The Digital Photo Guy

(Almost) FREE dSLR Exposure Webinar

On Wednesday, April 6 from Noon until 1PM, I’ll conduct a $2.00 webinar for new dSLR users. This is the first (Almost) FREE webinar for members of the Photography Webinars and Photoshoot Meetup Group. The group was established to meet the needs of busy people who don’t have time to attend in-person Meetups but still want to learn about dSLR photography.

The registration page is HERE. The reason we charge $2 is to reduce no-shows. We think $2 will cause people to think whether they really want to attend.

Adobe Acrobat Reader Update Scam, Again

First, just the facts: Adobe NEVER sends e-mails asking people to update Adobe Acrobat Reader.

There are hundreds of millions of PCs and Macs loaded with Adobe Acrobat Reader. It would be totally impractical for Adobe to send an e-mail to every user. How would they even know who has Reader since it’s often preloaded on new computers or loaded when new software is installed.

Notice the Adobe logo is missing on the e-mail (right.) Adobe has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to establish their brand, why would they ever send out any communication without the logo?

I don’t know if this is simply a phishing scam (where you’re the phish) or a virus injection attack. Either way, I don’t care and I never click on such links. Don’t be a dork, don’t fall for this stuff! Even if this were legitimate, what’s the downside to waiting a few days before updating Adobe Acrobat Reader? In the case of a free software like Reader, just go to Adobe’s site and download from the source. Don’t trust any middlemen.

Back to Our Regularly Schedule Program

In looking over the registrants for Gloria Hopkins’ Composition Webinar, I noticed that, so far, they’re all women. Once again, women are the ones who have no problems asking for directions or assistance while men press on muttering, “Just because I don’t know where I am doesn’t mean I’m lost.”

Come on, guys! Composition is the weakest part of almost every photo I see. Just because your “friends” never say anything bad about your photos doesn’t mean your photos are well composed. Just because you learned how to slather on some weird effects using the plug-in du jour doesn’t mean your photos are well composed. In fact, just the fact that your photos need so much help says they’re poorly composed to start. If you already know all this and are ready to register, click this LINK.

You might remember the photo to the left. One of my students, Butch, has tried for months to make a photo that really worked and he got it in this image. It’s not perfect but much, much better than previous efforts. As he looked through the photos from this scene, he noticed that he had captured a 3-shot burst. In the shot immediately after this shot, a tourist walked into the frame. In the frame immediately before this shot, the Sax Man’s intensity was missing. The point is that composition happens both in-camera and in post-processig. We can’t all shoot like Ansel Adams but we can certainly learn how to make simple fixes in post to maximize the impact of our photos.

Why Composition Matters

…it is seldom indeed that a composition which was poor when the picture was taken can be improved by reshaping it in the dark room. – Henri Cartier-Bresson

I was shocked by a recent poll that found most amateur photographers believe composition is their strong suit. In my experience, composition is everyone’s weakest skill. How many can honestly say their photographs are as impactful and insightful as Henri Cartier-Bresson, Ansel Adams or Galen Rowell? The photos I’ve seen in workshops and online forums tend toward ordinary and uninspired.

Here’s a rejected photo from a recent shoot. Working with two new models in a genre (steampunk) that I had never even heard of, much less photographed, I was shooting fast and trying to keep up with the models’ concepts. This was a good idea (Megan protects the fuel supply a’la Mad Max) but poor execution due to poor composition. Notice how I cut off Megan’s right foot, scabbard and sword tip. With practice, it’s easy to nail the focus and exposure but composition changes with every photo.

In this next photo, the Center of Interest has changed to the intensity in Megan’s eyes. It’s no longer about telling a story but imparting emotion. The composition is about Megan’s eyes. I could have used a shallow depth of field and blurred the background because none of it matters, just the look in her eyes. The square formed by Megan’s right arm and sword work to frame her face and force the viewer to look into her eyes.

These are all compositional decisions I had to make during the shoot. Some worked, many failed and the rest needed Photoshop to guide the viewers’ eyes to the Center of Interest.

Composition is the single most important element in any work of art. To quote Ansel Adams, “There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept.” Don’t let your sharp photos fail due to a fuzzy concept. Register today for Gloria Hopkins’ Composition webinar on Wednesday, April 20. Know how and why each and every element in your photographs contribute to the impact of the photograph.

Public Service Announcement

RSS will make you smart, rich and sexy. OK, maybe just smart. RSS will certainly streamline your on-line life and save you time by only showing information you want. For those who don’t know about RSS, here’s a short primer.  Once you set up an RSS reader, the next step is to make it automatic so you don’t have to check e-mail for notification. This article explains how to do that.

I recommend RSS because it makes it easy to keep up with my posts as well as news on other sites. I’m a news hound, I love keeping up with various news outlets to be sure they’re all reporting consistent information. Before RSS, I had to check many news sites each day. With RSS, each time a site is updated, I’m automatically notified. Many sites also allow you to tailor the news you want. You can specify all world news but no drivel about Lindsey Lohan. You can get immediate notices about Japan or healthcare reform but exclude news about Hollywood.

In other words, RSS lets you customize your own news report. In the mix, you can ask to be notified each time I update my website. That assures you never miss anything. Look for the RSS icon on my site and set up a reader today. You’ll save a ton of time and never miss an post.

Old Guyz Rule! (Except When They Don’t)

Did a shoot this past weekend that definitely took me outside my comfort zone. Anyone here ever heard of steampunk? As one of the models explained to me, “It’s how people in the 1800s might have imagined the 21st century.” Yeah, OK, is this a hint that she thinks I was around in the 1800s?

Here, I used a single Canon 550EX on-camera with a Stofen Omnibounce diffuser. The strobe was set to 1/4 power in Manual and bounced off a very low (dingy) white ceiling.

For my newbie readers, this is a good example of why I like to shoot in Manual Mode. In this shoot, I wanted a dark, edgy look with enough depth of field (DoF) to keep everything sharp. Had I relied on the auto exposure (AE) meter, the image would have been brighter, not in keeping with the dark, post-Apocalyptic theme. More

Macro Photography on the Cheap

The Annual Spring Desert Wildflower and Macro Photography Workshop is this coming weekend, March 26 and 27. To make the most of opportunities that abound for macro (close- up) images of flowers, bugs and other subjects that appear in spring, here’s a short primer on several low cost ways to get into close-up photography.

Most people immediately think of a dedicated macro lens when first considering macro photography. This produces the best images but also costs the most. For example, Canon offers several dedicated macro lenses ranging in price from $450 to $1500. On a positive note, unlike other macro solutions, dSLR macro lenses make for some very good portrait lenses. More

Why Manual Flash is Sometimes Easier

This past weekend, I photographed Celestina, Pinup Model, Makeup Artist (MUA) and Hair Stylist. This was the third time I’ve photographed her and I should have the lighting down pat by now. Yet, I still managed to make rookie errors that ruined many images and will require a reshoot. BTW, notice the cool NBA blouse. That’s Natonal Bowling Association, not basketball.

First, the excuses. We only had two hours so I was rushed. Celestina was delayed getting there so now we only had 90 minutes. I tried two poses which required moving the backdrop and wasted more time. And, the biggie: I took a shortcut and let E-TTL handle the intricacies of a four-flash set-up. This isn’t to say E-TTL couldn’t have handled it but it takes a lot more smarts on my. I would have been better off manually setting each flash instead of letting E-TTL try to figure out what I wanted.

Here’s a finished photo of Celestina striking a pinup pose. I wanted a white background in the tradition of true pinups. The BG isn’t pure white as I wanted but it’s better than the original (after the jump.) My first thought was to mask Celestina and drop in a white BG. I immediately realized that was a dumb idea because of the fine hairs where I was backlighting her beautiful red hair. More