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November 21, 2009 |
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Created and Maintained by: The Photoimaging Information Council |
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Blog |
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MacGurus Storage Solutions by Allen Birnbach One of the most important aspects of shooting digitally is making sure you have a good storage solution for your images. In the old days, of course, we just had to have a file cabinet, in a cool dry spot, with archival sleeves to put our negative and transparencies into.Now, with digital files, it's imperative to have a good method for storage, or you could lose the images forever should a hard drive crash. There are lots of options, like having two hard drives, one being a clone of the other, and just making sure you back up often from the primary to the clone. But if you have a large number of images, the issues and options increase. My solution was to work with a company called MacGurus. I do not have any affiliation with them other than being a satisfied customer. If you go their website, MacGurus.com, you can see a great article called "Building a Photo Database." It's a valuable, well written piece. And the nice part is that these guys really believe in customer service. I'm not talking about lip service. I had a problem a couple of days ago, and they were tenacious in helping me resolve it. Even after we figured out that the problem wasn't even with their equipment. That's why I am recommending them so highly. For more tips on how to improve your photography, visit Allen's photoblog at A Better Photograph.com
Analysis of a shoot-Part II The shoot day-by Allen Birnbach  Having done the scout, I called the actor and asked him to meet me at the location at 7:30AM, a little bit before the time when I think the light will be the most dramatic. When he arrives, we look at wardrobe, and we select something that feels casual, but elegant. Once he changes, we are in the window for light, and ready to go.  I start the shoot with him standing next to the edge of the building. Giving him a solid physical reference point is an easy way to get him warmed up since he has something he can lean against, and work off of. The beginning of the session is, in my opinion, the most interesting part of the whole shoot because it’s when you establish the way you will work together. Not unlike meeting someone socially for the first time, it takes a little bit of time to get comfortable with each other, and understand how you will communicate. To get great images, it’s important to create a positive, encouraging environment where the subject is willing to relax, open up to the camera, and be creative. I’ll generally start with things that don’t require a lot of the person, but are more about light and form. As we progress, I’ll encourage the subject, and compliment them on how they are performing. This invariably makes them more responsive, and as they soften, I’ll ask a bit more of them. “Smile. Make the expression more tender. Grit your teeth and make me feel like you are looking right through me.” Giving good direction makes your subject feel confident that they are good hands, so even if you are not sure of what you want, make a suggestion with confidence. And if it doesn’t work, go on to the next idea. The key is to keep moving, and create a rhythm that propels you forward. All the while, look for the lighting, expressions and camera angles that will fulfill the concept you started with.  For more detailed information and additional examples from this shoot, and other tips on how to improve your photography, visit Allen's photoblog at A Better Photograph.com
Analysis of a shoot-Part I by Allen Birnbach  The first order of business is to come up with a concept for the image (or images) you are going to produce. What do you want to say about the person? Do you want to show their physical attributes? Their sense of humor? Their state of mind? I keep a reference file on my computer with images of paintings, sculptures and photographs that inspire me. The goal is not to copy, but rather to spur the thinking process. Once you’ve got your idea in mind, think about the lighting and background that will serve those ideas best. Should the location be indoors or outdoors? Would hard or soft lighting be better? Next, if I’m shooting on location, I’ll do a scout of potential sites. Sometimes you can set the shoot time based on the light at the location, but sometimes it is based on your subjects’ schedule. I take that into account in choosing the time of day to scout. I may not know a location at all, so in that case I will go there whenever it is convenient, and while shooting take good notes with compass headings and reference points. Many cameras have built in microphones, so I’ll shoot a picture, then say something like “Looking northeast from the the landing on the south side of the building, three feet from the left front edge of the first bench.” If the location is a broad landscape without a lot of obvious manmade landmarks, I’ll carry a GPS unit with me and mark the spots I shoot. In that case I would add “Shot at Waypoint 5.” New on the scene are devices that sync GPS positioning to specific images on your media card. I hope to test this technology and report on that soon. Since I travel a lot, I also make sure I have the correct time set in my camera so I know when the scout picture was shot. All digital cameras will display the time and lens information in the EXIF files, so I can duplicate the look when I come back. Since I did not know the actor I was going to shoot in advance, I set up a phone call in which we could talk a little bit about who he was, and how he was being positioned for roles. Based on that, I decided to shoot at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, where I could look for simple, graphic backgrounds that would give a sense of place, but make him the hero of the image. I always look for something people can relate to. That is, if I give them a wall or a tree, it gives them something to work with to create line and shape. It also makes it easier for talent to get into the session if they have a prop to lean against than if you have them just stand in open space. Here are a few of the scout images.   
Shooting in bad light by Allen Birnbach  A common mistake is thinking that good light means having direct sunlight in an image. But that isn't necessarily the case. I scouted this location the day before shooting, and it was the typical California beach day. 72 and sunny. I thought I would use the contrast of the hard light to create dramatic images of the model's angular features, and chose locations based on that. But just after my model arrived on the shoot day, the fog rolled in and all the direct sunlight was gone. Rather than cancel the shoot, I looked for another way to look at things. What the soft light could do that hard light could not was wrap around features. So in places where there would have been deep shadows, now there would be lots of detail. That meant that I would make the pose more dramatic by including a hat, but not lose detail in the model's face. And by having her face toward the southwest, where the sun actually was in the sky, I still maintained a sense of contrast and direction to the light. Bad light is really not bad at all. It simply creates opportunities we would not otherwise have if we are willing to explore. For more tips on how to improve your photography, visit Allen's photoblog at A Better Photoraph.com
Photo la review by Allen Birnbach This past weekend was Photo la, held at the Barker Hangar at the Santa Monica Airport. The venue moved from the Santa Monica Civic Center, and the change was a welcome one, as the space was much larger, and better able to handle the large crowds that attended the event over three days. My impression was that attendence was up from past years.Some observations. The first thing you saw as you walked into the space were three large LCD monitors with videos on them. Not quite still images (one was of a woman centered in the frame, who barely moved during the video), but not quite moving at full speed either (another was a slow panning movement of the camera around a building). There were several other video installations inside the hall, so it will be interesting to see where this leads. There were lots of vintage prints for sale, even more than in the past, and I suspect that is because of the recent auction sale prices. There also were lots of very large prints, in various mediums. Ace Gallery displayed a number of C-prints by Martin Schoeller at 90x70 inches, and Stephen Cohen Gallery showed inkjets by Nick Brandt at similarly impressive sizes. A notable addition to the mix is the increasing number of booksellers at the show. In addition to publishers like Nazraeli Press that put out exquisite new books, there were several people selling vintage books as well. In fact, Paul Kopeikin held a panel discussion on the emerging market in these collectibles. In conjunction with Photo la, the Santa Fe Workshops held their Center Reviews across the street at the Santa Monica Art Studios. The opportunity there was for emerging photographers to show their images to gallerists, curators and critics who could help them shape their work, and aid in finding representation. On the closing night, all the participants displayed their work for the general public, and the building was packed with people looking for new talent. My favorite was Laurie Lambrecht, who had a wonderful series of images of foliage in winter. For more tips on how to improve your photography, visit Allen's photoblog at A Better Photograph.com.
 For anyone interested in collecting fine art photography, or for those simply interested in seeing the latest trends in that world, one of the best opportunities there is rolls into Los Angeles starting next Thursday, January 10th, 2008. It runs through Sunday, January 13th. I think of it as a trade show, but instead of seeing electronics or cars, you get to see amazing images, and the actual prints to boot. Some vintage platinum and silver gelatins, some digital, but all up close and personal in booths from galleries from across the U.S., and from around the world. Wear comfortable shoes, though. The venue is 35,000 square feet in size. In addition to the exhibition itself, there is an opening reception, seminars and portfolio reviews conducted by the Santa Fe Photo Workshops. For more information about photo l.a. 2008, visit www.artfairsinc.com. In a shameless plug, my Cogan Ranch images can be seen at the Gallery M booth, and my figurative work at an alternate venue directly across the street at the Santa Monica Art Studios. The same location as the Santa Fe Photo Workshops reviews.
Looking out on the world by Allen Birnbach There are great opportunities for images all around us. So the key is to have a camera with you at all times. Jay Maisel, one of the titans of photography, is legendary for just that. And with ultra small point and shoot cameras, there’s no reason not to be prepared.Over the holidays, we were fortunate to spend several days in a wonderful cabin high in the Colorado Rockies. One morning, just as a storm was breaking, I walked up to the kitchen window and saw this.  For more tips on how to improve your photography, visit Allen's photoblog at A Better Photoraph.com
Photographing Christmas Lights by Allen Birnbach  Photographing Christmas Light displays can be lots of fun. There are lots of creative variations on a theme in play here, so go out and explore your neighborhood. Or, plan ahead for your next year’s Holiday card by shooting your own display. Here’s what you need to know. Generally, people wait to shoot until it is dark out, but that is too late. The lights may reproduce well in the photograph, but all the other detail in the image will be lost. The goal is to match the correct exposure for the lights with the ambient light at dusk so there is detail in the lights, and detail in the buildings and sky as well. That means that you want to get to your location right around sunset, do your scout, and find the spot you want to shoot from. I’d suggest bringing a tripod, since the exposures can be from 1second to 5 seconds long, depending on the situation, with an ISO of 100. If you don’t have a tripod with you, you could hand hold, but be sure to use a high ISO so you keep your shutter speeds up above 1/60 second. Maybe look for a surface to brace your camera against, like a wall or tree. Frame the picture so you include some environment. A snow covered lawn creates a wonderful foreground that can reflect color, and the sky can give you a wonderful rich blue to compliment the reds and yellows of the bulbs. You have a couple of choices for setting white balance. You could go with daylight balance, and let the image take on a warm glow. Or you could set the camera to tungsten balance, which would make the sky go much bluer. This is a time tested approach to shooting at dusk, most notably practiced by the legendary photographer, Pete Turner. Either way, start to shoot maybe ten minutes after sunset to see what the ambient light balance is. Look at your histogram to see how you are doing.  As it gets darker, increase the pace of shooting, as the window for when the correct exposure for the lights, and the correct exposure for the ambient light will only be about ten minutes at most.    You’ll know you are done when the sky is black, and the separation between it and the buildings are lost.
Holiday Performances II by Allen Birnbach  This is a continuation of the post yesterday titled Holiday Performances. O.K. You’ve shot the pre-production pictures, your talent is headed backstage, and you are back to your front row seats. Here are the important things to remember. First, double check to make sure your flash is not going to fire. It’s dangerous for the actors, and in most cases the distance from the stage is greater than the range of the flash anyway, so it won’t add to the lighting in any case. Kind of like using your flash at a football game. Next, if you are shooting with a digital camera, set your ISO to somewhere between 800 and 1600, based on the lighting in the theatre. As always, keep in mind that the higher the ISO, the more noise you will see in the images. I find that in most cases, I can use ISO 1250 as the highest acceptable speed. But that’s my camera. Test yours in advance so you know your limit. Now set your camera to Shutter Priority (TV), and choose a speed that will not give you camera shake. My recommendation would be 1/125 or 1/160. If you have steady hands you might be able to go to 1/100 or 1/80. Some of the newer cameras have anti-shake mechanisms built in, and that could be a big help too. Testing in advance will create a sense of ease during the performance since you'll know what the results will be rather than worrying about what could go wrong. Finally, if you camera has the capability to shoot in RAW format, select that, maybe in combination with a mid-sized jpg for fast editing. The RAW format is like a digital negative that gives you some additional flexibility to adjust the image beyond what you can do with a jpg. So I always recommend shooting RAW files. As soon as the curtain goes up and the lighting is at production levels, shoot a picture, and check your histogram. The key is to make sure the shadows and highlights are not clipped. If the camera is doing a good job of metering, great. If histogram is not what it needs to be, use your exposure compensation button to make an overall adjustment. Then shoot another test image and check that histogram to see if the results are better. Continue to adjust until you have what you need. If you are shooting film, go for a film with an ISO rating in the 800-3200 range. I would suggest a negative fim because it will have more exposure latitude than slide (transparency) film. Set your meter for matrix or evaluative metering, and off you go. If your favorite actor is a principal player, great. There will be lots of opportunities to get close ups of them alone. But even if that is the case, I like to tell a story, and show some of the other action. So I would suggest shooting pictures that give a sense of the production itself. Shoot some images that incorporate a group of the actors and shows the set, then move in closer by zooming in or changing to a longer lens. Now you can shoot images of just a couple of the players. And finally, do get those tight in shots that you know you’ll want to put in a frame and put on the wall or mantel.   Try shooting with a slower shutter speed, maybe in the 1/8 to 1/30 range, to give a sense of the movement. Blurred images can have romantic, more unique look.  For more tips on how to improve your photography, visit Allen's photoblog at A Better Photograph.com
Holiday Performances I by Allen Birnbach
‘Tis the season for school performances, so here are a few tips for getting the best photographs of the little ones. First, unless your kids are performing at Carnegie Hall or The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion where sears are reserved, you’ll want to get to the performance hall early to stake out a seat. The reality is that because you are not going to be allowed to use a flash (check you manual as to how to shut it off before you get to the hall), you are limited to shooting hand held. As a result, you need to shoot with as short a focal length lens as you can to minimize camera shake. The rule of thumb here is that you would set the shutter speed to the reciprocal of the lens focal length. So if you are shooting with a 200 millimeter lens, you would shoot at 1/200 of a second. All well and good if you are shooting outside. But shooting with the available light of a performance, even with a high ISO setting, it will be almost impossible to get to a 1/200 shutter speed. So that means you want to shoot with a 100-135mm maximum focal length. And that means you have to be pretty close to the stage to get close in a your favorite actor. So stake out your seat as close to the front as possible but above stage level so you can see the actor’s feet. And try to get as close to the center as you can. Volunteering to shoot another parent’s kids when they have the seat you want could be a great negotiating strategy. Have someone guard the seat for you so you can go to a great opportunity for images--make-up and wardrobe.
For more tips on how to improve your photography, visit Allen's photoblog at A Better Photograph.com
The Best Pictures From the Hubble Space Telescope You've probably seen a number of the famous images taken by the Hubble Telescope over the years, but hubblesite.org has created a number of galleries, featuring over 1,000 stunning images of planets, stars, nebulae, galaxies, and other parts of the landscape of space. Each image not only has images at resolution for viewing on your computer, but you can also download a high-res pdf to make your own prints at home. To browse their extensive gallery, click on the image below:
Prime vs. Zoom Lenses - explained by Glenn Wolsey Photographer and tech guru Glenn Wolsey explains the difference between Prime and Zoom lenses, which is especially helpful for amateurs. While there, be sure to take a look at the rest of Wolsey's blog for insight into software, hardware, some great images, and more!
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