It’s been awhile.  If you read my previous post you would know that I have been traveling.  So I thought this would be a good time to give you some tips while you travel with your family and friends.

First, your camera should be ready at all times.  You probably wont go back to the same location so set your camera and be ready for a great shot.

Photographed in airplane.

Don’t lug around all of your gear but make sure you have a battery back up and extra cards.

Family having lunch together.

Husband riding on railroad bridge.

Of course we want to have our and friends in the pics so be creative and place them in the frame with various comps.  Remember the rule of thirds for a quick shot.

This is about having fun so don’t stress out about trying to make the shot perfect.  It can be hard, I know… but chill out for a bit and focus on the vacation.

If you can, take two quick shots one for the highlights and one for the low values, you can merge in post.

Picture of boats under blue tarps

Use a beanbag instead of a tripod to steady your camera.  You will be surprised on how useful a beanbag can be!

Building with lens flare

Close up of an Iris flower

Personally, I like the wide-angle lens when I travel.  If you want to get close to a subject go for it just pay attention to the background to enhance your subject.

Take shots of signs and other subjects that remind you of where you were.  This will help  with keywording, etc…

Yellow cart of sierra silver mine.

Think about your vacation as a photographic journey.  Shoot everything!  You will enjoy the photo essay as you work on them after your vacation. Hope these quick tips help you while traveling  &  photographing with friends and family.

Happy travels!

Playing with long shutter speed in plane during sunset.

Cheers,

Janice

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I would like to thank Lisa Shoreland who has offered to write this inspirational article on photographing spring.  Many of you know that I have had pneumonia and have been a bit under the weather.  I appreciate her help…she is an amazing freelance writer, I’m sure you will enjoy this article.

From the depths of bleak, gray winter comes the gradual warming of spring. As the months fold into themselves, January turns to March, and flowers are in bloom again. Spring is a great time to hone your macro photography skills, with life growing and blossoming everywhere you look. The new season means flowering buds and trees, so be on the lookout for vibrant blues, pinks, yellows, reds and greens. Retrain your eye to focus on minute

detail in budding leaves and blossoming flowers. Discover the insects, birds and animals that might live in your own backyard, or venture out to a nature preserve or rose garden to capture things outside your ordinary field of vision.

Sprightly Light

You may notice that in early spring, the light is very soft and the colors aren’t quite yet at their vibrant height. You don’t run the risk of overexposure like you would during winter snow shots, so run with this added freedom. However, be aware that early spring photos can tend to look a little dull and washed out, so you may be interested in adding color to your shots.

When you notice a shadow on a stationary subject like a flower or leaf, you can always improve the lighting conditions by employing a reflector. This will reflect natural light onto the subject, eliminating the shadow. You can always order a reflector from a photography store or website, but if you’re pressed for cash or into DIY fixes, a sturdy piece of white paper or white sheet can function as a reflector, too. Focus on items that will reflect more light than they will absorb; typically, these are white, shiny or mirrored items. Use this reflector to bounce sunlight back onto your subject and snap the shot.

Spring Forward

As spring progresses, so to do the wonderful colors and subjects inherent to the season. When photographing flowers, keep in mind not only your subject, but also your background. The best background for vibrantly colored flowers or other macro subjects (bugs and birds, for example) is calm and neutral. If your subject is surrounded by other wild colors in the background, it will detract from the impact of your shot.

To take photographs of moving water– consider melting snow and trickling streams– you can use the common technique of longer exposure; however, the fact that spring often brings more light than other seasons means that you may have to wait for early morning or dusk or employ a shadow filter to use longer exposures successfully.

And, As Always…

Keep your camera handy at all times. You never know when the perfect shot will appear, and you want to be prepared. When in doubt, shoot! You can always edit or delete photos later; you can’t always go back and re-capture a shot. Shoot wide (landscapes, hillsides), shoot narrow (enhanced focus on details) and shoot close (individual flowers). This will improve your handle on your camera, as well as your artistic eye. Last, but not least: Spring is an ever-changing season. When you’re out shooting, be prepared for great sunlight and quick showers. Always pack rain gear for yourself and your camera, lest you get caught in an infamous “spring shower!”

Bio: Lisa Shoreland is currently a resident blogger at Go College, where recently she’s been researching aerospace engineering scholarships as well as health administration scholarships. In her spare time, she enjoys creative writing, practicing martial arts, and taking weekend trips.

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A couple of weeks ago we (my husband and I) were supposed to go to our nieces and nephew’s soccer games but they were rained out.  So, my husband says to me, “Want to head out to Big Bear for the day?”.  Big Bear is about an hour drive up a mountain from where we live, you can click on Big Bear to go to their link if you want more info on it.  Anyway, I thought what a great idea… let’s escape for a day.

This is our photo journey on a Fall beautiful day in Southern California….please be patient, it may take more time than usual to load pictures.  Remember, if you click on a image use your back arrow key on your browser to return to the blog.

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Hope you all have an “Escape for a day adventure”!

Cheers,

Janice

Get out and Photograph Spring – Part I

My last post was about finding your Spring location and having fun photographing the life in your area.

Today, I will talk about photographing Spring but I will also help you focus on the various techniques I used while photographing Antelope Valley.  I had a comment from another photographer stating that to learn about photography it is good to use your backyard, otherwise you lose aspect of the technical side of photography because the distraction of the location takes over and it will be harder to learn the craft.  Ok, sounds good to me but that is not what I’m talking about in these articles…this is about experiencing Spring and while you are experiencing it,  “Photograph It”.   Working in my studio and office takes about 95% of my photography time…Unless you are a nature photographer, you’re probably in the same boat as me, so with that said,  “GET OUT THERE AND PHOTOGRAPH SPRING”,  :0)  I guarantee you will feel awesome when you’re done!

To give you all a quick overview about the day….my husband and I always go the Antelope Valley in Southern California during the Spring so I can photograph.  While I photograph, Kevin, my husband has fun with his binoculars and finds me great places to photograph!  We are a perfect team…  If you want to read the first part of this article I have the link at top of the page or click on…enjoy!

So let’s get started…

This shot was done with an ISO of 100, Shutter Speed 1/1600, and F-Stop of 2.8.  I did this so I could focus just on the poppy on the right side of the pic.  I wanted the other areas of the photo blurred.  I used my tripod, use yours; if you don’t have one check out my next article in a couple of weeks, I’m going to talk about equipment.

Figure 1 (F2.8 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/1600)

california wild flowers

Kevin found a great patch of amazing bluish purple flowers within the poppy field. To enhance this patch, I kept my f-stop at 2.8, ISO 100, at a shutter speed of 1/2500, yep I used my tripod.  At a shutter speed of 1/2500 you may say, “Why use the tripod?”  First reason, once you have the shot you want, it’s locked and ready to go on the tripod and my second reason is because of the windy environment in Antelope Valley.  I want my area in focus sharp…the tripod will help me do this.

Figure 2 (F2.8 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/2500)

focus on bluish flower

The next shot I decide to focus on is right below the background mountains.  I used my tripod at an f-stop of 2.8, ISO 100, 1/2500 shutter speed.  Almost all of the time I use the manual mode.  The more you work on manual the easier it will be for you.  I’m a control freak, what can I say! Now, I like my shots with short depth-of-field,  but if I want the shot to be all in focus I use an f-stop of 22.

Figure 3 (F2.8 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/2500)

focus below mountains

Let’s talk a bit about depth-of-field and distractions…Depth-of-field is important when it comes to macro photography.  As you get closer to the subject the less depth-of-field you will have.  It’s not a problem when you use a tripod but I think of this more as a visual aspect.  Remember, when you have a lot of distractions to the subject you will lose the punch of the macro shot.  The distraction in figure 4 is the purple behind the bud but what’s kind of cool about this shot is that the bud looks like it’s sitting on the yellow flower.  Of course this is my opinion…all I’m saying is pay attention to your foreground and background.

Figure 4 (F2.8 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/1000)

california wild flowers

My next example in figure 5 is the same bud but the camera is in a different position.  Just had to show you what a small change in a position can do for the shot…so play with your camera… move it around.

Figure 5 ( F10 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/60)

antelope valley wild flowers

Figure 6 & 7 give you the same type of examples.  Just by moving your camera you get a whole different feel to the subject.

Figure 6 (F5.6 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/320)

Shot with my tripod.

wild flower focus camera above

Figure 7 (F3.5 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/320)

Shot with my camera and a homemade beanbag – Plastic bag with rice in it.

side view of wild flower

Yes, I was enjoying the wild poppy fields but also like to focus on other areas of the field.  Again, my husband found this amazing area of these beautiful white flowers. I was so excited!!!  If any of you know what they are called, please let me know…

Figure 8  (F9 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/250)

deserts blooms

Sometimes I’m so wrapped up in the colors of Spring I forget about the potential of Black & White pictures.  I decided for this shot to get under the flower, I used my homemade beanbag and went for it!   The color shot is ok, but I really like the black and white…Spring black & whites can be fun too!

Figure 9 (F3.2 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/3200)

wild flower color

Figure 10 (F3.2 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/3200) Photoshop B&W

b&w wild flower

As you continue to photograph your favorite spots in Spring, you will end up with a favorite subject to photograph.  Mine is this yellow poppy.  Most of the poppies are orange, some have an orangey coloration, but the yellow poppies are few.  We only know of a couple of places that have these yellow poppies, so it’s a must to go back to these areas each year.  I will end this article with my yellow poppy and hope that I have influenced you all to Get Out There & Photograph Spring!

Figure 11 (F4.0 – ISO 100 – Shutter Speed 1/640)

my favorite wild yellow flower

Always feel free to comment or send links to your Spring shots!

Cheers,

Janice

All of these photographs are available in SJP’s archives.

Starting your search…

Hello everyone,

My plan for this week was to talk about Macro equipment but my time fell short for the blog so I thought today I would discuss photographing Spring outdoors.   As I was writing this article I realized that it became large, at least for me.  I like my information short and sweet.  No books here!  So I have decided to make this a two set article.  Today, I will talk about starting your search for a Spring location and the next post will be about various ways to get up close and personal!

Every year in Southern California we have poppies that bloom in our desert in Antelope Valley during the months of late March into April.  The flowers will end up dying because of the extreme heat in our deserts…  but every year they bloom again in that short period of time, giving our deserts a beautiful spring shower of color.  Unfortunately, I have allergies so I do pay for the fun and beauty of the season…. that’s ok because I have so much fun macro shooting outdoors.  I hope to inspire you all to get out and photograph and, sorry I had to say it…   “Smell the Flowers”!

Think about the areas in your town, city, and state, trying to make it a ritual to attend every year at the place of your choosing.  This is how you learn about the location…the way the wind blows in the area, the lighting of the fields, etc… If you can’t think of a place, Google your area, you may be surprised to find a cool place to go.  You don’t need to go far but I do suggest you get away from your own back yard garden…this is part of the whole process, get out of your environment!

Of course I will be focusing mainly on macro shots today and I would like to remind you to respect the environment; it is a whole different world down in Macroville.

Kevin (my husband) and I have been going to this poppy field for years so we know some really cool spots to photograph.  One suggestion is if you see water or a dried out waterway, stream, or whatever you want to call it…go to that area. You will find life…where there is water or was water…there is life!  As we drive down the dirt road in Pic 1 we observe the best locations for that variety of macro life.

If  you want to view the Pics up-close, click on them, to return bag to the blog use your back arrow key on the web bar.

Pic 1

Pic 2 is one of the locations we stopped at…this is a snap shot just to show you where some of my macro shots were completed.  The location looks ok until you get up close!

Pic 2

My husband, the awesome observer that he is, noticed a poppy sticking out from everything around it; it was the King of the territory!  I shot it eye level and blurred some of the shot to make this single poppy pop.

Pic 3

I also wanted to focus on the life around the poppies, so with pic 4 I made sure that the poppies were in focus and blurred the other areas of the shot .  You can do this with your aperture.

Pic 4

Just to remind you all, I rarely hand hold a macro shot.  I set up my tripod or bean-bag and go for it.  Keep the camera stable!  I use my remote control cord and adjust the focus manually, basically everything is manual; for me it’s so much easier to work with when I macro.  If you have a point and shoot…still put it on a small tripod.  I have linked some goodies to this blog to help you read about point and shoots and DSLR’s (Digital Single – Lens Reflect Camera).  If you have a DSLR camera, purchase a macro lens!  You will absolutely be happy with your work, I promise.

Next, move in on your subject and really have some fun!  See how close you can get  :)

Pic 5

Also, try to take a photo of a main subject and focus on just that.  My next post will have more ideas for you to play with.

Pic 6

While I photograph, my husband explores.  We make an awesome team… He found a wonderful patch wild flowers with poppies (see Pic 7).  I was so excited…I found a perfect area to set up.  I started my macro mode and noticed that a bug peaked out from a poppy petal and was watching me.  It didn’t move…I couldn’t believe how he/she was observing me, these bugs move all the time.  It’s actually hard to photograph them.  I said to myself….hurry Janice….hurry, you’re going to miss the shot.  I focused on the bug and was amazed to see the pollen all over it.  See Pic 8 for the actual picture of my buddy and Pic 9 is cropped so you can view it better on your computer.

Pic 7

Pic 8

Pic 9

So get out there and photograph your Spring location!  I always feel revived after our trips… and I have my photographs to remind me of the wonderful trip we had.  I highly recommend you get out there and photograph Spring!

Also….

Remember, Pic 9 – Respect the macro world – there is life out there even when you can’t see it!

In a couple of weeks don’t forget to look for “Get Out There and Photograph Spring –  Part II”

Various ways to get up close & personal…

Cheers,

Janice

Did you have a chance to read your manual on your camera?  If not, you should, because to photograph a great macro shot you really need to know your camera.

Read up on F-Stops and Shutter Speeds so you understand what you will need to do to make adjustments to the camera to get what you want.  The F-Stop is one of the most important aspects of photographing up close.

Today my post will be about basic Macro photographing in natural light.  My next post will discuss software to process your photographs, basically, when you work on your photos using your computer,  you will be able to achieve a more professional look to your photographs.  So don’t be discouraged if you’re not seeing the photographs you thought  you were going to shoot now.  Trust me…I will get you there

I would like you to play with your camera this week and focus on the various f-stops and shutter speeds to see what is in focus and what is not in focus.  When you shoot, for example an f-stop of F8 compared to F1.4 you can see that the F8 has more in focus, see below:

FYI: A variable to remember is that the closer you get to a subject with your lens the harder it is to achieve a sharp focus from edge to edge.

If you want your photograph to be more in focus change your f-stop to F22 and see what it does.  Be careful to not increase your f-stop more than F22 because of the Reciprocal factor.  Just be aware that anything above F22 may have a dark ring around the outer edges of the photograph.  Of course you will need to make sure your exposure is correct. Due to digital technology you can see the exposure at the moment you take the picture.  An easy way to check your exposure is to set the aperture to your liking, move your shutter speed so the exposure guide in your viewfinder is in the middle (read your manual if you don’t know what I’m talking about) shoot the photo, if the photo is too dark slow down your shutter speed (say from 160 to 100) if the photo is too light speed up your shutter speed (say from 160 to 200) each time looking at your photo to see how it looks. Again, later in our posts we can talk about more detailed info on exposure, but for now play with this and USE YOUR MANUAL MODE.

I like to shoot with an ISO of 100 in natural light.  You can read about ISO here.  Basically, the lower your ISO the better the photograph.  If your light is limited go to an ISO of 400 or use lights.  I rarely use an ISO higher that 400 because of the grainy look to the photo.

When you photograph with natural light, pay attention to the light hitting your subject. Try not to have too much shadow on your subject, for now… when we talk about lighting (later) we can play with shadows. I begin my macro mode by photographing the subject in full – no macro.  I guess for me it’s getting to know the subject with the camera.  See how the dog is in the light and the backgound is in shadow. This drawes my attention to the dog – so cute isn’t she!

Pay attention to the light hitting your subject.

Ok, I’m going to confess! I am handholding the camera on the dog shots, but I’m not getting really close to her so I can wing it. The next two photographs I want you to see the difference in the aperture setting. This is what defines the photograph’s depth-of-field.

This photograph was taken at F8 @ 1/160 of a second:

F8 @ 1/160

The photograph below was taken at the same speed but with an F-Stop of 2.8:

F2.8 @ 1/160

Notice that her eye is in focus and the face is out of focus on the second photo (F2.8).  Remember,  you have the control!  Just change your f-stop to achieve what you want.  Take a look at the two photographs below with the same F2.8 stop.  The first flower is flat to my camera, notice that the flower is more in focus than the other flower.  I moved my camera to view the side of the flower (second photo) to show you how drastic this stop (F2.8) is.  Yes, I had to use my tripod, cable release, and focusing rack, for the flower shots. I had fun playing with the focusing rack…you can determine what you want the viewer to see in focus.  It’s a perfect toy for creativity!

front view f2.8

Side view:

side view F2.8

So your homework this week is to play with your apertures. Remember that an F22 will be in more focus than F2.8, but because of the small amount of light coming into the camera at F22, you will need to slow your shutter speed to add more light into the camera to get the exposure.  The next post  I will have photographs with F22 and some details about processing your photographs.

One more thing….because you need to slow your shutter speed…you may need to wait for the wind to stop blowing if your subject is outside.  I had to wait until just the right time to achieve a sharp focus on the flowers below.  I also suggest that you read up in your manual how to lock your mirror on your camera and use your tripod and shutter release cable.

Two more photos…can you tell which one has the f-stop open more? If not ask me:

Used a tripod and waited for the wind to stop for a sharp focus on flower.

Used tripod and cable release for a sharp focus on flower.

Remember, the f-stop is one of the most important parts of macro photography.  Play with it so you understand how to create awesome macro photographs.  A great book to read is, “The Complete Guide to Close-up and Macro Photography” by Nicki Wheeler.

Cheers,

Janice

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