Those of you who subscribe to our Tweets have received a few photo tips in the past regarding line, shadow, use of lighting, etc. This tip is more about the way we think, rather than the way we shoot.
There is a common denominator among the photography “greats”.

O B S E R V A T I O N

This is a simple concept, but one which takes time and continual practice to hone. Specifically, observe the people around you. Ask yourself questions when you see people on the street or at the grocery store:

How has God created them uniquely? Are there interesting physical characteristics that draw your eye? Do they fit their surroundings or not? Do their eyes tell a story? Are their hands worn and calloused from years of hard work or are they fresh and young, starting life? What is different about this person that no one else can claim? What is their story? Who are they?

These are just a few questions to ask as you see an individual. Everyone is unique and has stories to tell. As photographers, it is our privilege to be able to tell just a few of those stories. So this phototip is to practice the art of observing and getting to know people.

Below is a shot we grabbed from last Saturday’s yard sale. A lot of people came through that morning, but he really caught my eye and was gracious enough to allow me to capture a few images of him. To me, his eyes really tell a story…

There are endless debates between professional photographers and amateurs alike regarding which camera system is the best. The Nikon and Canon camps are incredibly loyal to their brand and specific make of camera. Ultimately, there is no right or wrong answer when searching for the best camera, but one thing is certain. You can’t shoot whatcha’ don’t have withya’! No matter how great my equipment is, the best camera is the one I have in my hand. I can only capture a moment in time if I am prepared with a camera.

One of my favorite cameras is my iPhone. It doesn’t have a flash, no shutter, aperture, or ISO adjustment. There are no fancy bells and whistles. But, I have my iPhone with me everywhere I go so it is a camera that I use a lot… Now of course I do not rely on my phone for weddings, portraits, etc., but it is a great device to capture everyday occurrences that I would otherwise miss. Also, I can test out ideas and play with framing and composition before I pickup my SLR. This “playing” is invaluable to me as a photographer to stay sharp and stretch my creativity between shoots.

So, what’s the bottom line? Shoot, shoot, shoot… with whatever camera you have with you. And when you feel like you’re about to fill up your memory card, phone, hard-drive, etc…. shoot some more!

Here are a few recent images from our iPhones… Enjoy and happy shooting…

[Show as slideshow]

We want to say a special thank you to Photobiz for not only creating three beautiful websites for us, but also for the kudos on their blog. VISIO was featured as their “Photographer of the Month” for March. You can read the full interview or see a goofy video of us by clicking here. Photobiz is a website design and e-commerce solution for professional photographers. We appreciate their top-notch service and willingness to go the extra mile to create fantastic websites. As well, we want to thank everyone for the emails and comments regarding the new sites…

OK, now for the exciting conclusion of  shooting for the final print.  This is a continuation of the post below, so if you haven’t read it yet, I’ll give you time to do that…

Take your time…

Next, I opened the file in Lightroom to make most of the adjustments.  I adjusted the levels to give the image more pop.  Then, adjusted the color to produce accurate skin tones while dragging the blue slider to adjust just the sky’s hue and exposure.  With the adjustment  brush, I painted areas of the sand and increased the exposure.  

Then, to finish up I brought it into photoshop.  I slightly vignetted around the edge by duplicating the background and applying a multiply mask.  Then, a gaussian blur is applied to that layer (not the mask).  I dropped the opacity of this layer to 15-20% and with a black brush on my layer mask, painted out the main subject.  I work with all of my brushes at low opacities with a feathered edge.  I want any adjustments to be gradual and with a smooth gradation.  As well, I work as much as I can in 16bit as this will hold the files integrity much better when making adjustments.  Finally, I added a little more contrast and sharpened (only around main subject).  This image was cropped as a pan for more drama.  Convert to 8bit and you’re ready to go.  

The final result is seen below…

Over the past few years, we have received a number of calls and emails from photographers regarding our images and how we get them to look the way they look.  I wanted to take the opportunity to show a couple of tips to help make your images “sing” whether viewing online or viewing in print.  So go grab a cup of coffee, kick your feet up and enjoy…  We’ll be posting tips from time to time for professional photographers and amateurs alike.

This is an image of Becky shot last summer and some of the steps from capture to print.

First of all, in preparing for a shot, I really try to envision the final print.  After a shoot, I typically already know which images will be black and white or color or specially toned because that was the way I shot it.  Sometimes there are distracting colors that are eliminated if converted to B&W and sometimes color will create the specific mood we are looking for.  Pre-visualizing what your edited image will look like is important to setting up your camera and/or lighting scenario.

Secondly, we need to discuss camera settings…  We shoot Nikon as well as occasionally Canon systems.  I believe you can create amazing images on any camera system if you know your camera’s strengths and limitations.  This shot was taken with a Nikon D2X with a Nikkor 17-35 2.8 lens.  We always capture in RAW as I want the highest quality for the final print and this format allows for more manipulation without degrading the file.  As well, we shoot in Adobe RGB ‘98 color space as opposed to sRGB.  We do the majority of our own printing and RGB ‘98 gives us a greater color gamut for our own printing.  If you are strictly using a lab (in the US), stick with sRGB as labs typically use that color space.  I typically shoot with low saturation, low contrast, etc.–I want the image flat out of camera as I can adjust that in Lightroom.  Contrast is much easier to add than it is to take away.  I also want my sharpening to none or low.  My last step in post production is to sharpen for the output desired.  If the image is already sharpened in camera, I risk creating the ever-so-evil “jaggies”.

So I’m set to shooting fairly flat in-camera and I’ve decided on a wide-angle lens for this particular shot to bring in the background.  For this image, I shot at an ISO of 125, 1/200 at f10.  Normally, I shoot wide-open apertures to separate the subject from the background, but in this shot, I wanted to bring in a lot of detail in this beautiful background.  I used an off-camera flash at camera left to add a little fill.  I wanted the background slightly underexposed as bring out the clouds in post.  A good rule of thumb is to meter the sky and drop your exposure by 1/2 to 1 stop if using an off-camera flash to light up your main subject.  This will produce a rich sky while correctly exposing your subject.  With this shot, we wanted Becky to look into the distance so the viewer really draws in the background as well.  

{BEFORE }

{ AFTER }

Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion in part 2, the post-processing of the image!  Oh, I know you’re excited…