What's Mark Up To

How to Eliminate Blinking Eyes in Photographs

Mark — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 17:24:39 +0000

There, in your perfect group photograph, two people have their eyes closed. The next image, two different people do. It seems you just can’t get the timing right. There a few tricks that will get everyone’s eyes open every time.

It’s really simple. Set everyone up, looking the direction you want them to, smiles in place, poses set. Then have everyone close their eyes. Tell them to open them on the count of 3. Wait a moment until everyone has their eyes closed. Count to three in a measured pace, pause, and take your photograph.

The reflex is the eye has to open all the way before it can blink closed. This gives you plenty of time to take one to three images before that happens. The only thing to be careful with is don’t have them opening their eyes into direct sunlight. You will get really scrunched faces.

Wasn’t that easy!

Tricks To Photographing Christmas Lights

Mark — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 20:43:51 +0000

Christmas lights, with all those incredible glowing decorations, just beg to be photographed, but usually they come out as colored pinpricks or a jagged blur of out-of-focus chunks of light. There are some easy things to fix all that.

The first thing you need is something to steady your camera on. A tripod is best, or gorilla pod. You can use a small beanbag or, in a pinch, set the camera on something solid. You will be working with longer exposures than you can hold without blurring.

For outdoor shots, the time of day is critical. Just around dusk or just before sunrise. By having some ambient light you can fill in the unlit areas of the trees and homes but still have the glowing light dominate.

Set your ISO speed to 400 or 800. If you go much higher you might start to get some grain or digital noise. You should test this; you will see the issue appear first in the shadow areas. Some of the newer cameras can go to higher ISOs, so do some testing.

Set your camera to manual for photographing Christmas. Set your aperture or f-stop to F8. This will give you a good depth of field for the focus. Going to f5.6 or f4 will give you more selective focus.

Start by setting your shutter speed at 1/30th of a second. As it gets darker you will have to slow it down to 1/15th, then 1/8th and so on. When you look at your LCD display you should see shapes in the shadows. A trick to help avoid camera shake when you press the shutter release is to use the camera’s self-timer.

If you are advanced enough to change the color balance you can set it on daylight to get the warm yellow glow or on tungsten to get the lights closer to their natural or real color. This setting will also increase the blue cast to the rest of the image but that’s okay, since it increases the tonal contrast of the image.

Use the Rule of Thirds to give your image powerful composition. Mentally divide your viewfinder into thirds vertically and horizontally. In the four points of intersection you should have something of interest in one or more of those points. A brighter or more interesting light or shape.

Indoors, you will still need the tripod but have a few of the room lights up, so there is some ambient light to fill in the areas the lights don’t illuminate.

So to recap:
1) Use a tripod.
2) Set your ISO to 400 or 800.
3) Set your camera to manual – start with F8 and shutter speeds of 1/30th of a second, slow that down as needed.
4) Set your colour setting to either daylight or tungsten depending on the effect you want.
5) Use Rule of Thirds for composition.

Happy Holiday shooting. If you follow these tricks you will get some great Christmas Lights photographs.

15 Cool Christmas Gifts for Photographers

Mark — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 00:21:23 +0000

Not just the normal things, though, but cool stuff that they will ask, “Wow, where did you find this?” Finding a gift for a photographer can be tricky – where does the non-photographer look? Well, here you go, from the fun to the serious, along with the obscure. This will make it easy for you.

1. Canon/Nikon Mugs store. Not really a camera accessory but I think these are just fun. Just be careful you don’t grab the real lens and pour coffee into it. $45 to $160 for a set at the Canon mugs store, or the Think Geek guys have one for $15.

2. Wacom tablet. They come in different sizes with the Bamboo line for the starters, and the Intous line for the real creative types. Once they start using this to work on their images, the mouse will feel like a puck! Starts at $125. Most camera stores carry this. http://wacom.com/en/Products.aspx

3. Exotic lens. Bigger budget? Buy an exotic lens, super wide angle Fisheye, long telephoto or a macro lens. Always buy the same brand lens of the camera.

4. The Eye-Fi. It’s not just a memory card, but a wireless transmitter so you can upload your images to the computer or your favorite photo sharing site. You can also get cards to work with smart phones and the iPad. $99 http://www.eye.fi/products/prox2

5. ThinkTank Airport camera case. Designed for aircraft carry-on size standards, this is fantastic. Packs lots of gear in a great design. I have used it for years. These guys are brilliant, they have a whole line of camera bags. You can buy online or at one of the listed camera stores. $380.

6. Software to alter the images. Ah, in the old days, just find a lab. Now you have to deal with the digital file. There are Photoshop alternatives though, that are affordable while doing a great job. Photoshop Elements, and Corel’s PaintShop Pro are the most well known, but there are lots out there for different budgets, ranging from $20 to $100. I found the TopTen Reviews site that not only lists them with prices, but also rates them.

7. Gorillapods. They have evolved. They have pods that will hold SLRs with zoom lenses, down to pocket cameras. Even ones for iPads and iPhones. Don’t they just look wild? Priced well, too, from $20 to $60. http://joby.com/store

8. Tripod Lens Caddies. Out in the field or in the studio, where do you put your lenses and accessories for quick access? Ta DA! Lens caddies. There are lots out there. This is a bag that straps onto the tripod legs so your gear is both safe and easy to get to. I found the Camera Caddy $30, the Tripod Caddy $25, and Adorama’s Tripod Butler $11. I like the ones with dividers. Be sure to watch the weight they hold.

9. Pop up reflectors. Every photographer can use a reflector. They come in all sizes with choices of silver, gold and white. Go for the silver or white. Lastolite is a great brand with a huge range of options. Westcott is another. Most camera stores carry this product. They range in price from $20 to $300 with the large or exotic ones going for more.

10. The Shootsac. This is a clever idea. It’s a lens bag designed to hug your body. The lenses are quick to access without the usual bulk of a camera case. Designed for both men and all pretty for women. $180.

11. Lens Baby. This is a wildly creative series of lenses for any camera; they change the focus spot with unexpected soft focus spots. $200 starting to $500 for the kit.

12. Black Rapid Camera strap. It’s like a gunslinger strap, puts the camera at your bum or side for easy access, but out of the way if you don’t need it. They were the first. $50 to $60. http://www.blackrapid.com

13. Aquapac waterproof cases. Good to 12 feet underwater, they have cases for very nearly everything. For all those vacationing photographers. $140.

14. Ray Flash – Ring Flash Adaptor. This fits over the camera’s Flash Head to create those fantastic ring flash fashion shot images. A near shadowless light. $200.

15. Blowit Fan. I own this, it’s great. Small compact yet powerful. It’s fan-tastic, sorry for the pun. Gets hair and garments whipping around. $100. http://blowitfans.com/photography.html

Bonus ideas for stocking stuffers

1. Memory cards – Get Sandisk or Lexar, get the fast transfer speeds. ($60 and up)

2. Mini HDMI cable – Connects new cameras to the big screen. Ask your camera store which cable will be best for your photographer’s camera. ($2)

3. Rechargeable batteries with charger. ($10 to $35)

4. Lens cleaner – Either the cloth, or the fancier Lenspen. ($15)

5. Gary Fong Puffer – Pop up flash diffuser. Most camera stores. Softens the flash from pop up flash so no harsh shadows. ($16 to $25)

6. Bokeh Kits – These are arty filters that shape the out of focus highlights into hearts, stars, happy faces and much more. ($25)

7. Foundation Series – Lighting – Teaches basic lighting, light placement, understanding light quality, and how to meter. I am the instructor on this instructional DVD. $25.

This should get you well on your way through your Christmas list. It was a lot fun searching these out. I came across so many cool things, like an inflatable studio, a projector the size of a smart phone, plus so much more I will share later. For now, happy Christmas shopping!

Community Spirit and Mother’s Day Run/Walk

Mark — Mon, 16 May 2011 17:41:21 +0000

Did you spot us last weekend in our green jackets around Calgary? Our intrepid group of volunteer photographers were out in force this year at the The Sports Chek Mother’s Day Run/Walk.

This was our second opportunity to volunteer our services to the run/walk and we love every second of it. It’s hard to feel cold with so many smiling faces running up to you! The Sport Check Mother’s Day Run/Walk has an amazing group of volunteers that have been putting on this event for 34 years. The only thing they had not been able to do before was capture the spirit of the run/walk through images. Last year we gave them 500 images all professionally cleaned up and easy to find. Prior to us coming on board they only had a handful of images that they reused year after year for sponsorship, recruiting and media.

This year, in addition to the handpicked images that we delivered to the charity, we also uploaded the images to our Inner Spirit Photography website. This way everyone can download their favourite image for free.

Since we started Inner Spirit we have been passionate about giving back to the community that gives so much to us. Usually we do this with donations for charity auctions, but with this we are excited that we can get directly involved and use our skills to help support such an important cause. We do so many maternity sessions and know that some of those moms use the Neonatal Intensive Care Units at the Peter Lougheed, Rockyview or Foothills Hospitals service. I have no doubt that there are children alive today because of the equipment obtained from the donations raised by this run.

This event is very important to me, and watching the mothers walking with their kids and grandkids brings back memories of walking it with my mom, Nola Laurie, years ago.

We cannot support the race without our volunteers, who were probably hoping for a morning of sunshine but came out regardless.

My volunteer team is:

Rob Berrade
Mason Dodds
Drew Gregory
Matt Lachmouth
Jan Howells-Laurie
Philip Litke
Carol Markusse
Neil Speers
Brandie Sunley
Cendrine Tolomio
Julie Vincent
Fran Williams
Louie Zhang

If you are a professional photographer, I urge you to look for similar opportunities in your community to share your skills and give back. It’s great fun, great promotion, and great for the community, but more than anything else, it’s great for expanding the heart and spirit, and isn’t that what photography should be all about?

Man Ray Nude Star in $5.6 Million Photography Auction

Mark — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 19:25:01 +0000

Wow, the oldies really are the goldies. Sotheby’s photo auction of photographs had the Man Ray image “Untitled” (a photo montage with Nude and a Studio Lamp) selling for three times its presale estimate, $410,000.

This is the only print, of four remaining, that is signed and stamped by Man Ray. The value of signing one’s work is clearly evident. A few years back Man Ray had another nude sell, Rayograph (Nude with Speckles), for $147,732.

In this auction lot another nude also did well, a B&W of a nude women feeding a giraffe.

This collection of photographs out-sold a lot of photographs that auctioned off last April. While the whole lot went for $5.6 million, Edward Weston’s nude went for more than a million.

Christopher Mahoney, the vice president of Sotheby’s photography department, commented, “It’s astonishing to me that the market is now in this place.” It is a solid comment from investors of the value of photography in today’s marketplace.

I find the results of the nude fine art sales fascinating, ever since I encountered an 11×14 nude photo of an unknown woman by an unknown photographer that sold for $65,000 several years ago. It’s such a powerful comment on the potential of our images.

We always think of the work we create in the moment, not pausing to wonder what will become of them years after everyone has passed on and only the image we created remains.

Now there is a good reason to take special care in creating your images. Ever wonder what your images might auction for, decades from now?

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