I love photojojo’s site.  they carry the coolest photography gadgets.  I could easily spend a ton of money on some of their items.  I thought I would share a few of my favorites.

and here is a link to their site.

http://photojojo.com/

You may find some great Christmas presents for those photography enthusiasts in your life!

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It is difficult to find time during this very busy season to update my blog or post images.  But I wrote this out to a client the other day who was going back to review some course notes on photography she took a few years ago from Noel Chenier who teaches some great photography courses here in New Brunswick.

I was just discussing how she may want to try a semi automatic mode first to really engrain what each function of the camera does such as aperture, shutter and iso.  To really play with how aperture affects the photo when you adjust it.  So by choosing AV mode (Canon) or TV mode for Nikon you are getting a chance to just play with your aperture settings and letting the camera choose the shutter.  Play, see what shooting at f4 vs say f8.0 aperture will do to the image when you take it.

here is what I wrote to her so if you have any questions about this let me know.  I would love to help out and engage people in photography discussions.  I really enjoy helping to teach people to better learn their camera and how it functions.  Get out of AUTO mode!

here is a cool chart I found and will post here so you can visualize what it means when we talk about Aperture, Shutter or ISO’s.  I love the breakout of Nikon and Canon as well and the visual!

“Glad to hear that you are working on manual.  Even begin with AV mode so you can begin to really register in your mind how the different apertures (hole that opens up to allow light in) varies with the number you dial in.  If you choose an aperture number of say f5.6, then the hole is smaller then had you chosen f2.0 .  Smaller hole means less light will enter the camera and more things will be in focus.  So larger F number more things in focus, smaller F number less things in focus.   Think of it like this… when more light enters through a wider hole like f2.0 the light goes through and hits your sensor and goes “splat”  making more of the scene out of focus.  Narrow the hole, making it smaller by increasing your f stop number and less light will then hit the sensor, less splat but MORE of the scene will be in focus because you narrowed down the hole and allowed for less light to hit the sensor.

So 2.0… wide hole… 5.6 smaller hole… smaller hole lets in less light.  If you have less light then the camera needs to find light… how?  It will slow down your shutters to compensate.  Watch when you change your aperture number how your shutter number changes.  The number will go from a higher shutter ie 1/100^{th (fast shutter)} to a slower shutter and lower number like  1/60^th because it needs to find light to balance you adjusting the “hole” aperture you made smaller.  So how to get more light… open the hole (aperture) wider or slow down your shutters( will allow the shutter to be open longer to allow more light in)

It ALL correlates.

(she is going to look at buying my 50mm 1.8 lens so why I then said…)

The 50mm 1.8 (1.8 being the lowest number and widest aperture opening available on this lens) allows you to get more light into your lens when shooting inside as you can open up your aperture (hole) to allow more light to hit your sensor vs. The lens you have now may not go below 4.5 aperture.

So if you can put it at 1.8 then the hole is bigger and allows more light to come in BUT… it also means less of the subject is in focus.  So when you see those nice blurry backgrounds…they were shot with a very low aperture (or possibly a zoom but standing close to the subject to still make it blurry).  But just start with one thing… put it in AV mode and play with your dial.  This setting will allow you to ONLY move your aperture number.  It will select the shutter for you.  So it is like semi automatic and a good way to start and really learn your apertures.

You will see as you move the number to a larger number more and more things become in focus!  So the idea of how aperture works begins to sink in.  I think learning one thing and then moving to understanding shutters after is a good way to engrain the idea of how you are controlling the light entering your camera.

Shutters affect it as well and then ISO.  Three things… they call it the exposure triangle.”

Just as a note I tend to shoot really “wide open” during my shoots meaning I often will go as low as the aperture on my lens will allow as I do like beautiful “blurry” background.  The real term if you were wondering is a shallow depth of field.  I just recently purchased the 50mm 1.4 for this reason.  I have had the 50mm 1.8 for years (great lens by the way if you happen to be wanting a good “fixed” lens) but that two stop difference is huge when you shoot indoors like I do or if you are doing on location.  Here is an example of when I tend to go low with my aperture or (wide open).

My sisters puppy… the cutest dog ever.  I think I probably shot this around f1.8 or f2.  Love the blurry background. 

There is very few images I take that aren’t using this technique accept for a group shot if I need all people in focus or if I am using a zoom lens I can go higher but still get the shallow depth of field.  I could post a ton of images to show this but for now a few from a recent session.

Hope the information here helped!  Take a minute to comment and let me know.

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Loved this quote.

In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary- — Aaron Rose

Sharing some images here… and how I love to use the light to make images that much more special.

I have a sick boy… so work is a bit harder to accomplish.  Hang in there if you are a client and waiting for galleries or images… I will get them up and out as fast as I can.

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I get alot of questions regarding clothing choices for sessions.  And fall is one of my busiest times of year so I wanted to put a few links here to some examples of good clothing choices.

These fashion boards are courtesy of Polvore.com

The main things I always say is if you were to lay out each family members outfit then would it work as one outfit.  If something is glaring then it will also stand out during the photo.  I love Robin’s tip (see below for her whole post) select one pattern for one child then from that pattern use the colors in it to build off of for each members outfit.  It makes a lot of sense because when you do this then you will coordinate.

I said coordinate not “match”!  Coordinating works, matching is not flattering.  So don’t bring everyone in plaid.

Ok for some helpful blog posts from fellow photographers.  These are great to read to get the scoop on how to dress for pictures.

Robbie Gleason a Tulsa photographer recently posted a great blog post regarding what to wear and some visuals.  Check it out here.

http://robbiegphotography.com/blog/2009/09/04/what-to-wear-what-to-wear-tulsa-family-photographer/

My friend Robin who is a fantastic photographer posted a great blog post on how to choose outfits for your family pictures and gives lots of “do not do’s” as well as how to mix and match things.  Check out her blog for some wonderful ideas.

http://www.photosbyrobin.com/blog/what-to-wear-for-fall-photos/

and I will post a few links that I have also found on pinterest that I have pinned onto my board…

http://pinterest.com/shelleyrankin/fashion/

and I also found this link on pinterest that also has “family looks”!

http://pinterest.com/annbeckphoto/family-looks/

Check it out people and you will look amazing for your fall photos when the time comes.

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Well it is beginning to look alot like spring for me.  Which means the emails are beginning to pour in for spring and summer sessions, the time is coming near when both of my kiddos will be home for summer and then the fun begins.  Like driving to and from daily activities, meeting up with clients to capture wonderful images and memories… yes… it is all good!  I feel alive when the spring comes.  I could do without the rain and we could all use some warmer temperatures.  But I can see new life forming outside each day when I see the leaves almost fully formed on the trees.  Not to mention I seem to be a newcomer to allergy suffering.  It is not something that I am enjoying, but I can deal with it if there is a promise ahead of gorgeous summer days.

Friday Feedback… yes we are still doing it but I need images from you in order to continue it.  Send me some of your favorite images or some that you wish you knew what you did wrong and would like some feedback on.  If you want me to just discuss something photo related then post it hear and I will try and cover that topic.  I need to know what it is you are struggling with in terms of photography in order to share some ideas I may have.  Or dare I say tidbits of knowledge and wisdom! 

So I will share here some images I took this past week.  A sweet 4 month old came for her mini session.  I photographed mom last fall while Miss N. was in her belly and now I got to see her all grown up… well a whole 4 months old!

Can you say huge gorgeous eyes.

And we put her in a basket.  I have to admit this isn’t an age I have done a ton of sessions with.  But I loved it!  I thought this called for a soft treatment on it as it was so pretty!

And she blew some bubbles for me!

And a sneak peek of Miss K.  We went downtown this past weekend and rocked it.  I had so  much fun.   I will have a ton  more to show you from this session soon.

I have more grad sessions coming up which I am excited about.

OK so I will put a quick tip here.  When taking your shot and wanting to recompose such as the one above… read your manual if you do not already have it, but you will focus on the subject, specifically the eye in the case of a person, and with your AF point locked on the eye you will compress the shutter button half way down ( I have mine set to beep so I know I have locked focus)… while still holding down the shutter half way you will then recompose your image so the subject is more off center, adhering to the rules of thirds.  This can be a bit more interesting composition verses always keeping the person dead center.

This is not hard but if you find you are not getting it the first few times keep practicing.  When you recompose the shot be sure not to move towards or away from your subject keeping the panning parallel to where you originally locked focus.  If you move towards or away from the subject then you have changed the focal relationship of yourself to your subject which will lead to it not being sharp or in focus.

Try it out.  I will discuss the rules of thirds next week and ways you can make your images good to even better simply with a creative crop.

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SPECIAL GIFTS FOR MOM AND DAD

 

 

Mothers Day is almost here.  If you are a client that has had images with me and may want to get Mom one of these skins for her phone, tablet, ipod then contact me asap and I can look at getting a custom designed one for you from your session.  But I would need orders soon.  I can’t guarantee them back for Mothers day but close.  We can print a picture for her for the big day if not.  Let her know it is coming.  Yes I am late thinking of this.  I have one on my own phone and love it and get a ton of comments on it.  Fathers day is also around the corner or just get one because you want one.    the cost for phones and smaller items begin at $40.   Contact me if you would like to order one srphotos@nb.sympatico.ca

 

Also, to make sure my idea for “Tuesday’s Tip” is a good one or is useful to anyone out there (knock, knock see comment section below post ) I thought I would post a little survey button.  Be honest and tell me if my explanations are horrible and confusing.  I can’t be certain I am explaining things well and will need your feedback in order to improve.  So “YES” to keep doing them and they are helpful, or “NO” they aren’t and you are wasting your time.

 

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FASHION FRIDAY

Since I only posted yesterday about “Feedback Friday’s and do not have any images from you to share  (See previous post about Feedback Fridays and sending me your images) or to give feedback on, I thought I would do a “Fashion Friday” instead.    I managed to whip up one of these fashion boards with some fun outfits I think would be great for a spring session.

 

One of the things you need to keep in mind when selecting clothes for a shoot is what will be the main color or tonality you will use for the group.  For example, you don’t want most everyone in spring pastel colors and then one person in a bright dark red outfit or fall darker colors.  What happens… that person will stand out from the crowd in each and every shot.

And NOT ALL WHITE. People want to play it safe by wearing white for a photo shoot.  Realize that it can be a nightmare for photographers when shooting white in full sun.  On a very bright sunny day we will be required to underexpose for your groups slightly to avoid overexposing your clothing.   I do love white on say a little girl, a slip dress, bare feet in the woods.  Soft and adorable!

Yes, wear color and texture.   The camera loves jeans.. they have a great texture as do certain sweaters.  Don’t avoid patterns, but watch those large, very in your face, logos that are all over everything lately.  If one person has a logo on in a group shot but not the rest.. where does your eye go… yup to them.  A big GAP on your sons shirt in 10 years may not be what you want to see.  The focus should be on you not the clothing.  Pattern on a few, solids on others.. perfect.

Usually it is Mom I will talk to before the session and I will tell her to think about what she is going to wear and what she will feel good in.  Once she knows that then she can look at coordinating the rest of the group from there.

In this grouping below, there is hits of blue with Dad’s outfits as well as the boys shirt having blue, but also brown diamonds that go with mom’s brown top.  We can also introduce a third color, yellow.  Mom has it in her top so we can introduce it elsewhere… in the little  girls outfit.  The brown dress would also go.  See how it all works together.  Dad’s shirt and Mom’s top are the same tonality.

We aren’t going for matching outfits, because in a family everyone has their own style.  Look at adding color with scarfs, and accessories such as necklaces or headbands.

HOW TO KNOW IT ALL WORKS TOGETHER?

Lay it all out on a bed…. all the outfits and ask yourself does one thing seem to stand out too much… remove it.  Would all of it coordinate like one big outfit?  If so then you’ve achieved success.  Always keep in mind the location of the shoot.  Is there potential for clashing with surroundings.  Most of all have fun and don’t break the bank when it comes to selecting outfits.  Look at what you already have then add to it.  These outfits were all from Old Navy and shoes from Amazon.ca.

 

Hope this was helpful as well as yesterdays post on tips to shooting in Sun.  You can use the poll above to let me know, or comment below.

 

Have a great weekend.  Send me those pictures to give feedback on.

 

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Photography 101 tips

So I want to look at beginning offering some photography advice here but in order to have it be successful I need you to get involved.  One of the things I will do is post  at least once a month (more often if I can) some information regarding photography.  It will be more of a photography 101 basic tips on how to take better images or technically related to photography ie. how to understand your camera and take some control.  Maybe we will shoot for say what I will call “Tuesdays Tips”.

If you have ideas or questions you would  like me to answer or cover PLEASE feel free to email them to me at srphotos@nb.sympatico.ca.

Feedback Fridays

Along with Tuesdays Tips I would like to try and offer something called Feedback Fridays.  This will require YOU to participate as well by sending me a favorite image you  may have.  I will choose a few of your images each time, post them here and give feedback.

I promise to be nice, and try to offer visuals and constructive feedback.

If you send the image to me you must be OK with the image being posted here on my blog.  Try and send me a good resolution image so I can look at doing some adjustments on it in photoshop.  If I do this I will send you back the image with my “play” on how to improve it in an editing program and let you know what I did.  But mostly, this will be for me to provide feedback on anything I feel could have been done to improve the image.

For Today… since it is now Thursday and I missed a tip for this Tuesdays.. I will post something here that I posted on Facebook regarding shooting in full sun vs. shade.  I prefer to look for shade..open shade of buildings and avoid shooting in wide open spaces with full sun during the middle of the day.  If it is cloud covered great.. but having some options to get out of full sun is always a good thing.

This can be hard during the summer.  And yes, you can shoot in full sun say at the beach if you want to but it isn’t an easy thing to do… trust me even for photographers.  You will need to use a flash to light your subject if you want to have the sky, the subject and everything else exposed correctly.   This is where metering becomes difficult if you do not understand why you tend to get a silhouette when you shoot into the sun for a subject.     See below for some ideas on how I approach shooting in full sun.

First topic: Get in the shade 

With spring here and summer coming it can be difficult to take a good image with such harsh sun in the sky. The sun’s reflectance value is the strongest during just before noon and up until even after 4pm depending on the time of year. I generally attempt few images during this time but rather put my camera down and enjoy the sun and the warm days. If I want to take my kids out to take images worthy of my walls I would select a place where I could get them into some open shade. A building, an overhang like my porch… a tree lined path.  If I can’t do this then I typically choose early morning to shoot in, when the sun is still low and emits a soft golden glow. Alternatively I would use the evening light to achieve a soft portrait that avoids harsh shadows and blown out spots on the skin.
What do you do if you want to shoot in full sun.  A few options.  You will need to use a flash to light your subject if you want to have the sky, the subject and everything else exposed correctly. If you need to shoot in full sun without a flash, then try and have the sun behind your subject or off to the side and behind as squinting isn’t attractive. Meter for the subject (take a reading off of their skin) and lock those settings in.  Back up and take the shot.  You can also use something reflective such as a white piece of board to throw some light back at them to balance the strong back light exposure. Also, if you are using P mode on your camera it should allow you to overexpose the scene slighting thereby using an exposure compensation of approx one to two stops to make sure your subject doesn’t become a “silhouette” during the shot.  When I am in full sun I will also lean towards using a higher f stop such as f16.

Note.. there are not set rules in terms of whether you can shoot in full sun or not.. however being a photographer and wanting to achieve the best images possible for my clients I will always suggest doing sessions during less sunny and harsh times of day.  This does not mean I don’t grab my camera at the beach and take shots without worrying so much about the sun.  Of course I do and you can’t always worry about the perfect exposed image because more often when you are taking shots of your family it is the memory that counts!!

Hope these tips helps! I will add more and please ask questions. If people participate I will know there is interest in this type of discussion.  Post a comment here if you found this helpful or want me to clarify something.

And here is an image I took two summers ago during a day at the beach.  A large groups of us… my family and they wanted an image.  OK… put them all together, I used an f stop of f10 (which also ensured we were all in focus).  I knew we would be slightly underexposed… but that was fine as I knew I could bring it back up a bit later in my editing program.  But if I had of had the time I may have taken a bit longer to ensure we were a bit brighter but metering off of the kids face to get a proper exposure and let the sky go white.  In this case I was hoping to keep the blue sky.  The umbrella also helped to cut down some of the light on us and balancing us a bit more with the bright sky.. but only a bit.

This is what it looked like straight out of camera.  Dark yes.. but remember I was wanting to have the sky remain blue as I had the option to bring the exposure up on the subjects later in post production (not ideal for most).   And yes, I could have used a flash to balance our group with the sky but I didn’t have one. 

and here it is when I finished editing.  I lightened it up… then I ran a color pop on it.  Just to show you the finished product.

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