Photographer of the Day – Walker Pickering
November 1, 2011 | Author David
I am really drawn to Walkers galleries on Joe K and Musicians. Have a look for yourself at www.walkerpickering.com
Inspiration
November 1, 2011 | Author David
How many photography books do you own? What are they of and who by? At the last count I had 142 that incorporated technical volumes, books on light, some arty stuff, war, landscapes, under water, nature, macro, sports and books by the greats like Avendon or Parkinson as well as modern day masters such as Yervant or LaChapelle.
I have these books as I simply love books and they inspire me. Seeing photos in the printed form is wonderful and just gets my mind thinking way more than a website can ever do. I wonder if it is because I can pick a book up and move it closer and farther away? Maybe it is because I can see the detail in the shadows or the simple fact that I can hold it.
My books are marked with Post It notes throughout which highlight images that I find inspirational. It may be the way the subject is lit or the texture or pose. It is from these images that I can try to dissect the shot and break down the image to work out how it was created. Sometimes I cannot but by simply trying to I am learning and improving as a photographer.
Helen Saunders
October 31, 2011 | Author David
Todays PotD is Helen Saunders. Have a look at her lovely work here :-
Light your background to make a more interesting image
October 28, 2011 | Author David
Sometimes, especially when photographing still life you will find the image is a little “flat”. That is too say 2 dimensional. To overcome this try using two light sources. It may be that natural light is one and a flash or reflector is the second. Use the light to shape your subject and make it more 3 dimensional.
Is your background quite boring? Perhaps you can liven it up lighting it. Try creating a shadow to add interest to the plain background or you could create a pool of light with a flash. Try gelling a flash to create a warm pool of light. This can be especially effective if your background is quite boring or a cold colour such as blue.
I “borrowed” my assistant Fiona to demonstrate what I mean for the purposes of this article. We literally took these just before she left for the day at our offices. Ok, it is not the best of locations but it does illustrate what I am showing you quite well. Use your imagination and visulise what you could do to transform boring locations and backgrounds.
This shot was taken with just one off camera speedlite fired into a brolly. The background just looks horrible and boring.
For this shot I also had a naked speedlite pointing into the background with a orange gel covering it. Look how it warms the background up and due to the position of it, I have created a nice dark diagonal shadow from a pillar and a reflection coming back at Fiona from another pillar. The spill from this light has also provided a nice hair light and warmed Fiona up. If you do not wish to have any extra light falling on your subject then simply block it off.
The shot won’t win any awards but it certainly demonstrates what can be achieved to lift an image. If you would like to learn more, I am holding some basic off camera flash workshops in Maidstone and Uttoxeter. For dates please click on the seminar tab at the top of this page.
Photographer of the Day – Armin Weisheit
October 28, 2011 | Author David
We love a dose of fashion photography and feel very inspired by Armins work. To me fashion photography is very much like a production involving a multitude of skilled professionals to bring everything together. Armin does it perfectly.
Photo Basics – How to make the background go blurry (Part 1)
October 27, 2011 | Author David
Here at Increased Knowledge we know our readership varies from those who have invested in a compact camera to working pros with all the kit and all in-between. As such we will be writing articles for all abilities and will start with Depth of Field (DoF) specifically for those with compact cameras.
I am sure you have seen lovely photos where the subject is sharp and the background is all blurry making them stand out. This is caused by the Depth of Field used when taking the shot.
Depth of field is how much of your image from the foreground to the background is in sharp focus. This will be dependent on the Aperture (expressed as a fstop) that you or your camera have selected. Most compact cameras have a very limited range of fstops and these vary depending on how much you have zoomed in. For example a good compact camera might range from f2.8 to f8. If for example the lens on your compact is 6mm-30mm you will find that when shooting wide angle at 6mm it’s maximum Aperture or fstop is f2.8 whilst at 30mm it its maximum is only f8 as it varies depending on how much of the zoom you are using. Basically the lower the number (f2.8 being low) the wider the shutter opens and the more light the lens lets in. This will allow you to shoot in lower light conditions but also decrease the (DoF) meaning less front to back sharpness.
On a compact camera this may not be that noticeable as to shoot at f2.8 you would have to be shooting at 6mm and at wide angles such as this you have far greater DoF. The opposite is true when you zoom in, as you generally lose DoF and start to get more blurry backgrounds. Generally the more you zoom in the more blurry the background will become. This of course is often used on purpose to isolate the subject from the background. On a compact camera though it is very hard to get close enough to fill the frame with your subject and still be in focus.
I guess that most of you will leave your compact camera in some sort of Auto mode where it does everything for you and is in control. Personally I believe it would be far more involving or you to take command of your camera and in some capacity make it do what you want it to. A number of compacts have a facility to allow you to shoot in Aperture Priority (probably expressed as AV) mode and I encourage you to switch to this and practice. If you have a tripod then place the camera on it, or put the camera down on something solid like a table. For the purposes of demonstration the key is to have the camera remain in a still position. Then get a small static object such as a flower to photograph and place it 1 meter in front of the camera. Try to choose somewhere with a background a few meters away but is not too much lighter or darker than your object as this will effect your exposure (more about that in a forthcoming article). Make sure your flash is turned OFF and then take a shot with the camera set to the lowest fstop and zoomed in on the object. Now change the fstop to the highest number it will go to and take a shot. Can you see an increase the the front to back sharpness? I have shown you an example below.
This was taken at f4.5. Look carefully at the background and how much detail you can see.
This was shot at f8. Although still blurry it is a lot less so than the previous image and the flowers do not stand out quite as much.
What you can achieve with a compact camera is a little limiting which is why most people who are serious about their photography eventually purchase a DSLR. The benefit of this is larger lens, larger sensors and fixed Aperture lens. I will be talking about these in the next instalment where you will see the huge benefits they bring…
Draw the viewers eye in with a non-oval vignette. Learn How!
October 27, 2011 | Author David
I often look at other photographers websites and see images with an oval vignette. More often than not this has been done in an action and is simply lazy. Too me it is just the same as using an oval mount that you saw in the 1970′s and 1980′s! I think it is far more preferable to use a “squiggly’ vignette. I looks far better in my opinion. First let me show you the difference on this image of 2 cute penguins I shot on a trip to South Africa earlier in the year, then I will show you how you do it.
The top image is with a oval vignette and the bottom with a “squiggly” one. Can you see how the oval is more apparent and the corners are very obvious. I have over done it on purpose to demonstrate but both images have had the same adjustments made to them with the exception of the vignette.
The purpose of a vignette is to draw the viewers eyes into the focal point of the image by darkening the images. As mentioned I prefer to use a “squiggle” and here is how I do it:-
1. Open your image in Photoshop and make sure your Tools and Options Windows are open (make sure they are ticked in the Windows menu)
2. Select your Lasso Tool and set the feather amount to 250px and draw a random shape around the object you wish to draw the viewer’s eye into (yours will not be a red line, this is for illustration purposes. It will be a dotted line and it will then change form a neater shape)
3. Go to Select and then Inverse. Bring up your curves box (CMD/CTRL M) and adjust it to something like shown below.
4. Click OK and you will have done it. A 20 second job that can make a real difference to your images. If placed together you can really see that difference. I am not looking for a huge change though – it is all about being subtle. Experiment on some images you have previously edited and see what a transformation it can make. There is no need to apply this technique to every image though. Use it selectively and only when needed.
Photographer of the Day – Joel Grimes
October 27, 2011 | Author David
I love Joel Grimes use of light in his editorial photography. He uses 3 lights for virtually all shots and is not adverse to then dropping in a background. He also incorporates HDR to really bring out the details in the highlights and shadows.
His site can be found at www.joelgrimes.com
200 Ways To Pose Hands
October 26, 2011 | Author David
We are pleased to announce the publication of the PDF e-book “200 Ways to Pose Hands” by David Pearce.
The placement of hands within a portrait is of vital importance and one that many struggle to master. It can be literally be the making or the breaking of a shot, and when done correctly can show elegance, finesse and beauty. In this e-book David has demonstrated over 200 ways to pose a ladies hands that can only help to enhance your work. He shows you examples with the lady standing, seated on a chair, on a sofa and with props like a jacket or hat.
At only $11.99 (approx £7.50) until this Sunday evening it also represents extraordinary value for money. It literally is the price of two coffees yet could totally transform your work. On Monday morning the price will go up to $14.95 so secure your copy now by clicking on the button below for an instant download.
From the Introduction:-
“As photographers we have a tendency to be visual people so it is my intention to make this very much an image led book with virtually no words apart from these.
Inside you will find over 200 poses showing varying hand positions. These will inspire you to be more creative and take images that are elegant with both style and finesse. In other words images that you clients will purchase as they are not able to create these themselves.
Naturally you will not like all of the images and that is fine. Some are more editorial and fashion orientated whilst others are more suited to portraits or bridal shoots. Choose what is most suitable for your next session and incorporate those poses into it. You will soon build up a repertoire of poses that you can instruct your subject to do at any time.
I have purposefully shot all of these images in my office/studio instead of glamorous locations. There are two reasons for this – I want to keep the cost of the book down to allow as many people as possible to be able to purchase it, and I do not want a location to be the focal point of the image – I want you to focus on the hand positions. Some are quite similar but do have subtle differences so please pay attention to those. Our overall aim is to simply have an image that looks fantastic.
I really believe that by placing more emphasis and thought into the placement of hands you will see a dramatic increase in your abilities as a photographer.”
David Pearce
Get your instant PDF Download of this book right now ready for your next shoot by clicking the button below:-
Some example images for you:-
At only $11.99 (approx £7.50) until this Monday evening it also represents extraordinary value for money. It literally is the price of two coffees yet could totally transform your work. On Monday morning the price will go up to $14.95 so secure your copy now by clicking on the button below for an instant download.
Some quick Photoshop hints and tips…
October 26, 2011 | Author David
I am sure this will become a regular feature as there is so much to learn and go through with Photoshop so lets start with some basics:-
1. Do not work on the original image. Instead create a duplicate layer and work on that. This way you can always go back to the original with no loss.
2. Do not sharpen until you have finished all other work on the image.
3. CTRL/CMD M brings up your Curves.
4. CTRL/CMD U brings up your Saturation Box
5. CTRL/CMD J creates a new layer.
6. Go to Image>Adjustments>Shadows/Highlights. Make sure “Show more options” is ticked and have a play.
