Category Archives: Tips

Bokeh: Understanding Lenses – Part 3

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The first two installments of this three part series discuss types of lenses; explain focal length, background perspective, depth of field, and how to purposely throw your background out of focus. If you follow conversations on online photo boards you have probably heard threads discussing bokeh. But what is Bokeh and how can you create it? First of all, Bokeh is a Japanese term. It is used to describe the subjective aesthetic quality of out-of-focus areas of a photographic image. All lenses are capable of creating bokeh of some sort. Furthermore, the best examples are created using prime lenses with larger apertures, like f/1.4 … Continue reading →

Depth of Field: Understanding Lenses – Part 2

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Part 1 of this series explains how the focal length of lenses control depth of field and background perspective.How does this apply to the photographs you want to create?  Once you master controlling your depth of field you will be able to control what is in focus; you can purposely throw your background out of focus so only your subject(s) are in focus or you can choose to have your background in focus to include it in your portrait to compliment your subject(s).   A portrait, by definition, is a portrayal; to depict, written or visually an image or group of images … Continue reading →

Lenses – Understanding How They Work – Part I

As technology continues to advance DSLR camera bodies have a shorter useful life as, on average, most photo enthusiast and professionals upgrade their camera bodies every two years. Lenses on the other hand, if properly maintained, having a lifespan approximately 20 years, have more longevity. How does this translates to you the consumer? As long as you maintain your loyalty to a specific camera brand your lenses can be used with all compatible camera bodies. Your optics are ultimately most important, the better quality the lens, the better quality your images. With this in mind, it would be wise for you to invest in the best … Continue reading →

Tabletop Photography Spring Cleaning

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According to Punxsutawney Phil, Spring is near. This means it’s almost time for everyone’s favorite event, ‘Spring Cleaning’. One might ask how does photography have anything to do with Spring Cleaning? With the likes of Ebay and Craig’s List to sell our unwanted items, having tabletop photography skills may in fact become your best friend.Here are a few tips on how to create images of your old unwanted items so you can make them look awesome for your Ebay and Craig’s List posts (ads) using tabletop photography techniques. Let’s start with the essentials for tabletop photography.  A good digital camera, preferably a DSLR, … Continue reading →

Tips for Creating Great Winter Landscapes

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With the arrival and departure of JONAS I thought it appropriate to offer tips on how to create great winter landscapes. Winter time, as are the other seasons, is an amazing time of the year to create amazing images. Aside from using your composition skills, there are some important tips you should be aware of to properly prepare yourself for shooting in the winter elements. Having lived in and weathered many winters in Upstate New York I can tell you that first and foremost DRESS APPROPRIATELY for the elements. Remember properly covering your head, feet and hands is key to … Continue reading →

Landscape Photography Tips

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We’ve all experienced let down after we’ve gone on vacation or even for a Sunday drive in the country through a beautiful landscape, you stop at several “Kodak Moment” signs at a scenic overlook to create beautiful images; you get home and anxiously review your images only to be disappointed! You images have no dynamics, they are for lack of other words flat and boring! You think to your self, “how can this happen to me?” Believe it or not but our eyes have been trained to view everything horizontally or in a landscape orientation. We have television, cinema and … Continue reading →

White Balance – Why and How

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White balance is the cornerstone of color management. Although most modern digital cameras have excellent auto white balance nothing compares to customizing your camera’s white balance manually. Before demystifying the process of white balancing your camera manually it is important to understand the fundamentals of what white balancing is and its importance in creating superlative images. White balancing was first introduced to us when video cameras replaced movie (film) cameras . Since vidicon tubes and eventually the CCD and CMOS chips are electronic and needed a reference point for color.  The positive color primary colors are Red, Green and Blue, when equal amounts are combined … Continue reading →

Shooting Stock Photography on the Side: Making Extra Money

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Don’t worry – this isn’t an infomercial for stock photography that is designed to sell you a guaranteed get-rich quick program. If you’re looking to place – or keep – one foot in the photography industry while working full-time, there are a number of ways you can earn additional income (and work credits) without forgoing your current job. Have you ever wondered where professional advertising agencies and marketing companies get many of the images used to support their client’s marketing campaigns?  Yes, many campaigns do call for actual photo shoots, but many images are purchased from 27stock agencies. There is … Continue reading →