Brice Digital Photography

Highly recommend the new Lowepro Versapack 200 backpack: Very comfortable and robust, easy access to camera in bottom compartment (simply slip one strap off the shoulder and swivel backpack around as you would do with a sling case), plenty of space in top compartment for accessories, snacks, waterproof etc., and enough compartment space for an extra zoom lens and external flash. It also comes with a rain cover and securely holds up to two tripods. This backpack was perfect for a recent trip to the Lake District. Check it out on Amazon! There is also a useful YouTube presentation here which demonstrates its versatility, despite this one being in German.

Good use of light in photography is of course critical in achieving photos that stand out from the crowd. An hour prior to taking this shot the level of cloud and position of the sun would not have produced the detailed reflection or the perfect exposure balance between land and sky. The lack of breeze helped with the mirror effect. Patience (and luck) were the key factors here with very little creativity needed to capture this naturally beautiful landscape at Derwent Water in the Lake District. This shot is also an example of the benefits to taking photos on cloudy days.

This is a great little photography video from Rick Sammon who concentrates his top ten tips mainly on shot composition. Some of these may be obvious to some, but not so obvious to others. 11th tip: Make sure you have the software to read and convert RAW files on your PC as well as having sufficient capacity on your memory card!

Perspective Photography

This long corridor one point perspective photo was taken in the stunning grounds of St John’s College, Cambridge. I made use of the strong diagonal shadow at the top of the arches to draw the eye in from the right towards the distant door in the lower left hand side of the shot. The high contrast helped to accentuate the 3D effect obtained. A small aperture of f22 was used to maximise the depth of field along with an ISO of 400 to avoid camera shake at this small aperture setting, given that I didn’t have a tripod or image stabiliser. To improve the composition I could have perhaps made better use of the rule of thirds which would have resulted in the distant door being positioned slightly further down from the top and marginally to the right.

Perspective can add dimension and also a sense of motion. Whilst on a touristic walk around the city of Budapest I remember seeing a tram stop briefly along side me. By adjusting the zoom and the angle I managed to get all the lines from the building and tram converging in the bottom left hand corner of the photograph. The full set of Budapest photos can be found on my Pbase site.

Paris at night

Paris at night is an awesome sight to behold. Night photos of Paris are rarely dull, except the typical ones you see of the Eiffel Tower. This “headlights in the city of lights” night shot was taken on a bridge overlooking the River Seine and the 14th Century Conciergerie – the oldest prison in France.  With the camera set in manual mode I used a long exposure time of 30 seconds to achieve the streak effect on the headlights.  I clearly had to use a tripod for this and also a remote shutter control to guarantee any sharpness. I played around with small aperture settings to maximise the depth of field and ensure all the background detail was in focus, and finally ended up with the smallest aperture of f22.  For a scene with such a high level of contrast it was very difficult to maintain balance i.e. achieve a decent exposure of the river and buildings while avoiding over-exposure of the car headlights. I took several exposure readings with varying levels of traffic then used the exposure lock facility on the camera. After many attempts I ended up with this result. The beauty of digital photography is that you can try many things and avoid being disappointed with a great opportunity. Later I learned that I could have taken two shots using two exposure settings – one using a suitable exposure for the river and the other for the headlights, then merge them together on Photoshop, had I known how to do it.  This technique is explained in an excellent article on exposure lock at:
http://www.all-things-photography.com/exposure-lock.html


For more night photos of Paris, please visit my Paris By Night gallery at http://www.pbase.com/brice/paris_by_night

This black and white portrait shot taken by the very talented Marcus Beard is a good example of the effectiveness of black and white photography when it comes to taking candid photos of people.  With the latest digital SLR cameras, the photographer has the advantage of being able to shoot in the monochrome setting and visualise a scene in black and white using the LCD screen prior to taking the shot.  This provides a different view of the world, with highlights and shadows becoming more obvious.  In this example, the skin tone blends nicely into the background and is an even grey, the greyness suiting the subject matter i.e. an old woman. The eye is drawn to the detail brought out in the wrinkles on the woman’s face, perhaps even more so without the distraction that could be created by a colourful background.  Shooting the photo in black and white also gives it more of a timeless feel.


A recommended book on black and white photography for any level:

Depth Of Field

Depth Of Field is the range between the nearest and farthest parts of a photograph that appear to be in focus. Depth Of Field is controlled mainly by aperture size, focal length of the lens, and distance from the subject itself. Understanding how to control depth of field is vital in defining the subject matter and provides the overall “feel” of the photograph. Shallow depth of field is great for portrait photos for example, while greater depth of field is better for landscapes or perspective shots covering a greater distance.

Controlling Depth Of Field

I usually keep the camera in aperture priority (Av) mode and vary the aperture size, or f-stop number, depending on the level of depth I wish to achieve and then vary my distance from the subject. Lastly I zoom in or out to compose the shot, knowing that a greater focal length (zooming in) will give me a shallower depth of field. Digital SLR cameras give you the benefit of being able to take several shots at different settings and positions in order to arrive at the desired result. The following macro examples show the effect of different aperture settings at the same distance from the subject, using the same focal length:

This photo was taken with the aperture set at f8.0 (1/50s shutter speed at ISO 100). A few of the petals are in focus however the background is a little distracting.







The same subject was then taken with a larger aperture of f2.8 (1/500s at ISO 100) to give a shallower depth of field and make the subject stand out more against the background, however there are less petals in focus.

Calculating Depth Of Field

Here is a useful calculator for depth of field http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html

Useful Links

More detail on depth of field can be found at the following links:
Hubpages Article On Depth Of Field
Online Video Tutorial
Depth Of Field Tutorial
Tips For Controlling Depth Of Field


Also, here are some useful books that give in depth (yes, pun) know-how on controlling depth of field with plenty of examples…

Zoom bursts are simple to achieve and very effective in SLR photography in turning what could be a dull subject into something much more interesting. I shot this lit statue using a tripod with no flash, an ISO setting of 400 and a small aperture (f22) to provide a 15 second exposure. I could equally have selected the shutter speed and allowed the aperture size to be dictated by the camera – the objective being to achieve a long exposure time as opposed to greater depth of field. To achieve the sharpest image possible I used a remote shutter control although I could have probably achieved a decent result without it. To achieve the zoom burst I allowed 10 seconds exposure at full zoom and then carefully zoomed out over the remaining 5 seconds. Although the subject is not particularly exciting, it was infinitely less so without the burst effect!

More tips on zoom bursts can be found at:

http://hubpages.com/hub/zoom-burst

http://www.ephotozine.com/article/Creative-zoom-bursts-4775

http://www.illustratedphotography.com/blogs/feloescoto/zoom-burst-and-gimp


Technorati Profile

Interested in getting a real flavour of Japan before travelling around the other side of the world? Then check out these amazing, inspirational shots from my photographer friend Marcus Beard…

www.mbphotography.net/Galleries/Pages/Japan

Taking Photos On Cloudy Days

Cloudy days aren’t as bad as they may seem when it comes to taking photos, although the subject matter tends to be less obvious. The following HubPages article provides tips on how to make the best of cloudy weather when it comes to taking photos.

http://hubpages.com/hub/Photography-On-Cloudy-Days