50 Ways

Posted on May 25, 2013 by Michael Willems

Outdoor flash:

The problem is all inside your head
She said to me
The answer is easy if you
Take it logically
I’d like to help you in your struggle
To be free
There must be fifty ways
To Use A Speedlight

There are; and sorry, Paul Simon.

Outdoors you want to make the background “darker for drama”. So you go to 100 ISO (lowest you can) and 1/250th second (fastest you can if using a flash). Then f/13-f/18 will give you a dark sky. Simple recipe!

f/18 may not be possible because your flashes may not have enough power. So to figure out what to use, you do this:

  1. Use two flashes on the subject’s left, and two on the right.
  2. One slightly higher; one lower.
  3. Both slightly behind subject aiming forward.
  4. Set them to manual/half power, say (full power is too much usually; flashes may overheat).
  5. Use them straight on – modifiers “eat” too much power.
  6. Fire them using Pocketwizards or similar radio triggers.
  7. Move the flashes as close as you can to the subject, and see what aperture that gets you (use a light meter or trial and error).

Today, for me, with two flashes on each side of the subject, this was f/13. Here’s the setup:

And that gets us:

Not bad, eh?

Remember to pre-focus, and then use manual focus; also, go low enough so the subject is high; then, make sure you click when the subject is at the predetermined point.

Easy, and I can teach you how to do this, as I taught the Porcupine Camera Club today here in Timmins, Ontario. There must be fifty ways to Use A Speedlight, and especially outside, these are fun!

 

Bookmark and Share
Posted in Light, Technique | Tagged | Leave a comment

Timmins…

Posted on May 24, 2013 by Michael Willems

….is where I am about to teach the Porcupine Camera Club more flash technique today.

And today, I went 1.2 km underground, at a Timmins goldmine, to make pictures like this:

What did I learn, other than “things get dirty”, and “I like mines and miners”?

It’s tough light. And the boots are heavy and overalls cumbersome, but I knew that too.

  • I learned  that my main obstacle was the hard hat, and the safety glasses. The hard hat stopped me from being able to move the camera up to my face. And the glasses made it impossible for me to easily move my reading glasses into and out of place. I had to improvise.
  • I also learned that my helmet light was very useful both in lighting up subjects to focus, and in lighting them up for the photo.
  • I refrained from using my Pocketwizards where there were explosives being installed; radiating under 5W they were safe, I was told, but I thought I had better not take risks! So I used remote TTL for that part.
  • The first 600 metres were humid with fog; below that, the fog lifted.
  • I rarely had to go above 1600 ISO.

Great pictures resulted from my day UG (underground)… but I will fill you in on more technique the next few days.  After I sleep!

 

Bookmark and Share
Posted in Picture of the day, Technique | Leave a comment

Dear Marissa

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Michael Willems

Marissa Mayer, Yahoo CEO, said this the other day, when introducing a layout change that makes Flickr look like Windows 8 (ugh):

…there’s no such thing as Flickr Pro, because today, with cameras as pervasive as they are, there is no such thing really as professional photographers, when there’s everything is professional photographers [sic]. Certainly there is varying levels of skills, but we didn’t want to have a Flickr Pro anymore, we wanted everyone to have professional quality photos, space, and sharing.

Thanks. Another reminder of why I dislike Yahoo.

“There is no such thing really as professional photographers, when there’s everything is professional photographers”. Don’t you need to know basic grammar to be CEO? But worse, it is nonsense in terms of content as well.

Airport-security-v2-roller-camera-bag

Airport Security V2 Roller Camera Bag

Ubiquity does not mean professionalism. Everyone having pots and pans does not mean everyone is a chef. First, professional just means “makes his or her living at something”, i.e. having it as a profession. And as that sentence may well lead you to conclude, something as a profession means that you are good at it.

In particular, it means that as a professional photographer (and pay attention, Marissa):

  1. You thoroughly know your craft. Having a camera does not imply that. I would not be a teacher if it did. What does even an advanced amateur really know about exposure, composition, or flash techniques? Unless they have been professionally trained, very little.  That’s why I teach (call me!). As a pro, you know more about the interaction of aperture, distance and focal length to create depth of field than most people know about their spouse.
  2. You have professional grade equipment. No “1:3.5-5.6″ amateur lenses, but “1:2.8″ lenses or even better, “1:1.4″ prime lenses. You have water-sealed cameras. Many flashes: studio strobes as well as speedlights. Yes, many flashes, not just one. (What, you think studio strobes are unnecessary “today”, Marissa?)
  3. You understand light. This is not a given: it takes a while after you acquire the basic skills, to then understand light.
  4. You know how to use the latest modifiers and other light-shapers.
  5. You understand composition. This is not a given: it takes a while after you acquire the basic skills, to then understand composition.
  6. You know about all types of photography – portraits, fashion, product, studio, event, creative, food, the list goes on.
  7. You have spares for everything – and I mean everything.
  8. You are a highly analytical problem-solver.
  9. You are quick and nimble when problems occur – as they always will.
  10. You know post-production techniques and software – software like Lightroom and Photoshop, which you have spent many weeks (in the case of Photoshop, months) mastering.
  11. You have a proven ability to deliver all the above – proof including a good portfolio, and good references.
  12. And, ah yes,  it is a business. Meaning, you need business skills, the ability to (and proven track record to show that you do) deliver in time, the ability to invoice, to write contracts, to be there when promised; to make off-site backups, to charge tax, to budget; you know the law; you understand releases; and so on.

So, yes, Marissa, there certainly IS today “such as thing as professional photographers”. Buying an SLR does not make you a pro. Learning how to use it does, and that takes time. And money. Not that much money today – see www.cameratraining.ca – but it doesn’t happen all by itself, just because Flickr gives you a GB of storage, or whatever.

Pros like myself not only find your statement ignorant and insulting, but worse, think that it does a great disservice to the many people who would like pro skills. Yes, you can grow these, and yes, it is rewarding, and yes, you should.

My advice to everyone: don’t listen to Marissa, she apparently knows not whereof she speaks. Instead, read this site every day, take training (call me!), and head out with your camera and shoot, shoot, shoot, and then shoot some more. And don’t forget: have your portfolio reviewed regularly. Yeah, by a pro.

 

Bookmark and Share
Posted in Business | 6 Comments

Timmins Mining

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Michael Willems

Mining is one of Canada’s wealth-generating resource industries. Industries like mining made this country great, and I am honoured to be allowed to photograph a mine in northern Ontario this weekend. So I am off to Timmins in the morning.

I trust that it will not be like this:

In fact where I am going, underground, it will be hot, humid and dirty.

So this is the one time I will put filters on my lenses – clear filters, also known as UV or Daylight filters, whose only task is to protect. I recommend that you own them – but normally leave them off.

In a sandstorm, rainstorm or a mine, however, putting them on might be a good idea. Easier to replace a $100 filter than a $2,000 lens.

Now I have to go dig out my filters. Pun intended.

 

Bookmark and Share
Posted in Gear | Leave a comment

Canon tip of the day

Posted on May 22, 2013 by Michael Willems

If your images come out of the camera named something like this:

_MG_4037.CR2

What does that underscore mean? Why not “IMG”instead of “_MG”?

It’s Canon’s way of telling you that you have set your colour space to AdobeRGB instead if sRGB. This colour space setting determines how the conversion from RAW to JPG is done. If you are shooting JPG, the camera produces images in that space; if you shoot RAW, it tells the program at the other end you would prefer that colour space when eventually making JPGs.

And sRGB is the right setting in almost all cases, hence the warning if you use AdobeRGB. Although AdobeRGB has more colours, it needs software to show it properly; most software and most screens show sRGB much better; AdobeRGB looks dull on these devices.

ANyway now you know what that underscore means.

 

Bookmark and Share
Posted in Gear | Tagged | Leave a comment

A tip for fast focus

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Michael Willems

Often, I shoot with manual focus. I do this when either of these are the case:

  • I want more personal control;
  • I use a lens that only allows manual focus, like my tilt-shift lens;
  • It is too dark to focus using autofocus, a situation that is in fact quite common with modern cameras.

Tonight, I was taking a few snaps of my cats. It is dark here, it is evening. And I did it… this looks good, eh? Just a few minutes ago:

Why? Because the focus is sharp where it should be, on the pupil of the closest eye. Which at f/2.8 – I used f/2.8 to blur out the background – was not at all easy.

And it was too dark to autofocus. So I focused by hand. But this too was tough, because felines do not wish to sit still even for a millisecond. So I resorted to this technique:

  • Set focus to manual
  • Set drive to fast, continuous (10 fps)
  • Focus behind animal
  • While moving focus ring to bring focus forward, shoot in continuous mode.

When you do this a few times you will waste a lot of shots but some will be sharp, and you only need one. Like in this sequence:

Shot 8:

Shot 10:

Shot 12:

As you see, shot 10 is good. And that is the only one I need.

So next time you ned to shoot a moving object and it’s dark, try this technique. Just do not tell anyone how you did it. I got 16 good, sharp shots out of a total of 123. And I only needed a few. Though there are never enough cat shots on the Internet.

 

Bookmark and Share
Posted in Gear, Technique | Leave a comment

Light Direction

Posted on May 20, 2013 by Michael Willems

I am sure you all know that I usually use flash in my photography. But not always.

I use flash to get light under my control. Light that goes where I want it to, from where I want it to come from. I do this to get modelling, to get shadows with effect, to get dark backgrounds and great contrast. Hard light is fine, even – as long as it is off camera.

But sometimes, existing light gives me that:

This gave me what I wanted:

  • The shaft of light coming diagonally from the side.
  • The shadow coming from Mau’s head.
  • The whiskers sharp, offset against the dark.
  • The eye sharp – view at original size to see this.
  • Simple – simplicity is everything.

Nice, no? And done manually, with manual focus. And no adjustment in Lightroom except a very slight crop.

So while flash gives you the possibility to make this kind of light every time, if it’s already there, you do not need to create it.

 

 

Bookmark and Share
Posted in Picture of the day, Technique | Leave a comment

Group Shot Technique

Posted on May 19, 2013 by Michael Willems

Ever had to take a group shot, like this one I toom of Kristen, Dan, and their wedding party in Jamaica last month?

You have heard me mention these many times. They are both fun and rewarding. And to do them, you need to be a people person:

  • Laugh. Smile. Joke. Tell your subjects to have fun, too.
  • Take charge, be in command, and have fun. Do not be quiet, do not be timid, and do not hesitate: if you hesitate, you will look weak and incompetent – and next thing, you lose the crowd and the shot is sub-optimal.
  • Tell them to look at your camera clearly: if they cannot see your lens clearly and fully, then it cannot see them, either.
  • Give them a count: “ONE – TWO – THREE – CLICK”. I say that every time so they know when not to blink.
  • Take each shot at least three times in case of blinkers.

Of course you are well advised not to start with weddings – they are way too important: leave those to the pros. But you may end up there, and in any case, the same techniques apply to back yard family shoots. Practice your people techniques when it’s not yet important, so you will be ready when it is.

 

Bookmark and Share
Posted in Composition, Picture of the day, Technique | Leave a comment

Portrait of the day

Posted on May 18, 2013 by Michael Willems

Yes, I shoot animals too, but only with a camera. Pet photography is slow but enormously rewarding. Our best friends and family members deserve to be pictured well, don’t you think?

In the photo: Lord Shiva, the Destroyer (of furniture), resting after vigorous play time.

Character. Animals have it, and they are great subjects.

 

Bookmark and Share
Posted in Picture of the day | Leave a comment

Technology or you? Try manual focus.

Posted on May 18, 2013 by Michael Willems

Basic photography skills have not changed since the 1970s. They’re still the same, and you still need them.

One of those skills is focus. With all the autofocus functionality it is easy to forget that you can do it yourself too.  And you can get great results:

The most frustrating type of photography is manual focus/manual exposure of fast-moving objects like cats. Thank God they sometimes sleep:

And you learn from things that are difficult. So my advice: go shoot on manual focus for a day!

  • Set your lens or camera to “M”
  • Turn focus ring
  • Go past sharp point; return; repeat, decreasing excursions.
  • Shoot.

Takes a second or two. And you will understand depth of field better – and bonus: manual focus is needed when it is too dark to autofocus. Or when shooting macro. On some lenses, like my 45mm Tilt-Shift lens, it is the only way to do it.

And another bonus: you will need to think about each shot. The old skills weren’t so bad!

 

Bookmark and Share
Posted in Picture of the day, Technique | 3 Comments