantly beautiful this season can be at a slightly lower elevation!

It is April and already neighborhoods in Denver are bursting with color and new life.  And I, of course, as my eyes are on overdrive, I can't help myself but try to capture the new season in its birth.

I photograph because I have to.  Just ask my son, it's a compulsion over which I have surprisingly little control.  Compositions present themselves constantly, frozen moments of time, light and expression frame up in my view, even when I am not actively pressing a shutter.

As such, my camera often feels like an extension of my self; it is the tool through which, when I use it well, I am able to communicate my vision of the art and beauty that I see in my surroundings with the rest of the world.  The creative process drives me to the art of capture; the ability to share my work and evoke emotion from others is the inspiration.

Snow Falling on Spring Buds

There's a saying in Colorado, "If you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes."

Yesterday I wore flip flops and walked (in short sleeves) to the Denver Botanic Gardens in 80 degrees of warm sunshine... even took off my shoes to enjoy the feel of warm soil between my toes for the first time this season.

Today... I photographed snow from my living room window.

Now, I did LOVE the sunshine and warmth of yesterday, but I'm not going to complain.  The smell of moisture in the air is a treasured gift in the wake of early season forest fires.  And on a more, perhaps, frivolous note, I can't deny loving a whirling snowfall such as this, and the backdrop of spring buds made for some fun, almost painterly compositions.

Playing with Tilt Shift App

Denver Art Museum

I discovered another fun little app for the iPod this weekend and I've been having a blast experimenting with different effects on a variety of photos.  It it absolutely incredible to me what these simple little gadgets can do!

This one allows you to mimic the highly specific depth of field effect of a tilt shift lens, resulting in images that often look like tiny scale models, even though these are - I swear - full scale scenes.

If you have an iPod or iPhone, this particular app is called TiltShiftGen and so far, I love it!

Denver Capitol building from Art Museum window

16th Street Mall, Denver

Confluence Park, Denver

Mesa Verde National Park

Telluride Wedding

View from Tattered Cover Parking Garage, Denver, CO

Glenwood Canyon, CO

Telluride from the Gondola

Telluride, CO during Mountainfilm

Denver City and County Building, July 4th 2010

16th Street, Denver CO

16th Street, Denver, CO

Telluride from Town Park

Telluride, CO - July 4th

Capture Philosophy | PHOTO TIP 01: Aperture + Depth of Field

I have been asked several times lately by new dSLR owners to share tips on simple ways to make the most of their camera and take better photographs.  Every time I get into this conversation, I realize how much I love sharing my passion for all things photographic.

Wide Aperture (f2.8) chosen for creative composition and shallow depth of field

So I thought it could be fun to start a “Capture Philosophy / Tip of the Month” series on the blog.  Some of the information I share will be basic, nuts and bolts tips for people just getting to know their dSLR cameras, while other posts may be more philosophical, reflective of how I personally approach photography.

Please feel free to comment and/or ask for more info!

I’d like to start with creative use of Aperture, since I believe it can be one of the simplest to learn and most powerful ways to make every day photos more creative.  Learning how to use Aperture and controlling your depth of field (the area of the photograph which is in focus) can produce highly satisfying results, from the ability to isolate a subject in an otherwise busy setting, to maintaining crisp focus from front to back of a wider landscape shot.

Small Aperture (f16) used to achieve depth of field form foreground shadows to mountain peaks

Wide Aperture (f2.8) used to highlight only tiny area of focus and blur everything else

Wide Aperture (3.2) isolates model and permits handheld shot in low light

Smaller Apertures can be extremely useful in capturing serene landscapes, formal compositions, and often is the best choice in architectural work, where one wants to highlight relationships across a room or between adjacent spaces.

When combined with higher ISO (when necessary), larger apertures will allow you to shoot later into the evening in lower light conditions.  This approach will often eliminate the necessity of a flash, allowing you to make the most of - and more importantly maintain the mood of - natural and available light.

THE BASICS

Aperture means literally, opening.  The basic creative tools of your camera are 1) choosing the size of the opening  (aperture), and 2) how long it stays open (shutter speed).

What you need to know regarding the aperture, is that the numbers, or F-stops, are representative of fractions, so the smaller numbers represent a larger opening of the shutter, (f1.4, f2.8, f3.5, f4, etc.), and larger numbers (f11, f16, etc.) represent a smaller opening of the shutter.

What makes this all so powerful is that with selective focus of a larger aperture, you can narrow in on a shallower depth of field and isolate your subject so that everything else in the photograph is out of focus.

Wide Aperture (f2.8) + faster shutter speed = shallower depth of field (isolated subject in focus)

Smaller Aperture (f16) + slower shutter speed = greater depth of field (more in focus)

SUGGESTION

Find the setting on your DSLR camera for "A" (aperture priority).  Play with the extremes of this setting to see what they do when you are focused on something close to the camera (say, within a few feet). Don't delete the photos until you have had a chance to look at the differences on your computer screen with the same shot and extreme aperture differences.

Isolating Eyelashes with f2.8

As a point of reference, shooting with an aperture of F2.8 when your subject is within close range of the camera can allow you to focus on someone's eye, and the rest of their face will start to soften.

When used creatively and intentionally, makes for really professional looking people photos...

You will notice that the range of depth of field changes with the distance from the camera... (F2.8 won't have as dramatic of an effect if your subject is far away).

So, get out of your "Program Mode" ... Experiment, and HAPPY SHOOTING!

Play with focus in unexpected ways - EXPERIMENT!

Fun with Holiday Lights

Just a little holiday fun around the house... Happy Holidays, everyone!

Urban Spring (with tunes!)

I've lived in the mountains for long enough that I forgot that spring was more than just mud and melting snow at a lower altitude.  Colors, trees, bees - couldn't get enough of it!
Here is a sampling of what I've tried to capture of urban spring set to "Dueling Guitars" from the August Rush soundtrack.  Enjoy in HD (full screen) for best experience!

Bokeh Fun

I decided to go freeze my fingers for one more visit to the Denver Botanic Gardens on New Year's Eve. I wandered around shooting lights and people for over an hour, and had just put my camera back in the safety and warmth of the big 'ol bag when one last tightly wrapped tree caught my eye. It is amazing how often I put away the equipment, only to pull it out "one last time" for what ends up being the best shot of the day.

Honestly, when I saw this last tree, my fingers were sufficiently frozen to the point that I could no longer get them to set the tripod back up, so decided to shoot handheld, with my aperture wide open and play with depth of field. Deliberately focusing on different planes of the branches would force others out of focus, and I was immediately having a great time framing and refocusing.

I always enjoy a good "painting with light" shot, too, so some long exposure motion experimentation was in order as well.

Enjoy!