Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Happy Holidays from all of us at OPG!
Saturday, December 24th, 2011Add Texture To Your Images
Thursday, September 8th, 2011I have been to a couple photography sites where I saw people posting images with flypaper textures applied to their images. I really liked the look and decided to give it a try.
For these textures check out Jerry Jones and his Shadow House Creations Blog. Jerry is kind enough to allow everyone free downloads of his textures he has created. He told me he has about 1000 textures between his blog and flicker. If you use any of his textures he would appreciate a plug for his site. Thanks Jerry, I know I will pick out a bunch to use.
Here is an image I just recently shot and thought it was a good candidate for some flypaper textures.
I load the image into Photoshop Elements, and then open which flypaper texture I would like to apply over the image. Once the texture is up, it will sit on the right side of the image on your screen, I use the move tool to drag the texture over top of the image. You can adjust the texture to fit over the image by going to the corners or edges and dragging the texture to fit completely over the image. On the far right side of the screen you will see thumb nails of both, the image is labeled background and then the texture you applied over top in a second box as a layer. Just above the texture layer thumbnail you will see a box that says normal, click on that box and another box will show up with a bunch of different words. Look for the area that has the words Overlay, Soft Light, Hard Light, Vivid Light, Pin Light. When you click on one of these links it will make the texture some what transparent over the image, and each name that you click on will have a different look. Once you find the look you like, go to the right side above the thumb nails, you will see the word Opacity with a box next to it that says 100%. Click the 100% and a slider will appear, and you can adjust the amount of opacity of the texture.
This is the first texture I applied over the image and chose the overlay at 95% opacity.
Here is the image with the first texture added with the adjustments.
I then opened and added a second texture following the same processes as the firsts texture and here is that texture.
This is the images with the second texture applied using the soft light at 75% opacity.
You can also use the brush tool to erase any of the texture in areas you don’t want it.
Check the Flypaper Textures out as they are fun to play with and add an interesting look to your images!
You can visit Mike's blog and learn about his workshops here: Tiny Landscapes
Mike's eBooks are available in the OPG store here: Mike Moats
Think Tank Photo, Retrospective 30 Camera Bag Review
Sunday, March 27th, 2011
Every photographer needs a good camera bag (ideally a few). So when it came time to upgrade my trusty old LowePro shoulder bag, I decided to check out the latest bags by Think Tank Photo. Its not that I didn't like my old LowePro, but I was wanting a bag that was slightly bigger and one that doesn't look like a camera bag. This is where Think Tank Photo came in with their latest line of shoulder bags called the Retrospective series.
The Retrospective line are camera bags designed not to look like camera bags, which, if you're a photographer who has spent any time in crowds or in locations where its best to not look so conspicuous, then you can most definitely understand how valuable a bag like this can be. Think Tank has several sizes and color styles available, but I decided to go with the largest, the Retrospective 30. I also chose the Pinestone color as opposed to the black. I think I like this color primarily because it looks even less like a camera bag and also has a more 'rugged' look to it (which should go well with my rugged good looks, cough ;)
Not only does this bag look great, but it has a ton of room! This bag can easily hold 2 camera bodies, multiple lenses (even a 70-200) a flash or two and all the batteries, cables, gels and what not that you can stuff in it. The interior is easily customizable with removable, velcro dividers and can be configured to hold any camera body with just about any lens attached. I like the Retrospective 30 because its size allows you to place a camera with a lens attached in various positions, depending on the lens you use and still have room for various other necessities.
One of my concerns about this bag was whether or not it had enough pockets to store smaller items. After checking out this bag, I can tell you it has more than enough! There are neatly arranged pockets everywhere on this bag, inside and out. The arrangement is smart and designed to hold everything from batteries to memory cards to even note pads. There are 2 big flat pockets on the inside, front and back, a large flat pocket on the outside of the back, pockets on shorter sides, inside and out and even smaller pockets inside the larger ones.
Another awesome thing about this bag is that while it isn't water proof, it does come with an excellent rain cover that packs away neatly in one of the front pockets. This was another concern of mine since my old bag was waterproof. However, I've used other Think Tank products and their rain covers work perfectly.
Something else that is definitely worth mentioning, these bags are built like tanks! The stitching and hardware that Think Tank uses reminds me of military grade products. I think it would take years of wear and tear to damage this bag and considering Think Tank's customer support, I believe it would be no problem to get replacement parts or repairs done. However, I don't ever anticipate this being an issue.
The last thing I really like about the Retrospective 30 bag is how comfortable it is to wear. My old shoulder bag was a little more rigid and felt like wearing a small TV around my neck. Since the Retrospective 30 is soft sided, it almost molds to you as you have it around your neck or shoulder and this bag has a huge, no slip shoulder pad which makes it really nice if you prefer to just carry it on your shoulder. For a large shoulder bag, its definitely the most comfortable one I've owned.
If you're interested in a new shoulder bag, then I would definitely check this one out. I picked up my bag at the Outdoor Photo Gear store which carries every Think Tank product available and their customer service is second to none! If you're local and would like to check out any of these bags first hand, give the guys at Outdoor Photo Gear a call, or just stop in to check them out.
oh, and as always, click on any pic for a larger view!
Learn more about John, view his portfolio and check out his blog at John Adkins Photography.
Six Mistakes I Still Make and How You Can Avoid Them
Monday, March 7th, 2011
Earlier I wrote about the best advice I’ve received from other photographers during the last 12 years of my career. I thought I’d go the opposite direction and share a few mistakes that, after all that time in the field and great advice, I still can’t seem to avoid. Some are humorous and others are just downright annoying. What mistakes do you find yourself making over and over again?
That Pesky Lens Cap - I can’t tell you how many times I’ll put the viewfinder to my eye only to see…nothing. Yeah, I forget to take the lens cap off all the time. Fortunately, I realize the error before pressing the shutter button. I don’t feel too bad about this as years ago I read that Ansel Adams once forgot to put film in his camera during a workshop he was teaching. Okay, so the great one only made such a silly mistake once.
Invincible Tripod Syndrome (ITS) - We’ve all done this. Some of us learned from our mistakes while others (me) still haven’t. We set up our tripod, mount our camera and expensive lenses to it and then walk away. Do this enough times and eventually gravity will rear it’s ugly head. I’ve had cameras blown over in the wind, knocked over in the water and I’ve even tripped over my own tripod leg. I saved that one from near death. I know the consequences and yet I continue to roll the very expensive dice. That qualifies for stupid, right?
Image Stabilization Times Two - What is a tripod? It’s image stabilization. There’s no such thing as too much image stabilization, right? Wrong. Many lenses that feature built-in image stabilization/vibration reduction are likely to produce blurry images if you leave the IS/VR turned on while your camera is locked tight on a tripod. You see, when your camera is secure in a ballhead and IS/VR kicks on, the movement of the gyro inside the lens is enough to introduce vibrations that may result in blurry images. I’ve blown more images than I care to remember because of this bonehead move. Whether or not the IS/VR will cause blurry images is a function of luck, shutter speed and the lens you’re using. Why chance it? Make it a habit to turn off IS/VR before using a tripod.
The Dust Magnet - Sensor dust is the bane of every digital photographer. Most modern DSLRs have some kind of ultrasonic cleaning mechanism that does a remarkable job of keeping sensors virtually dust free. Still, it’s never wise to leave your camera turned on when changing lenses – especially in the field. Doing so exposes what is essentially a magnetically charged sensor to the environment, thus inviting dust to take up residence inside the camera. I don’t do this often but every once in a while, when I’m rushing, it’ll happen. It’s usually followed by a string of self-deprecating expletives.
Lens Envy - An illness I’ve never been able to overcome is gear envy. If only I had that new lens/camera/computer/software/backpack/filter/truck my images would be soooooooooooo much better. In fact, I’ve pretty much given up on even trying to beat this one. I’m a gearhead. Always have been, always will be. I just need to realize that I don’t need to justify a purchase by pretending to believe it’s going to make me a better photographer.
More is Better - In compositional terms, more is rarely better. And yet, I find myself cramming more and more into a composition until it loses cohesiveness. I’m usually able to realize this in the field and make adjustments on the fly to resolve the issue. Occasionally, I don’t discover the error until I see the images on my computer monitor. The best compositions and thus, photographs, are not usually those which contain everything. Simplify, simplify, simplify.
Now that I’ve bared my soul it’s your turn. Share some of the mistakes you still make. I bet you’re not alone and perhaps we can all learn from them.
Learn more about Bret, view his images, check out his workshops and read his blog here.
The Best Photography Advice I’ve Ever Received
Monday, February 28th, 2011
Over the years I’ve received much great advice that has contributed significantly to my growth as a photographer. While guiding a photographer last week who was only bitten by the photo bug a few months ago, I offered a simple piece of advice: “Sweep the edges of your viewfinder before making an exposure.” It was something I learned ten years ago while reading a “how-to” book published by Arizona Highways. At the end of the day I was happy to hear her say that she learned more during our few hours together than she had in several months on her own. I always find it rewarding to help other photographers learn and grow as artists.
On the drive home I began to reminisce about all the little nuggets of wisdom I’ve learned in the past eleven years. Some came from books, others from magazines and even more from other photographers. Regardless of their origin, each one has benefitted me in some way. Like many of you, I never want to stop learning. No doubt, the advice below is only the beginning of what will surely be an even longer list in another eleven years.
Sweep the Edges - Since I mentioned this one in the introduction to the article I thought I’d start off with it. It’s also one of my favorites and something I do every time I compose an image without even thinking about it. Very simply, once you have composed a scene in your viewfinder do one final visual sweep of the edges of the frame before depressing the shutter button. You’re looking for little distractions. It might be a branch intruding into the frame, a bright spot in a corner or even the foot of your tripod creeping into the bottom of your composition. This will also force you to slow down and spend more time crafting a deliberate composition.
Don’t Forget to Turn Around - I read this very early in my career in a “how-to” book published by Arizona Highways that seems to have been discontinued. The author’s point is simple: no matter how awesome the scene before you is, always remember to glance over your shoulder because it just might be even better behind you. I follow this advice on nearly every photography outing and it has netted me some of my favorite images.
Don’t Forget to Look Down - I learned this lesson while viewing Tom Till’s image of colorful desert wildflowers pushing through cracks in mud. The placard next to it explained that while Tom was photographing a grand landscape he happened to look down and found a scene far more original and interesting than the one he had intended to photograph. You just never know what you’ll find if you keep an open mind!
Include People in Your Photos - This one certainly won’t apply to everyone. However, it’s a valuable tidbit of advice that has certainly been favorable to my bank account. My good friend Todd Caudle, who has been one of the most generous and inspirational pro’s for the entire length of my career, is responsible for this one. While photographing wildflowers at Lost Dutchman State Park about ten years ago, Todd suggested that I consider including people in my photos. Todd suggested that photographing my girlfriend at the time while hiking, climbing, canyoneering and mountain biking would open doors to some of the outdoor magazines. I didn’t take his advice seriously until I met my wife, Melissa, a few years later. It’s a shame I waited. Had I immediately began following Todd’s advice I surely would have been published much sooner.
Look For and Exploit Reflected Light - We’ve all seen photos of Antelope Canyon’s sculpted walls glowing neon with reflected light. Until I gathered this piece of advice from uber-talented photographer and friend Guy Tal, I wasn’t aware that reflected light was so prevalent in nature. And, it even happens on a grand scale. Clouds reflect light back down on to the landscape and massive cliffs bounce light all the way across the Colorado River canyon near Moab. Snow reflects light into shadows. Once you learn to identify reflected light you can easily use it to your advantage – even when photographing in mid-day.
Don’t Immediately Set Up Your Tripod - I can’t remember where I learned this but it’s made a huge difference in the quality of my compositions. Upon arriving at a location spend some time exploring the area before you plant your tripod. Experiment with different vantage points. Try getting low to the ground or finding an elevated perch. Maybe you’d originally intended to go wide angle but a more interesting scene in the distance demands a telephoto? Even a few steps to the left or right of you’re standing could make a dramatic difference.
Bad Weather = Good Photography - Another great piece of advice whose origin escapes me. Bad weather often creates the most dynamic conditions for photography. Menacing clouds, storm light, fog, rain and snow can all contribute to amazing photography. Or they can flat out suck. That’s the chance you take when you wander out on a stormy day to make photographs. But instead of bemoaning the fact that rain is in the forecast, get excited by it. Overcast? You couldn’t ask for better light for intimate landscapes. Fog? If it’s winter you might find hoar frost. Summer? Look for features in the landscape playing hide and seek behind a veil of fog.
Adapt to the Conditions - This one ties in nicely with the one above. Most of us have probably taken a trip to a far off location with the intent of photographing our hearts out only to find lousy weather upon our arrival. There is always something to photograph. It may not be what you came for, but if you stay positive and learn to adapt you will be able to make images. I don’t remember where this one came from but it’s advice I’ve learned to follow. Bonus: Not only do I get to make photos regardless of the conditions, but I’m much happier and less stressed out, too.
A Bad Day in the Mountains is Better Than a Good Day in the Office - This one comes to us from Todd Caudle. And you know what? He’s right. Wouldn’t you rather hike ten miles into the mountains to photograph sunrise at an alpine lake only to be defeated by a dull gray overcast than spend one stinkin’ minute staring at your computer monitor? I would. I will add one small caveat: A bad day in the mountains is better than a good day in the office – so long as you don’t have to cut off your own arm!
Certainly you’ve all received some sage advice over the years. Why not share it with us in the comments section below? I, for one, am always open to good advice!.
Learn more about Bret, view his images, scout his workshops and read his blog here.
Photo and Quote of the Day-”Morning Trees”
Thursday, February 24th, 2011
Lumiquest Softbox LTp Review
Sunday, January 23rd, 2011There's a new softbox for speedlights on the market called the Lumiquest LTp! Lumiquest has long been making cool modifiers for speedlights, including my previous favorite, the Softbox III. Based on how popular the SBIII is, Lumiquest came out with another softbox for speedlights, but this time its bigger, and as we all know, bigger is better, right?
Lumiquest's new softbox is roughly twice the size of the SBIII. At 10" x 14" the LTp creates a nice, soft light source for hand held portraits. However, this softbox is just not limited to hand held portraits, it can be used for a myriad of lighting solutions including a hair light, a kicker light, a fill light and it works excellently for product photography. It eats up about the same amount of light as the SBIII, which is a little more than one full stop of light.
In this first portrait, I used the LTp on a Nikon SB-800 hand held to camera left. This image is straight out of camera with no editing except to crop and resize for the web. You can see that this softbox gives a nice, soft quality of light (click on it for a larger view). It's not quite as soft as a larger softbox or shoot-thru umbrella, but for a compact softbox that can be hand held and packed away in almost any camera bag, its gives awesome results! The light from this softbox is kinda 'punchy' and soft at the same time, similar to that of a beauty dish.
Another thing that is really nice about the LTp is that since it has a rectangular shape (and has an edge), it can be feathered to focus the light more where you want it (or don't want it). It's quite easy. Just a slight adjustment can light a subject without creating much spill on your background, as in this portrait. For this shot, I held the LTp almost directly above my model and tilted it slightly back towards the camera, so that less light would fall on my background. You can see what a really soft light this makes when used this closely. This photo was edited in post to add a vignette and adjust the color tones.
In this last portrait, I'm using the LTp as a kicker light with a CTO gel to make a nice, warm accent in this portrait of my friend and fellow photographer J.J. Henderson. The LTp makes an awesome kicker or rim light because of its compact shape and edge. I simply turned this light more towards the camera which lit my subject with a smooth, silky warm light and added little to no light to my background.
In the video above, I discuss this a bit, but one of the advantages to the size of this softbox is that its roughly the exact same size as most laptops (thus the name LTp). So for all those photographers carrying backpack style bags and roller style bags, this handy modifier will slide right in there with your laptop taking up little to no space.
Find out more about the Lumiquest LTp in the OPG store here.
Learn more about John, view his portfolio and check out his blog at John Adkins Photography.
The Frio Coldshoe Adapter Review
Monday, December 20th, 2010
There's a new kid in town in the cold shoe department! From the same awesome guys that came up with the Orbis Ring Flash adapter, comes the all new Frio Universal Cold Shoe Adapter. This cool gadget will connect any hotshoe flash to any 1/4-20 threaded stud and it connects very securely.
The Frio is made of a hard, durable plastic, is very light weight, and is smaller than the standard plastic shoe that comes with most flashes. This little guy is so small that you can literally pack 10 of these in any bag and take up little to no space.
But does it work, you say?
Let's check it out...
As stated above, the Frio simply screws on to any 1/4-20 threaded stud (which is pretty much standard on just about all light stands, tripods and just about anything else you can attach a flash to), and the flash hotshoe just slides right in.
The Frio has a "dual locking" mechanism in that there is a plastic tab that you have to push down to get the flash in the shoe, then it has a slot that picks up the locking pin mechanism on just about every hotshoe flash.
I used mine on an umbrella swivel adapter (as I do with all my shoe mounts). Because the Frio has a metal threaded insert and not a plastic one, you get a very secure fit to your stud mount. Also, you can wrench it down pretty well without fear of stripping the threads ...not so with plastic threading.
You can see in the photo below that the Frio is approximately half the size of the standard plastic cold shoe that comes with your flash.
Just to test the Frio's actual strength out, I turned my flash over to a 90 degree angle. Not only did it not even budge, I actually banged on the flash a little to see if I could jostle it out ...to no success. I also attached a beauty dish to my flash (not pictured) to see if it could withstand the extra weight, which it did with no issues.
I also tried the Frio with a few other quirky flashes I have and they all mounted right in with no issues. I can tell you this, I will be replacing all of my existing cold shoes with the new Frio.
You can read more about the Frio and purchase it at the OPG Store.
Hope you check these because they really rock!
Learn more about John, view his portfolio and check out his blog at John Adkins Photography
Christmas Party Portraits
Tuesday, December 7th, 2010
If you're a photographer, chances are, your friends and family have become very accustomed to seeing you with a camera. As a matter of fact, if you're like me, then they might even think there's something terribly wrong with you, or perhaps wonder if you're sick (mentally or otherwise) if you show up to any gathering and don't have a camera with you. I've been toting a camera around with me everywhere I go for so long now, that I've sorta become the de facto staff photographer for any social gathering.
This is actually a good thing though, because its a low pressure way to experiment with different techniques while not worrying about actually upsetting paying clients. Sometimes though, you might feel that slight pinch from your friends and family expecting top quality work (since you're a photographer) but really all you want to do is snap a few photos of the event and have a good time. Ever happen to you?
I digress.
Shooting social gatherings is actually quite similar to shooting wedding receptions (at least in my mind anyways). They are fast paced, there are a few folks around feeling better than you (cough, cough, bourbon and coke) and there are generally a lot of people moving about and having a good time. Now since you're a photographer and they expect you to get some really tasty shots of everyone in attendance, what do you do?
Since a lot of parties are usually indoors this time of year (at least in my neck of the woods ...its freezing out!) you're going to need some good light and its probably pretty clear to you that setting lights up on stands is not a good idea with this type of crew. If you have one of those new cameras with high ISO, then you might get away with shooting natural light, but you're still running a risk on some blurry images and not enough depth of field. You could always use direct, on camera flash ...but you're better than that!
Increasingly, my favorite technique for these kinds of scenarios is using the flash on camera, but bouncing the flash off nearby walls. If you aren't already doing this, you might be surprised at what a nice quality of light you can get, and you can just about always bet there's going to be a white wall or door in someone's house or in a worse case scenario, a white ceiling. Even beige or gray colors can work and it takes little to no effort to park someone close to a wall, point the flash away from them and towards that wall and voila, you get big, soft, directional light!
All of the photos in this post were shot with that exact method and you can tell by looking at the shadows on the subjects, that the light is quite soft, and doesn't draw attention to itself. Any wall when hit with flash will make a HUGE light source and if your subject is in close proximity, we know that the closer a light source is to its subject, the larger the apparent light size is in relation to it, and therefore softer.
With all of these images I shot in Aperture priority mode, with my aperture wide open as much as my 18-200mm zoom would give me and set my ISO to 800. I used these settings to ensure that my shutter speed wouldn't drop below 1/30 of a second (which I know I can hand hold comfortably when using flash) even though I knew that the flash would "freeze" my subjects. This setting also allowed me to pick up some ambient light in the room which balanced out the shots nicely. Since this room was lit with incandescent lights in a vaulted room with white ceilings, I didn't even bother adjusting my white balance (left it in Auto) because I knew the ambient and flash would balance moderately well. These images may appear a little warm, but honestly, I prefer this when shooting people.
While I will admit that I don't expect to win any awards for these photos, this is an incredibly easy way to get nice lit portraits indoors, and since it is Christmas time, I tried to park most of my subjects in front of or near the Christmas tree. This was quick and easy for me, plus it gave my friends a few nice portraits for the holiday season, win win!
I hope you try this out during the next holiday party you go to. You'll be surprised at how easy this is, and your friends will love the "professional" looking portraits you cranked out for them with little to no effort.
If anybody has any questions about these shots or how I took them, please feel free to ask. If I don't know the answer, I can always Google it! :)
Salvaging a Barred Owl
Friday, December 3rd, 2010
D3, 400, ISO 640, f4, 1/250 -1.0 EV
I wanted to share this image that I processed 95% in ACR (Adobe Camera Raw CS5).
The image is full frame and was shot in very harsh light. The image on the left is converted from Raw with no adjustments.
I used the adjustment brush to tone down the over-exposed right side of the Owl and also to bring out more detail in the shadow side of the Owl, and the dark background.
Since the bird's right eye was in shadow, and his right eye was in full sun, you can see the different size of the eyes. After balancing the light with processing, I felt both eyes should be the same. I used a small brush in “liquify” (under “filters”) to resize the eyes. Credit to Mike Gray for showing me the “adjustment” tool.
I love that each new version of Photoshop is saving more and more images that I used to throw away 
You can read more about Alan, browse his images, and learn about workshops here.
