Here’s a quick video on how I’ll use a vignette in Nik Software's Silver Efex Pro to direct the viewer’s attention in the frame.
Posts Tagged ‘Video’
How to use a vignette in Silver Efex Pro
Wednesday, January 11th, 2012How to Straighten an Image in Adobe Lightroom
Thursday, November 17th, 2011I get a lot of questions on how to straighten an image in Lightroom, so I thought I would "level with you" and show how I fix the problem with a video tutorial… 
How to Change the Crop Orientation in Adobe Lightroom
Thursday, October 20th, 2011Here's a quick video on how to change the orientation of your crop in Adobe Lightroom with only a few clicks of the mouse.
Learn more about John, view his images, get info on his books and check out his blog here.
Photo Safari in Tanzania – Andy Biggs Video
Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011If you’ve never been on a photo safari in Tanzania, you’ll get a taste of one by watching this video. Andy Biggs of Gura Gear fame shows us travel, accommodations, relaxation and wildlife in this video of a typical photo safari.
You’ll want to go, or go back, after watching this video. Thanks Andy!
You can learn more about Andy’s safaris here.
Photo Safari in Tanzania Video Transcript
Hi, I’m Andy Biggs, and thank you for taking the time to look at this brief introduction to an African photographic safari. The reason I put this together was to really explain what we see on a typical game drive. We have beautiful wildlife. We have beautiful landscapes. And then to also show you our accommodations, how comfortable they are, as well as take a look at our professional wildlife guides
Photographic Safari Client
When you get to be around my stage in life you’re looking to fill your bucket list, and Africa was number one, has been since I was a child, actually. So when I chose to come to this safari, I had high expectations. They’ve all been met and exceeded. You walk in here, you walk around the campsites, you get in the vehicles, you see Africa, and it’s sort of becomes part of your soul.
Photographic Safari Client
My favorite moment was, for sure, the encounter with the cheetahs at the water’s edge. There was a little stream with cheetahs, and the reflection was just awesome, all blue. I got some awesome shots from that.
Photographic Safari Client
I also just like the general massive herds just trucking on through. Don’t worry about you. They’ve just got a place to go. That’s all they’re worried about is where they’re going, and it’s impossible to describe these masses of animals just moving along.
Photographic Safari Client
My favorite part of the trip so far – because this is my first time to do anything like this, any type of vacation – was actually when we flew into the airport. There was a pond of hippos below us when we flew over. So that was kind of, “Okay, we’re in Africa now.”
Photographic Safari Client
The accommodations have been great. We have warm beds, a self-contained toilet that we can use, a hot shower in the evening. The food’s been great. I eat a lot of food at home and have not gone hungry here. I’m also a very picky eater, and I’ve definitely liked the food that we have.
Photographic Safari Client
The accommodations here have just been fantastic for tents. It’s like you’re in a hotel or a lodge actually, because you can walk out. The food’s been great, and the beds and everything has been fantastic, comfortable, warm.
Photographic Safari Client
I’ve been on Safari now for about eight days, and I can honestly say this is one of the greatest experiences I’ve ever had. The wildlife has been amazing. We’ve seen everything that I was hoping to see multiple times and more. The guides are knowledgeable, friendly. One of the things that I like about Andy’s safari is that, as a photographer, you get the time to work with the animal as long as you want. You can recompose. The drivers are accommodating. If you need them to move around for different angles, they’ll stay with the subject as long as you like. If you want to wait for better light, you can wait for better light. There’s no rush.
New Outdoor Photo Gear Product Video Intro
Wednesday, May 4th, 2011Matt, our webmaster and graphics wizard, has been hard at work creating a new OPG intro that we'll place on the many gear review videos we have coming up. We think it's pretty cool!
How to Photograph from an Open-Roof Safari Vehicle in Africa
Friday, April 8th, 2011Editor's note: Welcome Andy Biggs to the blog! Andy has been a long time supporter of OPG, and is the designer and manufacturer of the wildly popular Gura Gear Kiboko bag. In addition to running Gura Gear, providing commercial stock images and teaching workshops, Andy conducts incredible photo safaris to Africa. Andy heads overseas six or more times a year, covering nearly every accessible part of the African continent. Having traveled with Andy myself to several stops in southern Africa, I can tell you that Andy's safaris are first class, and that you'll have the photographic experience of a lifetime. You can find out more about Andy, see his images and learn about his safaris at his website www.andybiggs.com. We look forward to more articles and videos from Andy in the future! –Chris
There are many different types of safari vehicles in Africa, and this is the first in a series of videos to try and explain what the vehicles are like. This video specifically describes what the pop-top, or open-roof vehicles are like in east Africa. There are other vehicle types in east Africa (Tanzania and Kenya), however this video specifically addresses the open roof type. I'll shoot similar videos in Botswana and in Kenya later on this year, and my goal is to use these videos to visually explain what the vehicles are like before travelers get to Africa.
You can find the Kinesis Safari Sack described in this video in the OPG Store here.
How to Photograph from an Open-Roof Safari Vehicle in Africa Video Transcript
So I’m here today to talk about how to photograph out of a Land Rover in Africa. Here we have one of my vehicles that we use in Tanzania, and the vehicles are very similar in Kenya as well. But these are what we call pop top, open roof vehicles. Some vehicles do not have a top. I prefer the ones that provide shade because you’re out in the bush all day long, and that sun just beats you down. So I’d really prefer to have one of these tops, these canopies.
The main location you’ll photograph from will be from the standing position. You’ll be in your vehicle. You’ll find your game, what you want to shoot, and you’ll stand up. Here we have a generic bean bag underneath my 200 to 400 lens. My preferred bean bag is from Kinesis. It’s their Safari Sack. It’s kgear.com is their website, and what makes this bean bag really great is it’s got the ability to cinch it to the posts here and keep it in place. You could put a bean bag on one side of the vehicle and another on the other and just leave them there all day long.
When I mount my lens or I place my lens on the bean bag, a lot of times I am using the lens foot. I have a replacement lens foot here from Really Right Stuff, and the reason why I like to use the replacement feet is because they’re typically lower, a lower sense of gravity. You’re not creating a big pendulum on top of the bean bag. That’s my recommendation there.
If my subject distance isn’t changing very much, I do prefer to move that lens foot around to the side or to the top so I have more surface area to hold the lens. The downside of that is that you can’t tweak your manual focus very well, and it’s also hard to zoom if you’re using something like a 200 to 400, a 100 to 400, just some other type of zoom. But for the long zooms, the focusing ring and the zoom ring really do get in the way, so I do like most of the time to just leave the lens foot in place on the bottom.
Now, this is really the best place to photograph if your subjects are farther away. But if your subject is very close, you’re going to want to be shooting from a lower position. And here on the bottom of the vehicle I have a 70 to 200 mounted on top of another bean bag and just sitting out of the window. This is great for those big cats and subjects that come really close to the vehicle because you don’t want to shoot down on your subject. You really do want to shoot at eye level, if at all possible.
This also allows a different view where you can get things and your subject in your frame, like the horizon. I find that is a good storytelling item in an image. The second thing is that if you’re shooting at the same aperture up here, like let’s just say F8 versus F8 down here given the same length of lens, you’re going to have more shallow depth of field, i.e. a blurred background from shooting from a lower position. Why? Because your background is physically farther away from the lens.
I also have two bean bags stacked here in the middle of the vehicle. This is really great where, maybe, if you’re uncomfortable and you need to create a little bit more height but you still want to shoot from a lower position, this can work well. The caveat with that is that if you’ve got some sort of predator walking by the vehicle, you’re not going to want to have that bean bag fall out. That’s a really bad time.
Here is a Land Rover from East Africa and how we shoot from them.
Video with your DSLR: Why use a Digital SLR to shoot video, The Good
Wednesday, August 18th, 2010
www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnZLTzRYw1Q
I am amazed that there is a debate still going on about why anyone would want to use a DSLR for shooting serious video. The arguments remind me of the early days of digital photography, where many out there would argue that images NOT taken on film were not real photos. Today we know differently.
To this end I want to share with you why I shoot video with a DSLR, what I find the be the advantages and disadvantages of using what many are now referring to HDDSLRs (I personally prefer the term Video DSLR).
In this first installment I will talk about what is great about shooting video with DSLRs. Tomorrow I will follow-up with what I consider to be the shortcomings of such systems.
Multiple lenses
This is by far the most important reason for me to use a DSLR to shoot videos. I can use my entire arsenal of still lenses. I can use my macro lenses, my wide angle 10mm, my Super-telephoto 500mm, even tilt-shift lenses. This flexibility is completely unprecedented, that is, unless you had a large personal fortune you did not mind spending it on lenses and cameras. I grew increasingly frustrated with my previous video camera because I could not capture the macro images I wanted to film due to the lens limitations of my camera. The Yellowstone video above I would not have been to capture if I had not been able to shoot with my 500mm lens. Yes there are video camera systems with even greater reach and incredible zooms, but some of these can cost more than $100,000, and at those prices these are out of reach for most people; including myself.
Low Light Capabilities
Because of the large sensors DSLRs have, these cameras have what could be considered nothing short of spectacular low light capabilities. Art Howard, on a recent assignment, was able to shoot video of sleeping bats inside a cave using nothing more than the headlamps they were wearing. Last year I was able to capture some great footage of Pine Barrens Tree Frogs using nothing more than a small battery powered lamp, as you can see the in the video below. Neither of these shoots would be been possible under the circumstances with traditional video equipment as these shoots would have required significant lights, which would have been impossible to use in either of these two situations.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsCnjs6K3S0
Film Like DOF
In photography we control the depth of field in our images by adjusting the aperture on our cameras. The wider the aperture, the shallower the depth of field. But did you know that your cameras sensor size also affects the depth of field? True! All other things being equal such as lens and aperture, two cameras with different sensor sizes will produce different depths-of-field. For example, a Canon 5D MarkII will produce a shallower depth of field than a Canon 7D, as the 5DII has a larger sensor than the 7D.
You may now be asking, why does that matter? It matters a lot, as most video cameras have TINY sensors, typically 1/3″ or 1/4″ or 1/5″, compared to a full frame still camera sensor, which is about 1.4″. What this means is that video cameras have a very deep depth of field. Think about this for a minute. As a still photographer, if I took away from you the following apertures (2.8, 5.6, 8) how would you feel? I know I would feel severely limited creatively. That's how I felt when using a video camera. True, I’ll take as much DOF as I can get when shooting macro, but everywhere else, I rather have my entire DOF range at my disposal, to use as I please.
This DOF issue is one of the primary reasons why most movies are still shot using film. Film is a LOT more expensive to shoot with, you can’t see the results immediately, and it’s a hassle to deal with. Independent filmmakers have been embracing the DSLR for movie making in droves, because the DOF control these systems offer allows them the tell their stories better without the expense of using film.
If you want to see a great comparison on sensor sizes check out this wikipedia article.
One System
This is my last point, but by no means the least important. ONE SYSTEM. What I mean by this is that I have one type of battery, one type of charger, one type of memory cards, one type of lenses, one type of tripods and camera plates, etc. I don’t have to carry multiple formats of the same thing as my photo equipment serves multiple purposes. But MOST important, I only need to learn and know how to operate ONE type of camera. No need to learn multiple switches, dials, controls, menus, capabilities, limitations, etc. These are the same properties of my still camera, because IT IS my still camera. I know the controls of my camera to the point I don’t need to think about them or look at the camera to make any changes, I just “know” how to make these changes without even thinking about it. This is hugely important, because when you need to make a quick adjustment, you just make it, no thinking about it, no need to try and remember where the controls are on this camera, it just happens, and consequently I get the shots I am looking for, more often than not.
The video landscape is not all rosy--there are certain limitations and issues. I'll cover those issues tomorrow, and what I do to overcome them.
However, in my opinion, the positives FAR outweigh the negatives, but you need to decide that for yourself. Hopefully these articles will help you make your own decision.
-J
On Location: Burrowing Owls in Florida [video]
Monday, June 28th, 2010Editors note: We are proud to welcome Richard Peters as a contributor to the OPG Blog! Based in West London and employed in the television/media industry, Richard's passion is wildlife photography. Richard maintains a wonderfully detailed blog that includes great images, equipment reviews, and videos, including stunning time-lapse presentations. Links to Richard's material follow this article. We're looking forward to more of Richard's contributions in the future!
One species I had not seen before, but knew could be found in Florida, is the Burrowing Owl. So I decided to spend some time photographing them at a couple of locations in the sunshine state…as well as recording my first ‘On Location’ video to give you an idea of the conditions I experienced, and to give you some idea of what to expect if you decide to go out photographing these little guys for yourself.
Burrowing Owls are funny little birds. They are only 9 inches tall and spend most of their time sitting at the entrance to their nests, keeping an eye out for food and predators. Florida’s population is estimated to be between 3,000 and 10,000 pairs and they are located at several specific areas, rather than anywhere and everywhere like other species you find in the sunshine state. They are listed as a protected species to help keep the numbers up, as in places like Cape Coral, they have built nests on empty plots of land. As a result developers have, in the past, disrupted nests so that they can build on the land the owls are occupying.
Where to look?
There are several areas around the state you can find the owls nesting although, unlike other species, these locations are quite few and far between and so not quite as easy to just stumble across.
I visited a couple of areas in my search for the owls, and to accompany this article, I made a video to show them – which you can see below (bare with me as I find my feet with this new skill that I am having to learn, it’s only my second video – shot with a Lumix TZ7 – but I do hope you enjoy watching…). You’ll notice I only talk about Cape Coral briefly and that is simply because I spent a couple of hours one morning trying to find the owls there. At the bottom of this article you can find links to websites that will give you more information about the owls and locations you can find them in to help you find some for yourself.
Now you’ve seen the video…
I also wrote this article to better show some of the Burrowing Owl photos I took and also back up the video with more information. I hope you find it an interesting and useful read.
D30, 200-400, 1.4x, 550mm, 1/320, f7.1
Cape Coral
This is probably the most well known location for seeing the Burrowing Owls in Florida. The city is well known for its population which is estimated to be over 1,000 and indeed, as you drive around the city you will see nests dotted all over the place. There is a toll to get on to Cape Coral so be prepared for that if you are visiting from further away…it’s only a couple of dollars but you don’t want to get caught out and have to go off looking for an atm when all you want to be doing is taking photos. The community of the city really do a lot to look after the owls nesting there, with various tips and advice on the protection and well being of the owls to be found on the Cape Coral website. It’s really nice to see just how much effort the city puts in to the conservation of the owls, but given how many of the entire states population live there it really is no surprise. Many residents have also put up wooden crosses by the nests for the owls to perch on, although I only saw one owl off in the distance perched up.
D3, 200-400, 1.4x, 550mm, 1/800, f8, ISO 360
The nests can be found all over the city and you basically just have to drive around looking for them. When you see one, depending on it’s location, you can simply pull up and take photos. As you may have seen in the video, many of them are found around the housing estates, which means you basically have to drive around the many residential areas to spot them. The nests are easy enough to see as they are marked with poles around them and usually rope joining those poles. Because many nests are on private property or in areas that you just cannot reach very easily you may not always be able to get close enough for a decent shot. The good news though, is that there are quite a few of them so it won’t take you long to find another that is a little more within reach of your camera. On the morning we drove round however, there were very few owls on show with most of them seeming to want to keep out of view or as hidden as possible with just a pair of eyes looking out at you. We did find a couple out in the open but we were at the mercy of the sunlight…and that’s your other problem…because a large amount of the nests are on private property you can only photograph them from one direction, which may not always be in the right position for the light.
D300, 200-400 VR, 1/500, f8, ISO 200
I liked Cape Coral, it’s a nice quite city with plenty of space and lots of owls to be found. I would have liked to spend more time there to really make the most of it though as my friend, fellow photographer Colin Pickett, spent a few days there and had more success. Although he informed me the time of day and various nests activity varied a lot, so it really does seem like it might be hit and miss as to whether you see them or not. As is the case with most wildlife, you just have to put the time in and hope you are rewarded with some sightings.
Brian Piccolo Park, Broward County
View Larger Map
By contrast, Brian Piccolo Park really did give me a lot more opportunities to photograph the owls. It really is the last place I would have thought to look for them though, as the park is purely there for recreational purposes with football (soccer!) pitches, cricket fields, basketball courts, a velodrome etc as well as picnic areas. No wetland area, no wildlife conservation area or anything like that which you find in many other parks around the state. This park is purely for the entertainment of the Broward County residents so it really did come as a surprise when I was told to look there for the owls. I was expecting them to be sparsely dotted around and hard to see but to my delight there were a good number of nests and almost every single one of them had at least one owl standing by the entrance…further more, on both the days I visited, the owls were showing well the entire time I was there.
D3 with 200-400 VR, 400mm, 1/250, f7.1, ISO 400
Shooting at the park is really good because the owls there seem much more approachable and accepting of people. I think because the park gets so busy and noisy at times, the owls have grown to understand that they generally are not in danger from the people that use the area, and so you can get close enough for some really nice images – with the owls being far less timid than the at Cape Coral. Again as you can see in the video, some of the nests are right up alongside the pathways and road that wind throughout the park which has all helped to make the owls grow used to the daily visitors. It’s worth pointing out that you should never take the owls trust for granted by getting overly close to them, but you can certainly get close enough that a 400mm on a full frame camera will get you some nice images (or 300mm on a crop body) – although I opted to use my 1.4x TC on my 200-400 because I prefer to stay further away from my subjects, as airing on the side of caution is always the safest bet. The owls always seemed comfortable with my presence though and mostly ignored me and spent most of the time doing what they do best, observing the area around them and moving their heads in all directions to keep an eye on things.
D3, 200-400 VR, 1.4x, 550mm, 1/250, f8
The other advantage here is that you can get to any side of any nest with ease, so you are always able to shoot with the light in the best possible position. It’s also worth pointing out there is a fee to get in to the park depending on the day you visit, so bare that in mind. Full information about the park and it’s location can be found below.
D3, 200-400 VR, 1.4x, 550mm, 1/400, f8, ISO 200
I had great fun photographing the owls in Florida, they are funny little characters, although they don’t do a huge amount so don’t expect any action shots – although I did have one fly between two nests, straight past me…I was totally unprepared for it so missed the chance to photograph it, typical. The one and only time I saw one doing something other than standing around! However, I can recommend them for anyone that might find themselves in The Sunshine State – so do check them out if you ever get the chance.
D3, 200-400 VR, 1.4x, 550mm, 1/320, f7.1, ISO 1100
D3, 200-400 VR, 400mm, 1/250, f7.1, ISO 640
D3, 200-400 + 1.4x, 550mm, 1/320, f7.1
Useful links
Cape Corals owl info
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission – lots of info plus a map to show you locations you can find them.
Learn more about Richard, read his articles and view his videos on his blog: Richard Peters Photography Blog
Check out Richard's YouTube channel for great video content, and follow him on Twitter.
Think Tank Photo Releases Multimedia DSLR Buyers Guide
Wednesday, June 16th, 2010
We've all been aware of the convergence of video and still photography over the past few years. There's a lot of information and a lot of noise out there on the subject. Sorting through it all can be tedious, and every article has its own opinion of how things should be done.
Think Tank Photo has done the "Multimedia DSLR" community a great service today by publishing a Buyers Guide. This guide of course features Think Tank Multimedia Bags, but goes much, much into a broader spectrum of products that the Multimedia DSLR user needs to consider: Camera features, what lenses are best, audio recorders and microphones, and other accessories. Links to those product manufacturer pages are included.
Kudos to Think Tank for doing quite a bit of research that will help us all!
Here's the link to this great information: Think Tank Multimedia DSLR Buyers Guide
Below the Surface–video by Art Howard
Wednesday, May 19th, 2010Art shot this video in a 4 man submersible exploring the deep coral communities of the Atlantic Ocean.
Support for the Aug 2009 Atlantic deep coral cruise was from NOAA, the Cooperative Inst. for Ocean Exploration, Research and Technology (UNCW and FAU), USGS, and the NC Museum of Nat. Sciences.
See Art's Top Tips for Video Shooting on our blog: link
Learn more about Art at his website.
