Few things capture the sentiment of the season like the holiday lights you find decorating downtown, your local neighborhood and in your own home. Make this year’s photographs picture-perfect with a few tips for shooting holiday lighting:
Try the Long View: When photographing a decorated street or even a single home, start first by shooting at an angle that allows you to capture as much as possible in a single frame. You’ll need to experiment with where you stand and how you frame the shot; don’t settle for a standard head-on photograph. Try capturing the street’s sentiment by playing with various angles of a single scene.
Now Zoom In: A single light or a lit ornament can hold tremendous beauty and detail but is often lost in the larger scene with so many other decorations competing for attention. Choose a favorite decoration on the tree—maybe an heirloom ornament—and play with nearby tree lights to see if you can add a bit of reflection onto the subject. Spend a few minutes experimenting and adjusting; you’ll be surprised at the kind of results you can achieve.
Adjust Your White Balance Settings: On your camera, your white balance setting (WB) is designed to help you capture an accurate ‘white’ in your image. However, a number of things can influence the ‘true white,’ leaving the color to be more orange or blue depending upon the situation. If you’re shooting indoors and find your images are too orange, consider changing your white balance setting to ‘tungsten.’ The term ‘tungsten’ simply refers to lighting from artificial sources such as standard room lamps or overhead lighting. If you’re shooting outdoors, consider waiting until just past sunset and changing your white balance settings to ‘outdoor.’ You will still have some colorful ambient light but it will enhance, not compete, with your outdoor holiday lighting.
Get the Action: Some of the best holiday displays combine motion with lights, but this can make getting the perfect picture a bit more challenging. Try switching your camera to a motion or action mode to freeze your subject. And don’t be afraid to take several shots; it often takes a number of images to get that perfect one.
Take Your Tripod: Regardless of whether you’re using a DSLR or a compact point-and-shoot camera, having a tripod will greatly assist in capturing the essence of your light display. The tripod will help eliminate image shake, which will be especially important when shooting in low-light settings such as this one. We have many tripods to fit every need and budget: http://tinyurl.com/y9uneap
Make it a Blur: If you’d like to add an artistic twist to your photographs, consider setting your shutter speed to a lower setting—as far as a few seconds-- while moving your camera as you take the photograph. Your images will be visually interesting while still standing out from the standard litany of traditional holiday light photographs.
Meet Emma, she is a 5-year-old female Weimaraner.
Qualifications: She is great with people, easy going, great listener, plays well with others, likes children, she is patient, and respects boundaries. All thou we find out she likes to express her verbally to people who wear hats.
Telling Your Story: How to Create a Powerful Photo Essay
Photography has long been considered a powerful storytelling medium, and the photo essay is simply a more deliberate method of telling a particular story or chronicling a certain event. Photojournalists such as Lauren Greenfield and Deanne Fitzmaurice have captured our imaginations and touched us through powerful photo narrative, and with today’s digital technology and a few storytelling techniques, you can begin experimenting with your own photo essays.
Here are a few tips to help you get started:
· Clearly Define Your Story: It can be as simple as the first day or school or something more complex such as a controversial topic or current event. Whatever the case may be, make sure you can clearly define it and explain it in one or two sentences. The clarity gleaned from this exercise will help guide you throughout the process.
· Go a Little Deeper: Consider what aspects of the story you wish to convey. Is it the wonder of seeing a natural wonder for the first time? The excitement of playing in a first little league game? Spend a little time contemplating the topic as you may uncover other aspects of the event to explore.
· Plan Your Images in Advance: It doesn’t have to be exact, but think about each photograph as a paragraph or chapter of your story. How many images you take is up to you as each story is unique. You may find that ten images portray the event as you wish while others may take fifteen or twenty. There is no right or wrong number; just make sure that each photo serves a particular purpose and plays a role in moving the story forward.
· Consider How to Share Your Story: Continue to play with your creativity by enlarging the photos and having them mounted or framed as a series. We’d be happy to help you put the final polish on your photo essay. The completed result can become a wonderful conversation piece hanging in your living room or even in a local community center or art gallery!
Summer vacations often include locations with amazing outdoor scenery and stunning landscapes. The desire to shoot panoramic photographs once meant investing in expensive equipment, but digital photography advancements mean that you can create picturesque panoramic s with your existing camera and computer. If you’ve hit the road in search of the great outdoors, make sure your images do Mother Nature justice.
Get in the Mode: Check your camera to see if you have a panoramic mode. If you aren’t sure, thumb through the menu or the manual to find out. The panoramic mode is designed to help stabilize lighting conditions between photos in the series, and it will not change exposures between pictures as it would in automatic mode.
Learn to Stitch: Most of today’s image editing programs have a stitching tool that is designed to create a panoramic image from multiple pictures. You may also be able to find a free software plug-in specifically for this purpose. Check online for the options available. You should be able to get what you need at no cost.
Stand Strong: Make sure to stand in the same position throughout shooting your series of images. A slight adjustment of your location can result in photographs that don’t properly line up during the stitching process. A quality tripod can help you retain your position while also keeping your camera stable. We offer a number of quality models here: http://www.promaster.com/products/tripods
Be Open to Overlap: Make sure to leave some overlap on each image so that the photos can be properly combined. When shooting the subsequent image, consider a 15-30% overlap of scene from the previous one.
Keep it Clean: Nothing can ruin a fantastic panoramic picture like a finger smudge or dirt spec on your camera’s lens. Keep a lens cleaning solution and cloth in your camera bag. Many vacation photos have been ruined due to smudges and dirt, so a little preparation really pays off. http://www.promaster.com/products/cleaning
Try it Vertical: Shooting a waterfall or other vertical wonder of nature requires the same basic principles as shooting a traditional horizontal panoramic. Feel free to play with the images until you get the feel for shooting vertically. You may find that the vertical element gives an additional creative twist to your panoramic photography!
Summer means swimming pools and ocean depths, and those fun moments can be photographed even when everyone is wet! Aquatic photography does require a bit more planning and additional equipment, but for those who venture into this form of imaging, the results are well worth the effort.
Many of the same basic photographic principles apply regardless of whether your subject is in the shallow end of a pool or immersed in the Pacific. However, different environments do require different considerations. It’s important to remember safety above all, so make sure that you have the proper training and certification, and always be aware of your environment. Shooting underwater requires learning how to work within certain constraints and limitations such as a confined space, fast moving sea life and limited light.
Consider these tips the next time you consider shooting underwater:
Hone your Diving Skills: If you’re shooting in the deep, you’ll need to be able to keep yourself stable. Buoyancy control is very important in this environment and can have a great impact on the results you achieve.
Keep it Close: You’ll want to shoot your subjects closer than normal. Try to keep the distance less than two feet if possible. The water will ‘swallow’ light and getting well-illuminated shots is far more challenging if you’re shooting from farther away. You’ll also find that color fades the deeper you dive, so this is another consideration. Your flash won’t be as effective either, so try to close the gap between you and your subject.
Enlarge Your Subject: Try shooting upward to better capture your subject. This approach makes subjects appear grander and will allow you to show greater detail as well. This is a powerful technique in aquatic photography that adds scale and dimension to underwater life.
Pool Fun Photos: Try to shoot when the sun is overhead and strong, which is usually between 10am-2pm. This allows you to use the robust light to your advantage. You can also experiment with capturing action dive shots above and below water. Try a few test runs (kids love to ‘cannonball,’ so this shouldn’t be a problem) to make sure your placement allows you to capture the best shots.
Waterproofing Options: If underwater photography is something you’d like to pursue in a regular basis, consider purchasing a waterproof camera. There are a variety of models that can operate in wet conditions without fear of damage. If you prefer to use your existing camera, there are a number of watertight camera housings that will allow you to take your camera into the deep. Stop by our store and we’ll be put together the right solution for you.
Would you like to save hundreds of dollars and have your images be the talk of the town? If you answered yes, then you've found the right place. Most companies charge about $300.00 to buy one single scenic background that only gives you one look for all the images you take. No one wants their photo to look the same as their neighbors did. Would you?
For only $49.99 (or $29.99 for those of you that most likely have "the coupon code") you could rent 6-10 backgrounds for the same price you could buy just one.
For you senior portrait and fashion photographers, options of over 100 backgrounds can set you apart from your competition ~ that has been using the same bench and garden background for years. Let your client choose backgrounds ahead of time, discuss clothing, then have it shipped in for the shoot and returned within a week.
For the photo enthusiast, get creative! Holiday cards, greeting cards, birthday invitations and more. The list is endless. The amount of things you can place an image onto now is mind boggling. Blankets, mouse pads, coffee cups, clothing...give a gift that is personalized and unique.
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The New E-P1. Not A Point & Shoot. Not An SLR. It’s A PEN.The Olympus E-P1 is the world’s smallest 12.3-megapixel interchangeable lens system camera that blends the high-quality still images of a digital single lens reflex (DSLR) with High Definition (HD) video, stereo Linear PCM audio recording and In-Camera Creativity within an ultra-portable body.
The easy-to-use E-P1 expands your creative horizons and its diverse multimedia features offer something for everyone. Built for today’s visual generation who lead active lives online and offline, the E-P1 will make you rethink what you can do with a camera.
What Will You Create in HD?
Olympus pioneered easy-to-use Art Filters for still images captured inside its E-System DSLRs, and now those same In-Camera Creative Features are built into the E-P1 with a fresh twist – they can also be applied to High Definition video recordings to take your videos to a new level of creative expression and put you in the director’s chair.What will you create? Learn more about the E-P1
Summertime signals that adventure awaits. There are family excursions, girls’ weekend trips, father/son outings and solo journeys ahead. Now’s a good time to get your gear ready and pick up any accessories you might need to make your trip a photographic nirvana.
Whether it’s a weekend trip or a two month-trek, here are a few items you’ll need to make sure your travel bag is ready to go.
Expand Your View: There’s no better time to consider a new lens for your camera than when you’re about to embark on a new adventure. A new lens can help you see your environment in an entirely different way and help you take your photography to a higher level. Let us show you how a new lens can expand your view: http://www.promaster.com/products/lenses
Pick the Perfect Bag: The right camera bag is critical in keeping your photography gear protected and organized. Whether you’re looking for a backpack with compartments, a messenger style for hands-free access jet-setting or a waterproof model for turbulent weather conditions, it’s important to find the right fit for your travel needs. We have a variety of choices and can help you find the perfect bag to accompany you on your journeys. http://www.promaster.com/products/bags
Extra Memory Cards: It’s a safe bet that you’ll be taking tons of pictures so make sure you have enough memory cards to keep up with the entire trip. You’ll want to choose high quality digital memory cards with a high-speed transfer rate. We offer a wide selection here: http://www.promaster.com/products/memorycards
Rechargeable Batteries: Don’t get caught with a dead battery in the middle of your trip. Just tuck an extra rechargeable battery in your bag and it will help carry you through your entire trip. And don’t forget to pack the charger! Here are a few high quality batteries to consider: http://www.promaster.com/products/batteries
The PROMASTR Auxiliary Wide Angle, is a great alternative to achieving the wide angle "look" for a fraction of the cost.Features:
The PROMASTER Digital Auxiliary Wide Angle Lens broadens the normal field of view when used with your standard zoom lens. This wider field is perfect for indoor photography where space is limited and for outdoor panoramic photos. This particular lens uses newly designed optical technology to ensure sharp, high-resolution photos with your digital SLR.*
We have tried and found out it works great! See for your self, it makes really makes a difference, notice how much more of the image is capture with the Auxiliary, then with out.
All of this images are taken with a Canon Rebel XS w/18-55 EF-S IS Outfit. The Images on the left are all taken with the Wide Angle Auxiliary, and on the right, with out the Auxiliary at 18mm. All images are shot fully automatic on "P" Mode. And all taken from the same spot and camera angle.
*Product specs and features information have been provided by PROMASTER.
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