Tuesday Photo Tip - Why Do All Your Photos Need to Be Sharp?

I admit it, I have it. The Sharpness Disease. If a photo's not tack sharp (where I want it to be), I usually delete it.

But sometimes. SOMEtimes. Sharpness isn't necessary. In fact, it can get in the way. Sharpness says: look here! Pay attention to me! Sharpness says: this photo is about ME. And this is great, when you do have a specific subject for a photo. People, animals, we expect them to be sharp. Or at least we expect the eyes to be sharp.

What if you want just a feeling? An indication? Not a 'look here' but more of a 'feel this.' Then I think sharpness can get in the way a bit. Be a false friend. And blur can help you show and tell what you mean more effectively.

In this case I set my shutter speed to 1/10 of a second, and I took several photos in succession, moving the camera slowly up and down. My goal was a photo where the grass was still identifiable, but where none of the individual details were present (and distracting). I wanted a photo with the feeling of grass. Grass in general, not just this grass.

So, what do you think? Do you have the Sharpness Disease too? Or do you appreciate a bit of blur?

Light Painting

f/2.5, ISO 640, 8 seconds. 85mm lens. 

Here it is, Tuesday again. Amazing how time does fly. And I said that I would do something vaguely photography related on Tuesdays, didn't I? Oh, Jessica. You always speak too soon . . .

Well, ok, I actually had this topic lined up. But Tuesday still came faster than expected.

So, light painting? What is it exactly? Truth is, I'm not exactly an expert, This was the first photo I've tried it out on, but I dare say it won't be the last. Basically, you find a subject (that's pretty much always the first step in photography - what do you want to take a picture of? without a subject, you won't get very far) and set up your tripod. Yes, tripods again. And it has to be night time, because otherwise you won't get your lights to show up. Then you set a base exposure, focus manually (at least I have to, because the 5d won't focus after 6:00 - it keeps union hours), and make sure in general that you're good to go. Set up a self-timer, or use a remote trigger, or what not.

Then we come to the gear you need. To successfully do some light painting, you need a camera, a tripod, and a light source. I recommend a flashlight, the more powerful the better. The newer LED flashlights are also pretty great. You can also pop your flash at low settings multiple times within the frame, but that's a bit harder to control and takes more practice and tweaking.

Invariably, it all needs some tweaking. You'll take quite a few exposures. Ok, so once you're all set up, try a test run. Decide what you want to illuminate, set your camera up, take the shot and run your flashlight or other light source over the part of the photo you want to make brighter than the rest. You can get some really cool results, especially if you have a few different colored lights. Keep in mind, though, that the more complicated what you're trying to do is, the longer of an exposure you need, and the larger the number of shots you'll probably have to make before it turns out well. Make sure you check your histogram after the first shot; you may have to change your exposure slightly.

Ok, hope that made sense! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments if something still isn't clear.

Using Shadows in Your Composition

When you're out and about, the unobvious photo may not pop out at you. It might not scream, "Take me! Take me!" The sunset screams. The travel spot screams. The beautiful flower screams (but only to women and amateurs - just kidding!).

That interesting patch of light and shadow on the side of the building stays silent in comparison.

That's why you have to look for it. And sometimes that makes it sweeter to know you had to search a bit to find it. Use your eye to frame it just right. And press the shutter button just at the right moment.

I don't know exactly why I love this shot, just that I do. The frame created by the shadow on the left and the bottom and the brick on the right makes me smile. And that's why I do this, to smile.

Night Photography

If you're like me, your attempts at night photography consist of shooting an hour or two after dusk, sticking to fast lenses, and hand-holding until it just isn't possible to take a sharp photo any more.

Now, I'll admit that this technique does have its benefits. For one thing, I've gotten really good at keeping the camera steady. For another, I have developed my after-dark eye. It has often been one of my favorite times of the day to take pictures.

But I never brought out the big guns, the one item you really need to take a great night photograph: a tripod. That's right, folks. Surprisingly, it does make it a heck of a lot easier to take a good night photograph. No real surprise there. The surprise for me was how much better the photos are - it's amazing! No real noise! No blur, not even a bit! And such great detail. So let me break it all down for you - it's pretty simple, but it bears saying.

1. First, you've got to choose a location. And you've got to have some light - a full moon, streetlights, building lights, or your own lights/flashlights, but you must have some light.

2. Wear warm clothing. This is not strictly speaking a photography tip, but trust me, you'll be glad you did. For example, I will definitely bring some fingerless gloves next time, because my hands were so cold I couldn't really feel the buttons on the camera.

3. Find your subject, choose your lens, set up your tripod and frame the shot the way you want it. Make sure your tripod is shake-proof. Use your photo bag as a little extra weight on the hook at the bottom, if you've got one.

4. Think about whether you'll have anything moving in your frame, like grasses, or water, or such. It'll most likely be blurred quite a bit. Are you ok with that? If not, you might want to come back and shoot it another time.

5. Set your settings. This shot was at f/4, ISO 160 (the cleanest ISO on my camera, yours may be different), and 30 seconds. Shoot raw so you'll be able to massage the files a bit afterwards. In particular, your white balance will probably need a little work.

6. Maximize your sharpness. Use mirror lockup, and either use your self timer to take the shot, or some sort of remote or cable release. Remember that the vibration from your finger pushing the shutter button can make a big difference in the overall sharpness of the image.

7. Take a few! Look at your histogram. Make sure you're not blowing out your highlights. Check the overall exposure - too dark? Too bright?

8. Celebrate! Then compose the next shot and do it all again.

EDIT: I forgot one key step! Now if you're shooting Nikon, you auto focus whizzes, this may not apply to you. But if you're Canon like me, you must must MUST focus manually. This is the only thing I use my live view for. Use live view, zoom in, and get your manual focus just perfect. It's worth it to bring a flashlight to shine on your subject at this time to make it easier to see if the focus is good.

*Finally! A post on photography. I'm going to try to continue posting informational posts like this on Tuesdays. Any topics you'd like to see? Hit me up in the comments below.*

Oscar

I was lucky enough to get to spend a weekend with Oscar recently. Look at that nose! Isn't he adorable?

One tip for photographing animals: get down. Like, really down. I was lying on my stomach to take this shot, and I don't think it would have worked any other way. If I could have gotten any lower, I would have.

How to Get Out of a Photography Rut: 5 Things to Try

I think it was yesterday that I mentioned how I felt like I was spinning my wheels. Well, whenever I feel like that, photographically speaking, there are a few things I know to try that usually fix me right up.

1. Go somewhere new. For me, this is a big one. I'm stimulated by new sights, sounds, smells, people. Tastes! And you don't need to travel anywhere far away. Just choose a part of your area you haven't explored, or go to a festival near you. Photograph, but don't forget to participate too.

2. Give yourself an assignment. Doesn't matter what it is. Curves, lines, the color red, close-up, environmental portrait, black and white landscape, whatever. Just make yourself shoot something within given parameters. If you're at a loss, there are many photography challenges online either monthly or weekly. DPS, for one. Also, the Learn Photography Facebook group.

3. Try a new technique (or practice one you haven't used in a while). Panning, say. Or making the lights in your photos become stars. Practice shooting backlit. Take a walk and only shoot from the hip. Try to predict what your camera sees when you can't look through the viewfinder. That one's harder than it seems.

4. Find a photo buddy. I'm always happier when I have someone to talk photography with. People can give you feedback and new ideas. Both of which are obviously beneficial. Don't know anyone? I've had great success using meetup.com.

5. Create a series of images. Instead of thinking in single frames, try to come up with a concept that can be expressed in more than one image. Perhaps change over time? A photo essay about a person or subject can also really get the juices flowing. Or maybe you can document your day, from wake to slumber.

What about you? What can you add to this list? How do you stimulate the photographic juices when it feels like you've run dry?

Looking Up - Fire Escape

I was about 20 when I had a friend who introduced me to the joys of looking up.

"Look around," he said. "See all the other people on the street? How many of them are looking up? Will ever look up? Most people only ever look at what's directly in their path, if that."

It's a moment I think back to frequently, because he was absolutely right. Much as we hate to admit our resemblance to scurrying ants, hastening to get our particular bit of the leaf back to the nest, then go out and get another back safely home as soon as we can, the simile is apt.

I like to think of myself as the wayward ant, because I look up quite often, and it's usually worth it. If you go to the top of the blog, there's a drop-down menu  called 'Categories.' It's not as well organized as I would like, and a lot of the older posts are not categorized, but since I started the system I've apparently logged 10 images (11 including this post) that I felt deserved the category 'looking up.'

You should try it too.

Mouseover Monday 5

85mm, f/1.8, 1/50s, ISO 500 Mouse over to see the original in color.

Don't forget to look up! We're all so busy looking forward to what's next that sometimes we miss what's around us.

Leaf Bokeh

Bokeh's one of those words that photographers just throw around. It makes us feel smart, like we know something other people don't.

"Hey, nice bokeh!"

"That looks like a great lens. But what's the bokeh like on it?"

"Oh, I can't concentrate if the bokeh's really harsh in a picture."

Oh, silly photographers. All talk, no action. (Just kidding.) But bokeh is actually a useful concept. Basically it's the quality of the out of focus (blurry)  parts of a picture. Generally speaking, the smoother the blur, the nicer the bokeh. At least in my opinion.

For the Wikipedia article on bokeh, see here. And for TOP's take, a little more technical maybe, go here.

Tip - Shoot from the Hip

I always have trouble taking pictures of people. I hate it. I feel awkward, I always wonder, am I stealing a piece of their soul? (Not really. I'm pretty sure people keep their soul regardless of photography.)

Even when I have express permission (which I recommend getting) I still often can't quite bring myself to take a picture. A good example of this was when Evan and I were in Myanmar, and being herded around like sheep, as tourists often are in Southeast Asia. We were taking a day boat trip on Inle Lake, and one of our 'stops' was to see a few ladies from the Long Neck tribe. Basically, the entire purpose of the stop was to take pictures of these women. And they invited me to.

But I couldn't do it. It still felt rude to me. As though by taking a picture of them I was saying, "Gosh, you look sooooo weird. I have got to show the folks at home a picture of this."

So, sorry, I don't have a picture of them to show you. But honestly, that's okay with me. Google Long Neck Tribe, and you'll see a ton of pictures very like the one I might have taken. It wasn't going to be Art.

Recently, however, I discovered a new solution to my shyness: shoot from the hip. People get self-conscious when you bring the viewfinder to your eye. What was a natural smile or pose turns a bit awkward.

So, instead, hold your SLR like a point and shoot. Or even lower. If you have Live View, this is a great time to use it. What I do is turn Live View on until I see a framing I like, then I turn it off but keep the camera in the same place, then use the shutter button to autofocus and take the shot. And if my subject's not looking at the camera, or can't hear the shutter, they don't even know I took a picture!

I used this technique recently to take the shots of the students in the classroom. And I ended up with a lot of interestingly composed frames that I might not have had otherwise.

It's not a perfect technique. And I usually have to take a few shots to find a keeper. But it's better than nothing, which is what I've often ended up with before. Try it! Let me know if you do, I'd love to hear how it works for you.